Amy hovered above, flames spiraling around her in a living tempest, her fiery hair snapping in the wind.
She looked down, golden eyes fierce, her aura burning hotter than ever. Around her, fire condensed into wings that snapped the length of the battlefield, each beat fanning cyclones of heat that made even the protective wards scream in protest.
Below her, dust cleared.
Adam stood in the ruins of the arena floor, shoulders squared despite the blood at the corner of his mouth.
His silver hair floated weightlessly, violet strands burning like threads of starlight. The very air bent around him, reality warping with every breath.
His aura changed—it was no longer just space affinity. It was infinity itself, an endless presence that stretched beyond comprehension.
The crowd could feel it.
The students clutched the rails of their seats, their chests heavy, there bodies trembling as id they were standing at the edge of a cosmic abyss.
Even the instructors, battle-hardened mages and warriors, leaned forward with excitement.
Amy's lips curled into a defiant grin. "So you're still standing huh. Good, because I won't stop until you're ash!"
She raised her arms high, flames spiraled upward, merging with wind into a blazing sun above her head.
The heat was unbearable, the entire arena glowing crimson as though a second star had been born into the dome.
Her voice thundered: "CRIMSON APOCALYPSE!"
The sun collapsed into her body, and in an instant she transformed. Wings of flame engulfed her form, her eyes blazing brighter than molten gold.
She became a phoenix incarnate, her entire body cloaked in fire so intense it warped the stone beneath her. With a single cry, she dove, a comet of living flame tearing through the sky.
The barrier cracked. Several people cried out in terror as the wards flared white, threatening to collapse entirely.
But Adam didn't flinch.
His violet aura expanded outward, and the cracks in the arena floor lit up, glowing as if the earth itself answered his call.
Above him invisible lines spread across like shattered glass, fragments of reality breaking apart. He lifted one hand slowly, and the fragments spun, bending into orbit around him like planets circling a star.
His voice was calm, resolute. "You burn everything you touch. But fire limits and space has none." S
The fragments converged, collapsing inward until they formed a single, radiant singularity of violet light. It pulsed, gravity tearing at everything around it.
The stands shook, the air howled, and even flames flickered as if struggling against its pull.
She screamed in defiance, flames burning brighter as she dove. "I AM FIRE! I AM LIFE! NOTHING CAN SWALLOW ME!"
Adam raised his hand higher, and the singularity answered, expanding outward into a radiant event horizon of violet light.
The void roared to life, devouring heat, devouring air, devouring light itself. The Phoenix's cry became a distorted echo, Amy's flames twisting as they were dragged into the infinite abyss.
She struck with everything she had—firr hotter than the sun, wind sharper than steel, her will burning with unstoppable pride.
For a moment, her flames blazed brighter than ever, painting the arena in crimson brilliance.
And then space swallowed them whole.
Her Phoenix form cracked, flames scattering into embers that were pulled into the void.
She screamed fighting to hold onto her fire, but one by one her flames broke apart torn away until only her human form remained, falling from the sky.
Adam lowered his hand, the singularity shrinking, fading into nothingness. The arena fell into silence, the only sound was the faint crackle of dying embers.
Amy hit the shattered floor, landing on her knees, her breath ragged, her flames extinguished. She tried to rise, but her body trembled,. strength gone.
Her eyes lifted to adam–defiant still, but burning with exhaustion rather than fire.
Adam walked towards her slowly. His silver drifted weightlessly, violet strands glowing like a fading star.
His aura dimmed as he approached, the endlessness of space receding, leaving only his calm presence behind.
He stopped before her, his shadow falling over her form. For a moment, the crowd held it's breath, waiting to see if he would strike the final blow.
Instead, he extended his hand.
Her golden eyes widened.
"You weren't bad" he said softly "but even fire must rest, and buy space will always remain. And within it... There's always room for your flame."
The announcer held her breath for a moment then raised her hand a shouted:
"WINNER AND THE APEX OF THE FIRST-YEARS! ADAM!!"
The silence of the arena broke. Gasps, cries and applause erupted all at once. Some of the students wept. Others shouted his name and the instructors exchanged stunned glances, unable to put words to what they had just witnessed.
High in the VIP box, the headmaster lowered his hand as the barrier shimmered and dissolved into nothingness. He whispered, almost to himself: "That was a splendid duel, a duel of legends... And the birth of a new star."
In the arena's center, Amy collapsed fully, unconscious, her flames extinguished at last. Adam stood tall, violet strands flickering softly, as the crowd roared around him.
And so in the academy's grand arena, witnessed by all, Adam claimed victory over everyone and his story was just beginning.