Friendly Competition

The stadium was packed with students. All four schools that the station housed were present. Each was separated into four different quarters in the stands. Today was not an official match but the first mock tournament scheduled for the year. Normally ** would have also attended. May Lee suddenly teleporting the station to a new location had halted their participation.

"Do we really need to compete in front of so many people? This is just a practice match. Why do the different schools make such a fuss?" Max complained. He liked showing off but only when he knew who he was showing off to. He had never performed in front of so many strangers before.

"Haha, don't cry max we are a team it will be embarrassing for us if you do." Celestia teased. Max just rolled his eyes at her. He was taking Kaden's advice to not react to their provocations.

"We only need to go up once and it's not even a match. We will just do a summons and cast some basic spells. The other schools' freshman elites will do the same. The board of directors thinks this way we will be forced to learn new things before our official battles start." Savannah told him.

"I thought we would not participate in matches until next year," Kaden stated, he was confused. As the group's leader that was knowledge, he should have been privy to.

"I just got the message. I'm sure Jessica will be told soon too. I still am the current head of my family. I have some say in these matters you know." Savannah told Kaden. He was aware of her special status. Bee gave him the heads up after she had shown up.

"Boss lady, can you do something about our current discount then? We could be more productive if things were cheaper." Tommy asked, knowing he would get shot down.

"I can take on the cost but you would need to sign a proper contract." Savannah offered. It was the same as a rejection but she did not mind hiring any of the current elite students into her service.

"Nah, mom and dad would be really upset if I did that. They, along with my granddad, expect me to take over the family business when I graduate." Tommy declined.

"Anyone else would like a larger allowance?" Savannah asked. She even had contracts already drafted up in case someone did decide to accept her offer.

"Savannah, can you try recruiting others later? We should be paying attention to our Senior classmates' matches." Ash told the girl. Of course, Ash would never agree to sign any contract at all. Her family would label her as an even bigger black sheep.

"Fufufu, big sis is just as devious as rumors say." Celestia teased.

"The agreement for all three of your transfers where you could not poach our talent." Jessica then begrudgingly added. Savannah was always a difficult customer. One who had given her many headaches in the past.

"Ah man, I was about to ask her what other benefits we get." Bisma jokingly spoke up.

"Enough chit-chat, the first match is about to start." Kaden then told his team.

Anton's team would face off with the top team of Void Star Academy. A one on one elimination match. The team with the most remaining members would be called the winner.

The void star team matched Edinburgh's with twelve players. Two of the members respectively were reserved in case the main team got injured. They stood proud in their matching royal blue military uniform. With red stripes running down its side it was far from the modern camouflage that Earth's forces wore. They would not fight like a regular army anyways. No, they were being trained to be dualists. A large-scale battle was not how the planar wars worked.

On the outside, the Planer Wars was a humongous tournament. Organized by powerful entities and overseen by the Elder Council. In the shadows, it was a cold war between various factions. Espionage, sabotage, and political maneuvering all happen while promoting harmony. The prime universe is a major force working its hardest to maintain the status quo.

Anton took the stage first; he was in the standard school uniform every student in Edinburgh wore. A yellow and red sash showing he was part of the Scandinavian Mythos.

"So their strategy is for Anton to whittle away at Void Stars' numbers." Savannah pointed out the sidelines. She and the rest of Kaden's current team had great seating positions for the matchups. Edinburg wanted their freshmen elite class to witness how proper matches worked. A simple but effective approach.

"How many rounds do you think he can take?" Kaden asked.

Anton quickly set his defenses. He stood his ground ready to counter his opponent's move. His summoned creature was already on the field. He had instantly summoned it as he took the stage.

Anton always started with a defensive strategy. He likes to judge his opponent's strength before he commits. He also wanted to preserve his team's strength in the process.

"Stubborn Turtle, you'll not have it easy against me like last time." His opponent called out.

Anton's opponent was a heavy-set teen. Most would think he was fat but he was far from it. The Pink Rhino that had merged with him was the culprit for his current looks. Anton's opponent was a lot like his abilities. Both relied on their summons to fortify their physical body's defense. The difference was Joffrey was an attacker and an impatient one at that.

Boom.

Joffrey launched himself at Anton. Joffrey put as much of his mass behind the punch he tried to deliver. Anton's reaction was just as fast as he caught the fist and executed a hip throw. Joffrey would have been thrown out of the ring had he been a bit slower. He twisted his hulking body mid-air and landed on his feet really close to the ring's edge.

Anton was not idle in that brief second and had already repositioned himself. A swift uppercut connected on Joffrey's jaw. This time sending him flying out of the ring. It hit hard enough to rattle him long enough for the match to end.

"Tsh, to him he should not rush in." A teenage boy with bright red hair said. He was the team leader of Void Star Academy Senior Elite Class. Tall, handsome but brutally skeptical. Somehow the black military uniform fit him. He looked like he had been born for the part.

"Get Joffrey to the locker room. Fred you up, remember don't rush him. He specializes in countering so bait him and maybe you will last longer than your brother." The teen ordered out. He was snappy in his decision. Besides, they did not have all day to show off. The match itself was only set for thirty minutes. A simple exhibition between the four schools. Partly to give the freshmen some experience.

Fred was a short and lean kid the total opposite of his twin brother. "Yo Anton, how is Tara doing? I don't see her on the sidelines." Fred said as he took the stage. Unlike Edenburg, Void Star was an all-male school. The only contact the students of Void Star had with the opposite sex was during these multi-school events.

"Haha, I'll tell her hello for you when I see her," Anton replied. Not wanting to give Fred time to prepare himself. Anton rushed in as he gave his reply. Too bad Fred was a skilled combatant and parried Anton's punch with the flat of a blade that magically appeared in his hands. Fred had summoned the weapon. It's not really a curved blade but Fred's summoned creature transformed into something he could use.

"Checky, answering while attacking. Be careful of my banshee wail." Fred warned. He always would give a warning before he attacked. It was just a quark of his. Sidestepping Fred raised his blade and unleashed his attack. A piercing scream rang out from his blade.

Anton quickly reacted by raising his fist to protect his head. His own spirit beast protected him from the bewitching sound. Anton's grimoire materialized before him hovering in the air. It automatically opens its pages. Seeing Anton's reactions Fred backed off from pressing the attack. He quickly manifested his own book.

Soon a giant black bear stood in between. The bear coat had hints of gray on its chest. Shiny silver plate-mail covers the beast from head to two. In it'd paw were metal clawed gauntlets that extended the creature's reach.

"I hate spooks." The bear suddenly said.

The bear was one of Anton's guardian summons and had come out of its own volition. The grumpy beast would normally just be asleep in its world without a care. The banshee wail had made it stir.

"I thought you said you would not participate in his childish games," Anton stated. "Hmph, Ghosts n Ghouls are worth smashing." It replied. The bear let out an incredibly loud roar. The sound wave it released was hundreds of times louder than Fred's Banshee.

The bear's sound attack revealed all of Fred's summons. Besides the white-haired banshee, a pasty white man with a longsword and a child missing any facial features stood next to the boy. All angry at the bear for revealing them.

"You handle their contact, I'll play with them for a bit." The bear told Anton.

"No need, I admit defeat," Fred said, throwing up his hands. His summons all had unique abilities. Those abilities worked best in the shadows. Now that all three had been exposed he no longer had any confident in winning.

"Proper call. Come down. Next time don't use the banshee wail so early in the match." His team lead called out. It was just bad luck that Anton's guardian beast decided to step in.

The same team leader now bored of the competition stepped up onto the stage. "Anton, what do you say to this being the final bout?" He asked.

"Fine by me, but Barny will not listen to me so don't summon any creature you don't wish to lose," Anton warned. The fact Barny the Bear decided to come out to play was shocking to Anton. Anyone who knew the bear's personality would have been shocked.

"It's fine I'll give him an equally thorny opponent." The teen replied. As the final words left the teen's mouth a large gorgon appeared. The snake lady was remarkably beautiful if not for her serpent lower body. Gelded golden armor barely covered her upper torso. In her jade white hands, she held a golden spear.

"Monster kind is just as bad as that undead filth." Remarked the bear. It spat on the floor in detest.

"Xenophobe," the gorgon spat back as she readied her spear.

Anton nodded to the teen before both boys focused on their own battle. Their duel would be overshadowed by the swift movements and loud clashes of the two beasts.

"Epic!" Bisma said as he watched the big bear dodge a spear thrust aimed at its neck.

"Biz, those beasts are going at it full throttle because they both know they can't die here," Jason told him.

"Yeah, had I known this match would have been so exciting I would have taken some bets." Tommy said.

"Gambling is strictly forbidden by the station authorities." Jessica deflated his dreams.

"Tom, if Jess was not here I'd be willing to support your entrepreneurship," Ash said with a thumbs up.

"Gambling is a class two misdemeanor with a penalty of two years in extra military service and the financial penalty is ten times the total amount gambled. They just put the debt onto your current tab." Kaden quoted the law and told his friend.

"Bossman is a walking encyclopedia." Bruce teased. Kaden hates the title Team Leader, so the boys in his team just started calling him boss or bossman.