Facing Fear | ✓ ONC 2023 Honorable Mention

11 | Imaginary Potato

"Alright," Mori whispered to herself. "Let's see what you're made of."

As soon as the countdown ended, Niko snapped his fingers, sparking a tendril of green flame. He threw it to the ground where it set the grass on fire, then readied his shotgun. The air filled with the smell of acidic burning.

Healing Rain.

Thunder boomed over their heads, a sudden downpour of rain soaking the field and sizzling against the electric barrier. It didn't put the flames out, but some of the charred grass sprung back to life. Tears trickled over Mori's cheeks. She sighted in and shot at Niko.

After a glance at the sky, Niko charged at her. His shielding appeared like a glimmering dewdrop before her second shot splintered it. Rain plastered Niko's green hair flat against his scalp, mingling with the tears leaking from his eyes.

By then the fire scorched Mori's skin and three successive blasts of her opponent's weapon took her shield down. She aimed lower and shot Niko in the shoulder, but the wound mended in an instant. Thought so.

A slug shattered her knee. Mori's gasped from the pain, but once the rain made contact, her body regenerated. Though her pants had smoking holes in them, her legs only stung with a hollow burning from the green flames.

Niko stopped running and eyed her, putting a hand to his shoulder in disbelief. "What the—" One bullet took him in the heart, another in the head. Fatal. He broke apart into blue blocks.

A ripple of energy surged through the battlefield, restoring her burnt clothing and the terrain. Both rain and fire dispersed. "Match complete. Winner is MementoMori."

Numbers appeared before her, spinning to the sound of coins falling. "Distributing battle points." The total stopped at eight hundred and faded.

"Clean shots there, Mentos." Ren nudged Mori's arm on her way to retrieve Niko. The shade of his face matched his hair and Mori grimaced in sympathy. A ride on the world's largest roller coaster would have a better aftermath than these mock battles.

Letting her rifle pixelate, Mori tapped her grey earring to blue. Upon hearing footsteps behind her, she turned around to face them.

Cynthia's metal-shod boots squelched the grass beneath them. Instead of wearing it loose like the night before, she'd styled her blond hair into a braided crown. "That was impressive," she said quietly. In the sunlight, the team's leader appeared less intimidating, her blue eyes mellowing to a gentle sky-like hue.

"Thank you," Mori answered. "Does...this mean I've made the team then?"

"Yes." Cynthia beckoned for Mori to follow. "You don't know how useful an asset a healer is. Or perhaps you do."

Mori hesitated, staring at the broadsword strapped in a scabbard to Cynthia's back. "I'd imagine healers are in high demand, in Valor more than most games."

"You're a rarity, Mori. So I'd like to let you know that you'll always have a place with us. "Cynthia looked over her shoulder. "I hope that you'll give this role your all and do your best to serve the team."

A lump formed in Mori's throat. All that work to figure out how to win against Niko and Cynthia could only see her utility as a healer? Speak up. Say something. But she needed to be on this team. It was her best shot at finding Shiori. Mori deflated like a popped balloon. "I won't let you down."

"Good to hear it." Cynthia's next words came through the party comm line. "Change of plans, everyone. No dungeons today—we're going to tackle the pass and scout the sixth ring instead. Gather what you need and meet at the wall due north of base in an hour."

"Is there anything I can help with?" Mori ventured to ask.

Cynthia marched away without a backward glance. "Have Perera brief you on your position and what we know about the monsters in the Ravine. You ever been past the fifth ring?"

"Never," Mori replied, almost feeling like she should address Cynthia as "ma'am" or with some other honorific.

"Perera, you've got watch over our new recruit," Cynthia ordered.

Mori paused in the middle of the crowd, unsure of where Ren and Niko had gone. A few players congratulated her on the mock battle win, but in their eager eyes, Mori thought a desperation lurked behind the forefront of polite interest. She nodded and smiled before breaking out of the crowd. Not knowing what else to do, she started the slow hike back to the base. "Potato?" she called, establishing a private line.

"Here," Perera's soft, high-pitched voice answered. "I think the battle went well?"

"Better than I expected. Thanks again for the help. I couldn't have done it without you." Mori watched a flock of white birds swoop overhead. Even though her brain knew Perera was a real person, she had trouble thinking of her as more than simply an imaginary friend or her conscience.

"Oh, I don't know about that...Captain would've let you on regardless of winning once she knew you could heal."

Mori opened her lips, but her mouth had gone dry.

"Still, Wraith said you had potential, so she wanted you to fight and asked me to coach you," Perera continued. "I'm sorry! I hope you're not mad at me."

"No, not mad," Mori said, her tongue sticking to the roof of her mouth. More hurt than anything. "Can you heal, Potato?"

A small sigh echoed through the line. "Wish I could, but the closest sig I've got only cushions damage. But going back to your win, it's helped establish your importance on the team. And Captain wouldn't want you just because healers are valuable, she's soft on them too."

"Why's that? Or as Niko would say 'spill the tea, sis'." Mori laughed. She and Tsuna had engaged in "slumber party" talk the night before, but it had mainly consisting of real life gossip. Even after several years, when Tsuna talked about her boyfriend, her hobbies, the lucrative business she had as an influencer, Mori couldn't help the pang of longing she felt.

Be happy for her and don't compare, she'd scolded herself. But such things were easier said than done.

The fact that she found Potato so easy to talk to contributed to the silly notion that her teammate existed only as a figment of her imagination. A wish made reality instead of a fear.

"As you know, Captain is top ten and the only female on the leader board. But you remember TofuOfHonor, right?" Perera giggled.

"Right," Mori said, playing along.

"Well, she was never in our party, but she and Captain struck up a friendship, being the only two women in top ten at the time. We helped her party out, they helped ours when possible. Tofu was a healer, the most beloved player in Valor—super popular, but she wasn't fake, you know? She was a genuinely good person, which is why we all took it hard when she passed."

Mori frowned. "She didn't happen to die during the player killings, did she?"

"No, she didn't. But, Mori...you should know that if—" Perera paused, her voice quivering. When she continued with hushed words, they brimmed with fear and worry. "If you weren't a Fearless."

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Chapter Word Count: 1791
Total Word Count: 21861