Chapter 2: Taking the Field

Chloe angrily grumbled as she picked up her phone and checked her text messages. “I’ll kill them all, I swear…” She read them and let her head fall back. “Damn…”

Elise got off her lap and gave her a concerned look. “Are you okay?”

Chloe sighed in pure despair. “My project partners need me.”

“Oh.” Elise put her shirt back on and smirked when she saw Chloe’s sad expression. “We can pause the movie and watch it another time.”

“One, we weren’t watching it to begin with,” Chloe joked. “Two, I’d much rather be here, but someone might die without me.” She sighed again and had some negative thoughts about her partners. “Are you sure you’re going to be okay without me?”

Elise gave her a reassuring smile. “I’ll be fine. Go, they need your big head.”

Chloe smirked and stood up to get ready. “Call me if you need anything.” She grabbed her coat and blew one last kiss before she left.

Elise tossed and turned on her bed. It was a different dream this time. She ran through the halls of her school, a lead pipe in her hand. She hit military soldiers with stone-like faces as she passed them en route to her destination.

“Principal Montgomery!”

“Elise! Thank the gods,” her principal replied. “My daughter is safe, for now.”

“I was right, Vice Principal Carter could not be trusted. He betrayed us and all of Massachusetts to satisfy his lust for power.”

“He was not always this way, my dear,” Montgomery sadly told her. “What matters now is that he must be stopped, or our entire world shall be plunged into eternal darkness.”

Elise stood at attention. “I am one of your guards, and I shall do what is necessary.”

Montgomery smiled warmly. “I know of your love for my daughter, and I know it is for her that you risk everything.”

Elise turned toward the terrible roar that echoed through the halls. The painted concrete walls melted away, revealing light-brown stone walls with wall-mounted torches illuminating her path forward. She swung her weapon forward and faced down a group of soldiers in Ancient Egyptian armor.

“What?” The pipe changed into a khopesh before she realized it. “Wait, this isn’t…” The soldiers charged at her.

A blaring alarm saved her before their spears pierced her body. Her eyes shot open and looked up at her ceiling. “Grr! Mr. Montgomery doesn’t even have a daughter!”

“What the heck were you dreaming about this time?” Chloe asked. She slipped into Elise’s bedroom late last night to comfort her sleep-deprived girlfriend.

Elise rolled over and lay on top of Chloe. “I ran through the high school one-shotting soldiers with a pipe to protect our principal and his daughter from someone.”

Chloe wrapped her arms around Elise, enjoying her warmth and weight. “Yeah, he has two boys, the walking tanks of our football team.”

“Mhm. Then our school turned into some Ancient Egyptian palace, and my pipe turned into a sword.”

“Probably your excitement for the museum exhibition,” Chloe reasoned. “Wanna skip school?”

Elise pushed herself up and grinned. “And ruin my perfect attendance? Nope. That, and there’s the big match.”

Chloe rolled her eyes. “The 'big match' is just an exhibition match against another school. And it’s soccer.”

Elise raised an eyebrow. “I’m so glad to have your support.” She spoke in a dull, deadpan voice. Chloe laughed and wrestled Elise onto the bed.

As much as she loved soccer, her heart just wasn’t into the game. She managed to intercept the ball and pass it to another player to score, but she still felt stiff and tired.

“Nice pass!”

“Thanks, Angela.”

“Don’t pat yourselves on the back yet. We’re still down by two, ladies,” their coach reminded them.

“Betty, maybe I should warm the bench for a bit,” Elise suggested.

“Nonsense, Gardner. Get out there and take home the win for us,” her coach refused. “I will not let them humiliate us again. Our losing streak ends!”

“Yeah…!” Elise weakly cheered.

She took the field and looked around her to register everyone’s position. Elise heard Chloe’s voice through the cheers and found her girlfriend. Her vision blurred for a moment. The people in the stands vanished, and another woman replaced Chloe. She was Egyptian and wore clothing from the age of the pharaohs.

“Win, my love. Show them your true talents,” the woman urged her.

Elise’s body felt even warmer than it had before, and her left eye tingled for a moment as it changed from blue to gold. She felt reinvigorated and ready for battle.

The signal was given to continue the game. Elise dashed ahead and stole the ball with ease. Her heart was steady, and her vision was clear. She easily evaded every other player around and scored in record time, stunning the crowd and her fellow players.

Elise continued to dominate the field with near-inhuman speed, agility, and accuracy until the buzzer rang and her team stood victorious. The final score wasn’t even close. She shook her head to clear the haze and realized what she had done. Her team lifted her in the air in celebration and handed her the soccer ball.

She found her way to Chloe after her team freed her, and the judge gave her a medal. Chloe eagerly hugged her and cheered. “Looks like all that practice paid off, babe!”

“Y-yeah…”

Chloe let her go and grinned. “No need to be humble.”

“I’m not. I have no idea what happened. It’s like I was possessed,” Elise explained.

“Hmm.” Chloe looked her over and placed her hand on the center of Elise’s chest. After a few moments, she smiled and took her girlfriend’s hand. “Nope, no vengeful soccer spirits here, just hours of practice finally paying off.”

Elise smiled weakly. “I didn’t know you were an exorcist.”

“Oh yeah, we Hunters know all about what goes bump in the night. It’s literally in our name.” Chloe giggled and pulled her along toward the school gym. “Now c’mon, there’s a party, and we’re raiding it for all the food and swag we can carry.”

They celebrated with the team and fans for a couple of hours before sneaking out. Chloe carried a small box of buffet food and some shirts while Elise covered for her. “Was this necessary? We’re not going broke,” Elise whispered while they quietly dashed for their car.

“No one turns down a free meal, hun,” Chloe replied as she put the box in the trunk.

Elise started the car and gave her a tired smile. “Nothing tastes better than free junk food, right?”

“Only your French toast tastes better, and you don’t make that as much as I’d like you to. What sort of stay-at-home wife do you expect to be?”

“I don’t? I want to play soccer. I’ve already spoken to some recruiters and coaches. You know this.”

“No, no, that doesn’t work for me. I want the full stay-at-home wife experience, including that naked apron thing from your anime series.”

Elise rolled her eyes. “Uh huh. I’ll get the apron when you start making CEO money.”

“Deal. My part-time job has plenty of upward mobility and earning potential.”

Elise gave her a confused look. “You’re a cleaner…”

“I wipe away evil wherever it may hide.”

“Uh huh.”

Chloe crossed her arms beneath her chest and smirked. “Say that after you see our new place. I found a house closer to school, and it’s within our price range. We can move in whenever we want.”

Elise loudly sighed. “Oh, thank god, I hate our landlord. She’s such a pain. Neighbors, too.” They stopped at a red light, giving Elise a chance to kiss Chloe’s cheek. “But I love that it was our first place together.”

Chloe smiled and blushed. “Yeah, me too.”

Elise’s grip tightened on the wheel when the light turned green. Her pulse quickened with a sense of anticipation she could not understand.

“Let us move unseen,” she whispered in another language.

“What? Whoa!” Chloe fell back when Elise sped up. “Hun, the new place isn’t going anywhere!” She saw a faint golden aura wrap around Elise. “Elise! What’s going on?!” Panic and concern rang clear in her voice.

“I really don’t know. It’s like back on the field, I can’t control myself.” She swerved through the traffic with ease, with no one reacting to her.

Chloe looked outside her window and didn’t see the car’s reflection in other cars or windows. “Hun, pull over. Something is wrong here.”