The Unmasked: The Betrayer’s Game

The long hallway of the academy was filled with the sound of footsteps, discussions, and echoes. The golden light of the late afternoon sun streamed through the high-arched windows and illuminated the clean and shiny marble floor, revealing long shadows cast by students that were on their way back to their dorms. As Leon and Isla moved together, their feet in unison, their minds were on different plains. 

"That battle we just watched was pretty epic," Leon said looking over at her casually. The lines of excitement he felt were visible in his eyes. 

Isla nodded her head slightly. "I thought it was fun to watch," she said silently looking far away. "But… I'm a little scared. It's my turn to fight tomorrow." She said trembling just a little and her face showed worry, while her brow was drawn. 

Leon recognized her look; nerves, apprehension. He smiled gently at her. "You've come a long way from the first time we met," he said. 

Isla gave him a curious look. "What do you mean?" 

He laughed. "You used to keep everything bottled up inside yourself. Now… I hear about your feelings all the time. That's progress."

Isla felt her cheeks flush slightly. Her eyes darted elsewhere, and she tucked a loose hair behind her ear. "I-it's not like that. I'm just... nervous about the fight, that's all." 

Leon chuckled. "You are so bad at concealing things." 

Isla couldn't hide her smile, though she certainly had it in her eyes. For a second, she was lost in thought, looking at Leon's face; his smile, his calm voice, and the way he held himself caused her heart to flutter. 

Leon waved his hand front of Isla. "Hello? Earth to Isla." 

Isla blinked rapidly. "Y-yeah, I'm here." 

"Where'd you go all of a sudden?" 

"Nowhere," she responded quickly, her blush growing stronger. "What were you saying again?" 

"I was saying that we should check on Finn." Leon replied. "Hope he's not hurt too badly." 

"Oh no! I totally forgot about him!" Isla exclaimed. "And Fanny is probably with him." 

"Yeah, those two fight like cats and dogs." Leon chuckled, "But they are closer than they let on."

As Leon and Isla approached the academy's medical ward, the hallway transitioned from warm stone to colder, metallic walls. Leon gently pushed the door open, and he was immediately engulfed by the herbal and antiseptic odours that filled the air. 

Inside, Fanny sat beside Finn's sleeping form, slowly dabbing a damp cloth on his forehead. For someone whose passion and intensity had always emanated off the charts, Fanny looked almost... compassionate. The moment she saw Leon and Isla walking in, she jumped and briskly slipped the cloth behind her back. 

Leon raised an eyebrow. "Looks like someone's taking good care of Finn." 

Fanny scoffed, drawing breath to respond. "Me? Look after this idiot? Puh-lease. I only came in because Darius told me not to leave him alone." 

Her words were unnecessarily harsh, but there was definitely some heat coming from her bright red ears. 

Leon laughed. "Yeah, yeah... thanks anyways." 

At that moment, Finn groaned and began to stir awake, "Aah... it hurts," he said, pressing his hand on his ribs. His eyes slowly opened, "Did I win?" 

Leon smiled and gave him a thumbs up, "You did." 

Finn's face lit up with a smile, "Yes! I did it!" He raised his fist in victory to celebrate his success. 

SLAP!

Fanny's hand hit his head.

"Ow! What was that for?!" Finn yelled, rubbing the sore spot.

"You're supposed to rest dummy!" Fanny called back, clearly irritated. "Now don't move!!"

"How do you even care?" Finn mumbled. "Jealous that I passed too?" 

Fanny's expression immediately changed. She opened her mouth but no words came out, and she looked away.

SLAP!!

This time it was Leon. 

"OW! Again?! What do you want this time?"

Leon frowned, shaking his head. "You idiot. She was here all day making sure you didn't die."

Finn blinked, trying to process what Leon said. "Wait..really?"

He turned to Fanny who, boycotted from all eye contact for his cowardly misdeeds. Finn looked down and said, "I...I didn't realize. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to hurt you, and thank you-for everything." 

Fanny gruffly responded "Sir told me to stay, so I stayed. That's all. You shouldn't think I care or something."

Finn grinned, "Still, thank you. I know you-an angry girl like you-secretly cares about me."

"You stupid bastard!" she yelled whilst throwing a pillow at his face. 

Leon sighed, "Here we go again..." 

The Next Morning

The arena was filled with anxiety. The sun shone down on the arena giving it a golden glow, but still, Isla felt frozen, sweat starting to bead on her brow. Her hands were clenched, and her legs were quaking. 

From his seat, Leon and the rest of the Tsunami boys - Finn and Fanny - watched her intently.

Leon cupped his hands around his mouth and yelled, "Isla! Don't be nervous! You don't have to some one nothing. You are only fighting for yourself! Win or lose, at least you fight for yourself!" 

His voice broke through the distractions. Isla met Leon's eyes. When she did, she felt the rest of the world blurring - her, and his voice. 

He's right. I've been fighting for a family that has not cared at all. But now…

She took a deep breath letting her shoulders drop, letting go of the tension. "I fight for myself" she said to herself.

Then the examiner spoke. "Ready?"

Isla nodded, her eyes clear now, "Yes. Ready."

"3… 2… 1… GO!" 

The huge steel entrance door from across the arena began to creak open. Smoke billowed out the door from behind it. After a moment, she squinted to see.

Well... nothing. The audience stirred. Leon frowned. "Where's the beast?" Then - BOOM. The ground suddenly shook violently under Isla's feet and she stumbled, wide-eyed. Cracks formed along the stone floor and dust billowed up in every direction. "What the hell?!" Finn shouted, leaping to his feet. "I don't know!" Leon yelled, scanning the field. A loud rumble echoed over everything. Suddenly, the ground erupted open, sending stone and dust in every direction. Students covered their eyes. When the dust cleared, a great giant brown serpent emerged from the battlefield, its eyes glowing with molten earth, and there was a shining gem in its forehead glinting in the sunlight. "A... a snake?" Isla gasped, frozen. "That is not an ordinary beast," Fanny said, stunned. "Everyone else fought normal-sized beasts. This - this is crazy!"

Leon's eyes narrowed. "That gem... It's an Earth Elemental. A divine-class beast. If she loses control of the field, she'll be in serious trouble." 

The snake hissed, then swung its tail at Isla at incredible speed. 

Isla narrowly avoided the tail slap, flipping in mid-air. But before she could land— 

CRACK. 

An enormous boulder erupted out of the ground and flew right towards her. 

With no time to dodge, Isla's eyes widened while still airborne. 

Think, Isla... do something, NOW.