Chapter 11
The training grounds at the Mikaelson compound had been set up for sparring, but something felt different today. The tension in the air was palpable as Santana and Brittany faced each other, neither of them willing to make the first move. They’d trained separately before, but now, they were to face off as a team; together. And despite everything, it still felt like a delicate truce was hanging in the air between them.
Brittany fidgeted nervously, her hand subconsciously brushing over the vervain bracelet Freya had given her. She wasn’t used to this. She wasn’t used to fighting in this way, especially not against someone she used to care so deeply about.
Santana, on the other hand, stood her ground, eyes narrowed. She wasn’t sure what she was even doing here. Sure, she had her vampire instincts kicking in, but this? Fighting someone who used to be the love of her life, it just felt wrong.
Brittany hesitated, biting her lip. “You know, we don’t have to do this. We could, like, spar in a non-lethal way.”
Santana rolled her eyes, crossing her arms. “Are you serious? You’re not gonna throw a punch, Brittany?”
“I didn’t say that,” Brittany muttered defensively. “I’m just saying, there’s no reason we have to kill each other.”
“Yet,” Santana retorted, raising an eyebrow.
The two stared each other down for a moment longer, each waiting for the other to make the first move. But they were stuck in a loop of hesitation, neither of them fully willing to hurt the other. It wasn’t just hesitation, though; there was history, there were emotions tangled up in every punch, and they both knew it.
Kol, watching the two women from the sidelines, was growing impatient. His arms were crossed, and he clicked his tongue in annoyance. He wasn’t one for wasting time. It was clear they weren’t going to get anywhere by being nice to each other. So, without a word, he vamp-sped toward Brittany, knocking Santana aside with a sharp shove.
Santana landed on the ground with a thud, quickly pushing herself up, furious at being thrown out of the way so easily.
“What the hell, Kol?” she snapped, wiping dirt off her clothes, eyes flashing with anger.
Brittany’s breath hitched as Kol advanced on her, and she panicked. Without thinking, she thrust out her hands, chanting a random spell she’d learned from Freya earlier that week. To her surprise, a bright pulse of light shot out from her palms, blasting Kol backward and slamming him into the wall of the compound with enough force to crack the stone.
Kol groaned, clearly not expecting that level of power from Brittany. He grinned, eyes glinting with amusement. “Well, I’ll be damned. Guess you’re not just a pretty face, huh?”
Santana, recovering quickly from the surprise shove, leapt to her feet. “You pushed me aside, Kol!” she growled, vamp speeding toward him with a snarl.
Before anyone could react, Kol vamp-sped to meet her head-on, but just as their clash was about to happen, Marcel, who had been standing off to the side, moved in to help Kol, sneaking up behind Santana with a determined look in his eyes. But Brittany, still rattled from her earlier panic, caught a glimpse of him from the corner of her eye. Her instinct kicked in, and in a split second, she turned and shot out another spell; except this one wasn’t controlled.
A burst of magic exploded from her, and she didn’t even realize what had happened until she saw Marcel collapse to the ground with a sickening thud. Her heart stopped in her chest as she rushed over to him. “Oh my God, I didn’t mean to—”
Santana, seeing the shock on Brittany’s face, took advantage of the chaos and swiftly vamp-sped behind Kol, catching him off guard. With a swift motion, she grabbed him and snapped his neck. His body fell to the ground like a ragdoll, lifeless.
Freya and Hayley, who had been watching the training from the sidelines, exchanged surprised looks. Hayley was the first to speak. “Well, I’ll be damned. You two managed to kill an original vampire and an upgraded original vampire. Not bad for a first sparring session.”
Brittany stood frozen, her hands trembling, her eyes wide as she looked down at Marcel’s body. She knelt beside him, feeling her heart sink. “Is he...?” She couldn’t finish the sentence.
Kol groaned from where he had collapsed, clearly regaining his senses. “I’m fine, sweetheart,” he called out, though there was an edge of amusement in his voice. “That’s the thing about immortality. You get used to it.”
Brittany let out a shaky breath, her hands on her knees. “I didn’t mean to... I didn’t mean to snap his neck.”
“You didn’t know what you were doing,” Santana said, her voice quieter now, though there was still tension. “It was instinct, you reacted. I did the same thing.” She glanced over at Kol, who was already sitting up, rubbing the back of his neck. “Sorry about that, by the way.”
Kol waved her off. “Don’t apologize. The fact that you two took me down? That’s impressive. And trust me, I’m much harder to kill than I look.” He smirked, shaking his head as he stood up, stretching his neck. “Now, if you girls are finished with the pleasantries, I suggest we get back to training.”
Freya, still eyeing the two women, nodded approvingly. “You both showed a lot of potential. But you’re still far from ready. There are other ways to kill a vampire; fire, decapitation, heart extraction. You need to learn them all before you go into battle.”
Hope, who had been silently watching the entire exchange from the shadows, stepped forward. She crossed her arms and looked them both over with a thoughtful expression. “You guys really have progressed fast. I’m impressed,” she said, her tone a little softer than usual. “But you’re still a long way from being ready to fight for real.”
Brittany gave a small, sheepish smile. “I guess I have some learning to do, huh?”
Santana grunted. “More than a little.”
Kol grinned and shot Santana a look. “You’ve got the rage part down, now we just need to focus on the control.”
Brittany sighed, pushing her hair out of her face. “So, we’re not done yet?”
“Not by a long shot,” Freya said, her expression serious. “The Scorned are still out there, and we don’t have time to waste. You two need to be ready to face them.”
Santana nodded reluctantly, glancing at Brittany, who was looking at her with an oddly determined look. Despite the chaos of the situation, despite everything that had happened, Santana couldn’t help but feel a little bit of hope stirring inside her. They could do this. Maybe, just maybe, they had a chance.
She turned to Kol, crossing her arms. “Let’s get back to it then. I’m ready for round two.”
Kol gave a smirk, nodding. “That’s the spirit.”
And as the training resumed, both Brittany and Santana knew that they still had a long way to go. But the fight for New Orleans, and for their lives, was just beginning.