“Next on the docket we have a fiery bout between applied thermodynamics and raw fire power!!”

Para didn’t leave much room between fights, announcing the next challenge as Kaz and his dad were still leaving the circle. Seth nodded to Kaz as he passed and took his seat, about all he could manage but still currying what it could. Samurai lept back up to the stands, a renewed smile on his face that no longer covered up his pain, simply beamed his joy for all to see, except maybe a bit of dehydration. As Kaz took in his fellow trainee’s congratulations, Kabar stood up, to ready for his fight.

“Ladies and Gentlemen… Toaster!!”

Kabar walked out into the arena floor, turning only to mean eye Para at the hopefully final utterance of that nickname. He took his position in the circle and readied, the massed catharsis had finally calmed and put people back in their seats.

“And his challenger… ehem… I mean challengers!!”

Kabar snapped up, expectations thwarted.

‘Uggh... How fucking original.’

The central shutter door the trainees entered from opened, a new spotlight illuminating four figures entering the arena. It was Kabar’s trainers. Cauterizer, Dr. Kallinikos, Friction Sweep, and Phoenix Tech. All walking out in unison, stopping at the edge of the central circle with a proud air and a fight already clear in the making.

As Para moved to announce again he stopped suddenly- *bwoo*. Seth looked up to see Hothead grabbing up Para’s mic away and leaping into the arena to join the others.

“All right people listen up…!! This fight is more than just a graduation, a culmination of hard work! This fight is a baptism, a ritual all fire heroes must go through! A test only we can administer, and only we can judge! Our newest initiate ‘KABAR!!’ will undertake a test of the 4 main elements of firepower! Heat, Saturation, Utilization, and Martial prowess! Not strictly in that order, but you get the idea. Each of our challengers here are masters in these elements, so it’s fair to say we can’t just set them all on him at once! Thus Kabar’s challenge is simple!”

Hothead, put down the mic and leveled a hand at Kabar who recoiled knowing full well what it could do. But he deftly moved his hand in a circle, causing a ring of arena sand to ignite around Kabar, one noticeably smaller than the official ring.

“He must knock each of his challengers out of this ring of fire! Though in Phoenix’s case he must be knocked to the ground as well, it’s only fair. Getting knocked out himself isn’t a detriment, his safe zone is the full circle! But every time he is knocked out… a challenger returns or is sent in!”

Hothead turned to Kabar, hand still out maintaining the fiery boundary.

“You understand!?”

Kabar took a breath, probably his last cool one for a while, and nodded. Hothead smiled wickedly and turned back to Para, tossing him the microphone. Para wasn’t impressed, but at least he kept some of his job. He raised his hand again, only slightly reveling in the tension. He let out a defeated sigh and threw his hand down.

“Fight!!”

The fire ring flared up, putting out enough heat to invalidate the protection in front of the bench and flinch the stands back. It only slightly dimmed to allow Cauterizer in first. No doubt the heat of the ring was worse inside. Cauterizer took his place opposite Kabar, putting his hands up in a grappling stance.

“Alright K, let’s see who's heat is stronger!”

Suddenly his hands began to glow like forged metal, getting white hot at the palm in no second flat. Kabar stood his ground and took a stable stance, thermal cords heating up in sequence toward his hands. Cauterizer struck before it fully ignited, charging in with both his hands open and ready to grab. Kabar could do little more than meet his grab with his own. Both fighters slamming together, locking hands in a pushing match, heat from both sweeping over the fire ring and adding to the already stifling atmosphere.

Kabar finished heating his lines, but the struggle was already not in his favor. Why Cauterizer was chosen for the heat challenge and not the martial one confused Seth, but he remembered a little about him. He wasn’t strictly a fire hero, more like a combat medic. He had to control the way he used his powers in order to both heal and fight. Kabar seemed to understand this as well, this wasn’t really about higher temperatures, it was about strength of control. And he was slower on the draw.

Flames spouted from between their hands, Cauterizer was pressing his advantage by threatening to burn through Kabar’s hands before he could match up. But this contest was already being forfeited, and shifted to Kabar’s strengths. His lines cooled around his arms, contracted and hardened, creating a stiff exoskeleton he could use to maintain his position. Simultaneously he poured all the heat he could muster into his feet, the sand under his soles burning more readily than the rest. Despite all of it basically being baked to a crisp by the ambient firestorm. Once he was ready, he reheated sections of his cord exoskeleton and let Cauterizer push him back with both hands still grappled and pulling him off balance. And the both of them falling to that baking sand.

Kabar’s feet shot up quickly, planted onto Cauterizer's chest as he flared his hands in a single sudden directed burst. A wave of over stoked flames lightening the baking grip for the second he needed. Cauterizer fell forwards, blinded by the jets of fire, not able to react to the explosive kick Kabar loosed at his chest. On contact the superheated soles exploded, sending him flying out over the fire ring and into the sand on the other side. Kabar reignited his cords and kicked back up as Cauterizer sat up, two burned in shoe prints on his costume and a dejected look of someone who has to pay tailoring costs for custom fireproof clothing… again. Hothead drew closer to the ring, a prideful smile rising to the occasion.

“1 down, 3 to go.”

Friction Sweep stepped up next, a bit of a clearer contender for the martial prowess master. As she passed over the dimmed fire ring she swung up her matchstick nunchucks, striking them up in a fire dancer style display. Over her right shoulder, under her right arm, across to the left and repeat. Then a sudden pop of them stuck out ahead of her, flames smoldering on both ends. “Prowess comes in many forms! Show them what your is!”

Just as suddenly she whipped her flames back up to speed. Her swings increasing with every rotation, nunchucks becoming little more than a solid glowing blur, not even loosing a single spark away. The wind force subjected to them was increasing their heat, more air equals more oxygen to burn. And it was all being sucked in toward her.

Kabar kept his position, getting too close meant getting knocked across the face before he could even react. He waited for her to make the first move, hoping to catch her out, a loosened line subtly heating up in his right hand. But, out of nowhere, an arc of flame blasted out of Friction’s display, careening out at his right. He dodged, but that was definitely not the only attack. Suddenly more blasted out, every time she dragged the tail end off a nunchuck out and let it swing free in front of her a blast of flame was shot away in its wake.

Like a fiery rhythm game, Kabar was forced to dodge every which way. Two on his left, one high across the top, another two on the right. A set pattern, easy to- ‘Oh shit they just doubled up!’ Now the pattern jumped the cross over and put two sides out at near the same time, her speed increasing even more. Kabar was doing everything he could to dodge, but it was only a matter of time. A duck left dodged the right and top shots, a quick right dodge to avoid the left, then back left… straight into the second left that trailed the first. The flames washed over him, his thermal cord lighting up as it passed over him. His arm blocking most of it and holding his footing, but one hit leads to another. And another. And Another!

Kabar was stuck as Friction began aiming straight at him, pattern be damned. He was battered by flame blasts after flame blast. Few options left, he shot back his right, left stuck up and blocking for everything it was good for. The line in his hand flew back, out of the fire ring. Friction could see this and advanced, the fire at her back getting pulled along as she drew away. She was practically sucking up all the air in the ring with her routine. And it was having an effect. Kabar’s breathing was haggard, what moves he could do slowing. But the end of the line outside the ring was burning white hot. The cord was igniting as well, taking up the ring’s heat and drooping it. weakening it just enough.

Before Friction could close the distance, Kabar suddenly whipped his right hand down hard causing a chain reaction along the outstretched line. Small explosions along its length added more force as the line twisted over itself several times, picking up speed as the twist reached the ring. And when it hit- ‘Holy Shit!! The ring parted!’ A howling tunnel of air from outside rush through, and Kabar took a deep breath of it. But quickly the fires that washed over him were sucked away, a backdraft. All of Friction’s built up fire and air current were pulled away as a gout of fire shot out of the parted ring. Her routine was put out and stopped dead. She panicked and tried to strike up her matchsticks again, but Kabar was already pulling that right back over, pulling his superheated line back in and whipping it into her face. The superheated end tapped her on the forehead and exploded, sending her flipping back out of the ring. Kabar collapsed, gasping at fresh air again as Friction skidded to a stop outside the full circle. Knocked out… well ‘heh…cold isn’t the word I would use.’ Hothead took another step closer.

“2 down, 2 to go.”

Kabar groaned up as Dr. Kallinikos entered the ring, without waiting for it to dim. He was definitely the odd one of this group, not just because he was basically a fire elemental living in a suit.

“Saturation is a simple concept, a balancing act between having enough fuel to-”

“You already told me this! Why won’t you go see a psychiatrist already? Your memory sucks!”

Kabar looked exacerbated, this was definitely not the first time. The doctor didn’t seem put off by the interruption, but rather ominously pulled up the flamethrower at his side.

“Very well then, let the test commence.”

There's something really horrifying about someone calmly using a flamethrower, so watching a gout of blue flame come from someone who talked like a lecturing professor was only going to make this feeling worse. Kabar stood his ground as the blue gout whooshed over the entire condensed ring. It didn’t seem to be anything worse than Friction’s flames, but Kabar wasn’t about to just sit back and bake again.

Off the spray he charged forward, blue fire stuck to bits of his thermal cord. The doctor let his thrower drop, still with a really unnerving calm about him as he slowly raised his free hand up... in a locked snap. Kabar skidded to a halt before crossing the center of the ring, he knew what this was. He franticly looked around, looking at the spaced out spots of flame on the ground. The very evenly patterned spots of flame. He froze, he looked down at the spot he was in, no fire, just the bits he brought in to it. Looking up just in time for the doctor to snap. A few of the other flames in the pattern flared up, as did the small ones stuck on his cords. But that flare spread out, the flares dimming as heat pulled out of his lines. Just in time for the mass conflagration. A checker pattern of blue fire pillars shot up over the ring, the heat turned up to bracing levels, with only a single pillar left below the rest, Kabar’s.

The pillars died down, the flames in their spots burned out and empty. Kabar was hunched over and obviously toasted a little. But he pulled himself back up, worse for wear but still conscious. Dr. Kallinikos still didn’t react to a serious degree.

“Very good, you diminished my flames before conflagration. But remember, saturation is-”

“SHUT THE HELL UP!!!”

Kabar spread his arms out forcefully but pulled them back in just as quickly, a distortion in the air in front of him signaling he was prepping a heat blast. The doctor releveled his flamethrower, but Kabar was quicker. With a hard grab and a massive pull back, he slammed the ball of heated air in his hands into the ground, sending a shockwave over the ring. The ring and the remaining blue fire were buffeted by a wave of sand, as was the doctor. Kabar took his chance and charged.

The doctor was knocked off his original attack, but was undeterred, raising his flamethrower again. Kabar reached him just as he put finger to trigger. With a quick spin, Kabar stole the thrower just as it spurted a blue puff, pushing him away with his momentum and a back shove. The connecting hose stretched as the doctor was knocked to the ground, but Kabar wasn’t done. He whipped the thrower around toward him, but pointed it over at the fire ring. He pulled the trigger and let loose every bit of fuel this aged doctor had on him..

The doctor tried to get up, but seemed to sag as he did. He was the fuel, and Kabar was shooting him out of the arena. After a few torrential seconds of spraying, the suit he inhabited finally fell empty. Kabar dropped the thrower on the suit and kicked the lot of it through out the ring. With a severely exacerbated sigh, Kabar slumped with his hand on his knees. He pulled himself up to prepare for his next fight, but came face to face with an articulating blue fire sticking itself through the ring.

“There is no need to be rude. Everyone needs a refresher sometimes.”

Kabar started to pull at his singed hair.

“THIS WAS THE 18th TIME THIS WEEK!!!”

“…Well you still don’t need to be rude.”

“AAAhhh!!”

Kabar turned away from the wall, not wanting to deal with the sentient yet repetitive fire monster trying to teach him the fundamentals of his own power set. He was definitely haggard now, cords burned, hair singed, and no doubt some degree of soot in his lungs. Hothead took another step, practically touching the fire ring he was maintaining, and holding back quite the prideful smile.

“Only 1 to go Kabar! Finish strong!!”

Kabar took back up his position at the other side of the ring, wheezing heavy breaths in hopes of recentering himself. The ring did not dim though, in fact it increased in intensity. Vision in and out was blocked as the walls towered higher. Over the roaring breathing of the fires though came an intensifying whir, like a jet engine starting up. Seth fought and focused, coopted a camera in the stands again to see what was going on. It was Phoenix Tech charging up, gaining altitude over a technicolor explosion of exhaust. He steadied himself with his hands, short bursts to maintain his orientation, while the ports on his legs gained him momentum and built up force. Finally, like a rocket lifting off, he gained purchase against gravity and shot away from the ground. Flying up above the ring, a rainbow of flames in his wake, and staring down on the landlocked Kabar.

“Let’s see who’s got the better utilization and end this whole show!!”

He back flipped, cutting his jets and fell past the firewall, intent on striking Kabar in the blind. Kabar readied himself, pulled heat from his cords to harden them up and listened for Phoenix’s jets to light up again. The whoosh of throttling up came from the right, he ducked just as Phoenix shot through the fire surrounding him. It was high, probably a scouting shot, but Phoenix didn’t sit idle on it. Immediately as he exited the wall he folded and flared his jets to stop and shot back in. Lower this time, buzzing him by a few feet. He repeated, changed sides, increased his speed, pinballing through the ring so as to not give Kabar a chance to lock down where he was going to strike from. One more pass, but this time he entered low, almost at his level, palms down and throttle surging. A massive jet of multicolored fire spewed forth, chewing through the sand and igniting it in rainbow fire. Kabar dodged back, avoiding the new wall of fire cutting through the center of the ring. Another pass, another line. He was cutting his room to maneuver. But Kabar didn’t look worried, he could see his chance. If he was looking to cut his space up then he had to pass right over him eventually.

As Phoenix crossed again Kabar ducked down in feigned fear, but really his cords, his soles, both were being heated up to white hot levels up and down them. Phoenix turned outside the ring, lined up opposite with his only position left. Kabar loosened his lines, let them spool beside him. Finally Phoenix blasted forward, flying low with his arms out in an effort to grab Kabar and throw him out of the ring. But as he broke the ring, Kabar loosed his trap. The soles of his boots exploded, jettisoned him into the air, lines running at his sides as he ascended. Drag lines like a barrage balloon, but Phoenix wasn’t some hapless greenhorn. He turned sideways to pass right between them, avoiding the obvious superheated spots meant to blow as he made contact as if they were mid air mines. But it wasn’t so simple. When Phoenix was too close to avoid, Kabar sprung his real trap.

Select spots on the lines exploded, propelling them inward as Phoenix crossed between them. They wrapped around him and hardened, heat sapped to lock them in place. But just being locked on to him wasn’t enough, he could drag Kabar out with his momentum alone. So the rest burst and redirected, as he yanked with everything he had overhead and set off the spots on his back, all at once. A counter force to Phoenix’s velocity, a subversion of momentum. He was caught, but his jets were still firing, he was just pointed up now, and under Kabar’s influence. A few more explosions, more one shot retrorockets to steady and align the massive hammer down he had created. Phoenix cut his jets, but it was too late. The human shaped rocket hammer himself down into the middle of the ring with all the momentum he had built up turned against him. Sand and dust exploded out, dousing most of the rainbow fire he had spread as Kabar landed back down, hard. Stumbling back up, he wobbled over the crater he made.

Phoenix was out of it, but not defeated yet. Kabar grabbed the collar of his suit and dragged him over to the wall of fire in front of him. He struggled, but had enough strength left to toss Phoenix out of the ring alongside the other fighters. As he passed through, the ring extinguished, Hothead on the ball and beaming that stored up pride at him. A truly haggard and burned mess, Kabar watched him whip around at Para’s podium and point, the message loud and clear.

“Ladies and Gentlemen… I give you… THERMODYNAMIC!!!”

Kabar shakily smiled and raised his fist, a loose line still trailing as the audience erupted. Before he could raise it all the way he collapsed, right into the arms of Hothead and Cauterizer, the only two trainers that still had consciousness or corporeal to even catch him. The trainees, the audience, even Seth fought back up to applaud him as he was carried off the floor to rest off his hard won fight. Seth was even feeling better, a little second hand catharsis and a few intense fights clearing at least some of his slump away. At least enough to really fill in that emotional crater.