After her Weapon Use class, Calista was exhausted. During class, many of the superpowered students had continuously teased her by flicking flames, ice, and other elements at her. At least Coach Usda eventually noticed and scolded them for being ‘distracted’.
Her two classes before that were bearable enough. Armory proved very interesting, describing the various designs and types of armor that fit different fighters. During her break period, Calista took Belinda’s advice and went to the Studitorium to review.
There were many disciplines that could fit into all sorts of combinations. On Earth, there were at least 300 alone. There were originally human disciplines, like karate, judo, jiu-jitsu. Then, there were mixes of disciplines from Mars and Mercury that were added on after the Utopia came to be.
As Coach Usda had shown Calista in her first class, every planet had their own original and mixed disciplines. Those disciplines would combine with others, making many more. In the end, it was up to the fighter to decide which ones worked best with them.
Calista found herself partial to dance-fighting styles. She was surprised they even existed. Many famous fighters had used these sorts of styles and prevailed marvelously.
Belinda kept true to her word and met Calista on the way to the Recreation Station for lunch. Calista was still in her Practicum uniform. She felt disgusting, covered in sweat, and she was dying to go to the spa.
“You look tired,” Belinda observed as they entered the Mess Hall.
“I’m not tired. I’m dead.” Calista wiped sweat off her forehead, grimacing in disgust. “I don’t know how you guys do this.”
“You’ll get used to it.”
“I doubt that.” She shuddered at the stickiness of her skin.
As they approached the silver-colored Gamma Guild table, a familiar face stepped in front of them. Calista was paralyzed when she looked down, meeting the eyes of Lílitha Houdge.
For a while, they stood there in awkward silence. Their presence attracted an audience, students stopping to look at them. The little woman eventually raised a brow. “Could you get out of the way?”
Calista quickly stepped aside, turning red. “S-sorry.”
“You were just staring at us, Lílitha,” said Belinda.
“I was not. You were staring at me. I do not know what your problem is.”
“There’s no problem. You don’t have to be so cranky.”
Lílitha rolled her eyes. “What is your friend’s problem?”
“I-I thought you were…” Calista swallowed. “I don’t know. Confronting me.”
“Why would I?”
“Because… I dunno. We fought and everything.”
Lílitha scoffed. “Girl, I fought thousands. Do you really think I would remember you? It’s no wonder people think your admission was a mistake. It’s already gone to your head. Typical of people like you.”
“No, that’s not what I-”
“Good luck, Socializer. You’re going to need it.” She left with a smirk, hitting Calista’s side with her shoulder as she passed her. Calista grimaced and watched Lílitha go to a table with other students.
“Don’t mind her,” Belinda said. “She’s not the friendliest person in the Utopia.” She led her to her Guild table. “AIDA, allow access to Calista Medley as a Guild Guest.” They sat down, the force field opening for Calista.
The other Guild members were confused at the sight of the human girl. “Hey, Bel…” one of them said awkwardly.
“Hey, guys. I… decided to invite Calista to sit with us, if that’s okay,” Belinda said shyly.
Two girls sitting across them smiled kindly. One was Mercumartian, with gray, pebbly skin, and the other was a full Mercurian with red, rocky skin. “No problem. Hi, I’m Hillena. And this is my best friend, Seema,” said the Mercumartian girl.
“Nice to meet you,” Calista said politely.
“So, how do you like Fistborn?” Hillena asked.
A sense of relief and comfort washed over Calista at their kindness. They were much less standoffish than she expected. “It’s… really different than what I expected. But it’s everything I dreamed of,” she said truthfully.
“You always wanted to be a fighter, then?” Seema took a bite of her meal.
“Yeah, since I was a kid. I was a bit out of practice, but it’ll all come back to me.”
“Oh, has it been a while since you practiced?”
“Kind of. I applied for the Junior Versus when I was a kid, but I didn’t get in. So I, like, gave up.”
“Gave up? Really?”
“Yeah…” Calista regretted having said that. “But I learned my lesson. I tried again, and I’m here now. I’m glad I took the chance.”
“Silem, letua malta sum patt,” Hillena muttered to Seema, who hid a snicker. Calista’s ears picked up the language— Mercurian Fluerish, the most spoken Mercurian language. She’d said, “Yeah, if you call cheating ‘taking a chance’.”
The anxiety set in again, but she played dumb, ignoring her comment. “I’m really excited to be here,” she continued. “The experience’s been stellar lately.”
“Oh, yes, I imagine.” Hillena smiled. “So, did you become a Socializer when you… gave up?”
“Y-yeah… I wanted to try other things.”
“Were you popular?”
Calista fiddled with the last of her food. “We had a little over 10,000 people on our channel. Really great fans. We met a few of them and they were so cute.” She chuckled, remembering. “There was one girl that showed me some of her fashion designs. It was the most adorable thing! It’s a shame the other SociaLights didn’t appreciate it.”
“SociaLights?” Hillena and Seema glanced at each other.
“Our channel name. We represent— or represented— Love, Peace, Freedom, and Loyalty.”
“Oh.” The girls shared a fleeting smile and Hillena leaned forward. “What did you do?”
“We would go out and talk to people,” Calista replied, keeping her answer short. She had to remember to not talk too much.
“About what?” Belinda asked, genuinely interested.
“Stuff like Miss Milky Way, or Astrana. You know that show? I love that show. The princes there are so GP.”
“No, but it sounds cool.”
“And we also would showcase new design ideas for outfits.” Her nostalgia returned. Despite the girls’ personalities, there were many things about her channel that she enjoyed. “We like to come up with our own stuff to show off. I love designing clothes. My mom was actually Miss Milky Way twice in a row.” She smiled proudly at the raised brows. “So it kinda runs in my blood. She always gave me advice…”
She trailed off. The two other girls glanced at each other again with strange expressions, holding in laughter. Other students around them also seemed amused or bewildered by the conversation.
Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
She was talking way too much. Being too much of a Socializer. Why did she have to mention Miss Milky Way?!
“Um… w-well, that was before. I don’t… do that… anymore. I don’t even like Socializing anymore. Like I said, I’m a fighter now, and that’s what I do. Kick the viruses out of people, right? I’m in this school now. So, no more of that.”
“She’s as buggy as an Aelket,” Seema giggled in Fluerish, shielding her mouth. “I bet her IQ is -400.”
“Seriously. I lost braincells listening to her,” said Hillena. “What kind of fantasy does she live in?”
Calista’s voice left her. Belinda seemed uncomfortable, shifting in her seat and averting her eyes, but probably didn’t understand the language, being half-Martian. The human girl’s shame was replaced with indignation. They were reminding her a lot of her former friends.
“You know… I’m actually not that hungry anymore.” She stood and her plate disappeared. “Thanks for the invite, Belinda, I really appreciate it. I’ll see you later.”
“Sure.” Belinda smiled apologetically.
“Yeah, run away, Miss Wannabe Milky Way,” one of the girls muttered in her language.
Calista stopped and turned. “You know, I understood every thing you said. I speak five languages total,” she said in Fluerish. The two girls froze, completely shocked. “For your information, just because I’m a Socializer doesn’t mean my IQ is low. It just means that I like to do more things than punch people all day. Sorry your lives are so stale compared to mine.” She flipped her hair and spun around, walking away with all the confidence she could muster.
But once she reached solitude, she’d let the tears spill.
===
“Weightless Dodgeball is not to be confused with Hitball. Many commit this mistake despite the two games being very different in nature.”
Coach Tostama Kolaka walked at an amble pace between the two lines of students flanking her, all of them facing her with their backs straight and their hands laced behind them. Being the only Hajjian coach in the school made her, by default, the toughest.
Calista was relieved to see Harrison Smith in her class, but she was also confronted with two people she wasn’t fond of seeing.
Lílitha Houdge had ignored her, unlike the other students gawking and gossiping about her, but she still intimidated Calista. The other person was a Hajjian girl, a Favorite. Calista wasn’t sure who she was, but she didn’t look friendly. Her rose red eyes had menacingly smiled at her the minute she came in.
“I want all of you to split up into 12 teams of five. In this game, you will play a single round of dodgeball. ERMM, please generate a basic training field for the Weightless Dodgeball game, group bracket.”
The corners of the room glowed blue as squares appeared on the floor beneath the students’ feet. Calista stepped back as it lit up like a checkerboard, patterns of blue and red glowing brightly. Panels lined the walls and a thick, black line divided the room in half, as well as outlining the boundaries of the game area.
Hesitantly, Calista raised her hand. Coach Tostama nodded at her. “Ms. Medley?”
She straightened. “Uh- ma’am, I… I’m not sure how to play this game.” Snickers erupted from her classmates as they gave her looks.
“Have you played Weightless Dodgeball before?”
“Uh, no, ma’am. I don’t know much about it.”
Some giggles were heard, but they were immediately silenced by Coach Tostama’s glare. “The object is to stay on your side of the field and defend your teammates, while also trying to eliminate your opponent team. The blue squares are safe; the red squares signify elimination and will teleport you out of the area the moment you touch them. The team that is fully eliminated first, or has less teammates than their opponent’s before time runs out, loses.”
She pointed her sharp fingernail at the panels running along the boundary walls. “These generators will dispense the dodgeballs throughout the course of the game. They’ll change color whenever a player touches them, indicating which team it belongs to. You can hit, kick, throw, or punch the dodgeballs to the other team. Do you understand?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
She turned to the others. “Abilities are not allowed for this game. If I see a flicker of a flame, or a hint of ice, or any sign of distraction caused by Martian influence… any use of powers will automatically disqualify you and lower your grade by 20 tacks. Understand?”
“Yes, ma’am,” everyone chorused.
“Now, let’s choose the captains of each team today.” She brought up an AIDA screen and scrolled through the names, tapping all 12 leaders. “Esther Hoffman, Martin Brown, and Jerry Trolocan, please stand in front of the group and pick your teammates.”
The throng of students got smaller as everyone divided into their respective groups. As more and more students were picked, Calista got more discouraged.
One of the leaders, Hillary Kaye, looked over the group with scrutinizing, grass-green eyes that contrasted against her yellow skin. Being Paeseoan, Calista expected her to be friendlier, but she didn’t seem that way.
A teammate of hers nudged her, whispering something in her ear. She sighed, rolling her eyes, and reluctantly called out, “Claudette Dubois.”
A human girl approached them, her face glowing with relief. Her curly red hair wildly fanned out around her head, her icy blue eyes sparkling. The Paeseoan team leader sighed again and led her team away.
“Harrison Smith, Peng Wu, and Friedrich Sooto, step forward and choose your teammates, please.”
Calista perked up at Harrison’s name, watching him come forward with the other team leaders. He hadn’t interacted with her at all since breakfast, but he was at least courteous to her.
“Isa de Merced.” Harrison pointed at a Mercearthian woman with pebbly, brown skin.
“Démus Astro,” Peng Wu called out. A tall, marble white Voraxian man walked up to him.
Name after name and Calista was still standing there. Harrison noticed, his brows knitting, but he didn’t call her just yet. “Lílitha Houdge,” he said.
Are you kidding me?!
She felt herself burning with humiliation when she wound up being the last one there. “Calista Medley.” Harrison motioned to her, his gaze turned down.
Her fists clenched. She reluctantly walked to Harrison’s group, glaring at the Student Coach. “Thanks,” she said sarcastically. His sapphire blue eyes glanced at her, but he said nothing.
The chosen groups were randomly picked to compete in the dodgeball rounds. It was quite exciting to watch, but also nerve-wracking. As the dodgeballs bounced around the court in all directions, students redirected them to their opponents, harshly shooting them at their faces. A Klausian man even iced one of the balls, getting him and his team disqualified. He got quite the loud earful from Coach Tostama.
“Team 4 vs. Team 12. Both teams, please step up.”
Calista glanced at their team leader, swallowing nervously. They took their positions on the blue squares, standing on the left side of the area. By a happy coincidence, they were pitted against the Hajjian girl’s team. On Calista’s team, herself and Harrison were the only humans playing, joined by a Mearthian, a Seeyastian, and Lílitha.
The countdown started from three and reached zero. The gravity field was reversed and they all floated off their squares. While the others kept a good balance, some occasionally wobbling, Calista was a mess of flailing limbs.
“Just relax, Ms. Medley,” Coach Tostama called from below.
The other students watched with mockery as the human girl struggled to get back into an upright position, having flipped upside down. The dodgeball dispensers then started working, projectiles bouncing all around the map. It was an endless array of chaos literally raining down on them.
“Don’t move so much. You have to ‘swim’,” Harrison said to her.
“Trying…” She kicked her legs, wobbling unsteadily. A dodgeball bounced off the wall and headed right towards her. Squealing, she closed her eyes and hit it instinctively. It shot across the line, bounced off the wall, and got into one of the opponents’ hands.
Her green eyes widened as her opponent smirked, shooting the ball back in her direction. She quickly ducked and let it soar over her, flipping over again.
Lílitha exclaimed angrily, saying something in her planet’s language. The Ilamikoan kicked off the wall and soared to the right, punching a ball in the other direction. It hit one of their opponents hard enough to slam him into a red square. He teleported outside and groaned, punching the floor.
With a grunt, Calista lifted her foot and kicked a projectile with full force. It bounced off the opposite wall and hit an opponent in the back. The girl was shot downwards, directly into a red square.
Calista smiled in satisfaction, but ducked with a scream when a dodgeball flew over her. Looking back, she saw the Hajjian girl smiling, catching another ball to throw at her.
She quickly kicked off the wall and avoided it by a few inches. The momentum caused her to crash into Lílitha. “Watch where you’re going, human!” she barked, her black eyes narrowed into slits.
“Sorry.” She couldn’t imagine how much more terrifying this game would be in the real Versus.
One of her allies suddenly brought his limbs close to his chest, curling into a ball. He sunk down to the floor and pushed off a blue square with his feet, shooting upwards. His leg flew in a spinning kick, sending a ball into one of the opponents’ faces. The force wasn’t enough to eliminate him, but it was a good idea.
Calista copied him, curling up to float downwards. Springing off her toes, she leaped up and hit one of the dodgeballs, which bounced on the dividing line and hit the Hajjian girl in the face. She flipped over from the momentum, legs kicking to balance herself.
The Hajjian’s red eyes slowly turned to glare at her. Her mouth opened in a snarl as she reached up and caught a ball, throwing it at her with full force.
Calista moved to avoid it, but just a second too late— the dodgeball hit her right in the shoulder. She slammed against the wall, groaning in pain. It felt like a high-speed Air-Bus had hit her.
She maneuvered to the right as another ball slammed on the wall, bouncing in all directions. It finally hit one of Calista’s team members and forced him into a red square.
“Look out!” Harrison suddenly shouted.
Just as she heard the warning, a dodgeball bounced off the blue square ahead of her and shot straight for her stomach. She doubled over, the air knocked out of her, and started floating down. As she tried to kick her legs, another ball was sent for her, pushing her into a blue square. Her face flattened against the floor, the pain unbearable.
At least she wasn’t eliminated.
Another dodgeball bounced off the wall and slammed into her again, pushing her into the red square beside her. She then found herself outside of the map.
Laughter bubbled from the students around her. Her face burning, she took a deep breath and clutched her stomach as she rose, looking for a corner to sit in.
She didn’t want to regret this. This was only her first day. If this was enough to discourage her, she really wasn’t worthy for the Versus.
She wanted this. Ever since she was a little girl, she wanted to suffer all the trials and tribulations of a Versus student. She wanted to give everything she had to the academy so she could reach the top three places of honor of the tournament, hearing millions of fans screaming her name.
But how many times would this school prove she didn’t have what it took?