The crowd was still buzzing when Cecelia stepped forward.
Her opponent bounced lightly on his feet, grinning already.
Mr. Han raised a hand. "Declare abilities."
"Death by Laughter," the boy said. "If I can make you laugh, you won't stop until you submit — or die."
He contorted his face into something grotesque.
Cecelia stared at him.
Mr. Han turned to her. "Your turn, Cecelia."
Silence. Several seconds of it.
Then she turned and looked at Wayne.
"Hey," she asked flatly. "What's my power?"
The crowd collectively lost composure.
Wayne smiled — something oddly proud in it. "You can fly."
Cecelia nodded and looked back at her opponent. "Flight."
Someone from the stands: "How is that allowed?!"
Mr. Han ignored it. "Begin."
The boy launched into his routine, pulling faces, running through material, working for any reaction at all.
Cecelia didn't laugh. She hadn't laughed in years. She wasn't about to start now.
She closed her eyes.
Imagine all my problems burning away.
She raised her hand and aimed it calmly at him.
Wayne shot up from his seat. "You can't kill people here!"
Cecelia blinked. "Oh."
The boy went pale. He stumbled backward and raised both hands. "I quit."
It was over.
—
Alex vs. Tina.
Damien cheered for Tina. Loudly enough that Alex heard exactly who he was cheering for.
Her jaw tightened.
"Declare abilities," Mr. Han said.
Alex didn't break eye contact with Tina. "I can see people's energy percentages."
She clocked it immediately — Tina's negative ratio sat higher than her own.
Someone with as much positive energy as Damien deserves someone positive. I already have her.
Tina tilted her head at the hostility coming from a girl she barely knew.
"If it's a fight you want," she said, "then fine." She took a breath. "X-ray vision."
"Begin."
Alex charged.
Tina read it instantly — strong, but raw. No technique behind it.
She didn't drag it out.
"Bondfire."
A short wall of flame erupted between them. The heat caught Alex's arms and she dropped to one knee.
"I submit."
The match was over.
Alex stood slowly. She looked at Tina, something forming in her throat — but then she heard Damien cheer again. She watched Tina move toward the stands, slipping easily into Tyrone's arms. Tina glanced back, nervous, and waved an apologetic wave at Damien from a distance.
Alex said nothing.
An official guided her off the floor as her thoughts went somewhere they didn't come back from quickly.
—
Tyrone stepped into the ring.
"Declare abilities."
"Mirror," Tyrone said. "I can instantly learn and copy any physical movement I observe."
Mr. Han signaled the start.
Tyrone vanished. One clean downward strike. His opponent collapsed.
Silence.
Damien frowned. "He didn't even give them a chance. To show what they could do."
Wayne shrugged. "At least he's not wasting our time."
"He crushed their spirit. I let my opponents go all out first."
Tyrone didn't respond. He collected Tina from the stands and left. Neither of them stayed for the remaining matches.
—
The following days moved quickly.
By the end of the week the semifinals were set.
Damien vs. Cecelia.
Tyrone vs. Tina.
—
Ninety-five percent positive. Ninety-five percent negative.
They stood across from each other in the arena.
"Any tips?" Cecelia asked.
Damien raised his fists. "Just don't hold back."
She smirked faintly. "I wasn't planning to."
She stepped back. The ground beneath her feet began to rise, slow and deliberate.
"I noticed you like to probe your opponents first," she said. "You might want to rethink that."
Damien smiled. "I'm just glad to see you getting your personality back. Let's see what you've got."
In the stands, Wayne stiffened.
Something behind him — the sense of someone standing too close, breath almost at his neck. He turned.
The seat was empty.
He looked at it for a moment. Said nothing.
Mr. Han's voice cut across the arena.
"Begin!"