Page 16 of Zero Happily Ever Afters

Milo’s mind turned to mush, fanboying with a thousand different thoughts on Alicia Lawrence, best known to the public as Global Gladiatrix. Which made sense as a gladiatrix was the female version of a gladiator, and gladiators were renowned for their skill as warriors and champions of entertainment. Something every enchanter these days strived for. Of course Milo would be a fan for a fellow witch in love with the absurdity of stage names like The Inevitable Future.

“Gladiatrix,” someone shouted, waving their hand and flashing the pink, light blue, and white bracelet they wore with two golden Gs.

The globally ranked enchanter posed, hands on her hips, chin held high, and chest proudly raised, displaying the heart-shaped trans flag on the front of her shirt. Her slow descent drew many eyes, many minds, and soon, people approached the internationally famous witch.

“She’s one of the…”“Whoa, I know her.”

“What’s she doing here?”

“Doesn’t she work like halfway across the world?”

“She works all over the world.”

“I can’t believe she’s here.”“Must be something big happening.”

“You heard what happened in…”“What? That was here?”

“Not here here, but yeah.”“Heard hundreds died.”“Try thousands.”

The chatty group nearly swarmed Milo as they crowded around Gladiatrix, each eager to stand beside her for a picture, for an autograph, for a chance to talk with one of the strongest witches in the world.

Physicality came in varying degrees, so much so that the licensing committee created different titles based on the level of enhancement the witch possessed. Physicality, in the most basic sense, gave a person more physical ability than those around them. It differed from mere enhanced strength or speed. It was a combination of overall physical enhancements throughout the body: strength, speed, reflexes, senses, channeling, and healing.

That, in turn, gave them greater access to their root magics. I’d seen several differing levels of physicality over the years that included enhanced physicality, major physicality, and ultimate physicality—which came from a coach between jobs and trying to earn his way back into guild life—but I’d never encountered someone with supreme physicality. I couldn’t even fathom how powerful Gladiatrix truly was. They say a single punch from her could hit harder than a semi-truck at full speed. And that was only if she held back some.

Milo had noticed how no one in this crowd paid attention to him, recognized him, or even acknowledged his presence. Itwas odd, comforting, and a tinge insulting. Enchanter Evergreen knew his audience was mainly back in Illinois, but he believed he had some national fame. After all, he’d recently become globally ranked, and he’d always had an engaging online presence. Still, he enjoyed watching Gladiatrix interact with her audience. Her strong stance, her poised expression, her gentle smile, and the lightest laughter when someone spoke to her. Every interaction held finesse and expertise.

Ronald stood beside Milo and huffed. “I told her we didn’t have time for a photo op.”

Milo knew that was a lie. He knew sooner than me, simply studying Ronald’s stance, the slight grin on his face, the way his eyes darted around the crowd, and every other thing that years in the industry had taught Milo to be observant on.

A quick glance into Ronald’s surface thoughts revealed how the recent attack had shaken the state, and he’d been tasked with ensuring the public calmed. He staged Gladiatrix’s arrival, a small gesture he believed would spread quickly, much like the wildfires he noted California currently contended with. I grimaced. Seriously? Even as the man’s poor taste in a comparison sat on the surface of his mind, he weaved together ideas of stealing some time from Gladiatrix’s current mission so she could assist the local guilds on the current fires that ate through suburban neighborhoods. His mind reminded me of Caleb’s if Caleb fixated solely on one woman’s career and ways to play on the public to push her approval ratings higher and higher.

“Don’t worry.” Milo smirked, pulling me from my snooping. “I predict it’ll all work out.”

“And you’d know, huh?” Ronald replied with a small chuckle.

Facts about Gladiatrix poured out onto the surface of Milo’s mind as he admired how she held herself for her audience.

Enchanter Alicia Lawrence was the highest-ranked woman in the Global Guild, sitting at number four with only three witches in the whole world deemed officially stronger than her. She was also the only trans person in the top ten rankings.

That wasn’t a detail I knew because of Milo, though he did find her queer activism admirable. But no, I knew quite a bit about Gladiatrix, such as her work to gain the trans community more recognition and acknowledgment for their history in the guild industry and how only six witches out of the several hundred listed in the Global Rankings were trans.

This insight came from Carter and Jennifer as they took on leading roles in Gemini’s LGBTQ+ Club. Each researched the roles queer witches played in the industry, in the world, and how that had evolved recently. They weren’t the only students in the club, but they were definitely the pair that made the most time for it. Each eager to share something with their members or each other, each buzzing with facts, each teeming with a desire to finally share their feelings.

Admittedly, I learned a lot about the queer community in the industry I had taken for granted when eavesdropping on Carter and Jennifer, awaiting the day one of them would confess their crush.

“You ready?” Gladiatrix asked Milo, stepping away from the thinning crowd.

“I’ll pull the car around.” Ronald snapped his fingers to instruct one of his nearby assistants to pull the car around.

Gladiatrix kept her gaze fixed on Milo, awaiting his answer. He stared at the stack of papers in his hands, then at Gladiatrix, then solemnly back to the papers, and then back to the young enchanter whose smile lightened Milo’s mood. She curled her fingers, balling a fist, and sent a sturdy wave of telekinesis through the air that stole away the files and tossed them into the hands of several representatives at Ronald’s side.

“Well, ready?” Gladiatrix asked.

“Always.” He grinned.

“Let’s go,” she said, hovering in the air. “Traffic in this city is a bitch and a half.”

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