Two more Rosses came charging. Tora brought up a forcefield, spreading her mind forward to close around their ankles. Their feet passed straight through her mind's grip. A kick into the small of her back from behind sent her crashing straight into her own wall; she bounced off with a yelp and tumbled onto her butt.

"Come on, Tora," said one of the Rosses. They surrounded her, standing about a metre away. "Are you this weak without your fists? Is Carlos talking out of his ass again?"

"Hey!" he protested from afar.

"No," Tora growled, getting onto her knees.

"We both know that. So why are you acting such a weakling?"

Tora's back bristled. Ross could be such an ass sometimes. A hand smacked the back of her head, making her flinch. God, she was such a witch.

"Get up."

Tora expanded her forcefield without moving. The wall pushed against the real Ross, who stumbled backwards. The images shimmered, the same surprised look on their faces.

"That's not going to cut it. Defence makes a crap offence."

Tora dropped the shield, jumping to her feet. Ross's jibes were irritating, and her litheness equally so. She evaded most of the attempts at capturing the real her and immersed herself into her clones. All of them didn't hesitate to lay into Tora, punching and slapping her, and although the images did no damage, every so often a real fist would clap her ears and a knee knead into her stomach. Ears ringing and blood pounding in her ears, Tora crashed into the foosball table again.

"This is pathetic. Are you really a Seeker? If you don't use your fists you're just a pussyfooting weakling – no different than a human."

"You never fail to inspire, Ross," Tora replied, straightening up. Fire burned in her heart and in her eyes, and she flexed her fingers.

"I didn't ask for your opinion. Be on your toes!"

With that, Ross – three of them – shot forward. She had the same agility as Tora, even though Tora was two heads taller. Tora evaded the punches aimed at her. One skimmed by her nose, but left nothing in its wake. A fake.

With the handicap of not using physical attacks, Tora struggled. Unless she threw up a forcefield that separated the room into two – no mean feat if she wanted to contain it on this floor and no further – there was no way to use telekinesis to figure out which Ross was real and which was not. Multiple forcefields was out of the question.

She spent too long mulling. A punch with the base of Ross's palm into Tora's chin made stars explode in her eyes. Her world went black fleetingly. She could taste blood in her mouth. Pain shot like spikes from her nose around her head, making her brain shudder.

"Does it take a near-death experience for you to actually make some effort? I expected better."

Ross was relentless. She dropped to the ground and swiped at Tora's feet. Tora's knees buckled. The training room's high ceiling soared over her head and she landed on her shoulder blades. Her breath was knocked out of her.

"This is pathetic. You're not even trying."

"I am!" Tora propped herself onto her elbows and spat out a mouth of bloody spit. Ross wouldn't understand. Even Tora herself didn't understand. Her head was spinning too much to be coherent.

"No, you're not. You're weak. You're not even using your powers properly. What do you call this?" There was a thud as Ross banged on the forcefield she'd thrown up around herself. The shield shuddered, pressing in Tora's mind.

Tora pushed Ross back. The lieutenant stumbled, grim determination beneath more stray red hair. The copies disappeared and were replaced by more, standing abreast beside Ross.

"Weakness puts the group at risk. You're not even bothering to fight back. This isn't your first time fighting with telekinesis."

Two Rosses ran forward. One shot for Tora's midriff whilst the other kicked at her. Tora dived out of the way, coming face-to-face with another Ross as she rolled to her feet, and was back-handed swiftly across the face. Stars exploded across Tora's eyes.

"Come on. I thought you loved to fight. Where's that fire now?"

The anger burned steadily in Tora's chest. The golden liquid was so accessible, sitting in a recluse at the back of her mind. One small dip into it and she could easily take down Ross. It was tempting, but a small worry nagged at her at the same time. So much power – could she take it? What if she couldn't control it? What if it controlled her – just like in the park?

Ross kicked out. Tora brought up a forcefield in time to avoid broken ribs. Ross's boot connected squarely with the invisible wall and the force sent Tora skidding backwards. A second kick shattered the forcefield. The break felt like someone had smashed a hammer over her head. With a grunt, Tora sat back. Damn, that hurt.

She might have impressed Carlos in the park, but she knew Ross wouldn't take the sudden power surge so positively. Tora got enough flack when she first met Ross, disorientated and amnesic. 'I don't know' never sat well with her. It roused suspicion.

But at this rate, it seemed Ross was more likely going to kill Tora than know what really happened in the park.

"The demons are closing in. They're hungry for your blood. They want to tear you limb from limb and eat your innards." The words fired out of Ross's mouth like bullets from a machine gun. "They've ripped off half of Markl's body and Damien's bleeding to death in the corner. Carlos has just bummed around so a demon has its jaws around his head. He's about to be decapitated and eaten. You're standing there like a pudding."

Tora brought up another shield and pressed it against the nearest Ross, passing straight through. Cursing, she brought up a new one and pushed against the closest two. Both of them sidestepped her attempt.

"You need bigger forcefields, Tora. The size is getting quite predictable. I don't even need to feel them to know where they are."

Ross darted forward. Tora had fought long enough with her this time to know it was a distraction. The image passed through her like a whisper and out of the corner of her eye, a dark shape shifted into sight. Tora jumped back; a foot sailed at the spot where her head had been moments before. She didn't pause. Keeping a keen eye on that Ross, she projected her power forward, forcing the girl back. A look of surprise flitted across Ross's face before she crashed into the foosball table. A few little football people bounced onto the ground.

"Don't break it!" yelled Carlos. "Aw, man!"

Ross was onto Tora again with the skills of a predator. Tora managed to block a flurry of strikes to her face, but a kick to the shin sent pain shooting up to her thigh. Ross kept up with her assault; Tora just about was able to block them.

Ross split into three copies again. Dammit.

Tora pushed forward, panting. All three phased through.

What the...?

A fist to the back Tora's head sent her for a second time face-first into her shield. Dispersing it before it broke her nose, Tora turned, throwing up another shield behind her. The three Rosses standing there dissolved into thin air.

"You're pathetic, Tora." An arm snaked around her neck and squeezed. A short pair of legs clamped around Tora's arms, pinning them to the side. The heels of Ross's boots dug into Tora's stomach. Ross's breath was hot in Tora's ear. "Come on, fight me. Where's that awesome power Carlos spoke about?"

"You don't understand," she said through gritted teeth.

"I understand what I see. I'm seeing a violent girl who's too arrogant to use her powers. I'm seeing a girl who puts the thrill of fighting before the safety of her team. Extra baggage."

"Shut up!" Tora wriggled, but Ross's super-strength was superior. It was like steel clamps had wrapped around her torso.

"Prove me wrong. Show me your strength. Push me off, then."

"I'm going to push you off a cliff at this rate."

Ross snorted.

"I'd like to see you try."

Tora's head was still spinning. As Ross constricted, Tora's oxygen supply was diminishing. She knew Ross was deliberately putting her in a difficult place to make her desperate. And it was working. Her anger bubbled with fury; her heart raced.

She pushed against Ross with her shoulders and was rewarded with another slap on the head. Growling, Tora pushed with her mind instead. The forcefield started to form and then dissipated. A second attempt was the same. She couldn't concentrate.

"This is ridiculous. How weak are you?"

Tora started to see red. Fire raced up and down her spine.

"This is even more pathetic than if you'd tried your best and then failed miserably."

She wanted power? She would get it. Rammed right down her throat and out the other end. Tora reached her mind for the golden liquid, blood drumming in her ears and darkness filling the corners of her view.

"You shouldn't even be a Seeker—"

"That's enough, Ross."

They both looked up to see Markl standing at the bottom of the stairs, arms crossed and leaning against the door frame.

"We're training, Markl. Go away."

"I said, that's enough." There was a steely undertone to Markl's voice that made Ross hesitate. Holding on for another two seconds to prove her point, she finally let go and jumped to her feet. Tora coughed, gulping in sweet air. The drumming ceased. The fire on her back continued to run up and down her skin, but it, too, was diminishing.

"You shouldn't get in the way of training, leader or not." Ross sounded disgruntled, dusting herself off and then retying her red hair into a ponytail. "Tora's telekinesis is seriously lacking, and my point was more obvious now than before. Her powers are weak."

"They are not weak," Tora spat, getting up. She loosened her shoulders; the joints cracked. Bending her fingers this way and that, she slid the dislocated joints back into place noisily.

"You can't even get me if you don't have your fists." Ross's eyes were icy, just like her voice. She turned a little to give Tora a backward glance. "What difference are you to one of those brutish vigilantes we see on the news? Bumbling idiots with more muscle than brain cells?"

"If Tora isn't ready to train, you shouldn't push her."

Ross snorted. "Tell the demons that. Tell Carlos that. If I recall correctly, it took you about two hours to regenerate and reorganise your missing organs. Think we can afford more pandering and fluffy words the next time a demon decides to give you a full colectomy? 'Hang on, you ass-for-a-face, I'm not ready to fight. You shouldn't push me'?"

"A full what?" Carlos stopped, a confused look on his face. He resumed his push-ups in a hurry when Ross gave him a withering glare.

"I trust Tora enough to know when she's ready or not ready for training." Markl met her disapproving green eyes with his own steady gaze when she turned back. "You, of all people, should be aware of her enthusiasm for training and fighting."

"All too well. But that's not the point. We should be on our toes – at all times."

"She's had enough training for today. Come back later, Ross. You're only creating negative feelings."

She stared at him, fists clenched. Tora knew she had a lot of snark left, but she wouldn't ever compromise Markl's position. He stared her down with his dark eyes.

Ross heaved a sigh and shook her head. She stomped back upstairs, leaving a relieved silence behind. Knowing Ross, it wasn't over yet.

"Hang on a minute." Carlos looked uncertainly from the doorway through which Ross disappeared, to Markl. "Do I still have to do the other push-ups, then?"

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