Chapter 73: Round One Complete

The first round of the Thunder's test comes to and and after some members of it put on quite a show.

The waterfront was far from an exception as fights across the town continued. The river itself wasn't large, and would hardly appear in most maps of the region that didn't focus on smaller patches of the land. Flowing through and to the side of town, it was only 4m at its widest, and at its deepest, it was a meter deep. It was the sort of thing that one could easily imagine rarely overflowing. With its gentle current, you could leave all but the youngest children unattended by it and only worry about how wet they'll be at the end of the day.

Such gentleness didn't exist now as dozens of villains waged a frenzied melee through its waters and along its banks. Those who flocked had all been people with a quirk related to water, one that they were using to the fullest. Fists, kicks, shins, elbows, and knees were sent in every direction, blocking, countering, or attacking. The smack of flash against flesh and bone being cracked if not broken was a common theme.

But quirks made it all the more chaotic. A high-pressure blast of water left the hands of one fighter, knocking someone onto their back. Close by, at the river's banks, another fighter stomped their foot, coating the wet, muddy ground in a path of slippery water, which had several people stumbling to fight traction and stay upright.

To keep from hurting themselves or getting dirtier than they already were, a fighter formed a thin, curved sheet of river water, which she fell into, before throwing another up behind them to block an ice-covered kick that would have hit her in the back of the head, no doubt knocking her out.

She wouldn’t be the first or the 10th, as many had fallen. Yet despite people having secured their spot in the next round, it was only half the battle, and they knew it.

Maybe you took someone down, but with this many still fighting, you just knew things couldn't end. They wouldn't end until they were cut down to 40, as the test demanded. Maybe you could hide and wait things out, but that was no assurance you'd make it; all you'd do was block yourself off.

This was on the mind of one such fighter. A dark-skinned man, most likely in his 20s, with grey and green undercut/topknot styled hair and darting purple eyes, kept track of everything happening around him. His clothing seemed season-appropriate, the most apparent being his white and blue oversized jacket, its hood down.

Despite the insanity of the melee, he was as calm as an untouched stream. He moved low and coiled, simultaneously handling attacks and launching his own, keeping everyone back. Quick jabs fed into palm strikes and wrist and elbow locks, leaving people open to leg sweeps, which sent them toppling into the water, often face-first. Others would get a swift and brutal kick, breaking noses and sending blood-stained teeth flying.

Despite standing in the river, his feet did not touch the uneven riverbed; instead, they floated in little bubbles of water, giving him perhaps the best balance. To his side, someone slammed the water, shifting into a glassy blade and sending it towards him. His response was to shift the edge into frost and, with a precise heel kick, send it flying harmlessly into the air.

Seeing more coming towards him, now including people from the town, he took a breath, drawing in moisture before letting it out in a slow, controlled breath, one which sent a thin layer of ice in their direction, many tripping on it, and in turn, tripping up others. Twirling around, the water at his feet seemed to stretch and contort like pulled hot cheese, latching into his hands where it froze into elbow-length ice gloves.

Right as it finished forming, he sent a hard punch into someone's gut, the woman feeling every bit of breath knocked out of her, before another blow sent her flying back to the river, knocked out. The villain didn't speak; he didn't emote as he fought through the melee, adding to his body count to such an extent that the remaining turned on him, realizing he was the biggest threat.

Smart, but it wouldn’t save them, not when he was in such a zone.

He used the river's water in various ways, liquid being his favourite as he could compel it into his hands, forming it into whips and restraints which could keep people at bay, pull them in close, or otherwise strike with lightning-fast strikes. To add confusion, he would almost randomly face his hand to the water and clench it, willing it to burst into steam clouds, which blinded his opponents and allowed him greater means to mow through their numbers.

When those proved insufficient, or perhaps his current target had a quirk which countered such, he would defend himself and trip them up with ice. Creating barriers, shields, and higher elevations for himself or his foes, throwing them off. Of course, with everyone being wet, particularly those who ventured into the river, he could also freeze the water clinging to them, not enough to immobilise, but more than enough to slow and surprise them.

Ice would serve as his transport, as he would make boards of it and ride them around the place, a layer of water beneath acting as aquatic treads, giving him the greatest mobility. Even when others tried to surprise him and take control of his water, he hardly missed a beat, missed a step before he was back at it.

It seemed like he was untouchable, and the rest were beginning to notice.

That was something that came flying into the river, screaming bloody murder.

"Holy crap!" The man plummeted into the river with a splash and boom, almost like someone had dropped a truck. The fighting ceased, if only for a moment, as the remaining combatants, weary and scared, didn't move to handle it. After all, they believed that their foe would be the newcomer, who was in the water, and he seemed pretty much at home in it.

"Hmm?" Their opponent paused before reaching for his ears. To the surprise of all watching, he pulled out an earphone, one of two they hadn't even noticed. Looking at the disturbance, he could make out the features of the new guy. Tall and muscular, he seemed like someone had tossed a cassowary and a velociraptor into a blender. Yeah, he knew who this was.

“So, I assume you got your ass kicked?” The man asked, the other man growling, it coming out like the dangerous hiss of a trop predator that should have died out 65 million years ago.

"I didn't lose, Hibiki." The heteromorph clarified through ground teeth, which seemed sharp enough to tear through stone and steel as easily as one would devour marshmallows. "The dammed sheep just sent me packing.”

The first chuckled. “So you lost? Damn shame, Jason. Real damn shame.”

“I’m not in the mood for your shit right now,” Jason grumbled. He turned to notice that they were surrounded, but instead of being afraid or even excited, he just pointed to them with his thumb. “Say, you gonna finish up here?”

"Nah, my beat's been thrown way off. I hate fighting when I miss parts of the track. Have fun." Hibiki replied, before forming a pillar of ice, taller than the buildings, and sitting atop it, removing himself from the fight.

The rest of the villains were insulted by this, as they were seen as so much lesser that the two accomplices could discuss them like leftovers. But it at least meant one was out of the fight, so they could focus on the new guy.

That thought didn’t last as Jason smiled at them, his eyes almost glowing with delight. “Well, looks like I get to blow off some steam. Remember, fellas. You got the field advantage, and I’m not playing nice, so give it your best shot.” With that, he roared as he charged them, claws and talons to relieve much-needed stress.

Line Break

A green fireball shot into the air, exploding in a bright blast of light and heat. It was the signal; the first test was over.

Back at the starting point, Pyre and Mummy waited, standing at ground level as slowly the fighters all returned. Some looked bruised, others limping while supporting worse-off comrades, but they were all still awake, and most looked pleased with themselves, spotting just 39 more, discounting themselves.

"Congratulations, you 40 made the cut. We kept tabs on just about everyone, and while some might have taken things too far," Mummy started, his gaze going towards a few of them, such as a Shearwolf, Jason, and the Volcano Thieves. "No serious injuries were seen. Of course, most of all, you don't look like fresh daisies."

"You should see the other guys, " one yelled back, followed by prideful cheers, but Mummy didn't mind. He was, in fact, pleased they had made it, though some certainly did more than others to thin out the herd.

"We did, and you've even put in a lot of work healing all of them after we handle you lot," he started, further amused by how shocked they all seemed to be. But many looked away in a hurry, and Pyre glared back at them, offended and unamused by their lack of faith. "What? You thought we'd let you all limp back that messed up? Nah, ain't our style," Mummy added.

Somewhat sheepishly, they formed into a line and walked towards Pyre. Who would look one over, bathe them in flames, and while they screamed and cursed, within a few minutes, they were good as new—as if they hadn't just spent the better part of an hour fighting like their lives depended on it.

Some were worse off than others, but a few, those who had garnered the most attention from the proctors, were hardly injured. Their injuries would heal on their own in a couple of days at most, but that didn't mean they didn't join the line.

“Pyre,” the younger villain said, looking up at Volcano's face. The man was dirty but had no wounds to speak of.

“You must be Volcano, I’ve heard about you. You’re…one of the ideal.” Pyre mused, a light smile forming on his face, but it wasn’t returned as Volcano narrowed his gaze.

“What does that mean, boy?”

“It means,” Pyre started, not caring for the older villain's rudeness. You know the blessing that is the flames. They burn bright in you; I can almost taste it. Koharu certainly can.” He stated, as his serpent kept her gaze locked on Volcano. She had long decided he wasn't as comfortable looking as her human, a compliment that made Pyre smile all the more.

“You want to fight me? Best me even?” Pyre’s smile grew, his eyes starting to glow. “Like I said, I can almost taste it, but you’re not so difficult to read. Quite the opposite.” Smoke seemed from his lips, his inner flames excited and restless, but he had to regretfully clamp down on them.

“I’ll give you a match, but you must first join our ranks. So work hard.” He ended the conversation, daring Volcano to question or refute it, but he didn't. With a grunt, the large man turned to walk away, joined by the other gang members.

“Looks like he likes you, boss.” Dusty joked as Pyre went back to healing people in emerald flames, as sight she had to admit, was pretty terrifying. But knowing the people subjected to it would be back on their feet in less time than it took to make and eat instant noodles made the smell of burnt pork bearable.

"More like he wanted to set him on fire. The last time I saw someone look at anything like that was my buddy on a camping trip with some smores.” Gust Boy shivered, as there was something seriously wrong with the kid, but he and everyone else there already knew that.

It took another hour for Pyre to finish, as he went through the winners before jogging into the town's ruins, tracking down everyone who had failed and healing them. They had been brought together, and once they promised to keep their mouths shut about this, they were sent away; no point in their hearing the next part of it.

Pyre addressed the 40. "Okay, with the first part complete, it'll be a week before we can begin the second part. You should all get some rest and plan for what's to come."

"And what would that be? Another elimination free-for-all?" Kalee asked, but Pyre shook his head, a knowing smile forming as he held a finger to his lips.

“No, something…more precise. One which will be something the heroes will certainly feel.”

Line Break

Well, my computer guy, or place, wasn't open; they're closed for some minor maintenance, so it'll be a while before I can get my laptop checked, as it's been giving me issues, randomly shutting down, and at times, taking forever to start up. It gives options for it, but that would require entire programs being removed, so if I get desperate, I'll copy all of it to an external and reboot the entire system, and then re-install them, as no way in hell I'm downloading stuff like ZZZ again.

But with this chapter, we have the ending of the first round coming up, and I have plenty of people to whom I've planned to give some screentime and importance down the line. Some of them have already featured a lot in the previous chapters. Sadly, the chapter isn't that long due to some unforeseen circumstances outside my control. I would need to make up for it with an extended one next week.