“~ Eight days ago, 395 young contractors arrived at the capital city of Aboyr to prove their worth, to weigh their pride on the line and show the world that they were the next generation of contractors. The 395 began walking the paths of a quest called the Holy Dragon Tournament. Their paths collided with each other as they went on and the numbers began falling. And now, the quest is almost complete, and only two remain. They have come across great hardships on their way, but have persevered and proved to the whole world that they deserve to stand here and fight for the title of the world’s strongest young contractor. Yes folks, this is the final match of the most spectacular tournament I have ever witnessed in years! This is the culmination, and at the end of it all, only one will remain… looking over the possibility that it might be a draw, that is! In a few minutes, the gladiators will walk into the arena. Let us hear a few words from our honoured guests, Danush Krishnan and Kai Fullbuster! ~”
“~ What can I say, Rufus? Honestly, nothing I say now is going to change the outcome of the match. These two contractors, Jake Tyler and Sora, both deserve to be champions. ~”
“~ A prediction, if you might, Danush. Who do you think will win it today? ~”
“~ Well, if you insist on me giving my prediction, I’d go for a close fight, but Jake ends up as the victor. He has a secret technique that nobody can make head or tail of. And this young psychic contractor has an answer for every action done by his opponent. Sora might’ve made it this far, but I can’t see him pulling off this one. He’s used up all his trump cards while Jake has a whole stack of them left. ~”
“~ And do you agree with Danush’s prediction, Kai? ~”
“~ You don’t even need to ask me about it, Rufus. Danush has given loads of predictions in this tournament. And we all know how right he’s been! So, if he goes for Jake’s victory, then I’d say that Sora wins in a close fight. Sora has the ability to adapt to various situations. And he has a great sense of battle. Even if the odds are stacked against him, I think he can do this. ~”
“~ You heard them people! Both of them have chosen the other fighter, but there was one thing they actually agreed upon! This will be a close fight, one worthy of being called final and being fought in front of the princess herself! Yes, you heard me right, folks! The princess is seated all the way at the topmost stand in the coliseum and will witness the fight along with the public! ~”
The crowd went nuts. Sora was listening to music from the headset he had synced with his G watch as he leaned on the walls of the tunnel. The music helped him calm down and clear his mind. He needed a clear head if he was to fight someone like Jake.
A message appeared on his screen. It was from Sean. It read:
Hey man,
I couldn’t say much when I saw you this morning. But I want you to know that I’m backing you to win this one all the way. Sure, Jake might have some freaky, mind demolishing techniques. But, knowing you, you already have a game plan set up. Don’t listen to what anyone says about the fight. The only thing that matters is that you kick Jake’s ass without holding back. You two might be close friends, but inside the arena, none of that will matter.
Believe in yourself.
Sean
Sora grinned as he re-read the message. Sean was right. Sora did have a game plan… a plan that needed every ounce of his skill and ability to be executed. And there was no way he could think of holding back against Jake. For a long time now, Sora had wanted to have a one-on-one battle against him. Also, Sora had worked too hard on his plan to even consider holding back at this stage.
And, as thorough as his plan may be, he only had to believe in himself.
Sora heard his name being called out along with Jake’s. He took off his headset and walked through the tunnel in his new set of clothes. There was no way he could place restrictions on himself in this fight. He walked out of the tunnel into the arena.
The noise was deafening. There was no way anyone could hear anything at that moment, and Sora felt his eardrums vibrating. His senses were heightened to the maximum.
And in front of him, walking towards him was a thin boy around his age, who had helped Sora in many ways ever since they got to know each other, who had been Sora’s best friend, who was now Sora’s greatest rival.
Jake Tyler seemed as calm and composed as he always was. His brown hair waved in the wind and his red eyes gleamed with confidence.
Sora and Jake approached each other, both grinning for no specific reason. Jake stretched out his arm to shake hands. But Sora didn’t move a muscle.
The crowd started booing. Rufus Crumbs said, “~ Sparks are really flying now, people! Sora refuses to shake hands with his fellow guild member! Jake has always offered a handshake before every match, but of all people, Sora is the only one to reject it! ~”
Jake withdrew his hand and said, “Come on, Sora. A handshake won’t hurt, right? The crowd doesn’t seem too pleased either.”
Sora just smirked and said, “You know, a psychic contractor once told me that physical contact acts as a medium for transferring thoughts.”
Jake raised his eyebrows. “So?”
“You offer to shake hands with every opponent before the fight. That isn’t very strange, I agree. But I have to say, it is very awkward when you do it with a close friend like Zack and myself.”
“What are you implying?”
Sora smiled a little. “You know, I showed Stella Blight a video of your fight with her. And guess what? She was very shocked by what she saw. Because, according to her, the fight appeared very differently to her.”
Jake didn’t say anything. Sora went on. “The day before your fight, Stella shook hands with you. You could’ve understood her thought waves a little then. And right before the fight, you did it again, making it very easy to for you to sync in with her mind and create… illusions.”
Jake simply smiled. Sora continued, “You’ve been around Zack long enough to understand his thought waves. So that last minute handshake was just to make sure that the illusions worked perfectly. Think about it. Both Stella and Zack missed hitting you too many times. But with what Stella told me along with everything you explained to me before, the only logical explanation has to be that you created illusions in their minds.”
Jake started laughing. “Sora, you really are pretty sharp. I’m very impressed. Yes, you’re right. I created illusions of myself while we fought. While they attacked my illusions, I only had to get close enough to use my new finishing move.”
Sora grinned. The judge nodded at both of them and then rang the bell.
Sora jumped back and summoned the Wind Fangs. Jake took a stance as well. Sora was about to attack when he suddenly ducked as he felt something whiz past his head. Jake was stretching out his fist and smirking. He might not be too fast, but the same could not be said about his attacks.
Sora started using his split step as another psychic punch just missed him. He knew that the only way he could avoid getting caught by Jake’s psychic chains was to keep moving around.
Sora just kept prancing about till he found an opening. And it was presented right before him. He appeared behind Jake and used his wind smash.
But the image of Jake seemed to vanish right in front of him. Before Sora realized it, he couldn’t move. Jake was standing a few feet away, with his arm raised. Jake said in an amused tone, “Your planning was brilliant, Sora. But there was one thing you failed to notice. The physical contact before the fight was just an assurance to perform the best illusion possible. But if it was only to fool you a little, I could do it even without a proper transfer medium.”
Sora cursed himself. He tried to break free, but the psychic chains bound him tightly. Sora had to try a type of technique, which he had never done willingly before.
He raised a layer of ki all around his body. He felt the binds weaken a little. Then, he took a chance and released as much ki as he could.
The chains broke at last. Jake jumped back in surprise. Nobody had ever brok
en free from his psychic chains. But he grinned and said, “That’s the Sora I know. You’re always full of surprises, aren’t you?”
Sora swung the Wind Fangs and the wind smash came crashing towards Jake, who caged it with a psychic wall. But Sora managed to get in front of him by using that attack as a decoy. But yet again, his attack only cut through air.
Sora was quick enough to avoid getting bound again. But then, he looked around and found that nearly five Jake Tylers surrounded him.
Sora didn’t know what to do. A psychic punch cleanly found its mark on him. A barrage of punches followed it. Seeing no other way, he took to the air.
Sora winced a little as he floated in the air. The pain was bearable, but still took a toll on him. He clenched his teeth as he struggled to think of a way to get through Jake’s illusion. It was just like the time he felt when he couldn’t touch Malva because of his illusions.
Sora bit his lip. He tried recollecting Malva’s illusion and compared it to Jake’s. Though Jake’s was very good, it was nothing close to being as perfect as Malva’s.
But Sora wasn’t given any time to think about it. Jake levitated blocks of earth and flung it at him. Sora gracefully evaded them, but just barely. He wasn’t as fast in the air as he was on land.
Sora closed his eyes for a second, hoping that he got another brainstorm like he had the previous day. He needed something to get past the illusions. Suddenly, he opened his eyes.
Jake’s illusions were not complete. Sora’s mind was not completely taken over by him yet, meaning there was one thing that would show him which was an illusion and which wasn’t.
It struck him immediately. He wanted to kick himself for not noticing immediately. Jake did not have a medium to take control of what his mind showed him so that meant not all his senses were under the illusion.
Sora rushed towards the ground and charged at the Jakes in front of him. But he knew that none of them would hurt him. He ran right through them and headed towards the unsuspecting judge and stabbed him.
The judge stared at Sora, but slowly, his face began to change and Jake stood in front of him, holding the side of his abdomen. Jake jumped back and spluttered, “How… How did you know?”
“You may not know this, but this isn’t the first time someone has used an illusion on me. And that man’s illusion was perfect. When I cut through his images, I could feel the blade cutting through flesh and even the smell of his blood. But I got neither of those while fighting you. I realized that only my sense of sight was under the spell of your powers. My sense of smell was still mine. All I had to do was find out where you were with your scent and… there you have it.”
Jake spat out blood and said, “Guess I still have ways to go.”
Sora said, “We all do. But that’s for later. Let’s get this over with, shall we?”
The crowd didn’t have much time to understand the fight. They could not see the illusions cast by Jake, but that didn’t matter. They were now viewing a spectacle of a fight like no other. They cheered, gasped and held their breath with every strike, every dodge and every clash of attacks. Rufus nearly wet his pants as he commented on the match.
“~ Sora unleashes a beast of a strike but Jake blocks it perfectly… Oh my! You can almost see those psychic attacks now! I wouldn’t want to be the one hit by those… A huge wind meteor! Jake is forced to flee… No, wait! He’s actually attempting to control it! He can’t be serious… OH, MOTHER OF GOD! THE WIND METEOR GOES CRASHING TOWARDS SORA! What will Sora do? Wait… ANOTHER WIND METEOR! THIS FIGHT IS GETTING CRAZIER BY THE MINUTE! This explosion is going to blow the whole coliseum up! Run for your life folks! ~”
But nobody was prepared to miss even a moment of this fight. They just gaped in awe, transfixed and glued to their seats as the two colossal balls of wind collided and created a huge burst of wind.
But the fight did not stop. And neither showed signs of faltering despite being terribly injured and completely exhausted. Sora used his split step to avoid getting caught in a psychic chain. Jake knew he had to interfere somehow with his speed. A simple solution arose in his mind.
As Sora ran in circles, Jake tactfully raised a mound of sand on his path and held it tightly with his psychic powers. And just as he expected, Sora tripped on it and faltered. Jake knew this was his best chance.
He closed in on Sora and aimed perfectly at his head and used his finishing technique. Sora could see the green orb flying at him, but his body did not listen to him. He could only watch as the orb struck his face just as he fell on the floor.
Pain… Sheer pain and agony, the likes of which he had never experienced before surged inside his head. Sora curled up as the torture his mind was going through started overcoming him.
He screamed.
He shouted out as the suffering reached unbearable levels. He wanted it to stop. He wanted it all to end. He felt death would be better than the pain he felt then. Every thought running through his mind felt like his brain was being drilled into.
Jake started walking away. He knew it was over. He really hated that attack. But he knew that it was the only way he could win. It made your brain experience unbearable pain for every thought running through your mind. The body, as a protective measure, will shut down all brain activity for a split second, making the person unconscious. There was no way somebody could stop the attack once it hits its target, unless of course, that person was a psychic contractor strong enough to mentally counter the attack.
Sora writhed in pain. But as he rolled around, he spotted Jake walking away. His back was the last thing he would see. Everything started to black out around him. The pain also seemed to lessen the more he shut his eyes.
But something kept him from blacking out. Something in his mind was resisting the attack. He didn’t know what it was, but it was the only thing that prevented his brain from shutting down. It was some kind of barrier in his mind… a psychic barrier.
Jake told the judge, “This fight is over. Call the medical staff right away.”
But suddenly, the crowd gasped and a few started cheering. Jake turned around slowly and felt as though he was living a nightmare. Sora was staggering to his feet and walking towards him with his swords in hand. Jake just continued staring in complete disbelief.
“Are you some kind of Zombie?” he asked. Sora did not answer him. He had no strength left in him to speak. He had just enough for one finishing move.
He started moving in top speed. Jake knew what was coming. But he was far too exhausted to try to get away. Sora was circling him, closing in slowly. Jake could only watch as Sora performed the Tempest Takedown.
Sora stopped it very fast. It might be because he had no strength left in him, or because he didn’t want to hurt Jake mortally. But he taxed himself to use one hand to sink one of his blades into the ground and hoist himself up and the other hand to catch Jake’s bloody body.
There was a few seconds of silence and then, Sora heard the crowd erupt. The judge must’ve ended the fight, he thought to himself. But he had no strength left to look at the decision.
The swords disappeared from his hands and his legs gave away and he fell on the floor next to Jake.
And then, there was darkness…
Sora was finally discharged from the infirmary after waking up the next day. It seemed Jake had reversed the effects of his technique, the mind bomb, the minute he had woken up. Sora’s first words after regaining his senses were, “I’m hungry.”
After being well fed, Sora noticed that Katie, Sean and Zack were also present. Sora asked Jake, “If you could remove the technique after using it, why didn’t you do it for Zack and Stella?”
Jake shrugged and said, “I didn’t want them to give you any hints. You would use every small bit of information to your advantage. And I guess I was right to think that… Stella recovered faster than I expected. Zack got to his feet pretty quickly as well.”
Sean was still skipping about the fight. “That was the best battle I
had ever seen in my life! You really did kick his ass, Sora!”
Sora laughed and asked Zack, “Did you manage to see it?”
“I’d just woken up right before the fight began. The doctor felt that I might get too excited and hurt myself if I went to the stands. But I managed to see it on TV. And what a fight that was!”
Katie squealed, “You guys are getting into a new level of fighting already! I have to train extra hard if I don’t want to be left behind.”
As Sora exited the infirmary with the others, he was met with a stampede of people with cameras and mikes.
“Sora, glad to see that you’re awake. What can you tell us about your fight with Jake?”
“Lucifer’s Fall did exceedingly well in this year’s tournament. Do you think their time of dominance amongst the guilds has arrived?”
“Would you agree that you have a chance of becoming the strongest contractor in the world in the coming years?”
“Can you give us a few more details about your contract, the Wind Fangs?”
Sora was dumbstruck. He had never been in front of a camera before and he was extremely nervous as well.
“Make way for the champion. Make way, please.”
Kai appeared out of nowhere and pulled Sora across the crowd of reporters. The reporters scrambled out of the way, but one brave man stood in their path and asked, “Mr. Fullbuster, what would you say was the main reason for Sora’s victory?”
The place went silent, as everybody wanted to hear the answer. Kai looked at the reporter and nonchalantly said, “Why, it’s me, of course. If it weren’t for my advice, Sora wouldn’t have stood a chance! He owes me his victory.”
Sora didn’t seem amused. Kai had stolen his spotlight in a second. But he knew Kai had just told them the truth. Sora shrugged and followed Kai out of the coliseum.
As they walked into the hotel, many more cheers erupted as Sora was met with a large number of Lucifer’s Fall contractors. Kira gave both Sora and Jake a high five as Eddy Cue, Bill Clow, Luke Miller and Tim Fadell patted them on their back very hard.
Contractor: The Legendary Contract of Vento Page 35
