For the first time in a while, every single student in the bleachers was eager to witness this next match, the best part of any aspiring Luni's school day, was the mock matches.
But, when Castor and Pollux stepped onto the battlefield together.
Everyone knew they'd be witnessing Lychinus High history.
...
"Fight!" Ms. Scarlett declared.
With no hesitation, Liyana made a mad dash towards Castor, conjuring her battle-axe once more, throwing caution to the wind.
She winds her arm back, preparing herself for a big swing!
Then-
...
She quickly jumped back, she retreated so far, she nearly hopped all the way back to the Lychinus symbol in the middle of the platform.
Her breathing became heavy, nearly hyperventilating, she was previously glaring at Castor, but now...
Her full attention was completely given to Pollux, who still sat on the stone floor, smiling.
Nineheart nervously approached the rattled Liyana, with an air of concern. "U-Um, W-W-Why did you stop...?"
Liyana did not respond, she stood there like a statue, watching Pollux's every movement like a hawk.
Pollux turned his gaze towards Nineheart."You really can't tell?" He chuckled assuredly. "Man, if you were still my only opponent, I might actually would've won one."
*SCHING!*
In an instant, twelve swirling portals of black opened up, rupturing the space around them, and protruding out of each one, was a different kind of sharp weapon, swords, axes, spears, knives, daggers.
Every single one was pointing directly at Liyana's and Nineheart's necks.
Nineheart screamed, falling to the ground in fear.
"Just one more step, and I would've made a Desdemona shish kebab." He mused. "...But I'm sure you already knew that." He smiled at Liyana, who did not share in his mockful, self-assurance.
She only held spite in her gaze.
Castor whistled jokingly, "Damn, she's staring hard. Hey, Pollux. I think the Desdemona girl may have a crush on you."
Pollux grinned scornfully. "Aw, sorry Liyana. But, I'm a busy man. I prefer to be married to my work-"
*CLASH!*
While they were fooling around, Liyana leaped into the sky when they weren't looking, bringing her axe down forcefully on Pollux, but Castor cut in front of him at the last moment, clashing his Odachi with her Banachek.
They enter a vicious clash, trying to overpower the other. But while they're engaged, Pollux reaches into one of the portals above, and pulls out a Zweihander.
With one swift motion, he swings his blade at Liyana's back!-
*SCHING!*
-and end up crossing blades with Castor on accident, Liyana jumped high into the sky, dodging out of the way.
They both immediately turn around, Pollux's shoots her a forced smile, an attempt to hide his annoyance.
He gritted his teeth. "Ah. Looks like you found out my trick already."
Liyana hoisted her axe into the stone ground in mid-air, the pointed tip on the bottom of the handle securing it tightly in the platform, she proceeded to land gracefully atop the singular spike on the head of her axe,
Standing up straight, and glaring down upon them both.
"...You have a Blue ARS. Hunting Ground Reload." Liyana said, her posture stern.
Pollux quietly grunted in frustration, he was hoping she wouldn't have read his mind so soon.
"Whoever engages in battle with you, will silently be pulled into your ARS, your ARS itself an open domain. It grants you the ability to create twelve portals composed purely of dark matter, each one holding a random weapon that only you can wield, or use as projectiles. But, if you are struck once, the domain closes, and you are unable to activate it again for ten minutes." She explained.
Castor glanced at Pollux, trying to gauge his emotions.
Pollux bit his lip, "Well, you're gonna have to hit me first."
Liyana raised her eyebrow. "...Who said that I was going to?"
Castor and Pollux looked at each other bemused. They searched her expression for what she was hinting at, but then, they glanced below Liyana, and realized something.
...Where's Nineheart?
"Prima Mutatio." A voice whispered from behind them, they felt a chill rush down their spine.
Castor side-stepped quickly behind Pollux, he didn't have any time to think!
*SLASH!*
"Urgh!" Castor screamed, feeling three large claws cleave down his back, cutting away at his tanned skin, the marks bloodied instantly.
Pollux quickly whipped his body around in shock, and he locked eyes with Nineheart.
But how!? How did she get behind them? When did she even move!?
He couldn't believe it, but she was standing right there, and something seemed terribly off about her appearance.
Nineheart's fingernails were unnaturally long, sharp as blades. Her timid demeanor slowly began to be replaced by an obsessive glint in her eye, she seemed enraptured with Castor's blood that was now trickling down her fingers.
She brought her hand to her chin, guiding her bloodied limb across her cheek, slowly bring her ring finger to her lips, the boys watching in revulsion as practically placed her entire finger on her tongue, she moaned in euphoria, smiling wide—
And revealing two sharp fangs, on each side of her teeth.
"Oh... Yes...!" She exclaimed, slowly caressing each side of her face—eyes rolling back wickedly into her head. "This taste is magnificent! Your blood is boiling! Please... Can I please have another?" Something in her voice changed, like a growl of a ravenous animal.
Castor jumped back in disgust, his face contorted, he looked revolted. "Ew! Oh, hell no!" He turned towards Pollux. "Dude! She's a damn Green-Lighter!"
Pollux examined her again, the sudden growth of her nails, the two sharp fangs hanging from the roof of her mouth, her disappearances, there were definitely some other details they were missing,
But these were all clear-cut signs of a 'Prima Mutatio'.
A Green-Lighter's first transformation.
Castor hastily picks up his dropped Odachi, steeling himself, then bounded towards Nineheart, he swung his blade, aiming directly for her shoulder-
*CLANG!*
Nineheart knocks the blade back with a swipe of her fingernails! Castor seemed caught tremendously off-guard by her strength, losing his balance from the force.
With a maniacal giggle, Nineheart took advantage of the opening, her speed was unbelievable, she swiped at Castor, managing to get a clean strike across his exposed collarbone.
He groaned, the force of the hit making his feet slide across the concrete, he had to plant his Odachi in the ground to regain his balance.
Pollux, however, was just biding his time, he waited until she was tired, silently opening a portal above her head, a giant sledgehammer protruding from its space.
*SMASH!*
Liyana lobs her battle-axe Banachek at the sledgehammer, knocking it from the portal, sending it smashing into the ground below.
Pollux sucked his teeth in frustration, but he didn't have the luxury of being upset for long,
Liyana suddenly thrust herself forward, conjuring her axe back into her hand, as she bolted for Pollux, closing the gap between them at an alarming rate.
Pollux acted fast, summoning each of his twelve portals, the weapons inside them varied, but he had no time to choose, he shot each of them out of the portals, traveling through the air at the speed of an arrow, all aiming for Liyana.
She didn't lose a step though, twirling and rotating her axe around her entire body like a spinning top, fending off the aggressive onslaught of sharpened steel.
Castor was doing his best to dodge Nineheart's attacks, until he noticed Pollux's situation.
His entire body enveloped with an outline of Red Light, he drew out Nineheart's slashes, trying to find just the right position to...
...Jump!
He caused Nineheart to whiff, then planted his foot right atop her left shoulder, and used her body as leverage to boost towards Pollux, swiping him up in a red blur, just as soon as Liyana reached him.
They both tumbled towards the far-end of the battlefield, groaning as they tried to catch their breath.
Liyana and Nineheart regrouped with each other on the opposite side, they gave a cheeky smirk to one another, before turning their attention back to the boys.
"Urgh..." Castor groaned, doing his best to pick himself up. "Dude... You owe me a Luxburger."
Pollux was the first to get to his feet, helping Castor up—flinging his arm around his shoulders to try and stabilize his stance.
Nineheart's eyes suddenly went wide, she giggled wildly, even catching a concerning side-eye from Liyana.
Without warning, Nineheart brought her right arm close to her mouth,
And bit down, hard.
"ARGH!" Castor and Pollux both fell back down. They both writhed on the ground as they clutched their right forearms. Liyana watched in shock, but Nineheart only covered her mouth with one hand, and giggled.
"Oops. Did I do that? Hahaha!!" She uttered madly.
Castor winced, putting an immense amount of pressure on his arm, trying to psyche himself up. He turned over to Pollux, "Please... Do not tell me that counted as a hit."
Pollux just sighed, and turned back to Castor, a defeated look on his face.
Castor groaned, he already knew the answer.
Liyana planted her axe into ground, and burst into hysterical laughter. "Hahaha! Oh my Light! Undefeated? Seriously? This must be an entire school full of pushovers."
Students in the crowd began to look at each other concerningly, some confused, but most of them whispering angrily at Liyana's snide comment.
She chuckled once more. "I'll tell you what, I wont beat you while you're down. I'm going to give you one chance to step out of bounds. I don't wanna have to embarrass you in front of the king." She raises her eyebrow mockingly. "Then again, if you do, you'll embarrass yourself anyways, then there's really no chance of you becoming a Luni. Hah!"
Castor and Pollux rose again, clutching the wounds they've sustained, being forced to listen to Liyana's conceited rant.
Castor shook his head, and glanced towards the skybox, to his surprise, The King was staring at him, but it didn't seem like he wasn't studying him, more so as if he was waiting to see how Castor would react, his next move.
He closed his eyes, sighing deeply as he held his wounded arm, his expression shifted, a fire raged in his heart.
"Hey." He murmured, Pollux's ear perked up, turning to face him. "...You ready to do this?"
Pollux was a bit taken aback from the sound of his voice, not because it scared him, but because his knew it all too well.
It's the reason they became friends, best friends.
...That fire in his blood.
Pollux smirked, now his blood was pumping. "You even got to ask?"
Castor responded with a toothy grin.
Liyana watched them quizzically, but Nineheart's smile from earlier seemed to fade, very quickly.
"Oh, shit." Nineheart said abruptly.
Liyana's gaze snapped to Nineheart, she didn't expect that to come from her. "W-What?"
Suddenly, the sky seemed to grow... a bit darker? Students in the bleachers excitement grew rapidly, looking above in awe, eyes glued to the Light.
Each of the 5 Lights in the sky became increasingly visible, each one sat next to each other in columns.
Then, something incredible began to happen.
First, it was the Red Light, it started to shine brighter than the other four, becoming almost blinding to the naked eye. Then, it was the Blue Light, instantly shining just as bright in tandem to the Red.
Soon, they were the only two Lights visible in the sky.
Castor clutched his Odachi, bringing it to his eye level. Then, he flung it high into the sky! Holding his hand out, awaiting its return.
Pollux sat below him, just as he did earlier. Only this time, he wasn't moving, not an inch or a muscle. In an instant, his twelve dark portals appeared, surrounding them both in every single direction.
Finally, the blade returned. Resting gently in the palm of his hand, and to Liyana's utter shock, he raised the blade to his neck, and methodically slid it across his throat!
*SZZZZ!*
As he did, two giant beams of Light—one red, and the other blue, struck down upon Castor and Pollux! The sheer force of the rays creating a blinding combination of Light, the amount of pressure emanating from them nearly knocking Liyana and Nineheart off of their feet!
...The skies returned, and the Light found equilibrium once more. The beams faded and...
Castor and Pollux emerged, donning an entirely new appearance.
Castor donned colossal, red butterfly wings—made entirely of Light. They swayed slowly, their glow majestic. His body was engulfed in Red-Light, not just an outline—his entire body seemed to be producing it.
Pollux, now stood tall beside him, his body surrounded by an aura of blue in contrast, with a wave of his hand, twelve ocean-blue flying orbs levitated from the ground, orbiting around his body, bending to the whim of his every movement.
...
Liyana took a step back, she didn't believe what she'd just seen. She couldn't...
Why...? Why them!?
Why had the Light given them such gifts!?
Castor reveled in her bemused expression, chuckling wryly. "...Should we still take you up on that offer?"
Liyana responded with a spiteful grunt, she glared at Castor with such resentment behind her eyes. "I wont... I wont lose." She muttered.
"I WONT LOSE TO A DAMN RED-LIGHTER!" She shouted, hurling her axe Banachek right at Castor's head with an incredible speed.
Castor did not flinch, Pollux just waved two fingers—and two of his orbs flew, the first one was sent directly at Banachek, and on impact, the orb expanded—morphing into a blue portal that absorbed her axe—
—and the second orb, expanded behind Nineheart,
*THWACK!*
And sent Banachek flying through it, smacking the back of her head with the blunt side of the weapon, knocking her out cold.
Liyana gasped and turned to look at Nineheart, unconscious. Her hands twitched, but she wasn't given anytime to react.
"Pretty unfair, right?" Castor suddenly appeared in front of her. "Sorry, but you lost before this match ever started. There's nothing me and Pollux can't do." Liyana reflexively threw a punch—and it connected square between the bridge of Castor's nose.
...But, he didn't move, he didn't even flinch.
He smiled. "Still, durable. Buddy."
*CRASH!*
Castor blitzed behind Liyana, even faster then before—he kicked her with such force, she went flying towards Pollux, and with a wave of his hand, one of his orbs struck her in the chest, carrying her by the torso—high into the sky!
Before she could react, Castor was already up there with her. He dashed by her, striking her with his fist, leaving a red streak in the sky. Then, a second time, and a third, then fourth, fifth, and sixth!
And with one final blow...
*SLAM!*
He sent her crashing into the floor below, Pollux, at the last second, placing an orb under her, breaking her fall—
But, sending her straight out of bounds.
The students erupted into cheers. Leaping to their feet, shouting and clapping echoing across the courtyard.
"Ring out! Your winners are Castor and Pollux!" Ms. Scarlett exclaimed proudly.
Castor flew back to the floor, as he landed—his wings faded back into Light, the red surrounding him falling back into a faint outline.
He looked around, taking in the thunderous applause, praise, and laughter. He was vibrating, this is what he lived for.
Pollux approached him, his blue aura from earlier also faded, as well as his orbs. But what replaced it, was a proud smile.
Castor could stop himself from jumping on his back. "Woo!! We did it Pollux! Still undefeated, baby!"
Pollux struggled to stay upright under his weight, "H-Hey! Get off me, man! You're fat as shit!"
They both drank in the moment together, Castor scanned the crowd of students, his eyes wandering to the skybox, in the back of his mind, he really only cared about the King's reaction.
But, when he saw the King—there was someone else in the skybox with him, it looked like a Luni, whispering in his ear.
Whatever the Luni said, seemed to really have upset the King, he had been completely emotionless until then, but now—he was furious.
He and the Luni marched off into the back of the Skybox, Castor raised his eyebrow, he thought he'd at-least get a pleased grin from him, considering what they had just pulled off...
Who else that he knows can combine their Light? This could be the one thing that gets them into the Luni, and he just walks off!?
Castor hopped off Pollux's back, and rested his arms on his own hips, he looked lost in thought.
"Ugh..." Nineheart groaned, regaining a semblance of consciousness. She studied her surroundings, when she saw Liyana lying outside of the ring, she just assumed they lost, which is something she knew would happen anyways.
She patted herself down, and noticed her Lychinus symbol pin was missing from her chest.
"W-What? H-Hey! You two!" She shouted at Castor and Pollux, they shot her a confused glance.
"Y-You knocked my pin off! Y-You ingrates!" She yelled, but she still sounded meek.
Castor and Pollux gave each other a baffled side-eye, and turned back to her. "Uh... A what grape?" Castor replied.
"My mother gave me that pin..." Nineheart quivered. "I-I need it, it's the only thing I have to..." She didn't finish her sentence, it almost looked like she was going to cry.
Castor clenched his jaw uncomfortably, rubbing the back of his head. "Aw, shit... Uh, hey... Don't worry, Nineheart. It's definitely around here somewhere... W-We'll help you look for it!-"
"No! Q-Quiet, you brute! 9th! The 9th circle! T-That's where you'll go when you die! I-I hereby banish you!" Nineheart mewled angrily, aggressively pointing in Castor's face.
...He just stood there, slack-jawed. This was the first time in his life that he's ever been lost for words.
Pollux stepped in. "Calm down, Nineheart. Seriously, we'll help you look for it. I mean, really—it couldn't have gone that far."
"Right?"