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Chapter Nine: The Tournament Begins
The Azure Cup was underway, the matches were decided for the first around and the excitement could barely be contained. 128 MF pilots, each striving for the top honors of being the best of the best, the space arena glistened brightly as the sun’s beams spread across space. The first match of the tournament was only moments away from beginning. Adam and Stephen were stuck sitting in the crowd, they had at least 5 days before their own matches would be underway. The tournament was too big to be straight forward and need to be divided up into 8 sections. ‘A’ through ‘I’, right now section ‘A’ was up for their first round. The first day was completely devoted to both groups of section ‘A’, ‘A-1’ and ‘A-2.’ The matches for the day were: A-1 A-2 The first 16 matches of the tournament were scheduled for the entire day. The first match Zach and Reine was scheduled in the early morning around 7 am, if Adam didn’t know either of them he knew he would never have gotten up this early. What surprised Adam as well as Stephen was that Severen, one of the “Twins of Genesis” was participating in the tournament. They were both well aware that Caleb was the MF pilot of the two, and weren’t sure what Severen hoped to gain by entering the tournament. Adam yawned as his limbs stretched outwards into the air, his boredom was apparent. They had been sitting in the same harsh seats for the past hour as they waited for the match to begin. Heather was in the hanger making some adjustments to Blue Angel as she was scheduled for the third match of the day; Sharon accompanied her along with Ashley. It seemed that the three of them were becoming close friends, Adam was thrilled; he wanted Sharon to have friends, to have fun. Ashley unexpectatly showed up as their teams’ new OM (Operations Manager), so he was happy that she was taking the time to get to know Heather. This left Adam and Stephen in the crowd by themselves. Adam soflty nudged his brother in the gut to grab his attention. “Hey, where’s Mario been anyway? I haven’t seen him since we got here about a week ago.” Adam replied. “Oh, yeah I forgot. He’s been spending time with that Michelle girl, Michelle Dolce.” “Hehe, I see.” “Yeah, so I’m guessing that he’s with her right now, helping her get ready for her match today.” Stephen replied. “I see…I don’t know about you, but I hate having to wait. I mean I’m stuck in ‘E’ section, I have to wait until the 5th day of the tournament before I can fight. Meanwhile I’m stuck here watching everyone else.” Adam replied. He hated waiting, he had been anxious about this tournament since it was announced. Every nerve in his body was on end, he wanted the chance to fight against the very best Earth had to offer, without worrying about having to take a life. That was the thing about war; you were expected to finish off the opposing MF, possibly taking the pilot’s life. Adam hated that, he had respect for anyone who entered the cockpit of an MF; they were all the same after all. Fighting in order to protect their ideals, only he wasn’t sure what the TA was fighting for. The lights in the massive dome like structure began to dim while a massive LCD screen flickered on giving an image of space. It was a sight to behold, the abyss of vast darkness out stretching towards infinity, the boundary between Heaven and our world, or Hell. Two small dots sparkled in the distance, Zach and Reine were preparing for the match to go underway. Reine’s MF, Sigma floated eloquently with its weapons held to its side in preparation for the match to begin. Inside the cockpit his heart was racing, he hadn’t been performing any extraneous activities and yet he was sweating; he was nervous. He and Zach had become friends in the short period of time they had known one another, but they were about the same age, the youngest pilots registered in the tournament; they had to stick together. It didn’t matter that they were from different sides of the war, Zach from the EAP and Reine from the TA. Zach on the other hand was reacting in an opposite way, he was calm, focused and determined to win the match. His MF Hades was redesigned after his encounter with Adam on Mars. The orange and black MF held onto an energy scythe like Sigma, but was fueled with crimson energy. It was also modified to be able to send out waves of devastating energy. The right arm held onto a dual plasma rifle, a single round could cause the radiator of an MF to overload. Zach was eager to test out his new energy shield and energy scythe, since there was no gravity in space he figured that Hades could be equipped with a powerful rain cannon and wouldn’t have to worry about the weight killing his mobility. The two friends who by luck met in the first round of the Azure Cup firmly held onto their throttles awaiting the green light. “Who do you think is going to win this?” Stephen asked glancing over to his brother. Adam shrugged his shoulder as he took a sip of his cola. “We’ll have to wait and see…but if I have to make a guess, then I’m going to go with Zach.” Adam replied. “Caleb…” Adam mumbled. “Adam Novus. Its been a while.” Caleb replied. “Not long enough I suppose.” Adam replied, the sarcasm was distinct, he wanted nothing to do with Caleb. “Hmm, I guess I deserve that. I mean not telling you who I was.” “You lied.” “I don’t think I lied….no, no I didn’t lie. I never said I wasn’t an heir to Genesis. I just chose not to tell you, that isn’t lying.” “That maybe true, but you should have told us. You knew about Chimer and my brother!” Adam’s voice began to rise; Caleb definitely was not a person he wanted to see at the moment. Stephen calmly placed his hand onto Adam’s shoulder, the slightest graze from his fingers caused Adam’s shoulders to flinch upwards. “I knew nothing of that incident. I apologize Adam, but I have a match to prepare for. I hope that we get a chance to continue this conversation….in battle perhaps?” Caleb mentioned has he sneered walking away. Adam had to hold himself from jumping out of his seat. “In battle huh? Hehe, I hope you last long enough to meet me…” “Calm down, the battle started.” Stephen replied. The battle was indeed underway, bright crimson explosions filled the screen. Both Reine and Zach were moving too fast for the cameras to pick up. Their trails of energy were all that could be traced by the human eye. Adam smirked as he reclined back into his uncomfortable seat. His legs extended upwards resting on the top of the seat in front of him. “This should be fun to watch.” Hades dashed to and fro avoiding the six beams of energy that seared through space. The crimson beams shot passed the orange MF emanating a gleam of red light to reflect off the glossy metal of the MF’s armor. Zach’s eyes widened, Sigma rode behind the attack as a means of cover. Both arms of Sigma swung inwards as the energy scythe slashed through the upper layer of orange armor. The attack caused Hades to be thrown backwards violently. Zach smiled, his adrenaline was pumping at full capacity, and his blood was thickening causing his heart to beat faster with each second. “Impressive Reine! You caught me off guard with that one!” Zach screamed. The sound of his voice dug itself into Reine’s ears. Hades flipped over regaining control; the boosters ignited fiercely, the massive crimson flames palpated as the MF increased in velocity. Two thick beams of energy fired and blew up on the core of Sigma sending the MF flying backwards. Hades quickly boosted towards the out of control Sigma while firing blasts of heated plasma. Reine quickly turned the throttles to the side in an attempt to avoid the attacks. As the beams zoomed past they managed to clip two of Sigma’s four legs. The explosion of quickly spewing flames caused Sigma’s stability to become unbalanced. The throttle to mechanics was now distorted; the response was rugged and harsh. Sweat constantly flowed out of the pores on Reine’s face; his pupils began to fade from reality as he was sent into a dark shadowy abyss of fear. He could no longer control Sigma efficiently; his body fell faint as his arms slowly reclined to the side of his seat. Zach refused to let up now, all he saw was Sigma floating with its guard open for attack. Zach’s feet lightly angled over the accelerator sending even more thrust into the boosters. Hades began to emanate a slightly golden glow around core; the light began to quiver brightly grabbing the attention of every spectator. The dual plasma rifle suddenly dropped from the right arm as Hades grabbed onto its energy scythe. Zach became engulfed in his adrenaline unable to even think, his mind set on one thing; winning. The energy extended out from the scythe as Hades closed in on Sigma. Suddenly just as Hades prepared to strike Reine’s eyes burst open with a crimson glare never before seen, his fear appeared to vanish as his hands quickly grabbed onto the throttles. The head unit of Sigma abruptly began to emanate a crimson glow as well. The fingers of the MF firmly wrapped around its own energy scythe. Zach paid no attention to the movement of Sigma and quickly forced Hades to attack. Just as the energy scythe slashed through space it abruptly halted as it was blocked by the steam of Sigma’s own energy scythe. The entire crowd shouted a loud sigh in response to the shock. Adam continued to smile as he took a bite from his sandwich. “I knew it wasn’t over yet.” Adam replied. “What the hell?!” Zach screamed, he couldn’t understand how Reine could have countered his attack when just a second ago Sigma appeared to be lifeless. “…” Reine remained quiet, his eyes thinning narrowing his vision to focus on Hades and nothing else. His mouth opened wide to allow a massive low pitch scream to burst forward. Reine’s body leaned forward has he pushed the throttles with all of his strength. Sigma instantly reacted pushing the energy scythe forward; Hades refused to budge and continued to hold Sigma at bay. Zach’s eyes twitched as he saw the bright crimson flames explode out from Sigma’s boosters. Sigma began to slowly move forward pushing Hades back a few feet. His ivory teeth began to grind against one another in a fit of rage, he refused to lose in the first round. “I won’t lose!” Zach screamed. Hades then kicked Sigma’s core with its right leg knocking the MF off balance once again. Just as Hades began to swing the right arm Sigma’s sextuple energy cannon lifted up and fired. The six beams of energy burst into Hades knocking the orange MF away from Reine. As a mound of caliginous smoke lingered in space Sigma boosted forward. Zach shook his head from side to side as he pushed his body up from the control panel. His pupils faded and his emotions took control, the glow around Hades began to flicker even brighter. The spectacle caused Sigma to halt in its movements, and then Hades erupted from the smoke and zoomed past Sigma slicing through Sigma’s left arm. Sparks of electricity gleamed around the metal wound. Hades then turned around and dashed past Sigma once again and sliced off the right arm. Sigma jerked from side to side as Hades continued to speed past the MF swinging its energy scythe. Inside the cockpit Reine was thrown from side to side, his head smacking into the display screen causing the plastic cover in his helmet to shatter into thousands of pieces. The pieces slit through his skin, while others lodged themselves securely in his face. Streams of blood combined with his sweat dribbled down his face as he came to his senses. His chest rising with his racing heart beat. He then screamed in agony over the burning sensation that now engulfed his face. The scream echoed throughout space and into Hades’ cockpit. Zach then woke up from his own trance realizing that his friend was severely injured. As Hades slowed down Sigma was revealed in shambles, the cockpit was left as it was surrounded by its slain metallic limbs. “Reine…” Zach mumbled. “AH!!!!IT BURNS!!!! IT BURNS!!!” Reine continued to scream over and over again. Both Adam and Stephen jumped from their seats as did the rest of the spectators. “Zach…” Adam mumbled softly. From the back of the dome Rebel358 stood leaning against the wall chuckling under his breath. “Heh, the young H-3 is maturing this fast. This was unexpected. Well then, hopefully you will last long enough to face me in this tournament. I would like the chance to be able assess your talents…” He mumbled to himself as he slowly walked out the door.
“Do you think I’ll win?” Heather asked as she strapped herself into Blue Angel’s cockpit. Sharon and Ashley looked at one another and simply smiled. “You’ll kick that guys’ ass!” Ashley said as she winked. “Thanks you two, Sharon I’m concerned that you didn’t get enough rest though.” Heather mentioned. Sharon sighed; she then brushed her hair behind her ear and smiled. She always did that, smiled against negativity. “I’m fine. Just concern yourself with the match ahead. You want to beat out those guys don’t ya?” Sharon replied. “Heh, that won’t happen. But I’d like to make it past the first round.” Heather replied. “I’m sure you will.” Ashley replied. The voice boomed over the intercom. Now was the time, she had always fought in the shadows of Adam and the others, but this was her time to shine. Heather smirked as she stuck out her thumb to both Ashley and Sharon who did the same. Both of the girls floated down from Blue Angel’s cockpit towards the stable ground. Their hair flapping through the air conditioned hanger as their bodies floated like angels with flapping wings. “So seriously what happened to you?” Ashley asked. Sharon glanced at Ashley; the truth of the matter was that she didn’t know exactly what happened. The doctors told her she was a perfectly healthy woman, and that they saw no traces of anything that could be considered a health risk. What happened was a complete mystery. “I’ll tell you what I believe happened. They said that Adam passed out from pain in his cockpit at about the same time right?” Ashley asked. Sharon nodded, although she had no clue where Ashley was going with this. “Well I believe that the love you two share for one another created a mental bond. When one is in pain the other shares it and vice versa. So I think you felt his pain in the shower.” Sharon appeared shocked at first; she had never stopped to even think that was a possibility. She loved Adam, more so than she did anyone else in her life aside from her family. And right now he was the only family she had left in this world. Her hands clasped each other in front of her chest; tears began to sneak through her sealed eye lids and rolled down her cheek. “Heh, see.” Ashley mentioned as she hugged Sharon. “I love him…” Sharon mumbled. Adam and Stephen stood in the hanger as Hades and Sigma re-entered. Zach was declared the winner and moved onto the second round of the tournament. As Hades’ cockpit opened Zach jumped out floating over to Sigma as the medics lifted Reine’s seemingly lifeless body onto a stretcher. “REINE!” Zach screamed as he tried to flap his arms in an attempt to move faster. The medics ignored Zach and moved Reine towards the ground in order to get him to the infirmary. Stephen jumped into the gravitation-less atmosphere grabbing onto Zach. “Its alright they’ll take care of him.” Stephen mumbled. Zach fussed; he jerked his body as he cried. His tears forming bubbles floated out of his eyes and hovered eloquently in the air. His hair waving smacking Stephen’s face as Zach continued to bawl. “Its…*sniff*…its…*sniff* my FAULT! *sniff*” Zach yelled. “It’s not your fault. Reine knew the risks of piloting an MF. We are all aware of the danger. Get a hold of yourself.” Stephen replied. Adam sighed and glanced upwards, there was a TV screen displaying the second match of the tournament. An unknown MF pilot, Leo Ombra fighting against Severen; Adam smirked and turned all of his attention to the match. A crimson and grey MF dashed from left to right avoiding every bullet that the light weight green MF fired. Under the image of the battle were images of both MFs, the crimson and grey MF was known as Forsaken and was registered to Leo Ombra and the other was Severen’s; it appeared to be a cheap knock off of Caleb’s Gemini only with two assault rifles. A blinding ivory explosion filled the screen, as the explosion began to dissipate the green MF floated covered in sparks of electricity torn to pieces with only the cockpit remaining. Forsaken lingered behind holding up two energy sabers with searing beams of energy. The announcer soon made the message clear that Leo Ombra was the victor. Leo had just made the record for match length, the match ended in 30 seconds. A chill shook Adam’s body; he had never expected the pilots partaking in the tournament would have such a high level of skill and grace. Adam smirked... he couldn’t wait for his turn.
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