The trio found an empty habitat module and Jackson released both Asena and Scrappy into their own five by five foot space. Asena’s slate gray chamber turned a bright crimson. The floor and walls instantly warmed and the temperature rose to the point that Jackson would have been sweating within a couple of minutes if he’d been standing inside of it. Asena, on the other hand, was in her element. She lay down and rolled over on her back, tongue lolling.
Scrappy fluttered to a ledge on the inside of his space and after a quick scan, a series of fans blew a gentle wind across the square area to ruffle his feathers. Both stations featured a water bowl and a place where tamers could feed their Djinn if they desired. Scrappy jumped into his bowl and splashed around, cawing loudly. Since Jackson was one of the earlier bouts, he gave them both a light meal, but that was it. He didn’t want to overfeed them and have them get sick on the field.
Fifteen tense minutes passed while the rest of the tamers filed in. Jackson forced Briggs to rehearse their tactics with him one last time even though he knew them backward and forward.
“If there’s one thing you can expect,” Briggs reminded him, “it’s that your tactics will change. It’s one thing if you know your opponent beforehand, and it’s another not to know your opponent until minutes before. You have the core strategies down. Don’t rely too much on the minutiae, got it?”
Jackson nodded, but it didn’t do much to calm his nerves. If anything, it almost felt as though Briggs had just stated the whole matter was out of his hands, which Jackson didn’t like.
Afterward, Jackson asked Kay to do once last check-up on Scrappy and Asena just to calm his nerves.
“They’re both fine, Jack,” she said, rolling her eyes after feeling both of Scrappy’s wings. “Honestly, just chill out!”
“I am chill!” Jackson said in a loud voice. Why was everybody so on edge? He was the one going out to compete.
Kay frowned and would have probably argued with him further, but before she could say anything, a member of camp staff entered the locker room and announced that the tamers had forty-five minutes to warm up with their Djinn out on the field.
Together with Briggs, Kay, and Asena at his side and Scrappy on his shoulder, Jackson walked out of the long tunnel leading to the open-air stadium. Akamu was just ahead of them and did a double take when he saw Jackson behind him. His Flogadra flew just ahead but the Tandile remained in its ring.
“I guess the coaches have more compassion than I thought,” Akamu said. “They must have to let in a certain quota of tamers from loser towns by some regulation.”
Jackson ignored him, but Akamu wouldn’t be deterred. “You know that’s the only reason you’re here, right?”
“Holy crap, will you just shut up for once?” Jackson said.
Akamu smirked, as if pleased he’d gotten under Jackson’s skin. “Enjoy the fanfare while you can. You’re in my group, and I guarantee I’ll be the one to come out on top.”
“Just ignore him,” Briggs said in a low voice at Jackson’s shoulder. Jackson did his best to keep his hands unclenched — he would have torn Akamu apart right then and there if it wouldn’t have disqualified him. “You’re gonna get your chance to beat him but it’s not now.”
Fortunately, they reached the end of the tunnel and Akamu split off to the right, with Jackson going off in the opposite direction, happy to be away from the dude while he warmed up. They selected a quiet spot in the eastern corner of the stadium and Jackson started going through a number of physical and mental drills with both Asena and Scrappy.
They began by throwing a number of lightweight rings into the air. As soon as Kay or Briggs let one go, Jackson would command either Asena or Scrappy to catch a certain colored one. This let him work with both of them at once and also ensured they were paying close attention to his mental orders. Following that, both Djinn did a series of sprints over a short space, followed by some agility moves. For Asena, that meant running in certain patterns that Jackson commanded. Scrappy did the same thing with aerial moves. By the time they’d finished, there were still ten minutes left but both Djinn were flushed and ready to roll.
The pause allowed Jackson to look around the stadium for the first time. A gigantic board at each end of the rectangular field showed a huge screen. Right now, it displayed which tamers would be fighting and when. The field was divided into two rings — both of them standard grass turf — so that one match could take place while the other was cleaned from its previous fight. With Djinn shooting water, ice, gusts of wind, pillars of fire and more, the field crew had to be on their A-game to handle a whole range of possible damages.
The chatter of the crowd, which now occupied about half the stadium, sounded like a dull roar to Jackson. It was like he could feel their tension and energy and it sent his heart racing. This was a stadium. This was more like it — not the scattered friends and family he’d battled in front of at Vance McAllister’s invitational. Briggs seemed to have noticed Jackson’s wide-eyed examination of the field and stadium because he came up and gave Jackson a light cuff on the back of his head.
“Focus,” Briggs said. “Doesn’t matter if you’re fighting in the biggest arena in the country or in some field with nobody watching — the only things that matter are you, your Djinn, and the Djinn on the other side of the line. Don’t let the bright lights fool you, all right?”
Jackson scowled as he readjusted his hat that Briggs had knocked crooked a moment before. “I got it, I got it.”
A horn sounded, indicating it was time for the tamers to return their Djinn to their rings and exit the field. Before putting them in stasis, Jackson gathered Asena and Scrappy to him and then knelt down on the turf to look at them both.
“I know you guys don’t love each other, but you’ve made it this far together. If the three of us work together, we can go even further. Let’s forget everything that’s happened before, okay? All that matters is today.”
Scrappy fluttered into the air and cackled. Asena yipped in agreement. Jackson smiled at the pair and gave them each one last hug before storing them in their rings.
They returned to the locker room area where the day’s officials and the camp coaches waited for them. They gave a refresher of the rules for the tournament as well as a reminder for everyone to be good sports, no matter the outcome of the battles.
“This is your first real taste of the DBL,” the camp coordinator Mr. Golding said. “Whether you make the roster or not, what you do here today will be noticed — so give it your best shot and remember to be gracious in both victory and defeat. Good luck, everyone.”
With that, they filed back into the stadium for the opening remarks and the tournament introduction. Jackson was so focused on his upcoming battle that he hardly heard a word. He looked but couldn’t spot Jane — although he knew she was out there somewhere cheering him on. That gave him a calm assurance he wasn’t expecting, but he appreciated it nonetheless, especially after the stress of going behind her back in his first tournament.
Beginning with the highest-ranked tamer, each was called forward, a short bio was read, and their Djinn were introduced. Jackson felt more and more nervous the closer they got to him, but he managed to step forward and wave when it was his turn.
“Jackson Hunt,” the announcer blared. “The Tyle representative, teamed up with a Lyote and Magglecaw!”
The crowd gave a polite applause as they had for each of the other tamers. Someone whistled and Jackson looked at the sidelines in time to see Briggs give Kay a dirty look. She grinned sheepishly and waved to him.
“And now,” the announcer said in a rolling, epic tone. “Let the Granite Regional Tournament begin!”
With one final wave to the crowd, the tamers made their way back into the locker room. Since they were in a different group, Jackson hadn’t seen much of Fiona, but she managed to catch his eye on their exit as he yelled over the cheering crowd.
“Good luck!” Jackson called out.
Fiona ga
ve him a quick smile and nod before she went off to her own section of the locker room.
It felt like Jackson had just returned to the locker room when the camp staff member walked up to him, tablet in hand. “Jackson Hunt, you’re up.”
CHAPTER 29
“Aaaaannnnnddd now, in our first match of the day: Jackson Hunt versus Rando Vallez in a one-on-one match!”
Upon hearing his name, Jackson jogged out the tunnel, mouth dry, legs like rubber. He gave a half-hearted wave to the crowd but then focused solely on Rando when he reached his tamer’s box. Briggs and Kay stood a few yards back in the support sideline box area.
“Stick to the plan and you’ll do fine!” Briggs shouted through cupped hands.
The crowd had been one thing during warmups and the opening ceremony, but it was an entirely different creature now that its sole attention focused on Jackson and Rando. At some point, the hundreds of fans seemed to have grown to thousands. The very air shook with their cheers. Jackson felt a surge of adrenaline and stood a little straighter. It was just like he’d imagined it over and over as a kid.
The official beckoned them to the center of the arena and Jackson’s whole body thrummed in anticipation
“Tamers, this is a one versus one match,” the ref said. “You will each select one Djinn and use that Djinn alone for the entirety of the match. No items are allowed. No armor allowed. No modifications of any kind allowed. The first Djinn whose HP reaches zero loses. Any questions?”
Neither Jackson nor Rando said anything.
“Then shake hands!” Jackson and Rando gripped for a moment, gave curt nods, and then resumed their places in the opposing tamer’s boxes. The fingers on Jackson’s right hand twitched, waiting for the countdown to begin.
The plan against Rando was for Jackson to go with Asena. Not only was she his stronger, higher-level Djinn, but Rando’s two Djinn were a Earth-Elemental and Wind-Elemental — weak and neutral Elements against Asena’s Fire-Elemental moves, and neutral and weak against Asena’s limited Earth-Elemental move set. He didn’t know which Djinn Rando would use, but if Jackson brought out Scrappy, there would be a fifty-fifty chance Rando’s selection would have the Elemental advantage. The choice was clear. He had to use Asena.
“It’s not a game of survival,” Briggs had told him over the course of tournament prep. “You aren’t trying to win one match, you’re playing for the long-term. You’ve got to know how and when to use which Djinn. The tamers that play it the smartest will be the ones who come out on top.”
Beep. Beep. Beeep!
The clock sounded and both tamers punched their fists forward. Asena appeared in a burst of vermillion light and across from her, a dark brown light materialized into the form of Rando’s Earth-Elemental, a Badgerage.
Jackson pulled up a quick scan even as he sent Asena a mental command to circle but not make contact with her opponent. It looked like in the context of an official battle, the charts changed to give a bit more info than he was used to.
GENERAL OPPONENT STATS
Djinn: Badgerage
Level: 19
Element: Earth
Species Rarity: Common
HP (Hit Points): 306/306
EP (Elemental Power): 82/82
Attack: 115
Defense: 90
Speed: 65
Status: Neutral
This was a much more useful chart to use. Here he could see, for better or worse, whether or not his Djinn actually stood a chance. On a separate screen, he noticed a nice, prominent health bar he could keep track of that was much more visual. Similarly, on the holo-screens around the stadium, he noticed the Badgerage’s and Asena’s HP were also present for everyone to see. So this is what it was like in the big leagues. Jackson couldn’t help but smile. He brought up Asena’s own chart to compare, which had its irrelevant categories filtered in the context of the battle.
GENERAL STATS AND INFO
Djinn: Lyote
Level: 18
Name: Asena
Element: Fire/Earth
Species Rarity: Rare
HP (Hit Points): 292/292
EP (Elemental Power): 136/136
Attack: 120
Defense: 84
Speed: 89
Accessories: None
Items: None
Status: Neutral
Move Set: Swipe Left to See More >>>
A growl from Rando’s Badgerage brought Jackson back to reality. It bared its teeth and dug into the turf with claws as long and thick as Jackson’s fingers. Asena prowled around her opponent, warily waiting for Jackson’s next order. After a few moments of feeling one another out, it appeared Rando was going to play the defensive — which made sense. His Badgerage was slow but could take a walloping and only had to land a few hits. On the other hand, Asena’s Speed compensated for her average Defense. And then, there was, of course, the Elemental advantage Asena had.
Fire Bark!
Asena tilted her head back in a howl as a ball of flame formed and grew between her teeth. A moment later she dipped her head and sent it shooting toward the Badgerage just as its tail disappeared into the turf. The ball of flame shot past the opposing Djinn and dissipated harmlessly against the protective forcefield raised for crowd safety when the match had begun.
But Jackson had fought plenty of Earth-Elementals to know what was coming next. He sent Asena into a sprint around the perimeter of the match ring and then in a figure eight pattern so Rando couldn’t get a read on where to have his Badgerage pop up with its burrowing move. The Badgerage burst out of the ground just behind Asena after a few seconds underground — a miss.
Asena didn't hesitate. As soon as the enemy Djinn appeared, she let out an ear-piercing Fierce Cry that froze the Badgerage in place just long enough for her to let loose another Fire Bark that struck the Djinn in the face.
Jackson glanced up at the screen and saw the Badgerage’s health bar dip by a third — the Djinn may have had a strong Defense, but between the Elemental disadvantage Fire had over Earth and Jackson’s strategy early on of allocating his Djinn Points to Asena’s Attack, it was all but expected.
Asena prepared another blast as the Badgerage rushed her head-on and barely got it off before the creature struck her in the chest and bowled them over backwards.
Disengage! Disengage, girl!
The Lyote and Badgerage were a twisting blur of brown and orange fur. In single combat like this, even though the Badgerage was smaller, it packed a punch, and given that its physical attacks were of the Plain-Elemental variety, there was no Elemental advantage to protect Asena. Asena’s health bar dropped by a quarter with no sign of stopping until she at last pulled away. Jackson grimaced when he saw her limping on one of her hind legs, but the Badgerage hadn’t come out unscathed either and had only about a fifth of its own HP left.
Fierce Cry!
Asena let out another howl and the Badgerage slowed again, impacted by the intimidation effects of Asena’s move. Jackson followed the move up with another Fire Bark, but the Badgerage showed a surprising burst of evasiveness and managed to roll its compact body out the way to avoid all but a glancing blow from the fireball.
It countered at once by jabbing its claws into the ground. The action sent a tremor followed by two furrows of earth shooting toward Asena. She tried her own evasion but got caught between the two tracks and flipped into the air, landing hard. The Badgerage scuttled after her and was upon the Lyote before she could recover.
This had been more challenging than he’d expected. Given the Elemental disadvantage, Rando had purposely taken to using mostly Plain-Elemental physical attacks. Sure, Asena still had more than half her HP left, but if he wasn’t careful, the Badgerage’s superior Attack could take down Asena if a solid hit landed. The pair snarled and bit and rolled about, with Asena taking the worst of it.
Wild Bite, Wild Bite! Jackson commanded anxiously. The smaller Djinn made it hard for Asena to latch onto him with her teeth. The Badgerage
went down hard on her injured leg, but at the same time, Asena managed to get a firm hold of the Badgerage around its torso.
The enemy Djinn snarled and swiped with its claws, but Asena shook for all she was worth, letting loose a Fire Bark in the process, which took down the rest of the Badgerage’s HP. Asena threw the Badgerage across the ring. It landed in a heap and did not rise.
“And Jackson Hunt is the winner!”
A loud applause sprang from all sides as Jackson walked forward to shake Rando’s hand. They told each other good luck for the rest of the tournament and were whisked off to heal their Djinn before their next match.
“That was a little too close for comfort,” Briggs said. “With Asena’s Elemental advantage, that should have been an easy one. You were too slow with your commands.”
“I was feeling out the other Djinn.”
“You were too afraid to charge forward, is what it was. That gave your opponent the opportunity to strategize a way around their disadvantage. Luckily, this isn’t an Iron Djinn tournament where you aren’t allowed to heal between matches or we’d be in trouble. Asena took a pretty good leg injury.”
Jackson wanted to argue with Briggs but knew it was pointless. He knew the old man was right. Given Asena’s advantage, he shouldn’t have spent all that time having Asena circle her opponent.
“Asena will be fine,” Kay said, looking up from examining the Djinn.
After Asena had already been placed in a healing tank and cleared by camp trainers, Jackson still had Kay look her over. No matter what degrees the camp staff had on their walls, Kay knew Asena better than anyone after months of looking after the Lyote. There was no one Jackson trusted more with his Djinn. Even if she didn’t have her degree yet, Kay just had a way with Djinn.
Rivals Page 24