"Why is she here?" Ty asked, puzzled at the sight of JJ standing outside "Dine n' Masteries."
The lieutenant replied, "I believe it's only right to et an early sponsor who's assisting with your equipnt, food, and other necessities you'll receive while in the Arena."
Ty, curious, questioned, "Wait, just how much has she donated exactly?"
With a knowing smirk, the lieutenant suggested, "Why don't you go ask her yourself? This place is a bit removed from the main kingdom and its affairs, so you probably can go unnoticed as a demon as long as you keep those red eyes of yours off."
As they sat in the car, the lieutenant unlocked and removed Ty's stone cuffs. "Go on and be a sweetheart now. I know you both have feelings for each other anyway."
Ty, cheeks coloring slightly, protested, "I do not, actually. She's just soone I saw crying and wanted to do sothing nice for."
The lieutenant, undeterred, continued, "Even so, I believe she has feelings for you, as you sowhat avenged her parents. Whether you wanted that to be the case is irrelevant. So, see if you can benefit from every penny, as she cos from a wealthy family." His words, teasing yet pointed, nudged Ty towards a confrontation he seed reluctant to face.
Ty sighed, his curiosity piqued about what his ntor would be doing during their eting. "Well, what are you going to be doing this whole ti?"
"I'll be around. I'm your ntor, not your dad. Rember, this is all to set you up for success on the 3rd continent. And, regardless of any feelings that might erge, you need to stay focused on your end goal—and mine," the lieutenant reminded him, his tone firm yet supportive.
Ty nodded, understanding the weight of their shared ambitions. After a mont, he asked, "What do you even hope to gain if we win?"
"It's a secret, but I promise it's sothing that will surprise you. Now get going," the lieutenant replied with a mysterious smile.
"Ugh, fine," Ty muttered. Just then, a voice erged from his front pocket. The fairy pushed out, teasing, "Ty has an afternoon date?"
"No, it's not... whatever," Ty brushed off the comnt, a mix of annoyance and anticipation in his voice as he opened the car door and stepped out. JJ was still standing by the entrance, looking slightly more done up than usual, her attention on a food nu.
Leave the orange vest though, The LT stated "You don't want any odd looking eyes on you."
Ty nodded quickly taking it off before moving forward.
Ty glanced down at his attire, conscious of his appearance. His hair had grown longer and more unkempt, and his clothes still clung to the remnants of fire ashes and sweat.
"Don't worry if you stink. I'm sure she doesn't care," the fairy quipped, floating beside him.
Choosing to ignore the fairy's remark, Ty approached JJ with a wave and a warm smile. "Hey, so what are you doing here? I guess I should say. Though I've never been one to be good at introductions, it's nice to see you again, though."
JJ returned the gesture with a nod, her response laced with a hint of anticipation. "It's good to see you again as well. Let's go eat so we can talk further about so things I found."
Ty offered a nod of appreciation, taking a mont to complint JJ. "I don't think I've seen you with makeup before, but you look great regardless."
JJ, slightly flustered by the comnt, managed a shy reply, "Th-thank you. It's customary to be in good fashion before going out to eat, to et a friend after all."
Ty acknowledged her effort. "I suppose that makes sense. I'm still a bit sore though from the testing they did, so I apologize if I look sluggish or tired at all."
JJ expressed concern, "Oh, that's right. I probably should have scheduled a different day for this so you could have gotten so sleep."
Waving off her concern, Ty assured her, "No, no, it's fine. I just didn't expect to get that drained during the event." JJ then ntioned the video of Ty's performance. "Yeah, I saw the video of you, and wow, I have to say, why didn't you just do that against Fernando at the stadium?"
Ty, rubbing his head thoughtfully, admitted, "I've never really tried sothing like that before. Usually, when I'm fighting, I never have ti to think and be able to charge sothing like that up. I'm not sure if I would be able to use that in battle either, considering how long it took."
JJ nodded, her thoughts montarily drifting, before she pulled up the video on her phone, its casing adorned with blue and black.
Ty, noticing a recurring the, asked, "What's with those blue lines on every device I see? I keep seeing blue this and blue that."
JJ, puzzled by the question, responded, "It's how they operate. Without it, they would just die. How else would it work?"
Ty, still trying to grasp the concept, ventured, "Idk, a battery?"
"A what?" JJ asked, her confusion evident.
Ty took a mont to explain, "A battery. It's a device we use where I'm from. It stores energy in a chemical form and releases it as electrical power. Pretty much powers everything portable back ho."
JJ considered Ty's explanation with a mix of intrigue and skepticism. "That's a unique theory, but moving sothing from chemical to electrical seems a bit silly.
But staying on topic," she shifted her focus back to Ty's recent performance, "I was watching the video before you made it all fuzzy, and I think about 10 seconds into your 20-second attack, you could probably have released it a bit sooner."
She emphasized the importance of efficiency. "But you'll need to find a way to charge it up faster regardless. That will be a huge plus to your arsenal in fighting." Eager to change the subject, JJ began to share another discovery. "Anyways, moving on, I found this book and spent a lot of money on it to show—"
Her sentence abruptly ended as the doors of the establishnt were violently flung open. A pair of n with bandanas obscuring their faces barged in, each brandishing a gun. With commanding hostility, they barked, "Everyone down!"
Ty felt a familiar surge of adrenaline as the situation unfolded, reminiscent of his days in New York. His mind raced, "They're using guns when everyone can use magic? Their skills are probably not fighting-oriented, so they use weapons to compensate." Around him, patrons began to duck for cover, and JJ tugged at his arm, urging, "Let's just get down, okay?"
"What? Of course not. I'm not going to let them—" Ty's protest was cut short as one of the assailants commanded more forcefully, "We said get down."
Lifting his gaze to et the man's, Ty noticed a light scar under his eye and questioned the logic of their target. "What the hell are you even stealing from a restaurant?" His inquiry was t with an attempted blow as the man tried to swat Ty over the head with his gun.
Reacting swiftly, Ty caught the weapon with his forearm, absorbing the impact. In one fluid motion, he stood, closing the distance between them, and delivered a sharp blow to the man's chin with his elbow.
As the second robber aid and fired, JJ's light scream echoed through the tension-filled room. Ty, acting on instinct rather than logic, raised his hand in an attempt to catch or deflect the bullet. Surprisingly, the bullet halted mid-air, stopped by an unseen force, sparing Ty from harm and leaving him bewildered.
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