Chapter 8: 5 – Spar
As he was already a millionaire at the age of 10, Samael could leave the slums whenever he wanted, but he made the decision not to leave. Here he had everything he needed, he had the protection of the owner of the slums, and many other 'perks', so there was no reason for him to leave.
Of course, if there was a reason, he would leave and probably take his army with him, but until then, he would remain here. Obviously, even if he lived in the slums, all the furniture in his house was state-of-the-art, so that his mother could live better.
He somehow won those furniture in a bingo... well, that was what he told Vallery.
The only reason he didn't move to a better house in the slums was because Vallery liked the one where they lived. And because she didn't know Samael was rich.
'The time is coming for me to tell my mother that I'm rich... I just don't know how to do it.''
Remember that in the other cycles, Samael usually became rich at the age of 18 and upwards, so being a millionaire at the age of 10 was something new for him and he didn't know how to navigate these waters.
He could simply say, "Mom, I'm a millionaire!" but that would open the door for her to ask how, and he wasn't ready, at least not yet, to say that he was involved with Tarzan, even if VERY superficially. Vallery would surely think he was doing the wrong thing and force him to stop, and that couldn't happen.
' Maybe I can use Jaret for that... Well, that's a problem for the future me. Let's focus on now.'
Samael looked at the scene in front of him, where 10-year-old Veronica was staring at John, the teenager who had tried to rob Samael. The two of them were in a fighting position. 'How did it come to this...'
HOURS BEFORE
Veronica had just finished another sparring session with Samael. And the results were already showing, as her body was now defined. Not like a bodybuilder, but anyone who saw her would know that she trained in some way, even if she was only a child.
Samael also had a muscular body, much more than Veronica, since he had been training practically since he could walk, but he usually tried to hide any kind of sign that showed he could fight and was strong. This was something he learned from Kasumi Goto, a companion from the Mass Effect games. She said there was no need to show everyone what you could do when it doesn't matter, only when it does. Since then, he's followed her advice and the number of people he's taken by surprise has been many.
Heck, even in this cycle, apart from Veronica, Jaret, and Vallery, the latter not knowing the size of Samael's talent, they were the only ones who knew he could fight. Even Tarzan was in the dark about this, but after Samael made his little army, he began to suspect that he was hiding other things.
Of course, Tarzan didn't care as long as the two didn't fight. And Samael had already made it clear that he had no interest in the slums, and that there was nothing to worry about. Tarzan had no reason not to believe him, since everything the child has said so far has been nothing but the truth.
Anyway, after finishing today's training, the duo left the gym, which was practically theirs alone, since the army used other facilities in the compound. And today, the duo bumped into John and his five henchmen. It seems they continued as a group even after they joined the army.
The six immediately saluted Samael when they saw him, ''Boss!''
'' I told you not to call me that! Anyway, how are you settling in here?'' Samael had to thank John a little since he was the one who gave him the idea of setting up this 'army' so soon.
"Everything's great!'' John and his friends lived in the slums, so they usually didn't have much money and their houses weren't in a good location. After they were 'recruited' into Samael's army and brought to the compound, their lives changed for the better.
First, their families were able to follow them and lived in the compound, which had better buildings than other parts of the slums. Secondly, they had abundant food here and didn't have to steal to eat.
Of course, they were being trained to be a kind of army, but in the eyes of John and the others, their situation was better than before. So, even though it had been less than three months since the 'army' had been set up, their loyalty was already with Samael, because he had changed their lives for the better.
'' That's good to know. If you need anything, talk to Jaret and he'll probably do it.'' Samael then began to walk past them when he heard John.
'' Boss! Wait.''
Samael turned and faced him, ''What is it?''
John looked embarrassed as he began his apology, "I didn't apologize for our first encounter. I know everything has been resolved, but I still owe you an apology... So, I'm sorry!''
Samael always just killed those who stood in his way. But now he was more restrained because he wanted to live his last life in peace. A perfect life, or so he said.
And that was something very difficult to achive, even for him.
'' You don't need to apologize, I forgave you a long time ago.''
'' Wait, what did he do to you?'' Verónica noticed something strange in the conversation and intervened, her hostile eyes looking at John, who seemed confused.
''...Oh fuck.''
----
This brings us to now. When Veronica learned that Jonh had tried to rob Samael, she wanted to teach the boy a lesson. Samael tried to stop her but soon let it go,' Let's see how she does against others.'
Although Veronica still didn't manage to land a single blow on Samael, she was on another level compared to John. She would still lose to Jaret, but it should be a close fight.
John looked confused and apprehensive, probably wondering how not to hurt his boss's girlfriend.
Samael noticed this and warned the teenager, "Get those thoughts out of your head and face her head on. I trained her personally, so don't expect anything easy.''
When John heard that the girl in front of him had been trained by Samael, he felt shivers run down his spine, his frowns now replaced by caution and trepidation.
As the compound was small, everyone heard about the fight and went to see it. Jaret even stopped today's training and was acting like a referee. ''Listen, this is a spar, so don't overdo it, no killing each other. Are you both ready?"
Faced with nods from both of them, Jaret said, "Begin!''
As soon as Jaret's voice faded away, Veronica went on the attack with everything, and John, to the surprise of many who were watching the fight, retreated instead of trying to attack or anything like that.
Veronica wasn't the same size or weight, but she had a lot more agility and she was putting that into practice. John, almost like in his fight against Samael, had no reaction and continued to receive blow after blow.
He even tried to react, but every time he did, he was quickly attacked in such a way that he had no option but to retreat.
Of course, it wasn't a one-sided fight, as John managed to land a few blows on Veronica, but to his surprise, they didn't seem to have any effect. It was as if her body was made of iron or she felt no pain.
That's when Samael's training kicked in. Not only did he train her in combat, but also her body, precisely for situations like this.
It didn't take long for the result of the fight to be announced, as Veronica won without much trouble. John didn't seem too upset, since he knew that Veronica had been trained by Samael, a monster, 'At least she didn't break my arm or my nose.'
'' Veronica won!''After Jaret said this, everyone watching the fight applauded a little.
Samuel was about to go and congratulate Veronica when he heard Jaret's loud voice, ''Guys, although the fight was good and all, it left a few things to be desired, don't you think?''
'' YES!''
'' So, do you want to see another fight?''
'' YES!''
Jaret then looked at Samael, who already knew what was going on. Sighing, Samael began to address the man,'' Are you sure?''
Jaret nodded and looked at the crowd: "Today, you have special seats to see your boss in action against me!''
The crowd went wild, "Boss!''
'' BOSS!
'' BOSS!
'I have to find a way to stop them from calling me that.'
By then, Samael was already in front of Jaret, "So, the rules are the same as theirs fight?''
'' Yes!'' Jaret then looked at Veronica, who was watching the scene with shining eyes, "Girl, be our referee, please.''
Veronica immediately agreed: "No problem!''
After that, she repeated what Jaret had said before starting her fight, then said, '' BEGIN.''
--
Unlike Veronica's fight, this time the two fighters didn't attack immediately. They moved slowly, almost as if they were studying each other.
And that's exactly what they were doing. Although they hadn't faced each other, they knew what the other was capable of. Jaret, as already mentioned, had sworn to protect the Mason family from danger, so on the day the boy was 'robbed', he watched the whole scene from a distance. He knew what the boy was capable of, but he never had the chance to fight him. Until today.
The same applies to Samael because he knew how the man fought, based on their interaction in the other cycles. Therefore, they were both wary of each other.
But the stalemate didn't last long, as Jaret made the first move. The man aimed high at Samael's head, who used his height and agility to dodge to the side. But Jaret wasted no time and right after he missed the blow, he tried to hit Samael's leg with a sweep, but what he found was a punch coming at him.
Having to give up the sweep in favor of defending himself, Jaret received Samael's punch.
PUNCH
They both reacted differently to the punch. Samael sighed, as he knew that the punch hadn't done much damage and that he would have to fight a little more seriously if he wanted to win. His fighting style, which consisted of hitting many times until the person was injured, probably wouldn't work against a trained soldier like Jaret. Of course, he still thought he could win with enough time.
Jaret also had almost the same thought and thought he could beat Samael. So he immediately put that thought aside, 'I can't embarrass him like this in front of his 'army'. It looks like our real fight will have to wait a little longer.'
Just as he was thinking this, he heard Samael's voice, ''Why are you thinking so much, have you forgotten the situation you're in?''
Only now did Jaret notice that Samael was closer to him than before. 'The kid could have attacked me for good if he wanted to.'
Ignoring the cold sweat, Jaret said, "I'm sorry, I was distracted. It won't happen again."
Samael nodded and said, ''I think I know what you're thinking.''
'' Oh? Then please tell me.''
'' You're thinking that I'm weaker than you though, as I know that you saw my fight against Josh and the others and that you can win this. Let me tell you right now that you're wrong. Don't worry about anything else and let's fight seriously."
Jaret looked stunned for a moment before signing, "I guess I'm getting old... You're right, let's fight seriously!''
Then, the fight continued, but now, more intense. While it was clear Samael was above Jaret in terms of experience, the boy was still a boy.His body wasn't made to fight yet.
But, that didn't stop him, as he continued to trade blows with the veteran.As Samael was short, he had to get close to Jaret to hit, and as he did that, it opened the chance for the veteran to attack too.
They continued to trade blows until Samael tried to do a flying kick towards Jaret, but thanks to his short stature, it gave the opportunity to Jaret land a good hit on his face, making his nose bleed and the boy stumble a little.
Jaret immediately regretted attacking him, as he noticed the boy made a small mistake, almost as if he wasn't that accustomed to his body. He was going to check on him, but suddenly, he felt a chill and raised his guard immediately.
' ... What is this?' It was the first time Jaret felt this sensation since retiring. He was feeling afraid. The crazy part was that the sensation was coming from Samael in front of him. As he observed the boy, he noticed he was smiling like a crazy person, ' This isn't good?'
Feeling something was wrong, but before he could say anything, he only had time to roll backward, to avoid the kick that came toward his head.
After he avoided it, he noticed he was sweating cold,' If that hit me, it wouldn't be good.'
'' Samael ... are you okay?'' While maintaining his guard up, Jaret asked the boy.
Samael looked a little animalistic, as he still didn't wipe the blood from his face. He was smiling while his eyes were pure ecstasy, '' Why would I not be? Let's continue!''
Jaret wasn't going to admit it, but while he was feeling a little bit of apprehension, thanks to the dangerous feeling Samael was giving, he was also a little excited to be able to go all out, as he had a feeling he would get injured quite badly if he didn't do so, '' Let's!''
VERONICA POV
What was happening in front of her and the crowd was something strange and mystical. After the conversation between the two, their aura changed and everyone felt it. They became more dangerous and ferocious.
The crowd was no longer loud and everyone was focused on the scene in front of them. Samael and Jaret were exchanging blows fiercely, with both of them getting a little hurt here and there.
Many of those present, before the fight began, thought that Samael had no chance against Jaret, a veteran, as he was only 10. Of course, he was taller than normal, but that was it, they thought. As if to prove their expectations correct, he was hit and was bleeing quite heavily.
They thought that was the end of the figth, but no. Samael recovered and was way more agressive than before, giving them goosebumps. As time went on, the fight was clearly in Samael's favor. Anyone paying attention would notice that Jaret was staggering a lot and that his blows were no longer having any effect.
Veronica was staring at Samael, who was smiling in a way she had never seen before. The way he was fighting was also very different from the way he used to fight her.
It was primal, animalistc. Almost like he didn't care about his wellbeing, his only goal was to kill, or this case, defeat the enemy infront of him.
''How incredible.''
Samael's status in Veronica's heart only grew.
Finally, after a lot of trading punches, Jaret seemed to have reached his limit and after a punch from Samael hit his shoulder, he fell to the ground, Samael didn't waste that chance and put his foot on the man's chest.
Samael, even though he emerged victorious, wasn't much better off than the veteran, with many bruises here and there. He looked at Veronica and said, "The result.''
Veronica finally recovered and said, ''Samael won the fight!''
'' OWOOOOOOOOOO!''
CREATORS' THOUGHTS 
Pop0
Pop0 Remember that Samael trained every single day since he could walk, and was taught by the best in the galaxy in his past cycles.
He is limited right now, thanks to his younger body, but his experience was enough to give him the W.
Also, I tried to give a glimpse of his true facade underneath the one he put on every day, but I don't know if I did a good job with that. Any feedback/advice on how to navigate his broken-yet-healed personality is welcomed.
Thanks for the support!
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