Chapter 4

Maya "Viper" Rodriguez was everything Ash feared.

Tall, ripped, with a focused intensity that was terrifying.

She moved with a deadly grace, her strikes precise and powerful.

Ash watched from behind the juice bar, her stomach twisting every time Maya trained near Ethan.

They were sparring one afternoon, a blur of motion and controlled violence.

Ash saw it then. Not romance, not yet. But respect.

A deep, professional respect between two high-level athletes.

Ethan was good, surprisingly good for a newcomer. Maya pushed him, challenged him.

The Game Feed flashed in Ash's vision, right over the blenders.

`GAME FEED: CHEMISTRY DETECTED! MUTUAL ADMIRATION LEVELS RISING. THREAT LEVEL: ORANGE.`

Threat level orange. Ash wanted to scream.

She gripped the counter, her knuckles white.

Later that week, Ash was wiping down tables when she saw Maya cornered by a sleazy promoter.

The guy was twice her size, handsy, his voice slick and suggestive.

Maya looked furious, but also trapped.

Ash didn't think. She just acted.

She grabbed a heavy steel water bottle, marched over.

"Hey!" Ash yelled, her voice loud in the suddenly quiet gym. "Leave her alone."

The promoter turned, sneering. "Who the hell are you? Juice girl?"

"I'm the one who's about to call the cops if you don't back off," Ash said, holding the bottle like a weapon.

She met his eyes, unflinching.

The promoter hesitated, looked at Maya, then at Ash. He grumbled something and slunk away.

Maya stared at Ash, surprised.

"Thanks," Maya said, her voice low. "Didn't need your help, but... thanks."

"No problem," Ash said, her heart still pounding.

A grudging respect formed between them. Then, slowly, something like friendship.

Maya started talking to Ash at the juice bar. Not about Ethan. About training, about fights, about the crappy promoters.

Ash learned Maya was disciplined, fiercely independent, and had a surprisingly dry sense of humor.

She wasn't a villain. She was just... a person. A very tough person.

One day, Maya was struggling to make weight for a fight, looking exhausted and defeated.

Ash, remembering a trick from a "Destiny Weaver" wellness quest, blended a specific concoction Doc Ali had once mentioned for hydration and electrolytes.

She handed it to Maya. "Try this. No charge."

Maya eyed it suspiciously, then drank. Her eyes widened slightly.

"Hey, this is... actually good. And I feel a bit better."

Ash shrugged. "Glad I could help."

The Game Feed flickered.

`GAME FEED: 'UNEXPECTED ALLIANCE' SUBPLOT INITIATED. MAYA RODRIGUEZ FRIENDSHIP LVL +1.`

`NOTE: 'RIVAL ROMANCE' THREAT LEVEL DOWNGRADED TO YELLOW.`

Ash blinked. The Feed wasn't always about romantic rivals.

Sometimes, it was about finding an ally in the most unexpected place.

She started to feel a little more secure, a little less like she was constantly fighting a losing battle.

She had a job. Ethan was recovering, finding a new path.

And she had a new friend. A friend who could probably break her in half, but a friend nonetheless.

Maybe, just maybe, she could handle this "Octagon Path."