“But we still need one more person!” cried the blue team.
The event organizer agreed to their worries. Because there wasn’t anyone else besides Deion who wanted to join, the match would be a 6v7. He sighed and positioned his hat. It looked like he would have to remove one player from the other team like he had planned originally. It was a pity, but the game had to be fair.
“It’s perfectly fine. Sir! Can we start the match now?” said Deion.
What? The organizer doubted his ears. Having one less player was a huge disadvantage. Sometimes it meant winning or losing the match.
“Are you sure? Is everyone okay with this?”
He looked around the blue team and saw many nods and yeses. Even the players who were participating in the match had their hands curled into an ‘okay’ sign. The event was for the students anyway. If the students trusted this new player, then all he had to do was agree to their wishes.
“It’s settled then. Players, to your positions!”
At the organizer’s voice, Demund and the rest of his teammates went to the white line at the end of the court. One of the seniors volunteered to stay outside of the line, so he went to the other side of the court to take his place behind the red team. The red team did the same. They stood in their positions while the organizer went to the center line and set two balls. The crowd grew quiet as the organizer emerged from the court and held his whistle behind his lips.
Enariss glared at Deion. Where had he come from? She had planned to use this match as an opportunity to see how good Demund’s reflexes were, but now she wouldn’t have the leisure to do so.
Demund likewise was nervous. He seriously didn’t want to get hit by Enariss’s ball. He just hoped that the captain would be amazing as he was when he had battled Enariss.
Both sides held their breaths. The organizer raised his hand above his head.
Any time soon.
About now.
It would start.
“BLPLBLPBLPBLPLBP!!” screamed the whistle.
In a split second, Enariss pushed against the floor of the court and dashed towards the two balls. In terms of speed, there was no one who was faster than her. And yet.
Just as she was about to lay her hands on the balls, they disappeared. She quickly stopped herself from falling and dodged a ball flying at her, catching it in midair while doing a spin. While the captain’s speed was fast, he was by no means a good thrower, she concluded from the brief exchange.
But this was unfair. She hadn’t even seen him move!
The captain was twirling one ball on his index finger in a leisurely but cool way.
“Impressive, Enariss. Didn’t know you would catch that.”
“That’s my question captain. How did you grab the balls so fast?”
“That’s—a secret!” said the captain as he went in for another throw. Enariss jumped to the side to dodge the ball as it hit a player behind her with a loud thunk.
“Red team member out!” announced the judge.
Shoot. Maybe the captain’s throw wasn’t weak, after all.
But hers was much stronger.
She positioned her legs on the ground and aimed her ball at the captain. If he dodged, it would hit the people behind him. If he didn’t, it would slide off his hands. That was the force she planned to put into her throw. It would hurt a bit.
50x power. With a mighty throw, the ball whizzed through the air, heading straight towards the captain. It was a speed the normal eye could not follow. Rhyne looked at the incoming projectile in horror as it closed its distance with the captain. His worry grew even more when the captain dodged the ball by moving to the side swiftly. Now the ball was coming straight at him.
With all his might, Rhyne jumped into the air. He watched in slow-motion as the ball shot past his legs, creating a scary *fwhoom* sound as it barely missed him.
Demund didn’t even have time to react. His friend suddenly jumped, then he heard the ball whack itself on one of the students of the blue team. He looked back to see the student sprawled on the floor outside the white line. The arm he had blocked with was beet red.
This was a very bad idea, he thought.
The next ball came too quickly. Demund watched in horror as Riley was struck on the hair with another ball. Enariss had been kind to not directly headshot him, and yet his body slightly flung back from the force of the ball. Riley stood in place in shock and looked at his friends.
“Guess I’m out?” he said. He walked out of the court and took his place on the other side.
This wasn’t a battle they could interfere in. Rhyne was somehow managing, but he was reaching his limits. The balls would only get faster.
Demund’s team now had four players in and two players out. The red team had five players in and two players out. The players outside could only pick the balls up, so they weren’t a threat.
Rhyne miraculously intercepted a ball-pass from the red team with his slow-motion perception. He looked around his team and gave the ball to the player closest to him. It was the upperclassman who had thrown the shot put.
“I know you have a strong arm,” he said. “Can you get them?”
The player nodded. He stepped in front and flexed his large muscles, preparing for a throw. The ball whizzed through the air, slamming against a female player at the end of the court. The player fell down and grabbed her arm. The ball had been too hard for her.
“Oh…I’m so sorry!” said the upperclassman player. “I didn’t mean to—”
He half-finished his sentence as a ball slammed on his face. He fell backwards on his bottom, clenching his face in pain.
“Red team player out! Blue team player out!”
The fallen upperclassman quickly regained his mind and hurried to the other side. The girl he had hit with the ball was sitting on a bench nearby. She looked like she had been injured.
“I’m sorry!” he shouted. “I’ll take her to the infirmary!”
The game went on as the flustered upperclassman took the injured female player to the nurse.
What was this, some kind of romance scenario? Demund was confused at the unexpected romance flag, but he had to focus on the match. Now it was a 3v4.
Demund grabbed a ball as Riley passed it to him from the other side. Deion likewise held the ball that had hit the upperclassman who had went out.
Deion quickly threw the ball, faster than before. It stuck a player from the red team and dropped to the floor. Now it was a 3v3.
“Why are you dodging, captain!” taunted Enariss. “Too afraid to catch my balls?”
“I’d rather not. They are too fast for my liking.”
The nerve of this guy. If he really did believe that, why was he so relaxed? Why could she never get him to act seriously?
She would take out the other players first.
“Sorry about this Demund!” she yelled.
“What?!” shouted Demund back. Then he saw Enariss hold the ball and position herself.
I am so screwed, he thought as the ball scraped across his side.
With that simple throw, he was out. He sadly went out of the court and headed to the other side. Enariss smiled at him as he passed by her.
But already, Deion had thrown another ball out of nowhere, causing another player on her team to go out. It was now a 2v2. Enariss had to get the other player out fast. Otherwise, he could get hurt if she used too much strength.
To be honest, Enariss didn’t know how she would be able to win. Deion’s ability was incomprehensible. Was it speed? It was likely. But how fast would he have to be for her enhanced body to not be able to follow him? He was just absurd.
Why was he even in a school like this? Why wasn’t he on the Islands?
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She wasn’t the one to talk, but still. It was unacceptable. He was a wall she could never cross over.
She threw that ball at Rhyne with 40x strength. She knew he would be able to dodge it, so she curved the ball, faking a throw to the side. The ball spun through the air and grazed Rhyne on the elbow. He was finally out. It was now a 2v1.
She glared at Deion. If it wasn’t for him, the match would already be over. Each side held a ball each. Just like before, Deion was leisurely spinning the ball on his finger.
She hated that calm look on his face.
It was time to unleash her strength. If this didn’t work, nothing would.
“Everyone, back off! If you stay behind Deion, you’ll get hurt!” shouted Enariss. The blue team quickly headed her advice and moved out of the way. There was now nothing but empty space and the school building in front of Enariss. And even now, Deion’s leisurely attitude hadn’t disappeared.
Enariss took a deep breath. She took a few steps back and positioned the ball so she could throw it. Her elbow faced backwards, her palm on the ball facing Deion. Her fingers tightly gripped onto the ball.
“Can you dodge this, captain?” shouted Enariss.
“We’ll see!” replied the captain cheerfully.
The air around Enariss suddenly changed. Cracks appeared on the ground beneath her. Her teammate backed off just to be safe. Her hair started to move around as if the wind blew it, and something like red mist emanated from her body. Veins popped out of her arm and legs, and her red hair and eyes glowed even redder, turning into the beautiful shade of scarlet. Her lips curled into a mean smile.
600x. A normal person would die from this. It would take a while to recover from this much amplification, but Enariss didn’t have any other choice.
The crowd backed off just to make sure. They sensed the danger of the aura. And yet.
The captain was still smiling. Even broader now.
Let’s see if you’ll still be smiling after this!
She used the whole of her body to launch the ball in her hand at the captain. Her 600x enhanced senses and strength concentrated all of their power into the ball, making it a ball-sized cannonball of death and destruction. It had already surpassed the speed of sound, and there was an ear-splitting *BOOM* as the ball left Enariss’s hand. At this point, even Rhyne couldn’t see what was going on.
And yet.
What?!?! Absolute shock went through Enariss’s mind as the ball started to decelerate at an unbelievable pace in front of Deion. She was currently looking through her 600x enhanced senses. What she saw was real. The ball was slowing down. She saw Deion raise his hand to the ball as it came towards him. By the time the ball reached Deion, it had completely stopped.
For the audience, they saw the ball disappear from Enariss’s hand and then reappear in Deion’s hand in an instant, accompanied by a sound like a bullet being shot. The ball had teleported for them.
Enariss sunk to her knees in exhaustion. A ball soon flew towards her and hit her head with a light smack. She looked up and saw Deion smiling.
The match had been decided.
〄 〄 〄
The rest of the day went by rather uneventfully. Enariss had to rest as she had expended too much energy, and Deion disappeared into the crowd as he had done before. With the top ability users out of the tournament, events such as the Crazy Race became mediocre.
Demund still had a lot of fun completing it. It felt like something a normal high-school might do. He had run the go-to-the-strings-and-eat-the-cookie part of the race. Riley and Rhyne both participated in the Male-Female Two-Legged Race. They sure looked happy.
A part of Demund was glad that he didn’t have to see Enariss run with another guy. A part of him was still sad about them being on opposite teams. Next year, he hoped.
Even after most of the events were finished, Enariss was still out from action. Demund became worried. While Rhyne and Riley went to watch the MMA event, Demund roamed the school campus to search for Enariss.
He visited the infirmary and saw the upperclassman from before flirting with the girl who had been injured. They seemed to be enjoying themselves. Yuck.
So Enariss wasn’t in the infirmary. Demund continued to walk through the school. Most of the campus was empty besides the sports fields.
Perhaps Enariss was at the Training Building. It seemed to be the most likely place she’d be. Demund turned his footsteps towards the building. When he arrived, he peeked inside and looked around. It was empty. All the lights were turned off, making it pitch black.
Guess she’s not here, he thought.
Right as he turned around, he saw the old tree of the school in the distance. It was at the center of the school garden, and he’d seen it sometimes from the higher floors of the library. Enariss’s couldn’t be there right? He didn’t see anyone at its base.
Making sure wouldn’t do any harm. He never had walked in the large garden before, and it was nice to enjoy the scenery alone when no one was around. So Demund walked towards the big old tree at the center of the garden.
He never realized how many flowers there were in the garden. Various plants of marvelous colors crowded the ground, and the sweet fragrance of flower petals gently filled Demund’s nostrils as he took in a deep breath. It was nice here. He wondered who took care of the garden. Whoever it was, they were doing a superb job.
As he approached the tree, he noticed how old it was. It looked ancient! Its branches were all twisted and wrinkled, bending out in all directions. The trunk of the tree was unbelievably thick as if boasting of its long age. Demund slowly circled the tree, admiring its texture.
Then he froze. Something red was sticking out from the corner of the tree.
Demund silently tiptoed where the red strand of something was. It looked awfully like hair.
It was hair.
Demund froze. His heart beat faster. It was Enariss.
He almost let out a cry of surprise. This scene felt awfully cliché yet breathtaking at the same time. A boy and a girl, under a tree, alone by themselves. His heart was thumping violently now.
“What are you doing?” asked Enariss as she poked her face at Demund.
“I—” Demund was about to say ‘nothing’ but changed his mind. “I was looking for you. Are you alright?”
Enariss looked at Demund in his eyes with her crimson irises. She turned back and faced the school wall.
“I’m fine. Perfectly fine.”
Well, that didn’t sound fine at all. Demund walked over and sat under the tree just like Enariss. There was a lot of space as the tree was large, so he thought it wouldn’t be awkward.
“The garden is pretty, isn’t it?” he asked.
“Sure.”
Demund suppressed his anxiety and forced a calm expression on his face.
“Will you be returning for the relay race?”
“I don’t know,” said Enariss. “You’ll be participating, right? You did train for it with me.”
Demund nodded. Now he had run out of things to say. He tried to remain as neutral as possible. Why was he becoming all nervous for? He had run with her every day. This was nothing special.
“So…why this place? Why not the benches?” asked Demund.
Enariss faced Demund again. His heart did a little pounce every time she did that.
“No reason. It’s just quiet here. Away from all the crowds and people…”
She left her sentence hanging.
Demund realized he didn’t really know much about Enariss. He knew nothing about her life, her past, her friends, what she enjoyed doing. The rift between them felt even larger than before as Demund sat under the tree, looking at the tall walls of the school. He had only known the strong, confident Enariss. The Enariss in front of him was not her. She felt more distant.
Not that it changed anything.
“Want to go back? I really want to run with you,” stated Demund. “You trained me, so you should see it.”
Enariss looked at Demund. Suddenly, she started laughing. Demund stood in his position in confusion as he saw Enariss bend over in laughter. For what seemed like a few minutes, her giggling continued. Demund scratched his head. Had he said something cheesy? Now he was getting embarrassed.
“Sorry, sorry. It’s just that…never mind. I’m glad you’re trying so hard.”
“Erm, thank you?”
“Yeah, why not. I should watch you, right?”
Enariss got up from her seat and stretched her arms up. She brushed off the dirt from her pants and hair and motioned towards Demund.
“Let’s go. You don’t want to be late, do you?
Demund smiled. The usual Enariss seemed to be back.
“Of course. I’m not going easy on you just because you’re exhausted.”
“What are you talking about? I’m in top condition now.”
The two jogged back to the fields just as the MMA event was ending.
〄 〄 〄
“Run Demund!! You can do it!!”
“Faster Demund! Don’t give up!”
Riley and Rhyne screamed at Demund as he dashed across the track with a baton in his hand. He was the last person in line, and the fate of his team rested on his shoulders. He had pleaded so hard for this position, so if he were to fail now, he would become a disappointment. So far, he was doing great. He was ahead by a large margin. His other teammates had done their best to increase the gap between themselves and the opposing team.
And yet they couldn’t relax. It was because Enariss was about to be handed the baton.
“Faster kid! She almost has it!” yelled an upperclassman.
“Go! Run faster! Shoot, she has it now!”
Demund heard the screams erupt from both teams as he pushed himself along the track. He saw Enariss as he turned the corner. She was closing in at an extremely fast pace.
Shoot. Shoot. Shoot. SHOOT. Faster. FASTER!
He quickened his breath and ran like he would be killed if Enariss caught up with him. The finish line was just a hundred meters away from him. He could do this. He would win!
Enariss, on the other hand, was only slightly trying. She was still exhausted, but something at this level couldn’t faze her. She knew Demund’s limit. When he seemed like he would win, she would quickly overtake him. It would be great to see the expression on Demund’s face afterwards.
Demund accelerated even further. She expected that. She picked up her pace and closed her distance with Demund. She would slowly increase it and pass Demund right before the finish line. It added to the suspense—it was fun.
Wait. Wasn’t Demund closing into the finish line too fast?
He was already sixty meters away from the line. And he was becoming even faster. It made no sense!
Enariss panicked and raised her speed. Demund was just a few steps away from the line.
Ah. I messed up, thought Enariss.
The blue team exploded into screams and cheering as Demund’s body crossed the finish line, Enariss just a second away from him. Demund sprawled on the floor, his body and mind numb from the pain. He had run the fastest he could. And he had won. He had won!
He raised a small fist of victory at the crowd. Riley and Rhyne rushed to him and poured water on his body.
“Holy crap! You did it!” exclaimed Rhyne.
“Congrats, man. You won us the day,” said Riley.
Demund gave a weak smile and raised his thumbs. He could barely speak. He gasped for breath. Then he saw Enariss in the distance.
Why was she alone? Because she lost? Her team didn’t look that happy. He couldn’t just stay still and let this slide.
With the little energy he had left, Demund got up and walked towards Enariss—
—as her friends surrounded her with bottles of juice and water.
“That was sooo close! You almost beat him!”
“You did your best, Ena! I’m glad you agreed to run at the end. It was amazing!”
“Are you sure you didn’t let him win? Look, he’s over there~!”
Demund felt the heat rise to his face and turned away from the small crowd. What was he thinking? Of course she had friends. She was the definition of a perfect lady. He slapped his face and returned to Riley and Rhyne, who both had wicked grins.
“It’s okay.”
“Stop. I don’t need to hear it.”
Soon, the whole crowd came to Demund and the other players and poured drinks on them. Everyone laughed and enjoyed the finale of the sports tournament. The day was an exciting and long one. Now, it was about to end.
〄 〄 〄
The speakers bleeped on as the President’s voice came through a cackle of electricity.
“HELLO EVERYONE! WE WILL NOW ANNOUNCE THE WINNERS OF THIS YEAR’S SPORTS TOURNAMENT!”
The President cleared his throat and opened the sheet of paper he was holding. The crowds of people waited in anticipation.
“THE WINNERS ARE – THE RED TEAM!!”
Cheers erupted from one side of the field as the other side cried out in sadness.
“I thought we won?” asked Demund.
“We did. In all of the flashy events. But look at the board over there.”
Riley pointed at a screen that was next to the President. It displayed the points of all the events earned by each team.
“They managed to win by 2 points. By setting records in all of the minor sports. It was probably Enariss.”
“Wow.”
“Yep. I know, right? It sucks.”
The three friends shared a depressing moment as the red team went around the school fields chanting and cheering in glory.