One Week Until the Tournament
With the Dawnforge Tournament only days away, every first-year returned home with a single goal in mind—prepare.
The academy buzzed with rumors, predictions, and excitement.But the real preparation happened far from school grounds.
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Astra Noire — Above Everyone Else
Astra had never encountered anyone close to her level.Not in strength.Not in speed.Not in flight.
To her, most opponents were obstacles, not challenges.
So while others trained desperately, Astra simply soared through the skies above Nexara—free, graceful, and untouchable.
"Hmm… I suppose Bam will put up a fight," she murmured to herself, lazily spinning midair."But it won't matter."
Confidence, not arrogance.She simply knew her own power.
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Bam Relic — Fists That Shake the Ground
While Astra floated through the clouds, Bam was the opposite—grounded, sweating, muscles screaming.
Inside a reinforced underground gym, he hammered a steel training dummy repeatedly.
THUD! THUD! THUD!
Each strike echoed like a sledgehammer hitting metal.
"I'm not losing the opener," Bam growled, wiping sweat from his face."Even if she's a monster… I'll push her harder than anyone ever has."
His brutal training continued long into the night.
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Roger Castellan — Speed in Motion
Inside a private running dome, Roger sprinted at full throttle.
Then he activated Momentum Shift.
FWSSHH!
He shot forward like a bullet, maintaining his initial speed as he zigzagged around obstacles.
"This'll be my edge," he grinned, leaping over a barrier."Control the speed… maintain the rhythm… and then—BOOM!"
He crashed into a padded wall and bounced off, laughing.
"Okay, maybe not boom like that."
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Rain Lancelot — Sculpting the Elements
Rain practiced alone in her family estate courtyard.
Water rose from her palm—glittering like liquid crystal.
She condensed it into ice.Melted it into vapor.Spread the moisture through the air, then froze it into tiny blades.
A soft breath escaped her.
"I need finer control… Voxen and Raze won't be the only strong ones."
Her focus sharpened.Calm, quiet, relentless.
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Zack Kreiger — Dancing With Flames
Zack trained in an isolated heat chamber.
Fire erupted from his arms, swirling wildly.
"Focus… don't lose control…!"
The flames roared higher, consuming the chamber's oxygen.
Then a shockwave burst outward—
BOOM!
The flames dispersed violently.
Zack sighed, smoke curling from his hair.
"Still not there yet… but next week, I'll show them real fire."
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Raze Arcwell — A New Weapon, A New Stage
Meanwhile, inside the Arcwell estate—in the deepest vault, beneath layers of security—a legend was forging.
Kael Forgebound, the world's greatest blacksmith, tightened his gloves and examined the shimmering dark alloy.
"What's left of the Abyss Alloy… it's barely enough," he muttered."But Arcwell requested a suit. And I never break my promises."
Hours… days… nights passed.
Until finally—
A sleek, reinforced, dark-blue combat suit lay on the forge table.
Lightweight.Flexible.Near indestructible.
And enhanced with microscopic nanotech threads woven through its frame.
Kael exhaled.
"It's done. The suit of a warrior with no Nexas… yet a heart stronger than steel."
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Training in the Arcwell Estate
When Raze wore the prototype suit for the first time, he felt it tighten and adjust to his body perfectly.
Luna circled him with her arms crossed.
"You look like you're about to jump into a war," she smirked.
"Isn't this a bit much for a school tournament?" Raze muttered, flexing his arm as the suit glowed faintly.
Luna flicked his forehead.
"Voxen Hale is not a normal opponent. And you're not a normal student."
She stepped back and clapped her hands.
"Again! Show me your evasion!"
Raze sprinted forward—Luna blurred—and the training session became a storm of motion, strikes, and counterstrikes.
Every misstep was punished.Every moment of hesitation corrected.
And every night, Raze collapsed into bed exhausted but determined.
"I can't lose… not after coming this far."
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The Final Days
Across Nexara, every first-year trained with desperation or confidence.
Astra soared.Bam struck.Roger ran.Rain shaped water.Zack burned brighter.Raze sharpened mind and body alike.
They each had their own goals.Their own burdens.Their own dreams.
And in just one week—
All of them would collide.
The Dawnforge Tournament awaited.
And none of them planned to lose.