They met in the middle.
Not cautiously. Not testing.
Decided.
June felt it the moment their ranges overlapped again—the difference from before. The space wasn't collapsing around him anymore. It was contested. Every step mattered on both sides now, not just his.
Kael moved first.
But not like before.
The strike came fast, precise, controlled—but this time it wasn't meant to overwhelm. It was meant to end it.
June saw it.
Not early enough to avoid completely.
But early enough to choose.
He turned into it again, taking the impact along his baton and forearm, the force driving through him harder than anything before. His stance broke for a fraction of a second, his footing slipping—
But he didn't give ground.
That was the change.
He held.
Just long enough.
"…Yeah," June breathed through it, teeth clenched slightly. "Not this time."
Kael adjusted instantly, his follow-up already forming, his body shifting to drive the next strike through the opening he expected June to create.
June didn't create it.
He moved into it.
He stepped forward instead of back, cutting inside the line Kael had already committed to. His shoulder turned, slipping past the edge of the strike, close enough that the force brushed against him without landing clean.
The space tightened.
Too close for full power.
Exactly where June needed it.
His baton snapped upward in a tight arc, not aiming to break through, but to disrupt—forcing Kael's guard to shift just enough to open a second line.
Kael reacted.
Fast.
But not perfectly.
June saw it.
That fraction.
That opening.
"…Alright," he said under his breath. "Now or never."
He committed.
His next movement came sharper than anything before—his body turning fully through the strike, his baton driving forward in a controlled, direct line aimed not at Kael's guard—
But through the space it couldn't fully cover.
The hit landed.
Clean.
Not heavy.
But precise.
Enough to stop everything.
Kael's movement halted.
Not because he couldn't move.
Because he chose not to.
June held there for a second, his baton steady, his breathing rough, the distance between them reduced to inches.
Neither of them moved.
The arena felt still again.
Not silent.
But waiting.
Kael exhaled slowly.
Then, for the first time—
His posture eased.
Not fully.
But enough.
"…You fought well," he said, voice calm, steady despite the fight that had just passed between them.
June blinked once, breath uneven, the adrenaline still high.
"…Yeah," he said, a small, tired edge in his voice. "I'm starting to feel that."
His eyes stayed on June.
"There's truth in what they say about Gamma Squad."
A brief pause.
Then—
"You're difficult to put down."
June let out a breath that almost turned into a laugh.
"…Yeah, I've been told—"
He stopped.
Something didn't feel right.
His eyes dropped.
And that's when he saw it.
Kael's weapon.
Not where it had been.
Not where June had expected it to be.
It was already there.
Pressed just lightly—
Against his side.
Close enough that if Kael had committed to it—
The fight would have ended first.
The realization hit clean.
Sharp.
Final.
June exhaled slowly.
The tension in his shoulders eased—not from relief.
From understanding.
"…Yeah," he said quietly.
A small pause.
Then—
"…Alright."
He lowered his baton.
"I yield."
The barrier dropped.
"Winner — Kael Starwyn."
The crowd reacted—sharp, immediate.
Not loud for the sake of noise.
But because they had seen it.
How close it had been.
How real it was.
June stepped back, rolling his shoulders once as the weight of the fight finally settled into him. The adrenaline started to fade, and everything underneath it—impact, strain, the hits he had taken—came back all at once.
"…Okay," he muttered under his breath. "Yeah… that was… that was annoying."
Kael didn't move right away.
Then he stepped back.
The fight was over.
June turned toward the rail.
Toward his team.
They were already moving.
Nyra reached him first, her eyes scanning him quickly, sharper than her tone.
"You're still standing," she said, a small smile breaking through. "That's a good sign."
June nodded once.
"…Yeah. I'm calling that a win in spirit."
Mira stepped in right after.
She didn't say anything at first.
She just looked at him.
Really looked at him.
Her eyes moved over his shoulders, his arms, the way he was holding himself. One hand came up without hesitation, adjusting his sleeve slightly, checking where Kael's last strike had landed.
"You took that one here," she said quietly, pressing lightly against his side.
June flinched.
"…Yeah, okay, let's not—let's not press on the damage, that feels unnecessary."
"It's not broken," she said.
"Great. That's exactly the bar I was aiming for."
Her hand moved to his shoulder next, checking the joint, her expression steady but focused.
"You kept your movement," she added. "Even after he adjusted."
June let out a small breath.
"…Yeah."
A pause.
"…I almost had him."
Mira met his eyes.
"You forced him to respect you."
That landed harder than anything else.
Lucian stepped in behind her, his gaze steady.
"You made him change his approach," he said. "Not many people do that."
Castiel nodded once.
"He didn't want to. You made him."
June let out a breath, running a hand through his hair.
"…Yeah, well," he said, a faint smirk pulling at the corner of his mouth, "next time I'll try to also win."
Nyra nudged his arm lightly.
"You did good," she said. "Seriously."
June glanced at her.
"…Yeah?"
She nodded.
"You didn't panic."
"That's new," he said.
"It worked."
David stepped forward last.
He didn't rush it.
Didn't interrupt.
He just looked at June for a second—really looked.
Then—
"You figured him out," David said.
June held that for a moment.
"…A little late," he replied.
David shook his head slightly.
"No."
A small pause.
"…Right when it mattered."
June exhaled slowly.
That one stayed with him.
"…Yeah," he said quietly.
Above them, the bracket shifted.
Kael's name moved forward.
June leaned back slightly against the rail, his breathing finally settling into something normal again.
"…Alright," he muttered. "Good news is I'm alive."
A pause.
"…Bad news is now I have to watch the rest of you deal with that."
His eyes shifted toward David.
"…Have fun with that."
And just like that—
The next fight was already waiting.