NOVEL NEXT CHAPTER 58: John’s Debut
Barbara was pretty excited for the one-on-one. This was her shot, her chance for glory, and hopefully her opportunity to rake in some more sponsorship dollars. But it was more than that—much more. Barbara was determined to prove that she wasn’t just another woman in the sport. Even though men could hit harder and faster, she was set on showing that skill and strategy could outshine raw power. This fight was also her way of stepping away from the grind of being an ER resident. The pressure, the long hours, the endless adrenaline—it was all starting to wear on her. But here, in the arena, she found a different kind of rush, one that filled her with a sense of control and purpose.
Her opponent from Dragon's Edge was Bobby Day, a shorter fighter with two swords. As the match started, Barbara moved with grace, wielding her sword with precision. She kited around Bobby, each hit registering a satisfying (SLASHING DAMAGE) on the scoreboard. Bobby, trying to keep up with her speed, but found himself outpaced at every turn. Barbara leapt over a dual sword swing aimed low, and instead of continuing to kite, she smashed her sword into Bobby’s neck with a vicious precision.
(DECAPITATION!) the announcer system declared, and that was that.
"One win, one point for the Portal Crushers," said Cotton.
"That was a great battle," replied Bob, "and now we’ve got a three-on-three, and again it looks like Atlas is leading the team for what’s going to be a clean sweep."
Dragon’s Edge had put up three of their bench fighters, knowing that Atlas was really running rampant in the three-on-three. They were saving their best for later.
"What’s this we’re seeing?" Cotton yelled.
Bob was completely shocked. "Are they really just doing this to play around, or is there a reason for it?"
Cotton said, "Well, from what I’ve heard from locker room chats, Atlas has a crazy training plan, and he never stops. We’ll see how this goes."
John walked up for the first fight. Dragon’s Edge’s bench fighter, Ben Dover, was equally surprised. He had hoped to fight Atlas, to at least get some good hits in, but instead, he was facing John.
John was sweating his balls off. When he first heard that he was going to be in the lineup, he really thought Atlas was joking. But he wasn’t, and now John had to prove himself. He thought back to when he signed up for this crazy Portal training game. He’d joked about making the team and laughed about getting into a pay-per-view fight. Now, here he was, standing in the arena, with the crowd waiting to see if he was just an assistant coach or if he could hack it with the pros.
Ben pulled up his sword and shield, matching John’s stance. The fight began with a respectful tap of swords, and then Ben swung a huge right. John blocked with his shield, but his nervousness slowed him down a bit. He returned with a riposte, but Ben stepped back, spinning around with a quick backhand with his sword that caught John by surprise. John tried to pull back, but he wasn’t quick enough, and the cut went deep into his side.
(STUNNED) flashed across the screen as the system registered the hit, locking up John’s SFB armor and slowing him down further.
Ben, seeing an opportunity, went for a finishing strike, aiming for a decapitation. John barely got his shield up in time, blocking the blow, and followed with a quick stab that slashed Ben’s sword arm. Ben winced at the (SLASH) notification but pressed on, dropping to one knee for a quick strike at John’s leg.
(CRIPPLED) said the system, leaving John heavily disadvantaged.
John, now crippled on one side, leaned down with his shield up. Desperately, he stabbed at Ben again, landing another (SLASH) on Ben’s leg. But it wasn’t enough. Ben retaliated with a swift cut to John’s neck.
(FATALITY) flashed across the screen, and the match was over.
As John was escorted out of the ring, he couldn’t help but feel a pang of regret. *Damn, I wish I could have won that,* he thought. *But at least I had the chance to fight.* Despite the loss, there was a small part of him that was happy to have experienced the thrill of the match, to have been out there, in the thick of it.
Atlas stepped into the ring next, smiling at Ben. "My name is Atlas. You killed my brother. Prepare to die," he said, delivering the line in his best cheesy Inigo Montoya accent.
Cotton in the announcer's stand exclaimed, "Did he just quote *The Princess Bride*?"
"He sure did, Cotten. He sure did," replied Bob, equally amused.
Ben had no idea what was going on. Already damaged by John, he didn’t last long. The other two fighters on Dragon’s Edge didn’t fare much better as Atlas made quick work of them.
(Fatality!)
(Fatality!)
As these fights were going on, the camera had panned to Alicia, who, in her SFB armor but with her helmet off, was drinking an Angkor beer with the logo prominently displayed, while munching on popcorn. In his office, the president of Angkor Beer was laughing his head off. "I have never seen anything like that. That Atlas is a crazy fucker. I love him. I’ve got to make sure we double any sponsorship deals we give him, because that moment is priceless."
The crowd laughed along, enjoying the light-hearted moment. Alicia grinned, seeing herself on the Jumbotron with the hologram. The Portal Crushers on the bench were also having a great time. The other team, Dragon's Edge, wasn’t finding it as funny, but what could they do?
With the three-on-three secured, it was time for the 5v5 fight.
The 5v5 match began with both teams charging towards each other. Atlas watched from the sidelines, knowing his team was ready. Alexander led the charge, his massive two-handed sword held high. The opposing team barely had time to react before Alexander brought his sword down in a powerful arc, delivering a (SLASH) across his opponent's chest. The electronic sensors registered the hit, and the opposing fighter staggered back, stunned.
Hank followed close behind, wielding two large shields. With practiced ease, he blocked incoming strikes from two opponents, forcing them to overextend. Using his punch shields not just for defense, he slammed one into the closest opponent, sending him stumbling back with a (STUNNED) notification flashing across the screen.
Isabella danced around the battlefield with her weapons, a Valkyrie of war, her movements swift and precise. She parried a strike from her opponent, then swiftly countered with a cross slash, earning another (SLASH) notification. Her second sword followed through, and the system registered a (FATALITY) as her opponent was knocked out of the fight.
Wang Bo, the master of the staff, spun his weapon in a blur of motion. “Flowering petals scatter!” He expertly deflected an incoming sword strike before countering with a swift thrust to the opponent’s ribs. The electronic sensors lit up with a (CRIPPLED) warning, and the opponent was forced to retreat, unable to keep up with Wang Bo’s relentless assault.
Jim, finally given his chance, was all smiles as he charged forward with his sword and shield. His opponent met him head-on, but Jim was quicker. He blocked a heavy strike with his shield and then delivered a punishing blow to his opponent’s side. The sensors registered a (SLASH), and moments later, Jim’s follow-up strike sent his opponent crumpling to the ground, registering a (FATALITY).
In less than two minutes, Team Portal Crushers stood victorious!
***
“Wow! That’s how it’s done, Bob!”
“Looks like we have ourselves a tightly packed finals coming up!” replied Bob.
The crowd was jubilant, so was the team, but Atlas muttered to himself, “I hope all this time training the team is worth it. Winning these stupid fights isn’t about a trophy, but about getting the word out. The portals are coming and the wasteland doesn’t care who the champions of the SFB league is.”
***
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