Chapter 11: [11] The Tigress Master of Martial Arts
Chapter 11: The Tigress Master of Martial Arts
—
The wail of police sirens pierced the night shortly after the super skirmish; curious neighbors must have spotted the commotion and alerted the authorities, he guessed.
"Luckily we didn't waste any more time there," by then, Enrique was already in the skies, with the now-empowered Rogue in his arms.
They moved towards their residence in Highland Park. It was annoying to carry two unconscious women as they flew, but they managed. The journey through the cityscape was a blur, like a silent bullet in the skies, high above the reach of prying eyes and the law. Soon they neared their home, and thankfully there weren't any houses nearby for neighbors to get curious about the unconscious women on his shoulders. There were no security guards in front of his house either, so no chance of anything leaking.
The humble mansion was equipped with sophisticated tech-based security rather than human guards. This setup may not be impenetrable, but it offered a line of defense that was less corruptible than flesh and blood. Plus Enrique could increase the line of defense as his capital would grow.
"Wait, hold them," right outside the door, Enrique reassured himself that there were no lurking assassins in the shadows with a sharp inhale—his newly bestial senses confirming they were alone. "Clear. Let's head in," he said to Rogue, who had her arms laden with their delicate burden, as she followed him in without a word.
Once inside, Enrique laid out his impromptu guests on the floor. Retrieving ropes from a nearby room, he secured the women's limbs against one another. While they couldn't defeat him in a battle, Enrique wasn't naive enough to leave them unchained.
"There," he muttered, stepping back to assess his handiwork.
Anna wowed at the scene with a humorous blink, "Wow," she said, a smirk playing on her lips. "Would you have kidnapped and tied me up like this if I didn't return from Xavier's school?"
Her tease drew a dry chuckle from Enrique. "Looking forward to it?" he retorted, pulling her close into an embrace while at the same time sinking into the sofa. "Though, I can still tie you up whenever the mood strikes. You want me to?"
Anna rolled her eyes, feigning annoyance. "I don't. Do I look like the type who wants to be tied up?"
In truth, she did look like that type. At least earlier, before she absorbed Tigra's powers that came with her dominant traits. Although even in this state, she loved her spot on his lap, hands on his chest that was wider thanks to his transformation.
"You did before, but not now. Ah, actually," Enrique joked as his cape trembled, moving like a snake to coil around her wrists and lifting them above her head. Caught off guard, Anna could only blink in surprise, her attempts at freedom futile against the fabric's grip. "Let's see which side of you prevails now, shall we?" he mused, his tone half-serious.
"W-what? What if they wake up?" she protested, nodding towards the unconscious figures. He laughed, a rich sound that filled the room. He opened his mouth to speak, however she cut him off. "I swear, if you say 'So you don't mind if there aren't other people around?' I'm going to smack you."
"...." Enrique blinked, frowning. Then, a wide, genuinely rare smile flickered across his features as he looked at her. She was pretty cute right now, wasn't she? "Remember, you pulled the trigger." Then he started ravaging her tied-up body.
****
The hours that followed twisted into an interval of sounds that would scare children, with Enrique helping Anna explore the limit of her stamina in this temporary tigress form. The physical enhancements granted by their transformations meant that their stamina was seemingly inexhaustible, and the night passed with them trying to find its end.
It wasn't until the first signs of daylight began to streak through the curtains that Enrique decided to draw their adventures to a close. He was having a hard time controlling the urge to go on, but the final nail was Greer Nelson, who was now reverted to her human form, as she began to regain consciousness.
Tigra's groggy mumblings broke through the haze of Anna's muffled moans, her eyes fluttering open to a scene she was unprepared to process.
"Mmhm…" Greer mumbled, her voice hoarse. As her vision focused, confusion etched across her features. "What the fuck…"
[Image Here]
Enrique understood her surprise. Waking up and seeing your lookalike getting fucked on the couch ought to be confusing. He pulled out of Anna and kissed her on her lips one last time before saying, "Go shower and dress up."
She softly moaned out an agreement, "Okay…" and walked away from the living room, too hazy to notice or care about Greer staring at her.
"Now, with that settled," Enrique announced, clearing his throat as he approached another, cleaner couch. Clothes materialized around his form, shifting from the messy reminder of the night into the composed lines of a crisp white shirt and matching pants. "Nice to formally meet you, Greer Nelson."
Greer, her senses returning more fully, ignored his outstretched hand and scanned the room warily. Her gaze lingered on the still-unconscious Ava beside her, her expression tightening when she realized both of them were restrained.
Why can't I break free? What's this rope made of? She wondered, looking at the rope. It looked normal to her. Then, she blinked. Along with the rope, she also noticed the shade of her skin. Her concern deepened when she noticed the absence of her tigress traits.
"…What did you do to me?" she looked up at him and demanded, her voice carrying a mix of fear and anger.
"Uhm, I'm Enrique Nova, forgot your hands are tied," he introduced himself, withdrawing his outstretched hands, avoiding her question. "And your friend will be waking soon if you're worried about that. Are you partners or…?" He let the question hang, trying to gauge their relationship dynamics.
Greer growled, but it didn't sound as bestial as she was used to. A moment later, after processing the implications of their situation, briefly considered how much to reveal. "We are friends," she finally said, opting for partial truth. "She was once a student of mine at the dojo. The dojo that your people destroyed, you bastard."
Enrique was about to reply when Ava Ayala began to stir, awakening with a sharp breath as her eyes snapped open. She immediately snarled at Enrique, "Where is this? What have you done to us?!" Her voice was thick with panic, her body straining against her bindings in futile resistance.
"Argh, teenagers." Enrique sighed, addressing Ava with a patient tone as if he was having tea with them. "You should follow your master's example and be calm. I assume you think I'm working with The Hand, given how violent you two are. But trust me, I am not."
Both women paused, the accusation hanging heavy between them. It was Greer who reacted first, her eyes narrowed, a strategic mind working behind them. "If you were pretending to be ignorant of The Hand, it might have made your story more plausible. But acknowledging them while claiming innocence? It's suspect at best."
"Exactly," Ava caught on. "After all, an unknown superhero pops up in the town, and visits our door at almost midnight, talking about Hand? What's up with that?"
Enrique exhaled slowly, his strategy needing some adjustment. "Look, if I were with The Hand, do you think I'd bring you here, to this nice mansion? I'd have brought you back to Japan and slaughtered you like pigs."
Greer exchanged glances with Ava and scowled. As the older between the two, she decided to take the lead, "...You got a point. Fine then, let's assume you don't work with them. Then what've you tied us up for? Release us now. If you really have something to talk about, we'll do it another day, we'll return to our home first."
He sighed, "It seems you still don't trust me. Fine, see this," he turned the large TV on with a remote. A reporter talked about Spider-Man's new costume, but that's not what he wanted to show. He flipped to another news report showing the aftermath of their earlier fight. "This footage is circulating now, obviously. The police and the public know I'm a hero, and you're unfortunately labeled as a villain. So it doesn't affect me negatively to invade your home and beat you up. However, people, and in turn, Hand is now aware of your residential location. If I release you and you return there, Hand will send more people after you, much stronger than last time, to capture you. Are you sure you want to return?"
"...." Ava stayed silent, while Green sighed.
The tigress chewed on her lips and said, "Fine, I'll trust for now that you're not with The Hand. In our defense, they have some super-powered individuals in their ranks and you just debuted out of nowhere as a superhero, so we had every reason to believe you may be connected with them when we suddenly found you at our door. Still, you have my apologies for acting rashly." Greer justified her actions.
She was slightly surprised at herself by how calmly she was handling the situation; it seemed without being stuck in her beast form, she could think calmly.
Ava, still struggling, snapped, "Greer, why're you playing along? Who says we're going back to that house? We'll run. Let's not deal with someone who beat us up."
"That won't solve your problem," Enrique countered, his voice firm. "The Hand knows of you now. Running will only delay the inevitable. "You underestimate the Hand a bit too much if you think they can't track you now that you're not hiding in your little rooms for months."
At that moment, Anna returned, dressed in an oversized shirt and pants that swamped her smaller frame. "Hey, Enrique, I don't have any clothes that fit," she complained, looking expectantly at Enrique. "Oh, they're up."
"Order some," he turned to her and said, then paused, considering. "Actually, why don't all three of you go shopping later? Greer, Ava, you left your clothes at your previous place. Consider this payment for breaking your furniture."
"I'm not staying here!" Ava protested vehemently, but Greer held up a hand to silence her.
"What's your deal?" she asked Enrique directly, her tone demanding clarity.
He smiled, glad at the opportunity to negotiate. "It's really simple, actually. I'll help you shake The Hand off your trail," he offered. "In return, you train me in martial arts."
Greer and Ava exchanged a skeptical look. "And the catch?" Greer asked her instincts on high alert. "It seems too simple to be true."
"You train me first. I'm not strong enough to confront them as I am," Enrique admitted, his honesty surprising them. "I might have overpowered you, but I need skills to survive them long-term."
"That's suspicious," Greer countered. "You're already stronger. Why learn from us?"
"A man with a sword can still fall to a man with a bat if he doesn't know how to wield it," Enrique explained, hoping his analogy would illustrate his point effectively. "I think you're thinking too much to find ulterior motives here. I'm a Hero. It's my job to destroy those cult-like organizations like Hand, it's not simply to help you two in particular. Plus you don't have much to lose by staying here, hidden away. Plus, I offer you a chance to free yourselves from the Hand for good. After that, you're free to go as you please."
Ava, now calmer, finally spoke. "How can we trust you?"
Enrique sighed and gestured to a life-sized statue of a goddess that dominated one room. "I'm a man of faith. You can expect me to honor my word."
Greer was almost about to ask 'Are you two married?' to retort to his religious claim. How could he do those stuff with a girl if they weren't married, as a supposed religious man? However, her words were cut off by Ava's nod. "Fine. We'll do it. But treat us right—we're not your captives."
"Understood," Enrique agreed, his tone accommodating. He approached and began releasing their bonds, his confidence unshaken. "Thank you for your incoming lessons, then."
Tigra hated how confident he was in releasing them. Even though they did agree to help him, what if they attacked? Well, she already knew the answer to that so she didn't try anything funny, but it annoyed her. Someone as strong as him, did he really need martial skills?
"Don't thank us yet," Greer warned, her form shifting visibly slowly back to that of Tigra as her restraints fell away. It seems whatever that girl did to suck my powers isn't permanent, she's also back to normal. I'm glad. She added, "We give you one month. If you don't learn fast enough, we leave. We can't afford to waste time."
"That's fair. You'll be in my care then, for the coming month," Enrique acknowledged, stepping back to give them space. The deal was set, something that these two girls failed to realize would leave their lives upside down. Perhaps for good, or perhaps for worse.
X-x-X
Felicia Hardy was in her room, tightly hugging her pet cat Onyx, a black-furred beauty she picked up on the street a few years ago. Together, she and the cat watched the news unfold on TV. "Crazy…"
As the anchorman spoke, a fight unfolding in the screen behind him, her face grew paler with each passing second, draining of all color. Felicia shuddered.
"Aw, shit," she cursed, biting Onyx gently on the ears, making the cat meow in protest. "Ony, did you know your mommy almost died two nights ago? Come give me a kiss to cheer me up."
Kiss? The grumpy black cat chose instead to scratch her arm and bolt away.
"Ugh," Felicia grumbled, resisting the urge to chase after the cat and instead turning her attention back to the TV mounted on the wall. "But truly, I dodged a bullet that day. This guy is dangerous."
Supernova, as it turned out, was indeed dangerous. She had assumed her charm as a hot young lady gave her a reprieve that day, but seeing this clip, she was wondering if there might have been another reason behind his decision to let her go.
The TV screen showed a video taken by a brave civilian – although Felicia would fall him reckless – where Supernova was seen violently beating up two women while transformed into a beast. By violently, she meant he was throwing them around like ragdolls, a whole house was destroyed in the process.
She doubted she'd survive one such throw. Her nimble body would turn into mush. He could literally pick her up and throw her, killing her instantly.
Felicia shuddered at that thought, once again thanking her luck that he was in the mood to let her off two nights ago. Next time, she would be ten times more careful to avoid crossing paths with him.
Never again.
****
"So this is the place?" Tigra asked as she walked into Enrique's gym, looking around. "It's empty. But it can do for now, we are starting with hand-to-hand combat anyway, it wouldn't need any equipment."
Enrique had a gym where he could train his body, a big one at that. It was spacious enough to host fights if he wished, like right now. He had chosen this mansion based on these criterias. Tigra had insisted they come to the gym and have a session right away, which pleased him since it meant she was serious about this.
"We are gonna fight to test your physical limits and also your techniques. I need a base to start from, after all," she said. "As you may know already, I was a martial arts teacher, the only other excluding the late Dojo Master, so you can trust me on this."
"I wasn't doubting you," Enrique said with a casual shrug. He turned to Ava and Anna, who had followed behind him. "What about these two? I want Anna to be trained as well. It may be somewhat careless to reveal this, but her power works when her skin comes in contact with a target, either by her own will or otherwise. I am immune to it, of course, but that means hand-to-hand training with another person excluding me would be awkward. Her hero suit covers her entire body, though, and she can just wear a helmet for the occasion, so it's not impossible for her to train with a partner. I am asking if Ava can train her."
Though he said 'asking,' he was just being polite. He would ensure Anna got her training somehow, even if Ava disagreed. Fortunately, after some thought, the olive-skinned girl nodded.
"Why not, when we agreed to train you anyway," Ava said, glancing at Anna and slowly reaching out a hand for a handshake. "Ava Ayala, by the way, though I am pretty sure you knew already."
"Thanks. It's Anna Marie," Anna accepted the hand after covering her own with Enrique's oversized shirt that she was wearing. "Let's get along."
Ava just returned a thin smile, though Enrique couldn't see much sincerity behind it—given they had fought against each other just a few hours ago. So he got an idea.
"That reminds me, Anna, you need clothes, right? So do Ava and Tigra since, well, we kidnapped them from their home where all their clothes were previously. Since your body has returned to normal, how about you two go shopping? You can fight later after Tigra and I have a go." He said, turning to Tigra. "Or do you wanna join them?"
The tiger woman shook her head. "No need. Ava knows my sizes, she can get me clothes. I can't go out in my current state anyway. Yeah, Ava, the sun has risen by now, it's morning already, you should go grab some clothes for us."
"...." Ava seemed a little reluctant, since she had rejected the idea of shopping for us earlier, but had no choice but to nod when Greer stared at her for a second.
"Oh, by the way, Ava, you might want to check your phone too. Liz Allan sent you dozens of texts after seeing the clip on TV. Your face wasn't really visible due to the trash camera used to take the footage, but she certainly recognised the neighborhood." Plus the news also name-dropped the person who owned the house, there was no way Liz wouldn't know. Enrique warned before Ava could leave, making her frown.
"Liz…" her eyes widened. "That's right, I saw her post a selfie with you on Facebook. So that's how you found me… Ugh, that stupid girl!"
Saying so, Ava quickly stormed out of the room to find her phone, and Anna followed behind her after waving at Enrique once.
"Okay, now that the distractions are gone," Tigra said, loosening her shoulders and turning to him. "Let's start. Stay in your current normal form, I'll test your tiger form later."
She took a fighting pose, and Enrique copied it—or at least he tried to, knowing his stance was a bit too awkward.
"Sure. Although, honestly," Enrique couldn't help but frown softly. "Two humanoid tigers, one male and one female, half-naked in a room alone, preparing to fight… What are the odds that this may end in a way too M-rated for those two girls?"
Tigra had jumped by then, spinning in the air with a cry as she clenched her jaws and kicked at his face. "Zero! I am married!"
Enrique ducked down to dodge. "I thought you were widowed?"
She tried to hit him once more, and though he managed to dodge due to his naturally higher physical powers, she kept sending flurried blows at him. She said she wanted to see both his physical powers and martial skills, so he was doing just that.
"That," she hmphed, delivering a kick to his chest. "Doesn't matter!"
This time, the kick hit him and sent him flying to crash against the wall.
****
Ava sighed as she finished her conversation with Liz. It was a bother to explain things to her. Ava didn't have a family of her own anymore. Her parents had died years ago in a plane crash in the Himalayas, and her older brother had died a year ago as well. Liz's family was the only relatives she had left, and even then, Liz was the only person she cared about among that family. So she felt guilty for making her worry.
Ava explained that yes, it was her in the video, and it was all a misunderstanding between her and Enrique's group, and that Liz shouldn't panic any longer. Liz was obviously curious and super interested in how she got involved in this superhero stuff, but Ava had to tell her to stay put for now as she didn't have the luxury to explain everything.
As for how she really got her powers? It was from her deceased older brother, Hector Ayala. The reason she went to the dojo was precisely because her brother had supposedly, as claimed by the master of the dojo, left his 'last treasure' there. The master of the dojo, Master Kee, was a friend of her brother, so she didn't doubt when the man claimed that. Yet, when she went to ask about her brother's last belonging, the Master refused to hand it over. Although now she had it.
"No," he had said. "You aren't ready. Not yet. Train under me until I deem you worthy for that."
She had school; she was in high school, so she couldn't waste time on a dojo. But in the end, she decided to give it a go anyway. After all, it didn't hurt to train her physical body and get in shape. She was doing pretty well too and even met Greer there. Everything was going smoothly, until those Hand bastards struck, killing Master Kee, who had finally handed over her brother's last possession before passing away.
The White Tiger's Amulet, which granted her the great powers she had now.
"Done?" startling her, Anna Marie asked as she leaned to take a peek at her phone where she chatted with Liz. Ava frowned. Rude. "Yeah, you seem done."
They were already in the mall, Ava was chatting with Liz while Anna was shopping. Some people were giving them looks because Anna was wearing an oversized shirt and pants, making her look almost homeless except she admittedly looked pretty cute.
"Yes," Ava nodded. "Now let's finish here soon. Despite how serious you saw Tigra be, she can be… a bit touchy sometimes. Their fight may take a weird turn if we take too much time."
"Uh," Anna blinked innocently. For a moment, Ava almost thought that the girl didn't understand what she was implying, until she sighed. "...Same with Enrique. Then they're not a good match. Yeah, let's hurry."
****
They had intended to be quick, but they were girls. How would their shopping ever be quick?
Around four hours later, they returned home with lots of shopping bags. On their way back, nobody had recognized either of them earlier, so they didn't have any stray 'fans' on their tail, although Anna did take the liberty to stop a man who robbed a granny, which had caught some attention. Either way, they finally reached their home, and Ava was once again surprised at the size of the mansion they were staying in.
"Rich, aren't you guys?" she asked, looking up at the building before walking in.
"We are just renting it, for now," Anna said, following behind her. "Though he said if he decorated the insides too much, he would just buy the property."
Honestly, Ava's impression of the girl was better now. She was a fun girl to hang out with, though somewhat tomboyish at times, but Ava didn't mind. She also felt pity for the girl after hearing her story of how she awakened her powers. At least now she had found a man she both liked and could have a physical relationship with. Ava was happy for her.
"So you and Enrique are pretty close, huh? You even live together," Ava asked, making idle chat as her senses picked up the sound of strong blows coming from the gym. "It seems they are still at it, thankfully."
"Well, we are close, but…" Anna shrugged. "I will tell you later. It's somewhat childish of me to say it now since it'd just sound like I am complaining."
That piqued Ava's interest, but she respected Anna's choice of secrecy. They continued walking. Soon, the two girls reached the gym, and upon entering… both of them froze as Ava realized the sound of 'blows' she had heard wasn't caused by fighting.
It was caused by Enrique's hips descending on Tigra's perky butt, her legs pushed above her shoulders as he took her from above. Moreover, Tigra was enjoying it, more than anything Ava had seen her enjoy, biting her lip and grinning up at him. Her delighted expression didn't convey any idea that this was forced.
"W-whoa, fuck, yes, there," she moaned, while his hand grabbed her face and raised her chin up, kissing her deeply. "Mmngh… you're not half bad."
Hidden behind the shadow of the darkness, the two girls watched Greer get absolutely demolished by the man covered by tiger stripes.
"Ah…" Ava gasped softly, though it was muffled by the tiger woman's moans and dirty taunts. Ava quickly turned to look at Anna, looking guilty in behalf of her friend, "Ah, sorry, you must be shock—"
Anna's sigh interrupted her words. "This is what I was trying to say earlier," Anna said, looking at the scene dryly. "I am not his girlfriend, we are just friends, and so he isn't really loyal to me because he technically doesn't have to. It's okay, I'm not shocked."
Anna bit her lip and walked away. Ava paused on her spot, frowning, her pity for Anna deepening.
She looked at Enrique, now a beast, as he fucked her teacher and long-time roommate's brains out. What a beastly bastard. Piece of shit.
Honestly, his confident attitude was kind of attractive, and his appearance was quite handsome. Those traits, coupled with his… exceptionally good skills at being 'physical,' made Enrique the ideal male of many girls' fantasies. Enough to make even Ava blush at the scene as well. Except she just realized what a dick he was. It made her grossed out from within.
He is just taking advantage of Anna's condition, Ava realized. Piece of shit. Screw you.
Shaking off her blush, unwilling to feel such a thing towards a man like that, Ava quickly followed behind her new friend hastily.
Maybe she could convince Anna to leave with her and Greer when it's time for them to go?
She needed to consult with Greer first.
**
**
**
Author Note: Got little vote yesterday since I uploaded 2h after refresh time 😕 begging for stones today. Top 50 should be easy. Vote guys!
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone