Array Wars

The enemy team, led by LostMind, is easily visible once the walls of light go down. Lynna gives a glare to one of them, who Sen assumes is Bagel. She'd always paid more attention to the pro teams, while Sen simply plays games.

As the match starts, both sides give a short bow of respect, then they both circle up around their respective array user. When the images appear, it's clear that Julie doesn't have the massive advantage she normally has over other array users.

While she has five images, each able to deal damage, the enemy has four, and judging by how their swords aren't blurry in their vision, they can probably do damage just like Julie's.

"If you hit the images of the swords hard enough, it will break the image, don't bother hitting their body though, that will do nothing." Julie finally informs them of how to handle fighting things like this in a low voice.

The two groups start approaching, as both Julie and the opposing array user start to set up more arrays. Team cloud is the first to start rushing them, likely noticing their array user is slightly less skilled. LostMind gravitates towards Sen, and Lynna heads to the enemy that has to be Bagel, trying to get revenge from getting knocked out of the singles tournament.

Sen's overhead strike is blocked by the shield, but when LostMind goes to return the blow, Sen is happy to find that the speed difference isn't nearly so large as it was last time. While he's still slightly outclassed, he can handle it.

LostMind decides to start it off by using a skill, and fire starts to engulf his sword. Sen expects that this will be one of the skills that cause the sword to explode in a bit of flame every time it impacts something, so controls the wind to create a swirling barrier around himself, clashing their swords together to test his defense.

While the flame does explode, it isn't able to get through his barrier, simply swirling around him and singeing him. Sen lets out a grin, then returns the favor with weight of the mountain slamming to LostMind's sword side.

He gets his shield in between the blow and his body, but grunts and slides back from the force. Sen uses the slight opening to get a quick look around the battlefield, and notes that Lynna is having a bit of trouble, and Jennifer would be if she didn't have one of the images helping her, the other four fake Julies fighting with the images from the enemy team. Sen then throws a couple knives, twisting them with the wind in order to add a few cuts to LostMind.

The enemy images break away from Julie's, and turn to come join the rest of the fight, all of them targeting Sen for some reason. Julie has her images copy them in their plan to stack onto one person, sending them to the opponent Xue is fighting. Sen instantly starts to take a bit of distance from LostMind, while staying within a single Earth Step of the others of his group to prevent LostMind from attacking them while he's pushed back by the images. While he stays out of range, he chucks a couple knives around the battlefield to distract the opponents, giving a few of them small scratches.

LostMind decides to go help the enemy Jennifer is fighting, and Sen decides to trust that she can handle herself for a while. He uses Earth Step along with Gale Steps, removing the wind resistance as he moves almost faster than he can track towards the opponent Lynna is fighting. Right as he uses Cutting Squall to speed up his sword even more, he sees the enemy go to block, but he slows down all of a sudden, likely Julie having finished her array.

The quarter second of delay is more than enough for Sen to remove his shield arm, and he leaves him for Lynna to finish off before rushing towards Jennifer, who is almost just running away from the two people who are now attacking her.

As he arrives next to Jennifer, she stops running, and they both go for a strike on LostMind. Both of the blows are blocked, the slow effect seeming to be mostly gone, and the other opponent tries to go for a strike on Sen, but Xue plants herself in the way with her shield, letting Sen continue striking at LostMind. LostMind has dismissed the flaming sword at this point, not wanting to waste his energy when Sen has a way of avoiding the damage.

The images then join in on the fight, and Sen uses Weight of the mountain to strike at two of their swords, and sees that the images dissipate as the swords break. Sen ignores the other two for a moment to get back to fighting LostMind, but all of a sudden he feels himself slowing down a bit. He uses a choice curse word from his previous life, is the enemy array user simply copying Julie? The bracelet chooses that moment to send a wave of warmth through his body, and the slow disappears.

With LostMind unable to counter the entirety of the slow Julie has put him under the fight is practically set in stone, but Sen can't seem to get the final blow. Sen's wondering when Julie is going to get her next array up, but when he looks over he sees that the enemy array user has charged towards her, not wanting her to finish her current array.

Sen continues to fight without any energy usage other than body strengthening, wanting to conserve it, but LostMind isn't quite so liberal in his energy usage, often using different strikes, that tend to explode or cut into his sword a bit.

Sen is starting to think this is going to be a long match, until the floor underneath LostMind starts to glow. He instantly uses Cutting Squall, trying to keep LostMind in place. The blow is far too fast for LostMind to dodge and so he's forced to block just as a pillar of flame rips upwards from the ground beneath him.

Looking over to the side, he sees Julie has died to her opponent in return for finishing the array, but all of the enemy team is badly burned or turning into specks of light already. Looking to LostMind, he's survived, though his skin is covered in the same blue Sen sees when he cuts into someone.

Sen is easily able to finish him off while the rest of the team dogpiles onto the enemy array user, and they end the match with a victory.

As they exit the arena, they see Julie looking very proud, and rightfully so. While she had died, the last array she'd made had easily guaranteed them the match win. Everyone congratulates her, and they all decide to log off to have some food.