Whether it's a choice of destiny, a path by faith, or a decision from those of the above realm, whatever the case, it was already decided.
Just like the five fingers, people could never be the same, be it by choice or by birth.
There would be those that would be born into a castle, their parents being kings and queens, those that would be born into a bloodline of riches, and many more.
These people were said to be born with a golden spoon. And mostly, it would be people like this that would be born with talents, be it crafting, dancing, singing, and acting.
Also, of course, the most important, those born with the knowledge of combat. Those that literally had it in their blood.
And there were the unfortunate ones, those born without a spoon at all. They will usually come from poor family, or sometimes have no family at all, forcing them to adapt to the cruelty of this world.
And when it came to talents, they rarely had any. It was quite rare that someone from the slumps had a combat talent at all.
In most cases, they would have, but due to the lack of anyone to support or encourage them, the talent would end up fading away… just like them.
And Keal knew that Fai was never born with a golden spoon, so he knew that no matter the case, he would be more talented when compared to Fai.
Keal scoffed. "Unlike you, we are born with real talent; we don't even need to waste our time training. Even if you spend years training, we would still best you."
Fai stiffened. That last line struck deep.
It was somewhat true; no matter how much a human trained, pushed their limits, or pushed themselves, they would not be able to beat a mutant, no matter how hard they tried.
Although determination was a good ally, the reality remained unchangeable.
Fai shook the thought off his head quickly. "He's… He's trying to mess with me."
Keal, seeing this reaction, chuckled. "If that's true, why'd you flinch?"
Brine crossed her arms. "Enough talking now. You said we were here to settle things."
Keal nodded, hearing what she said. "Right. Let's get this over with."
Leo, who had been silent until now, cracked his knuckles.
"Make it quick. We've got more ground to cover."
Johnson took a step closer to Fai, his eyes narrowing.
"I've listened to your proposal, this is my answer, listen closely, cause I will say this only once: you are not allowed to touch a single hair on him."
Seeing Johnson's protective stance and hearing his words, Fai and even Keal's group were shocked.
They couldn't believe their ears. Keal even blinked a couple of times, as if to clear his hearing.
For Fai, who had been hurt so much before, whose trust was broken to the point of non-existence, friendship was an alien concept.
In reality, although he had accepted to work with Johnson, he didn't truly trust him. He half-expected Johnson to betray him at some point, to find his weak spot, and stab him where it hurt.
But now, he could see, perhaps he was wrong. What if Johnson was sincere? What if he genuinely wanted Fai to be his friend?
A true friend, someone he could genuinely rely on, but was it even possible? Could someone truly risk their life for someone they had only just met, someone they knew nothing about?
What are you doing? Fai thought, bewildered.
"Don't tell me you're breaking our deal?" Keal's voice was laced with annoyance.
"Deal?" Johnson repeated, feigning innocence.
"I don't remember accepting your terms. Or did I? No, I don't think so." He scratched his head thoughtfully, then looked at Fai, who was now standing behind him.
"Did I, Fai?" he asked again, a soft smile appearing on his face, as he gave a wink.
But Fai couldn't reply, he was too fixed on the situation at hand, and it was too confusing for him. Why would Johnson even decide to help him?
Fai's gaze then shifted and locked on with Keal's group. They've always been ready. But so am I, he thought.
"You son of a bitch! How dare you back out of our deal after accepting my coins?" Keal roared, a huge vein throbbing on his forehead.
"Get them!" he screamed in a fit of anger.
Brine moved first. "Blades of the winds!!" she screamed, as she shot her arms forward.
A gust of sharp wind swirled around her fists as she raised both hands and shot them, channeling slicing currents toward Fai and Johnson.
Seeing this, Fai and Johnson swiftly got out of the way, letting the attack go past them.
The sudden blast tore part of the vines and bushes along the maze wall.
"That was surely going to hurt," Johnson said quickly.
"Yeah," Fai confirmed.
Prime slammed a foot into the ground. "Wall of protection!" he screamed.
And with that, a jagged stone wall erupted upward, forming a defensive barrier between them and Brine, protecting his sister from any incoming attacks.
"Earth user," Johnson added, identifying the twin's mutation.
Leo, seeing that the others had already begun to take actions, charged right in without wasting a second.
His body bulged unnaturally with muscle, his arms swollen and veined with power. As he ran, each step shook the ground.
"Strength-type mutant," Fai muttered, recalling each of their mutations. "And he's gotten fast too."
Johnson didn't hesitate. With a sharp blink of light, he vanished, reappearing right beside Leo in an instant.
He struck a sharp elbow to Leo's ribs, sending the bigger boy stumbling sideways.
The blow made contact, and Leo felt a sharp pain to his side; it was enough to break a rib.
"Fai!" Johnson called, reappearing next to him. "What's wrong with you, dude? Snap out of it! Do you want to be disqualified?"
Johnson said he could see that Fai wasn't doing anything, not even fighting back. If he hadn't hit Leo away, he was sure Fai would have been a goner by now, victim of Leo's attack.
Fai, hearing what Johnson said, was now able to gain back some senses, his eyes narrowing as he saw Keal finally step forward.
But when Keal did, he didn't use any extraordinary attacks. No fire, no water, or sort of mutant ability.
Instead, he smirked. "I don't even need my powers to hurt you, Fai."