The break between events was anything but restful. Media drones swarmed Unit Hound's preparation area, their lenses focused intently on Gareth. Reporters shouted questions through the energy barrier separating contestants from press.
"The Arcadian Evolver! How does your ability work?"
"Are you really classified as unknown?"
"Who trained you?"
Gareth kept his head down, letting Commander Vale's security team handle the crowd. But he couldn't avoid the stares from other competitors. Teams that had ignored them during the opening ceremony now watched with calculating eyes, their strategists already adjusting battle plans.
Lyra moved closer to him, her voice low. "You've made quite an impression. Half these teams look like they're ready to dissect you."
"Comforting," Gareth muttered, his ability already analyzing the potential threats around them. "I count at least three teams with abilities that could counter my predictive analysis if used correctly."
Eve joined them, her silver-blue eyes scanning the crowd. "The surveillance has intensified. Multiple hidden observation posts have been established around our preparation area. They're studying you, Gareth."
Sera confirmed this with her datapad. "Media attention has increased by 400% since your performance. Social media analytics show your new designation 'Arcadian Evolver' trending across seven sectors."
Nova grinned, slinging an arm around Gareth's shoulders. "Relax, pretty boy. This is what we wanted, right? Now everyone knows not to underestimate us."
But Gareth noticed how Riven stood apart from the group, his usual boisterous energy replaced by a tense watchfulness. When their eyes met, Riven offered a tight smile before turning away.
EVENT TWO: 5v5 STEALTH ELIMINATION
The arena transformed again, this time into a sprawling urban environment with multiple levels, dark alleys, and abandoned structures. The objective was simple: neutralize all members of the opposing team while avoiding detection by the hunter-killer drones that patrolled the area. Being spotted by drones would result in immediate point deductions, and repeated detections would mean disqualification.
Their opponents were Team Chimera from the mountain fortress of K2—the same team whose spatial distortion specialist Gareth had faced in the relay. Their leader, a tall woman with scars across her face and hands that crackled with energy, locked eyes with Gareth across the starting platform.
"Target priority: The Arcadian Evolver," she told her team loud enough for Unit Hound to hear. "Take him out first."
Lyra bristled. "They're not even trying to be subtle."
"Good," Gareth said calmly. "Let them focus on me. It will make them predictable."
The starting signal sounded, and both teams vanished into the urban maze.
They moved as a unit, Gareth's predictive analysis guiding them through patrol patterns while Lyra used photonic distortion to mask their movements. For the first ten minutes, they saw no sign of Team Chimera—only the relentless hunter-killer drones sweeping through the environment.
Then the first trap sprung.
A web of energy filaments materialized across their path, nearly invisible until Gareth's ability flagged the threat milliseconds before contact.
"Hold!" he commanded, stopping the team just in time.
Sera analyzed the trap. "Sonic resonance filaments. Would have triggered every drone in a half-kilometer radius if we'd touched them."
Riven frowned. "How did they set this up so fast? They'd need advance knowledge of our route."
Gareth's ability was already working, tracing the trap's energy signature back to its source. "They're using the environment differently than we are. Not just hiding—modifying it."
They changed course, but found more traps—gravitic mines, photonic tripwires, even areas where the very air had been turned into a conductive medium.
"They're herding us," Eve realized. "Towards a kill zone."
Gareth's predictive analysis confirmed it. Every path led to a central courtyard where Team Chimera had established a fortified position. But there was another pattern emerging—one his ability was only now beginning to recognize.
ANALYSIS: Trap placement patterns suggest advanced knowledge of patrol routes
PROBABILITY OF INFORMATION LEAK: 78%
"Someone gave them the drone patrol schedules," Gareth said quietly. "They know where the blind spots are."
The team exchanged uneasy glances. Tournament security was supposed to be airtight.
"We adapt," Lyra said firmly. "Gareth, can you find us a path they haven't anticipated?"
His ability flared, processing thousands of variables simultaneously. "There's one option. But it's dangerous."
He guided them through a series of maintenance tunnels that weren't part of the official arena layout. The path was tight, filled with actual environmental hazards, but completely outside Team Chimera's prepared defenses.
They emerged behind the enemy position, catching Team Chimera completely by surprise. The battle was short and brutal. Lyra's photonic spears pinned two members before they could react. Nova's blasters disabled another. Eve used precise EMP bursts to neutralize their equipment while Sera provided covering fire.
But their leader—the scarred woman—fought with terrifying efficiency. Her hands crackled with energy that disrupted their abilities, creating null zones where their powers flickered and died.
Gareth engaged her directly, his Adaptive Counter analyzing her ability even as they fought. It wasn't nullification—it was absorption. She was drawing energy from their abilities and using it to fuel her own.
THREAT DETECTED: Energy absorption field
ANALYSIS: Creates localized power drains - conventional ability use ineffective
ADAPTIVE COUNTER GENERATING: KINETIC AMPLIFICATION
Gareth's fighting style shifted. Instead of using energy-based abilities, he relied purely on physical combat enhanced by kinetic amplification. His strikes carried impossible force, each blow carefully calculated to maximize impact while minimizing energy expenditure.
The woman's eyes widened as her absorption field proved useless against his new approach. "How are you—"
She never finished the sentence. Gareth's final strike, a precisely aimed palm strike to her sternum, sent her stumbling back into one of her own traps—a stasis field that froze her in place.
Team Chimera had been eliminated.
As the victory signal sounded, Gareth looked up at the observation decks. Among the cheering crowds, he spotted a man who wasn't cheering. Dressed in simple gray clothing, he stood perfectly still, his eyes locked on Gareth with an intensity that felt physical. Then, as Gareth watched, the man's lips curved into a manic, shit-eating grin before he turned and vanished into the crowd.
The message was clear: I'm watching you.
Back in the preparation area, the mood was triumphant but tense.
"We should report the security breach," Lyra said. "Team Chimera had information they shouldn't have possessed."
Riven shook his head. "We have no proof. It could just be good intelligence work."
"Unlikely," Sera countered. "The probability of them accurately predicting all patrol patterns is less than 3% without inside information."
Eve watched the exchange silently, her silver-blue eyes missing nothing. When Gareth caught her gaze, she gave a nearly imperceptible nod. She had seen it too—the security wasn't just compromised, it was being manipulated.
As the team celebrated their victory, Gareth noticed Riven slipping away again. This time, he followed at a distance, using his predictive analysis to stay hidden.
He found Rven in a secluded equipment corridor, speaking in hushed tones with someone Gareth couldn't see.
"—too obvious. They're already suspicious," Riven was saying. "We need to be more careful."
The response was too quiet to hear, but Riven's next words sent a chill down Gareth's spine.
"I know what's at stake. But if they discover the connection before the tournament ends, everything falls apart."
Gareth retreated before he could be spotted, his mind racing. Riven wasn't just behaving strangely—he was actively involved in something that threatened the tournament itself.
\[Tournament Status: Advanced to Final Round\]
\[Security Assessment: Compromised - High probability of insider threat\]
\[External Threat Detected: L-02 operative confirmed present\]
\[Calibration: 95%\]
As Gareth rejoined his team, he realized the tournament was the least of their worries. They were playing a game where the rules kept changing, and the stakes were far higher than any trophy.