Chapter 50: Noca vs. Sofia – Part One

Thursday 21st July Age 797

The crowds were filtering into the stadium, buying their drinks and snacks, and taking their seats in preparation for the big fights ahead of them. This would feel like a much shorter day in comparison to the previous ones, they assumed, due to only two fights taking place. It was the Semi-Final round. A very important and, hopefully, entertaining one. Not a single soul wanted to waste the day, the opportunity to see the greatest fighters around going head-to-head. It had already proven to be a tournament full of entertainment, so expectations were high.

Down in the fighting area, Uub was sitting on a bench by the wall. He had his hands together, his eyes closed, and he was ever so slightly hunched over. He was paying no attention to the other two in the room. Sofia was standing leaning against the wall, looking towards the doorway that led to the arena. Her mind was already on the fight to come. Joji was sitting on another bench, closer to the entrance they had come through earlier on. His eyes were fixed squarely on Uub. He was trying to get a read on his opponent and find something he could take advantage of. Uub was a closed book as far as anyone else was concerned in that moment. Joji only noticed one thing and that was a slight twitch of a finger.

Noca finally arrived, walking in and immediately slowing. He seemed to have been in a rush but upon noticing the others were all there he halted and tried to ease into the room and take a seat somewhere. He made sure his Gi belt was tied properly and did a few stretches. He glanced over his shoulder and caught a glimpse of Sofia. She wasn't facing him, but he got the impression she was watching him. Noca looked over to Uub and noticed the older fighter was still within the same isolation he had been for the whole tournament. Noca wanted to try and talk to him but didn't know of anything he could say. They were allies but right now things seemed odd. Noca didn't want to push that button though. He preferred to focus on the fight he had coming up.

While waiting for the crowds to filter in and the announcer to start the opening show or whatever he did out there, Noca took the time to get in a bit of a workout. He did some push-ups and sit-ups and made sure he stretched and prepared himself properly for the fight. None of the others moved. Noca wasn't nervous but he was feeling uncomfortable. For the previous rounds some of the previous competitors had stayed behind during all the fights but this time it was only the Semi-Finalists and Noca wasn't sure if he preferred it this way or not.

Finally, the announcer's voice sounded over the PA system. Noca took that as his signal to stop and stood to attention, even though it wasn't exactly time to fight just yet. The announcer was just getting the crowd riled up and ready to create an interesting atmosphere. There was some sort of video that played showcasing the Semi-Finalists and their previous rounds. Noca and Uub received some significant cheers while Sofia and Joji had more lukewarm responses, but there were some fans out there. Perhaps they were just neutrals. Either way, when the announcer gave his final word there was a huge roar and anyone could tell it was a packed arena. Noca took a deep breath and stepped towards the door. Sofia had got there before him. She was ready to get started.

"Let's give a huge round of applause for our first competitors of the day. NOCA and SOFIA!" The announcer yelled as the crowd erupted again and that was the cue Noca and Sofia needed. Both of them stepped out in unison and walked towards the space that the stage would occupy. Noca looked around at everyone and then to Sofia. She seemed taken aback by the people. Something that she hadn't seemed to have taken any notice off throughout the rest of the tournament.

"It's crazy, right?" Noca muttered to her. Trying to be amicable before the fight. Sofia pretended to ignore him. "Why are you fighting in this tournament?"

Sofia turned to face him. She looked as if she had taken offence to that question.

"Why does that matter to you?" She snapped.

"I'm just interested to know…" Noca said, trying to find the right words to make sure he doesn't make this worse. "I'm here because I want to prove myself to the world, I think."

Noca chuckled and Sofia was starting to feel uncomfortable with his sudden attempt at being friendly with her. Even though Noca was angered at the way Sofia had defeated Pan, Noca knew there was no malice intended. They were fighting, she was trying to win. Noca just hated to see Pan get hurt.

"I'm fighting because I need to prove myself too. I'm doing this because I have to," Sofia stated, staring forward and trying to show a lack of emotion. Noca's brow furrowed and he looked ahead.

"And the kid?" Noca questioned. Sofia froze upon hearing that. "Yaiko? Why was he here?"

"He's not your problem," Sofia snapped, once again. She wasn't sure what Noca's intentions were. Why he was suddenly grilling her on the spot, and why she was even humouring him with a conversation before she fought him.

"Look, if you're working for someone just know that you don't need to," Noca was simply going on his own past experience of the tournament, he was only assuming that someone else was pulling the strings to this trio's appearance in the tournament, but he really felt that he was right about it. "You're strong enough in your own right, you can fight back."

Sofia made sure to show no discernible reaction.

"I can see a conflict with you and," Noca paused, looking back towards the waiting area and then towards Sofia again. "And with him."

Sofia looked up, finally letting her guard down. She saw genuine concern on Noca's face.

"Why are you asking me all this? Why are you taking an interest?" Sofia asked, she was getting a little annoyed now, and showed it.

"I want to make sure nobody gets hurt. There are too many civilians here and if you and your allies are planning something…" Noca was cut off before he could finish.

"Nothing will happen." Sofia looked away from Noca again. "This is a tournament. That's it."

With that, Sofia started walking forward to show she was ready for the fight. Noca looked back to the waiting area and could see Joji at the back of the room, glaring at him. Noca tightened his belt, still looking at Joji and turned away, walking towards the stage space. The announcer took this as the indicator that both were ready to have the stage revealed to them.

"OK! If both fighters could please step onto the stage space, please." The announcer requested as what looking like a traditional stage rose out of the ground. Noca and Sofia both stood up onto the stage and distanced themselves. As they stood in position the stage began to rise out of the ground. The whole thing. It didn't go too high but there was enough height for a drop to hurt. The announcer proceeded to explain what this stage was all about.

"Not only will this stage be higher up, but some obstacles may make themselves known as the fight progresses, so be on the lookout!"

Both Noca and Sofia indicated they were ready by moving into stances. The announcer called for the fight to begin. The bell was rung, and the crowd cheered. Down in the executive box Pan was sat with her friends and family and along with them she was cheering for Noca to give it his all. Pan's voice couldn't really carry through the noise of the crowd but Noca heard her. Noca felt her. In his mind and his heart, he knew that Pan was cheering for him. He smirked and looked towards Sofia. His smirk faded and his attention was drawn to the fight. Everything else was drowned out and only one thing mattered.

Noca didn't make the first move, opting to give Sofia a chance to show what she can do. The young woman started running towards Noca but after a few seconds she was surprised by a sudden change in the stage. A hole, just about her size, opened up beneath her and the girl had to awkwardly move back to avoid falling through and jumped back a couple of times. As soon as she stopped, she felt another change in the ground as a tower lifted up. She did her best to spring off of it and land comfortably on her feet and stopped again. This time nothing changed, and she looked around as the stage returned to normal. Noca looked at the ground and knew that everything would be very unexpected but there were plenty of ways around it. After all, both of them could fly.

Sofia wasn't about to panic and decided to make a move for it again. She made her way towards Noca but didn't move in an obvious straight line. She darted in a sort of zig-zag, touching the ground once before pouncing to the next stop, never taking the time to take a second step. Noca was ready on his defence when Sofia finally arrived in front of him and kicked towards his chest. Noca defended with both arms up in front him. Sofia bounced back, touched the ground and darted towards him again. This time it was with a punch, which Noca blocked again. Sofia did a similar movement, bouncing away, and then back again. She hit with another punch and Noca moved his foot back slightly. As he did a hole opened again and Noca fell back but immediately used his energy to create some more momentum so he could get back to his feet.

He touched back down gingerly and watched as that hole closed up. Sofia, meanwhile, had opted to move on her attack. She leapt up and dropped down towards Noca, flipping forward and bringing her leg down towards Noca's head. The Saiyan blocked the hit, pushing back and causing Sofia to flip back. She touched down with one foot and instantly pounced back towards Noca. The Saiyan jumped straight up into the air as Sofia touched down right where he had been. Upon hitting the ground another tower lifted up, taking Sofia right towards Noca. She used the slight momentum to help push herself up towards Noca rapidly. She managed to his with an uppercut punch and tried to spin and kick into Noca's chest as a follow-up.

Noca caught her foot with both of his hands and twisted her around and spun towards her, elbowing her in the face. She fell back but managed to take control and stop herself in the air. She hovered there and prepared for an attack from Noca, but he hadn't moved. He had his arms by his sides and remained hovering about fifteen feet ahead of her. She rapidly shot towards him, planning to jab a right punch into his chest. Noca increased his energy slightly and moved quickly to grab Sofia's fist in his own right hand and used his left hand to push on her arm, redirecting her attack.

Sofia moved past Noca and twisted around quick to try and kick into the back of his head. Noca lowered himself, ducking forward under and twisting around. Sofia kept up her momentum and spun down into the kick. Aiming another kick. Noca caught her leg and thrust a hand forward into her body, using a pulse of energy to push her back. She steadies herself again and grunts. Her focus had been shaken up and perhaps she was too proud to admit that it was all because of the ridiculous stage. She was happy to fight in the air, but she had so much more experience with fighting on the ground.

While hovering in the air, Noca had the chance to look down on the stage properly. It was only a split-second look, but it almost seemed as if there was a pattern. It wasn't as random as Sofia had made it look earlier. The stage had a design. There were specific panels that would react based on touch or weight. Noca kept that information in his head and knew he could use it as an advantage later on. Somehow. He had started to figure one side of this fight but there was still more to learn about Sofia. He needed to let her take control of the fight so he could get a better grasp on her abilities and knowledge.

Sofia did just what Noca wanted and flew into another attack. She tried a quick right jab followed by a left but Noca dodged them with ease and then she continued with a kick that swiped just in front of the Saiyan. Sofia grunted with annoyance and spun towards Noca, rising up and spinning with two kicks aimed for his head. Noca blocked both with ease and ducked down as another came for him. He dropped towards the stage, looking down to get his bearings and formulate a plan. He glanced backed up as he continued towards the ground.

He landed and immediately the panel lit up and another tower protruded up, sending Noca towards Sofia. She had to halt and back up as Noca flipped up over her and dropped down on the stage again. This time he landed on the panels they lit up and opened up. Noca fell through the ground. The panels closing immediately after. Sofia wasn't sure what to make of it. She looked around the stage and made sure to keep an eye around the outer edges. Noca could well surprise her from any angle.

Sofia noticed some panels lighting up and then open up. She flew towards it, preparing for Noca to come out but nothing happened in the way she expected it to. Noca suddenly phased in front of her, startling her but not attacking her. She reacted and thrust her right fist forward. Noca caught it with his own right hand and then Sofia attempted an uppercut with her left. Noca grabbed her around the wrist and then crashed his knee into her gut and then pushed her back with a pulse of energy.

The young woman dropped away, landing on the ground. This time, the panels didn't do anything. She was lucky to land in an ideal spot. Or had Noca made sure she landed there? Noca dropped down rapidly and as he hit the ground another tower pushed him up and he took that momentum and flipped towards Sofia. Punching down. Sofia jumped back as Noca hit the ground and she immediately shot back towards him upon landing down. She smashed her knee into Noca's face and then kicked with her free left leg, hitting him in the face again. Noca was knocked back and had to flip and control his energy to stop himself mid-air.

Noca had lost focus in that interaction and didn't notice Sofia rolling through the air towards him, at least not until the last minute. Sofia landed a foot on the top of Noca's head and pushed back into the air then shot down towards him again. She went foot first, landing a strong kick into Noca's gut and sending him crashing into the stage. He went to push up, but Sofia landed down and as Noca got to a knee she flashed to him and smacked a strong right hook against his face and then kicked back the opposite way with her left foot. She then kicked up into his face, lifting Noca up straight and getting an opening on his torso. She blasted in a barrage of punches, hitting his chest about ten times and with an eleventh she opened up her hand and released an energy blast that exploded sending him back across the stage, towards the edge.

Sofia wasn't about to let up. She blasted towards Noca and punched him up in the gut, putting her arm on his back to make sure that he didn't go flying too far out of bounds. She moved behind him, placing her feet on his back and sprung off, gaining distance and height. As she did, she shot a pulse of energy down on the Saiyan and Noca was pushed right down in the stage, cracking down on his front. None of the panels were reacting as both fighters were finally getting familiar with the layout of the stage.

Sofia prepared to shoot back down towards Noca for another attack and the Saiyan was just gingerly pushing up. He was underestimating Sofia and there had been a sudden increase in power out of nowhere. He needed to be smarter here. He could sense her approach and thought to try something. He placed his right hand on the panel next to him as she got closer and he immediately pulled it away as a tower shot up. It wasn't going to affect Sofia on her way down because she could see it but Noca had to make sure he judged this right. He smashed into the base of the tower as Sofia finally past it and it started to fall down towards both of them. Sofia turned to block the tower, and this gave Noca his opening. The Saiyan spun around so he was facing up and shot up. He landed a punch in Sofia's back and punched her up into the collapsing tower, smashing her right through it.

The rubble of the tower hit the stage, causing many panels to react all at once. A couple of towers sprung up at the same time and one hole opened as much of the debris fell through. Noca, meanwhile, had moved behind Sofia and used another energy pulse to send her crashing down into the stage, but she was immediately up to her feet. She didn't move into the next attack though. She took a second to reassess things. Noca, meanwhile, landed back down. He wasn't quite sure of what to do next in this fight. He could see that Sofia was improving as time went on. It was similar with Pan. Sofia was proving that she was a very worthy opponent and Noca was excited by the prospect of a great fight. There were brief thoughts of trying to end the fight in the quickest possible way but the Saiyan side of him said to enjoy every moment.

Part One of this two part semi-final between Noca and Sofia. I hope you enjoyed the start of their fight and I personally didn't think about how complicated it would be to write about a stage that had obstacles based on touch. But I kept it in because it was something different and I didn't want the fights to have the exact same stakes.

Next Time... Chapter 51: Noca vs. Sofia - Part Two