Chapter 40: Gentleman

Jackson threw a torrential punch into the immobilized JD, sending them flying back across the arena. JD’s body skidded haphazardly across the ground, only for them to shoot back up, putting up a fighting position with fists at the ready.

“Would you look at that,” Jackson spoke with a grin. “You’re tougher than I thought you’d be! But no matter how tough you are,” she remarked, charging at her opponent, “I swear I’ll smash you yet!”

JD kept still as Jackson ran to them, her fists at the ready for another punch. Then, just as she swung out, JD rotated themselves underneath Jackson’s arm, thrusting an elbow into her back as the punch passed harmlessly over their head.

Jackson turned herself around to face her opponent, but JD continued rotating to her other side while delivering a quick jab to her ribs. Jackson gritted her teeth, flinging out her leg and landing a light hit to JD as they backflipped away from her position.

“Enough with all the dodging!” Jackson shouted, thumping at her chest. “Come on and face me like a man already!”

“A man?” JD snided, adjusting their tie with a hint of disdain. “I am no man, madam. I, am a gentleman. Instead of engaging with you in a brutish slugfest such as this…”

JD stepped aside as Jackson launched another punch, pushing themselves off her body before Jackson could follow up with another attack.

“…I’d much rather fight with elegance and calm.”

“Calm?” Jackson said with a snort. “I’m afraid that calm doesn’t suit me.” She raised her arm, the Presidential Seal on her hand glistening as she shot off a mischievous grin. “I was born for a storm!”

JD raised an eyebrow from underneath their mask.

“What do you—?”

JD stopped speaking as a wave of sensations rushed through their body. They fell down onto their knees, clawing at their chest as their lungs struggled to fill with air. Pools of sweat dripped down the inside of their mask as their heart pounded out with the force of a roaring dynamo.

“This feeling…” JD coughed, “…never in my life have I felt so…so…”

JD stood up, roaring loud with a scream of pure, primal rage.

“…SO DAMN POWERFUL!”

“Yes!” Jackson shouted. “That’s what I—!” she stopped talking as JD appeared in front of her, their baby blue eye tainted a bloodshot red.

“SHAAAH!” JD screamed as they slammed into their opponent, knocking her away.

Jackson skidded back from the intensity of the blow, then threw a heavy punch, smashing a fist straight into JD’s head and forcing their neck to bend back ninety degrees. JD instantly snapped their head back into position, then continued charging at Jackson with a harrowing barrage of savage strikes.

“Not bad!” Jackson said with a smirk as JD’s fist smashed into her face. “Now try this!”

Jackson raised her leg behind her before swinging it up ahead with the force of a wrecking ball. Her foot collided into JD’s chest, flinging them out across the arena.

JD crashed onto the floor, then immediately rose themselves off the ground with a stumble in their step. They locked eyes with Jackson, giving another thunderous roar before charging once more.

Jackson raised her guard as her opponent came at her, grinning ear to ear. Then, all of a sudden, JD came to a sudden halt in their run as their body fell forward, dropping over as if they were a marionette doll being hung up by its strings.

Jackson instantly dropped her smile as she scanned her opponent with a puzzled look.

Did they lose consciousness running over? She thought to herself. No…someone who managed to endure all my attacks up to this point wouldn’t go down so easily…especially not with my Executive Power activated. But how…

Jackson tightened up her muscles and leapt back as she heard the sound of someone cackling in front of her.

“What’s going on here?” she screamed, staring at JD’s body as it continued hanging motionlessly while the cackles continued to echo across the arena.

“What an interesting EP you have…” JD’s voice rang out while their body continued to stay perfectly still.

Jackson widened her eyes, taking an involuntary step back as a ghostly image of JD stepped out from their dangling body and started walking towards her.

“Seemingly,” JD’s ghost went on, “your EP makes people go berserk and lose control of their senses, forcing them to attack without regard for their own wellbeing. However,” they remarked while giving a wave of their transparent fingers, “it seems that your EP only affects the body and not the spirit.”

Jackson snarled as JD’s image stepped in front of her.

“Take this!” Jackson screamed, swiping at the specter, only for her fingers to pass straight through the figure. Jackson gave a frown as she looked to her hand. “Is this…some sort of illusion?”

JD’s ghost shook their head.

“Not quite.”

Jackson reeled back as JD’s specter slammed their first hard into her stomach. Jackson stepped herself away, both of the force of the blow, as well as the shock of JD’s ghastly image being able to touch her. Jackson growled softly, flinging her arms out at the ghastly image, only for her hands to pass harmlessly through once more.

“I see,” she grumbled, raising up her guard as Davis’s spirit slammed into her with a kick. “It would appear as if this spectral form of yours is completely invincible to my attacks.”

Jackson stepped forward, charging straight through the ghostly image.

“But by dissolving the connection to your body…”

She drew back her arm as she stepped in front of JD’s drooped over body.

“…you leave yourself open to ruin!”

Jackson slammed her fist hard towards JD’s lifeless body, the air around her fingertips warping at the sheer velocity of her attack

But her blow failed to land true.

As Jackson swung her fist, JD’s body, while still maintaining its droopy figure, lifted up its arm, catching Jackson’s punch just before impact, holding it firmly in place despite Jackson’s best efforts to move it forward.

“Take this!” Jackson screamed as she swung out with her other fist. But once again, JD’s body grabbed hold, stopping her attack. Jackson pushed ahead with both of her arms, but JD refused to budge, causing Jackson to tighten up her scowl.

The fact that you can move your unconscious body is one thing, she thought, but the fact that you can match me in a contest of strength is downright insulting! More than that, she eyed the singular hole of JD’s mask, it’s a feat which I know the likes of Fillmore is incapable of achieving…

“…I don’t know who the hell you really are,” Jackson snarled, “but I’m about to find out!”

Jackson slammed her forehead into JD’s skull and sunk her teeth into their mask. She yanked her head back, ripping the mask off them, inciting a wave of gasps as the image of JD’s uncovered face projected across the arena’s screens.

The right side of their face had a beautiful, snow-white complexion. Their left, in contrast, was covered by a hideous scar which was partially obscured by a set of long, brown bangs. It was a face that, even at a glance, every American could recognize with a mixture of fear and fury.

“It can’t be…” Truman spoke out, his voice quivering. “That’s…that’s…!”

“The ex-leader of the Confederacy!” Thompson screamed. “Jennifer Davis!”

=====================================================================================

=====================================================================================

Davis. Jennifer Davis is based off of Jefferson Davis, the President of the Confederacy during the United States Civil War. The scar on half of Jennifer Davis’s face is both a reference to the Civil War tearing the country in half, as well as the fact that Jefferson Davis had constant health problems with his left eye.