Chapter 23: Girl on Fire (Part 1)
(Scarlette’s POV)
My hands were clammy as I put on my skirt and looked at myself in the mirror. The girl looking back at me seemed smaller somehow, her eyes uneasy and her posture tense. If not for the five resplendent gold stars on my collar, I would look like just another regular student.
“Come on Scarlette, you’re a 5-Star. Act like one,” I muttered to myself as I rinsed my face. I stepped out of my bathroom and put on my shoes. Today was the day to redeem myself. The next time I set foot in this room, I would either be a winner, or a loser.
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“Morning Scarlette!” I was greeted by Kaede as I took my seat in the classroom. My classmates shot me quick glances. They were probably excited for the fight later. Still, I didn’t want to show any signs of nervousness. I had to flush it all away.
“Sup’ Kaede!” I greeted her enthusiastically. Jonah and Cadel had yet to arrive, but Mira was sitting in the latter’s seat, facing Kaede. They had probably been talking to each other before I arrived.
“Hi, uh… are you excited for the fight?” Mira asked timidly.
“I’m SO ready. I’ve been training so hard, Kazen won’t stand a chance!” I declared. I then found myself sneaking a peek at Kazen’s seat, but he too had yet to arrive.
“That’s great! We’ll be supporting you of course. Fight’s at 5 PM right?” Kaede enquired.
As I nodded, I noticed Cadel and Jonah enter at the same time. We must have just missed each other.
Jonah flashed me a thumbs-up. “Beat that kid later, okay?”
Mira made way for Cadel, who calmly took his seat. “Relax. If what you showed me last Friday is anything to go by, you have nothing to worry about,” he said.
I smiled appreciatively. As we bantered over the topic, my nerves were slightly calmed. My friends did a really good job at lightening the mood.
However, the anxiety returned in full force as my opponent for today appeared. He strode confidently into class, wearing a loose leather jacket. He then shot a glance in my direction, where we made eye contact for a full second.
As he sat in his seat, I wondered where his confidence stemmed from. Didn’t he suffer a defeat at the hands of Zoey in front of the whole school? Cadel had given us the details of his sparring session with him—didn’t he experience the same helplessness I felt when he faced off against Cadel? Wouldn’t he be afraid of losing a fight for the third time in a row?
I felt a light shake on my shoulder. “Hey, you kinda zoned out for a bit,” Kaede whispered anxiously. “He’s just doing that to shake you up.”
“Y-yeah,” I stuttered. What was wrong with me? The old Scarlette would’ve taunted him the moment he had entered the class. No, scratch that. She would’ve accepted the challenge the first time it was offered.
My own pride was my undoing. If I hadn’t needlessly needled Cadel on the first day of school, I would still be in District 1 now. Damn him!
But Cadel was a walking enigma. There was still so much I didn’t understand about him, but one thing was for certain: His power was the real deal. I wondered how he could stand keeping a low profile with that kind of Ability. If I were him, I’d be flaunting myself around the entire school.
I tried to put my thoughts out of my head as the lesson commenced.
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The rest of the day flashed by. I had struggled to finish my lunch as my appetite had waned. Before I knew it, we were entering the Dome once again.
A huge crowd had gathered. I liked to think they were here to see a cute girl in action, but I knew Kazen must have had his own fans as well. Probably edgy kids or girls who liked how he carried himself. Honestly, he wasn’t bad looking—some may even call him attractive—but his personality just rubbed me the wrong way. Anyway, most of the people here were probably neutral spectators curious about the 5-Star clash. I was honestly astonished by the turnout. There were easily a couple hundred students. Was there some sort of marketing involved or something? I gulped.
My friends gathered around me by the entrance to the public arenas.
“This is it, go get him okay?” Kaede reached out, balling my hand into a fist and clasping it with hers.
As they wished me good luck, I felt a hard slap on my back.
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“Ah! What the—” I glanced in the direction of the perpetrator.
Cadel was grinning at me, his hand still on my back.
“Just a little something to get you going,” he reported.
“You better watch out once the fight is over,” I snapped as he removed his hand.
Still, the lingering sensation felt weirdly supportive. Damn, it really feels like—no! This wasn’t the time to get all emotional!
I took a deep breath. “Okay guys, I’ll see you in a bit,” I waved as I set off for the holding area.
“You’re going to do just fine!” I heard Cadel call out from behind me. “Just remember everything we practised”.
As I walked down the dimly lit corridor leading to the holding area, the echoes of my footsteps seemed to amplify my growing nerves. The weight of my gold stars sat on my collar, a constant reminder of the expectations that accompanied them.
This reminded me—I had to change out of my school uniform. We weren’t going to be wearing the Abizium suits, but I wanted something that was easier to move around in at least. I had settled on the school PE shirt with my own track pants, which I had packed into my school bag.
Kazen had taken the liberty to request for a teacher to oversee our fight, which was an essential requirement for a public match. He was experienced in that department.
After changing my attire, I entered our agreed holding area. Kazen was already there, along with a teacher. It was Dr Connor. Was this intentional?
Dr Connor greeted me. “Good evening Scarlette, I will be overseeing your fight for today.”
“I’m surprised you didn’t run away with your tail between your legs again,” Kazen spoke in his usual icy tone.
“I’ll let my actions do the talking,” I rebutted. I could feel the familiar sensation of adrenaline rushing in my veins. My nerves faded as I shifted into battle mode. Did he specifically ask for Dr Connor to throw me off? Ugh! For some reason that thought pissed me off. I’ll show the little brat that his efforts were in vain.
I could hear the roar of the crowd as we emerged into one of the arenas. Looking closely, I could just make out my friends right in the front row waving at me. As their team leader, as their friend, I could not disappoint them.
I strode to my end of the arena. What was this confidence boost I felt? The atmosphere was incredible. I felt ready. This was the perfect stage to show what I was capable of. Wasn’t this what I always wanted?
Kazen took his corner, cracking his neck as he smirked at me.
The stadium went quiet as Dr Connor held up his hand. He gestured at us.
"Once again, as you all know, going overboard or killing your opponent is strictly prohibited. The fight will end immediately once one of you is incapacitated or admits defeat,” he announced. “If I deem your injuries too severe or you’re unable to continue, I will end the fight as well. Do you both acknowledge this?"
Kazen and I gave him the "okay" signal.
“Good.” He held up his whistle. The fight was about to start.
My heart was beating out of my chest as I took up a fighting stance.
Beep! Dr Connor blew his whistle.
Immediately, like a ballistic missile launching, I streaked towards Kazen, intending to land the first strike. He seemed to have the same idea, for he blasted over in my direction.
However, he lacked the explosiveness I had. I rotated my hips and leaned back, swinging a devastating kick at his head.
There was a sudden black flash as he disappeared for a second, almost immediately reappearing behind me. There was a sound akin to a clap of thunder. I realised he had condensed himself into a single bolt of plasma before materialising behind me.
Startled, I swung my arm outwards, recklessly spraying flames in his direction. He ducked under most of it and smashed an uppercut into my chest, his fist imbued with plasma.
I gasped, the wind knocked out of me. My battle instincts took over. I couldn’t let him get the momentum.
As Kazen swung again, I leapt backwards, conjuring a curtain of fire. This screen should allow me to gather my bearings, even if just for a few seconds.
But of course, Kazen soared right over it, his entire body swathed in plasma. He reached out his arm, sending bolts raining in my direction.
“Offence is the best defence, right?” a voice in my head whispered. Gritting my teeth, I unleashed a burst of flames from beneath me and, with a determined yell, rocketed straight towards Kazen.
Kazen looked a bit startled for a second, but he had just enough time to cross his arms and conjure up a shield as I thrust my fist at him. The shield shattered instantly. My fist connected with his arms, which were glowing with plasma.
I heard him grunt as he was launched backwards, landing on his feet. Though my chest hurt, I couldn’t help but smirk. That one solid hit did wonders to my confidence.
“Lucky shot,” he spat.
I floated above him, unable to resist poking fun at him. “Who’s a naughty boy?” I cooed.
Kazen snarled, clapping his hands together. “Don’t get too confident, little girl.”
He shut his eyes and opened them immediately, while at the same time spreading his hands. Suddenly, our surroundings darkened. A giant plasma sphere materialised around us, trapping both of us in it and muffling the surrounding sounds.
“Your baby Cadel would be slurping this up, but you can’t do the same, can you?” he grinned.
This was bad. I had to break out of the sphere as soon as possible. I wasn’t sure what he was up to, but I could tell staying in here wouldn’t end well for me. I blew a blast of flames at the wall while keeping an eye on Kazen. He proceeded to dissolve himself into the wall.
The gigantic plasma ball started shrinking, its edges growing dimmer until it was completely opaque. I would’ve been totally blind if not for my flames. The audience wouldn’t be able to see us.
Where was he? I swivelled around. For some reason, my flames only caused the surface of the barrier to ripple.
“It’s no use. Plasma is directly superior to fire.” His laughter echoed in the darkness.
Suddenly, my body exploded with pain. Ahhh!! I resisted the urge to scream.
Kazen must have fired his little plasma beams, and they had connected.
Shit, where was he? How do I get out of here? Was Dr Connor really gonna allow this? I needed time to think. I realised my own flames were making myself an easy target for him in the darkness, but I couldn’t extinguish them. Without the support of my flames, I would plummet toward the searing plasma, risking severe burns if I touched its blistering surface.
Well, if I can’t put my fire out. Then so be it. I couldn’t waste any more time. It was time to light up—to break out—of this darkness.