After saying a quick good morning to my parents, I went to the viewing deck to watch the first match. I sprinted up to the balcony with such speed that I practically slammed into the railing as I caught it before it could fall over. I leaned over the edge of the rail, feeling the cool May air. My shoulder-length white hair slightly swayed in the gentle breeze.
"Arashi. Are you so excited that you are willing to jump over the railing to fight?"
Isamu was already there, along with Irena. I spotted Orosu off to the side. He looked a little tired but ready for his fight, which was right after Nova's.
"My, my… it seems my future husband is quite a good friend with you," Irena says with a gentle smile.
"Your future husband? Ohhhh," I say, piecing together the meaning behind her words. "Huh? You?" I point at Isamu, who leans in close to me.
"She's not exactly hiding her feelings," he whispers awkwardly.
"I hope you're not talking about me," Irena remarks with a sly smile, suddenly appearing right beside Isamu, who flinches.
"Oh, uh, not at all," he says nervously.
I shake my head as some of the combatants laugh heartily at Isamu's predicament.
"Good morning, ladies and gentlemen! I hope you pried yourself from your bed today! Because the second day of the Japan U20 internationals is kicking off with fight one of round two! Haru Ike, attribute: iron, and Nova Rust, attribute: fusion!" the announcer stated enthusiastically.
Haru and Nova stepped out onto the field from their respective sides and greeted each other with a nod before they started to circle each other.
Nova, eager to show off that she was another person to look out for in the tournament, darted forward in a preemptive strike, targeting Haru's center. In response, he solidified and hardened his skin as a loud ding rang out through the stadium, Nova clutching her hand and hoping the Nanaites to kick in fast. Capitalizing on this, Haru swept his arm in a wide arc, using his attribute to form shards of titanium and sent them towards his opponent as they weaved through the air. Nova backpedalled and dodged two of them, but the other 5 we're coming in fast with no room to dodge. The incoming impact is inevitable. Nova crosses her arms. All five land with perfect precision, puncturing her skin and sending Nova sliding backwards with the force of the impact, her knee scraping against the concrete.
Haru then places his hands on the ground, and Nova quickly composes herself and stands up, assuming a ready stance with her arms brought up to protect her center. Shaky and unstable, she expects Haru to send another volley of sharp fragments towards her again, maybe even switch up the trajectory a little to throw her off balance. Instead, the attack came from below, the ground cracked and split open in at least 30 different places across the platform. Nova was standing over one of those cracks, and was flung up into the air as the pillar thrust up into her stomach. Wall jumping off the pillars, Haru was able to get a massive height increase to his jump, colliding with Nova as she began to fall back down again, but instead of hearing soft flesh, a loud Clank rang out instead. All happening in a split second before gravity took over, Haru looked down at where she had been struck but was shocked to find her arms crossed over her stomach, fitted with metal arm braces. The previous metal shards that were jutting out of her forearms were no longer, as Nova took a page right out of Wonder Woman's book. Its authority returning, the invisible force of the universe pulled them back down towards the concrete arena. In a desprate last ditch effort, Haru attempts to flip the position of the two, but Nova breaks away faster, pushing off with her guantlets and gracefully stops her inevitable fall by landing on the flat surface of one of the metallic pillars. The other wasn't as lucky, crashing down onto the platform, the system registering a clean blow and a knockout.
A loud cheering erupted from the stands, even bigger than the standing ovation I was given. This meant that Haru Ike was out of the tournament.
"What an outstanding play by Nova Rust!" The announcer calls out, then pauses, "We've just been given word that the Grand Union League is going to be sponsoring combatants and offering those remaining a spot on a team!"
This caught the attention of the rest of the participants, who swung their heads toward the giant display screen positioned on the side of the viewing area. On the jumbotron, we saw the 8 teams along with a recruiter each. The first one that caught my eye was S.S.G, who specialized in energy control. The others were Spectre VG, an Intelligence specialist; Techtonic, a club known for playmaking; Iron Guard City, a defensively focused club; and so many more.
The speaker informs us of one last thing. "They have informed us that even if you have been eliminated, they are still on the lookout for all your strong talents. The following will be able to send a request on which team they would like to join. Although no guarantees will be made. But…" he continued. "There are a few people who will almost be guaranteed a place on one of the teams. The names of these people are: Orosu Kurashuu, Nova Rust, and Arashi Nakamura." I broke into a big smile; I had just been given a spot on one of the biggest teams in the world.
"The combatants will now be given a 30-minute break to go up to the meeting hall and potentially choose a club to join. Those who have been eliminated will be able to attend as well. Arthur Hexdragon, Haru Ike, and Irena Solovyov."
As soon as they hear their names, they all rush to the meeting hall to get the first chance for a spot on their preferred team. Meanwhile, Orosu, Nova, and I had almost a guaranteed spot on our chosen team.
By the time we got there, it was pure chaos. Every single remaining participant of the tournament and even some of the ones that got knocked out are here, scrambling over the recruiters to land a spot on one of the teams in the grand Union League. I managed to find Nova as we made our way to the meeting hall.
"You had to prove me wrong," I said, my tone bordering on scolding.
"Is that a hint of annoyance I detect? Normally, when someone does something well, you're supposed to praise them. Are you feeling jealous by chance, Arashi?" She said confidently. I knew she was trying to invoke a reaction from me.
"Not at all. I'm just surprised how slow you were," I reply, a slight smile emerging from the corners of my lips.
That got to her. As soon as those words were out of my mouth, Nova started hitting me on the back repeatedly. Her cheeks puffed up, whining like a child who didn't get her way.
"Oh, come on, I know it was fast enough! You saw me! Nobody else did! "she insisted."
I break into a soft laugh. "I saw you. You were about 0.2 cm off the mark with that punch."
We continue to bicker until we reach the meeting hall, which is swamped with tournament combatants and even some others not participating but still wanting a spot on any team. Each club could only take about 20 people, and on average, more than half of them get benched, seldom having a chance to fight and prove themselves. But that didn't stop them from trying to persuade the recruiter in any way possible.
But as soon as someone saw the three of us, they had to be an annoying asshole and announce to the whole world that we were here.
"Clear a path! The V.I.P's are coming though!" he shouted bodaciously, like it was some sort of ceremony. The real V.I.P's here were the top members of the 8 clubs. Liam O'Connell, the captain of Fabled Mist; Matteo Ricci, the captain of Shatter FC; Hana Kim, captain of S.S.G; Kwame Mensah, captain of Tectonic; Freya Eriksson, the captain of Iron Guard City; Leila Haddad, captain of Silver Edge; Diego Castillo, the captain of Royal United; and Atlas Istoria, the captain of Spectre VG.
Each club had its respective main base of operations somewhere in the world. S.S.G. is located in Sol. Fabled Mist's headquarters are in Ireland. Shatter FC: Italy. Spectre VG: Germany, Royal United: Spain. Silver Edge was founded in Morocco. Iron Guard City is found in Sweden. And Tectonic is in Ghana.
Orosu approached the recruiter for S.S.G.
"I would like a spot here, please," he said flatly but politely.
The man he spoke to just nodded, looked at Hana, and when she nodded as well, he wrote Orosu's name down.
"Alright, you're accepted. Welcome to Shining Shadow Garden," the recruiter told him.
That was it, simple as that, he was accepted into one of the 8 elite clubs. I couldn't believe this was the type of treatment we'd been given. It was almost like something out of a dream.
While I was frozen in shock, Arthur made his way up to another recruiter. No, he wasn't talking to the guy you should talk to; he was talking to Leila Haddad. The captain of Silver Edge. To my surprise, they shook hands, and she accepted him. Isamu and Irena both got accepted to Iron Guard City. And even Haru made it into Fabled Mist. leaving just me and Nova to pick a club. We both walk forward, toward the same club, Spectre VG.
I almost bump into her, so I step aside and try to let her go first, because Nova didn't look like she was gonna budge. So I went up instead.
"Hello. Uhh, my name is Arashi Nakamura. I would like a spot on Specter VG."
I don't know why I was so nervous, I would get an almost guaranteed spot on any club I asked for, almost. Instead of the recruiter replying to me, I got a different response from the captain. Atlas Xenon.
"I'm afraid I can't accept you."