Hermes didn’t expect training with the Cloud Nine Squad to be so brutal when he held back his monster form.
And yet, here he was, flat on his back for the third time that morning with a set of iron ribs wrapped around his waist like a corset made of shame.
Fiero crouched next to him. "You good, bro?"
"Can’t... feel my spleen." Hermes wheezed.
Fiero laughed and tapped the metal to dissolve it. "That means it worked! You just got Ironcage-d bruh!"
Cam clicked a photo from the sidelines, the flash blinding Hermes mid-recovery.
"Do you really have to do that every time?" Hermes asked, shielding his eyes.
"I’m gathering data." Cam replied coolly. "Also, you looked pathetic. Wanted to save the moment."
Hermes groaned and rolled over. "I miss the monster form already..."
But he was committed. No more losing control. He had to learn how to fight like a true hero, not a raging frost beast.
Unfortunately, this meant losing. A lot.
Vera was his training partner the next day. She took him out with an obsidian unicorn horn to the shin within the first three minutes.
"You need faster reflexes." She said bluntly, handing him an ice pack.
Then the day after that, he got assigned to fight with Somner. He no longer had the Sirentone ability, so he was not immune to his hypnosis.
Hermes tried to fake him out with a misdirection ice punch. It worked.
Until Somner’s voice cracked like lightning: "Sleep."
Hermes hit the floor like a sack of rice.
He woke up to Somner sitting cross-legged beside him, sipping tea.
"That was embarrassing," Hermes muttered.
"I know." Somner replied with a smirk. "Wanna kiss me again to gain my ability?"
Hermes thought about it. If they kissed again, it would definitely escalate into something more. And right now, he wanted to focus on getting stronger for Eirwyn’s sake, not fooling around.
"... I’ll pass for now."
But not all training was bruises and ego death. One morning, Victorina finally woke up.
Hermes rushed to her hospital room, breath tight in his lungs. She was sitting in a wheelchair, her legs bandaged and glittering faintly with healing runes.
"Hey..." he said, fidgeting. "I just wanted to say... I’m sorry. For losing control."
Victorina raised an eyebrow, then grinned. "Girl, please. That was the most fabulous training duel I’ve ever had!"
He blinked. "You’re not mad?"
"I’d be mad if you held back. You didn’t. That’s what made it beautiful." She winked. "Besides, Mr. Eirwyn’s taking care of me. I’ll be back on my sparkly tutu in no time."
Hermes felt tears prick at the edge of his vision, but he nodded, grateful beyond words.
Back at his apartment, things were somehow worse.
"You are not my roommate," Hermes declared, arms crossed as he watched Magni hang a burning dreamcatcher over the doorway.
Magni beamed. "Roommate, life coach, spiritual chiropractor—labels are fluid!"
"... Spiritual what?"
Xolotl barked from the couch, covered in ribbons from a Voidling tea ceremony Magni had decided to conduct in his honor.
"Oh! Is this your familiar?" Magni asked, stroking the Xolo’s smooth head. "Does he possess powers of perception? Does he devour the sins of your enemies?"
"He poops twelve times a day and never gets tired." Hermes deadpanned.
Magni gasped. "Incredible! A creature of boundless stamina and rapid internal transmutation! A marvel of Void evolution!"
Hermes sighed and collapsed onto the couch. "Let’s just... talk about duel rules already."
Magni nodded solemnly, plopping beside him and pulling out a scroll that smelled like ash and old teeth.
"In the Void, a duel is sacred." He said, eyes glinting. "You challenge them. They accept. There are only two endings: Surrender or death."
Hermes sat up straighter. "But surrendering is an option?"
Magni’s grin turned sharp. "It is. Technically. But surrendering marks you as prey. Weak. Other Voidlings will circle, sensing your fear. Once you’ve done it, you’re open season."
Hermes frowned. "Then it’s unlikely Trivia will give up, even if she’s losing."
"Exactly," Magni nodded. "But you—you, Brother Modi—have the advantage of deception. You can steal her power."
Hermes raised an eyebrow. "And then what? Demand she lift the curse or she never gets it back?"
"Precisely! You could pretend it’s gone forever, hold it hostage until she gives in." Magni sipped his muddy tea.
Hermes rubbed his chin, thinking. "But if they find out..."
Magni’s voice dropped. "If the Void finds out you’re not as strong as you appear—if word spreads that you used a bluff to win a sacred duel—others will come. Stronger ones. Just to test you."
"So I’d paint a target on my back." Hermes signed.
"Yes." Magni nodded. "A glowing, juicy, heroic target."
Hermes leaned back, groaning. "So I either kill her, bluff her and risk it later, or find a third option..."
Magni shrugged. "Or you just become the strongest Voidling ever and take over the dimension. That’s what I’d do."
Xolotl yawned and curled up in Hermes’ lap. The weight of the dog felt grounding.
Hermes stared at the ceiling. Then at his training notes.Then at the steaming tea Magni left bubbling on the windowsill like some ancient lava potion.
He recalled his training, the way that other heroes had outdone him. He recalled the rules of his powers as set by the system.
Like pieces of a puzzle, he spent time putting them together until he could form a coherent and solid strategy.
Something that will ensure Trivia’s defeat, while also avoiding having to end her life.
Magni tilted his head. "Oh? A new plan?"
Hermes nodded, eyes gleaming. "I know how to beat her."
But first thing’s first.... He had to gather some specific abilities to help him in this duel. And that would be hard, given what he needed to do to gain them.
He had to be creative when it comes to people that he was not really that close to and has animosity for him...
Especially one person in particular.