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"GROUP ONE, WILL YOU PLEASE MAKE YOUR WAY TO THE STAGE?"
This time, however, instead of calling thirty two names, only sixteen were called, giving away the fact that over seventy five percent of the contestants had been knocked out, leaving only the top twenty five percent remaining.
And so, within the first group, Garrett was called.
"Alright. Here I go."
Garrett stood up and jumped a little on his toes, as if he was getting prepared physically for the fight, the sort of fighter's tick you would see in a boxer.
"Don't worry, man. You got this. Show them what you're made of." Mars smacked the back of Garrett, pushing him forward slightly as he walked off, head and shoulders held high as he headed out to the battlefield.
Stepping out into the Coliseum, the noise of the crowd echoed loudly all around him.
"Yeah. There's a lot of people. Relax. Just do what you're good at, and you can win," Garrett said to himself softly, like a mantra, as he stepped forward onto his designated court, staring across at his opponent.
Brom Kessler. A second year, ranked 71st. Six foot five and an absolute slab of muscle, carrying a two handed maul like it weighed absolutely nothing, his bloodline already seemingly running deep through his veins as a dull orange light ran up his forearms like heated iron.
'Shit.'
That was all Garrett could say to himself. This man was actually someone he looked up to in terms of technique, strength, fighting capability and overall physique.
Here was the definition of a true warrior tank.
Back underneath in the holding area...
"Crap. They gave Garrett The Wall," Mars said, his usual grin nowhere to be found.
"Who?" Amy asked, not recognizing the person standing across from Garrett.
"The Wall. Hello? THE Wall?" Mars looked at her like she'd just asked what color the sky was. "They call him that because he's like the guardian of the top fifty for the second years. If you wish to be truly considered the best of the best, you need to go through him."
Mars's expression darkened as he looked back at the hologram.
"And, well... I don't think Garrett's quite there yet. Garrett's only a peak Bronze, while Brom is a mid Silver. It won't be a fair fight, and I don't think he can win."
Mars explained why he was so upset seeing the guy standing across from Garrett.
Clearly, Garrett had been given an opponent meant to take him out, right here and now.
"Don't worry. Even if this is the final battle for Garrett, I'm sure he'll make himself proud. He's been working too hard just to be beaten down by some wall," Arthur said.
Even he thought it was impossible for Garrett to win. But that didn't mean Garrett couldn't put on a good show, rise in the rankings and prove to everyone watching that he had a bright future ahead of him.
The referee's hand fell, and the match began, with Brom instantly rushing forward like a landslide.
BOOM!
The maul swung through the air like a rising tide, threatening to smash Garrett into a fine paste.
And so, not willing to be turned into paste on the floor, Garrett dodged backwards, making the maul hit the ground, creating a cascading shockwave of stone as it destroyed the ground beneath him, rumbling the field under his feet.
'Don't block here. That thing will destroy your defenses.'
Garrett made note of it in his mind as he slipped back and forth away from the constant barrage of Brom's attacks.
The only respite Garrett had was a few flurries of punches and kicks slipped in between the attacks as he tried to find a pattern, some way to do real damage.
However, it was nearly impossible. The true strength and brutality of Brom was so imposing that Garrett had no chance to break through.
But that was only if Garrett fought with his body alone.
And he was much more than just a fighter.
Activating his bloodline, Garrett took control of the ground beneath them.
He aimed his control at the floor around Brom's feet, liquefying it instantly like a quagmire, causing Brom's feet to sink into the ground, making him lose his footing and slam his maul into the stone too early, giving Garrett a chance to counterattack.
The earth beneath Garrett's own feet pushed up, launching him forward like a heavy moving tank that couldn't be stopped.
Garrett's fist, loaded with mana, coiled back before he unleashed a torrent of a punch, slamming it straight into the face of Brom.
BAM!
The sound ricocheted across the Coliseum as a torrent of cries and yelps rang out.
But Brom himself just cracked his neck, smiling, and turned to face Garrett with a wicked grin on his face.
"Oh, this won't be boring at all."
He smiled, having seemingly taken the punch straight to the face with nothing more than a scuff to show for the damage.
'Shit.'
Garrett backed off as Brom pulled himself out of the quagmire, using mana to reinforce his feet, standing atop the softened ground as if it were solid stone.
'I don't think it's going to be enough if I just use my basic moves. I need something that can block his attacks, because at some point I'm going to make a mistake, and I won't be able to dodge it. And I don't deal enough damage in this form.'
Garrett exhaled slowly.
'I guess I'll have to use my ultimate move, as Mars would put it.'
"Mark One. Iron Golem."
Taking a deep breath, Garrett settled into a boxing pose, hands clenched into fists, as an aura of his bloodline radiated off his body and the ground beneath him rose up to heed his call.
The ground compacted in on itself, compression turning the hard stone into something even denser, packing it down so tight that hardly anything could break through it.
And slowly but surely, pieces of the compacted ground took shape, forming into different parts of armor, flying through the air and attaching themselves to Garrett's body, plating him from head to toe.
The compression had darkened the earth, turning the dirt and stone a deep, near-black tone, and standing there covered in it, Garrett looked like an iron golem. One made of crude iron, not refined, but with the properties of its hardness laid bare for all to see.
"Henry, are you seeing this?! The first year has been hiding an earth bloodline this whole time!"
"And not just any earth technique, Jonathan! Look at that compression! That's full body plate! The boy came to this tournament with a siege engine in his pocket!"
Brom smiled.
"Oh yeah. That's what I'm talking about. Finally, somebody who can take a hit from me!"
And so he too channeled his bloodline, the orange hue around his body flaring brighter as his arms and maul became engulfed in its presence.
The two titans stood tall, facing each other across the ruined court.
One was wreathed in a furnace orange, bellowing strength, while the other was clad in a deep black iron earth, looking like an unmovable object that had set its sights on Brom.
Neither of them had any thoughts of dodging. This would be a contest of pure strength and toughness.
And so they both walked at each other. Then the walk became a jog, and then finally they charged, their fury put on full display under the spotlight as the crowd roared with excitement.
They clashed.
BOOM!
The first exchange hit like a siege machine, Brom's maul crashing against Garrett's crossed guard.
But for the first time, Garrett wasn't fazed by the maul, taking it like a champ, the vibrations ricocheting across his armor as it blocked all the damage.
Brom smiled.
But that didn't matter to Garrett, as he returned the blow with a mana loaded fist, this time coated in the deep iron earth, snapping across Brom's chin sideways.
The Wall took half a step backwards, unable to hold his footing, the fist's added weight and power too much for even his natural defenses to hold.
The crowd came out of their seats screaming.
"THE FIRST YEAR IS KEEPING UP WITH THE WALL!"
"DID YOU SEE THAT?! WHAT AN AMAZING SHOW OF PURE STRENGTH AND MUSCLES!"
"THIS IS THE KIND OF MANLY FIGHT I WANNA SEE!"
A few people in the crowd yelled out, rallying as the manly fight between Garrett and Brom hit its stride, the two trading attacks back and forth. For every hit of the maul, Garrett landed three punches, the two exchanging injuries like a pair of manly men battling over who was more dominant.
Down in the holding area, the squad was pressed up against the hologram.
"HIT HIM, GARRETT! HIT HIM AGAIN!" Mars was screaming himself hoarse.
Amy had both hands clenched against her chest, wincing with every maul strike. Angela watched in silence, but she had not once looked away.
Back on the court, Garrett rolled with a heavy blow, tucked his chin behind an iron shoulder, and hammered a body shot into Brom's ribs that made the big man grunt for the first time all tournament.
'Body. Body. Head.' The old rhythm, drilled ten thousand times. 'He's slowing. He's actually slowing!'
But the trade was never as even as it seemed.
Garrett's armor was seen chipping away with each exchange, for it was only made of compressed ground and mana. Every time it cracked, he could mend it, but each mend cost him more mana, and more, and more.
And as the fight went on, his reserves dipped lower and lower, causing his attacks to falter as well, unable to put much oomph behind them.
His three hit combo slowly turned into two. And then two became one.
And Brom, the veteran that he was, knew it before anybody else did.
He was winning this fight, and there was nothing Garrett could do.
And so, he smiled.
"Be strong. Be proud. For you are strong. But I am stronger."
And like a poet warrior, Brom reeled back the maul, its head glowing a bright red orange, seemingly engulfed in hot flame as it superheated beyond respite while Brom charged up one final attack.
"HRAAAAH!"
With a final hurrah, he swung the maul around, clipping the side of Garrett as it exploded through the armor, blasting him backwards as Garrett rolled and tumbled violently into the wall.
BOOM!
His body cratered into it, blood seeping from his wounds as he lay there, looking up, his eyes blurry and watery, unable to see what was in front of him.
But he could hear it.
The crowd, roaring, as the climax of the battle echoed out.
With Garrett left at a loss.
The referee's hand shot up.
"Winner, Brom Kessler!"
"Yeah! What an amazing fight!"
"Oh, that was awesome! Good fight, young man!"
"Yeah, way to show them why you're The Wall, bro!"
A difference of opinions rang out through the stands as Brom limped across the ruined court, dragging his maul behind him as if it had suddenly gotten heavier.
He reached down into the crater and gripped the half conscious first year by the forearm, hauling him up, holding him steady on his feet before the entire Coliseum.
"You fought well, first year. You'll be strong in the future. Stand proud. They cheer for you."
The Coliseum thundered loud, the show of sportsmanship well received across the stands, as Garrett heard his name echoed throughout the eighty thousand voices in the sand.
And through the blood on his teeth, he smiled.