Janus and Maluk stood facing each other. The projection placed in front of the audience began to count down.
"Three..."
Janus looked at the large number, shown backwards due to him being on the opposite side of the projection. He then looked back at his opponent. Maluk rocked his neck from side while keeping his dark brown eyes focused on Janus.
"Two..."
Their eyes remained locked but Janus' posture staggered. The quivering in his arms was apparent but only to him. A single bead of sweat formed on his brow as his ears honed in on the robotic tone of the countdown coming from the projection.
"One..."
Janus stepped forward, ready to strike first. He abruptly cut his advance short upon seeing Maluk remain motionless, only raising one eyebrow as he looked at him with a hint of puzzlement.
So it's not on one... Janus thought.
"Fight!"
Janus stepped forward as he kept his arms in front of his body ready to block. His eyes remained on the Ion Flail. Maluk twisted his upper body to the side, raising the rod of the weapon over shoulder as he primed it for a two-handed swing. Janus' advance stopped when he saw his opponent ready a horizontal swing. Maluk followed through with his motion, his weapon aiming high towards Janus' body.
Janus dropped his entire body to the ground, landing on his arms and knees as the electric tether whizzed high over his head. Janus darted back up to his feet once the crackling sound of electricity passed. Once upright, he saw the ball of the Ion Flail bounce behind Maluk's back as he readied up another attack. Janus stepped backwards, making sure that his eyes remained focused on the electric tether. Maluk followed with a swing in the opposite direction, this time slamming the flail into the ground. A quick leap put Janus a safe distance away from the strike. As the ball crashed into the mat, sparks flew in all directions, lighting up the area of impact.
"That's when you're supposed to attack! When they miss a risky move like that!" Itzel called out from her seat. Janus acknowledged that he had heard her advice by nodding his head. He then watched Maluk retract the rest of the weapon by pulling the rod back.
His swing is fast and the reach is far. But it takes him a while to get into the proper position to ready his attack. Itzel was right about staying within the optimal distance. Janus maintained a far distance from his opponent. Maluk rested the weapon on his shoulder once more, slowly walking towards Janus at the same rate at which he retreated. The audience quickly became frustrated, evident by how some of the cheers from the viewers shifted to groans.
“That was an easy punish!”
“Is this the guy’s first fight?”
“Fight back ya rookie!”
Janus stole a glance towards the audience as he continued to retreat. He could see looks of both boredom and annoyance among those closer to the fighting area.
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"Ignore them, Janus!" Itzel shouted. "They're not important! Focus on the fight."
Janus took in a deep breath. The sounds of the audience vanished. He locked eyes with Maluk and the pair continued to move in a circular motion around the center of the mat. Maluk stared back with respect, slowly nodding his head as if he were contemplating Janus' options for attack. As the staring match dragged on, so did the timer for the match. The screen depicted the number "85" in bright yellow letters. Once it ticked down to "84," the crowd became restless. Amidst the booing, further cries of "hurry up" and "do something" could be heard amidst the indistinguishable clamor.
"Come on Maluk," Siergi called out from his side. "Just do something before we lose more viewers!" He had his screen in front of him, staring at the Broadcast of the fight.
"This is the man's first match!" Maluk replied. He quickly glanced at his teammate before keeping his eyes on Janus. "I don't want to completely humiliate such a nice fellow!"
"But you're boring the viewers," Siergi responded without lifting his eyes off the projection. "Nobody wants to send Contributions during a staring contest!"
"Fine! If the viewers are impatient, I'll put on the show they crave!" Maluk angled the rod of the Ion Flail above his head so that it pointed down behind his back. The ball scraped the surface of the mat as he leaned back to prep for an overhead swing.
"Quake!"
With a heave, Maluk followed through with the Special Technique. The weapon travelled in a high arc above his head, creating an of electricity as the end of the flail drove into the ground a few feet away from Janus' side. The collision boomed and the ball created a circular wave of electrical energy that expanded like a ring. The energy connected with Janus' shins, hitting him with enough force to make him fall forward.
The crowd returned to cheering once they saw Janus hit the ground. Maluk got into position for another downwards swing, only to have Janus roll to the side before he could execute a follow up attack. He stood up once more, bouncing up and down with a small series of grounded squats as he tried to shrug off the aching of his legs.
"No more messing around Janus!" Itzel shouted. "He's going to be swinging at you all day if you don't get close!"
Right... Just need to get close. Janus ran forward in a short burst, reducing the distance between him and his opponent. Maluk performed a shorter ranged attack by angling the length of the flail vertically and twirling the shaft so that the ball travelled in a circle around him. With a bit of timing, Janus managed to duck under the passing ball, and as it travelled behind Maluk, he dashed once more.
"Ion Tail!
Janus rocketed upwards, hitting Maluk in the chest with his plasma-engulfed foot. The other fighter fell on his back, holding onto his Ion Flail with only one hand. Janus landed on his feet and ran towards his downed rival. He used his momentum to perform a sliding kick that hit Maluk in his ribs.
"Ack!" The man barked as he rolled to the side. He set himself upright by using the rod of his weapon as a cane while he rested on one knee, clutching onto the side of his stomach with his other hand. Janus could feel a surge of adrenaline pump through his veins; his assault continued as he tried to land a sideways kick to his kneeling opponent.
Maluk blocked the attack with his weapon, making Janus' kick stop short of hitting him in the side. Janus followed through with the same kick from the same direction only to be met with the response. With both of his attacks blocked, Janus put both legs back on the ground to keep his balance. Maluk stood himself up, keeping his weapon in front of his body to protect himself from any further attacks.
"Not bad," Maluk said to Janus. "But I do know that is your only Technique besides your Signature! And I don't want to be rude, but your standard fighting style is lacking."
"It's something that I'm still working on," Janus said with a pant. He remained in a defensive pose, leading with one foot while his hands defended his body.
"Good, good. I can see you being a formidable opponent. With a lot more training." Maluk shifted to a one-handed grip, reeling the weapon behind his back as his other arm stretched out to keep Janus at a distance. "But for now, I think this match is over."