The smell of rust threaded the air - among the factory creaks coming from the rotting pipelines and underneath the broken concrete bits. The sound of rushing water flowing from somewhere. Deveron stood in the middle of the factory, glancing around, noticing beams of lighting entering into his location from various entrances as well as the occasional hole in the ceiling. Deducing what kind of factory he lingered in did not matter to him; all he needed to know was where Quinn was.

“I swear they need to stop randomizing these biased stages.” Deveron started pacing down the factory's open area, making his way to two double doors — a few hefty pulls, and he opened them both, looking into the facility. The sound of rushing water was more profound into the facility mixing with water droplets dripping against the broken concrete. It was a shame when the machine would warp you into places far off from each other. Deveron was disappointed this tournament ruleset did not allow a mini-map. However, those would only appear in actual team-based rules where five people would go at each other simultaneously—the most common of the ruleset being featured with two people against different sets.

Taking in a breath of air that wasn’t relatively fresh, he headed into the facility in an attempt to find Quinn. Each step produced echoes down through the empty halls, to the sides doors leading into empty rooms, nothing but empty rooms the more he went in. The sound of rushing water became louder and louder until he peered into one of the many facilities noticing a broken pipeline of water gushing down into a hole, which led into parts unknown.

He decided to take a closer look at the pit, only seeing darkness inside; it was hard to even gauge at the rate of how deep it was as well. Off in the distance, the sound of a metallic structure colliding to the ground rang out across the factory. Deveron quickly turned around, exiting the room, glancing down the hall from where he spawned then to the other end of the hall, which led to another exit out into the yard. Slow and steady wins the race as they say — a few mumbling thoughts rushing through his head, turning towards the doorway leading out into the yard.

From the pit, tiny green tendrils rose from the waters, rushing downward. The tendrils began to alter in coloration, blending into the landscape of the ruined factory. On occasion, these tendrils would light up every fifteen seconds revealing a liquid substance inside them. Deveron arrived at the exit, opening up the door, his eyes blinded ever so gently by the light of the sun. The moment he covered it, the scenery was precise—machinery rusting away around the yard with shipping containers stacked up all around. Off to the side were a set of old train tracks that led directly towards a city off in the distance, ignoring the grass peeking up between the slats and the bits where the metal was rusted and broken. Along with this, more factories nearby rusting away; neither of them were directly linked up to the facility Deveron just left. The scene looked as if it was taken from an early video game stage demo.

“Man… Just my lu-” Deveron’s words came to an abrupt stop. He instinctively ducked his head down, sensing the energy flowing from behind him. A thin coating of energy resembling the tendrils from the pit rippled through the factory, slicing the door beside him in half. Deveron, upon ducking down rolling away from the factory's exit, watching as the walls and supports holding the entry came crashing down into rubble.

“Good to see you’re taking this seriously!” Deveron raised his fists up, entering into a defensive posture - from the dust of the debris, bricks and stone from the collapse exit were flung past Deveron's clearing way for Quinn. His body brushed through the rubble, revealing himself; the only difference was green energy radiating from his body. The power, in particular, caused the nearby grass to burn up and the skin on Deveron to singe.

“Of course, I can’t have you lasting.” Quinn raised his hand, allowing the energy to morph into more massive tendrils that began to feed off the heat in the environment. Quinn’s hand then gripped, forcing the tendrils to immediately attack. To test the waters, Deveron reached for a rock tossing it at the tendrils, only to see one of them catch the rock and toss it back at him. With the rock brushing past his head, the heating sensation of the tendrils caught up to him with ease, grabbing hold of an arm and leg. The energy radiating off the tendrils started to burn his skin, forcing a degree of pain down onto Deveron. “This will be over swiftly!” Quinn flung his hands upward as the tendrils proceeded to toss Deveron high up into the air.

Deveron clenched his fist - gritted his teeth, and braced himself upon being flung into the air. The tendrils all coordinated with each other and began to throw themselves at Deveron’s body as he continued to take a constant beating in the air. Quinn was looking to end this fight before it even started allowing one of the tendrils to move in to strike Deveron directly in the chest. Delivering a fatal blow that would render the game in his win and force the match to end.

“Unbelievable! Not even five minutes in - and we're seeing a decisive play from Quinn!” Joel attempts to ramp up the audience’s excitement around the building. Pearl, on the other hand, wasn't paying much attention to the fight since Milton had brought her a slice of cake - of which she delightfully indulged in before speaking.

“Mmm~. Quinn is making good progress, yet rushing ahead is a fruitless display.” Just as Pearl commented, Deveron managed to turn his body mid-air, avoiding the tendril. His body was beginning to heat up, steam fading out of his exposed skin — He was making his way down onto Quinn.

Quinn made an error in his strategy of subduing Deveron as fast he could. Now he knew that the problems that arose from this would only worsen as the game progressed; however, there was still a window of opportunity. His body moved out of the way as Deveron came crashing down with his fist. The ground began to rupture and crack, tossing debris into the air, forcing Quinn away from the area slamming to the ground near the railway.

“Argh…!” Quinn sat up as bits of rocks and concrete fell behind him. “Yeah...Miscalculation. Let’s just take things slow.” Quinn stood only to realize Deveron coming right at him. Without even a moment of hesitation, Quinn was given a swift, yet powerful kick right to the face before another kick in the chest sent him tumbling over the rails.

“Heh. I don’t know about that, buddy.” With confidence, Deveron stood there, waiting to see what Quinn would do. A downside to kicking him; His feet were now burning as if he stepped in boiling water. The pains of dealing with a singularity that revolved around the element of heat were always annoying to him. In his honest opinion dealing with Heidi was the worst in every regard, especially if it dragged on.

“Perhaps, you should change strategies. How about a head-to-head bashing.”

“Come now. You know that won’t end well.” Quinn dusted himself off, finally taking a stand without interruption. A green aura now made itself fully present around his body. The tendrils became large in form, resembling tentacles in how they moved and altered between each other. They were more solidified in shape, no longer resembling loose bits of energy. They did, however, still connect to Quinn’s aura. Each one proceeded to pulsate heat at random from each. When one pulse came, another tentacle would emit heat.

Deveron, feeling the intense heat pulse, noticed the grass beginning to burn up and even the rusted train tracks to start heating up. Really, it was always the singularities with heat that he found most annoying; cold ones came second. He began to stretch his body, trying to take his mind off the pain he was feeling - the more pain he felt, the more confidence accumulated on his face. Quinn didn’t like that look of determination, that same smile shown on videos of his old matches during the individuals. While East Bridge as a whole was troublesome, he did not disregard Starlight entirely. From Cheveyo to even Deveron, they had a good lineup. It even seemed both teams had an ace up their sleeve.

“[Scatter!]” The tentacles all began to separate from each other, doubling in numbers, a total of sixteen now moving around in sync with Quinn’s energy. Four of them rushed in to grab hold of Deveron. Tightening their grip around his arms and legs, the four tentacles would bring Deveron up into the air once more as the rest proceeded to slam into him.

Each swipe from them causing burn marks to appear on his body — Making no attempt to escape, Deveron continued to take the beating. His body heating up from the attacks, bits of smoke coming out from his skin during the process. Quinn gripped his hand, the tentacles all wrapped around Deveron rising up high into the air above the entire facility. The heat radiating off them grew more intense by the second. As it raised, the temperature felt like it was generating from a nuclear power plant. Releasing his hand once the ball of tentacles was high into the sky, he’d lower it as it came crashing down, upheaving the land at a distance away from him.

A fierce wind swept the field, kicking up dust and debris all across the factory. A cloud of dust was now visible towering over the facility. Quinn rushed to the nearest factory shed with the rain of debris colliding against the building.

“Of course...It didn’t get him.” Quinn regretted his actions just now. He moved his right hand up and down as the tentacles began to divert from the point of impact returning to him, his aura leaking out from the shed.

In Starlight's private room, the team continued to watch the match in hopes of a victory. Even Cheveyo, now fully rested, was wide awake watching the fight unfold. Heidi, instead, was laid out flat on the couch resting.

“So...Anyone else seeing this big disadvantage? Or is it just me?” Alexia said.

“It’s okay. This always happens in his matches. “ Reynolds tapped his fingers on the chair nervously. He was pretty sure if Deveron could make it out of this without passing out.

“What makes you say that?”

“It’s because his singularity is a blessing and a curse for this kind of ruleset.”

“I think it fits him for being straightforward in general,” Roy added in his own to the conversation.

“What is it anyway?” Alexia wondered. It wasn’t far-fetched that neither of them fought yet despite making hints that they would weeks prior. They were either too busy or just never had the chance; the club only met on Friday and weekends. Deveron was usually caught up in other sports activities while Alexia trained under the guidance of Reynolds.

“I’m amazed you haven’t seen his fights nor any of his past fights,” Cheveyo spoke up, continuing to watch the match - the debris clearing from the screen for all viewers to see again. Quinn became confused for the moment; when retracting the tentacles back to him, he noticed four of them were missing, no longer attached to him.

Just as he stepped out of the shed, one of his missing tentacles came slamming through it, collapsing the factory shed onto itself as it ceased to exist, discarding the energy into the air—a pulse of heat expunging from it in the process. Dust from the recent attack he unleashed still lingered in the area.

“He calls it something weird, but I can understand why,” Roy commented with a smile on his face. It seemed something was coming, and he was anticipating it. Reynolds still nervously grasped his hands together, then turned to Alexia.

“He calls it [Harsh Havoc] or so that’s the common name he uses in tournaments.” Reynolds leaned back in his seat. “He might cause a bit too much damage here.”

“That’s what he calls it? So it’s one of the unique singularities?”

“Heh...Unique is putting it lightly in his case. Even I have a hard time with it due to his insane endurance.” Cheveyo added.

“Just pay close attention, Alexia. It’s about to occur, it seems.” Reynolds glanced back at the screen - Footsteps rapidly approached Quinn from the front, his vision clouded by the dust. He stopped himself for a moment gathering all of his remaining tentacles together proceeding to mold them back into his aura. It was now a soft coat of energy around him, acting as a protective barrier just as the coating of energy wrapped around his body. He was caught off guard when the footsteps stopped entirely. Out from the dust, Deveron jumped through his body, spewing off smoke and heat, delivering a punch directly into Quinn’s chest. The sheer force of the blow uprooting the ground in the process sending all the damage he received back onto Quinn.

The barrier of energy Quinn used to protect himself was immediately shattered upon impact, with him being hurled through the facility by a gust of wind forcing his body through brick walls, concrete, and other steel compartments around the factory. The sound alone from the punch shattered nearby windows, echoing into deeper parts of the stage.

“His singularity is odd like yours, but the more damage he takes, he can convert that damage into power, sending it back twice as hard. Or so that’s what I’ve gotten out of it from past matches. Though, he lacks in a lot of areas. Think of him as a walking cannon.” Reynolds seemed satisfied in explaining one of his star students' powers.

“Yeah. I can see that...I think I can understand why he boasts a lot now. His real singularity being his insane endurance, I'm guessing." Alexia gazed at the screen, some more only the visibility of dust sweeping the cameras and the distant cheering of a crowd. "Thus making him have two possible singularities, right?”

“See, I never thought of it like that. Two singularities are possible. So I don’t doubt it one bit, genetics retaking control once more. But don’t feel too bad about him boasting. Believe it or not, Heidi is actually one of the few that can take him down easily.” Reynolds chuckled slightly, remembering Heidi and Deveron’s match from some time ago before Alexia joined.

“No way.” Alexia couldn’t help but smirk, knowing this information. It made her appreciate Heidi more in the process as well.

“It’s because of her energy-draining heat. That, and she can’t really damage him, all she has to do is force him to pass out.” Cheveyo stopped himself and continued watching the match — it seemed Deveron was fine for now. Hopefully, he could keep it up without forcing the game to end in Saint Mary’s favor.

Tucking in his cheeks, Deveron spat on the ground, taking a moment to catch his breath. Excess heat being shaken off his body, releasing into the air.

“Heh. Looks like I scored one..Ha..” Amidst all the dust propelled up into the air from each individual attack, breathing became harsher. Deveron swatted the dust away with his hand despite his arms beginning to numb up. He continued to fester in pain, allowing it to accumulate in his body.

A rusted steel beam from one of the factory supports came flying, landing a few meters behind Deveron — He prepared to defend himself. Only to realize Quinn was nowhere near him. In fact, he had just gotten up on the other side of the factory yard, having just kicked the steel beam off him. Blood began to trickle down the side of his head. However, the system quickly patched the area he bled from. The safety feature for the system kicked in, preventing significant damages to the body.

“I’ll admit…” Quinn, no longer in a daze from that hefty punch, only suffering minimal damage on the outside, began to make his way towards Deveron. “I didn’t think you of all people would return. Honestly, I’m really impressed thus far. To have some no-name school come out of nowhere with a former tournament player.”

“You’re talkin’ to the future,reigning champion. Don’t worry too much. I'll be sure to send a letter in the mail with the image of the trophy.”

“I’m flattered, Mosely. But, putting on such bravado will do you no good when reality hits hard.” Quinn stopped in place, his eyes examining Deveron closely. Deep down, he had to win this so that they could continue to the finals. After having paid witness to his school's crushing defeat a year ago at East Bridge's hands, it was hard for him to muster the continued motivation to participate again. East Bridge ended a streak that would have allowed Saint Mary to be the Idaho state champions for ten-years in a row. Only thanks to Angela, who helped him remain on the team and the appearance of a new team member, strengthened his resolve.

“I could say the same to you. Ya’ nearing your limit yet?”

“Well, if the safety was off, I'm pretty sure my ribs would be broken. So limit is a good term for it.” Quinn showcased a smile for a moment, continuing to peer at Deveron. “You’re nearing yours as well.”

“Not like it matters. You seem to know me well enough anyway. Surely — You don’t think I'm out of the count just yet.”

“Not at all. I’ve always had trouble with stubborn fighters. You and Mary would get along well.”

“Didn’t think you guys had a mascot already. Good for you, folks.”

“No. She’s far from one, but enough chit-chat. The audience doesn’t like our constant chatter anyway.” Once more, Quinn’s aura expanded outward more tendrils and tentacles, manifesting themselves off it. The heat radiating off them once more resembled that of a nuclear power plant at work. Smoke and steam now emitted from the tentacles — Deveron braced himself as the match entered into its second phase.

The timer for the match continued ticking, with only fifteen minutes remaining. Time was always the enemy for these matches, both Quinn and Deveron’s match, in reality, seemed fast-paced, but to them, time was worthless in the realm. A minute felt like an hour to all in the fight. Perhaps it was in the heat of the moment, which caused time to slow down for them — in either case, both of them knew the match was about to end only one of them needed to mess up in the end.

Then victory would surely be granted.