Blocken, Kaia and Basil walked up the steps to the platform to be greeted by Radim. Apparently, the other team hadn't showed up yet and he needed someone to interview.
"So I hear you guys are Kodomo-gumi, a sect of Hao's team. Your team name, that means the 'Children Team,' correct?"
"That is correct." Basil confirmed in the microphone.
"Why are you called that?" Radim asked.
"Because we are mere children, duh." Basil said crossly. Radim was taken aback by his own stupidity.
"Do you think you'll win even though you haven't seen your opponent yet?" Radim asked Blocken. He had to squat down to reach his size.
"I cannot say at the moment." Blocken replied.
"What about you, cutie?" Radim blushed as he put the microphone in front of Kaia and fixed his sunglasses.
"I will win as long as you root for me." Kaia winked and waved to the audience. She was overwhelmed with the power of the stage. Basil rolled his eyes and sighed.
"She's full of confidence folks!" Radim shouted.
Hao dropped his binoculars and smiled. "Kaia has a really funny personality. She looks like a young woman but she can sometimes act like such a child."
"She's never been taught how to act. Thanks to Turbine, she is learning." Lucchist said. He sat in the seat next to Hao, a towering black bishop piece with a book.
"I find Kaia's past really interesting. It's a shame she can't remember anything or else she would be searching for them." Hao looked through his binoculars again. "Here come the Pixies."
"Has the match started already? Man, I overslept." A boy scratched his head as he came through the archway. He slicked back his short white hair and frowned. "Come on you two."
Suddenly two pale girls came up to either side of the boy. The girls were twins. They both wore silk blue dresses with white bows around the waists and Mary Janes with calf-length white socks. Their hair was so blonde that it was white, almost like the boy's. The girls' hair was pulled up into two ponytails sticking out either sides of their heads.
"They look possessed, like Marion." Kaia said, referring to the Italian girl from Hana-gumi.
"Indeed." Basil inquired. "They hardly look alive." He squinted his eyes at the boy. "But that boy is so much like...Yoh."
Kaia looked at Basil through the corner of her eye. Basil had clenched his fists and his aura was quite angry. Basil hated Yoh Asakura because Hao was obsessed with him. Kaia thought it queer that Basil had such a hatred against Yoh.
Radim ran up to the Pixies when they landed on the last step to the platform. "So where are you three from? Are you their brother? Why are you called the Pixies?" He bombarded them with questions.
"We're from Ireland and we are descendents of Morgana Le Fay." The boy said loudly in the microphone.
"Ah, wasn't she the sister of King Arthur?" Radim asked.
"Damn straight. But she never got the throne. Mordred tried and failed. But now we are going for an even bigger throne and we will rule as a family, as it should have been. The Pendragons will become Shaman King!" The boy raised his fist high in the air. The two girls copied him.
Kaia sighed. "What's the battle plan?" She asked the other two.
"Sit and wait. Evade any attacks until you have studied your opponents' moves. Then unleash all you can on them and destroy them." Blocken ordered.
"Both teams are quite confident! How will this turn out?" Radim pepped up the audience.
"Just get it started already!" Basil shouted.
"Right. 3...2...1, Begin!" He leaped out of the middle of the field.
"What's up shorty?" The boy called over to Blocken.
Kaia looked down at Blocken. He stayed quiet and unnerved even though she thought he would be very irritated by that comment. The Pixies were trying to intimidate and provoke them.
"Too young to talk, huh? Hey announcer dude! Isn't there an age limit in this tournament?" The boy asked.
"Nope, as long as you are a shaman and have passed the Oracle Bell test, anyone is qualified." Radim replied.
"Hm." The boy hummed as he stared at Kodomo-gumi through his orange visors. "What about you girlie? What would you do if a bull came charging at you huh?" He laughed along with some of the audience.
"Just stay quiet, if you get angry they will use that against you. You can concentrate all of your anger later when it comes time to defeat them." Blocken whispered.
"You guys are awfully boring." The boy sighed as he put his hands on his hips. "I was hoping to have a little fun with you guys but I guess I'll have to rush this and destroy you three right away. It's about dinner time and my sisters are hungry." The girls both rubbed their stomaches. "Go, Oberon!" The boy held up a golden leaf in his hand and a golden light flashed out and sped at Kodomo-gumi.
"Evade." Blocken announced quietly so only Kaia and Basil could hear.
When the golden spirit came flying at them, they quickly dashed out of the way at the last moment. Blocken looked about to observe the outcome of their movement.
"Kaia!" He shouted as he saw her being held captive by a goat-human spirit. She had dropped her staff and was basically useless as she struggled in the pungent grip of the satyr.
"Nice job, Puck." The boy smirked. Beside him, one of the girls held up a pink primrose glowing with a pink aura.
"So those are your spirits. I never thought that they could be real." Blocken said as he looked at both Puck and Oberon.
The boy smiled. "Yep, the elf king himself is under my control. His accomplice, Puck is my sister, Miriam's spirit. Katherine, would you mind introducing Titania?"
"No way." Basil stared in awe as a blue figure appeared from the blue flower in Katherine's hand. "This can't be real. That can't be Queen Titania, queen of the fairies!"
To be continued in Chapter 22!