by Luca Braña
“I see… Guess we can’t have nice things, huh? They’ll just take it away… Like forcing us to fight our own friends…” she said as she put her hand to her side, causing wind to shift around her. Cyko shook his head at her.
“Even if we have to fight today, Ellyn, you’ll still be my friend. I’m sorry for any bruises I might give you now,” the older boy said with a bitter smile while activating his power to flow through him, surrounding his body with a soft, blue aura. The green girl showed him a thankful but brittle smile of her own.
“Thank you, friend. I’m sorry if I hurt you also or take my frustrations out in this fight. May the best of us win,” Ellyn said as the wind surrounding her hand became stronger, eventually creating a bow-like form, including a wind string. She drew the string back as much as she could before pointing her wind bow at him.
His enhancement allowed him to take in several details about her in an instant. Her uniform and armor looked just like Magy’s, but with a greenish color. Her stance seemed to be one gained through constant practice, like from the robot wave experiment, and just like she always says, the wind danced around her form.
His own armor had a bluish hue and his own battle stance, rather than a martial arts one, was just the one he adapted to after many, many times fighting the robots. Now, he could see if he was strong, by fighting someone else that he believed to be strong too.
With no announcement from the scientists, they burst into action. Ellyn took the lead by launching her attack—an arrow of wind that caused a large sonic boom as it left her bow. Even with his enhancement, Cyko barely had time to dodge the attack, managing to jump away at the very last second, noticing how the arrow left a small crater in the wall that he was just standing in front of.
His mistake of looking away at this moment was clear as he heard more booms coming from Ellyn, signaling more arrows being shot in his direction while he was still in the air. Unable to dodge in time, he put his arms in front of himself to defend against the attack.
It felt like a truck struck him as the arrows reached him, making him lose his breath as he was thrown backwards, hitting the wall of the arena with a loud boom as more and more arrows exploded against his body. Gritting his teeth, he forced his body to jump away from the next barrage, running around Ellyn as she shot arrow after arrow of wind at him at inhuman speeds.
Finally he caught an opening as she stopped to correct her aim. He launched himself at her with the extreme speed from his enhancement, catching her off guard as Cyko appeared in front of her with a fist raised. However, a distortion of wind appeared between them just as he struck, slowing his attack enough to allow her to block it with her arms, making her slide back only slightly, rather than send her flying as he had intended.
Her mouth formed a circle and her eyes widened when she realized he could pierce her shield, but her brows furrowed as the surrounding wind grew more violent as she pointed her wind bow at him again. Cyko jumped away in instinct as she launched her arrow, which was much faster than before. She was taking him seriously now.
She fired at a much more rapid pace than before, keeping him busy with having to dodge left and right to avoid getting pummeled by her arrows. When he was far enough away from her, she raised her right foot and stomped the ground which, added to the force of her wind, caused small parts of the ground to break out and fly around her.
Seeing her actions, Cyko once again launched himself in her direction, hoping to land a hit, however, he was surprised when the pebbles she had broken from the ground were covered in a green aura and shot themselves at him. He dodged them by a single millimeter, thinking he was safe, but that was a mistake. As the pebbles passed him, they exploded into a gale, sending him flying away again towards the far wall which he hit hard, disoriented and unable to react as more arrows reached him, detonating against his body and carving him deeper into the wall.
Despite the difficulty of approaching her and the pain from her attacks, Cyko grinned. Yes, yes! She was a much better fighter than those stupid robots! Much stronger, much more durable! He was already enjoying this!
Smiling as his enhancements gave him more power, he forced himself out of the wall, jumping away from the barrage as soon as he was able to. He watched as another pebble was shooting towards him while leaping as far away as he could, it exploded once again in a violent gust of wind.
She must tear apart the robot army much faster than he can with those powerful area of effect attacks! She was strong, and he knew Ellyn would be a great help in the coming rebellion, but for now, he needed to prove himself—to her, to his friends, family and to Tela, who was no doubt watching their fight.
He tried to approach her again, but this time, moving in a zigzag to throw off her aim which seemed to be working, though she had to take a moment to correct her aim, and her automatic pebble shooter was running out of ammunition. Barely managing to outrange another blow, he managed to position himself in front of her, up close and out of range from her bow.
Ellyn’s eyes widened as Cyko launched a powerful kick at her, breaking her wind shield once again, which only slowed half of its momentum. The attack was enough to send her flying away, in which he gave chase to her soaring body.
Stopping her flight with her power over wind, she managed to barely evade a mighty punch Cyko sent her way. Using the opening it provided, she used her wind bow as a club and struck out at him using the gale force it contained, staggering him enough to jump away and send more spirit-possessed pebbles at him, which exploded in a powerful tornado as he flew away from her.
Ellyn knew Cyko was a powerful enhancer; he barely seemed hurt by her powerful gale attacks, and if anything, the difficulty to approach her seemed to motivate him. What’s more, his attacks hurt, she thought as she winced and tenderly touched her left side. It would be a bruise in the morning. If she wanted to beat him this fight, she needed to keep piling the attacks on until his stamina ran out—she needed to pressure him!
She exhaled, shaking her head to concentrate. The abilities the scientists unlocked in her allowed Ellyn to communicate with the wind—the spirits that were invisible to most people—and therefore, control it to her will, which meant she allowed it to guide her to the best path possible. It also gave her sharp eyesight and increased speed and reaction time. She needed the best of each of her abilities if she was to win and guarantee her survival!
“Oh, wind spirits, I beg of you, guide me in this moment…” she prayed as she sent more gale pebbles to keep Cyko at bay. Wind power covered her body as a targeting mark appeared in front of her right eye, signifying the usage of her full power. Pointing her wind bow up rather than at Cyko, she began to prepare her attack. She knew there would be a barrier that would prevent harm from those watching, and the wind told her the screens were unprotected, which meant they could be used as a weapon, but that wasn’t her intention… She needed her arrow to be as high as possible now.
“Oh Wind, guide my arrow… Tempest Spirit!” she pleaded as a green aura covered her bow before launching it upwards towards the ceiling where it stopped just before it reached the screen. The green arrow expanded and conjured up powerful winds around it before turning into a full-blown tornado that covered the entire arena. A translucent barrier appeared in front of the mages sitting in the first row, a protection against wayward attacks.
The wind grew stronger and Cyko was having trouble standing on his feet without being sucked into the massive tornado. His smirk had grown in size, this was awesome! Ellyn was so strong! He really wanted to beat her now! However, his sneer disappeared from his face as several gale pebbles appeared next to him, bursting and adding to the force of the wind. Sent flying by the explosion, he couldn’t stand against the powerful gusts.
Ellyn started to fire her arrows rapidly, all of them hitting him while he was helpless. He was forced to take it all, trying to use his arms to defend himself. He could see Ellyn in the center of the tornado, spinning alongside him with a small whirl of win
d at her feet.
Dozens of pebbles appeared next to him, exploding and sending him flying away like a rag-doll towards more rubble that was blasted. He would lose if this kept up! He needed to do something, but what?
Grinning despite his predicament, he found the answer just as more pebbles flew his way. He needed to find a way back to the ground so he could disorient her! Pushing his enhancement once again, he took hold of several pebbles and, just before they exploded, pointed them diagonally with his palm open in the opposite direction of Ellyn. The powerful explosion of wind sent him flying downwards and despite the strength of the tornado, it was still enough to plant him on the ground, which while very painful, he was able to take it.
Positioning himself to get up and not be sent flying away by the wind again, he saw that Ellyn was close to him and had a panicking look in her eyes as she pointed her bow at him, but he was faster, and before she could launch the arrow, he jumped up with his fist aimed towards her stomach.
“A-ahhh!” Ellyn grunted in agony as the punch was powerful enough to bend the plate covering her stomach, pushing her to her knees. The wind quieted down and dissipated as she vomited on the ground, her hands covering her stomach in anguish.
“Gah… Gah…” She panted in pain as she tried to get up, but her body hurt too much. “I… Gah… Can’t fight anymore… it hurts…” She gasped out as tears of pain fell down her cheeks. Cyko regretted it after seeing the state he left her in and allowed his own enhancement to fade away.
“Ellyn! Oh, my Luni, Ellyn, I’m so sorry!” Cyko exclaimed as he knelt down next to her and tried to comfort her, even as he winced in pain from his own bruises.
Ellyn let out a pained laugh. “Ah… Ugh. C-Cyko… Gah… Th-that… Ahh… Really hurt…” she said between gasps and sobs.
“This round of combat is concluded. Both subjects are in excellent standing. You may now return to your seats to watch the remaining battles,” the uncaring voice of the scientist rang out, signaling the end of their fight, much to their relief.
“I’m so sorry, Ellyn…” Cyko said again as he cradled the shaking girl’s head to his chest.
She laughed, then winced. “Ahh… B-being… Ugh, hugged by a boy… Gah… Is worth it…” she said, blushing.
“You don’t need to get yourself hurt for a hug!” he said in a worried voice before sighing again. This girl was eccentric as ever, and he really hoped he didn’t hurt her too badly. “Is there anything I can do to make you feel better?” he asked, still feeling bad for what he did.
“Aha… Urgh… W-well… I-if you… ouch… Carry me like a princess… Ahh… To my seat… I-I’ll forgive you…” she asked between sobs, looking up at him with a mischievous smile, despite her pain and tears.
Cyko blushed and nodded his head. “I can do that. I don’t think you can walk by yourself yet,” he said before positioning her better and lifting her up from the ground. Despite not being enhanced, she felt light as a feather to him, even with her armor.
“O-ouch… Th-thanks…” she said with a grateful, pained smile before grimacing as more tears built in her eyes, “ahh… It hurts so much… D-don’t… Ahh… Mind me… I-I’ll just c-cry for a while…” she said with a smile before turning her face into his chest to hide her tears.
“ It hurts so much…” Ellyn sobbed, panting and gasping as the pain from Cyko’s attack throbbed. The boy just looked at her, wanting to comfort her in some manner, but he knew he wouldn’t be able to. The way he was carrying her was comforting enough for Ellyn, but Cyko knew… only being free from this hell, where they are forced to hurt each other, would truly put her at peace.
“You two did great, I’m sorry that you had to go through so much pain. Please, keep working together,” Tela said in their minds, her voice sad, but relieved at them being alive. “Rest up as much as you can, I’ll be keeping in touch,” the redhead said before going silent.
After they were out of the arena and walking the main stairs, Ellyn painfully directed him towards her seat, which he followed as best as he could, finding an empty seat near Reddox, whose face was impassive as ever, although a wrinkle in his forehead showed that he was worried about her.
“Thank you for bringing her here. I can take care of her,” he said as Cyko set her down next to him. She got herself into a more comfortable position, still holding her stomach in pain.
“Th-thank you, Cyko… Ah… L-looks like the next fight already ended…” She said as Cyko turned towards the arena. It seemed the next battle had already started and finished in the time it took for him to take Ellyn back to her seat.
The winner’s body was covered in spikes dripping poison, whilst the loser’s had turned into metal, though he was on his knees, panting. “Combat concluded. The winner’s standing has risen, averting elimination. The loser’s placement remains good,” the scientist announced, making the spike girl fall to the ground, crying out in relief before panicking and helping the boy heal from her poison.
“Th-that plan… of that girl… is really working, huh?” Ellyn commented with a smile, making Reddox turn to her in confusion, while Cyko smiled and nodded.
“Yes, she is doing her best to ensure none of us are… eliminated… by those sick men,” he said bitterly, directed at the scientists who were watching them fight for their own twisted amusement.
Seeing the look of confusion plastered on Reddox’s face, Ellyn turned to him and strained out a smile. “D-don’t worry, I-I’ll explain it you later, ugh,” she said, though at least she could breathe now. She looked up at the blue-haired boy and beamed at him.
“D-despite th-the pain… It was a good fight… Th-thanks for helping me.”
It had been a great fight, much more challenging and real than fighting those stupid machines they were forced to spar with. Waving at her one more time, he made his way back towards his own seat, where Magy and Myo were waiting for him anxiously.
“Big bro, that was amazing! You are so strong!” Myo exclaimed with a grin before grimacing, “I feel sorry for Ellyn… Do you think she’ll be all right?”
“I think so, at least, her friend said he could help take care of her. I hope I didn’t hurt her too much,” he said as he sat down between the two of them.
Magy put her hand on his own, looking at him with a comforting smile. “Don’t worry, dear friend. Scythe says her wind spirits will help her heal, and I loved the performance you two pulled off. I should feel bad, but… I’m kinda looking forward to my own fight,” she said with a serene smile, making the boy sigh, although he smiled nonetheless.
“I know you are, I loved fighting Ellyn, even if I hurt her more than I intended to,” Cyko said, grimacing before looking up towards the screen as two more children were called forth to fight against each other. The names on the screen made him seethe in anger, but he knew he had no control, at least not now.
The third combat of the day turned out to involve one of his youngest siblings, Torch, against a child whose power was to turn himself into a cloud of locusts, strong enough to eat through metal. It had been a… unique battle, for despite the threat of the locusts, Torch kept the fire around him going at maximum potency, which made the insects unable to approach him. In the end, Torch won the combat by burning half of the locusts into dust, causing the other boy to shift back to his human form in agony. Being a shapeshifter, the defeated combatant would soon heal from these burns, but the scientist put a stop to the battle before this could occur. Torch was worried he might have gone too far, but the other boy, despite the pain he was in, told him that he was fine.
The next chosen to fight that day was another member of his family, Sara—one of his eldest sisters. Her opponent was someone who could use her mind to disorient and confuse her opponents. It was a hard fight for both of them, because Sara’s control over water was nearly as good as Ellyn’s own control over wind, and the mind-powered girl had to rely on her powers of confusion to make Sara miss her attacks. In the end, Sara froze the entire floor,
thus immobilizing her opponent as the girl’s feet got stuck in the ice. It seemed she would win, having prepared a large water bullet to knock her out, but her opponent’s mental disruption ability proved too much for Sara and she dropped unconscious just as she was about to launch her attack.
The next battle set everyone on edge, as it involved someone from the mutant ward, an adult sized werewolf with steel claws and teeth, and a girl who was trembling with fear at the beast’s predatory gaze. From his position, Cyko could see that Tela had a panicking look on her face. It seemed the flaw in her plan had emerged. The mutant ward consisted of inhuman monsters who listened only to violence, and it didn’t seem like the werewolf beast would follow Tela’s plans.
The girl that was fighting him, however, had the ability to control sound waves, which included a supersonic scream. Despite the ferocity and strength of the werewolf who was clearly not following any specific strategy, she still won against him. Just as his body had transformed, so did his senses. Her control over sound turned out to be his weakness, allowing her to emerge from the fight with only a deep cut in her arm.
Tela told everyone that if the mutant children refused to cooperate, they should fight to the best of their abilities and she would indirectly help if things got bad. Hopefully, it wouldn’t come to that.
After that fight, Magy was chosen to fight. Her opponent would also be one of the mutant ward children, a girl whose body turned translucent and head and hair turned into that of a jellyfish. Smiling serenely at the words of encouragement from both her friends, she made her way towards the arena.
“My name is Medusa. As you can see, I’m a jellyfish,” Magy’s opponent said openly as she arrived. Magy tilted her head at her comment. “I’m not in favor of that mean dragon… I just want a big ocean to float away in,” she said with a wistful smile as she got into a ready stance.