The Elementalist

17. Trust

TrustWhen Voi realized that Ronny was leading her to a largely deserted part of Chandra City, into an old industrial district, her pace gradually slowed. She stuffed her hands into her coat pockets.

Ronny spun around and continued walking backward—a cavalier bounce in his step. “What?” he said, almost daring her. “You scared?”

Voi looked over her shoulder. “Where are you taking me?”

“An old spot I used to go to. It’s shut down now, but the power’s still good.” He nodded towards their destination. “Don’t worry, we’re almost there.”

With a huff, she resumed walking.

It was late, and few others were out. Streetlamps buzzed and flickered intermittently. A pack of alley cats strolled across the street, the presence of humans of little consequence to the feral creatures. Remember, you’re the one who asked for this, Voi reminded herself as she eyed Ronny suspiciously from behind. There was a self-assured air of dauntlessness about him when an element of danger surfaced, she realized—a side of him she’d never fully seen before.

They came to an alley near an abandoned warehouse, or at least it looked like one; the light of the streetlamps didn’t reach where they were going. Ronny approached a battered door, looking both ways. “This is it.”

Voi stopped beside him. “Is it locked?” she whispered, afraid they’d be discovered.

He reached out and turned the knob, but the door wouldn’t open. He took a few steps back then looked up. “There.” He pointed.

She looked; one of the windows was cracked open at the lowest level of the fire escape, which didn’t reach the ground. “You can’t be serious.”

“You said you were wearing something flexible, didn’t you?”

Voi frowned. “Aren’t we trespassing?”

“Look, goody-goody, do you want me to teach you something or not?”

Resigned, she huffed.

“Don’t worry. If we get caught, I’ll just tap into their memories and switch things up.” Ronny made a swirling gesture near his head. “Make ‘em forget.”

Voi gawked. “You can do that?”

Ronny grinned.

She rolled her eyes.

He approached the lowest part of the escape stairs then jumped, catching the lowest rung of a retractable ladder. He pulled this down then gestured ahead. “Ladies first.”

Shaking her head, Voi grabbed hold of the ladder then began making her way up. She reached the landing then went to the window, peering inside. “I can’t see anything.”

“Here.” Ronny came from behind and reached for the lower pane, pushing it up. “I’ll go down and check things out. Sit tight.” He crawled through and disappeared. There was a solid echo as he touched down, then… nothing.

Cold, Voi hugged herself, looking up the alley towards the street. Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea. A moment later, a light came from the building. Voi stuck her head through the window. “Ronny?”

No response.

“Alright, I suppose I’m going in.” Voi lifted her leg to the windowsill, swinging herself inside. She lowered herself carefully, though her feet failed to touch the floor. She hung there for a moment, then looked down.

Ronny was standing there a good five feet or so below. He raised his hands. “C’mon, I’ll catch you.”

Voi hesitated before staring at the windowsill then letting go.

“Oh!”

She was surprised that he actually caught her. He stared back—a strange, pensive look in his eye. “You can let go of me now,” she said.

Gently, he let her down.

Voi brushed herself off, taking in a long breath; the air was stale and musty. Glancing around at the silhouettes of a variety of hanging equipment in the sparse lighting, she caught sight of a boxing ring in the center of the room. “Ah, now I see why you brought me here.”

Ronny walked by and went to the ring, pulling himself up then rolling onto the padded floor. He looked back with a smirk on his face. “You coming or what?”

Gathering herself, Voi took a breath then joined him. She grabbed the top of the platform, though he gripped her wrists and pulled her up himself—clumsily. She landed beside him, short of breath. Giving him a sidelong look, she pushed herself away before crawling to her feet,

She looked around.

It was a large space though it had an intimate feel, as the extremities were dim. Voi removed her coat then slung it over the ropes of the boxing ring, afterwards kicking off her pumps. She moved from side-to-side on her stockinged feet though realized they were slippery, so she bent over and hiked up her skirt to undo her garter clips. It was chilly there, but having been somewhat active, this didn’t bother her too much.

Ronny was frowning at her. “What are you doing?”

“I’m taking off my stockings. I’ll slip if I don’t.”

He averted his eyes as if avoiding her bare legs. “I thought you said you were wearing something flexible.”

Voi looked at her skirt. After hesitating, she grabbed the lower rim of the fabric, giving it a rip. She stood upright again, shrugging with a sheepish smile.

He shook his head. “Let’s just get you warmed up.” He took off his outerwear, using the ropes just as Voi did. He started to unbutton the cuffs of his dress shirt then the neck down to the third button. “Take a jog,” he said.

Feeling self-conscious beneath his gaze, Voi gathered her thick hair, wrapped it into a bun, then took off clockwise around the ring.

Ronny removed his shoes and socks. He watched Voi for a good six laps before stopping her. “Alright,” he said, beckoning. “Come back over.”

Slightly annoyed at being bossed around, she puffed a strand of hair out of her face then met in him in the center of the ring.

“We need to stretch first.”

Following his lead, Voi began a series of motions designed to stretch her arms, torso, and legs. He explained, “What I’ll show you today can help in certain situations, but sometimes you just gotta fight dirty. Be aggressive. Don’t be afraid to bite, claw, gouge an eye—whatever you gotta do to break away from your attacker when your life depends on it. Hopefully, you’ll stay aware of your surroundings to try and avoid these situations in the first place. Don’t let strangers get too close to you. Let them know you see them. Awareness.” He held her gaze, lifting his eyebrows.

Voi peered at him.

“Alright, let’s start with the rear choke hold I used before.” Ronny walked behind her then wrapped his arm around her neck, though not too tightly.

Still, she held her breath.

“You okay?”

She made a weak noise.

“I’m not going to hurt you, Voi.”

After a moment, she nodded. “Alright.”

“If you find yourself in this position, the first thing you wanna do is tuck your chin in while you grab the other person’s arm and pull down. Create space to protect your neck.”

“Like this?” she said, bringing her hands up to tug on him.

“Right. Now, protect your neck.” He waited.

Eventually, Voi tucked her chin in.

“Good. While you’re pulling, you can bite on your attacker’s arm to get them to loosen up a bit on your neck.”

Without thinking, Voi quickly spun out of his grip from the side. “I don’t want to bite you!”

“And just like that, you’re out!” Ronny spread his hands, smiling.

Voi gave him a dumfounded look. “That’s it?”

“If you’re lucky. Otherwise, those teeth might come in handy.”

When she frowned, he laughed.

“Alright, let’s try it again seriously this time,” he said. “I’ll walk you through the steps.” He gestured for her to turn.

Voi huffed as she spun around then waited until his arm was around her neck. Automatically, her hands latched onto him. She pulled down and tucked in her chin.

“Good, now I want you to widen your stance. Take a step back with your left leg.”

She did this.

“This makes it harder to pull you backward. Your attacker may try to drag you off. How do you think you get out?”

Voi thought for a moment; he had his right arm around her. “To the left?” she said.

“Uh-huh.”

She rotated herself out from his hold.

“There you go,” said Ronny.

Voi wasn’t sure why she was panting, but a feeling of immense satisfaction came over her. However, a distraught expression overcame her face. “What if they don’t let go?”

Ronny approached her and brought his arm around her neck again, firm yet non-threatening. “You can go for the groin or throw your head back, depending on how hard he’s trying to pull you.”

Uncomfortable, Voi tugged on his arm, but his hold remained stiff. She tried again.

Ronny wouldn’t let go.

“You can stop now,” she said.

Still, he didn’t move.

She started twisting around, but his grip was solid.

He pulled her closer.

“Let me go!”

“Crouch.”

She froze. “What?”

“Bend your knees.”

After a moment, she did.

“Now, turn counterclockwise some and step behind my right leg with your left.”

Voi thought for a moment, turned, then stepped back, fumbling a bit.

“Again, it’s harder for me to pull you back now, see?” He tugged on her, but she didn’t budge very much.

“Uh-huh…” Her voice was muffled.

“Alright, I want you to swing your left arm back and push me away. Use your back leg as leverage.”

“Like this?” Swiftly, Voi pushed him back.

He tripped over her leg and fell.

“Oh!” Voi covered her mouth. “Are you alright?”

He chuckled, pulling himself back up. “Yeah, I’m fine.” He straightened out his clothes. “Wanna try again?”

Eyes sparkling, Voi nodded enthusiastically. She repeated the steps, sending Ronny to the ground. She giggled as he recovered.

“Funny,” he said, rubbing his hip like an old man.

She shook her head. “Where did you learn this from, Ronny?”

“South Darmoil. A Maelt tribesman took me in once when I got into some trouble.”

Voi’s eyes widened. “Really?”

“Yeah, really.”

She thought about this for a moment. “What were you doing in South Darmoil?”

His expression soured. “Alright, enough chit chat, Voi. Let’s run this thing again.” He positioned himself behind her.

“What was she like?”

Ronny paused, his arm halfway around her neck. “What?”

“The woman who betrayed you. What was she like?”

He stepped back. “Who told you about that?”

She hesitated then faced him. “Laura.”

Ronny scowled. “That’s none of your business.” He moved to put her in a choke hold, but she pushed him away.

“Did she really work for the Haran?”

“I don’t want to talk about that right now.”

“Why not?”

“This isn’t a social call, Voi. Now, stop bringing up the past and focus on what we came here for.” Warily, he resumed his choking position. “First step.”

Voi begrudgingly went through the motions, though she put extra effort into throwing him to the ground. He landed with a loud Ugh! and Voi stepped away, watching him stand even slower than before. A devious thought crossed her mind and she grinned, reaching out and calling her element.

A gust of wind knocked Ronny off his feet.

Voi burst out in laughter, tossing her head back.

Out of nowhere, something swept her off her feet, sending her to the mat. She landed on her back with a jarring thud then lay on the ground, groaning.

Ronny rolled closer, hovering above her. “Kyra was a pyro, an elementalist. Trusting her almost got me killed, more than once.”

It took Voi a moment to gather words. “Kyra? You mean… Kyra Feruupa?”

He gave her a dark look, and she gulped. His expression eventually softened as if doubting his harshness. Finally, he rolled away.

Voi sat up, rubbing the back of her head with a cringe.

“Don’t get cocky with me like that again,” he said. “It doesn’t suit you.”

She got up. “Sorry. I was just trying to have some fun.”

Ronny stood there with his hands on his hips. “I think we’re done here.” He snatched his coat from the ropes.

Voi did the same with her clothes. Once dressed, she turned towards him tentatively and said, “Ronny, really, I didn’t mean to—”

“Doesn’t matter. We’re done.”

“I’m just curious about—”

“You should go.”

She leaned back. “I’m not like her!”

“I said go!”

Voi shook her head then stormed for the door, bolting into the alley. Halfway to the street, she stopped and bent over, hyperventilating as she sobbed and covered her mouth.

I can’t keep doing this, she thought, but she had to. She had no choice.