Zteel

Following their match, Nyota, Sage and Kilo were relocated to one of the coliseum's first-aid offices.

Simultaneously, the first-round battle for the fourth and final Squadron 1-C was active and ongoing at center coliseum in the background.

"How're you feeling, Nyota?" Sage asked as he reclined in a chair. "That was quite the battle out there."

"Ah, I'm fine," Nyota assured and nodded. "How's your leg?"

Sage looked at the bandaged wound inflicted during his brawl with Faris. "Ehh, I forgot that even happened," he quipped.

He continued. "You know, I never doubted our ability to win, but you certainly made me worry a tad bit."

"You two did great, but I was the lone one who wasn't injured." Kilo joked. "I think the makeshift 'Best Performance Award' should go to me!"

Nyota laughed before looking at the ground. "Yeah, well, Cadel, Faris and Shiloh were a great matchup for us.

Shiloh, especially, was formidable. He won that fight if I'm being honest.

But more importantly, the entire time, I couldn't help but question why I'm here, why I'm fighting. And to be honest, I still don't have an answer I think is appropriate."

"Appropriate for who?" Sage chipped in.

With a perturbed expression, Nyota finally looked up. After a brief moment, he replied, "For me."

After a moment longer, he smiled, almost as if to present to the brothers that he was alright.

"Anyway, I know I simply couldn't afford to let us lose. After all, it isn't just me here fighting for something greater than myself."

Succinctly, Sage and Kilo looked at one other with uncertainty.

--

"GRAAAAAAHHHH!"

A raging Cadel stood in a fury, kicking a chair and flipping a table with a vase of flowers on it nearby.

Cadel, Faris and Shiloh were also resettled to another one of the coliseum's first-aid offices.

"HOW COULD I HAVE LET HIM WIN?! SO EMBARRASSING!!"

Staring into nothingness, Faris sat on the wooden flooring with one knee raised and his back against the wall. A single arm rested on his knee.

"The next time I see him, he better pray to the gods!!" Cadel growled. "From this point forward, I won't lose to him again! I swear!!"

"I lost…" Faris murmured, still staring lifelessly.

Shiloh leaned against the wall near the door, his arms crossed. He rolled his eyes and shook his head steadily.

Cadel's back remained turned to the two of them. "It's not over yet! I know, what if I sabotage the tournament? Or, better yet, I could attack Nyota when he's by himself without him noticing!" He laughed frenziedly.

"You stupid idiot…" Faris finally responded. "Are you hearing yourself, right now?"

Cadel turned around, a befuddled expression written on his face. "What are you talking about? Are you saying I shouldn't… do this?"

"Knock it off. The battle's over."

"You don't understand, Faris," he challenged. "That battle was one hell of an embarrassment, and I refuse to settle for such a display." He sneered.

"In front of Noriko, no less?! You must have forgotten who I am!"

"Don't you get it?!" Faris shouted back, the room lowered to a ringing silence. He stood up. "We lost. We have no other choice but to accept the results.

Plus, if you had actually managed to harm them, she almost certainly would have had you dealt with—and rightfully so. And if not her, I'm sure another superior would.

I'm right there with you, I promise. That battle hadn't gone the way I wanted it to. The loss alone is embarrassing, and you're right. To make matters worse, it was in front of Noriko.

But listen, we cemented a spot into the forces, we've cemented our privilege to receive priority placing. That's the other thing we wanted to do, remember?" He placed a hand on Cadel's shoulder, who lowered his head into a bow.

"Cadel, can't you see? We made it."

After another moment of silence, Shiloh exited the room behind them without a word to spare. He walked through the inner hallways of the coliseum, making his way back to one of the atriums.

"So… I was bested twice by that kid, huh? Nyota…"

In a brief display of outrage, he slammed a fist onto the cobblestone walls. Resting there for a moment longer, the commotion of the battle taking place combined with the cheering of spectators could be heard from the distance.

Shiloh then jammed his hands into his pockets, his frown quickly developed into a grin.

"Oh, well," he sang. "I'll get back at him sooner or later."

--

"Ladies and gentlemen! Boys and girls! Welcome back to the second and final day of the Inaugural Annual Lunanova Police Force Cadet Sparring Tournament!

Stay tuned, as the cadets of the next match will be introduced in the next hour!"

The second and final day of the tournament had come around. Nyota, Sage and Kilo walked from table to table through the inner hallways of the coliseum, visiting vendors and merchants.

"This is so cool!" Kilo cheered. "If I could, I'd buy everything out!"

"We're not exactly here to do that," Sage reminded.

Kilo groaned. "What exactly are we here for, then, huh?! Just to look around?"

"Yes." Sage simply nodded.

Nyota laughed. "There's no harm in buying a thing or two," he added. "As long as we remember what we're here for. There are four teams left in this tournament, and we're one of them. We shouldn't get too distracted."

"The next match will be the Big Three versus the reps for Squadron 1-D," Sage informed. "Colt Bransen, Khafra Mana and Raphael Cortis."

"They were the ones in the first match that had that 'bye' round, right?" Nyota asked.

Sage nodded. "Yep, and I don't wanna miss it. That'll be our only chance to scout them out if we'd have to face them in the finale."

"I doubt they'd get past the Big Three, though." Kilo added.

"True, but you never know, anything can happen." Sage looked at his watch. "Anyway, we should get back to the atrium soon. I say we give ourselves twenty minutes."

--

In their atrium, the Big Three prepared for their pending match.

Enki sat on a bench, wrapping his wrists and hands in cloth and bandages. Tatius sat close nearby, and Idalia practiced waving her metal staff.

"Either of you know anything about these kids I'm about to pummel?" Enki started.

Idalia froze for a brief moment to cut Enki a look before continuing to practice. "Not a thing. They had a 'bye' round earlier."

Tatius chimed in. "I heard about their instructor, Trifon Keane. He's known for being quite rigorous."

"That's great," Enki joked. "An instructor that does his job."

The three of them laughed. Idalia stopped, returning her staff to its nylon case. "What are you saying about Airrion, then?"

Enki laughed. "Oh, nothing. Airrion's great! I'm just saying, assuming Trifon's as rigorous as you say people claim, I can't help but be fond of the guy.

A free ticket to the final match," he stood up, as did Tatius. "I wonder what the medalist ceremony will be like."

"Oh, shut up," Idalia laughed, jabbing him in the shoulder. Together, the three of them prepared to exit the atrium.

Meanwhile in the other, Raphael, Khafra and Colt prepared for battle as well.

"Our first actual battle of the tournament," Khafra said. "It's about time."

"It is." Raphael chimed.

"Let's remember what Trifon told us," Colt reminded.

"Oh, yeah?" Raphael bleated. "And what's that?"

"To carry the chips on our shoulders no matter how heavy and use them to make us stronger."

Raphael shook his head and challenged. "Yeah, well the old man also told me that I wasn't good enough and needed to become more versatile."

"It's out of love, I'm sure." Khafra commented. "He invested a lot of time into us. He believes we can beat the Big Three."

Raphael, who was initially seated nearby his two comrades, shot the two of them a melancholy glance before standing up and brushing past them.

"We don't know if he actually believes, and we certainly don't know why he's so adamant about our victory.

Either way, what's important is I know what the three of us are capable of. And I can tell you this much: when we win, the old man better pay me in money or dinner or something."

Khafra cut Colt a quick glance, who rolled his eyes after doing the same.

Eventually, it was time for both participating trios to report to the coliseum tunnels for their introductions.

Nyota, Sage and Kilo returned to their atrium to watch the pending action on television. All others, including Noriko, Elwin, and the squadron instructors returned to their seats from before.

"Alrighty now!" The intercoms went. "It's finally time to begin the semifinals!

In one corner, we have the Bye-Round Beasts! The lucky yet strapping trio, representing Squadron 1-D, please welcome Colt Bransen, Khafra Mana, and Raphael Cortis!

Colt, Khafra and Raphael jogged out of their tunnel.

And in the other corner, we have your tournament favorites. They need not another introduction but are well deserving of many. Introducing again, your Big Three!"

The Big Three did the same.

The two trios faced each other as they reached the stage. "Ready?" The referee called, flag raised high in hand.

The cadets nodded. "Hope you're ready for a tough loss!" Raphael shouted for the Big Three to hear.

"We're always ready, kid." Enki called back.

"Remember, keep coordinated." Colt reminded. "We trained for this."

"Right," Khafra and Raphael nodded.

The crowd counted down.

"Three!"

Enki encased his hands within his patented Earth Gauntlets. Tatius assumed a fighting stance and Idalia did the same, her crystals floating around her.

"Two!"

Khafra grasped the grip of her handle suspended behind her back in its sheath. Ice crystals formed a bluish white aura and floated around Colt.

Raphael assumed a fighting stance, a couple of pillars of wood erected from the concrete court and limbered around him.

"One…!

Commence!"

Enki, Tatius and Idalia rushed Raphael and company at once.

In response, Raphael knelt down to the ground, erecting countless cubic wooden columns beneath him, Khafra and Colt, giving them the higher ground.

Enki initiated a counter, doing the same with his Earth MO.

The intercoms rang. "Woah! The match has just begun and it already looks as though this battle will be fought high in the air! How exhilarating!"

"Colt!" Raphael called.

"Right!" With an outstretched hand, Colt immediately iced the pillars Enki had created that the Big Three stood on to make it difficult for them to maintain their balance and traction as they raised high into the air.

To combat Colt's frost, Idalia coated the pillars Enki created within her rugged crystals, prohibiting Colt's frost from affecting them greatly as well as preserving their traction.

"Khafra!" Raphael called again.

"On it!" After a series of hand signs, a large cloud of sand built up above Khafra, Raphael and Colt and remained suspended into the air until it manifested fully into the shape of a fist.

In defense, Enki controlled his Earth pillars that he and his comrades stood on.

Instead of them trying to match the opposition vertically, the pillars glided away in a rumble and returned to the far opposite side of the court where the Big Three had initially begun.

The pillars could not move nearly as quickly as the sand fist however, and moments later, it crashed down into them as they evacuated.

For a moment, the Big Three could not be seen. The action had come to a pause and all that could be made out was the aftermath of the sandy collision.

"Is that it?" Kilo asked confusedly as he, Nyota and Sage watched the action.

"No, can't be," Nyota sharply replied. "It's going to take more than that to take them out."

"I give 1-D credit, though." Sage added, his arms crossed. "Their attacks are the very definition of coordinated."

Soon after, the sand blew away in a whirling manner. Tatius had created a defensive dome of air that protected them.

Unscathed, the three remained on the pillars. Tatius crouched down low, Idalia flaunted her staff, and Enki stood upright with his arms crossed, grinning.

The Squadron 1-D cadets were stunned. How were the Big Three able to fend off a seamless assault so effortlessly?

"Aye!" Enki called. "How about we bring this back down to the ground, even the playing field, huh?"

Raphael growled before addressing his teammates.

"Colt, Khafra, we're staying here. As long as we maintain high ground and use ice as a defense, we should be fine."

After seemingly having his request ignored, Enki decided to retaliate.

"Fine then," he shrugged. "Have it your way."

"Wind Generation MO," Tatius outstretched an arm. "Hollow Airfoil!"

Waves of sharp horizontal blades of wind collided with the countless wooden columns that 1-D stood among. Cutting through and dissipating them, Raphael, Khafra and Colt plunged through the air.

Khafra quickly clasped her hands together, forming another hand gesture. "Sand MO: Regal Crown!" Whirlwinds of sand manifested from the air to catch the falling cadets, delivering them to safety.

"Ice MO: Frigid Scepter."

Colt placed one arm on top of the other, then quickly glided one over the other while keeping them parallel. In between his arms spawned a javelin made of ice.

He repeated the process once more to form another. Raphael and Khafra drew their swords as well.

The Big Three stood in place for a moment. Idalia drew and crystallized her staff, Enki's gauntlets were already drawn, and Tatius drew a bow.

"A ranged weapon…" Colt observed.

Khafra added. "It shouldn't be hard to defend against."

"You're right," Raphael concluded. "We'll press up against him. Let's watch for the other two."

"Should we split?" Khafra asked.

Raphael nodded. "We can afford to for now."

"Nice, I'll take Idalia," Colt darted for her. "You two decide amongst yourselves for the others."

"I've got Enki." Khafra leaped away as well.

"I guess that leaves me with 'Arrow Man,'" Raphael stretched. Tatius stood directly ahead of him.

"I'm not sure splitting up will do the three of you any good." Tatius shouted.

Raphael challenged. "And I'm not sure that bow will do you any good, either. And yet, here we are."

"Touché. I guess we'll have to wait and see." Immediately Tatius aimed his bow at Raphael.

What appeared to be three separate, nearly invisible arrows manifested from thin air within it, poised to be launched.

"Wind Generation MO: Galestorm!"

He released the arrows, the three of them circulating in a single pattern until they honed into a single like point.

Raphael put up multiple wooden walls in between him and Tatius. The arrows continued to pierce through them until they eventually disappeared.

The walls that had been penetrated began to regenerate, obstructing Tatius's view of Raphael.

Having planned prior, Raphael grew a shield of wood from his forearm. Protecting himself, he bum-rushed through the walls himself until he reached Tatius, thrashing him unexpectedly.

Tatius was battered back and knelt to the ground, but quickly stood up. He rushed Raphael back, pushing back against his shield with his bow.

Meanwhile, Enki threw a barrage of hefty attacks at Khafra, swinging in hopes of hitting her.

Khafra managed to avoid and contest his many attacks with relative ease, ducking and dodging as well as putting up walls of sand that automatically shielded herself.

Enki continued to swing, placing all his weight into every swing.

Khafra simply jumped around him and attacked, forming a heap of sand shaped into a fist that suspended in mid air before colliding into his back.

After being knocked forward, Enki turned around and continued his rather basic barrage, but to no avail. Khafra continued to pummel him with fists of sand and, unbeknownst to him, had been preparing another attack.

While he was kept distracted, the residue of sand thickened around Enki's feet before forming into distinct lines all around him.

He threw one final swing at Khafra before she created space between the two of them. She held a hand up before her, at which moment Enki realized what she had done.

From her fingertips formed lines of sand, the same lines that had formed around him. Over time, they had grown thicker, climbing his legs and even gripping onto his arms.

He tried to resist and pull away, but Khafra's technique was too strong.

"Sand MO, I call it 'Kemet's Shackle.'" She laughed. "Don't bother moving, you won't be able to escape that."

Enki continued to pull himself out of her trap, but to no avail. This was until he bowed his head and laughed.

"I like this technique! Unfortunately, this won't hold as well as you think it will."

He shouted and his body visibly began to grow stronger unexpectedly. His muscles enlarged and his height grew a bit, ripping the uniform coat he had worn and leaving only a fitted t-shirt for a top.

Limb by limb, he broke himself free from the grasp of Khafra's sand. Khafra, of course, was at a loss for words.

With his physical transformation complete, he cracked his neck and finally spoke.

"It's been a while since I'd last brought this out," he groaned, assuming a boxing stance, an orange aura almost radiating from his skin. His hands were once again encased in stone, though much slicker.

"Strength Modus: Brute Build!"

Meanwhile, Colt and Idalia danced back and forth, dodging each other's close-ranged attacks. Colt ducked down to the ground before kicking upward into the air. The trail of his kick formed and left behind a wall of ice.

Idalia dodged it before leaping into the air and executing a round kick. Her kick, too, utilized her MO's crystals and left behind a trail, breaking the wall that Colt had formed between them.

After shattering the thin column of ice, her foot grazed and cut Colt's face, propelling him back and into a circle.

Colt tended to his jaw, before gently wiping his face, miniature drips of blood oozing from a cheek.

Even after a moment, the cut continued to bother him.

"This shouldn't matter," he thought to himself, redirecting his attention back to Idalia. "Even so, it stings.

This sensation, it keeps getting stronger! Why won't it stop?"

"Do you get it now?" Idalia asked. "My crystals aren't just for the aesthetic. A little advice: try not to let them graze you."

--

Tatius continued to fire triplets of wind arrows across the court in Raphael's direction. They flew by at blinding speeds, sending shock waves in the air around them. Raphael managed to evade them as he made another pursuit for Tatius up close.

Drawing his smaller blade, he reached Tatius and the two continued their assaults on each other. Raphael refused to relent, but Tatius continued to batter his attacks with his bow.

Raphael created space between the two of them before attacking again, but Tatius successfully battered him in his face with the end of his bow.

Rendering him uneasy, Tatius then took his bow and prepared a single shot. Pulling its string back, he released the shot straight into Raphael's chest.

Rather than piercing him, it dissipated into a shocking gust of air, blowing him across the court once it met. The gust sent Raphael tumbling until a wooden wall erected from the concrete court, catching him.

He struggled to stand upright. "Was that some kind of sick joke?!" Raphael shouted.

"Relax, it's just another match. Why would I take your life?" Tatius assured. "This event doesn't call for that."

"I can't let this go on for much longer," Raphael wiped his mouth.

He extended an arm, countless splinters of wood glowing red in color arose all around him. "Wood MO: Jagged Embers!" At once, the hundreds of shreds rushed Tatius.

Tatius shook his head before doing the same. "Again? Where's the creativity? All these attacks, they're always the same.

I'm in the mood for something generational… Hollow Airfoil."

The deluge of splinters stopped in their course, immediately redirecting back toward Raphel's direction.

Having hardly reacted quick enough, he protected himself within a wooden dome to endure the attack.

--

Khafra continued as typical, attacking Enki from close range. Unfortunately, Enki's new form allowed him to duck and dodge with ease, as well as counter at blinding speeds.

With every series of punches and kicks Khafra threw, Enki managed to land a critical hit.

When she got too close, he delivered a jab to her side.

Then, she tried to deliver a sweeping kick from a lower position, at which moment he didn't budge, and she was taken aback by how dense he had gotten.

"What kind of ability is this?!" She panicked. "He's swifter and his body hardened, it's almost like he's made of steel!

How am I supposed to beat this?"

After barely completing her thought, Enki had delivered a knee into her abdomen.

"AHK—"

She squatted down to the ground as Enki meandered his way closer to her.

"I swear to you," he began. "Hitting women isn't my thing, I'm far from the most comfortable with it. But you get it, don't you?"

Swiftly, she created knuckle melee weapons with knives at the ends and charged Enki at once.

Reaching him, their two fists collided. Sparks flew as inflexible stone struck solidified and sharp sand. They continued to slam hands until Khafra knelt down, slashing Enki's leg not once, but twice.

She then worked her way vertically, punching and cutting him in various places, including his arms, sides and chest, and after a while, she gave him space and it was he who fell to the ground.

"We don't care who you are, or how great you fight," Khafra breathed, catching her breath. "But we've got goals, too. I don't care how much I'm told to fear you or anyone else, but I'll never surrender."

Enki wiped his face as he was slow to get up. "Oh, yeah?" He chuckled. "We'll see."

The announcer advertised. "What's this?! Khafra Mana of 1-D seems to be giving Enki Thorsten trouble! The people wanted a good fight, and 1-D seems to be delivering just that!"

Trifon chuckled, his arms remained crossed as he sat next to Jora and Airrion.

Airrion grew anxious. "Come on, Enki!" He stood and shouted before lowering his tone and turning to Trifon. "He shouldn't be struggling against a team like yours."

"Maybe you should've taught them to not underestimate their opponents." Trifon clapped back. Jora sat quietly in between the two of them, allowing them to argue.

Airrion continued. "I'll have you know they know that already! You know what, why am I letting an imbecile like you stress me out? I trust in my cadets."

Trifon growled. "What did you just call me?!"

--

"1-D's putting up a great fight," Sage adjusted his glasses.

Continuing to observe the action taking place on the big screen, Nyota let out a simple, "Yeah."

Kilo asked. "So, are we ever gonna be able to have that match against The Big Three then?"

"We're not even set for the final round yet, either," Sage reminded.

Nyota added. "Our next match is right after this one. We'll steamroll that opponent, and whoever else comes after them, we'll worry about then."

--

Colt remained in place, waiting for Idalia to attack. He had grown greatly cautious of her crystals as he hadn't known whether or not he was poisoned, let alone if the paralyzing effect of her crystals was permanent or fatal.

"Won't you do something?!" He called from across the court.

Idalia continued to analyze Colt until she finally came to a conclusion. "I see now… you're scared."

"What?" He growled. He knew she was onto him, that she was correct, but he tried to maintain his bluff.

"You're scared. You're intimidated, going up against an older cadet like me, regarded as the best this large campus's got to offer. The stinging bothers you, and I haven't yet told you how it works.

And all of a sudden, you're rethinking your life decisions, becoming a cadet, wanting to climb the ranks to indulge in all the glory they have to offer."

"Stop it," Colt demanded. "How shortsighted, you don't know the first thing about me!"

"Well I know that you're bothered by not knowing if you're going to die today or not. We've all been there, I know I have—"

"Stop it!"

"Let me tell you something, kiddo. I'm telling you now that between the two of us, I'll be the one advancing. But as young as you are, it's quite impressive you've gotten this far.

But right now, you should get used to the feeling."

Colt remained silent, but Idalia continued on.

"'Of what?' You might ask. Well, to put it simply, the feeling that uncertainty and loss bring. A new and maybe even unsuspecting challenge that arises, rendering you helpless and left to wonder, 'Things aren't going according to plan. I'm unsure of what to do, will I make it out of here alive?'

And when it comes to those you care about, your questioning grows deeper. 'Will my comrades? What about them? Will they be alright, or will my death be in vain?'"

Colt began to ponder deeply. Based on the way Idalia had spoken to him, would this crippling pain he was in be the end for him?

He panicked. He looked around to see his comrades Raphael and Khafra struggle against Tatius and Enki, respectively. Then, he realized that Idalia had been right.

He was bothered, he was anxious. But more importantly, he didn't want to let Raphael and Khafra down.

"You see now?" Idalia questioned. "Even though you'll graduate along with me, you're still younger. As your senior, it's kind of my job to tell it as I see it.

It's in your best interest to learn this now rather than later. Especially because out there in the real world, they'll be much less forgiving.

We're all on the same side. And ultimately, this work always comes down to being willing to step into the unknown."

In his mind, Colt had already accepted what Idalia had stated as fact. But, he acknowledged that he had more immediate matters to tend to; he was still in a battle.

"You're right… So what? I'm in a battle right now, so I'm not just going to quit."

Swallowing his nerves and gripping his javelins, he rushed Khafra.

"If I'm going down, I should take my opponent down with me!"

Ice formed on the concrete court, paving a way for him. He threw the javelins ahead and clasped his hand together.

Idalia smiled, a look of satisfaction on her face before she, too, prepared an attack.

"Crystallization MO," she called. Her crystals began to form along the trails of the court, just as they had done during her battle against Doran long ago. In the process, they left a pink and misty aura around the territory she had arranged.

"Quartz Domain!"

Colt continued to glide his way to Idalia, his ice coating over any crystalline flooring it had come across. As his hands remained clasped together, ice began to accumulate into a sphere within them.

However, many of the crystals around shot up from the ground and formed towering spikes, many of which broke through the ice coating with ease.

As Colt neared the end of his attack's preparation, Idalia's crystals managed to cut him occasionally. The stinging sensation they left grew almost exponentially, but this wouldn't hinder the progress he made.

In one final attempt to defeat him, Idalia prepared one final attack. Kneeling down and bracing both palms onto the court, two towering crystal walls erupted and advanced forward in Colt's direction. Eventually, one followed after the other.

"Crystallization Modus: Rushing Ramparts!"

"Now's the time!" Colt exclaimed aloud. "Ice MO: Glacial Carronade!"

He outstretched his arms and made a bowl shape with his hands. A bone-chilling beam of ice released aimed directly for Idalia.

The beam crashed through both crystal walls, one after the other, before Idalia simply leaped out of its way.

As the walls were now breached, they atomized into countless shards and fell from the airspace, enclosing Colt in a heap of crystal bits.

Dust riddled the court. Idalia walked through it toward Colt until the air cleared. In the heap laid a defeated Colt, coughing and exhausted.

"I… can't… move," he mouthed.

Idalia knelt down in front of him. "I'm hoping you can appreciate what it is I've shared with you today. I meant every word.

Regarding the paralysis, it won't last much longer. The stinging is only temporary, I wouldn't make it fatal in a scenario like this."

She smiled. "You did a job well done. Now, you can look forward to graduation and whatever else you and your friends look forward to."

She stood up and walked away. "If you need anything, don't ever be afraid to reach out."