NOVGO.NET Chapter 63: The Stadium Detonates
Chapter 63: The Stadium Detonates
The locker tunnel hummed continuously with the distant roar of sixty thousand spectators chanting under the stadium dome.
Fin carefully rotated his left wrist, testing the joint after the severe strain of halting Torren’s pneumatic swing.
"Medical staff reported Torren suffered two fractured ribs," Ruby said.
"His armor absorbed most of the blunt impact, leaving his lungs intact," Fin replied, picking up his hatchet.
’A broken rib heals in four weeks, but an overconfident strike costs everything inside the ring.’
Maya adjusted the holographic tablet on her knee, bringing up the real-time telemetry feed for their upcoming match.
"Siren’s Call won their quarterfinal in ninety seconds," Maya explained.
She tapped the glass screen firmly, highlighting two glowing green vectors that curved across the virtual arena diagram.
"Their lead fighter, Morie, swings a pressurized wind scythe," Maya said.
"Her partner, Kael, uses a matching polearm," Maya added.
"The telemetry shows their active wind-shear radius reaches twelve meters on open ground," Ruby noted, leaning closer.
"Their pressure field requires continuous motion, meaning they cannot defend while resetting their pneumatic tanks," Fin observed.
"We close the distance before they establish the vortex, forcing their weapons into close contact," Fin decided.
’Twelve meters is three strides if I read their preparatory steps before the canisters ignite.’
The heavy tunnel door clicked open, admitting Bram and Orson with a fresh cooler of cold electrolyte bottles.
"Betting kiosks shifted us to three-to-one," Bram grinned.
"Jolly texted that the courtyard viewing party is full," Orson added.
"Tell her to keep the windows latched until we return with tomorrow’s finalist credentials," Fin replied, drinking half a bottle.
"Save the remaining water for our post-match cooldown," Ruby advised, rolling her shoulders beneath her chest piece.
The tunnel speaker crackled loudly above them, broadcasting the tournament proctor’s clear call across the locker corridor.
"Semifinal bout two: Halden House versus Siren’s Call, report to staging gate three immediately," the proctor announced.
Fin checked the balance of his hatchet, sliding one steel combat dagger securely into his reinforced belt sheath.
"Stay behind my shield until we split their formation," Ruby said, resting her spear across her shoulder.
"Once they commit to a synchronized sweep, drive Morie toward my flank," Fin instructed, stepping toward the portal.
The heavy hydraulic gate slid open with a dull hiss, revealing the bright, blinding glare of the arena floor.
The arena air smelled of sharp copper and ozone, vibrating with the hum of overhead transmission drones.
The stadium detonated into wild cheers as both teams emerged onto the dark tiles, where wide iron drainage gratings ran across the floor.
Heavy cast-iron drainage gratings were set flush into the dark tiles across the arena center, designed to channel excess rainwater and molten residue during intense combat.
Across the circular ring, Morie and Kael advanced in light green academy coats trimmed with polished silver buttons.
Morie swung her long scythe in a lazy figure eight, testing the pneumatic release valve along the weapon shaft.
Fin observed the subtle tremor in Morie’s grip, noting how the synthetic wind pressure strained her forearm tendons.
"You brought a woodcutter’s tool to a windstorm!" Morie called.
"A tool cuts whatever stays within reach of the edge," Fin replied in an even tone.
The referee’s whistle trilled through the open arena, signaling the immediate start of the tense semifinal match.
Morie kicked off the stone tile surface, gliding smoothly forward while trailing bright green ribbons of compressed air.
Kael followed two paces behind, angling his long scythe outward to catch the escaping slipstream between their blades.
Threat Sense pulsed against the base of Fin’s neck, identifying the artificial mana circulating through their weapon conduits.
’Their wind reservoirs run on synthetic mana batteries instead of natural atmospheric flow.’
"Spread wide and force them to choose a target," Ruby shouted, driving her boots into the tiles.
She surged forward toward the left boundary, angling her shield forward to split the incoming pressurized air currents.
Morie twisted her wrists sharply to unleash a howling gale that stripped loose stone dust from the arena tiles.
The gale blast struck Ruby’s shield with a sharp clatter, sending green mana sparks dancing across the curved surface.
Ruby planted her rear foot firmly on the deck, maintaining her forward momentum against the pushing wall of wind.
Fin sprinted along the right arc, keeping his center of gravity low as he carefully tracked Kael’s footwork.
Kael swung his heavy polearm downward, sending a crescent blade of compressed air whistling straight toward Fin’s knees.
Fin shifted his weight sideways in mid-stride, allowing the whistling pressure wave to pass harmlessly through empty air.
The compressed air blade slammed into the boundary barrier behind him, leaving a shallow gouge in the reinforced panel.
’His recovery takes half a second because the rear vent discharges excess gas.’
"Drive them together!" Fin called out, closing five paces while Kael reset his mechanical valve.
Ruby executed a rapid thrust with her spear, forcing Morie to divert her sweeping scythe toward the center.
Morie parried the spear tip, but the forced deflection pushed her directly into Kael’s forward movement corridor.
The two scythe blades clicked together in midair, their overlapping compressed air streams creating an unstable swirling vortex.
"Now, break their balance!" Ruby shouted, slamming her shield rim against Morie’s exposed hip.
The sudden impact jarred Morie sideways, tangling her scythe shaft with Kael’s trailing polearm near the arena floor.
Fin closed the final four meters in a single explosive bound, bringing his hatchet down with decisive speed.
He reversed his grip in mid-stride, slamming the heavy flat poll of his hatchet across both crossed weapon shafts.
The blunt kinetic force drove the intertwined weapons down into the wide iron floor grating with a resounding clang.
The heavy iron grating beneath his sneakers held solid, providing unyielding leverage against the trapped pneumatic shafts.
Fin planted his left boot firmly on top of the hatchet head, pinning both shafts against the iron grating.
The pneumatic canisters on both scythes hissed wildly, venting their trapped pressure harmlessly into the floor gaps below.
Kael yanked violently on his trapped polearm, but Fin’s grounded posture held both weapons completely motionless against the deck.
Ruby stepped inside their reach, leveling the sharp tip of her spear an inch from Morie’s unprotected throat.
"Release your grips, or trigger your canisters into your own ribs," Fin warned in an even voice.
Morie stared at Ruby’s steady spear tip, then looked down at Fin’s heavy boot pinning her family weapon.
"We yield the bout," Morie gasped, letting go of her scythe handle with trembling fingers.
Kael released his polearm a second later, raising both open hands to acknowledge their defeat.
The referee blew three shrill blasts on his brass whistle, pointing his yellow flag decisively toward the victors.
[ Semifinal victory: Siren’s Call eliminated ]
[ Match duration: 84 seconds ]
[ Combat EXP awarded: +90,000 EXP ]
[ EXP: 695,700 / 2,500,000 ]
[ Tournament advancement: Halden House advances to the final ]
The arena crowd erupted into a loud roar that shook the transparent stadium roof overhead.
The roar of sixty thousand spectators echoed through the stadium dome, rattling the high glass panels.
Fin lifted his boot from the hatchet head, retrieving the weapon smoothly before stepping back beside his partner.
"Eighty-four seconds of clean tactical positioning," Ruby said, wiping dust.
"Their artificial mana created turbulence, but their mechanical pivots lacked structural bracing," Fin observed, sheathing his hatchet.
Ruby lowered her spear, feeling the heavy ache in her shoulders as her combat adrenaline slowly subsided.
"My shoulders feel the push from that gale, but my ribs stayed clear," Ruby noted.
"We kept our stamina intact for tomorrow’s final match," Fin replied, rotating his wrist.
Maya’s voice came through their wireless earpieces, filled with crisp professional satisfaction.
"The tournament committee verified our advancement, confirming our official seed in tomorrow’s championship bout," Maya reported.
Maya reviewed the championship match parameters, highlighting tactical telemetry for Pyre’s frontline assault formation.
"Our porters are waving Halden House banners from the mid-tier concourse," Ruby remarked, glancing toward the stands.
Bram met them at the entrance to the competitor tunnel, handing each victorious fighter a clean dry towel.
Fin wiped his damp brow with a towel, his breathing steady and completely under control.
"The stadium announcer just confirmed Pyre cleared their semifinal bracket in under three minutes," Bram reported.
"Ruan did not take a single scratch against the iron guild team," Orson added, his face solemn.
"Ruan relies on corporate backing, but our squad fights for our own home," Fin replied, wiping his brow.
Fin looked across the arena toward the high staging balcony where the fighters of team Pyre watched the celebration.
Captain Gage stood directly behind his lead fighter, Ruan, his pale face twisted into an ugly, furious mask.
’Gage knows his corporate sponsors cannot hide behind referee calls tomorrow.’
[ Final qualifier status: confirmed ]
[ Current rank: D | level: 1 ]
[ Attributes: strength 68 | agility 84 (overclock 252) | endurance 77 | sense 48 | pulse 10 ]
[ Faction liquid balance: 104,000 credits ]
The exit gate opened smoothly, allowing Fin and Ruby to walk out into the quiet locker hallway together.
Tomorrow, Halden House would fight Pyre for the championship purse and their district’s survival.