Part 1

After about a half an hour, Axel and the others had finally arrived at the sign up location. The place where the tournament was supposed to be taking place was huge. It was a huge dome shaped facility with the top of it opened. It resembled a roman battle arena. Only this one was made out of metal. It was surrounded by a brick wall and on the inside of the wall were many booths and stands for people to buy things from so they could enjoy the tournament with them. Things like horns, signs, snacks, etc.

He saw many, many, many people walking throughout this place. Boys and girls. Some had misshapen body parts because of their skills. For example, he saw a guy with fingers shaped like cannons. He also saw a girl with cat shaped ears, and other creepy stuff. Those mutant looking people were few though.

“Amazing…..” he said in awe.

“Wow!….” said Maria who was still firmly holding onto him

“Flashy isn't it? I sure hope you're ready axy!!”

“Eh?!”

He suddenly felt someone grab him from behind tightly. Startled, Maria let go of his hand. In turning to look, he saw a patch of blonde hair. Since there was no ribbon holding up this person's hair, it couldn't of have been Natsumi, and she doesn't call him ‘axy’ anyway.

“L-lucy? What are you doing?!”

“haha! Can i not greet you?”

“It's not that you can't but….” he said blushing. She giggled.

“She was just excited to see you man. Well,we all are!” said Axel's best friend, tony, who suddenly appeared from behind a food booth. Behind him came Jeniffer and the rest of the ship’s crew.

“you guys!? you came?” he said looking at all of them.

“we couldn't miss it! We wanted to protect you axy but now we can't do that! But we can at least cheer you on for success!!” Lucy said while letting him go.

Maria, who’s ears twitched and seemed genuinely pissed off, hid behind him as soon as she got the chance. She wasn't very good with people anymore. He totally understood her. Ella, Andrew , and the others who were with him came to join them.

“Ah so you guys came after all. Glad to see you guys here!” said Andrew shaking hands with Michael.

“I much rather sleep today but, Jeniffer dragged me here…” he said. Jeniffer gritted her teeth in anger and shot a fierce look at him. Michael took a step back out of fear. Ella and the others laughed. Everyone except Saphire who was staying under the shade of a tree. For some reason or another, his heart once again fluttered against his will when he looked at her. His face reddened and he looked away. Seeing this, Maria felt her heart ache and ran away with her head down.

“huh? M-maria! Wait!!” Axel had no idea what the problem was. As soon as he called after her, he felt an intense pain in his heart. He grabbed it and started sweating profusely. Ella sighed and kneeled next to axel who had fallen on his knees.

“You idiot.” she said to him.

“Did you not see the stupid expression on your face?”

“I don't know how to look at my own face without a mirror..” he said through gritted teeth.

At some point Saphire approached and also kneeled next to him with her usual dull expression. He felt his heart once again flutter through the pain he felt. He couldn't understand it and it was starting to bother him.

“I do apologize” she said.

“The reason you must be feeling your emotions react uncontrollably when you’re around me is because of my skill…”

“what?! But I thought your skill was that ice!” he exclaimed.

Ella giggled.

“That's right! She is what is known as a ‘binary’ savant. A rare type of savant with two skills instead of one. Her second skill is heart key. It gives her the power to control other people's hearts and emotions. it stimulates the emotion you feel the most.”

Saphire spoke after her.

“It is a rather useless skill. It works on everyone unless I don't want it to for specific people. It's one of the reason I don't like being in public. When I am, people around me who are feeling hatred, anger, or sadness get that emotion amplified and they tend to act out negatively due to my skill..” She touched his shoulders and immediately as she did so his emotions died down. She stood up and walked back to the tree she was standing under.

That was actually pretty sad. Having a skill like that that was activated 24/7 must've been awful. If people felt a lot of hatred or any other negative feeling, they would feel it 10x worse around Saphire. It worked with positive emotions too but, people these days usually felt more negative emotions. And yet, she still made an effort to come.

Now then, before he met her, he was feeling a bit flustered because Andrew called Maria his girlfriend. That feeling was amplified then. As for just now, he was feeling loved when he saw all his friends come to cheer him on. That feeling was also amplified. Unless she stopped it, it would happen all the time around her.

“Sometimes I forget to turn it off whenever I meet someone new. Even though I did for your friends who came along….” Saphire shook her head in disappointment for forgetting. Ella sighed and stood up. Andrew walked over to Axel and placed his hands on his shoulders.

“Glad we got that out of the way. Now, we don't have much time left. Go get that girl back and come check in before it's too late!!” he said to him.

“Ah! you're right!!” axel got up and ran off toward the direction that Maria had gone off to. Axel knew how Maria must've felt. As of now, he was the only one she had. She always hid behind him because she knew he would be able to protect her from anything. she trusted him. So, as her friend, he couldn’t leave her alone!

( Now Then, if I were Maria where would I be?) He said to himself trying to think like Maria.

He was running through the thick crowd of people and attempted to locate the one brown haired girl he knew. If he recalled, she was wearing a polka-dot sundress with brown slippers. He tried to look for that match but, he couldn’t see anyone. Then, it occurred to him. Maria would most likely be in a place that no one would be able to see her in.

In other words…..

………………..

*sniff, sniff*

“That stupid jerk” said Maria while wiping away her tears. Maria was starting to feel fed up with the amount of attention she was receiving from Axel. Better yet, the attention she was not receiving. The way he looked at other girls. How he treated them...she hated to admit that she was jealous of every single one of them…

Axel was all she had, and yet she wasn't enough for him… her past with her family filled her mind….. when her friends betrayed her...when her ex boyfriend hit her….. Her eyes started to leak tears and she could feel herself shake. Her breathing grew rapidly and her heart ached. Sweat dripped from her face… she was having an anxiety attack… Just when she was about ready to scream and cry, she felt a sudden warmth on her shoulder.

“?!” her ears twitched.

“It's okay….” said a boy kneeling in front of her. Black messy hair and warm brown eyes, a soft smile on his freckled face. ..

“Axel?....how did you-?” she said to him wanting to know how he found her.

Axel smiled.

“A magician never reveals his secrets..” he said as sarcastically as he could. Maria suppressed a laugh as hard as she could. When she collected herself, Maria was genuinely surprised. This was the girls bathroom. No boys were allowed and yet here he was. That was sweet. Anyone would think it was sweet, except for those who entered the restroom not knowing what was going on.

But,

“I’m sorry…..I’m so sorry! I know that I’m a nervous and socially awkward mess! I’m sorry that you have to put up with me but I just don’t know what it is but I’m afraid that you won’t notice me anymore and not want me around!! ”

Axel was honestly a little ashamed. It was true that recently, with all that was going on, he hadn't talked to her as often.. He was just a kid. An introverted one at that, how was he supposed to know how others felt? He wasn’t a mind reader.. Nonetheless,

“Maria, there is not a single thing on this planet that will make me not want you. Nothing. I can understand how you feel, but just talk to me. I will always be there to listen. At this point, whatever you go through we go through together. So when you’re sad, I’m sad. So be happy, and then I can be happy too!” he said in attempt to reassure her. He reached out his hand to her and smiled. Maria was at a temporary loss for words. That's not exactly what she wanted to hear but, coming from axel, it was the best she could get.

“Now come on. I've got a tournament to sign up for.”

Maria sniffed and then smiled. She was truly fortunate… she accepted Axel's hand and stood up.

“Okay, but I'm still a girl you know? I'd appreciate it if you showed me some attention too every now and then..” she said. Axel nodded and shifted his eyebrows.

“Haha, I’ll do my best...”

Natsumi and the rest of the crew were waiting under a tree next to the check in station. They were waiting for Axel and Maria. Natsumi sighed and looked for a sign of Axel…

“You don't think those two are…. dating, do you?” she said to Jessica who was sitting near her.

“It's hard to say…. I can tell that they're very close though….I’m not really sure…”

Lucy, who was also sitting near them, smiled mockingly.

“You two seem worried about that. Any particular reason..?” she said mocking them. Natsumi and Jessica's faces reddened.

“I don’t even know…” natsumi said while waving her hands.

“Likewise.” Jessica said agreeing with natsumi.

Lucy giggled. Jeniffer, who was next to Lucy, stared at her.

“Aren't you worried about that too, Lucy?”

Lucy chuckled at her statement.

“haha! Of course not, I know axel well enough to know that he doesn’t know how to speak to girls properly.”

Andrew, who was leaning against the check-in stand, suddenly pointed outwards.

“They're here.” he said.. When they looked over to where he was pointing, they saw the figures of Maria and Axel walking together side by side.

“Hey guys! Sorry I took so long!...” Axel said while waving at them. Ella got up from where she sat and pointed at the stand next to her. It had a sign over it that read “Contestants check in”

“Shut up and hurry up! You're running out of time!”

“Oh,right!....”

Axel walked toward the check in stand and looked for a person to help him but the station was unmanned. There was no line. Everyone must've already checked in and gone inside. The table just had a clipboard there with many names on it. He grabbed it and looked for his name. He was told that even though he signed up he had to check in so the officials knew who actually showed up. He kind of hoped not to find his name so he’d have an excuse not to enter but he was noy so lucky. He found it on the second page. It had him as “Axel Ison. Age: 16 Skill: unknown.” It had a check box next to his name. he checked it and looked at Ella who was starting to look impatient.

“Okay, now what?”

Andrew looked at his phone for the time.

“the competition starts in about 30 minutes. We already got tickets for everyone so we better get going!”

Once they rounded everyone up, they began to head toward the entrance of the huge arena. When they made it about halfway there, they found a fork in the road. One side was labeled “Spectators” and the other path labeled “Participants”. It was time for him to part ways with everyone.. For the first time in a long time, he started to feel very scared and nervous. He hadn't even eaten any breakfast but he felt like he'd barf soon.. Ella walked over to him and placed her hand on his shoulder.

“Remember, don't show off all your skills at once. Keep your aces in the hole. and be smart about what you're going to do. the first event is an elimination round so you won't go up against everyone right off the bat, I think... Power Magnet is yours to tame. use it well. Good luck” she concluded and patted his shoulders. He nodded in confirmation. Tony was the next to come to him. He gave him a high five and wished him luck.

“Thanks man.”

Everyone else, raised their hands to the air.

“Good Luck!” They said happily. All except for Saphire of course. Seeing them like that alleviated his nervous heart. It was then that he noticed that two people were missing. A certain pair of brown haired girls. It took him a second to realize that one was standing right next to him.

“M-maria!? Don't scare me like that.” he said.

Maria had her head down. She looked up at him and, while shaking, smiled.

“Be safe, Good luck.” she said. He patted her head and nodded. He then, making sure not to show his face full of fear, turned heel and walked down the participant's path. He raised a hand to his face and wiped away his nervous tears.

Part 2

The first thing he had to do was get properly suited. he was taken to a locker room and given pure black P.E clothes. When he was done getting dressed, he was led to the area where the first event would be announced. He was led through a large cave like opening and told good luck. At the end of the cave, he could see the light of day and many many cheers. It reminded him of the time he was taken to a football game with his parents. He was very young but he could clearly remember all the cheers and shouts that nearly left him deaf. The light from the end of the cave got brighter the closer he got to it and he shielded his eyes with his hand.

When he finally made it out, his eyes practically popped out. He was entering a large field with many other kids his age walking toward the center from every direction. There were large and very powerful lights illuminating the field along with the power of the sun. There was no roof so he could see the clouds in the clear blue sky. There were thousands of people seated in the stands of the arena who were cheering and shouting. There were four large jumbo screens pointed in every direction so the crowd could see. Displayed were the words “Welcome to the Thunderdome”.There was an announcer box located in the stands with a huge screen right under it where all the names of confirmed players were listed. He would’ve tried to find his if there weren’t so many. A total of 156 to be exact. At least, that’s what the screen said.

“This place is huge….” he said looking around.

He made it to the large crowd of kids and observed his surroundings. They were looking at a small stage that was set up on the field with yet another large screen for them to look at. Standing up there was a large muscular man holding what looked like a cane. He had brown hair and a straight jaw line. He seemed powerful. He tapped his cane on the ground and a loud, a super loud, thump rang out making everyone jump in surprise. Soon after, the announcer up on the announcer box began talking through the microphone.

“Welcome everybody! We hope you’re having a fantastic day so far because things are going to get real juicy!! Here today we have many familiar faces along with many new faces! Now then, before we get started here, let us all stand and put our right hand over our heart. Are you all ready? Begin!” said the very cheerful sounding girl to everyone who was probably talking long before Axel got here.. Axel placed his right hand over his heart and recited the pledge of allegiance along with everyone else.

“Great everyone! Now, let’s get this party started!”

“Alright recruits, listen here! I’ll be your umpire this year. My name is Garold, commander in chief of the Savant Police Force. Let me start by saying this, If you’re too much of a chicken or are even having a single doubt in your mind, turn around and go home right now!” Said the large man to them as the announcer continued to speak. Everyone looked around to see if anyone would back out. Honestly, he hoped someone would so he wouldn’t have to be the only one… unfortunately, no one left so he had to stay.

“Alright, I’ve heard your death wishes loud and clear. Now then, In this year’s first event you runts will be playing a little something called capture the flag.”

“Capture...the flag?”

“Now I know what you maggots are probably thinking. “That’s it? This’ll be easy!” think again. Capture the flag is just the name we gave it. What it really is is a game of survival! You lot will be taken to a special place where you will spend the next two days and one night fighting to survive.”

Axel felt his heart ache as his stomach clenched. An entire two day event? This was insane. He wouldn’t last. Quickly! He had to leave this insane asylum. He turned his head to look for an exit but noticed that all of them had been closed already. He internally screamed and reluctantly turned back around.

“During this time players must wear a flag that is visible on their body. 5 minutes after you enter the arena, a horn will sound off in the direction where the flags will appear. You must only grab one and go. After you take one, All you have to do is avoid having your flag taken by other players. If it gets taken, you’re out and must remain in the arena until time’s up. Those eliminated must not interfere with those who aren’t. At around noon on the second day, which is tomorrow, the finish line will appear and you can go for it. However, in order to win you must have more than one flag! Only the first 50 who cross the finish line may move on to the next event! It’s every man for himself so anything goes except for killing. Make use of your skills and remember to use every brain cell, maggots. Good luck and remember, Do your best and expect no less!” saying so, the man saluted and signaled toward the announcer.

“You heard it folks! With all the rules set up, all that’s left is to begin! Good luck to everyone and Do your best and expect no less!”

The crowd roared and anxiously awaited for the first event to start. On the other hand, Axel showered in his own sweat as he nervously shook in the boots he brought. He tried to distract himself from the fear he was feeling. At the very least, they still needed to be taken to the area they were supposed to be fighting in. Therefore, he still had time to collect his thoughts and relax. He shut his eyes and sighed.

“Alright pixelator! Take it away!”

“Okie Dokie!” someone said from behind him.

He jumped and turned around but he wasn’t able to catch the face of the person who was referred to as pixelator because all at once the world around him dissolved into millions of pixels. In reality, he was the one who dissolved into dozens of pixels. He yelled and tried to run away but with what legs? They were gone. All he did was hopelessly yell and watch as the crowd roared in amusement to his own fear.

“Awww, the poor boy is already scared beyond his wits! Good luck out there little buddy!” was what he heard the announcer say before the world went silent.

_________

Once the crowd of kids disappeared, the one known as pixelator held his stomach as he continued to laugh. Just a moment before, he witnessed one of the contestants react in fear from disappearing. Those in the stands also laughed since it was the first time anyone had reacted like that. The funny scenario was played over and over again on the one large screen under the announcer box with the words “Cry Baby” blinking in bold red colors.

Everyone laughed except for a certain group of outsiders. Maria, who timidly looked up at the replay of axel, was on the verge of tears. She genuinely felt bad for axel. It wasn’t like that was something he experienced every day. In fact, even Maria was afraid the moment she saw him dissolve.

“It’s alright. That was a natural reaction of his. What I’m more concerned about is whether or not they plan on having us sleep here…” Said Andrew who was sitting in front of Maria.

Maria ignored him and watched the giant screens show where different players were arriving in the battle ground. Every one of them watched in silence to see how things would unfold, and most of all, they hoped Axel would be able to pull through this long first event...

_________

When he opened his eyes again, he was standing in a totally different place. It was… like a jungle? No, it was a jungle. Things were definitely getting weird. He could feel the powerful rays of the sun attack his skin along with a cool and random breeze of air. He touched one of the plants and examined it. It was definitely real. Over and over again he was reminded just how amazing the hidden world was. The area around him looked so familiar. When he was younger, he often went out on hikes on a mountain that was close to his home. This place sort of had a feeling similar to that, but he knew it wasn’t. He continued to walk forward for a bit and survey the area.

What now? There was really nothing he could think to do. He didn’t get a chance to get a good look at his opponents since he was so busy trying to take in the scenario that laid before him. In any case, it looked like Ella was wrong. He would have to face off against others whether he wanted or not. There was no helping it, he had to do his best. There was no way he could let everyone think that he was just a push over. That wasn’t him. No, he’d show them! He wouldn’t cry anymore! He’d look forward and tackle this event like nothing! He smiled a wide one and clenched his fist when,

“Boo!”

“Aaaah!?”

He was startled by a sudden face that appeared out from behind a tree and it was no joke to say that he turned white and jumped into the nearest bushes. Sobs were heard through the bushes as the perpetrator laughed and placed a finger on their lips.

“Shhhh! You’ll alert other people here you big baby!!” said the voice.

It was all too familiar. He could’ve sworn he’d seen that face before. Plus the voice just rang a bell in his head. He poked his head out of the bushes and looked over at the person standing there. Sure enough, it was the princess of fire. Casey was standing there with a huge grin on her face. She wore the same outfit as him. Axel, all of a sudden really happy, jumped out of the bushes and into her arms.

“Casey!! I’m so happy to see you! Where have you been!!?”

Casey, overwhelmed, couldn’t help but laugh and hug him in turn. It reminded her of when they were kids. Axel had always been a bit of a cry baby. Even now things did not change. His personality was so unique to her. One moment he was cracking wise jokes and the next he was bursting into tears, but that’s what she liked about him.

“Ohhhh, there, there! Quit crying and get your head in the game, buddy”

Axel, nodded and took a couple steps back. He wiped his tears away and leaned against the tree beside him. Casey sat down on a rock behind her and sighed.

“Y-you’re right…..but what on earth are you doing here? Are you also here because of Ella?”

“Not necessarily. Though, someone did make me join…”

“Oh….but, how did you even find me?”

Casey stretched her arms and looked around.

“It was really easy. I just felt for your body temperature which was extremely higher than everyone else’s. Then I just followed it. I wanted to see how you’d react to seeing me but didn’t know how to approach you so I scared you. I didn’t think you’d scream so loudly though.”

Axel rubbed the sweat on his cheek and nervously laughed. Then, the sound of a horn rang out that made Axel and Casey look up. It was officially time….

“So then what are you going to do? Why did you try and find me if we’re competing against each other?” he asked.

“Oh, come on silly! I thought we could team up!” she said while standing up.

“Is that really allowed?” he asked while crossing his arms.

“Sure. if you recall, Garold said “Anything goes except killing” so I’m pretty sure alliances are acceptable as well. There’s no harm in it, and we need all the help we can get.”

Axel nodded and agreed. As he was now, there was really nothing he could do. At most, four rounds at full power was all he could do. Either that or nothing, there was no in between just yet. Casey’s plan was clearly the best one to go with here. He didn’t expect to see her here but he wasn’t complaining. It felt great having her around to talk to and help. He was really upset that he was going to be alone but it wouldn’t be that way anymore it looked like.

“Yeah, I guess you’re right. Well, just don’t rely on me. If anything, I’m going to have to rely on you. I can barely do anything without breaking a bone or two. don’t get me wrong, I’ll help out in any way I can but as a human.”

Casey shook her head and looked up.”yeah I kind of figured that. But I think we’ll be alright. Let’s just go out and grab our flags. That’s the real first test and it’s also the one where a bunch of people will surely get eliminated.”

Axel gulped and looked toward the direction the horn rang from.

“It sounded like it came from the north side. We better head over there and see what we can do.”

“Wouldn’t it be better to just wait it out until everyone’s gone so we can just grab ours without worry of others?”

Tactically, that was a good idea. However, others would likely think of that as well. It was possible that some people would wait for people to come just to ambush them and eliminate them. But if they went now there would more than likely be dozens of players surrounding the flag area. It would be hectic. Even in that case, they could hide among the chaos and grab a flag and hightail it out of there. From there, they could plot their next move. Either way, both situations were dangerous. Though the odds would be in their favor if they made it there before too many people showed up. At this point, it was worth a shot. He voiced his thoughts to Casey who later bobbed her head in agreement.

“Okay, sounds good then… let’s go.”

They both nodded and began to run toward the direction of the flags. Though both of them were scared, they were at least happy that they had each other to rely on.

Part 3

“So that’s where she went? She could’ve just told us.” Jessica said as she watched Axel reunite with Casey. Coincidentally, Axel was one of the one’s most voted to be shown on one of the four jumbo screens. Everyone wanted to see how he’d do, probably because they thought he was amusing. Everyone go to vote with their cellphones. Though everyone laughed when he screamed like a girl. Now the screen jumped from scene to scene showing the progress of all types of players. Under the announcer box was a greyed out list of names. Apparently, once a player acquired a flag, their name would light up green. Once they acquired more than one, it’d turn blue. If they were out, it’d turn red. Since no one had a flag yet, it was all grey.

Maria kept her eyes on the name Axel Ison. she was so nervous. She wondered how things would turn out for him. She hoped that he wouldn't hurt himself. Natsumi also sat next to her and nervously bit her finger nails. Every second felt like an eternity and they were only 30 minutes into a 48 hour match.

“What do you think, Ella? What’re they gonna do?” asked Tony looking over at ella who watched the screen attentively. She shut her eyes for a second and exhaled.

“I honestly don’t know. As much as I hate to admit, I’m starting to feel bad for just throwing him in a full on tournament with little to no training….. But he’s not stupid, I know he’ll think of something…”

“I sure hope so” Tony said while looking up at the screen.

Ella could not keep calm. None of them could. They were so worried for Axel and started to wonder if they were right in allowing him to join something so dangerous. Most of all, the girl really worried was Ella herself. He was weak, sensitive, and extremely emotional. Did she really just throw him into his worst nightmare? Could she really continue to sleep at night if he got himself killed or tore a limb off from going beyond his limits? Putting the fan on medium was not going to help her out much then..

Well, there was no use fussing about it now. It was all said and done and the only thing she could do was watch and have faith in that kid. It was all any of them could do…

________

It took them a while but soon the area in question was within their field of vision. It was so massive and colorful. It almost felt like the playground at Mc’donalds. It must’ve been at least 50 stories tall with plenty of slides here and there with monkey bars and other obstacles to maneuver through. It looked like fun. Besides that, it was full of people just like they thought it would be. But since the place was so large no one had run into anyone just yet. There must’ve been at least 30 people there right now. As they watched from afar, Casey used her powers to tell just how many people were around.

“Other than those guys, there are a whole bunch of people that are getting close as the seconds go by. If we’re gonna go, we better go now before it really gets crazy.” she said.

“Got it. So the second we find a flag we grab it and leave right?”

“That’s right. And remember, I can’t fully control my flames either so let’s hope we don’t run into any trouble.”

Both confirming with each other, they ran toward the large flag playhouse. They approached it and jumped inside. It was just as colorful inside with yellow being the dominant color. They looked around but found no flag.

“Damn it, should’ve known they’d make it harder to find just one…. Come on, we gotta keep looking” she said standing close to Axel. Axel nodded and followed close behind her with his heart in his hands. He was about ready to let his knees give out on him. Just as they were about to enter another room, Axel felt a gust of wind tug him backwards. Before he could react, his body was suddenly picked up and dragged into a nearby slide.

“What?!” he yelled while trying to escape the wind, but it was no good, he was sucked in. Casey exclaimed and tried to reach for his hand only to miss and fall. Then, she was the next one to get mercilessly sucked into the slide..

Axel yelled and covered his head while bracing for impact. The ride was long and fast. He couldn’t tell what direction he was going in nor how fast. He hit his head against the walls of the slide many times and grimaced. Eventually, he was thrown out into a small baby green colored room. It was dark and had little illumination. He rolled over on the ground a couple times and slammed against the wall. He sat up and rubbed his head. His brain and body ached badly. He looked around and saw no one. Since that was the case, he could only guess that the slides were programmed to do that. It didn’t surprise him at this stage in the game. He got up and was going to exit the room when a bright blue strip captured his eye. He rubbed them and took a double take. Sure enough, it was a flag just hanging from the ceiling.. It was the type that football players wore to play flag football. He lit up with joy and grabbed it. He put it around his waist and admired it for a second.

As soon as he put on the flag, his name lit up on the scoreboard. The second they saw it turn green, the entire crew gasped with excitement. They watched the screen closer than ever to watch Axel and see what he would do next.

Axel brought his fists together and celebrated for a while longer before realizing that Casey was nowhere near him. Since she was not, he could only guess that she was still on the first floor. Either that or she was taken to a different room. Well, at this point he had to focus on getting out and reuniting with her later. Or was that really okay? He couldn’t just leave her here….

“Argh….damn it!”

He clicked his tongue and ran out to look for her. There were many swings and slides inside with no outer walls surrounding the place. Because of that, he could see that he was many stories up in the building. When he ran around the corner, he looked around and caught glimpses of other people running around. His heart dropped whenever he saw them but he hoped that would be the extent of his worries. He saw a slide that led directly to the floor below him and decided to ride it down. Once he landed, he looked around and saw four guys duking it out. Axel tensed up and hid behind a wall before they could see him.

(There’s no way I’ll find her just like this! I’ve got to make my way down and just hope for the best!)

Thinking this, Axel hopped down a different slide and continued his way out. The building was too large, he could spend hours and still not cover the entire place. With sweat going down his spine, he stealthily maneuvered around the large playground and attempted to find another slide down.

“G-get away from me!”

He heard a girl yell from down the hall which made him stop and look. He saw three guys cornering one frail looking girl with glasses. From where he was standing, he could see that she had a blue flag around her waist. They were looking to take it.

“Just hand it over. There’s nothing you and your stupid power can do.”

“Yeah, you’ll be doing yourself a huge favor.” one of the guys said. They all laughed and continued to close in on the girl. The girl stood her ground with shaking legs.

“N-no way! I have my own reason to win this, and I refuse to stand down here!”

The large one of the group laughed and waved his hand. In doing so, a powerful wave of ice shot at her. The girl jumped away in the nick of time and fell while still firmly holding onto her flag. Axel continued to watch for sometime and honestly wished the girl the best. She seemed really determined… And so was he...So, he had to leave..

From the ground where she threw herself, she was once again surrounded and threatened. She shook her head and stood up while bawling her fists. She once again refused to stand down. A wave of vines suddenly spurted from the ground and wrapped her up against the wall in a tight hold. Since he was behind them, they could not see him. The girl grimaced and struggled to break free but couldn’t.

Axel could not believe it. Why was she not using her ability? Now was a perfect time as any….. Could he…..would he…...was it really just right to leave? She seemed so determined. She didn’t want to let that flag go….but what could he do? He didn’t know what to do even if he wanted to help…..

The guy with the vine control smiled and shook his head.

“See? This could’ve all been avoided if you’d just been a good little girl and given up. Weaklings like you have no place here…” He walked over to the struggling girl and reached for her flag. The moment it was off, she’d be eliminated…. Axel stood frozen in place as he watched her struggle to get away. She looked up and caught sight of him. She could’ve yelled. She could’ve said something to alert them of his presence, but instead, she turned a blind eye and let her body go limp. She didn’t jeopardize his chance to escape. She was not going to be selfish...Axel clenched his fist as he saw her accept defeat and hang there…..he couldn’t watch anymore…..

“HEY!” He yelled at the top of his lungs.

The three guys suddenly turned and looked at Axel. There was no running now.

“What? Playing hero kid? Give me a break. Jeice, he’s got a flag, get him and I’ll guard the girl.” One of the guys, probably named Jeice, stepped out and faced Axel. Axel raised his fists and felt his mind perform intense calculations. The guys who were standing in front of the girl stopped to watch Axel. The girl hanging from the vines raised her head in shock. She couldn’t believe what she was seeing.

“You know what you got yourself into kid? Well, you’re going to regret it!!” he said running toward Axel. He came at him with his body bent low and his hands stretched out trying to go for his flag. Running like that, there was only one thing that came to his mind.

Just as the guy was close enough, Axel jumped and made the guy’s head go between his thighs. He shut them, wrapped his arms around his torso, and,using every bit of his regular power he could muster, he lifted him causing him to flip and now have the guy named Jeice’s thighs around his head. Finally, all in one fluid motion, he dropped himself backwards and bent his knees while bringing jeice down toward them and making him slam against them. The force of the fall was powerful enough that it knocked the air out of Jeice and made him wriggle on the ground with pain. It was what was known as a PowerBomb.

Axel flipped backwards to his feet and once again clenched his fist with a powerful glow in his eye.

The crowd went absolutely wild.

“Woah!!!!! Is that kid actually hiding some killer moves? In a shocking turn of events, The crybaby boy Axel Ison has pulled off an excellent wrestling move with pristine movement!!!’

Everyone, the crew included, yelled their heads off. For a second, the entire stadium went quiet when they noticed Axel watch a girl get cornered. They all thought he’d run, some thought he’d get eliminated. But no one expected this. The moment she saw that slam, Maria got chills all over. She didn’t think it was wrong to say that everyone got chills all over. Everyone continued to cheer as they watched on in anticipation. The battle wasn’t over yet!

Axel ignored the sweat running down his brow and slid his feet backwards. Jeice continued to reach for his back and gasp for air. The two other guys behind him had their jaws dropped. It was like seeing a scrawny kid win a basketball competition against a pro. It was unbelievable. After a couple more seconds, one of them shook their head and scowled.

“You bastard! You’re really going down now!”

With another wave of his hand, a huge wave of ice shot at Axel at a frightening speed. Axel gasped and thought fast as he looked around. There was nothing he could do, if he ran now the girl would for sure get eliminated. He couldn’t even dodge since there wasn’t enough room. There was no choice! He had to use it! He swung his arm back and coursed every bit of power he could to it. It didn’t matter what but he had to destroy that ice! Just as the ice was within 10 feet of him, a sudden wall of flame crossed his path and startled him. He yelled and fell back as the power in his arm snapped away. When the flames disappeared, axel looked up and saw the ground before him begin to melt from the heat. He exclaimed and frantically jumped to his feet. The two guys had dumbfounded expressions as they looked toward the direction the flames had come from. Following the path their eyes led him, he also felt his heart drop. He hoped to see Casey but that was just wishful thinking. He should’ve known better…

Instead, he saw the guy he dreaded to run into. With his blonde spiky hair and his hand leaking smoke, Kyle retracted his arm and shook it. His eyebrows linked together forming a “/” shape. With his piercing blue eyes shooting them down, he grinned. Axel looked down to his waist and saw the familiar blue flag he had on. However, Kyle looked like he had no fear or worry of getting his flag taken.

“H-hey, I-Isn’t that k-kyle?” one of the guys asked suddenly starting to falter.

“Fuck this! I’m not staying here” the other said while turning heel and running away.

“Wait for me” said the former guy while following suit. He grabbed the guy on the ground and helped him to his feet to get away. Once they were out of sight, Kyle looked down at Axel on the ground. Just as axel was about to make a run for it, Kyle turned around and began to walk in the opposite direction.

“Try and not lose shit face. Not until I get a chance to whoop your ass properly.” was all he said before jumping off the side of the building. Axel heard the sound of flames outside and jumped to his feet. Was….Was kyle on his side? no ,no, he said he didn’t want him to lose just yet. That meant he’d do whatever to help him pass this first round, right? Either way, he was glad that he once again got lucky!

“Axel?! What was that? Did you do all of this?” Casey suddenly said appearing from one of the rooms.

“Casey? Where’d you come from?Better yet, let’s just get out of here and I can explain later!”

Casey, who he noticed had a flag on, nodded and turned around to head out. But before he left, there was something he had to do. He walked over to the vine filled area and looked for the girl on the wall. She still had her jaw dropped as she followed him with her eyes. Axel beckoned to Casey and began pulling on the tough vines, careful not to accidentally take the girl’s flag.

“What are you doing? Are you helping her?”

“It’s a long story but you’ve got to help me get her out!” he frantically yelled at her. Casey groaned and reluctantly placed her hands on the vines. The vines were then burned off and allowed the girl to fall to her knees. Axel kneeled and offered his hand.

“Come on! Let’s go!”

The girl looked confused as she focused her eyes on him. She seemed genuinely bewildered. The second footsteps were heard down the hall, Casey quickly tugged on Axel’s clothes and pointed to one of the room’s.

“We’ve gotta jump! There’s a pond right outside the window out there! Quickly!”

Reluctant but understanding the situation calling for it, he grabbed the girl’s hand and pulled her with him. At the very least, her legs obeyed and made her run. They bursted through the door frame of the room and located the window. Casey poked her head through it and looked down. She looked back at Axel and gulped. “Lady’s first” he said. Casey felt sweat go down her eyebrow as she shut her eyes and made a dive out the window. Seconds after, he rushed to the window and looked out below. Sure enough, the crystal clear pond of water lay stories below. From this altitude, falling would surely be painful. Unfortunately, they could not afford to go any other way, they had used up all their luck so far. He saw Casey surface from the water and swim towards some bushes and trees where he lost sight of her. Axel looked at the girl he was holding onto who still seemed shocked. The second he was going to ask what was wrong, he saw someone enter through the doorway. It was a girl who, as soon as she saw their flags, fired a sharp crystal type ball from the palm of her hands at him, Axel hit the deck and dropped to his back just barely getting grazed on his nose. Axel rolled over just as four more crashed against the ground where he was. He jumped to his feet and charged at the girl head on. She continued to fire those crystal at him as Axel somehow managed to dodge most of them. One hit his left knee cap and another on his rib cage. He grimaced and slid on the ground and managed to slide right through the opening in between her legs. He spun on the ground and kicked her feet causing her to trip and fall. Without wasting another second, he rolled onto his feet and charged at the girl with glasses. He grabbed her and jumped right out of the window. The crystal girl from the ground managed to fire another round at him and hit him square in the back. His vision flickered as he suddenly felt his insides ascend. He accidentally let go of the girl and watched the world spin. In the distance, he could hear her screams as he struggled to maintain consciousness. He bit his tongue and managed to regain his ground. He snapped his eyes awake and looked below him. The pond was about 10 feet from them when a ball of flames suddenly caught them. He watched as he was taken away toward the forest and gently placed down on the ground. The real amazing part was watching as nothing caught on fire.

Casey ran up to him and placed one of his arms around her shoulders. They weren’t out of the woods just yet, they had to get away. He began to limp as Casey held onto him and walked as fast as possible. Since she couldn’t think of anything else to do, the girl with the glasses followed close behind. Without mustering a single word to each other, they walked on for what felt like miles as the sounds of combat slowly started to get farther and farther away. Only when they heard nothing more and were absolutely sure that they were plenty far away from the combat area did they finally stop to rest. By then, the sun was finally getting ready to descend and set for the day.

Casey helped Axel lay against a tree and soon did the same herself. The girl with glasses simply cleaned her glasses as she looked for a place to sit. Eventually, she settled for a fallen log. No words were said until they finally regained their breath.

“Why does...it take me to see you falling...to get my powers to work like that?....I could’ve saved myself a dip in the pool…..”she said in between breaths.

“Well, thanks for doing it when you did, I almost passed out for a second there. If I had, I don’t think we would’ve gotten away!”

Casey inspected his body with her eyes and began to feel worried. There were cuts on his face and a nasty gash on his left knee cap and a small hole on the right side of his shirt. He was bleeding from his elbow and was more than likely going to get a nasty bruise on his right forearm. She left him for two seconds and that happened. She shook her head and hugged her knees.

“Now then, what happened up there?” she said sounding sad. Axel inhaled and began to retell the events that had happened in her absence all leading up to the moment she found him again. All the while he felt his cheek sting and presumably heal.

“Wow…. How’d you manage to pull off a move like that?”

“Me and my sister used to watch a lot of wrestling when we were younger. Aside from all the MMA classes we took when we were kids, I used to practice wrestling moves on my sister. Though, I could never actually use too much force or I’d make her cry. So, I used a pillow!”

When he was a kid, he along with Casey, Kyle, and Cindy participated in MMA classes up until they were around 12. It was around the time Kyle and Cindy suddenly moved away that he stopped going. He just didn’t have the drive for it anymore but he at least learned quite a lot from it. It was helping him get through today somewhat.

“Well that explains that but, What is with you and getting into other’s problems? Now we have to deal with another person with us. Mind telling me why exactly she’s here?” she said looking over at the girl who was a fair distance away from them. Axel used his shirt to wipe away the blood on his elbow and thought of a way to answer her question. Except, there wasn’t any real reason he had. He just felt bad. After seeing her try and defend her flag so hard, he felt guilty for not helping. What really gave him the final push was when she didn’t alert the group of guys of his presence. That just told him that there was no way he could continue to just stand there.

“I just saw her defending herself and that flag as if her life depended on it. Then, I thought that she was just like me since I didn’t see her use an ability. Us powerless guys have to help each other out, ya know?”

“This coming from a guy able to make the weather itself change with a single punch? Oh yeah, powerless alright.”

“You make it sound so cool. It’s actually awful. Imagine the pain you get just to produce power like that. Here, check this out.” He said as he grabbed a rock off the ground. He chucked it at her and watched as it hit her shoulder. Casey grimaced and yelped out in pain.

“Ooouch! What the hell was that for!?”

“It hurts,right? Now imagine that same pain but thousands of times stronger. That's what I've gone through and it's the very reason I don't want to use it.” He said while flicking dirt off his clothes. Casey slightly widened her eyes as she came to a realization. As soon as she had, she couldn't help but feel embarrassed. If Axel really went through pain like that, she had no room to complain….

“Well anyway, I gave her a hand back there and she's here with us now so whether or not she wants to stay is completely up to her.” he said looking over at the girl who sat while deep in thought. Feeling their gazes press up on her, the girl looked up and took a deep breath. She shook her head and seemed to be motivating herself. After a couple of seconds of repeated muttering to herself, she finally spoke out loud.

“I’d like to apologize. I’m so sorry that I made you go through all of that. It's just that your actions completely took me by surprise and I wasn't sure what to do so I panicked and stood completely still…”

Axel and Casey had plain expressions as they listened to her story. Axel bent his good knee up and rested his arm on it.

“Was it really so surprising? It wasn't that amazing, was it?”

“Of course it was! I thought you were a goner. When I first looked at you I thought, ‘If this guy gets caught up in this he won't be much help..’, so I didn't say anything. But then you up and made me stand corrected. That drop was amazing! And then, the notorious Kyle came to your aide! That in and of itself was amazing since that hothead cares for no one! And then there was that crystal girl, the way you made her trip and fall was also something I’ve never seen before! I was literally stunned!”

Facing so much praise all at once was overwhelming for him, he didn't know how to handle it. He felt his face light up as he began to sweat. He fidgeted as he rubbed the back of his head and nervously laughed.

“That wasn't anything really...haha…..Oh! But why is Kyle so feared here? I get that he's scary but why is he that scary? Back there, those guys ran with their tails between their legs the second they saw Kyle. Why is that?”

“You don't know?! That's common knowledge! It's because he stands at the very top of all savants, including the worldwide charts. He's in the Locked 7th category and ranks #1 out of the 11 others there. His ability is the control of fire and is known as “Incinerator”! No one wants to stand up against him since he's almost unstoppable. Not just his ability, but his pure combat power is incredible! That's why he's #1!”

Axel felt a chill go down his spine. Was Kyle really that powerful? Did someone like that really exist? Surely the power gap between them wasn't that wide, right? From what he was told, the 7th category was only granted to those born with a powerful ability, it wasn't attainable. Was his fire really that powerful? Casey also had flame control, wouldn't that mean she'd be able to stand up against him too with the right training? Better yet, would he stand any chance against him at all? Not to mention that there were others. 10 others in total. He was gonna hurl, this was insane! where was the nearest bush!?

“relax, Kyle is powerful but he's not unbeatable. Everyone has their weakness, Kyle's no exception. But Based on what you told me it looks like we won't have to worry about Kyle, at least not this round.” Casey said to him seeing his face turn green.

“Eh?...really?....what do you mean we?”

“What!? Oh, uh, I just figured if he wants you to pass so badly then if I stick with you maybe he'll spare me too?....haha…” she said while getting a bit flustered.

“Well, okay then. But why is Kyle here if he’s already the best out there?”

“I’ve heard that he just likes to win and that this serves as good excercise. That’s pretty much it. No one else in the 7th category has ever wanted to participate. Well, I heard Miss FrostBite was going to participate this year but it looks like she didn’t”

“Frostbite?” He said raising his eyebrows. The glasses wearing girl gasped as if it was impossible for axel not to know.

“Are you living under a rock!? Frostbite is the 2nd ranked in the 7th category and also the only one capable of going toe to toe with Kyle! She’s-”

“That’s enough. The rest is a surprise for him” Casey said while holding up her hand to stop her from talking. The girl seemed a bit perturbed but silently nodded. Axel looked at Casey trying to figure out why she stopped her from talking but it looked like she wasn’t going to say anything else on the matter.

“Well, Whatever. So, glasses girl, What are you going to do now? You can leave now if you want.”

The girl with glasses quickly picked her head up and placed her hands on the rock while leaning forward.

“Well, I was thinking about that but I don’t honestly think I’ll last long on my own….. And since you helped me out back there and got me here, I was thinking that...maybe I could join you?.....”

Axel and Casey both again placed plain and serious expressions on their faces as they eyed the girl. This caused her to sweat uncomfortably and shake a little. She wasn’t sure what they were thinking but she wondered if this was how it felt to be at a job interview…

“Well, I can’t really turn you down…..I don’t have a problem with it, you?” he said turning to Casey.

“Hmmmm, this’ll get in the way of our relationship bonding time though.” She said to him throwing a fast one hoping to hit home.

“We’ve had years of it, what more do you need?” He said completely having the ball go over his head. Casey laughed pitifully since Axel completely did not catch her intentions at all. Finally thinking seriously, she properly responded.

“I guess I don’t mind.”

The girl with glasses felt her face and emotions rise as she stood up and cheered.

“R-really?! Thank goodness! Thank you so much!!”

After a while of getting her to settle down, Axel decided that it was a perfect time to get to know each other. This way when he made plans he’d be sure to know who to chose to do certain things. The girl agreed and sat back down. The first to talk was Axel.

“My name is Axel Ison and I can use multiple abilities. Those consisting of wind, fire, electricity, and Super Strength. I can hold up to five. However, If I use even one of them I damage my own body. That especially applies to super strength. Because of that, I’m only good for a couple hits and then I’ll only be a weight on your shoulders. So, I’ll mostly be attacking with whatever I can do regularly. Try not to rely on me.”

Casey enthusiastically clapped her hands as axel bowed several times. Next was Casey.

“I’m Casey Smith and I can control fire. Up until recently, I was only able to heat up objects to a certain degree as well as being heat resistant. Now I can produce flames from my body but I’m not able to fully control it and am still learning a lot about myself. Since I haven’t re-taken the ability test I’m still down in the 2nd category. So, try not to rely on me much either….”

As Casey began to bow, Axel started to clap just as she did. Then they both turned to the girl with glasses with large eyes and brimming joy and confidence. She could tell that they were friends long before the competition. Either that or they were insane.

“My name is Katie Campos. My power isn’t as great your guy’s. I can freeze the time around certain objects and move it around. It has to be small though. I can only freeze time and not speed it up or slow it down. My size limit is about the size of a small person. I call it Time Pocket. This power only places me in the 2nd category too though, so I guess you can’t rely on me either…..”

Once she finished, Katie contemplated bowing but didn’t want to make a fool of herself. So, she sat and waited for their reaction. As expected, they didn't have much to say. They both sat with serious expressions and the only one that moved was Casey but only to play with the curled edges of her hair. Axel simply stared at her as if he was unsure what to say. She understood though. She knew that her power was useless and that there was no way she could be of any help. She knew they’d want her to leave. But that was okay, she should’ve known that it was idiotic to enter a battlefield with nothing but her bare fists. She was trying to fight blades and guns with a pool noodle, that’s the type of situation she was in right now. In fact, why wait for the inevitable? She should just take her flag off right now and hand it to them as thanks for saving her. At this point, it was the most she could do…

“That’s so cool!! Imagine the pranks you could pull? The things you could save!! Oh.My.God. I’d never have to worry about spilling a drink again if I could just freeze it in mid air! Hey, hey,hey! Is there a time limit? What about weight capacity? Does any of that matter?And that clever name, It’s so awesome! Mine has a pretty dull name if you ask me, I don’t like it. Well, I don’t like this power in general but that’s beside the point!” he said with a sparkle in his eye. Katie was suddenly hit by such a powerful wave of enthusiasm and curiosity from Axel that she had to put her hands up in order to protect herself. His reaction was something she’s never had to deal before. Was her ability really that great? There was no reason to hype her up so was he really just being genuine? She was actually starting to believe that the boy really did live under a rock if her ability was mesmerizing him to this extent. Had he never heard of Code Breaker? Hurricane? Realm Defier? Wolf Pack? And that was just naming a few of the super cool people in the land of savants. Surely he was trying to patronize her or something, right? Or maybe he was just an idiot…

“Your face says that you think he’s an idiot. Don’t worry, he’s just not used to seeing any powers at all so the smallest thing will excite him.” Casey responded seeing the perplexed facial expression Katie had. Katie shook her head and blinked multiple times as if trying to snap out of something.

“Well anyway, you’re here and are now apart of us so welcome! And don’t worry, I know your power will come in handy somewhere down the line, just gotta wait for the right time is all!” Axel said to her.

“R-right….”

“What worries me is that we’ve all said that we can’t rely on each other since our powers are either weak or too strong, so what exactly will we do if we face trouble?” Casey asked bringing up a real good point. Axel brought his eyebrows closer as he began to think. It was true, they all did say that. He wasn’t too weak though, with what he knew and learned back in the day, he knew that he was an okay close range fighter. Casey didn’t have total control of her flames but it wasn’t like she would get hurt in the process, so she'd work as a mid range fighter. Since she also took classes with him when they were little, she basically knew everything he did. As for Katie, it didn’t look like she had enough combat experience to be able to fight neither close or mid range. Her ability was somewhat useful though. But since she couldn’t fight she’d have to remain in the back and be their long range fighter. If her power didn’t have a range limit, it would be possible to stop any incoming attacks from others. For example, if a girl like the one that shot crystals appeared again, Katie could stop her crystals in mid air and give them a chance to strike or get away. That would be perfect. He explained this to them and waited for their thoughts on it.

“I think that’s great! I’m in!” said casey lifting her fists up. Katie nodded her head and also raised her tiny fists.

“I agree! I’ll do anything to help!” she said.

“Really? Thanks guys!” Axel replied feeling proud. When they suddenly heard an explosion near by, they all jumped out of their skins. Facing Axel, Casey waved her hand.

“It’s okay, there are two guys over there fighting but we aren’t close enough to be discovered. That said, since I can feel them at all means that they are in within my sensing range. It’s not a good idea to stick around here, we should get a move on and find somewhere else to continue our plans.”

Hearing that from Casey made him calm down. Since she could feel body temperatures he knew what she was saying was credible. He looked up at the orange sky and lifted his arms. More or less, they were ready to be swung again. His back felt sore where he was hit but he was good. He stood up and made sure his legs were operational by doing repeated squats and stretches. They must’ve been here for at least an hour. Though his body was healing nicely, he knew that Casey and Katie were not in the same position. Plus, he was already feeling pretty worn out. His eyelids were getting heavier which was not a good sign. He looked over at the two girls and told them to get up.

“Let’s look for a place to rest for the night. It’s dangerous to hang around here right now since I know more than one person will see the night as a perfect opportunity to hunt and eliminate sleeping people. Come on.”

The girls nodded and tried to get up. Katie didn’t struggle much but Casey felt her legs shake as she tried to get up. Axel walked over to her and placed his hand under her armpits to lift her. She was surprisingly light. When she was up, she was close enough to him to feel the warmth of his breath. She stood fixated on him and only was able to muster the word “Thanks…” Axel shook his head and told her not to worry about it.

And so, they began to walk as diligently as possible. They paid attention to their every step and made sure to make as little noise as possible. It was true that Casey could sense those nearby but they couldn’t solely rely on that. Who knew what could happen. It was better to be safe than sorry. Axel took the lead while Casey walked close behind him and Katie taking the rear. As they walked through the thick forest in search of a place to stay, Axel took occasional glances at Katie making sure that Casey would not notice. In doing so he was able to analyze her better. She was pretty short and had long black hair tied up to a ponytail. Her large brown eyes complimented her smooth skin. She was probably around his age but he couldn’t say for sure. She was fairly thin but had excellent curves to her which made her attractive. He wondered, just why was she so determined to win? Hopefully, he’d get to know someday…

After many minutes of walking around and avoiding others, they made it to a very peculiar location. It made them look up and wonder just where they were. What was before them was a mountain like zone. It felt like they were walking into a hiking trail now. There were many hills and mountains with not much grass in view. There were many rocks and boulders along with dry bushes and yellow desert plants. The type that would get little pieces stuck in your sock and make your feet itch. Axel turned around and looked at the large and humid forest behind him and then back at the desert. The landscapes were separated perfectly. He wished he had his phone in his hands right now because this was a picture perfect moment…. Well, no point in crying over it now. He’d just ask if he could take one once the event was over.

“This is amazing!” he said.

“No kidding. I’ve never seen something like this…” Agreed Casey.

They spent a couple more moments taking in the scenery before moving into the new desert landscape. Unlike in the forest area, it was much more of a workout here. There were many inclines and they had to jump over many rocks. Their ankles would often twist as they stepped on certain grounds the wrong way and they would trip on unseen rocks. At the very least, they were able to see what was around them with a wider view. When the sun set and the moon began to rise, Axel began to feel uneasy. Soon, it would be much more difficult to see so they had to find somewhere fast. After reaching the end of a hill, they came across a peculiar looking terrain. There were many holes on the ground and cracks surrounding the area. It didn’t look like ordinary holes like the one’s animals made. These one’s looked different. He walked up to one and looked down but couldn’t see anything but darkness. It looked somewhat familiar but he couldn’t remember why…

“Axel! Look at this!” He heard Katie yell.

He ran over and looked at what she was pointing at. It was an opening that led down into the ground. It was perfect. He asked Casey to see if she could feel anyone down there to make sure it was safe.

“No, I don’t feel anyone there.”

“Perfect, Let’s go”

“Down there? But who knows what we’ll find!”

“Apart from sanctuary and a couple of bugs hopefully nothing else.” He said looking around. It was more than he could ask for. He was already afraid of having to sleep outside and having to take shifts to keep an eye out for anyone but with this they could all sleep at once. He looked around for a large object and found it. It was a large boulder the size of himself. The entrance to the ground was a bit smaller than that so this would cover it up just fine. He urged them to get inside as he quickly began to move the boulder. They were skeptical but got inside anyway. Axel pushed and pushed but the damn rock did not budge. He felt himself get frustrated as a knot in his throat formed.

(Please don’t break…) He prayed as he placed one foot on the boulder and shut his eyes. He thought of Casey and Katie and imagined them in danger. He motivated himself and felt the gears on his motor turn. He grunted and pushed out with all he had causing the wind beneath his feet to multiply. The boulder was suddenly caused to roll toward the entrance by a powerful gust of wind as Axel fell back on his behind. He felt an aching pain on his kneecap and the sole of his foot but he tried to ignore it. He got up and used the other foot to produce the same power again to make him fly through the air and into the entrance seconds before the boulder slammed into it. The walls of the cave shook as he roughly landed and slid on the ground. When he stopped, he was surprised to feel a soft wall behind him. Well, it was actually Casey who had jumped in front of him to stop him from slamming into the wall. She was lucky to not have slammed into it herself.

“Thanks so much Casey….I really appreciate it” He said while gritting his teeth and sitting up.

“Just try and stop getting yourself hurt please?” she said with a soft smile. He laughed and inspected his legs. They were both in the same condition. They were in pain but not broken. He got up on unsteady feet and looked around. The entrance was successfully shut. The entrance was narrow and seemed to continue down. Somehow, the cave was still lit. He looked around for the light source and exclaimed when he saw it. It was Casey, but that wasn’t what left him stunned. In order to see, Casey had the edges of her hair on fire. It wasn’t like they were just burning but rather it almost looked like her hair itself was made out of fire. It was amazing and truly made her look beautiful. Though he wanted to express that, he could only stutter like a moron. Casey looked at him funny and lightly slapped his cheeks.

“Haha, don’t go going insane on me just yet, okay?” She said. Axel nodded and proceeded to head down the cave. After about 10 minutes of walking down, they were met with a large open area that was already lit by itself. It was a beautiful place that had many holes in the ceiling of it. Through some of the holes, blue light shone through and illuminated the area. In the back, they could see what looked like a large pond which reflected some of the light and gave the room a blueish light. They were astonished as the walked in and looked around.

“Wow….. and here I was thinking that we would for sure die down here…”Katie, who had been quiet up to now, said. Axel and Casey nodded as they surveyed the area. Casey made sure no one was around and made the flames in her hair die out while Axel looked around the grounds. After confirming that no one was around, he laid down against the wall of the underground area. He heavily sighed as he rolled up in a ball and closed his eyes with his back facing the wall.

“What are you doing?” asked casey. Axel coughed and sniffed.

“What I’ve been dying to do. Sleep. You guys should while you can too. We’ll discuss what to do next when we wake up. For now, let’s try and not stress about it. I doubt anyone will find this place…”He said dozing off.

Katie and Casey looked at each other and raised their shoulders. It was true that they were all tired. Katie looked around and found the most comfortable spot to rest in and laid there. Casey went over to the pond and cupped her hands to the water. She raised them to her mouth and drank. To her surprise, it was salty. She spit it out and tried to call Axel and Katie but none responded. They were already dozing off. She shook her head and used this chance to use the restroom. She found a nice spot and did her lady business. After she was done, she walked over to Axel and rolled up next to him. As kids, she used to do this too whenever either he or she slept over. They were such good times and she wished she could go back and relive them. Well, she kind of was but she didn’t like this situation they were in. Axel, who was the most exhausted out of all of them, was already fast asleep. However, what made her want to cry was the tears she found in his closed eyes. Was he really missing home that much? It was understandable. One moment he was normal and the next he was not. She felt so bad for him. It made her wonder just what this cruel world had in store for him…..She wiped the tears from his eyes and tried to calm herself. He needed this. He needed to rest and he’d be fine in the morning. She hoped he would. If not, she’d be there to support him… Like she always wanted…

_______

In the now semi quiet and dark stadium were many people softly conversing. The arena was warmed up and their seats had turned into reclining beds. They were given the option to leave or stay and were given pillows and blankets. However, mostly everyone had stayed for the show. The four screens occasionally flickered to show different contestants but most were sleeping or trying to sleep. The one large screen now showed many red names with a lot of blue ones and few green ones. They got the chance to spectate specific people over their phones as long as they had a certain app. While most in the arena slept, some continued to watch. Maria, who was snuggled up in a blanket, was one of those people. She used her phone and watched over the boy Axel. Up to now, she had been watching him the entire time. Yes, she felt a little jealous here and there but she couldn’t jump through the screen and stop anything. So, she watched him sleep and fell in deep thought. She missed him. She worried for him. She felt bad….Just one night. She had to make sure not to have a break down during the night or she wouldn’t know what to do except to go to natsumi….She felt her heart quiver as she covered her face in her blanket and pressed the home button on her phone that axel had given her. She stared at her home screen wallpaper in an attempt to calm herself. It was a picture she took of them together while at home. He was happily viewing his favorite TV show while she smiled and was sitting next to him. This picture symbolized home for her. It was all she wanted and all she could hang onto. She wiped a small tear from he eye and prepared to fall asleep…

But she was not the only one. Lucy, Natsumi, Jennifer, Michael,Tony,Ella, and even Andrew. They were all in deep thought as they wondered how Axel would work himself through this situation. But, for the moment, all they could do was sit and wait to see what he did. And like him, they had to sleep and worry about it in the morning….

Part 4

The first to wake up of the three was Axel. The moment he opened his eyes he knew that something was not right. He was inside a cave with no soft areas to lay in, so why did the floor under his head feel so soft and warm? He picked up his head and looked. He was greeted by soft white skin. It belonged to a leg, who in turn belonged to the Flame goddess, Casey. He tried to move away but found the he couldn’t. He looked behind him and found Casey clinging to him like a pillow. He felt his face redden as he made her let go. He gently pried her hands off his waist and placed her down, taking extra precaution not to wake her. Flustered, He quietly got up and looked around. He saw Katie some distance away also fast asleep. He tiptoed over to the pond and looked up at the holes in the ceiling. Judging by the light that seeped through, it was about 5 or 6 in the morning.

He yawned and stretched his arms once he felt like he was a good distance away to make some noise. Then he noticed something, he looked down at his legs and began to squat. He repeatedly squatted and observed himself closely. He then stretched out his arms and punched the air. He twisted and turned and even did a cartwheel. It was true, he was all healed up. Though he hated Power Magnet, he loved the fact that he could heal this fast. He smiled and sat down in front of the pond. Since he was up first, it was a good time to finally get some practice in. This power had to be tamed one way or another. Recently, he had gotten a hang of actually activating his power but he had to find a different way of doing it instead of always picturing someone in danger. Not to mention how to use a specific power instead of having something random show up. He crossed his legs and concentrated. He thought hard and focused on a specific power. He needed to remember how the power felt, remember the sensation that coursed through his veins. It was a feeling similar to his arm falling asleep, like intense vibrations filling his body. He needed to replicate that feeling, he needed to use it once more!. He felt a familiar chill in the center of his torso and reached for it. He grabbed hold and prepared to expulse the power to the palms of his hands….

BZZZT……...BZZZT

As soon as he heard the sounds of electricity, he opened his eyes and raised his arms, careful not to disrupt his concentration. His arms had tiny jolts of electricity surrounding it and was sparkling brightly. He slowly extended his leg and touched the surface of the water. He kicked it and aimed for the small drops of water he made jump. He shot electricity at it and watched as the lightning traveled through the water and eventually hit the ceiling.

A small pebble fell and landed in the pond. He gasped and accidentally let his concentration slip. The electricity disappeared and his arms stopped sparking. Despite that, he still let out a tiny gasp of joy. He managed to do that! It was so cool! He grabbed his left forearm and squeezed it. There was a slight tingling feeling but aside from that there was no severe pain. He smiled and felt relief flood him. This was progress, this was definitely progress. Now, with this feeling in mind, he was starting to feel bold. If he recalled, this lightning type power also allowed him to move rather quickly, but if he only used it on a specific part of his body then the rest would be damaged. For example, if he powered up only his legs and moved really fast, his legs would be okay since they had the strength powerful enough to do that but the rest of his body would have the power of a regular human who could not. It was something like that… So, it was time to jump from tier 1 straight to tier 3!

________

When she opened her eyes about halfway, she searched for Axel on the ground with her hands but failed to find him. If they overslept here they would miss the chance to get the drop on others. She sat up, rubbed her eyes, and looked around. Though everything was still kind of blurry to her, she could see what looked like a person sitting down and eating something. Immediately as she thought this, her stomach growled like never before and only then did it occur to her that she had ate nothing ever since she came here. When her eyes focused, she was finally able to tell who that person was. It was Axel who was sweating for some reason, and in his hand was a tasty looking sandwich. With his back to her, he looked back and joyfully munched on his breakfast with his eyebrows slightly raised in delight. Then it dawned on her, was he eating without her? She gasped and quickly scurried over to him.

“HEEEEEEY!!??? Where in the world did you get that!? Give it here! I want some! I’m hungry!!!!”

“What!? No way!! Let go!!! Get your own!!!!”

“I would if there was a food court here!!!”

As some of her hair produced tiny bits of fire, they both stood up and grappled at each other. It looked liked they were hugging until casey placed her right arm under his left and reached around his back. She twisted her body to have her hip hit his leg and pulled his right hand, She pulled him forward. He was tossed over and slammed into the ground with the sandwich still in his mouth. She performed a hip throw. He felt the air leave his lungs but prepared to counter, He spun on the ground and kicked at her left foot just like he had done to the crystal girl from before. She tripped and fell over. Seeing his chance, he got up and ran away. Casey extended her hand and made fire flow through them. From in front of him, A geyser of fire exploded from the ground causing him to fall back. Before he could react, Casey appeared next to him and snatched the sandwich from his mouth. He exclaimed and tackled her which somehow resulted in Casey being on top of him regardless. He tried to get her off but Casey proved to be stronger. She laughed at him and took a bite from the sandwich. This made Axel gasp and struggle even harder until finally, he had enough. She saw him raise his hand and watched as it glowed unnaturally and produced a powerful whistling noise. She quickly reacted and produced fire out of hers. He swiped and she swiped at him. But before they could collide, Katie spoke up and made them both stop.

“What are you doing?” she said sounding completely bewildered. Axel lost his grip and the glow in his arm disappeared. Casey too let her flames die out but both their hands were still raised.

“She’s fighting me for my sandwich!” he yelled.

“Because you were trying to eat it without me!!”

“I said get your own!”

“You have the nerve to say that while we’re stuck in here!??!”

As they both once again wrestled each other, Katie made them stop once again by yelling.

“You know there’s an entire box full of them over there, right?” Katie said while pointing at something.

Suddenly, Casey stopped her fighting and looked over at Katie with curious eyes. Axel was hanging limply from her arms as he summoned the strength to speak.

“I’ve been trying to tell you that…..A whole box of food appeared here this morning with a note inside. It said that we were to eat what we wanted and congrats on making it this far…. I’m pretty sure it’s from the people running this tournament…”

Casey let him go and allowed him to fall to the floor. For some reason, he felt like he had lived this some time before… Her cheeks suddenly turned red as she rubbed her head and laughed.

‘Oh…..ahahahaha….sorry, Axel…..” she said getting off him. Axel dusted his clothes and sat back up. He extended his arm with a frown and gestured for something. Casey picked up his gesture and handed his now ruined sandwich back over to him. He swiped it back and angrily took a bite. When Casey regained her self control, she followed Katie over to the box that had food inside along with some water bottles. She took some out and went over to sit with Axel who was now back to normal. Once she sat down, Axel began to enthusiastically talk about his progress with his powers. Katie viewed them from far away and started to wonder what on earth was wrong with them. One moment they’re ready to rip each others throats out and the next they’re talking as if nothing had happened. She went over to them and sat in their circle.

“Jesus, Do you guys always fight like your lives depend on it for the smallest of things? I mean, those were some killer moves you two were using!”

Though they resembles two kids, they fought like two masters! She couldn’t help but admire them. In the world of savants, everyone relied on firepower alone, no one focused on homing their hand to hand combat skills. Since she was used to seeing people fighting with pure skills, she was not used to seeing people fighting with actual skills. They both looked at each other and smiled.

“When we were younger, We took some self defense classes and hung out a lot. When we argued, like most friends do, we usually ended up getting physical with Casey almost always throwing the first punch-”

“And me always ending up on top! Literally!” Casey finished with a sparkle in her eyes. Though he hated to admit it, Casey somehow always ended up winning. And as if that wasn’t enough, she always somehow ended up on top of him as well. She was just that strong. Katie placed a hand on her forehead and laughed.

“I can’t believe it, I’m teaming up with two psychos…” She said. They laughed and continued to enjoy their surprise breakfast.

________

In the stadium where most of the crowd had returned and things were up and running again, there was a brief moment of silence when they witnessed two supposed teammates fight over a sandwich. Though it was hilarious, the way they fought was superb. They couldn’t hear what they were saying but once it was over the crowd bursted into a fit of laughter mixed with cheers.

Ella, who watched the whole thing go down, sighed and shook her head. As usual, the four jumbo screens were showing how different players were going about their morning when it came across to Axel and his team. By then, it first showed the girl named Casey grab Axel yelling something. Presumably for the sandwich in his hand which he was protecting with his life. The announcer found it hilarious and displayed it on all four screens for all to see. When it was over and everyone got a good laugh from it, the screens resumed to showing the remaining players. She couldn’t believe what she just saw, No one from the crew did. Lucy especially exclaimed and held her head.

“To think that she seems so pretty and harmless but is really an absolute beast!”

“Well Axel looks sweet and kind but is also harboring dangerous skills. They’re both crazy.” Jennifer responded to her.

It seemed odd. Both seemed frail but were actually strong. Who would’ve thought? As Ella thought this, she focused on the screens up top. Today was the final day, soon the finish line would emerge but Axel still did not have a second flag. He had to hurry, otherwise he’d lose…

Part 5

After eating breakfast, the trio made their way back to the surface. When they reached the boulder blocking the way out, Axel froze in place. Casey looked around and closed her eyes. After some time, she opened them again.

“There’s no one around but some small animals, you can move that boulder now Axel”

“Forget it!” He blurted out.Casey and Katie raised their eyebrows.

“What?Why are you so scared?” Katie said.

Axel raised his arm and clenched it. He stared at his shaking fist with wide eyes. He dreaded using this power, it was insane. It hurt him, it hurt. The pain it inflicted on him was massive and whenever he used it he honestly felt like dying. Sure, controlled it wouldn’t do too much harm but it hurt nonetheless. Other than electricity, there was no way he’d use anything else until he absolutely needed to. No way would he put himself through that kind of pain for nothing. What if he messed up and 100% of this power bursted out? Not only would the rock be obliterated, so would his arms! No way!

“You do it Casey. Even if you lose control you don’t hurt yourself.” He said while lowering his head. Casey furrowed her brow and reluctantly agreed, “Okay?”

She raised her arm and released an intense wave of heat. Axel and Casey retreated behind a rock as Casey managed to push the rock out of the way slowly. When it was done, she lowered her arm and ceased the fire. She turned to Axel and Katie and gestured for them to follow her out. When they emerged, they covered their eyes from the sun.

“Well, what now?” Casey said looking around. Axel held his chin and thought. Today was the final day of this game and in order to win they needed at least one more flag. Which meant, they had no choice but to go out and hunt other players down. It was the only way they could advance. They had to move forward. If they kept moving forward, it was possible to find another terrain. Another forest would be ideal, that way they could hide in the trees. Being out in the open like this was dangerous.

“Let’s keep going forward, we need to keep hidden and hope to see someone around that we can catch by surprise. Let’s go” He said as he walked in front.

The two shook their heads and followed Axel. The desert portion of this area was fairly small, it only took them around 20 minutes to find a brand new terrain that was visible from a distance. Just like the last one, this one was a forest. However, the key difference in this one was that it was raining. And the rain wasn’t just light rain, it was raining cats and dogs. Axel was reluctant to go, he didn’t feel like getting soaked and he was fairly certain the others didn’t want to either. He looked around for another terrain but wasn’t able to see anything. Though he was going to hate it, he had no other choice, the cover in the trees would provide great hiding spots. Not to mention that the sound of the rain would make it harder for anyone to hear them, but that went both ways. It was strange, though. He wondered if anyone else thought the same way because there was no one in the desert terrain, why was that? Up to now, they encountered no one. Well, it was better to just count themselves lucky. It was entirely possible that people had passed through here during the night, and it was also possible that there were multiple terrains much larger than this one. Whatever the case, he had to keep moving.

“Are we really heading for the rain?” Katie asked already shivering. Axel nodded and looked back at her.

“There’s not much else. We’re out of water and that pond water was salty for whatever reason. Maybe we can find a better river in there. Also, it makes for a much better hiding place. Just looks at the size of those trees, if they look big here I’m sure they must be huge up close!”

“But I don’t think I can last long there...Me and the cold don’t exactly mix well..” Casey reminded him, which made him twitch. It was true. Like when he visited her after winter break, she started shivering seconds after getting out of her house and didn’t want the hot air in her home to escape. She was always like that, even when they were young. Just the thought of the cold irked her. However, she’d have to endure. It was just for a short while.

“Just suck it up, Case. It’ll only be for a little while….” he said to her with a wry smile. Casey was reluctant but felt the gravity of the situation and agreed. Seeing her nod, he sighed and looked forward.

“So, what’s going to be our strategy? What are we-” BOOM

The second Katie began to say something, the ground next to her suddenly erupted and tore apart sending her flying into the sky. Axel and Casey covered their faces and struggled to open their eyes right due to the wind and sand blowing in their faces. When it finally died down, Axel looked around for Katie.

“Katie!? Casey!?”

When he saw Katie in mid air, He acted fast. His legs ran with all they had toward her. As she neared the ground, Axel got closer but feared he wouldn’t make it. He jumped forward and caught her in mid air but slid on the floor with tremendous force. He bit his tongue and winced. Warm liquid filled his mouth and soon fresh blood seeped out from the corner of his mouth. Katie gasped and looked at him with shocked eyes.

“Oh my gosh!!! Axel, are you okay!? What just happened!?” she said. Axel shook his head and grunted in pain.

“I’m fine…..”

“You guys!! Are you alright!?” said Casey who ran up to them. Axel shook his head and stood up with Katie. He quickly looked around for their attacker but couldn’t see anything. However, from the corner of his eye, he spotted a flash and acted quickly. He grabbed the two girls and jumped away. A second later, the ground where they once stood also exploded leaving a crater behind. Casey and Katie were able to see it happen and looked at Axel who somehow was jumping very fast. When they looked closely, they were amazed. His body from head to toe was sparking. It was like an electric aura was surrounding him with sparks of lightning periodically sparking around his body parts. It was like a mini fireworks show.

“Axel? What is this?” Casey asked him.

“There’s no time to explain! We have to reach that forest!!” He said. It was not far now, maybe about half a football field away. He was jumping really fast and he was honestly terrified of tripping or rupturing a bone. Luckily, the terrain was now flat. However, multiple explosions occurred mere feet behind them with each one getting closer. Whoever was doing this was getting even more precise with every shot they took. Sure, this was a game but all this was just going too far. Was this person trying to kill them!? Just when he was sure an explosion barely touched the tip of his boots, with the girls holding on to him for dear life, they finally made it to the rain forest. Axel wasted no time and jumped up to the tallest tree he could find. When he found one, he landed and immediately left the two of the girls go. He desperately tried to catch his breath as he kneeled. The branch they were one was freakishly thick so all three of them fit perfectly on it. The rain mercilessly fell down on them and drenched their clothes almost instantaneously. Though, none of them focused on that just yet.

“Whoever that was, he won’t be able to find us in here. We must be at least 20 or 30 feet up….”

“So, you mean someone fired those blasts at us!?” Katie asked in shock.

“That’s right. I wasn’t able to see who but I know from where. If we’re lucky, this person will come chasing for us where we can take him down!” Axel said.

“D-do you think we can take on someone like that?...’Casey asked that made him think again. To fire off such powerful attacks like that from a long distance and still cause such huge craters was incredible. Could he…….Could he really take them on?.... Gritting his teeth, he turned his back on the desert and looked up at the gray sky. Strangely enough, the rain was almost room temperature. It almost felt like he was in a warm shower. This made it much less miserable to be in. He lowered his head and looked around. The trees were spread apart but the branches were large enough to extend out to other branches. Jumping from one to the other shouldn’t be too difficult. He told them this and proceeded to take the lead once more. The two girls walked directly behind him and followed the branches he jumped from.

“So, what was that power you used just now?” asked Casey.

“It was nothing special. You do it all the time. I just made my electricity powers run throughout my whole body,like you using your fire. It’s great that that power allows me to maneuver really fast. If it weren’t for that, we’d be sitting ducks out there. I practiced that while you guys were sleeping and it seems to be the one ability that doesn’t harm me aside from leaving me with a tingly feeling. But, aside from speed and shocking, there’s not much else to it. I just don’t like that it’s so flashy……” He said as he hopped from tree to tree.”Oh, gotcha” Casey replied. Katie raised her eyebrow and stared at Axel. He was practically a stranger, but it already felt like she knew him well. He was a scaredy cat who looked down on himself, that much she was certain of. But what would happen now? Would they just keep on hopping like this? And so they did, for almost a full half an hour in pure agonizing silence before Axel suddenly stopped.

“Casey, is there anyone nearby?” He said with his voice low. Casey looked at him with her round eyes and caught on. She closed them and took a couple moments before opening them once more. She nodded and looked in all four directions.

“Actually, there is. It’s faint, probably due to being cold, but there’s one person south of us, four to the north, another one to the west, but no one that I can sense to the east.”

Axel held his chin and sat against the trunk of the tree. Casey and Katie also did that right under a large leaf that sheltered them from the rain. Strategically speaking, they could just go south and ambush the person there in a three on one attack, take their flag, then go west and do the same thing to the one person there but, what if they were already eliminated and were just wandering around? Either way, they’d still be a flag short. If they went east, they could avoid trouble and just find someone else but they’d run the risk of running out of time. But, if they went north, they’d be outnumbered 4 to 3. What’s more, what if they were all powerful? There was no way only him and Casey could pull something off…..It would take a miracle….

But still, from where the sun was last time he saw it, they were nearing the time for this event to be over. Since that was the case, they had to do something soon…. Time was moving fast and it would not wait.

Right when he was aiming to get up, his body suddenly surged with power. It felt like it was going to overflow, from head to toe something brimmed from the depths of his body…….but, he hadn’t done anything! What was going on!? This was a similar sensation to whenever he used super strength! If power like this was used from all over his body at full power he’d be dead for sure! Even with healing abilities like his! As the power continued to multiply, his anxiety continued to fly through the roof. He was too scared to move, one wrong move and the power would set off without him wanting to. What if he hit Casey?Katie? What if he killed them on accident!? He had to stop this but how!? He was reaching his limits and his body was beginning to crack under the pressure. If this power wasn’t released soon he’d pop….

“Axel” Casey said lightly slapping his cheek. Miraculously, the concentration was severed and the flow of power snapped right off. Soon, he felt normal again….He quickly gasped for air and knelt on all fours. Casey rubbed his back as he threw up the little food that he had eaten before. Concerned, Casey asked what was wrong.

“I….Nothing...I was just freaking out over our odds of winning here….”He said with a solid lie. Casey patted his back and helped him to his feet. She continued to stare at him with tilted eyebrows and eyes filled with worry. Katie, also looked the same way and wondered what had happened.

“Ar-are you sure?” Casey asked.

“Yeah….thank you. You may not think so but you might’ve just saved all our lives…. I owe you big time…..but I’m fine now. Come on, we’re heading north, it’s our best shot at winning.” He said as he turned north and continued hopping. After a couple seconds of mixed emotions, they both followed. Casey presented that something was up, there had to be. She grew up with him and considered him her best friend. As such, she’d be ashamed of herself if she couldn’t tell when he was lying. That was an obvious lie. No one would throw up over a reason like that. Plus, the poor kid was as pale as a ghost. Thinking back, she was just trying to dry her hair when she caught axel staring at the ground intently with wide eyes. At first, she thought he spotted someone but she felt no one near them. Then, she caught something that even Katie saw. His entire body glowed a different type of shine from before. It was like he was a chameleon changing colors. His whole body turned into a bright color as rapid lightning strikes appeared on his face and arms and legs. The bolts of electricity quickly flashed one after the other. It was surreal, but she also knew something was wrong. Why was he in such a state? And that’s when she went over to him and slapped him. Immediately after, the glow in his body disappeared. After it did, she felt so relieved. She didn’t know why, but she began to think that she really did save all their lives….

Part 6

High above four unsuspecting people stood Axel, Casey, and Katie. Drenched in water that was beginning to feel cold, they followed the four very slowly.

After deciding to go north, Axel had Casey lead him to where the four players were. Once directly above them, he attempted to get close enough to see who he was up against. One was a guy, about his height, and was frowning. He had fairly long black hair and dark eyes. What really caught his attention though were the three flags around his waist. Clearly, that took skill to acquire. Next to him, there was a girl. She was pretty short and had short curly brown hair with nervous looking bright green eyes. Around her waist, two flags. In front of them, there were two more guys. One was a bit taller than all the others and had a intimidating look on his face. His sharp eyebrows and gleam in his red eyes made Axel shiver. He’d never seen anyone with red eyes. Were those contacts? His blonde hair was wavy and from where he was standing it look like he was built tough. Around his waist, two flags. What stood out from him was not his look but his clothes. They seemed completely dry. Now that he thought about it, they were all dry. This included their hair. He guessed that one of them could either control water or something. The guy next to the tall one was another short one. He had spiky black hair with peculiar looking green eyes. This one also looked like he was tough but his flags didn’t live up to his look. He didn’t have any flags at all. Since that was the case, that guy was eliminated and could no longer participate. This meant that they only had three to worry about. Taking in a deep breath, Axel climbed back up to where Casey and Katie awaited him.

“What’s the situation?” Casey asked.

“There’s four but one is eliminated so we’ll only have to worry about three. Two of them have two flags and one has three. So, the one to worry about is the guy with a frown on his face, I think he’s the strongest out of all of them. Also, they appeared to be dry so one of them might know how to control water. So two guys and one girl. You guys still remember the plan,right?” He asked. The two nodded and recited it to him.

“Katie tries to create a diversion by appearing in front of them. When she gives the signal, I try and surround them with my fire. Next, you take them by surprise with your speed and take all of their flags, right?”Casey said. Axel confirmed and clapped his hands.

“Right! And if things take a turn for the worst, you guys remember plan B, right?”

“Yes, we do.” Katie said. Nodding to both of them, Axel tried to relax and calm his nerves. Finally, he gave them the go ahead to get to their positions. They shook their heads and climbed down. All in all, they were formed as a triangle with Katie being the tip and Axel and Casey being the bottom two corners. The enemy would reside in the middle. It was such a basic plan, he knew that; there was just nothing else he could think of. As for plan B, It was something that he had thought of at the last second and he wasn’t even sure it would work. He slowly climbed down the trees and softly made his way into some bushes. Whatever sound he made was blurted out by the pouring rain. He peeked over the bushes and found Casey maybe 10 feet from the four who were walking without saying a single word. Axel still tried to fight his anxiety and bit his lip. This was the best way to lessen their chances of having to fight. Hopefully it would work…

Suddenly, according to plan, Katie acted as if she was running from something and ran into one of the guys. It was the one who had been eliminated.

“Ow!? Hey, what the hell?”

“!?” Katie gasped and jumped back.

The guy with black hair scowled angrily and extended his finger.

“Who the hell do you think you are, huh!?”

“Knock it off, Trent.” said the one in the back with three flags.

‘Cesar, she has a flag.” Said the girl with curly hair timidly.

“I can see that, thanks Jess. Cole, take it away” He said presumably to the large blonde guy. Cole, the large blonde guy, nodded and approached Katie. Katie shook her head three times and formed tears in her eyes.

“W-wait! Just let me pass!”

That was the signal, Axel looked over at Casey who appeared to be waiting for him to get ready. Axel nodded and bent over to quickly tie his boots,

But…….

BOOM

Everyone in the immediate area stood still, frozen in place. The wind around them lifted and spread out with tremendous force.The rain could not hold up and also momentarily stopped pouring down on them. They all exclaimed as they covered their eyes and knelt down low so they wouldn’t tip over. When the wind died down, Axel stared at his fingers in pure and utter fear. They were destroyed, completely broken. It was him, he had caused that explosion just now, but it wasn’t his intention. The second he tried to tie his shoelaces, his fingers instantly filled with power and discharged the super strength ability. The pain, it was unimaginable. There was no adrenaline running through him right now, so he felt everything. And it felt terrible! He raised his broken fingers to his face and yelled in agony.

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH”

“Axel!?” He heard Casey yell.

“Shit! There’s others here!” The guy named Trent pointed out which was already obvious.

Casey clicked her tongue and sprung into action. She raised her arms and surrounded them with flames just as planned. The four covered themselves and retreated where it was safe. Next, she ran over to where Axel wailed and picked him up.

“Axel!Axel! Come on, we’ve got to get out of here! Now!” she said to him but his heart was running so fast he was having trouble processing what she was saying. He just knew that he was in an immense amount of pain. It felt like each one of his fingers had been smashed with a hammer dozens and dozens of times. It was enough to make him go mad.

Just as Casey abandoned trying to communicate, she put his arm around her shoulder and began to ran when the wall of flames suddenly erupted out and fell. Simultaneously, the rain once again caught up to them and poured over them. Standing with his hand extended, the man named Cesar continued to frown as he shook his wrist.

“You aren’t getting away” He said in a deep voice which made Casey shiver.

Then, from the heavens, A familiar voice echoed out and made them all stop.

“Good evening all players! I ask you all to stop what you are doing and look over at the nice bright blue light in the sky! In that direction is the finish line which will teleport you back to the arena! As you all know, you must have two or more flags in order to move on! Only the first 50 who meet these conditions will advance! Also, all players who have been eliminated, you may now once again participate and attempt to redeem yourselves by taking other’s flags! I’ll see you all on the other side! Good luck!”

Then complete silence once again fell over them. The first one to speak was the short black haired kid. He smiled devilishly and punched his palm.

“You heard the gal, guys. I’m back in!” he said as the water around him gathered and formed a large serpent.

“Even more reason not to let you get away.”Said the girl named Jess(?).

Casey gasped and she attempted to run away once more. However, Axel shoved himself off her and grunted something.

“Plan…..B” he told her. Casey, who was extremely reluctant to leave, forced herself to move and ran in the opposite direction.

“Oh no you don’t!” Said Cole who ran after her. Cesar looked at Jess and signaled for her to follow after them. She nodded and ran past Axel. Axel gritted his teeth and slightly bent his knees while lifting his left hand. The two in front of him also got on their guard and eyed him. Soon, sparks of electricity surrounded him and he made a break for it. He jumped through the trees as carefully but quickly as possible.

(Where is she!? Where is she!?...there!) He spotted Katie looking up at him with completely confused eyes. He jumped at her and grabbed her. He then continued to run away.

“What happened!? What’s going on!?” She asked.

“I don’t know, my fingers just exploded! We’re moving onto plan B! Just wait for her signal! But hey? Where did you get that flag!?” he said looking at the second flag around her waist. Katie held onto it and smiled wryly.

“The second that huge explosion happened, the blonde guy was distracted so I snatched it right from under him. He didn’t even notice!” she said. Axel shook his head and admired her courage and quick thinking. With this, she’d pass for sure.

“I’d stop running guy, there’s not much for you to do in a situation like this, it’s over!” yelled the guy named Cesar hot on their trail. The spiky haired Trent was also right behind him riding a wave of water. Axel felt his heart rate multiply as he clung harder to Katie. But he couldn’t stop now, it was clear what he had to do….

__________

Running as fast as her legs could carry her, Casey made it out of the rain forest and once again into the dry sahara. She only made it out this fast by having her hands behind her and letting out as much fire as she could handle. This gave her a powerful boost forward. However, the two behind her were keeping up with little to no trouble. The large guy named Cole slid along the ground with what she thought was his ability. The girl next to him literally flew right over him. Casey began to sweat as she tried to speed up.

“Give it up, you’re done!”

“Get back here! That flag is gonna help Trent win!” Jess yelled after her

Casey looked back and fought back her urge to turn around. She was almost there, any moment now! It was in sight!

Cole raised his arm and made Jess stop. Casey was starting to come to a halt and stopped her flames from making her accelerate. She turned and slid backwards. The two got ready to fight and watched for her next move.

Next, Casey extended her right arm and concentrated hard, she didn’t want to kill them! She wouldn’t. She wouldn’t. She wouldn’t! And bam, a flash of light sparked in her arms and caused the two following after her to shield their eyes. They gasped and rubbed them while trying to squint.

“Argh!? What she do!? I can’t see!”

“Just try and catch her!!” Jess said to him while rubbing her eyes.

It worked, Casey successfully managed to control her heat and create a blinding light, but she wasn’t done yet! She knelt down and grabbed a rock. Adding a bit of her own power, she sent it flying through the heavens with stunning strength. The rock was now like a comet soaring through the skies. Then, the two finally managed to squint and see where they were going. They clenched their fists and lunged at her but, before they could even get a chance to say something, they were thrown into the air by a powerful fountain of steaming water. All around her, multiple geysers suddenly erupted and extremely hot fountains of water sprayed over her, but it didn’t bother her in the slightest. Not only was she already drenched, but she loved the heat. On the floor a couple feet away, three flags floated down and landed on the ground. Casey ran over to them and picked them up. She looked up and saw that the pair were having trouble getting off the geysers. The guy named Cole flailed about and winced as the hot water mercilessly stung him. The other girl also struggled to hold her balance and eventually fell onto a different geyser. Casey wiped the sweat on her brow and wrapped two of the flags around her waist. The third, she tied around her head. This put her at four flags. Now, quickly, she had to run!

_______

Axel was running toward the light when he saw the signal. He kept looking back for it. He was beginning to think it would never come but the second he saw that streak of fire in the air he instantly regretted thinking that. He let Katie know who then placed her palms together and said “I’m on it!”. After that was history, it was all up to Casey. Now, Axel had to do something about the two who were just running after them without throwing any attacks. It seemed strange. It was one of two things, he wasn’t in range for their abilities to work or they were leading him somewhere….waiting for something perhaps? Well, the joke was on them. He laughed softly and already felt tears swell in his eyes. He looked over at Katie who stared back.

“What now? You still don’t have a flag! I’m only a burden to you, so put me down! Turn around and take their flags!!” she said to him, but axel knew in his heart that he had no chance. His fingers were smashed and the two behind him meant business. That and he was already feeling fatigue wash over him. This electricity form wouldn’t hold for much longer. Since that was the case, he knew exactly what he was to do. He bit his lip and shivered.

“Just…..hold on tight…..” He said. Not knowing why, Katie widened her eyes and grabbed on tight. After making sure that she was secure, Axel let the power flow cease and he immediately began to slow down to human speed. Seeing their chance, Cesar yelled “Now!!” and lunged at them. However, Axel smiled and leaped onto his right leg and leapt once more, but this time with 100 times more power. The wind beneath him pushed out with tremendous force and caused the two following him to fly away against their wills. Axel and Katie were flung into the air with powerful force and struggled to keep their eyes open. Axel held onto Katie for dear life as they suddenly reached the very top of the clouds. With little to no time, they bursted through the clouds and were able to see the bright blue sky. With his back to the ground and Katie pressing up against his chest they flew through the clouds. His right leg was completely useless now as well as completely broken but it did the job. Pain was numbed due to the adrenaline but he was definitely going to feel this in the morning. He looked back and was able to see what the blue light in the sky led to, it was a portal that presumably led back to the stadium. Axel looked around and saw that the terrain had once again changed. This time it was the slope of a mountain covered in snow. At the end of it was the portal. Lucky for him, he just might land at the top of the mountain and slide straight down to get Katie over the finish line. But still, there was one last thing he had to do. As he neared the large white ground, he used the wind below him to slightly push him up and make him land at an angle. It was difficult but it was all he could concentrate on. Soon, he landed on the snow and slid straight down. He grimaced in pain but the landing wasn’t too harsh thankfully. Now all he had to do was make it through the portal. When he was starting to wonder where everyone else was, he looked around and saw many figures bursting out from the trees and also slide straight down. Some had flags, some had no flags and were chasing after others, he was the only one sliding on his back.

“Why!? Why didn’t you stop and take their flags!? Why aren’t you doing anything!?” Katie desperately yelled at Axel who had one eye shut in pain.

“Because I had no chance, but you do! And I want you to win just as much as you want me to! This is for all those that said you couldn’t do it!!!” He yelled at her. Katie widened her eyes and stammered. "How did you know!?" but Axel did not reply.

Katie did not know what to do and placed her head back down. (You…...Thank you..) she thought. Very soon, she suddenly felt a sense of weightlessness and then another rough landing but this time on flat surface. Also, she heard the many roars and cheers of a crowd. Axel finally let go and Katie rolled off him. She slid on the ground for some feet and then came to a stop. She coughed and looked around. It was over, they were over the finish line and made it back to the arena. She caught her breath as she looked over at Axel on the ground. He had tear marks on his cheeks but wasn’t crying anymore. Instead, he sighed and smiled a very relaxed smile.

“Finally, I can eat a proper meal….” he said. Katie stared at him from the ground in awe and took in a shaky deep breath.

“Axel! You made it! Are you okay!?” said Casey who suddenly appeared with bits of snow in her hair. Katie widened her eyes as she counted the four flags she had on her person. Casey knelt and helped Axel up on his feet. Well, the one foot he had that was working. Axel laughed and shook his head.

“I’m good…..I still can’t feel pain that much but I will be soon, that’s when you begin to worry..but you made it! I’m glad you managed to pull off that stunt of ours!”

“But you didn’t stick to the plan! I was looking for you to give you a flag but you were already too far!......but at least, it looks like you won’t be needing it.” she said. Confused, Axel looked up at her and raised his eyebrow.

“What?”

“Um, Axel?” He heard Katie say. He turned to her and lowered his eyebrows.

“What you did back there, I don’t have the words to explain it, In fact, I don’t really know how to feel..But I think...I think you are a far better candidate than me to continue on in this tournament….”

“But Katie, what about your-”

“That’s why!” she said, not letting him finish. “That’s why, I don’t regret doing what I did at the last minute….and I hope that you don’t resent me for it…”

Putting her words together, Axel slowly looked down at his waist. He widened his eyes and rubbed them one or two times. Was he seeing things? Or were there two flags around his waist? He looked back up at Katie who had tears in her eyes, he looked at her waist and only saw one. She slowly raised her shaking fist and nodded at him. Axel couldn’t help it, but the waterworks bursted out without warning.

“K-Katie?...you….!!!” he said with overwhelming emotion. He fell to his knees and held his face. Just when he had accepted defeat, this happened. What was he to say? What was he to do? Even after wanting to prove everyone wrong, after wanting to win to show that she could do whatever she put her mind to, why would she give it all up?...

“Congratulations to all who made it past the first round! If you are injured, please go see the infirmary! If not, feel free to do what you need to do! As for those who lost, You all did great and tried your hardest! Thanks for coming this year!” The announcer girl said over the speaker.

“Alright cadets, Good work out there. Next event is next week, same place and time. I’ll see you there” Their instructor said as he walked around the field. Axel continued to leak as Casey rubbed his back. Then,

“Aaaaaxel!!!!!” They heard a girl yell.

Axel knew exactly who it was as he quickly began to dry his tears. He looked up to confirm his assumptions. It was a very beautiful girl with long brown hair held up with a large plaid bow. She had on a matching plaid dress and only now did he notice that there was a noticeable curve on her stomach. It didn’t make her look fat, so it would be clear that she was pregnant if you looked closely. She was Maria. She knelt near him and held his shoulders to inspect him.

“Are you okay? You’re so hurt! Oh my gosh! Quickly! Get that blondie to heal you!” she said. Axel laughed as he looked at her.

“Lucy can’t heal.”

“Not her! The weird looking guy!!”

“My name’s Andrew.” Andrew said appearing behind her. Not just Andrew was there, Ella, Saphire, and the rest of the crew was there too. After giving up on getting Maria to acknowledge him, He knelt next to Axel and healed him with his water. Soon, he was up on his feet and Andrew down on all fours heaving.

“T-Thanks man…” he said as Andrew swatted him away.

“Congrats idiot. You actually managed to win. Now come on, we can talk in the comfort of Casey’s home” Ella said to him. As Axel looked over at all of them who were staring back at him and Casey, he felt like crying again. But, it was time to let that habit go… Instead, he nodded and walked forward with a shaky smile.

“Yeah…” He said following Ella’s lead….

It was finally over...