Chapter 44: Planning a Rematch

Kept on his guard by the possibility that Granny Whitney might be trying something, Rick actually felt strong and alert the entire way home. He could probably have fought, though not at his best. When no attack occurred, however, and he ended up safely walking up the stairs to his apartment complex, the adrenaline started to run out.

When he reached the door itself, he found himself just staring at it instead of turning the handle. Though he'd been in worse shape before, that didn't keep him from feeling shitty while carrying so many injuries. Trying to survive it all felt so useless... no, sleep first, worry later.

He managed to get inside the door with only a little trouble. Though Melissa was busy with her work, she did a double take and jumped up. "Oh, god, what is it this time, Rick?"

"Just had another fight with Jack." He accepted her help and eased down onto the couch, though doing so forced out an involuntary groan. Somehow sitting felt worse than standing. "At least there are terms for the fight now, but they're not much better..."

Without bothering to hide anything, he explained the terms of the vendetta. The only thing he didn't mention was what Jack had said about his cousin, because it still bothered him. If someone had ever hurt Melissa, Rick wondered if he would feel just as much rage and hatred. He told himself that he wouldn't be that angry if it was just a fair competition, yet...

Melissa listened quietly, concerned but not acting so upset that it made him feel guilty. When he showed her the data on Jack's portfolio, however, she grimaced.

"That's a lot of lucrim, bro, and he's no amateur. Do you think you can do this?"

"I might not have to fight him." Rick let his head roll back to rest on the couch, though that made it hurt in a different way than keeping it upright. "Since there's a time limit, I win if I can just avoid him for long enough."

"Can you do that, though? I mean, you'd have to go outside to work, so he'd have a lot of chances to take a shot at you."

"Maybe. Maybe not. I'm ahead of the quota, so if I just stop working I won't get fired right away. I'd have to run the numbers to see if I could really sit out the entire time." Rick rubbed his eyes wearily. "No, I don't think it will work. Not with the requirements increasing every month. Plus, I still need to save more to get a better apartment, much less to afford it long term. My income will be a problem if..."

"Okay, okay, don't take it all on at once." Melissa touched his shoulder gently. "Whatever you do, it needs to start with you getting better, okay? So try to relax and let me take care of things."

He nodded, though it wasn't so easy to turn off his brain. Instead he began to think about everything that was left unfinished in his life. It felt like he was scattered in every direction, but maybe out of that mess he could pull a solution. Not all of the fragments were bad, after all, it was just a matter of being able to put it all together.

Though he got a pen and paper to start to write, at some point he leaned back to rest his eyes and then he was out.

~ ~ ~

Once Rick fell asleep, Melissa set to work. Though she glanced longingly toward her technique work, it was too early for that to be of any help to him. Given how much he'd gotten beaten up over the course of his life, he was pretty good at healing, too. The main thing she could do to help was make some calls.

First she called up Emily, who tersely said that she'd be over when she could get off work. Shaking off the curt conversation, Melissa rolled on to calling Lisa, who promised to come as soon as she could. After that, there was only leaving a message with Uncle Frank, since Rick might want his advice. That was just about it. Their circle of support was better than it had once been, but it was still small.

Calls made, Melissa set about cleaning up all of her work. Even if she could trust them, it would just be a whole lot easier not to answer any questions about what she was working on. She was getting close and needed some expert opinions. Most likely Rick was good enough to help, though Melissa did consider how Emily's skill as a lucrim engineer might make her an even better choice. It was just a question of working up the nerve to ask her.

Rick had fallen over into an awkward position with his neck at a weird angle and his mouth hanging open. Melissa gingerly eased him into a better sleeping position, though he seemed so out of it that she wondered if she couldn't have just moved him around like a doll. All her new combat training had left her stronger... not strong compared to fighters, but strong enough that her brother felt light to her.

When there was a knock on the door, Melissa was glad to hop up and answer it. Lisa was on the other side, rushing in and giving her a quick hug. "Melissa... I'm glad you're safe. Based on the way you spoke, I was afraid you were hiding something worse."

"No, no, I'm fine." Melissa put a finger to her lips, then pointed toward where Rick was sleeping. "This isn't the worst he's been beaten up."

"I know." Lisa's eyes turned hard and Melissa was sure she was remembering how Rick had looked after being nearly killed by Teragen.

"Here's the problem: he's going to have a rematch with the guy who did this to him. Not at a set time, and probably not with fair terms. So we need to be ready for it, and that sounds like a pretty tall order. Is there, uh, any kind of lucrim massage you can give him that will boost his power?"

"I might be able to help a little, but I'm not sure it will really make a difference in this case. It might help him feel better or recover a little faster. I'd be better off trying to come up with stronger mixtures for him, but I can't rush that process. And if the gap is significant, I don't know that there's anything that will make a big enough difference..."

Melissa smiled at her. "We don't expect you to do miracles, just do what you can, okay?"

Lisa nodded and walked around Rick, examining him carefully. She bent down behind his head, her hands not quite touching his neck and producing some kind of aura. That led to a thoughtful frown and she hesitantly touched his shoulders. "It does feel like he might have sprained something, and one arm is badly bruised. I can help a bit with that."

"I certainly don't know. Do your thing."

For a while Lisa worked, and it was awkward to just watch her, so Melissa wandered. She went into her own room and took inventory of what she had remaining, but there was nothing. Her remaining philosopher's elixir wouldn't do him much good and the pill she'd gotten from the CLAT would be more useful in her upcoming work. For now, this was all she could do.

Another knock on the door took her out of her wandering. "Oh, that must be Emily!" Melissa went to the door cheerfully, though she saw out of the corner of her eyes that Lisa pulled away from Rick as if his skin had gone hot. Wasn't too hard to figure out what was going on there, but Melissa just wanted everyone to get along long enough to work together. This was not the time for any drama.

"Hey, Emily, I-" Except when she opened the door, it wasn't Emily.

Instead it was some guy in a fancy suit, all black and crimson. She realized that it must be Damian from Rick's descriptions, but she'd never seen him before. He was handsome, but he had the look of someone who was trying way too hard to look that way. They just stared at each other for a bit before he spoke.

"Sorry to just drop-"

"What the heck are you doing here?" She folded her arms and blocked the doorway, hoping that he couldn't see past her to Rick.

"I know what happened because I heard about the aftermath from the other side. Jack is pissed, but he's not going to come after Rick right away. Instead he wants to plan for a decisive match." Damian gave her a smile that she had to admit was a bit charming. "I'm not going to say I'm on your side, but in this match, I'm in your court."

"Alright, I guess." After giving him a long stare, Melissa opened the door and stepped aside so he could come in. "But if you don't have any help to offer, we're kicking you out."

"Oh, well then, I'll be on my best behavior."

Damian walked in and greeted Lisa. Though Melissa knew that she should probably introduce them or something, she was too anxious to think about that kind of thing. Why wasn't Emily there yet? Obviously she had work, but Melissa had assumed she could get off somehow.

When she turned back she saw Damian kiss Lisa's freaking hand, like he was straight out of a movie. Lisa gave him a look and pulled her hand back. That was super weird, but then again, from everything Rick had told her, Damian himself was pretty weird.

"What exactly are you here to offer?" Lisa asked. Damian shrugged good-naturedly.

"I can't afford to throw in direct support, but I'm happy to coordinate since we have a mutual enemy. I also have some valuable intelligence regarding this potential duel." Damian paused ominously, but when the two of them just stared at him, he was forced to go on. "I think Rick actually has a chance to dodge this fight if he wants."

Melissa moved in closer, eyeing him suspiciously. "How? The guy has a hate-on for my brother."

"Yes, but I know that he's planning to spend a period of at least a few weeks preparing for the fight. That knowledge would let Rick focus entirely on surveying. He could build up a sufficient lead that once Jack goes on the warpath, he could pull back and avoid him until time runs out."

"I don't know if my brother will go for it. Seems really risky."

"But you don't have many options. I think you're underestimating just how high the risk would be of the fight itself: you haven't seen what Jack will do if he knows he only has one shot left to take."

"No." Rick sat up on the couch, looking even more tired than before but obviously having followed the last part of the conversation. "I understand what you're saying, but I don't agree. If Jack doesn't get his fight, he might resort to something worse. Plus, there's too much chance involved and I could end up in a fight anyway, one way or another. I need to assume the fight will happen."

"Remember that the American Basilisk hired him to infiltrate the corporation. You really think he's going to risk his contract with someone that important for a little vendetta?"

"Maybe. It's a real risk." Rick looked grim for a moment, then stared at Damian as if for the first time. "Wait, why are you here?"

Melissa stepped in at that point. "He just showed up, since apparently he heard about the fight. I let him in because I figured we could use all the help we can get. Sorry."

"No, that was the right decision." Her brother gripped the edge of the couch and got to his feet, wincing slightly as he did so. They all stood around after that, though, not really getting started.

Though she'd never wanted to play hostess, Melissa decided that they needed a bit of something to distract them, so she skipped to the kitchen. "Does anybody want something to drink? By 'something' I mean 'water' because that's all we have right now. Also... we only have a couple glasses, so somebody is going to have to use a sippy cup."

"Oh, that's fine," Damian said, "I always drink straight from the faucet."

She shot him an amused glance but did pour water for everyone. They took it, not so much because they needed a drink but to have something to do. Everyone was loitering in the kitchen with their water when there was finally another knock on the door. Melissa headed for it, though she kept her enthusiasm in check this time.

Fortunately, it was actually Emily this time. She strode in, ignoring everyone else to check on Rick from multiple angles. Once he met her approval, she nodded slightly. "Your defensive core fared better this time. That's good."

"I think I've done everything I can." Lisa set down her cup and headed toward the door, briefly touching Melissa's arm. "Thank you for calling me, but I'll leave the fighting to all of you. Good luck."

Before Melissa could object, she was out the door. Her brother looked troubled but said nothing. Emily didn't seem to notice, while Damian just glanced after her with a cool look before shrugging and refocusing. Now that Emily was there, it seemed clear that the conversation was going to kick into high gear, because she wasn't waiting around.

First they caught her up to speed with the details. As soon as she'd heard it all, Emily nodded. "I agree with Rick: a fight is extremely likely, so we need to prepare for that eventuality."

"Our one major advantage is that we know Jack's portfolio." Rick pulled it up on his phone and passed it around. "Unfortunately, he knows mine too. I think that's overall in my favor, since there's nothing special hiding in my portfolio. He's seen what I have, other than all your moral support."

Though her brother barely glanced at her when he said it, his tone and the way his eyes shifted sent a warmth throughout Melissa. Even if she couldn't help directly, at least she could give him one advantage. Maybe punching her void flame into someone wasn't the most powerful attack, but at least it was completely invisible to their opponent.

When it came around to her, Melissa looked at the numbers again even though they were already familiar to her.

[### Unsigned Lucrima Portfolio ###]

*Data is not verified and may be suspect.*

Foundation: 4200 (Lv V)

Aura Ink Foundation: 37,875 (Lv VII)

Offensive Design: 43,500 (Lv IX)

Defensive Design: 12,125 (Lv VI)

Raging Eagle Design: 7600 (Lv VII)

Acceleration Lucore: 8700 (Lv VI)

Total Lucrim: 38,250]

Strangely, Emily and Damian glanced at each other after looking over the portfolio. After a pause, Emily spoke first. "I won't lie, this is a difficult match-up for you. Overcoming a gap when your opponent is incompetent is one thing, but this gap won't be easily made up. It only happens in movies because the enemies are idiots or the hard parts are skipped with a training montage."

"I was gonna ask something," Melissa said. "What's this Raging Eagle thing?"

"It's an explosive ranged attack. It was a celebrity tech, so I can get you exact specs later. Given that he didn't use it before, he must hold it in reserve. Being prepared for that will be a definite advantage, but beyond that..."

"The most obvious step is to create a new Lucore to counter the opponent." Damian stroked his chin thoughtfully, and though the motion looked a bit pretentious, his eyes were completely serious. "I think that's a bad idea in this case, at least nothing too complex. A guy like Jack knows his weaknesses and will be ready to counter any cheap attempts at them."

Rick nodded in understanding. "I was thinking on that subject. But if not that, what?"

"What if you just leaned into your strengths? Your opponent relies heavily on his offensive capabilities. If you can block those, he'd be helpless."

"I can't." Rick shifted back to sit on the back of the couch. "After putting a lot of thought into it, I don't think it's possible. That tattoo skill has truly absurd offensive power, probably because his whole secondary foundation is devoted to supporting it. My defensive core is enough that it won't kill or disable me instantly, but I don't think there's any way I can get to the point where I can just fight through the blows."

"Which is why he's a bad match-up for you." Emily pressed her lips together into a thin line for a moment before she continued speaking. "The most obvious solution is to improve your mobility."

"I plan to, and I might ask Delsin on that front. But I really don't think that will be enough."

After that, they lapsed into silence. Melissa knew that she was no expert fighter, but she didn't like to see them all this grim. When the silence persisted, she decided to risk chiming in. "Uh, if you can't stop taking injuries, what about getting rid of them? Could you build a healing Lucore before fighting him again?"

At least nobody said she was stupid for the idea, considering it seriously. But it wasn't very long before Emily shook her head, her bangs snapping back and forth sharply. "A good thought, but I don't think it's a viable strategy. If you invested enough, you might be able to learn a healing skill in a short time, but healing skills are more difficult to use effectively. Being able to heal yourself in the middle of fast-paced combat is a level of mastery no one here has reached."

Melissa shrank back, a bit disappointed. However, she noticed that there was a new light in her brother's eyes and he began to speak. "If my goal is to make myself more comparable to Jack instead of reinvesting my portfolio to face him, then the most obvious step is to develop a new foundation. I might be close to gaining one, but the problem is that I don't know its exact characteristics."

"What does that mean?" Emily regarded him dubiously, but he moved on.

"I've been talking to a man named Delsin Lingering Ogre and he agreed to teach me once I had my current foundation developed further. I say we find out what benefits it grants, then build the rest of our strategy around that."

After a pause, Damian slowly began nodding. "We might have to do that. Normally she'd be right and it'd be pure idiocy to bet on you. But you're in an unusual position with a lot of resources available to you and some potentially significant gains. If you can make all those come together into something coherent, you might have a chance."

"Then we're agreed." Emily nodded sharply. "Rick, I'll leave it up to you and your sister to help you recover and improve your foundation. I'll be planning what I can, though I'm going to need to talk to the old man to know what we're working with."

"That might be difficult," Rick said, "but I'll see what I can do."

With that, they suddenly had a plan. Melissa breathed a sigh of relief just to have some idea for how they were going to move forward. But the best part was, if her brother needed to improve his foundation, then all her work might be able to help after all.