-Cosmo-

“I’m gonna get you. I’m gonna get you.” I chased after Yukio. She kept running away from me. All I really wanted was a hug. If I truly wanted to catch her, I could close the gap between us in the blink of an eye, but it was more fun if I gave her a chance.

In truth I didn’t want to make her do it. She didn't really like me much, so instead of forcing her, I wanted her to let herself be caught. Maybe if I gave her a way out she’d start to trust me a little.

I couldn't wait for her to ascend again. Little Yukio was just as cute as little Isaac. Of course teenage Yukio had her own charm as well. She was like a yellowing mango. Not quite ripe but still beautiful to look at.

The ground began to tremble, and the world shifted as if Gaia herself had awakened from her slumber. Yukio was suddenly pulled away from me, and I found myself standing between The Lore Keeper and Brutus, with Ribdena positioned on the other side of Brutus.

I looked around to try and get an idea of where the hell I was. Oh, there's my baby Isaac. He was sitting on Brutus’s shoulder and looked to be playing with Snowball. I wanted to pull him into my arms but held back. He also seemed to dislike my cuddles. If Isaac was like a cat then I needed to wait for him to come to me. Maybe I can lure him over with candy?

That was when Brutus announced the beginning of the battle. All four disciples activated their auras igniting their body’s with solid flowing energy.

It was my idea to have Yukio go up against Brutus’s other students. Maybe once she lost to them she would see how stupid and stubborn she was being.

All she had to do was listen and she would have been out of Chikū forever ago. Enough of trying to become Ama’s follower. She wasn’t even around anymore. She needed to grow up. The only way to do that was to have her lose to a bunch of rookies.

“You three better not lose!” I yelled.

Ron like the confident hot head he was, activated a Qi pulse under his foot kicking up dust and bits of grass as he flung his body forward for a Qi reinforced punch.

The other two who were much more calm and collected went separate ways to surround Yukio. Ron’s fist cracked with power only for Yukio to intersect it, pushing her hand up against his inner wrist. Where had she learned that from?

-Yukio-

I saw Ron coming a mile away, so I tried out some of Isaac’s advice and jammed my palm into his crackling wrist. Holding it firm his attack had no way of actually reaching me.

The boy clearly had no plan in case his attack failed making it easy to punch him in the throat. Which was another one of Isaac’s tactics. It might have been dirty but it was effective.

Ron’s aura felt weak and flimsy. It would do little to nothing to protect him. He crumpled to the ground, his aura sputtering out and losing its shape due to the sudden loss in focus.

Just as he fell, I noticed a rock hurtling toward me from the left. I quickly deflected it with a hand swipe, only to feel a sweeping kick connect with my right leg.

Pez was the one to throw the rock while Riza used the distraction to attack my footing. It was too bad she had only attacked one of my legs because the other one erupted turning my falling momentum into a backflip.

This was another one of Isaac’s tactics. You could effectively counterbalance a fall by overpowering it with raw force. The Qi pulse transformed my sudden descent into a whiplashing somersault, allowing me to land on my other foot right behind Riza.

Seizing the opportunity, I kicked her in the ribs, sending her flying into Pez. Like Ron's, her aura was so flimsy that it offered no protection. Pez, fearing for his teammate, tried to catch Riza in his arms, but the impact was too much; he toppled over, landing beneath her.

“I—I *cough* can’t breathe,” Riza cried, her broken ribs piercing into one of her lungs.

“Oh, shit!” said Pez unsure of what to do.

I wasn’t a monster so I didn't attack him while he was distracted. Isaac might’ve, but I wanted to win as fairly as possible to make sure Cosmo wouldn’t start saying something stupid.

Ron got to his feet as Pez panicked. That’s when the gorilla chimed in, “Riza is out!” The ground wrapped around the green-haired girl, pulling her away toward the spectators.

This was gonna be easy.

-Aku/Isaac-

“She has three broken ribs and a punctured lung. Her heart is also beating abnormally fast. She might be having a panic attack.” Said Lorie.

“I can help!” I said, as I dropped off of Mr. Brutus's shoulder and rushed over.

Riza kept saying the same thing over and over. “Can’t… breathe… need… doctor.” Tears were running down her face. Her eyes wide with fear.

“Don’t worry! Snowball went to med school! We’ll have you up and running in no time!” I said.

“Well, it’s a good thing you’re here Dr. Snowball.” Said Lorie before snorting with suppressed laughter.

“Oh my goodness, that’s so cute!” Cosmo gushed, pulling out her ether phone to snap a picture of Snowball and me. She was like an overly proud mom, eager to share pictures of her kids online.

Riza shook her head and cried, “N-no… need a real… d-doc—” She coughed up a bit of blood before gurgling.

“For someone who can’t breathe, you sure talk a lot. Now then! Are you allergic to anything? What about insurance… got any?” I translated for Snowball, animatedly gesturing with her soft plush body.

The green haired girl coughed up more blood. “I see. No insurance. To the streets with you!” I translated.

“But Snowball you took an oath to save lives!” I cried.

“Dam… your right. I cannot in good conscience allow this girl to die! Forget the money! Nurse Aku! Administer the meds! 20ccs of Chicken soup! Right stat now!” I translated for Snowball.

“Sure thing Dr. Snowball!” I said before taking a few seconds to manifest my chicken soup aura and focused It’s effects into a ray of light.

The light washed over Riza like a golden shower—uh, a golden shower of soup, not pee. Slowly, her bones began to heal as the blood that didn’t belong where it was, returned to its rightful place.

It took longer than a normal healing spell and the healing power was a little weak, but it did replace pain with love and warmth, so it wasn’t a big issue. All and all it was a useful ability to have.

“That's impressive. I’ve never seen a healing technique so gentle.” Said Ribdena.

“It’s so different from a healing spell, or my ability to heal.” Said Cosmo.

“Yes, it’s quite the technique.” Said Lorie.

Mr. Brutus smacked his lips curiously. “Anyone else taste artificial chicken?” he asked.

“Yup.” said everyone.

-Yukio-

Ron kept charging at me while Pez assisted him by flanking. This strategy was better than what they were doing. It kept me from attacking back, but at the same time they couldn't really land a hit on me.

The goddess turned her attention back to me as soon as Isaac finished healing Riza. Cosmo didn’t look happy at all while I easily avoided and blocked hits. I wanted to keep it fair to prove I didn’t need her help.

That was why I'd win without using my affinity. I was stronger. I was faster, and most importantly Isaac was watching. I couldn’t let him down. He was my biggest fan. If I lost, then I would no longer make him feel safe. I couldn’t protect his mind if he found out how weak I actually was.

Unleashing two Qi pulses, I flipped backwards kicking both of them in their chins. Their bodies rose up into the air as my feet touched the ground. With another Qi pulse I shot forward slamming my palm into Pez’s chest and taking him for a ride.

The only way was to separate them. Once far enough I created a Qi pulse between Pez and my palm, slamming him into the ground. Unlike Riza’s and Ron’s soft aura, his held up nicely only losing a few layers after each hit. His body bounced off the dirt ripping up the grass.

There was only a few layers left and I could easily break through. It was time for the finishing blow. I pulled my fist back and aimed for his leg. Once it was broken he would be out of the fight.

I didn’t get the chance as a power from deep within exploded out of Pez. Both blowing me away and creating a pillar of white light. It burned my skin. Not like a fire, but like sunlight concentrated through a magnifying glass.

I landed on my back and noticed a second pillar behind me. Both of them had unlocked some kind of new power. The energy was different from before. Instead of a blueish silver. Their Qi now glowed a pristine white.

What the hell was going on? They shouldn’t have affinities. Much less the exact same one.

-Cosmo-

Gritting my teeth I watched as the weak and useless Yukio manhandled Pez and Ron like they were children. They were, but I didn’t know she could fight so well.

The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

During her trial she never showed this much talent. I only let her ascend because she was able to hold out for so long in the final battle. That and her leadership skills when it came to bringing the players together.

How did she improve so much? All she ever did was hide in her room, only coming out for fresh air, to use the bathroom, and to eat. It wasn’t fair! She had to be cheating!

Yukio broke through their formation and accelerated forward, dragging Pez with her. I could only watch as she slammed him into the ground. What the hell had Brutus been teaching them? They’re useless! That was it; I couldn’t stand back and let her make a fool of me in front of that stupid lizard!

Tugging at the links between my soul and theirs, I empowered them with a celestial aura. Power erupted from both of them as my influence took hold of their body and mind. I needed to be careful, or their lower spirit bodies might break under the stress.

It was difficult—like trying to fill a water balloon with a fire hydrant. The flow was insane. I was used to moving mountains of energy, but this felt impossibly hard.

There, now it was even. Brutus eyed me with restrained anger, but I didn’t budge. He had to have done something to make her that powerful. Both of them were cheating, and I hated cheaters.

“You haven’t grown up at all. You’re still a sore loser. It doesn’t matter that you gave them that boost. That girl is way too stubborn to lose,” said Lorie.

-Aku/Isaac-

“So it’s a dwarf star right?” I asked.

“It is.” Said Ribdena.

“Cool and the rock formations, they’re all held up by an electrical field right?” I asked.

“Yes, something like that. Everything is pretty much magnetized. Gravity is also a bit different depending on what island you are on. This one has a similar G-force to the world you come from. I built several of these skylands to accommodate different races and ascension ranks. I’m the most artistic out of the pantheon. Therefore I provide areas for training or matches.” Responded Ribdena.

“That’s so cool! How does that work? Is it magic or something?” I asked.

“Not at all. At the center of each island is a zephredium core. It’s so dense that it has its own gravitational pull. Though it dose not reach very far due to the towers you see dotted around. Each one has enchantments that make the skyland more hospitable. Such as controlling the weather and providing minor buffs to all life. Natural recovery and healing should be doubled and there’s a boost to ones energy supplies.” She said before suddenly asking, “Shouldn’t you be watching your friend?”

“Oh, I'm not worried about her. She'll win for sure.” I said.

“Oh, and what makes you say that, whelp? Haven't you noticed your goddesses influence?” Asked Ribdena.

“Yeah I know, but Zubu is still holding back.” My words got a curious look from Ribdena.

With that I turned to the battlefield. “Hey! Zubu! Cosmo is cheating! That means you can go all out! Give them everything you got!” I yelled getting the attention of everyone and a glare from my deity.

-Yukio-

So it was that stupid goddess all along. I felt anger bubble up inside me at the thought of constantly being stocked and bullied by the same bitch that killed my friends and family.

Ignoring the two displays of obvious divine intervention, I turned to glare at Cosmo. She was reprimanding Isaac for calling her out. When she finally noticed my gaze, her face became nervous. I might not be able to hurt her — yet — but I sure as hell could teach her not to mess with me.

My dantian erupted as the Qi within my body ignited like a gas leak. My aura suddenly burst like a match, becoming a crackling display of frenzied particles. Pez and Ron rushed in, behaving like wild animals.

I didn’t give them a chance to attack as arcs of plasma lashed out in all directions, scorching grass, dirt, and air alike. The streams of burning lightning enveloped everything within reach — like hungry serpents devouring everything in sight. The violent display of power filled the air with the pungent smell of copper.

As if possessed, their bodies moved inhumanly, erratically dodging my burning attack. There was no doubt in my mind that they were being controlled. The strain of Cosmo’s power seemed to nearly break them. I had to end it before the goddess inflicted any more damage to their lower spirit bodies.

I stomped on the ground creating a wave of plasma. It hit both Pez and Ron at the same time knocking them away. As soon as I saw them go down. I used another Qi pulse, as plasma began to swell around my right hand.

I thought back to the conversation I had with Isaac last night.

“So like Track Wars?” I asked.

“Don’t you dare call it that!” Yelled Isaac.

“Alright, my bad. Explain it once more.” I said.

“Zubu you weren’t even listening were you!?” Cried Isaac.

“Yeah, I wasn’t. I checked out the moment you said, in a galaxy far far away.” I said.

Isaac looked like he was about to cry making me feel bad. “I’m sorry. I’m listening to you now.” I placated.

He sighed. “Alright, so like, cant you focus plasma into the shape of a sword? Like, I know you can coat your sword in plasma to give it an actual edge, but that’s not the same as a plasma sword. Yours is more like… a plasma chainsaw.” Said Isaac.

“Oh yeah, I’ve tried that before thinking I could manifest weapons out of pure plasma, but it’s kind of hard to control the energy into a dense weapon. Plasma does what it wants. I can aim it but its still hard to control. I have been able to fire off plasma balls, but not very rapidly.” I said.

“Hmm” Isaac hummed in thought. “Yeah, I guess plasma would be hard to control. That’s actually why plasma cutters use hydrogen since it helps control the flow better.”

“isn’t that the same stuff that explodes?” I asked.

“It is, but controlled explosions are what make the world go round. That’s how we’ve advanced as far as we have. Without them the world population wouldn’t have grown as big as it did.” He explained.

“Still, it sounds dangerous.” I added.

“Yeah, I know… what if you used a magnetic field? Magnetic fields are pretty good at controlling plasma. Then all you’d have to do is pour lots and lots of plasma into it.” He said breaking my mind for the hundredth time.

Present day

The guy was something else I tell you. My body was pushed forward by my Qi pulse as the plasma in my hand swirled into a violent pillar of burning light. Using lightning aspect I managed to create a magnetic field around the plasma, causing the energy to focus into a thin but dense blade.

It glowed a dark violet in my hands, as I quickly caught up to Pez. His body twisted in the air as I swiftly swung my weightless blade in a horizontal arc.

He seemed to dance avoiding my attacks over and over. Even when I elongated my sword he still managed to slide away from it’s path. His body contorted and make strange sounds as his joins and flesh moved around to avoid me.

While in the air his foot kicked the side of my head causing me to stumble back a little. Focusing on the twerp before me, I swung the blade again but this time with the open space between us I adjusted the magnetic field to release plasma in an expanding lash.

The sudden widening burst of energy was hard to avoid, washing over Pez like a splash of water. Not only did it burn through several layers of his aura, but the force of my attack pushed him back. He nearly lost his balance as he landed on his feet.

The little twerp, now furious, lunged at me with a flying kick. Just what I needed. I caught his foot in my left hand, feeling the force reverberate through my arm, as the energy of his aura propelled him forward like a burning white rock.

The energy surrounding his body seared my palm as he focused it into a single point. I held on as I flicked my wrist cutting his leg off with one quick motion of my sword. His greatly depleted aura was no match for my dense plasma. The particles burned as the skipped through his leg.

With the aura broken he crumpled to the ground along with his severed limb, as blood sputtered out like dark liquid from an old rusty pipe. There wasn’t a lot of blood due to the burn.

The smell of burnt flesh and copper was disgusting. Power now gone, Pez was pulled out of his frenzy only to transform from a scary creepy child to a crying little girl.

“I'm sorry about that. It was the only way to end it quickly. Don't worry. Limbs are easy to reattached.” I reassured the little guy. He seemed to take it at face value nodding along as I gave him a bloody head pat.

“Pez is out!” Yelled gorilla face as Pez’s body and limb were quickly swallowed by the ground and carried away.

Aku/Isaac

“Come on kid. Give me the leg.” Said Mr. Brutus holding his hand out.

“No! It's mine I found it!” I cried as I hugged Pez’s severed limb tighter.

“Please give me back my leg!” cried Pez.

“You can grow another one right Dr. Snowball?” I said.

Dr. Snowball was examining Pez. “Of course. It should grow back within a week.” I translated.

Mr. Brutus grabbed the leg and attempted to pull it away from me, but I held on tightly and refused to let go. “Why do you even want it?” he asked, clearly annoyed.

“She can grow another one just use your magic Lorie!” I cried.

Lorie sighed and came over. Then began to tickle my armpits. I started laughing before falling to the ground. “Nooo!” I cried.

“Is okay baby.” Said Cosmo as she comforted me while purging the blood from my body with a cold cleansing sacred art.

-Yukio-

“aaarrrrrrrrgh!” yelled Ron as he seemed to be fighting for control of his body. Cosmo looked to be distracted at the moment. He held his head like he was in pain. This was all that stupid goddesses’ fault.

Ron slammed his hands into the ground injecting air into the dirt. As soon as it happened a large cloud of dust erupted into the air. This was Isaac’s move. Cosmo was copying him. I quickly activated Qi sight not wanting to fall for the same tricks again, but it was too late. He was too fast.

Ron came at me from behind slamming his knee into the back of my head. It hurt, but I knew better than to panic. The blow nearly blew me away, but thanks to my training sessions with Isaac, I knew how to take a hit as my body became limp.

I felt myself falling again this time forward, so I activated another Qi pulse causing my lower body to be thrown into the air. My legs wrapped around Ron’s torso.

With the force of my sudden flip, I managed to pin the red-eyed boy to the ground and began slamming my fists into the back of his head, hoping to knock him out. Instead, each punch only chipped away at his aura, layer by layer.

The aura seemed to have way more layers than mine offering much more protection and enhancement. It was ridiculous. I was sure I could get through. That was until Ron exploded with celestial energy sending me flying and ripping off most of my remaining defensive layers.

I landed on my back, but quickly pulled myself up. My Qi was down to about 30%. Having to use my affinity and all the Qi pulses had burned through a lot of it. The sudden burst of Cosmo’s energy had released a good amount of power from Ron’s aura.

He seemed distracted. I used that time to quickly form the plasma sword once more and renew my plasma aura. Now facing him, I locked eyes with Ron to see what he would do next.

To my surprise, the kid looked scared. Like he had just woken up in the middle of a murder scene. I felt bad for him. It wasn’t his fault. Cosmo was using him. Just like how she used everyone else. “Are you alright?” I asked.

He looked a little shocked at the question. Most likely because I was supposed to be his enemy at the moment. “Yeah… I don’t know what that was. What this is.” He looked at the celestial aura coming off his body. The little guy seemed pretty freaked out.

I undid my sword and even the plasma surrounding my body. “Don't worry about that. Just try your hardest not to lose okay. You’re the last one left. It's all up to you now and everyone is watching. Give me a good fight okay.” I encouraged him.

He nodded in response and came at me fists first. I blocked and avoided his attacks with ease. He still had a pretty strong power boost, but threw punches like there was no tomorrow. I caught his fist then swung him up into the air before blasting him with a plasma ball.

He took it head on causing layer after layer of celestial aura to shatter. With that I dashed forward and delivered the last blow burying my fist deep into his gut.

His aura completely shattered as his body was flung backwards. With that the fight was over and it was Isaac's turn next. I looked to Cosmo almost as if saying I was coming for her. She didn't look nervous or afraid. It was more like she had a lack of expression. It creeped me out a little, but I didn’t let it show.

-Aku/Isaac-

I ran out into the battlefield. “Yeah! Way to go Zubu! That was so cool!” I cheered.

“It was nothing. They're rookies after all.” I answered.

“I knew you could do it. You’re really strong.” I said.

I looked to Ron. He didn't look so good. “Chicken soup attack!” I said, before blasting him with a ray of golden chickeny goodness.

“I think your pretty cool too.” said Zubu.

“I do okay.” I responded.

After about a minute or two, Ron was back on his feet. By then Pez and Riza were by his side.

“I can't believe we lost. Ron you idiot!” Said Riza.

“Me! You’re the one that got knocked out first! I told you your aura was too flimsy.” Ron retorted.

“Your aura isn't that great either! It’s not my fault! It's because you’re an idiot!” She responded before crossing her arms in embarrassment.

“You two should just start dating already.” Said Pez seeing some sort of repressed feelings between the two.

“Yeah, right! Like I’d be interested in a tiny dick looser like Ron!” Yelled Riza.

“Like I’d be into a flat chest, no ass, vomit haired bitch.” Responded Ron.

“Guys could you not get into it now. There’re more important things to talk about.” Said Pez.

“Like what!?” Responded both Riza and Ron.

“Didn't you guys notice that weird aura? Or how about the fact that I can’t remember most of what happened!” Asked Pez.

“That's enough of that. Come on then children, let's go back over there. Brutus is going to explain a few things to everyone.” Said Cosmo suddenly appearing beside us.

Zubu looked annoyed as Cosmo pushed the trio and me back over to the others. She didn't even bother with Zubu. Almost like she was trying to ignore her.