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DESMOND
A ll of the barracks were built around a large grassy clearing troops already started calling The Pit. Very original. The entire army gathered here, packed elbow to elbow to hear Diana speak. I had forgotten how much they adored her, many of them hanging off her every word as she impressed upon them how important our cause was. She was almost done with her speech, and the awe-struck expressions on their faces was something I had rarely seen in followers before.
“We fight for ourselves and the human world. For our right to live within the statute of secrecy without oppression. For freedom from a megalomaniac Satan consumed with power and greed. We are not pawns for his domination plans!” her voice rang out amongst the crowd, magically enhanced to reach the very back of the crowd. “The very existence of the world we’ve come to know depends on us !”
Thousands of soldiers broke into a roar of applause. Diana smiled at them, waiting for the cheering to fizzle out before continuing.
“This war will not be easy. There have been casualties who gave their life for the cause, and their sacrifice will never be forgotten. No, we will remember them through victory. We will train for them, together. Get stronger, together . Destroy our enemies on the battlefield, together !”
Diana worked up the crowd, unifying them through loss and hope. As she captivated our troops, I saw the makings of a true leader. Of a woman who could inspire others.
“Red will rue the day he deceived us and perverted the powers of the Satan position. He will regret coming for my father and my family. But most of all, he will regret fucking each and every one of us over. This may seem like the calm before the storm, but mark my words—this is only the beginning of Red’s retribution, so we need to get ready, Team Morningstar! I’ll see everyone in the new training building in half an hour.”
The troops excitedly cheered, many of them making their way to the building.
Don’t push yourself too hard today. I have a surprise training exercise for you tonight, I reminded her as she chatted with some raven shifters.
Diana had started the habit of shifting into a raven and flew with them every week. They gave her flight pointers, and showed her how to inflict serious claw damage. Diana had a way of making the troops feel important and building relationships while keeping her leadership boundaries in place. She was endearing, a quality I often struggled with.
That better not be another sex joke, she groused while smiling at their leader, The Morrigan.
You weren’t complaining earlier this morning. You’re an expert at being on your hands and knees now, I reminded her. You’ll see what we have planned.
I wanted to train Diana privately, but at her and Ares’ insistence, she spent the next three hours training in the open with the troops. I noted it made a positive impact on everyone’s performance. The troops loved to see her train, and gained morale. Diana would never admit it, but liked the accountability of having an audience. It pushed her to work harder.
She spent the bulk of the training session sparring with various opponents. She dodged high level attacks from multiple types of magics, winning the past four matches straight with an overall record of 8-2. Not bad, but not good enough if she wanted to destroy Red.
Her last opponent of the session was Lucifer himself.
“Are you ready to get your ass handed to you by your dad?” he asked her.
“Very funny. Hopefully you won’t fall and break a hip, old man,” she barbed him before engulfing him in flames. She didn’t even wait for the countdown to start the spar.
“Smart move—always be on the offensive. Battle isn’t fair,” he coached her.
He abandoned his fighting stance, standing idly several feet away from her. Diana buckled, falling to her knees and grabbing her head. Her face twisted in pain. Lucifer smiled, giving her a moment to adjust.
“Psychological warfare is fair game. You need to work on your mental shields,” he reprimanded her. He broke eye contact, and she sighed in relief. “I want you to attack me. Hit me with your best offense.”
Diana extended her palm, and an opaque, black smoke ensnared its way around Lucifer’s head, pouring into his mouth. When he started choking, he raised his hand to his throat as a red beam of light passed through it. He took a deep breath before shooting a bolt of magic at his daughter that hoisted her up in the air by one ankle, like a game trap and bound her hands together.
“Can you cast magic without your hands? Quelier said you cheated during your training session with him by playing dead. I want you to attack me without casting. Use your mind.”
She had done it before, but not regularly. The last time she did it, she was riding an emotional high and barely controlled herself. The longer she focused the more she strained, until her face started turning red from exertion.
Instead of forcing the magic out, envision it. Imagine it happening in real time, and keep your mind’s eye open. Relax, you look like you’re constipated, I linked her.
You’re emotionally constipated, asshole, she retorted. Despite her foul attitude, I noticed that she visibly relaxed, her face smoothing out. Her shoulders leveled out, and her jaw unclenched.
She was able to cast enough magic to break her bonds. Then she went back to casting with her hands.
She needs to master nonverbal casting. Work with her, Lucifer linked me.
I made a whole list of things she needs to work on. I’ll add it.
Diana improved every day, but she still needed to work on nonverbal casting, mental shields, and fighting in non-practice conditions. Real life fighting wasn’t like a sparring match.
Guys, I have an idea… I linked Ares, Az, Bash, and Mal. Meet me in the apartment after this training session, while Diana has dinner with Michael.
I had a whole plan on how to combine all of these areas of improvement into one mega training exercise.
Lucifer eventually beat Diana, bringing her tally to 8-3. I didn’t expect her to overpower the literal Embodiment of Evil—no one could in a one on one fight. But watching her practice fighting with him gave me ideas on things to teach her.
“Diana, I want you to meet me in the basement of the training center tonight.” She was in for the ultimate training.
“Um, why?” she asked.
“Training. I have an idea, and I think it’ll help with giving you more realistic situations to spar in. You need to be the best, and this will help you get there,” I explained.
I hated to play on her need to achieve, but this was life or death. Whether she faced Red one on one or not, she was putting her life on the line in this war, and we needed her to fight at the highest level for all of our sakes. I wasn’t sure how I would cope if she didn’t make it.
“Okay. But if I’m training during the day and at night, I want to sleep in a little bit in the morning.”
“Okay then, it’s a date. Enjoy your dinner with Michael.” I kissed her on the cheek, because showing physical affection made her happy. I took Az’s advice to heart, and judging by the blush that creeped over her cheeks, it worked.
I was the last one to fade to the apartment. The four most important men in my life were all sitting around the table, looking at me with varying looks of excitement and curiosity. I cast a silencing spell and tweaked the wards to temporarily keep Diana out, so she couldn’t drop in while we planned.
“Alright, men. I have an idea for a training exercise for Diana,” I announced.
“Training, or training ,” Ares asked me, sporting an unhinged grin from ear to ear.
“If we’re lucky, A-Bomb, both.”