My Purpose | An unORDINARY fanfiction

Chapter Six: Beatdown

     Elaine instigated the first match, and Broven immediately summoned a rocky extrusion beneath his feet which erupted violently out of the ground, springing him towards me in a blur. Alarmed, I sidestepped his attack before turning to face him, tossing two glowing-red blades of energy in his direction. 

     In response, the opposing Jack slammed his palm on the ground, erecting a protective, rocky formation in front of him to block my projectiles. Moments later, the makeshift barrier shattered into a dozen sharp fragments of earth, occluding the vicinity in a thick cloud of dust.

     I can't see a thing! I should probably— oh, shit!

     The fragments appeared to briefly hover in mid-air, before they suddenly darted towards me at an alarming velocity. I hastily flicked a blade of red in their general direction before attempting to avoid the deadly salvo, only for Broven to suddenly appear to my right and pummel me in the face.

     "AGH!" The impact of his blow careened me to the ground, and he charged towards me for another attack. Prepared, I raised a palm and sent a flash of red in his direction. Broven, having too much momentum to dodge the beam, ran directly into my attack, which struck his right shoulder. I slowly got up and dusted myself off as Broven put some distance between us, gripping his injured shoulder in pain and frustration. 

     I huffed, impressed by my opponent's wit. Broven's adroitness was not a skill often seen on the battlefield. While my opponent could only manipulate earth, the destruction of his stone barriers by my hand allowed him to utilise the leftover fragments as projectiles, drastically increasing the versatility and range of his power. Additionally, by ensuring that I'm preoccupied with said projectiles, he can use the attack as an opening to close the distance between us and strike me physically. 

     Heh. If anything, he doesn't hit any harder than John. I grinned, recalling the time I spent with the cripple in the infirmary.

     Taking advantage of Broven's brief recovery, I took the opportunity to prepare a more potent attack, charging a sizeable orb of red energy with both hands before hurling it at my opponent in the form of a laser. Panicked and unable to dodge, he erected a second rocky barrier in similar fashion to the first. 

     However, unlike last time, my attack sliced through his defences like paper. A brilliant sanguine pulse exploded outwards from the origin of impact, disturbing the surrounding area with a powerful shockwave before dissipating, leaving only a cloud of dust. When the debris cleared, Broven was lying on the ground, injured and covered in rubble. 

     "Hm. It appears that the first match is our loss," Vincent said mildly, his morale seemingly unaffected by the defeat. He gestured for their healer to go tend to Broven. "Our Queen will take it from here." 

     The enemy Queen, Luna, stepped forward, her violet locks swaying artfully as she approached us with long, confident strides. I readied myself, curious as to what her ability was. 

     "Ah, wait up Blyke!" Elaine called out. "Are you sure you don't want me to patch you up before the next round?"

     "I'll be fine," I reassured the concerned healer. "A few scratches and a little bruise on my face won't hinder my performance."

     "Alright... a—anyways, the next match will be between Wellston's Jack and Agwin's Queen! Fighters, please take your positions!"

     I braced myself, analysing my opponent in an attempt to pick up on anything useful. However, she just eyed me back while standing motionless with her arms crossed, seemingly disinterested in this whole ordeal.