The day of the tournament has arrived, and thanks to Lincoln's daily grind, the entire school has been caught in a frenzy. Everyone woke up early to give themselves one last pep talk.
Except Lincoln. He was still sleeping when Ichika and Charles went out for an early warm up. He woke up when he was alerted to some choice emails:
HOW...THE HECK... DID YOU FIND OUT?! HOW?!?!?!?!?!
-LJ
I thought you'd be happy to know that our three eldest siblings and our parents have gone to see Dr. Lopez for family counseling. Apparently, they were all so very alarmed at whatever your flashbacks revealed that they started to piece together their apparent degradation of morals. I would assume your theory would be correct. Your body shield did indeed start the trend of scapegoat punching bag, and now they're paying for it.
-Lancy Lisa
Dude, where are you? I haven't been this far on the fritz since J-and-J. I already miss the slow jazz we'd share when trouble came knocking. Sam's always been there, but I'm only hanging on by a moment, bro. I can't afford any more.
-Lunes
By the time you read this, I'm afraid Lynn will already be in the football and volleyball finals. I think her teammates have already taken more than their fair share of digs at me, but it's nothing she can't handle, probably more than the others know how to handle it. Listen, man, everyone's been in a severe panic since...they knew you remembered. We thought you'd react harshly if you suddenly remembered that day, but Luan said you didn't. So, we don't know what to think.
-Clydesdale
"Well, now I know what to think," Lincoln thought, "I think I won't come home for the holidays."
After he finished responding, Lincoln wandered off to the cafeteria. Once he sat down to eat, all eyes were on him. Only a handful of girls paid attention to his status as the world's youngest pilot; the rest of them were gunning for payback. But he didn't care because he knew he did more than enough to gain an ally in Laura.
But he couldn't help but wonder how Lynn felt when her big tournaments were rolling around the corner. The hallway leading to his assigned holding area gave him plenty of time to absorb his surroundings and think about his return trip home. If he ever takes one, because his stay at school sounded much better than the inevitable chaos at home.
Arenas 2, 3, and 6 were completely full. Everyone who was participating in the class tournament had already moved to their assigned lockers. Lincoln had found a "good luck" package in his, complete with a doll wrapped in a Squirrel costume with its mouth sewn shut, among other choices decorations.
"It's the thought that counts," Lincoln closed the locker door and found Kiyoka waiting for him.
"So we finally meet," Kiyoka said.
"And here I thought my birthday gift was from you," Lincoln responded.
"I don't know what you're talking about. Maybe your motormouth has finally run its course?" Kiyoka walked past him and brushed her hair in his face.
Lincoln changed into his battle uniform, right before he was yanked away by another student, "Whoa-Hey!"
"Hello, you," Sayuka hissed.
"Intimidation? Really?"
"Just wanted to make sure you knew your place. You better not try anything funny before I pummel you, Loud," Sayuka said before feeling a cold metal guitar on her shoulder. She turned around, "Huh-EEP!"
"Wanna change those lyrics any?" Night Club was right there with her guitar to Sayuka's neck. High Card was standing at the left with her fuzzy die and his IS in belt form ready to wrangle, and Strong Suit was standing at her right with a dumbbell ready to punch.
"Heard you've been giving Ace quite the petty lip while we've been gone," High Card growled.
"I've been itching for some payback for two weeks now," Strong Suit's words made Sayuka back away from Lincoln.
"You guys came here?" Lincoln asked.
"That Maya woman did a major number on your suit," High Card gave the belt to him, "Never would've been able to walk around like this without her."
Lincoln was touched to hear that someone went the extra mile to repair and improve his IS. "Well... I guess we owe her," he took the belt and put it back on.
"Darn right we do," Strong Suit nudged, "We owe her a big win!"
"I'm feeling real good about this one, y'all," Night Club said, "I can't wait to show them my new threads!"
"Take it easy, metallurgist," High Card bopped her head, "We have to find Bodewig first."
Laura had just finished changing into her battle uniform when she looked to her right and saw Lincoln walking towards her with his three trusted partners.
"Morning, Laura," he waved, "Everyone's here."
"Unglaublich..." Laura whispered.
"Yeah, took me a while, but I got the whole squad here."
"Hey, I know you," Strong Suit poked Laura's garterbelt, "You tried to do us in."
"You're partnering with this psycho app wap?" Night Club peered into the red eye.
"Ok, you two!" Lincoln yanked them down and dragged them to the nearest monitor, "Huddle up!"
"Is everyone acquainted with him this over eccentric?..." Laura groaned. Then, she noticed an accessory attached to his belt, "What is that?"
While Lincoln was sharing his experiences with his other two teammates, High Card swiped the handicap buckle from his belt and showed it to Laura, "This is a handicap on Ace. Required for all school-sponsored matches. His shield will match yours, and he can only call one ally out at a time. If he takes it off, his entire side is disqualified."
"Exactly how feeble are these people?" Laura shook her head before the monitor signaled the match selections.
OPENING TOURNAMENT BRACKET PLACEMENT: ROUND OF 16
"Hey, They're posting the first round matchups," High Card said.
"So it seems..." Laura waited for the names to come up. Once they were displayed, she called the rest of the squad to her side.
They took note of all who were listed in their bracket, but only five key battles were of concern to them:
MATCH 1: LINCOLN LOUD (12, USA) - LAURA BODEWIG (16, GER) vs KIYOKA AIKAWA (15, JPN) - SAYUKA YORUTAKE (15, JPN)
MATCH 2: AKINA SHINOHARA (15, JPN) - HANA SUZUKI (14, JPN) vs AIKO SATOME (15, JPN) - MANAME HONDA (15, JPN)
MATCH 4: CECILIA ALCOTT (15, GBR) - LINGYIN HUANG (15, CHN) vs YUZUME TANIMOTO (15, JPN) - SHIZUNE TAKATSUKI (15, JPN)
MATCH 6: HOUKI SHINONONO (15, JPN) - KANZASHI SARASHIKI (16, JPN) vs HOTARU FUJIKO (15, JPN) - SHIORI TOMINAGA (15, JPN)
MATCH 8: TINA HAMILTON (15, USA) - HONNE NOHOTOKE (15, JPN) vs ICHIKA ORIMURA (16, JPN) - CHARLES DUNOIS (15, FRA)
"Oh man...we've got quite the climb..." Lincoln gasped.
They were up first, so they gathered in holding area 2-3. Night Club, Strong Suit, and High Card fizzled out of existence while Lincoln and Laura prepared for battle.
"Do they have personal units?" Lincoln asked.
"No," Laura answered, "From what I gathered, they're going into research and development, so their piloting and maneuvering skills aren't a huge priority to them."
"Even so..."
Laura stared at the data screen, "It appears Kiyoka will be using the Uchigane Samurai configuration. Sayuka will settle in its Yumi configuration." Then she turned to Lincoln, "What say you? Can you provide a satisfactory tactic?"
"Hmm..." Lincoln scratched his head, "We can't say anything certain based on their day and fighting capabilities, but we do know a vital bit of information."
"What is that?"
"They hate me."
"So?"
"So..." he started to map out their battle plan, "they'll be so focused on me that they'll forget to consider you."
Laura scoffed, "Are these girls that petty?"
"Only one way to find out," Lincoln walked ahead of Laura, "We'll follow the Lightning Rod protocol. I'll be the point man."
Laura thought of three other plans to win this battle slightly faster than his plan, but decided against it since she wanted to see how far he has progressed in his training. "Then I will stay behind you," She muttered as she walked to the edge of the platform alongside Lincoln.
Lincoln saw Kiyoka and Sayuka already suited up and banged his fists together, "Time to deal out some justice!"
While they were enveloped in the warm glow of light, he swore he could hear someone booing them. "Just more lightning for the thunder," he quipped.
When the light subsided, he and Laura were fully deployed. They hopped off the platform and joined Kiyoka and Sayuka on the field.
"What the hell is your problem, pipsqueak?!" Kiyoka shouted.
AIKAWA — UCHIGANE (SAMURAI) (SHIELD 95%)
"I guess I couldn't stay out of my friends' business," Lincoln said.
LOUD — SAVVY SUITE (SHIELD 100% [137%])
"Clinging to Bodewig won't help you one bit!" Sayuka screamed, "Here comes a cold hard can of payback!"
YORUTAKE — UCHIGANE (YUMI) (SHIELD 95%)
Laura just waited for the countdown to finish.
BODEWIG — SCHWARZER REGEN (SHIELD 100%)
The people in the stands sat very still, waiting for the first move to be made. The remaining combatants in the holding areas started cheering for their favorite team to win. And once the buzzer sounded...
-FIGHT!-
...Lincoln and Kiyoka blasted off towards each other. His fist met with her blade, but he was very quick to throw out several card bombs to keep her at bay. All the while, he was juggling long-rage shots with Sayuka's bow and arrow.
"STAND STILL, WILL YOU!" Sayuka screamed. All of her shots hit, but none of them could deal any serious damage to the Suite.
"Dangit...need space..." Lincoln sought to jump back and gather his bearings, but then he noticed a shot from Sayuka fly right past his head and narrowly miss Laura. "Oh, right," he remembered what he was doing, "Almost forgot-" BONK! "-POM!"
For the third time in her life, Laura was at a loss for words. Here she was, not one ounce of effort wasted, not one scratch on her, not even a glance her way. While the other three combatants were floundering around all across the floor, she literally did nothing for two entire minutes. Her only threats didn't at all consider her worth the effort because they wanted a piece of her weaker half. All for a reason that would've earned them a spine-growing punishment.
"Mein Gott, I can't believe it's true," Laura fired her railgun and hit Kiyoka.
Lincoln saw Kiyoka get propelled towards him by the shot and slammed his wing units against her, flinging her face-first against the wall.
UCHIGANE (SAMURAI) — SHIELD 68/95%
"Aikawa-UGH!" Sayuka was distracted long enough to also get hit by Laura's railgun, which knocked her into Lincoln's kick, which slammed her against Kiyoka.
UCHIGANE (YUMI) — SHIELD 63/95%
"To think that people like you were admitted to this Academy with your current mindset is unforgivably asinine!" Laura walked forward while firing her railgun nonstop and kicking up a huge cloud of dust, "From little girls who refuse to bend their petty beliefs for a living plaything, to 'women' who wear the IS as a symbol of artificial, meaningless social status!"
Kiyoka couldn't see anywhere beyond the dust, leaving her repeatedly bombarded by the railgun.
Sayuka barely managed to fight off the shots long enough to escape the chaos. She quickly scanned the field, "Come on! What's happening?! Where is he-uh!" She just saw her main target jump back into the dust cloud.
Kiyoka was trying to fend off both the shots and the Suite. She was trying to wade through the dust, but she had zero visibility or perception, "Where are they?! Yorutake?! Where are you-" BOOM! "-AGH!" She was knocked out of the cloud, only to be knocked back in by Lincoln and shot again by Laura. "STOP DOING THAT-" BOOM! "-AGH!" Kiyoka dashed out of the cloud once more, then saw Lincoln standing by his lonesome, "There you are, you little weasel!" She made a mad dash towards Lincoln to try and get a good lick in...
"So predictable."
"Huh-" ...only to get stuck in Laura's AIC, "What the...can't...move..." Kiyoka freaked out even more when she saw Lincoln fly away like he didn't feel a thing, "Hey! Get back here, you-Ugh! No!"
"Arguably one of the most technology advanced countries in the world, and they chose you to develop the next generation," Laura readied her railgun, "They must be extremely short handed," and fired.
UCHIGANE (SAMURAI) — SHIELD 0 (EMPTY)
When Kiyoka was taken out of the competition, Lincoln was engaging Sayuka in long-range combat, "You mean girls and your gossip cliques! You just never bothered to learn, do you?!"
"Dammit!" Sayuka realized far too late that she was had. They were too busy with their revenge plot that they completely shoved his partner aside, "You knew this would happen?!"
"Well, duh! I'm not at all polite like the Japanese! I don't just sit there and take it!" Lincoln said while weaving his way through Sayuka's shots. When he was able to corner her with his own shots long enough to get within arm's reach, "I'm an American!" He elbowed her head and chucked her with several card bombs until she was bounced into the air. Then he got on top of her, "I FIGHT BACK!" and threw his 52-Card Pickup right at her face.
UCHIGANE (YUMI) — SHIELD 17/95% (WARNING)
Sayuka was hammered against the floor, absolutely stunned by what was done to them. No matter what they did, they played right into his hands. They left him alone and he became a threat. Then they tried to get their revenge on him, and now here she was, pinned on the ground unable to get up as she was strung up by the wire daggers, staring at the one person who held all the cards.
"Did you forget, lady?" Lincoln taunted while he and Laura were walking up to her, "There are two people on our team, remember?"
"Ngh..." Sayuka shuddered at those words. She had to think of a way to distract him so she could escape. And she seriously thought she could appeal to Laura, "Please...you don't have to do this..."
Laura eyed her captive for a few seconds before stepping aside, figuring out what she perceived to be the reason he chose the Lightning Rod protocol, "That depends on him."
Lincoln stepped forward, "You're right. I don't have to do this." He cupped his hands together and gathered another full deck, erecting a sense of fear in Sayuka's eyes. Then, he leaped forward and shoved the entire deck in her side, "I WANT TO DO THIS!" He twisted his hand and somehow managed a bigger explosion than Laura's shots.
Sayuka was flung out of the wires and skidded against the floor, all the way across to the other side of the arena.
UCHIGANE (YUMI) — SHIELD 0 (EMPTY)
SAVVY SUITE — SHIELD 31/100%
SCHWARZER REGEN - SHIELD 100%
"THE MATCH IS CONCLUDED. THE WINNER IS LINCOLN LOUD AND LAURA BODEWIG."
Kiyoka had been stuck in the kneeling position since her shield ran out, which made her more angry at him than disappointed about her loss. "We couldn't even take out the albino..." she hissed as Lincoln floated away scott-free.
When Lincoln and Laura returned to the holding area, High Card was waiting for them, "What was that?"
"What was what?" Lincoln asked.
"That kick and the using the human shield thing. What even was that?"
"Oh, that. I just need to send a message, is all," he said as they retreated to the locker room.
As the second match went underway, and all the other combatants stayed far away from Lincoln, High Card kept grilling him about his performance.
"I don't see what the problem is," Laura said, "We won very handedly, which is exactly what we came to do."
"It's how you won that ruins my literally's," High Card griped, "Had you not let go of that Kiyo-whoever-girl, you would've shattered her shoulders!"
"It's their own fault for being so headstrong and stubbornly useless."
"Why am I talking to you about this? Surely, your superiors taught you to use force when necessary."
"A show of force is necessary when your opponent does not understand the situation."
"Uh, guys?" Lincoln called.
"What?" They both snapped at him.
"Akina and Hana won."
"Why is that of..." Laura slowed to a stop when she saw the tournament bracket move Akina and Hana's names next to hers.
"Those guys are neutral to you, and friendly to Ace," High Card said, "How useful is that show of force now?"
Just then, Akina flung herself onto his back, "Gotcha, power pip!"
"Uaaa!" Lincoln shivered, "You're all...sweaty!"
"And what's wrong with that? You dig my womanly scent?"
"Hey! Gross! Get offa me!"
While Lincoln was wrestling with Akina, Laura was approached by Hana.
"What are you doing here?" Laura demanded.
"Just wanted to say hi," Hana felt slightly nervous.
"Your point being?"
"Well..." Hana averted her eyes, "we will be battling in the next round."
"Hana! Heeeeeelp-OOF!" Lincoln collapsed onto Akina and High Card's rear ends.
"My, my," High Card smirked, "That's why we need clothes, isn't it?"
"No! Eugh! Get away! Aaagh!" Lincoln screamed while Hana tried to shield him from Akina and High Card's teasing.
Laura blankly eyed the confusion with a hint of envy. This was something she didn't see in her army days. None of her fellow comrades actually addressed her as a comrade, just a soldier to be commended whenever she exceeded expectations. And yet here she was, looking at one of her 'comrades' mingling with the enemy, quite swimmingly in fact. She didn't know what to make of it, so she pushed the other girls aside and dragged him out of the mess.
"Oh-Hey!" Lincoln yelped, "Thanks for getting-Uh! Whaaaaaa..."
"A word," Laura pulled him into the hallway.
"What's her problem?" Akina asked.
"No clue," High Card said, "We better watch closely."
In the hallway, Lincoln had to yank himself out of Laura's grasp to stop her attracting unnecessary attention, "Ok, timeout for a second! Why'd you lug me all the way out here?"
"You should damn well know why," Laura growled at him, "I caught you fraternizing with the enemy right after they claimed the torch against us!"
"What's wrong with a little friendly banter?" Lincoln asked.
"Everything! You could have given away every single strategy in your arsenal! They could have siphoned everything about you to gain an advantage!"
"They already did that loooong before the tournament was announced. We're just friends-"
"Friends?!" Laura became heated, "There are no friends in combat! There is only the success of the mission! Did you forget that?!"
"There's more to life than combat and being the strongest! Brute force and cunning can only get you so far!"
"That's not what those idiots drilled into your head!"
"Idiot?" Lincoln suddenly remembered how she belittled Ichika, "Ok, then was that bit with Miss Orimura on your IS a couple weeks ago?!"
"She is the epitome of strength and prowess. She could subdue any pilot without relying on an IS!"
"She only did that because you were trying to beat everyone to death!"
The trigger.
("What was that, Bodewig?! This was supposed to be a covert IS operation! Why did you beat everyone in your sight within an inch of their lives?!")
("But I was following orders! I sent the core to Harfouch before I distracted the enemy-")
("STILLE!")
("With all due respect, I cannot comply with the-")
("Odin's Eye has clearly made you far to violent. Until we find a way to control it, you are on standby!")
The very thing that caused her to be classified as defective. Laura always had trouble controlling her "upgrade's" violent tendencies, but to be reminded of that mission where she lost control and nearly killed everyone in sight... and by someone inferior to her, no less...
Laura shoved him against the wall and pierced his mind with her eyes, "ZIEH MICH NICHT SO AN..."
"Whoa!" Lincoln quivered, "Ok... I clearly touched a nerve...Uh, can I take that back, or-"
"Ooh, look!" Kiyoka found them at her optimal time and started to taunt them, "Lincoln's having bad luck with his new girlfriend!"
"(She's/I'm) not (my/his) girlfriend!" They shouted.
"Well, whatever floats your boat," Kiyoka and her friends walked towards the pair, "You only won because your spunky little German friend took advantage of you. But the next round, I promise you'll fall down hard!"
"Yeah!" Her friend chimed, "And then, you're going to learn why you should've just kept your mouth shut!"
Lincoln facepalmed himself, "Ok, now I have to ask...why would you make a bet on Ichika, without Ichika's knowledge?"
"Don't talk to me like you know a damn!" Kiyoka snapped, "You Won't get away with it next time!" Then she titled her head and saw Akina and Hana walking toward her and sidestepped Lincoln, "Hey, Aki-Chan! Hana-Chan!"
"Oh, Kiyoka!" Akina waved, "Didn't expect you here."
"So, huge favor to ask of you!" Kiyoka grasped Hana's hands, "Do you think you can take Lincoln down a few notches?"
"Why's that?"
"He's been very very mean to the rest of the girls, and I couldn't do anything about it! Maybe you can teach him a thing or two about respect?"
Hana looked at Lincoln, who just groaned at the other girls' blatantly disdainful glares, then at Akina, who simply nodded her head.
"Sure," Hana responded, "We'll beat him."
"Yay!" Kiyoka hugged her, "I knew you'd understand-"
"But!" Hana instantly pushed her away, "Lincoln and I are going to the amusement park right after."
"Wait-What?!"
"I said... I am going to the park with Lincoln. Right after the tournament ends."
"But...but why?!"
"Oh, honey," Akina interrupted, "let me level something with you," then she walked over to Lincoln and put her head on his hair, "Like it or not, he is my friend. And he did nothing to earn this atrocious ire from you. In fact, he got even more respect from me because he didn't shut up and take it like you wanted him to."
"But he's... in the fact..." Kiyoka short circuited, "Hana-chan? You don't really think of him like that, do you?..."
"I also wanna get to know him better," Hana nodded, "The way I see it, he's a younger Ichika that's born in another place. I don't see what's wrong with that."
"I can't believe you!" Sayuka heard everything and couldn't hold it anymore, "Didn't you see what he did to Lingyin?! What he did to his fellow classmates?!"
"One, he's friends with Lingyin," Akina said, "Two, he's just protecting Ichika, who's also his friend. If I were him, I would've done a lot worse."
Kiyoka saw that it was pointless trying to convince Akina and Hana to turn against Lincoln, so she threw her hands up and walked away. Sayuka took Kiyoka to the bathhouse to comfort her, while several students walked past Lincoln's group.
"Have fun slumming it up with that tiny pipsqueak, Shinohara," a student taunted.
Another student shoved Hana aside, "How far you have fallen, Suzuki."
The rest of the students threw their own insults and vacated the hallway until it was only the five of them alone.
Lincoln blinked, trying to forget about the recent, random confrontation. He tugged at Akina's shoulder, "The nearest amusement park is an hour and a half away."
"Shh!" Akina whispered, "They don't know that!"
"You mean..." Lincoln felt touched, "You did that for m-MMPHGHPHGH!" until he actually was touched.
"Aw, what'd I tell you, Hana?!" Akina squeezed the love out of him, "Pretty cute, huh?!"
"Ok, you can let him go," Hana urged Akina to take everyone back to the holding area.
Laura had been completely cast aside for the comical nonsense between her teammate and her enemies. She was about to pull him off again when she was approached by High Card again. "What is it now?" She demanded.
"Still think a blitzkrieg is gonna solve everything?" High Card asked.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, are you really going to make him give those two the same treatment he gave your previous opponents?"
Laura had to think about that. She really had to stand there in the middle of the hallway and rethink her mindset on the tournament. Mainly because it was a tournament held in an educational institution, not a combat mission in a bullet-ridden war zone.
"Really?..." High Card groaned, "Ok, well, I'll be out and about for a few. Come find me when you're done 'introspecting' yourself," and then she walked out.
Laura watched as High Card consulted with another tournament participant, then walked to the locker room, where Lincoln spun around by himself after he and Hana were whirlwinded into Akina's good luck dance.
"Guh..." he muttered, "I think I did a character 720 or something..." he tipped over and fell into Rin's arms, "Oof! Wuhh?..."
"Yeah. Weird," Rin joked.
"Why are you in here?"
"We won our battle, so we're gonna hang here for the next round," Rin said.
"Uh...we?"
"Yeah, She-Oh, come on..." Rin dropped Lincoln on the floor and stormed off to the lounge area, "WE WERE ALMOST LATE BECAUSE OF YOUR HAIR OBSESSION!"
"Do you know how hard it is to maintain flawless hair in the heat of battle?!" Cecilia shouted.
"YOU'RE A PILOT! NOT A TRASHY PAGEANT QUEEN! GET OVER IT!"
Lincoln sat up, "Yep...I'm in some kind of weird little world, heh..." He then looked up and saw Houki onscreen. He saw her landing some very good attacks with her sword, but he noticed her losing control of her emotions from time to time, causing her to suffer some nasty hits. Still, she emerged victorious by a substantial margin.
"Sheesh," Lincoln thought, "She really needs to take a chill pill."
"You're telling me," Rin sat down on the armchair, "Though I think Alcott might give Houki a run for her money."
"What? Is she more violent?"
"Haha, I wish! No, Cecilia is way too methodical for my liking. Like, "the enemy is right in front of you blast the snot out of her" type thing."
Cecilia was right behind her, very offended by what Rin had to say, and got into a verbal scuffle with her, "Excuse me?! She has a very obvious trap laid out for us! I thought you would have caught onto that by now!"
"They had traps among traps among traps! I don't see your hair doing anything to drill us out of that giant pit in the sky!"
They got in each other's grill again.
"Geez..." Lincoln scratched his head, "and I thought Lynn and Lola had bad blood."
"If you think that's bad," Akina tapped his shoulder, "check out who's coming up next."
Lincoln checked the tournament bracket. He skimmed over her name the first time, but this time he caught sight of another American, "Tina? Hey, who's Tina Hamilton?"
"Oh, her!" Rin clapped her hands, "She's my roommate! She's the current IS Representative Contender of the USA!"
"Huh? How come I never heard of her?"
Rin took a moment to think about her roommate, "I'm betting it's because she couldn't stand the idea of another American-" deep voice "-USURPING THE GOD GIVEN BIRTHRIGHT-" normal voice "-or something like that."
"She really said that?..." Lincoln gulped.
"Pay no attention to any of her attempts to intimidate you," Cecilia said, "I have faith that Ichika will defeat her."
"Are you surrrrrrre?" Rin got in her head, "She has her own personal unit, too. The Iron Maiden."
"Ha!" Cecilia scoffed, "A defensive-type IS that relies heavily on armor and predictable surprise attacks. I'd say that's barely worth any concern."
Rin got up in Cecilia's ear, "And that blondie's figure is more curvaceous than yours."
Cecilia mentally shut down for a few seconds. When she came back, she zipped past the group and stood in the holding area, where a good number of people could hear her screaming, "ICHIKA, IF YOU LOSE TO THAT FRENCH FRY CONNOISSEUR, I WILL RAIN DOWN A THOUSAND NEEDLES UPON YOUR THROAT!"
Ichika and Charles were in another locker room when they heard that ominous threat, albeit heavily muffled by the running water and closed doors.
"Did you hear something?" Charles asked.
"Nope," Ichika said while doubling down on his face washing.
The final match of the first round had come. Ichika and Charles were standing on the field staring down their opponents on the opposite side. They were determined to make it to the top, while one of their opponents...
"So, we finally meet at last, Ichika!" ...just wanted to make a good impression.
"Yeah...don't know why we didn't..." Ichika mustered an uneasy grin, "You're Miss Hamilton?"
BYAKUSHIKI — SHIELD 100%
"Uh-huh!" Tina gave a thumbs up, "and you better remember it because I'm gonna stomp you into the ground!"
IRON MAIDEN — SHIELD 110%
"Well then," Charles said, "shall we get started?"
RAFAEL REVIVE CUSTOM II — SHIELD 100%
"Let's have ourselves a good fight!" Honne waved.
UCHIGANE (SAMURAI) — SHIELD 95%
Lincoln ran to the holding area's closeup screen, "Hey, over here! They're about to start!"
"Oh, I hope my dear Ichika can whip that yankee into shape," Cecilia said.
"I'm over here..."
The combatants took a few seconds to gather themselves for the imminent struggle ahead. Their time was up when the buzzer sounded to begin the match.
At that instant, Ichika flung himself straight at Tina, "YAAAAAAAAAAA-" BOP "-UGH!" Only for a punch to fling him back to the starting position.
"Ichika?!" Charles flew past him on his way to Honne. He saw what punched the BYAKUSHIKI and narrowly avoided a swing. Then, he fired several rounds at Tina before he had to avoid Honne's sword strikes. "Could I use a little help?!" He screamed while having to deal with a combination attack from Honne and Tina.
"I'm coming!" Ichika used the Ignition Boost to knock Honne out of Charles's range, "Missed?!" He and Honne slid to the wall, but they were able to regain their footing by slamming their swords against each other.
"Thanks, Ichika!" Charles switched to his combat knife and lunged at Tina, only to be countered by a heavy blow to the gut and a missile to the head.
Lincoln flinched after seeing Charles take a big hit, "Oof... I don't know how to make a good comeback from that..."
"What are they doing?!" Cecilia was going off for a different reason, "Did they forget about the front-double-crosscourt?!"
"Double wuh?..."
"Oh, for Christ's sake! How did you not see that attack coming!"
"Ok, settle down, Cece! You want to beat him, remember?!"
"I know what I said!"
"Take it easy, Drillago!" Rin playfully smacked her back, "It's not like they can hear us."
"AGH! Oww..." Cecilia hunched over momentarily, then got in Rin's face again, "Don't you go spouting wisdom you keep neglecting, Miss Restaurant Fan!" She was further enraged when Rin stuck out her tongue.
"Settle down, you two!" Lincoln yanked their hair, bringing their heads down to his level, "You missed the good stuff!"
Rin and Cecilia were shocked. During their little argument, Tina and Honne managed to back Ichika and Charles against the wall, right below the holding area they were all held up in.
"Any ideas?" Ichika whispered.
"Just one," Charles responded, "You will engage Miss Hamilton for the remainder of the fight, but only when she comes at you."
"I don't think I can wait that long..." Ichika panicked.
Tina caught that instantaneous hesitation, "Caught you sweating!" She raced forward with all her power and virtually slammed herself into Ichika. Her right fist connected with his sword and pushed him against the wall.
But that's when Ichika remembered what he did with Lincoln the weekend before the Class Rep match. He kept hitting everything that was thrown at him. He hit everything that tried to hit him at the points where he thought that they would hit him.
He rushed towards Tina with all his might, taking care to avoid any incoming projectile attacks. When he was within CQC range, he stayed there, swinging his sword at her fists or legs only when she attacked. It wasn't a quick battle, but it prevented her from using her missile launcher.
And it got under her skin, "Hey! Get away from me! Let me shoot you!"
"And prevent me from getting to Houki?! No way!" Ichika shouted.
"What is she to you, anyway?!" Tina said while trying to fend him off, "She's not a Representative Contender or anybody special like that!"
"She's my childhood friend!" Ichika increased the intensity, "Childhood friend! Have you heard of that?!"
"Oh my," Charles whispered to himself, "he said the beloved..." He immediately performed rapid switch and pulled out his sub machine gun and assault rifle. Then he ran towards Honne.
And Honne was already on her way to Ichika with a hint of jealousy, "Do you want another childhood friend?!" She was about to strike him when she was interrupted by Charles.
"I'm sorry, Miss Nohotoke, but Orimura is not your opponent!" Charles screamed while pelting Honne with a nonstop stream of bullets.
"Ow! Hey!" Honne struggled, "Stop!...Doing!...That!..." And she kept getting pelted with bullets until her shield energy ran out, "Agh! Owww...Hey, wha..."
UCHIGANE (SAMURAI) — SHIELD 0 (EMPTY)
"Apologies, Honne..." Charles said.
"Heheh..." Honne wore a sad smile, "So, that's it, huh..."
"Oh, it's not the end of-WAAAAA-" Charles was suddenly caught in a massive fight cloud created by Ichika and Tina. He didn't realize how much of a fight Tina would put up, even resorting to point-blank tactics to shake them off. He managed to get himself caught in her hammer fists and his sword after they tussled with each other's wing units. "Ok! You've made your point!" He busted out his shield piercing pile bunker and slammed it into Tina, but the aftershock cause him to elbow Ichika in the face.
Thankfully, Ichika was able to vault over it and score one more slash on Tina, giving Charles enough time to follow up with the finishing blow.
IRON MAIDEN — SHIELD 0 (EMPTY)
"THE MATCH IS CONCLUDED. THE WINNER IS ICHIKA ORIMURA AND CHARLES DUNOIS."
"Wha-huh?!" Tina stammered after her IS beeped, "How the hell did you beat me?!"
"Whew...heck if I know..." Ichika stood behind her, "Maybe it has to do with my sword."
"You're sword?" Tina piped, "You mean, you're seriously Chifuyu's brother?!"
"Yeah, I thought you would have known by now."
"No, I just figured that..." Tina deleted whatever was in her head, "So, does that mean you've got your big sis's battle smarts?"
"Well, I-"
Charles popped up in between them, "Uh, not exactly..." and displayed his duo's remaining shield energy:
RAFAEL REVIVE CUSTOM II - SHIELD 72/100%
BYAKUSHIKI — SHIELD 3/100% (CRITICAL)
"Oh..." Ichika shrunk in his IS.
"Whoa!" Tina gasped, "He didn't get hit that badly, did he?"
"It's because he kept using the Barrier Disabling Attack and the Ignition Boost," Charles explained, "Powerful abilities that, as you just saw, consume a hefty amount of energy."
"Really? So, he was basically gambling?"
"Recklessly, Yes."
"Guys?" Ichika waved, "I'm right here?"
Lincoln, Rin, and Cecilia all let out a collective sigh of relief when they saw that Ichika was advancing to the next round.
"Wow, that was close..." Lincoln wiped his tuft clean.
"And you thought he wouldn't make it," Rin nudged.
"Well, that's just-"
"Oh, I'm fairly positive about his faith in our dear friend," Cecilia patted his head, "Yours, not so much."
"Did you forget what you were rambling on about two seconds ago?" And Rin was at it again.
"At least I know what I was rambling about," and so was Cecilia, "I couldn't understand your 'feelings' because they were incoherent gibberish."
"Better than that Cross Creek Double McTwisty whatever you were blabbing about, Little Miss Knowitall!"
"It's the Double Cross Turn Strike! Get it right, restaurant maid!"
They shared one more glare and growl before Lincoln clapped his hands.
"Ok, you two!" He said, "We get the general idea! Can you two drop the act and get ready for the next round?"
"Oh, alright," Rin shrugged, "I guess there's no point shouting when we have our ISs to do it for us."
"The only one who's putting on an act is Laura," Cecilia snapped, "Her and her little fluffy bundle of rage. I know how she truly acts."
"Oh boy..." Rin slumped.
"Hey, word of advice?" Lincoln put his hands up, "Maybe don't go there?"
"I'll go wherever I damn well please," Cecilia haughtily declared, "so she can just drop the act and face me already."
"I'm over here."
"Guh?!" Everyone jumped when Laura appeared behind their backs.
"I'm not putting on any act whatsoever," Laura taunted, "In fact, I recall that faded glory having to come to your pitiful rescue."
Lincoln immediately tried to ease his partner, "Laura, it's under control. You don't have to-"
"Step aside, Loud," Laura shoved him off and walked towards Cecilia.
"Please," Cecilia scoffed, "had I been allowed to battle you without Rin getting in my way, I would've claimed total victory."
"You mean, you would have lasted five seconds longer than that cheap Chinese girl, then I couldn't imagine anything else."
"What's that you said, emo woman?!" Rin snapped.
Lincoln's ears twitched. He heard it all before, and so he decided to end it before it began, "LAURA! CECILIA! RIN! STAND DOWN!"
Rin, Cecilia, and Laura were floored by how loud, voluminous and authoritative Lincoln's voice was. They couldn't help but silence themselves, Laura most of all because in that exact moment, she envisioned him as her former general, the same person who benched her for being unable to control her supposed upgrade.
"Let's go," Lincoln ordered, "We have a fight to prepare for."
Laura thought about talking back to him, but a disapproving headshake from High Card forced her to refrain. She bit her lip and walked away from the holding area.
Rin walked over to Cecilia, "Ok, what just happened?"
"He just raised his voice against me," Cecilia muttered, "I can't understand why he would do that."
"Geez, this Academy...it's making him even more of what he hates," Rin shook her head, "Come on, Let's channel our anger into the next battle...Hello?"
Cecilia stood there watching the German girl walking with the arms of the 11-turned-12-year old. She was thinking that all the bad aspects of her personality was rubbing off on him. "Now more than ever..."
"Wuzzat?" Rin heard something weird.
"Rin, we have to win this tournament no matter what!" Cecilia clasped Rin's hands, "Not only for Ichika's sake, but for Lincoln's as well!"
"What is in the dust you've been eating?..." Rin groaned.
Lincoln was refreshing himself in the sink while High Card was consoling with Laura.
"Oh my god..." Lincoln moaned, "I have never had to throw out my tonsils like that... I don't think I ever shouted out an earthquake before..."
("Every time you guys butt into my life, you make things worse! Well, guess what? Never again! No! More! Meddling!")
"It wasn't even that loud..." He couldn't fathom what would cause him to raise his voice to that level. He tried to brush it off with another splash of cold water, but as soon as he dried his face and looked at the mirror-
("Losing your nerve?")
"AAA!" He jumped back. He scrambled back onto his feet and blinked three times. The mirror seemed normal at first, "Whew...get it out of your system...you're fine. You are fine."
("I'll say.")
"Who said that?!" until he looked at the mirror again and saw a darker version of himself.
("I saw the fight. Congratulations on getting your first win ever.")
"First..." Lincoln shook his head and steadied his mind. He turned back to the mirror, "Are you supposed to be the better version of me?"
("I'm just passing by, man. Have a little faith.")
"What are you blabbing about faith for?! You're just a reflection of a don't say it!"
("Ok, I won't.")
"Good!"
("But I gotta know...how'd it feel to finally beat them down?")
"Beat who down?"
("Kiyoka and Sayuka? Those girls who spread the news that you spilled the tournament prize? You delivered an anime-esque beatdown.")
Lincoln stopped. He mentally replayed his entire first battle with Maya and his latest battle with Kiyoka and Sayuka. The difference was as night and day as the Lincolns that were displayed in those battles. But there was a similarity in both cases.
Whatever mood he was in...he enjoyed it. He was having fun and he enjoyed it. Then somewhere along the way the fun was gone. Next thing he knew, he was beating the ever living crap out of Sayuka and driving uncertainty into Kiyoka...and he enjoyed it.
("Feels good, don't it? The power. The authority. The fear in their eyes when they see a man in a woman's weapon. The looks in their eyes when you told them to can it. That's gotta feel good, right? For the first time in a long time, you were 100% responsible for something. You were entirely in control.")
"Well...What's it to you?!" Lincoln tried to deflect the accusation, "You're not me! You're...you're the error me! A mirror reflection, only somebody made a mistake while copying me!"
("What the hell kind of nonsense is that? Just save the trouble and admit it.")
"No! I'm not gonna hulk out at everyone I see!"
("Hey, I didn't mean everyone. Just the ones that deserve it.")
"That's a big NO. Whatever I'm talking to, I'm gonna drop your baggage off the ends of existence, too."
("Hahaha...How? You've been at it for three and a half months now, and you still can't find them.")
"Well...I was gonna-" Lincoln was yanked out by High Card.
"Ok, mental trip's over," she said.
"Ah!" Lincoln turned around and expressed his annoyance, "High?! I was in the middle of something! What are you doing?!"
"It's time to get back in the tournament," High Card answered, "they announced the start of Round 2."
Lincoln instantly lost his brief spurt of irritated energy. He was called to action once more, which meant that he would have to face Laura.
And she was not at all impressed by his vocal stunt. The moment he came in her field of vision, she stormed past the other leering eyes and grabbed his arm. "You're late," she growled as she 'escorted' him to the launch pad.
"Hey, look," Lincoln mumbled, "If it's about that scene with the-"
"Your focus has clearly drifted away from our main objective," Laura silenced him, "I should remind you once more why I chose to accept your brash request."
Lincoln gulped as he was taken to the holding area, where his eyes had just caught sight of a literal sign of a bad omen:
LINCOLN LOUD - LAURA BODEWIG vs AKINA SHINOHARA - HANA SUZUKI