Kalen's breath came shallow.
He could feel it - the fraying edge of his own ki.
It was no longer flowing. It was tearing through him.
Ripping against his muscles, clawing at his bones like something didn't belong inside.
He stood up.
Because he had to.
Because everyone was watching.
Because Jacob wasn't even breathing hard.
Across the arena, Jacob adjusted his stance.
Calm.
Disappointed, maybe.
Kalen clenched his jaw till he tasted blood.
WHOOSH!
He charged.
Gravity screamed, stone cracking underfoot.
The air distorted.
He moved with the full force of a broken heart.
Not for Seris.
Not for his reputation.
But for everything he'd tried to become.
'They never looked at me like they looked at you.'
The first strike missed.
SWOO-
'Why?!'
The second was blocked.
Crack Thud....
The third...didn't even land. Jacob just turned slightly, letting Kalen fall past him.
The crowd wasn't cheering anymore.
They were murmuring.
"He's fighting like he's blind."
"Is he... on something."
That word again.
Whispered like venom through the stands.
"Drugs."
Kalen stumbled.
A surge of gravity tried to pull Jacob down. It sparked out midway, snapping back into Kalen's chest.
He gasped.
The backlash rippling through his body.
His vision split.
Heart pounding faster than his ki could stabilise.
'No. Not now. Not like this.'
He looked to the stands.
He couldn't see his father.
Good.
He didn't want him to see this.
He didn't want anyone to see this.
They were, Kalen...
Seris was there.
And she wasn't smiling.
She wasn't angry.
She just looked... sad.
'Why....?'
Ki surged, he screamed.
Lunging. A desperate surge, a final gamble.
Jacob didn't move.
He raised his hand slowly, placing it on Kalen's staggered chest.
A soft touch. Not violet or cruel.
Just....final.
Like closing a door.
His ki imploded.
Everyone heard it before they saw it.
A crack.....
Sharp.
Awful.
Awful.
Like something inside him shattered.
Then a silence.
His body fell, knees folding.
Eyes wide, lips parted.
No sound.
Just shock.
He collapsed forward.
Shaking...then still.
'It hurts....'
His mind drifted to his mother. His sweet mother.
'....why?'
Ayling didn't say anything.
Not right away.
He didn't know what to say.
The stadium didn't say anything.
It was quiet.
Those at home watching, it was quiet.
The only sound in Eldris at that moment, was the sound of a door opening.
The med-drones descened.
Then...came the whispers.
"That wasn't normal."
"He was breaking before the hit."
"He's... he's gone."
"Did Jacob destroy his core?"
"He was drugged."
"No. He cheated."
"He...just wasn't ready."
Someone cried out Kalen's name.
Nobody answered.
Torin stared at the screen, frozen. "He's not breathing right."
Seris's lips parted. A breath. A whisper.
"...Kalen."
Caelun turned away.
Fayl was silent for a while, head down.
Down on the floor, Kalen's chest rose.
Barely.
One minuscule heartbeat.
Ayling's voice came heavy.
"Match... over. Winner, Jacob Lacura. Time: 21 seconds."
It was a mixed reception.
Some cheers.
Some silent.
Those cheering believed Kalen had committed foul play.
The echo around the stadium still resounded out Jacob's name.
------------
Minutes passed, the arena still floated whispers.
The air was thick with heat and noise.
The screens above replaying the scene of it happening. All for those at home to see. Again and again.
The victor, stood there.
Still.
Not winded.
Untouched.
"That wasn't normal"
"Someone set him up"
"He cheated!"
It was a mixed procession.
But deep down, everyone knew....Jacob would have won.
From the viewing platforms above, the dignitaries watches silently.
Planetary representatives conferred in hushed tones.
Even the king's expression tightened.
It felt bitter sweet.
Headmaster Kael Sarn appeared, stepping forward.
His voice cracking like thunder.
"Enough."
Silence fell. Even Jacob looked up.
"Today was a test. Not all passed honourably. Though victory has been claimed - balance has been restored."
He paused, letting it sink.
"To ease all your opinions. A final challenge shall be granted."
His voice spread across the Academy.
"If there is anyone who believes they are capable of standing where Kalen stood."
His gaze sweeping across the crowd. Next words falling like stone.
"....Stand honourably. Face Jacob Lacura. Show us why you deserve to represent Eldris!"
Nothing.
A beat.
Then.....
Footsteps.
One. Then another.
Steady.
Measured.
A single figure began to walk forward from the dark tunnel beneath the arena.
-----------
Med-drones carried Kalen off to a recovery room.
The faint drip of the IV sounded the background.
Drip drip drip
Other than that....it was silent.
His body was still. Multiple wires entering his body. Hands unbandaged, but curled loosely by his sides. His eyes stared at the ceiling.
Not seeing.
Just breathing.
Not seeing.
In that silence, heavy footsteps paced towards the room.
He hadn't turned his head. He couldn't.
He didn't need to.
It was him.
Creak
Drevon Voss, opened the door fully, not stepping in however.
He looked Kalen up and down, a cold expression. Beneath that, disappointment.
"Drugs?" he said out loud.
"Was that it", he paused. "You let the crowd see you thrashing like an animal for that?".
"You ruined the reputation of the household for a stimulant?"
Kalen didn't answer.
He didn't blink.
Gaze stuck to the ceiling.
"You ruined what little worth your mother left you." Drevon muttered.
That one stung. Not because of the words.
It was old.
Something he'd heard before.
"She fought like you. With recklessness. Look where that got her."
Still no answer.
Drevon looked at the boy.
No.
The thing on the bed.
"You're not my son." he said it flatly.
No anger. Just decision.
"The name Voss will not be spoken with pity."
"If you have any decency, vanish quietly"
He turned, closing the door with a slam.
Just before, he spoke again:
"Don't show your face in these sectors again. You don't have the right."
BANG!
It was silent again....
'You're not my son.'
'You're not my son.'
'You're not my son.'
'You're not--
It looped in his mind.
Not an echo.
A scar, opening again and again.
He didn't cry.
His body couldn't.
It was broken.
His mind?
It was screaming.
'I was meant to prove them wrong'
'I'm not a stain....'
'Don't insult her....'
'Why?'
'They think I cheated. They think I'm filth'
'Even Seris looked away. Even she-'
His breath hitched. Not from pain.
From the sudden emptiness.
'What do I have left?'
'No Ki'
'No strength'
'Not my father'
'Not a name'
The walls closed in on him.
His thoughts, shred of will.
He had no future..
No path forward.
Only humiliation.
Only silence.
Only the memory of 21 seconds.
And somewhere out there...
The crowd still chanted 'his' name.
He had nothing.
Nobody care-
A sudden chill spread through his body.
A chill on his forehead.
It covered his view.
It was a can of soda?
An orange flavoured can of soda.
Why was this here?
"You look like you need a drink."