Chapter 10: The battle ends
Hatake watched as the two incendiary rounds moved closer and closer to impact. Time had slowed down in his perception enough for Hatake to notice every inch the projectiles moved. He tried desperately to twist his body around in the air but the cone of cold cast by Magic's Owner had numbed his body. Slowly, ever so slowly, the shells moved closer and closer until they finally collided.
In an explosive blast of heat and light, Hatake's perception of time returned to normal. A cloud of smoke erupted with the blast obscuring the scene of battle. Hatake, who had been at the center of the explosion, was thrown to the ground by the violence of the ground. Hatake rolled as gracefully as he could as he hit the ground. He looked around desperately trying to figure out where he was in relation to everyone else but his search was hampered by the blinding affect of the explosion and the obscuring smoke all around him.
In the stands above the battlefield knights cheered, gasped, or booed as the explosion rocked the arena. In the middle of the Dragon seats a few TeamRocket members held their breath in both shock and anticipation. Roulette, the dual gunner who had first met Hatake and his companions on their mission to Meteorite Cave, and JapansAce, the striker with a faithful toaster were two of these breathless members.
"Do you think that just took him out?" Natsuki asked Jace. Natsuki joined up with TeamRocket just after the Meteroite Cave mission and had quickly become great friends with JapansAce. She was a dual gunner with remarkable potential and a keen eye for detail.
"No, it couldn't have. He is much stronger than that." JapansAce said with a look of shock.
"Oh-ho? Do you have a thing for Hatake?" Asked MysticLove. MysticLove was a crasher who was new to Dragon School and had joined up with the rockets the day before the school challenge. She loved smashing things with a hammer almost as much as she loved the thought of love.
"N-N-NO! Wh-wh-what gives you that idea?" JapansAce stammered.
"Oh? But isn't he the one who has caught you every time you fell or when you were thrown across the Meteorite Cave by that giant mouse skalari?" Mystic asked innocently.
"Yes…" JapansAce quietly replied with a flush.
"Hey, pay attention, the smoke is clearing in the arena!" Roulette yelled at the trio.
All three turned quickly back to the arena, eyes intent upon the clearing smoke. The smoke drifted lazily upwards, drawn by the ventilation fans all throughout the large arena. In the center of the clearing smoke stood Hatake, covered in dirt and completely bereft of a shirt.
"ABS…" said a flushed Roulette, JapansAce, Natsuki, and MysticLove simultaneously.
Hatake stood in his fighting stance, blinking away the last of the blinding affects of the blast. The smoke around him was thin enough now that he could make out his surroundings. All five members of the Owl School team were standing before him, weapons drawn but just out of gun range. Behind him Hatake heard the steps of his four team mates running towards him.
Hatake's headset crackled to life with a long whistle from Pypski. "Nice abs Hatake, what happened to your shirt?"
"Must have been a wardrobe malfunction" answered Daybunny.
"A wardrobe something alright" Laughed Hideki.
"You guys might be right there, but no matter. That shirt barley boosted my stats. I could fight naked and only lose a few stat points." Hatake said brushing the dirt from his shoulders.
"OP!" Pypski sang.
"Let's get back to winning this" Blissbunny chimed in.
Blissbunny began chanting her healing spells and almost immediately a warming sensation rushed over Hatake. Then all five rockets unleashed their team buffs, infusing their comrades with improved defense, critical, agility, health, and strength. Across from them the Owls were doing the same.
Hatake's headset displayed that the score was now 1400 – 1390, still in the Dragons favor due to their two terminals to the Owl's one. If the Dragons could hold off the owls for just 400 more seconds the match would be theirs, fail and they will have let down their school and the Headmaster who had risked so much by only selecting TeamRocket members.
Both sides let lose a volley of long range spells and bullets and just like that, the battle was back on. A fire seed flared to life from Blissbunny's outstretched palm and streaked towards the owls. Magic's Owner made a few gestures and cast forth an ice spear which countered the fiery attack with a steamy hiss. Fire seeds leapt forth again, this time from the Owl priests streaking towards the Dragons. Both were countered by Daybunny's well placed hail shots.
Between the magical blasts and stinging bullets Pypski and Hatake charged forward. Hatake used his superior agility to dodge left, right, and spin around attacks from both sides while Pypski who was slowed down by her heavier armor merely swung her massive hammer back and forth knocking away any attacks that got to close.
Cpt. Tatsumiya and Magic's Owner charged into the fray in order to stop the forward momentum of the Dragon School's fighter classes. Magic's Owner traced a star pattern in the air with his left hand and chanted as he ran. When he was within ten feet of the fighters he swept forth his arm casting forth a cone of cold. The cold swept through Hatake chilling him to the bone and leaving icicles forming on his bare chest. Pypski was hit just as hard by the attack as her metal armor froze and slowed her progress.
Cpt. Tatsumiya skidded to a halt just past Magic's Owner and let rip a rapid burst of shots from his pistols. The shots blasted into both Pypski and Hatake knocking them backwards. Before Cpt. Tatsumiya could fire off another volley though, Hideki Hinata fired off a debilitating shockwave that made it impossible for the target to concentrate on using their skills. The shockwave passed through Cpt. Tatsumiya and Magic's Owner without any visible damage but both grabbed at their ears grimacing.
Hideki Hinata closed ranks with Pypski and Hatake who were just recovering from the cold spells and pushed forward towards the Owl elementalist and dual gunner. Around them magic spells and heavy artillery blasted back and forth. Pink energy spheres would encase one opponent or another inflicting damage just to be healed by a Dragon or Owl Priest. Lightning blasts arched through the sky and hot shell casings clacked off the ground.
The Headmasters looked down at the battle from their seats in the VIP box. Both had looks of approval for their young students who were fighting valiantly in the arena. The arena announcer sat in the same box as the Headmasters, which hung from the center of the ceiling. The floor and walls of the box were almost entirely glass infused with protection spells. The announcer watched the scene through the floor and on his monitors, constantly adjusting the cameras for better angles. Sweat was pouring from his face as he tried to keep up with the action.
In the stands, both Owls and Dragons looked on in amazement at the chaotic scene of power below them. The crowds roared when Daybunny fired an explosive round that threw StrangerD3RK to the ground and hooted when StrangerD3RK replied with four rockets that blasted into the floor around both Bunnies. The intensive exchange of long range magic and gun fire magnified the intensity of the close range combat in the middle of the chaos.
Hatake sprinted past Hideki, claws outstretched as he prepared to use a claw dive attack. Hideki fired around Hatake in an effort to force the Owls to concentrate more on dodging bullets than Hatake's incoming attack. Pypski charged in the wake of Hatake, bringing her hammer up and rolling her shoulder forward.
Magic's Owner deployed a barrier shield to absorb most of the damage from Hideki's rapid fire. Chanting, Magic's Owner began an intricate pattern of gestures and tracing of runes in the air. His eyes moved rapidly over his targets determining their predicted path while he maintained the concentration needed to cast his spell from memory. Cpt. Tatsumiya was dodging Hideki's gunshots rhythmically; dodging left, spinning right and firing back in-between. His dance spun him protectively in front of Magic's Owner who was still chanting words of power.
The air crackled with power all around Hatake as the spell Magic's Owner was preparing neared its climax. Then, the air exploded all around him as the spell was released. Meteors materialized in the air, just below the ceiling box that the headmasters were sitting in. The meteors rained down upon the Dragons, exploding as they slammed into the ground. To the Owls, it seemed that the Dragons would be armor locked beneath the magical onslaught or forced to retreat back to their long range team mates.
The Dragons were not just any Dragons though; they were TeamRocket, a club notorious for being crazy enough to do whatever it took to win. Pypski swung her hammer up and out slamming into a meteorite with her legendary strength. The force of the blow sent the flaming rock into the far wall with a tremendous shockwave and shower of crumbling rock. A laser beam from Daybunny blew apart another meteor that was descending upon Hideki, who blasted the smaller chunks to dust with his pistols. Hatake used his superior agility to jump from meteor to meteor, propelling himself high into the air.
StrangerD3RK launched more missiles into the fray, accompanied by fire seeds conjured by Kilai and CristinaSollo. Not to be outdone, Magic's Owner threw bolts of lightning at the elusive dragons while Cpt. Tatsumiya added grenades to the deadly bombardment. Pypski knocked another meteor away with her hammer sending it towards the line of Owls. The meteor collided with the missiles, spells and grenades the Owls had launched and exploded in a cloud of dust.
Pypski burst through the cloud of dust, shoulder forward and hammer extended behind her. Cpt. Tatsumiya instinctively jumped backwards avoiding the initial shoulder blow. Pypski's hammer swung out and around as Tatsumiya landed. With no time to dodge Tatsumiya threw his guns up to parry the blow, but Pypski's inhuman strength carried the hammer through the defense and swept the dual gunner to the side.
Magic's Owner scrambled to cast a fire ball towards Pypski as she finished her swing. Hideki burst through the cloud of dust ducking low underneath the elementalist. The burst of movement shocked Magic's Owner and foiled his spell as he brought his staff around to block any incoming attack. The attack came as Hideki flipped his guns in hand and gripped them like tonfas, swinging them in tight to his forearms in a spinning attack. The guns connected with the staff with a clink but very little impact. A well placed shot from StrangerD3RK connected with Hideki's shoulder which forced him to spin away from Magic's Owner disengaging the close combat fight.
Laser beams, fireballs, and bullets screamed through the air all around the combatants, punching holes through the thick dust cloud as they appeared on one side and disappearing just as rapidly on the other. A metallic clang sounded as Pypski connected her hammer once again with Cpt. Tatsumiya sending him across the floor towards Magic's Owner. Tatsumiya rolled against the momentum until his feet were under him and he skidded to a stop next to the elementalist once again.
A dark shape descending through the dust cloud above drew the attention of Magic's Owner and Cpt. Tatsumiya. Both looked up in time to see an inverted Hatake dive through the cloud with his claws outstretched before him. The dual gunner and elementalist leaped to the side as Hatake impacted the ground with all the force of a meteor. A shockwave rippled out from the point of impact sending dust flying outward. Hatake rolled forward bringing his right foot down in an axe kick aimed at Cpt. Tatsumiya. Tatsumiya had just enough time to raise his guns in a cross block that caught Hatake's foot. Hatake pushed off the ground with his left foot and tucked into a back flip disengaging from the cross block. As soon as his feet hit the ground he quick stepped in slashing forward and out.
Hatake's claws grazed Cpt. Tatsumiya who wisely dove backwards into a roll. The roll brought him safely out of Hatake's immediate reach but provided another problem in the form of a dark hammer shaped shadow. Tatsumiya threw all his might into diving to the side just before the hammer would have struck. The tremendous blow shattered the stone where the dual gunner had just knelt.
Magic's Owner was fairing slightly better. After Hatake's sudden attack he had been caught in a duel with Hideki. The Dragon dual gunner though, never gave Magic's Owner a chance to cast a spell. Hideki would sweep his guns in tight and low causing Magic's Owner to block with his staff or quickstep backwards out of the attack. Any progress he made on making enough distance to cast would be interrupted by Hideki's rapid fire of bullets.
It seemed to Magic's Owner that Hideki was merely trying to contain and delay him from casting, a realization that came too late for the elementalist. Amid the sounds of battle a horn blared. All combatants ceased attacks trying to discern what the horn meant. The magical barrier devices activated in a sparkling array of lights, teleporting all of the fighters to a floating stage that had appeared just below the Headmaster's ceiling box. The combatants were arranged in their teams facing each other on opposite ends of the stage.
"Excellent Job! Well Done!" Exclaimed the Owl headmaster in his musical voice as he descended a set of invisible stairs from the ceiling box to the stage.
"A battle worthy of full-fledged Knights!" Declared the Dragon Headmaster in his husky voice as he descended a second set of invisible stairs.
"The battle is over, and a winner has been determined."
"With a final score of 1800-1650, Dragon School has won the School Challenge here in Marble Battle Stadium."
A roar from the Dragon audience erupted at the declaration. Dragon School had triumphed in the first School Challenge of the year. The five chosen Dragons, all members of a club who was not well received by even members of their own school, had defeated powerful opponents from the Owl School. TeamRocket had won the day for their school while securely cementing their name in the legends that would follow.
The two teams bowed to each other, shook hands and smiled, for even though they had just fought each other in an all out battle, they had come to truly realize its meaning. That wither they were Owl or Dragon, they faced similar dangers with similar skill and that it was up to them and their fellow knights to protect this world from the evil Skalari, a world that would need saving all too soon.
End