Chapter 21. Norman vs. Iutah

"Clara Vangerberg, Red Team, versus Daniella Karajo, Black Team."

Daniella. It was the second time Norman heard this name, but he couldn't get used to it. Everyone somehow accepted the fact that Karajo didn't have a name. This weird, bandaged creature, too powerful to be human, just didn't need a name! And then Daniella… When he heard it, he imagined a beautiful tall girl, not these walking ruins of a body!

Norman couldn't say he liked or disliked her. Rather, he felt this light fear around her that everyone seemed to share. At the same time, he was mesmerized by her skill. He wanted to visit every battle of hers to learn something. Unfortunately, her first opponent was so weak she didn't have to demonstrate anything interesting.

But today should be different. Clara was a strong fighter, and a smart one too. Norman remembered that she was almost on the same level as him.

He still couldn't get used to liking this whole thing so much. At first things were different… Norman wasn't happy about ending up on Ceres, and he was planning to fail those exams. He didn't give a damn about his rates, and he didn't want to risk his life.

He couldn't tell when it all changed. His only guess was the New Year's party, when the base was attacked by mutant rats. He actually saved someone back then, and it wasn't a training session! It impressed him so much it changed his whole outlook on this hybrid way thing.

Norman was realistic enough to know he couldn't become the best warrior of this generation. He, like many others, just wanted to get to this final battle with Karajo and see how long he could last against her.

Waiting for the duel to start, he was observing the arena. It was quite picturesque today: a frozen lake surrounded by snow-covered hills. An imitation of the Sun was shining above the ceiling, making those snow drifts sparkle, and the ice was shining like a crystal. The air was as frosty as the scenery suggested, but hybrids weren't bothered by this, and humans had warm clothing on.

The students were facing each other on the ice. Clara looked calm, though she was undoubtedly just hiding her fear. Karajo's emotions were perfectly hidden by the bandages.

"Begin!" Teacher Damian commanded.

It was the first battle of the day. The audience was expecting a short and passionate fight… but they were disappointed.

Karajo stamped her foot on the frozen lake. The blow was strong enough to cover the ice with a web of cracks in a second – and it took even less time for them to break into pieces. It wasn't a dramatic process, it was a momentary thing: Clara was just gone from the place she stood at, sinking like a rock.

She reappeared in a minute, clinging to one of the bigger ice-floes. She was cold and out of breath – and completely bewildered. She couldn't understand how anyone could escape that collapse, since it required supreme speed and agility.

But Karajo had it all. She jumped to the side before the destruction of the ice and was observing her opponent from one of the hills now. She knew Clara was too traumatized to continue.

"Daniella wins," Lady Laura announced, sounding anything but enthusiastic. "We'll continue after a technical break – we need to restore the ice."

By the time she finished talking Karajo left the hall. She always walked away after battles, but sometimes she returned to watch other duels. Norman was curious whether she'd come to see his.

It took the whole night to create new decorations for the arena, but covering the lake with ice lasted less than an hour. After that the fights continued, but they weren't nearly as impressive as the first one. Even the winner wouldn't last long in the next rounds against Karajo.

There were exceptions though. For instance, the battle between Immanuel Cuyo and Red Yeremeya – an example of perfect technique and mastery. Both could boast a perfect balance of fury and self-control for complicated attacks. The White Team hybrid won, and Norman thought that this guy was going to be a tough nut for his opponents too.

His own duel was the last on the schedule. Norman wasn't scared of it: maybe he should've been, but the fear just didn't come. And he wasn't angered by the fact everyone thought Iutah would win. They bet on his opponent in his last fight too – and what happened in the end?

Norman wasn't too good at military strategy or at science. But he trusted his body and knew how to use his energy. The hunting skills he received in his childhood helped him greatly too, he knew exactly what he had to do. All of that made him ignore the fact Iutah had more points behind his back.

He realized that his defeat was also possible. That wasn't a tragedy. Light Silver lost to Iutah in the first round, but he was still keeping his head high, like nothing had happened! Because he knew he had enough points to pass the exam. Norman also had them, but he wanted to try his luck.

His time finally came. The first thing he felt when he entered the hall was cold: it was stronger here than by the platform! But the lake wasn't too slippery, so those decorations weren't too bad after all.

He and Iutah were standing on the ice now. His opponent was as cold as the snow around them, with a lightest shadow of a smile on his face. Norman wasn't going to show his emotions either, though his blood boiled with excitement. He heard the audience grow quiet, and he also noticed that Karajo returned to the platform to see his fight. Everyone expected a great show!

His impatience was burning him, and it felt like an eternity had passed before the magical word finally sounded:

"Start!"

From that moment everything but his opponent just seized to exist. Norman wasn't good at making complicated plans, but he could read the rival's intentions in the slightest of movements. It was part of a successful hunt in the past… and a successful exam now.

Besides, there was no strategy that could work against Iutah. He was a master of numerous techniques, including the ones he created. He wasn't like the rest of his team. But he was still a human to a great extent, so his movements could be anticipated after all.

That allowed Norman to block his blows before they were delivered. He used that skill for countering and attacking. He would catch his opponent by the wrist and use that to hit him on the ribs. When Iutah tried to knock him off his feet, he jumped up, landed a couple of meters away and continued the battle without a moment's hesitation. Balancing on the ice wasn't easy, but Norman got used to it pretty fast.

There wasn't a single pause in their duel. Previous opponents could pause to study each other, move back, have some rest; it wasn't an option in their case. Their movements were like a dance – not to be interrupted or broken, because stopping meant losing for both of them.

Norman was getting tired, but he expected that. He'd noticed that in the previous battles exhaustion was one of the most frequent reasons of losing. So he spread his energy wisely and remembered that their fight was wearing Iutah out too. They're from the same team, their rates are rather close, therefore they should have the same amount of energy in store.

Iutah also understood that. There was a strange look in his eyes that Norman couldn't fully comprehend. His opponent was viewing him as an enemy… that made no sense. The exam was just a way to get more points, not a real duel!

"I must be imagining this," Norman decided. "Or that's his strategy to confuse me."

"Not bad," Iutah commented. "You're better than I expected. But it's time to finish this."

Norman ignored him. Those catch phrases were such a cheap trick! A good warrior wouldn't pay any attention to them, and they'd result in nothing but breathlessness.

However, those words served as a sign of something after all. Iutah became more aggressive after them. His attacks were trickier and faster, Norman was barely able to avoid them. He knew this was tiring his opponent out. Basically, it was a win or lose strategy: Iutah would give his all to win fast or lose his chances for the victory.

Such desperate attacks were making him vulnerable. Losing speed meant an opening that could be used by his rival. Iutah was good, but not perfect, and Norman used every mistake he made – he even heard Iutah's ribs crack under his foot. That had to leave him with some broken bones! Norman wasn't sorry about this, it was all part of the exam.

Iutah's extreme strategy wasn't completely pointless, it brought him a couple of effective attacks. It was getting harder for Norman to breathe, he was limping slightly, and his headache was growing. But he wasn't ready to give up, he felt like everything was under his control and these traumas didn't mean too much.

He made a mistake, but he didn't even notice it. Iutah's attack seemed average and not too dangerous… But it led to something weird. Norman's whole body exploded in unbearable pain that brought him down onto the ice. He thought it was an accident that would soon pass, and it didn't. The pain just stuck inside him, traveling through his bones and blood like electricity. His muscles were shaken by spasms, his sight grew dim. He could feel his mouth being filled with sticky hot blood that kept him from screaming. He could no longer control his body, as if he was carried away by a huge wave, he had no feeling of the world around him. His universe consisted of pain and burning and numbness…

Sometimes his eyesight was returning – for mere seconds. But that was enough to see the humans bending over him, saying something, asking something, and he couldn't answer. He couldn't even hear them! Then his eyes were rolling back in his head, and everything was swallowed by darkness again.

The same thing was happening to his hearing. Most of the time he could catch nothing but the roaring of an angry ocean, which was interrupted by someone's words from time to time.

"Lift him up, and be careful, I'm begging you!"

"Turn his head, or he'll choke!"

"What's with his pulse? It's disappearing… I've never seen anything like that!"

Their touch hurt him. Norman was trying to tell them about it, but failed. His skin felt like one big open wound, and it was driving him crazy. He didn't want to live anymore – he just wanted to end this.

When he was brought to the infirmary, he felt a big better: he was given a shot. It numbed the pain, but didn't suppress it completely, and every time Norman tried to move, new spasms rolled over his body. The feeling of utter helplessness was draining his strength, but he forced his tired mind to stay focused on what the people around him were saying.

Their forecasts weren't optimistic. No-one could tell what was happening to him. Their only option was the deformation of the hybrid matter; Norman had heard about it before, but he could never imagine that it'd happen to him!

The deformation was provoked by serious injuries that the twenty percent he received couldn't handle. That caused the hybrids cells to be reborn. Sometimes the process reached a certain point and reversed, making the hybrid a human again. But sometimes the mutation led to inner destruction and eventual death.

He was probably in for the worst outcome. He wasn't afraid, he'd accept anything to stop this pain. The hours of suffering were breaking his will slowly. Norman was never the suicidal type, but he felt like he'd do it now. Although he didn't have the energy even for that, he was trapped in his own body.

Humans couldn't help him. In one of his rare clear moments he heard Dr. Deshanti saying:

"His cells are too unstable, they're changing their shape three times per hour. We can't do anything about it."

"Can we at least ease his pain?" Lady Laura asked.

"I'm afraid not. The painkilles designed for hybrids are too strong, they'd rob him of his final chance to survive. He may still live, but I doubt he'll keep his hybrid powers."

He couldn't understand how that happened. A simple exam transformed into this nightmare! What did he do to deserve this?!

Sometimes he was approached by humans and hybrids. They were talking to him, trying to support him. It didn't matter to Norman, he was trapped in the cocoon of his own pain. They went away, unable to bear his screaming and moaning. They left him alone.

And then someone else came to him. It was already dark around Norman, so he figured the day was over. But that person just appeared beside his bed, putting his hands on the forehead and the chest of the wounded hybrid.

It was a weird gesture, out of place here. Norman's skin burned in pain again, denying that touch. He was too tired to scream, so he could only moan hoarsely.

"Quiet," a voice sounded next to his ear. "Hold on, it won't last long. I'm going to help you. We won't let him win."

Norman had no idea what those phrases meant, and he wasn't interested in that. Another thing caught his attention: the one who came to him was actually helping! Norman could feel the hybrid matter starting to move in his body. He had never felt it so clearly; and it seemed alive inside him, moving at the stranger's will. It wasn't hurting him anymore… it was healing him, filling him with gentle warmth.

His desire to die was gone in an instant. He focused his mind on the saving touch, he was holding on to it, like it was the final thread connecting him to the world of living. His consciousness was still foggy, and he couldn't realize what was happening to him, but it was enough for him to know that he was being rescued.

"Thank you…" his dry lips refused to move, but he managed to say that.

The voice was as close to him as before:

"You're tired. You're going to fall asleep soon. I don't know if you'll be able to keep your powers, but I hope so. You're a strong warrior and you should be on our side."

"Don't go…"

"I'll stay with you as long as you're awake."

The pain was disappearing completely, replaced by deep slumber.