Lord of The Stars

The voice announced the start of the duel. Jean clasped her hands in the air with eyes closed and stopped time. When she opened her eyes, they widened with fear—Francis stood directly in front of her in attack position, about to punch her, but frozen along with time itself. His tremendous speed would have ended the match in a second.

Jean moved quickly, controlling her nerves, knowing she had only five seconds. She fired two tranquilizer shots into his body, then pulled out the net launcher she had acquired moments ago. She cast a net over his body, completely enveloping him, then quickly jumped to the right as time resumed.

The moment time flowed again, Francis found himself hurtling through the air while bound, rolling across the ground with terrible force and unstoppable speed until he violently crashed into a tree. He felt his bones breaking as blood spurted from his mouth. He sat on the ground motionless, his body screaming with pain, not understanding what had happened! She had been right in front of him, victory nearly in his grasp, but suddenly everything changed. He regretted attacking with such haste.

His consciousness began slipping away until he passed out completely.

Jean stood staring in shock, fear, and anxiety. She put her hand over her mouth saying:

"I didn't mean for this to happen... I didn't mean for this."

The voice announced that Francis had died, and Jean was the winner.

Jean collapsed to her knees, sobbing violently as she looked at Francis, whose body was crushed against the tree, his blood splattered everywhere. His dead eyes seemed to curse her for eternity.

Noor and Akira ran toward Jean while Keno and Youssef headed toward Francis to help him, but it was too late—death had claimed him.

Jean remained in profound shock at what she had done. Noor and Akira tried to calm her, but she was in a hysterical state of crying and intense remorse.

The voice announced the next match between Akira and Youssef, indifferent to what had happened.

Jean climbed to the stands begging Francis to forgive her, followed by the others from the arena who didn't know how to console her.

Akira was in a pitiful state and unprepared to enter any battle, but he knew there was no alternative.

Youssef approached Sairi, who was puzzled by his approach. Youssef placed his hand on Sairi's shoulder and said:

"Is your friend alright now?"

Sairi felt something strange inside, as if his energy was being drained. He backed away from Youssef, looking at him with sharp eyes, saying:

"What did you just do?"

Youssef tensed, trying to hide his nervousness as he replied:

"I didn't do anything. What happened?"

Sairi gave him a hostile look for a few moments, then turned and walked away. Youssef knew his plan had worked as intended. He now possessed Francis's power, having drained it while attempting to treat him. Since Francis had died, this allowed Youssef to absorb his ability permanently if he wished. Combined with Sairi's power, which would last for five minutes, this would help him win the match easily, despite not knowing Akira's abilities. His only fear was suffering the same fate as Francis, who had been unlucky not to have been with them at the bridge and pond to learn the true nature of Jean's power. Francis had been overconfident, which led to his demise.

Youssef entered the arena and collected some knives, nets, and weapons. After he and Akira finished gathering what they needed, they stood ready to begin the match. The voice announced the start of the match.

Suddenly, the contestants vanished into thin air, appearing near each other and disappearing again, confusing the spectators who couldn't understand what was happening. Akira moved through the air trying to match Youssef's extraordinary speed, which surprised him. He thought to himself:

"This is the dead Francis's ability. Are there contestants who share the same power?!"

Youssef began appearing before him, delivering rapid strikes, but Akira shifted position, blocking them and surprising Youssef, who would vanish and reappear behind him. It became a contest of speed and endurance.

Youssef cast some nets at Akira, but he teleported away before they could touch him. Akira drew his tranquilizer gun and began firing at Youssef's shadow as he moved at high speed.

Youssef suddenly stopped moving, panting heavily. Akira retreated and also stopped to catch his breath. Without warning, Youssef fired several tranquilizer shots at him. Akira teleported through them and stopped again, realizing his energy was nearly depleted and he could no longer use his power. He rushed toward Youssef to fight face-to-face. Youssef extended his hand forward in the air, then pulled it back as if drawing an invisible thread. Akira didn't understand what he had done, but soon felt a sting in his back. He stopped and put his hand on his back to find several tranquilizer darts embedded there.

Akira's pale face reddened, his features tightening as he said:

"What did you do?"

Sairi observed the unfolding events, the sequence of actions suddenly aligning in his mind. He now understood the mechanism Youssef had employed with his touch.

"So that is the process", he thought, "The wretch can assimilate the abilities of those he touches. This is the nature of the disturbance I felt at the bridge. He engaged Akira with anesthetic projectiles, predicting the evasion. He then employed my own telekinesis to suspend them in stasis. When Akira committed to his own attack, Youssef simply reversed the vector of the floating darts, returning them to find their mark in Akira's back. The victim remains unaware of the true chain of causality".

A laugh escaped Youssef's lips as he leveled another pistol at Akira. "A valuable secret, indeed."

A projectile erupted from the electric weapon, slicing through the air to find its target in Akira's body. A powerful shock convulsed him. Akira's form shuddered violently, resisting the electrical current that coursed through his nervous system, before he collapsed to the ground, unconscious. The Voice declared Youssef the victor of the duel.

Noor ran to the arena to check on Akira.

"Do not be concerned," Youssef said, his tone dismissive. "He has merely lost consciousness. He will recover in minutes."

Noor ignored him, his focus entirely on Akira. He confirmed his friend was still breathing, that his condition was stable. A measure of peace settled in his heart as he lifted Akira onto his back, carried him to the stands, and set him down gently on one of the seats.

The Voice returned to announce the final rankings. Tension spiked across the assembly; all eyes turned to the screens with a mixture of dread and anticipation.

"The qualifiers are as follows," the Voice intoned.

"First Position: Keno (300 points)

Second Position: Sairi (299 points)

Third Position: Ivanov (290 points)

Fourth Position: Noor (260 points)

Fifth Position: Yassin (245 points)

Sixth Position: Ares (230 points)

Seventh Position: Jean (223 points)

Eighth Position: Youssef (210 points)"

An immense wave of joy washed over Noor at having secured a place among the top eight, but it was immediately tempered by a sharp pang of anxiety when he saw that Akira's name was not on the list. He saw a sorrowful Jean, some of her former radiance and optimism returning now that she had qualified. She offered him a nod of congratulations, but the pain of recent events still shadowed her features. It seemed she had not noticed Akira's absence from the roster.

The victors celebrated. The losers cursed their fate, waiting in stark terror for what was to come.

Keno and Sairi were roused by the clamor of cheers and protests. They saw the list displaying their names and felt a sense of profound relief at their qualification. Keno, however, could not fathom how he had attained the first position. The logic of it escaped him.

Sairi regarded him from the corner of his eye, his gaze sharp and penetrating. "It would appear," he said, his voice flat and cold, "that you will not be a simple adversary."

Suddenly, without warning, a draining sensation pulled at the consciousness of every individual. Within seconds, all lay upon the ground, plunged into a deep and sudden slumber.