[Pinnacle Academy Stadium 1 - Arena A: Student Section Seating]
The massive combined stage was an exciting site for all the students within the academy. In the stands, students shook for optimal viewing spots. In the middle of the first-year section, a small group buzzed with conversation.
"Dude, those cheating rumours about Sergio…" Jan scratched his head, a worried expression replacing his usual easygoing attitude. "Do you think they're true?"
Bazz grinned, an impish look in his eye. "Sergio? Topped one of the nastiest brackets in the prelims. Full of those ranked snobs, too. Don't think a cheater could finesse a run like that. If nothing else, the dude is strong."
"But what about his match against Rel?" Jan's worry wasn't unfounded. Rel, with all his skill, was still diocre from what Jan had seen from him and an unknown quantity.
"Did you see any of his earlier matches, Bazz?"
"Nah, was stuck in my bracket," Bazz shrugged, then yelped and ducked out of the way as Jan flicked him on the forehead. "Ouch! Hey, what was that for?"
"Don't say 'stuck,'" Jan scolded. "Sounds like you made a lazy exit. What was your record like, anyway?"
Bazz rubbed the offended spot, but he was unable to suppress a slightly boastful grin. "Eighteen and two, my friend! Tough loss to Louise, then it was back-to-back-to-back wins…enough to sneak in, thankfully."
Suddenly, three newcors plopped down on the seats beside them.
"Honestly, Rel versus Sergio seems like a good matchup to watch," she scoffed. "I bet this will end quickly, one way or another."
Jan, ever easygoing, grinned a greeting. "Hey, Lyra! Hey, Camila, Val."
The three girls waved at Jan but Bazz barely spared a glance, focused on the pre-match tension below. continuing, "I think this match could be close. Sergio for the long haul, but that crossbow guy might pull a trick or two early on. Who knows." He paused, then pointed towards the arena. "Besides, that Rel dude had it easy – undefeated in his own bracket, right?"
Jan shrugged. "You'd think so, but I think Rel's been pulling his punches until now. I'm sure of it!"
Both Bazz and Camila scoffed nearly simultaneously.
"No way," Camila retorted. "His bracket was full of no-nas. It's called being efficient, not hiding anything."
Bazz chid in, "Exactly! I tried snooping for replays, but no one was filming the bottom-of-the-barrel stuff. Too busy gawking at the big nas throwing around fancy magic..."
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ACHOO! Ah, I swear there's sothing in the air...
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"Speaking of big nas," Camila smirked, eyes fixed on the arena. "What's the over/under on seeing so serious skill from him anyway?"
Valencia, usually an active part of the discussion, remained strangely silent. Her eyes seed glued to the spot where Rel stood, and an uncharacteristic blush dusted her cheeks. It seed the incident with Rel had left its mark, but clearly, his victories had piqued her curiosity.
Before she could find her voice, a wave of anticipation washed over the stadium. The announcer's voice bood over the speakers.
"Ladies and gentlen! Welco to the Knock Out Stages! Only the thirty-two finest from yesterday's matches remain...and only sixteen will advance! Today, we bear witness to Pinnacle Academy's rising stars. Let's give a roaring welco to our two students opening up the first round of the knockouts! - Sergio Vex, ranked Fifty-Seven of the Class of 1-B!"
A spotlight caught Sergio on the opposite side of the arena, the glare of the morning sun reflecting from his shield.
Cheers, and the occasional boo rose from the student section. "And opposing him - " the announcer's voice took on a hint of drama - "Don't let his current rank deceive you! He's at the knockout stages for a reason! – Rel Laurence! Rank 989! A contender to watch, for he alone, boasts a flawless twenty-match win streak from the preliminary stages!"
Silence, then an explosion of surprised and degrading comnts.
"989th?" A surprised shout ca from sowhere within the stadium. "Is this dude for real?"
Another student voiced his complaints, their voice dripping with a hint of disgust, "Looks like soone snuck his way through the easy route..."
Negative buzz quickly filled the arena. Jan blinked in astonishnt, while Bazz broke into slightly strained-sounding laughter. He tried to play it off,
"You wanna bet if Rel wins?"
Bazz suggested the idea to Jan before shortly replying to him with a smirk on his face.
"If Rel wins then you'll be buying lunch all week and I want you on your knees apologising in the morning before class begins." Jan stroked his chin grinning at embarrassing Bazz.
"Harsh punishnt Jan but deal!" Bazz shook Jan's hand, "If I win then lunch is on you for the whole week!"
As the trio of girls looked at the two idiots bantering up bets Camila watched both Rel and Sergio getting ready on stage.
"Well?" Camila nudged Valencia one last ti, a teasing light in her eyes. "Who's it going to be, Val?"
"..."
***
[Pinnacle Academy Stadium 1 - Arena A: The Main Stage]
Passing through the tunnel, Instead of the usual narrow corridor leading to a specific arena, there was only one path ahead, bathed in blinding light. The roar of the crowd assaulted my ears, louder than before. They'd combined the stages.
One massive stage. Now that… well, that changed things. I stepped out into the dazzling glow and onto the cold stone arena floor.
Even with the prior day's matches under my belt, the size of this space was imposing. Tens of Thousands of seats circled around , filled with chattering students, faculty, reporters, and countless pairs of eyes now scrutinizing .
A chill of unease ca down my spine. It felt like the entire academy was watching ... I glanced at my competition, trying to see any advantage – there was only Sergio Vex and… I stopped short.
There were many eyes from what I could see in the stands. Especially that all the guild leaders from the top 10 were watching.
Looks like Gerrard from afar is looking at with so discontent. Sorry I guess...
Before I could look around at any more special characters, a booming voice echoed over the arena speakers. The crowd hushed instantly...
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Authors Notes:
- The way the early parts of the tournant works is that the 20 students in each group compete for wins which is worth three points, draws 1 point and a loss which is 0 points. The top 2 of each group will advance and the third place of each group will compete in an extra match to earn their spots for the Knockout stages. The 10 students with the most wins out of the 20 advance to the knockouts.
For a clear visual this is what it would look like:
Group A winners:
[Jan - 1]
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