"Liyana Desdemona, please make your way onto the battleground." Ms. Scarlett said.
Castor's attention immediately snapped towards Liyana, he watched as she rose from her seat gracefully, patting down her skirt before she quietly hopped off of the bleachers, and made her way to the corner opposite of him, she tried to conceal a growing smile on her face, but Castor noticed it.
He studied each step she took, watching as she walked onto the vast battlefield, they locked eyes for a split second, Liyana stood there, arms behind her back, waiting patiently for their next instructions.
She said nothing, but Castor still felt her stare on him, even after he broke her gaze, and every time he'd peek back up,
Liyana just smiled at him. Something dark was behind her eyes, he felt a chill run down his spine.
This is crazy! Why does HE have to a fight a Desdemona!? Don't they all like, punch babies or something!? He's heard rumors one of Liyana's siblings was on death row.
...Now, he's just hoping the apple fell very far from the tree, and rolled off a cliff.
'Cause if not, he's in really deep shit.
Suddenly, a whirring noise rang out deep within the ground, and 2 metal lockers slowly rose from the stone, one on each corner.
"Combatants, please feel free to grab any weapon, clothing, or armor, you feel you may need in this bout. Then, please press the red button on the side of the locker, when you are ready to fight." Ms. Scarlett said, taking a seat on the far end of the bleachers, crossing her legs—studying them both silently.
Castor took a deep breath, he's done this a million times before, there's no reason to panic now.
He'll just grab what he needs from his locker and-
*DING!*
The entire class, including Castor, immediately snapped their necks to look at Liyana, her locker retracting back into the ground, the slab it rose from shutting.
She didn't stop smiling, and stood there respectfully.
No one could believe it, she didn't even grab anything! She just pressed the button!
Ok. Now he can panic. This girl is crazy.
Castor could only nervously input the code on the locker, popping it open, and grabbing his sword from its sheath, the blade was surely worn out a bit, its shape one of an Odachi.
He couldn't afford a new one, being an orphan doesn't exactly pay well, and it's not like the Church is giving out allowances, either.
With a resigned sigh, Castor finally pressed the button on his locker.
*DING!*
Watching the locker retract back into the ground.
Castor and Liyana walked forward, meeting in the middle of the battleground, and stopping just at each end of the giant star, that resembled the Lychinus symbol.
The whole courtyard went silent, all eyes on them.
Including, even the King's.
Castor took his stance, holding his Odachi above his head, the tipped point towards her.
But Liyana, didn't even flinch, she just kept smiling.
...
"Fight!" Ms. Scarlett declared.
*WOOSH!*
Castor took off! Blitzing right by Liyana with incredible speed, he was unable to be seen, a red blur in the wind all that was left of him as he ran circles around the battlefield, evoking many ooo's and ah's from his peers in the stands.
"Woo! Yeah! Go Castor!" Pollux shouted, jumping up and pumping his fist in the air.
He sees it! A chance to strike!
Castor dives towards Liyana, bracing his blade for one, large slash!
Hell yeah! He's becoming a Luni for sure!
*CRASH!*
Without warning, Liyana conjured a weapon, a battle-axe appearing from thin air with a purple glow, and brought it crash down onto Castor's back, right between his shoulder blades.
"URGK!" He wheezed out, the sheer force of her swing managing to create a giant crater, that Castor now found himself lying in.
Liyana stood over the his body, looking down on him with demeaning eyes. "...You're wondering how I knew to counter your attack." She said, resting her axe on her shoulder, its mass and weight unnaturally large for a girl her size.
"Yeah... among other things... Oof!" Castor tried to pick himself up, his arms buckling.
"I'm sure you've guessed by now, I'm a Purple-Lighter. My weapon's name is Banachek, it allows me to read your thoughts as if they were my own. Your wants, your needs, your fears. They all belong to me, you'll never be one step ahead." She twirled the axe behind her back, leaning in to look savor his pain, her eyes wide.
"Urgh..." He groaned, then he chuckled. "Haha... Is that right? Tell me then, what am I thinking right now?"
Liyana tilted her head slightly, studying his expression as if she was processing information no one else could see.
Her sadistic smile quickly turned into a frown, turning away from him with disgust.
"Ugh. You dirty Red-Lighters are all the same."
Castor let out a hearty laugh, "Come on, you're an attractive young lady, you're supposed to be proud of your 'assets'. Hahaha!"
*CLANK!*
Liyana lodges her axe right between Castor's legs, causing him to yelp as he backed away quickly.
"Enhanced Combat Prowess." Liyana said. "Your ARS enhances each of your six senses whenever you are in combat, it also makes you 20x more durable. But, while your speed is rapidly increased, your strength stays the same, leaving you seriously lacking when it comes to offense."
She chuckles. "Anyone with a tactical brain will have no trouble beating you. Face it, a Red-Lighter will never have any chance of becoming a Luni, you're trash. Every single one of you."
Castor watched as Liyana stood above him and laughed, some students in the crowd whispering to each other and chuckling, Pollux only sat there with a blank look, but never took his eyes off of Castor.
The King looked on as well, but there was still no shift in his expression.
"Aw, damn..." Castor slowly rose to his feet with his sword hanging down by his side, blood was dripping down the side of his arms. Liyana seemed astonished he was even standing. "Yeah, yeah. I've heard the same corny ass speech about a thousand times now."
Liyana's smile faded, her face contorting into annoyance. "Excuse me?"
"I'd be lying if I said it doesn't bother me.
Just because some stupid red light shone over me as a baby, everyone thinks they know me." Castor growled.
Then, an unsettling grin grew on his face, it seemed to even visibly shake Liyana. "Oh, but believe me, I am not a victim."
A weak chuckle escaped his lips. "Hey. Can you keep a secret? I can't tell Pollux, he'd just call me weird."
Liyana didn't respond, she just looked at Castor with a bit of a disturbed expression, almost like she knew what he was going to say, but didn't believe it.
"...It's of the common opinion that pain, is a horrible thing. Most people spend their entire lives running desperately from the things that may cause them pain.
...But I think there's something wrong with me.
Since the moment I was born, the Red Light granted me only one thing, pain. So, becoming a Luni was a no-brainer. As a kid, I knew I needed to become stronger, so I picked fights with a lot of grown men. You'd be surprised how many of them were willing to pull their weapon on me. Some beat me 'till I bled, slashed me on the arms, stabbed me in the ribs."
...For the sake of my health, I should've ran. But I just wouldn't die. So I kept going back, and the same thing would happen." Castor looked down at his bloodied arm.
"...And every single time, my blood was boiling. I guess there was just something about a person trying to cut my head off, doing their best to kill me. In that moment, I finally realized it. I finally knew full well, why the Red Light chose me."
*VWHOOSH!*
Castor suddenly disappeared from Liyana's sight, she frantically searched every direction he could possibly be in.
Then she felt a cold hand on her shoulder.
"...Because I like the pain." Castor whispered in her ear.
*SMASH!*
Liyana quickly whipped around, and cleaved her axe through the air.
Castor did not move, her axe smashed right into his cheekbone, his neck whiplashed from the force of the swing, a large snapping sound came from his vertebrae, his head now unnaturally hanging off of his shoulders.
Every student in the stands let out a horrified gasp, panic growing amongst them as everyone went silent.
"Castor!" Pollux shouted, cutting through the crowd and making a dash for the battlefield.
"O-Oh my Light... S-Stop the match! Stop the match!" Ms. Scarlett screamed, her composed demeanor from earlier completely vanished, looking as if she was going to rush the battlefield as well.
"No."
An ominous voice boomed throughout the courtyard, stopping every single person dead in their tracks.
Sweat began to pour down everyone's face, it's not that they couldn't move, it's that they wouldn't. Pollux was already nearing the battleground, but he couldn't push himself forward. No one could move, not even Ms. Scarlett, who looked absolutely terrified. She was still in the motion of getting up from her seat, but now she stood perfectly still, hovering above it—not daring to move a single molecule.
"Keep going." The voice said once more.
Pollux searched for where the voice came from, and his heart nearly dropped out of his chest.
...It was the King! H-How was he doing this!? He only spoke a few words! Was this... The Golden? Or was he doing this with his sheer presence alone!?
...
"Hahaha..." Castor chuckled, causing everybody's ears to perk up, and Liyana to jump back in surprise.
He slowly reached for his dangling head...
*CRACK!*
...And popped it back into place.
Liyana's eyes went wide in horror.
"...Is that all you got?" Castor intoned softly, his eyes suddenly shifting from its hazel hue, and now gleaming with red.
Castor brought his Odachi cleaving downwards, nailing Liyana right on the forearm.
She leapt back even further, wincing and grabbing her left arm in pain. How... Could she get hit!? She could see everything!
Castor didn't give up his assault, leaping towards Liyana with a smile, swiping at her recklessly as she narrowly dodged each one of his slashes, he cackled like a madman.
"Come on! Come on! Come on!! Paint the ground with my blood! Please!"
Liyana was beside herself. He was begging, he was genuinely begging! She knew that for a fact! She didn't recognize the boy she was just talking to 10 minutes ago, this was something different, he was an animal.
Like something else took over his body.
She had to end this quickly, she knew that. But, he was tanking attacks like they were nothing. She needed to find a better way.
She did her best to study her surroundings amidst Castor's barrage of slashes, all of his thoughts were empty now, just attacking mindlessly, so she couldn't use that against him.
...But she could use something else.
*CLANG!*
To Castor's pleasure, she finally met his blade with her axe, she gave the illusion she was attempting to fight back, meeting his slashes with some of her own, which only made Castor swing more wildly.
She allowed him to push her back, reaching the edge of the battlefield, they crossed steel one last time, Castor trying to overpower her over the edge, Liyana struggled against his strength, but in the last second...
...Swept his leg! Using her entire body weight to send herself back onto the platform, and Castor crashing down onto the grassy floor below.
"Ring out! Liyana is your winner!" Ms. Scarlett proclaimed loudly.
The entire class erupted into cheers and applause, Pollux fell to the ground in relief, then quickly picked himself up and rushed over to Castor.
Liyana tried relentlessly to catch her breath, she sat atop the stone platform, with a distant look in her eyes, almost vacant, as she tried to process what just happened.
"Dude!" Pollux shouted as she shook Castor's body. "How the heck did you do that!? You looked all scary and stuff! That was awesome!" He exclaimed excitedly.
Castor just groaned, picking himself off the floor. "Huh? What did I do?" He murmured as he rubbed the back of his head, his eyes returning to their normal hazel hue.
"Uh, almost WIN a damn one-on-one! Dude, that's progress!" Pollux threw his arms in the air.
Castor just stared at him sarcastically, and cocked an eyebrow. "What is it about my 0-43 record that screams 'progress' to you?"
"Eh, well, 0-44 now." Pollux snidely remarked.
"Pfft. Shut up, loser." Castor playfully punched Pollux across the chest, both of them laughing with each other as he leaned on Pollux, making their way back to the bleachers.
Ms. Scarlett sighed deeply, then began flipping through her clipboard. "Alright, let us proceed with the next match. It will be-"
"NO!!" Liyana suddenly shouted in anger, it caught everyone's attention, Castor and Pollux stopped walking, they were confused, turning to look at the livid Liyana in the middle of the battlefield.
"I..." She stammered. "I... I want a rematch!"
Now, everyone was confused. She just won? Why is she demanding a rematch?
"Ms. Desdemona." Ms. Scarlett spoke sternly. "We have no time for a rematch, we need to move on-"
"On my honor! On my honor as a Luni, I will defeat you properly, Castor Vornheart!" She pointed her speared battle-axe towards Castor and Pollux, he stared at her in disbelief for a moment, then slowly turned to whisper in Pollux's ear, "But... She's not a Luni, right?"
"Shut up, dude." Pollux shot back immediately.
Conversations amongst the students immediately broke out, their shameless gossip cutting through the silence.
Ms. Scarlett took two fingers and rubbed the ridges of her eyebrows. "Hm." She groaned. "The next match was supposed to be Nineheart and Pollux.
...But since it's such a special occasion, I suppose I can make this a two-on-two. That is... if you are up to the task, Castor?"
Castor took a deep breath, then stopped leaning on Pollux, walking back onto the battlefield, cocking his arm back arrogantly.
He smiled, then met Liyana's spiteful gaze. "I'd rather die a thousand deaths, than leave my brother hanging."
Pollux took the stage right next to Castor with a cocksure grin. "Hah. Man, you always say the stupidest shit."
Liyana cocked up her nose at the both of them, scoffing.
"Um, Ms. Desdemona..?" A timid voice said suddenly.
"AH!"
"AH!"
They both screamed, Liyana nearly falling backwards in shock. When she caught her bearings, she saw a pale-white girl with large pink twin-tails, wearing a purple Lychinus High uniform, cowering below her in fear.
"D-D-D-Don't scare me like that!" The girl sputtered nervously.
Liyana looked at her like she was a being from another planet, she couldn't believe what she was looking at. "You're not serious... THIS is my partner? Who even are you!?" She spat angrily.
The girl quietly rose from her cowering position, doing her best to avoid Liyana's eye contact. "M-My name is Nineheart Mirion. Y-You could forget it... if you want."
"Great..." Liyana said with a defeated huff. "...Bah. Whatever, I don't need help to defeat these two weaklings."
"U-Uh, so... How exactly would you like to lose? I-I would prefer just stepping out of bounds so we could-"
"Huh!?" Liyana shouted in Nineheart's face, causing her to cower once more with a yelp. "We're not gonna lose! We're gonna WIN. What the hell are you even saying!?"
"Ah! I-I-It's just!- You're new here, right Ms. Desdemona?" Nineheart asked, still groveling beneath her.
"Uh-huh. What does it matter? Look, I've checked their records, they both haven't won a single mock match before!" She replied, obviously irritated.
"W-Well... that's true... b-but, they've got... kind of a reputation.
...We don't hold much two-on-two mock matches at Lychinus High, so... They don't really show up on our records, but the ones we have had so far...
T-They haven't lost..."
Liyana's expression turned cold. "...What?"
"The reason they win is because they're the only students here who know how to combine their Light..." Nineheart replied.
"Combine their Light!? I-I thought that was a myth!" Liyana grew progressively louder, causing Nineheart to flinch.
"I-It's not! Stop yelling at me! I'm telling you the truth!" Nineheart cried out, "I'm serious! When they fight together, they're undefeated! Castor and Pollux have beaten every duo in our grade, nobody would ever even think about challenging them! If they combine their lights, T-They're Fortissimum...!"
Liyana shook her head in confusion. "They're what!?"
Nineheart glanced over at Castor and Pollux. They were staring them both down, it sent a shiver down her spine.
Pollux sat on the ground, resting his left arm on his knee pompously, using Castor's sheathed Odachi to keep his balance with his right.
Castor stood above him, smiling, he punched his palm, psyching himself up. His blood was boiling. He looked anxious to get into battle.
"They're..." Nineheart whispered.
"...The strongest."