Nefira stood up and raised her hands toward her blindfold. The arena's lights caught on the fabric as she pulled it loose. Beside me, Radellei finally reacted. She leaned forward and muttered under her breath:
"She already won. There is no need for this to continue."
And before I could even open my mouth to ask what the hell she meant, Nefira vanished. One moment she was standing there with blood running down her shoulder and the next, she was behind her opponent. Even the commentators stopped talking. The cameras scrambled but none of them could track her. For a single second, the arena was nothing but Dayo standing tall, spear at the ready with his eyes flicking around in frantic confusion.
That was until the shockwave erupted.
My whole body lurched forward in my seat as the barrier between us and the stage rippled. If that barrier wasn't there, half the stadium would have been paste. The air roared like a jet engine, rattling every bone in my body. When it settled, the scene came into focus.
Dayo was face-down on the arena floor, unconscious. His clothes were shredded with shallow cuts and his spear was clattering out of reach. His face looked like it had taken out by a train. Meanwhile, Nefira stood over him, her blindfold now hanging from her hand before tying it back to her eyes.
IMy brain refused to process what I just saw.
"Wait—what—how? What the hell just happened?"
Radellei smirked, sitting back like she had been expecting my dumbfounded reaction.
"She used Luminous to turn invisible then combined it with Zephyr to amplify her speed and reinforce her momentum. You did not see it because you could not be able to."
"So you're telling me she basically disappeared, turned into a bullet and folded that guy in one hit?!"
"Exactly. It happened faster than your eyes could see. I caught it though."
"Of course you did. You're telling me you just… what? Watched her flicker and smack him silly while the rest of us saw nothing but wind?"
"And you did not. That says a lot, doesn't it, Mr Phaser?"
I groaned, leaning back into my seat, hiding the fact that my brain was still trying to replay something I never saw in the first place. The host was just as confused as me, by the way. His commentary had devolved into a mix of broken sentences and "Eeeh!?" before he finally raised his mic and declared.
"Lady Nefira Rameses is the winner of this round! She has advanced to the next rank!"
The audience erupted, half in cheers, half in sheer disbelief. A few were screaming her name and others booing Dayo for collapsing so fast. It was chaos but all I could focus on was Nefira casually adjusting her blindfold back on like none of this had mattered in the first place. Beside me, Radellei tapped her finger against the armrest.
"And did you notice something else?"
"I'm guessing this is where you tell me she was still holding back?"
"Exactly. Nefira didn't use a single Xana technique but Evocatio, and that's just the basic summoning of Flux. She hasn't touched Roborare, Occultare, or Augere."
I let out a low whistle, staring at the unconscious Dayo getting dragged off the field.
"If that wasn't her serious, then yeah, I don't even want to know what her seriousness looks like."
"You're going to have to."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"You don't need to worry about Evocatio since you won't use your Flux here. What you need to focus on is Roborare and Occultare. Roborare will harden your body. Occultare will hide your Xanw and movements. And Augere… well, Father will push you toward that before the year. That's your real battlefield."
I blinked at her, feeling both motivated and very, very doomed.
"Soyou're just casually planning my entire future while watching your sister demolish people?"
"Of course."
She smiled sweetly, which made it worse. Then she stood up suddenly.
"Come on."
"Where?"
"We're registering."
"Registering? I thought we were."
She glanced back, her smirk practically daring me to keep questioning her.
"As a duo team, Mr Phaser. It will be you and me."
"A duo? With you?!"
"Yes. Now get up. You will thank me later. You said you have a disguise so use it."
And before I could argue, she grabbed my sleeve and started dragging me through the rows of cheering spectators. The crowd was still buzzing behind us, chanting Nefira's name, booing Dayo and some just hollering random Swahili phrases I only half understood through the system. Radellei's grip was iron around my wrist as she dragged me down a flight of stairs leading toward the administrative level of the floating stadium.
Honestly, my brain was still stuck on the last seconds of the fight. Nefira went from eating dirt to knocking Dayo into unconsciousness with a move I didn't even see, and now here I was, being hauled around like a kid late for school.
"Hey, slow down. You're about two seconds from pulling my arm out of my socket."
"We need to register before the line builds."
And sure enough, when we turned the corner, there it was. It was a long, brightly lit counter stretching across the stadium's lower concourse. Behind it, attendants in sharp white jackets handled registration with the efficiency. A crystal emblem glowed faintly on the wall behind them:
[Continental Arcanum Tournament of Flux, Official Registry.]
Dozens of Fluxers were lined up, some solo, some in pairs, others with entourages of fans or coaches shouting advice. The air smelled faintly of ozone and sweat and above us, screens displayed brackets, shifting names and live updates of wins and losses. I wore Faceless Identity, the five star relic mask I got in the Relic Banner.
Radellei didn't even hesitate. She wove through the line with me in tow, drawing stares left and right. And why wouldn't they stare? She wasn't hiding who she was. People whispered, nudged each other and pointed.
"Is that… Lady Radellei Rameses?"
"She's actually registering?"
"And with some guy. Wait, who the hell is that?"
I resisted the urge to duck under my hoodie. Now everyone thought I was the mystery dude the House of Rameses dragged along for fun.
We finally got to the counter. The attendant, a sharp-eyed woman with braided hair pulled tight and a tablet in her hands, looked up. She raised her brows but didn't let her professionalism slip.
"Solo or Duo?"
"Duo," Radellei answered before I could blink.
The woman nodded and tapped something onto her screen.
"I see. Just a reminder, duo teams operate under the Crystal Ranking System. Like solos, duos are judged by crystal quality. There are five ranks: Quartz, Citrine, Sapphire, Ruby, and Diamond. Diamond is the pinnacle. New entries start at Quartz."
"Quartz, huh? So we're starting at literal shiny rocks?"
Radellei elbowed me in the ribs. "Do not mock the system that's about to decide your life expectancy."
The attendant ignored us and continued.
"To advance ranks, a duo must either win ten matches against teams of the same crystal, or win three against teams ranked one crystal above. Do note that severe injury and death are expected in these matches. Waivers are already assumed by participation. Do you understand?"
I swallowed. Death was expected? My throat was suddenly dry but Radellei didn't even flinch.
"Yes."
"Good." The attendant's fingers flew over the tablet. "Now, what's the name of your duo?"
And just like that, she hit us with the question I wasn't ready for. My brain began to hurt. A team name? Like we were forming a rock band?
"Well? You're the one with the imagination. Say something."
I panicked for half a second, then blurted the first thing that sounded remotely cool.
"The Neon Nomads."
I winced, half-expecting her to roast me alive for it. Instead, Radellei blinked, then smirked.
"Huh. That is actually good. Put it down as The Neon Nomads."
The attendant typed it in. A faint glow pulsed from the registry crystal embedded in the counter and moments later, she handed us a pair of crystal tags. They were thin, rectangular pendants strung on dark cords. The surface shimmered faintly with our team name etched across it: Neon Nomads. The material was quartz, milky and unimpressive. I stared at it hanging in my palm.
"This feels… underwhelming."
"It is supposed to," Radellei replied, looping hers around her neck. "Quartz is the bottom of the ladder. No one expects you to survive here."
"Comforting."
The attendant gave us a final glance.
"Your first match is scheduled tomorrow morning at nine. Be on time. Good luck, Neon Nomads."
She dismissed us with a flick of her wrist, already moving on to the next group of hopefuls. Radellei nudged me forward.
"We have a lot of work to do before then. Training, synchronizing tactics, oh, and figuring out which one of us is going to lead the other."
I shot her a look. "Geez, I wonder who you think is getting led."
She smiled sweetly. "Oh, you know the answer to that, Mr Phaser."
I groaned, dragging my hand down my face as we walked away from the counter.
"So, death, injuries, Quartz status and a first match in less than twenty-four hours. Anything else you'd like to drop on me before my anxiety rises?"
"Yes. We need to meet with the others first. They will have to know we are officially registered. And you will want to see what real synchronization looks like."
"You mean your sisters."
"Exactly. Now come along, Mr Phaser."