Chapter 17

FRANCIS ROLAND VS GEORGE ADAMS

"So I guess I'll be meeting Su first amongst all y'all," Francis laughed.

"That's if you don't get disgraced in the first round," Kris retorted.

"You better be more bothered about yourself. One of you is going to face Salim and I am just glad it's not me. I basically have this in the bag".

"I don't appreciate the confidence Francis," George spoke out as the two began to walk towards the exit. Francis didn't respond to him which irritated George more. Fred sat and looked at the other three contestants. He thought to himself that he was going to face either Kris or Salim soon or both if he was somehow extremely lucky (or unlucky). He scratched his head as he sighed. Francis and George were at edges of the center circle. A stare down as both took fighting stances.

"Ready!"

Francis green cloak started from his back and covered his entire body while George's yellow cloak started from his right eye and covered his entire body.

"Begin!"

Both dashed at each other and struck their right elbows. There was a large burst of their combined energies upon the clash. They grinned their teeths and furrowed their eyes as their energies struggling began to spark as they pushed against each other with Francis gaining the advantage.

Francis pushed forward and was able to slug George across the chin with his left fist.  He moved in with a continuous rush on George's face (left then right punches successively) with green energy sparking out in the direction of the punch. Francis gathered energy in his fist and attempted a heavy blow to George but he dodged it and kneed Francis in the guts. Francis eyes widened first then he pulled back a bit. George closed in and gave a head butt on Francis'nose which dug deep as it forced him to take more steps back. As he recollected himself, his eyes caught a heavy high kick which he blocked with his left arm as yellow energy spread rightwards. Francis arm shook a bit as he could feel steam flowing from it. He charged his right fist and attempted to hit George in the guts but George blocked with his palms. The force sent him flying a good distance away. George spun himself in the air and landed on the ground with his palms placed behind him. He created blasts which launched him quickly at Francis. As he got closer, he swung a heavy fist at Francis face but Francis blocked with both his hands in an X position. Yellow energy rose. Francis' feet dragged on the ground as George fist kept pushing in.

Francis stopped himself from dragging back as he forced his hands outwards with a roar thereby pushing George back. George stomped his right leg in order to regain himself. He dashes forward and struck Francis twice which Francis dodged. He moved in for a third strike with his right fist but Francis deflected it leftwards then struck at George's face with his right hand which George deflected using his left. George swooped in immediately with a right hook but Francis caught it with both his hands, twisted it to make George bow, and then kicked him in the face. As George's face lifted from the kick, Francis dragged the hand quickly to his back making his arm bones shift a bit. George yelled at the pain while Francis thrusted them to the wall in front by creating a blast from his feet. He smashed George in and could hear crackling sounds before he took a big leap back while George fell to the ground.

The crowd went wild with cheers. Francis was panting a bit as he could finally get a breather. George held his right hand and adjusted his shifted bone. There was sharp pain which made him groan. He stood to his feet and began walking towards Francis as he gave a death stare to him.

"Tchh," Francis hissed. He charged energy on his left index and middle fingers while opening them wide. A small sphere formed on a connecting strand which ends were joint on both fingers. He used his right index and middle fingers to drag it backwards as it charged and kept getting deeper in color. The full outlook was him making a sling shot with his fingers.

"Like I'd let you!" George roared as he shot multiple energy blasts in rapid succession at Francis.

"Deep Flare," Francis whispered with a smile as he launched the sphere from his fingers. It moved with incredible speed as it released a green wave of energy. George blocked at the nick of time with his two hands in an 'X' guard stance. He struggled against it when suddenly he noticed that all the blasts he had fired towards Francis remained frozen in place by the energy wave released from Francis' sphere. Suddenly they all flowed into Francis' sphere as it absorbed them and got bigger. Once the last energy blast entered the sphere, it exploded. The explosion sent shockwaves through George such that his cloak shattered and energy dispersed. His body stood vibrating as Francis closed in on him. Francis struck with a heavy right punch and instinctively, George did the same. George's wrist snapped on impact and his arm bones cracked. The momentum of Francis fist carried on as it landed on George's chest, cracking his ribs on impact which caused him to cough out blood before being launched back into the wall behind him. He sat in the wall with his hair fallen over his face.

"Ouuuuuu!!!" The crowd went cold with worry. There were no signs of movement from George.

"Ref..." Francis called out to Sadiki. Sadiki looked at him, glanced at his wrist, and then turned his eyes to George.

Francis was confused until suddenly, he felt it. George's energy was beginning to rise. His cloak formed as he stood to a crouching position and his right hand swung freely. Blood trailed down his mouth, right wrist and chest as the center of his camo was torn.

"What's with this guy?" Francis thought as a bit of frustration fell on his face.

"Don't... underes... underestimate me," George forced a smile as he struggled to breathe. He gathered energy on his left hand till it was fully engulfed. The energy spiked and it morphed into a sword shaped energy emitting from the hand. He coughed out blood and began to walk slowly towards Francis.

"You are beginning to annoy me!" Francis roared as he formed another Deep flare. He dragged it back as it condensed before he shot it at George. It moved so quickly most people in the audience didn't notice it leave Francis hands until they heard a sound at George's location. The sound of him slicing the sphere clean into two followed by the halves of the sphere hitting the wall behind him and exploding. George was unfazed by the explosion as he stood glaring at Francis with his left hand in the air. The crowd cheered wildly at this moment. Some began chanting George's name to urge him on.

"Fuck...," Francis quivered as a cold sweat ran down his forehead. He took a stance and opened his palms widely as he crouched a bit.

George's cloak began to glow as the aura at his feet began to thicken. In two steps, he covered the gap between himself and Francis. He stared Francis in the eyes as he drove his hand towards Francis' chest. Francis quickly side stepped to his right in order to dodge the sword but it sliced his cloak and camo. George dragged his hand backwards and swung at Francis' face but Francis leaned back thereby dodging the strike but it cut the cloak covering his hair. George stopped his hand 3/4th of the way then dragged it quickly down to strike Francis who took a short leap back to avoid it. Francis heart panicked a bit because at this moment, it felt like George was planning to kill him. George closed in with multiple quick strikes which Francis tried dodging. At first it was his cloak that was being sliced as he evaded but soon George was getting more precise and Francis' body was being sliced. His left chin, his right shoulder, his left arm, his obliques, the side of his hair, his right lap, etc. and his strikes were becoming faster. Georges sword glowed as he drove a very quick thrust at Francis chest.

Francis eyes widened in shock as he created a blast at George's direction which propelled him enough distance away. Out of the smoke created by the blast George leapt into the air and struck furiously down at Francis who dodged it by leaning to his right. George hand sliced deep into the ground but he dragged it out quickly thereby sending dust at Francis. Francis got blinded by the dust but dodged the blade following it while kneeing George in the chin before kicking him backwards.  George spat out blood, and then moved in with a rising straight thrust at Francis. Francis leaned his head rightwards allowing George's hand to pass above his left shoulder slicing it a bit. He stretched his left hand in the same moment such that it would pass above George's. He dragged his elbow back and hooked George's neck. With a thundering roar, he fell backwards thereby slamming George's face in a DDT fashion.

George cursed as he tried to lift himself up but Francis began to pin him into submission by pressing his elbows deep into his neck. Francis pushed his left hand with the right in order to apply more pressure. George began resisting as he forced himself up. Francis wrapped his leg around George and burst out more energy with a thunderous yell in order to pull George back down. George roared as he lifted Francis to knee position. He bent his left hand with the energy sword slowly till the blade cut into Francis' cloak. He added more energy and extended it which made it pierce deep into Francis body. Francis grunted at the pain and for a brief moment his pressure reduced. George used that opportunity to expand a barrier from his body which sent Francis a few meters away from him. He landed on his side and dragged on the ground for a bit. Both contestants began to breathe heavily.

Francis stood as he held his side which was bleeding. George held his chest as he coughed out more blood. His breathing became erratic and he could feel that he was moments away from passing out.

"Fuck!" He cursed. He burst out his energy and it swirled round him. His energy sword became slightly darker than his cloak as he prepared himself for a strike. Francis took a deep breath and closed his eyes. He crouched a bit and lifted his palms in the air. George focused more energy at his feet and once the energy spiked, he zoomed at Francis. He moved faster than he ever had. Basically in half a breath, he was in front of Francis with his blade thrusted forward. In that moment, from his point of view, Francis vanished. He was confused and soon after despair fell on him as he felt Francis energy beside him. His eyes moved leftwards slowly as it met with Francis glowing glare. Francis lifted his right fist which had energy gathered on it and struck George on his chin. The fist dug deep and the force was so much it buried George's face deep into the ground as green energy spiraled upwards for a bit before dissipating.

"Winner by knock out, Francis Roland!" The ref called out.

Francis lifted his hands upwards as the crowd went wild. He smiled as he walked and waved while heading for the exit. He was directed to the waiting room where Su was. The medics went to the stage and began a quick first aid on George.

"Congratulations," She said as he entered.

"Thank you! But just so you know, you are next. Finally we can have the battle you've been avoiding."

"Hoo. She won't lose to you though," Su smiled.

"We'll see about that!" Francis smirked.

AT THE VIP seats,

"Your Cadets are very impressive Lizzy. The quality keeps getting higher each year," Louis commented as he clapped.

"It would be more appreciated if the grand commander didn't keep stealing them. Regardless, I am proud and interested in seeing the future these cadets will have," Elizabeth replied with a smile.

"Did you just complement them?" Louis eyes widened. Elizabeth furrowed her eyebrows at his comment and refused to reply him.

The medics were done and they stretched George out of the stage. The pictures on the screen began to roll and it slowly stopped at the next two contestants. Everyone's eyes widened and a deep silence took the entire hall. This matchup basically decided the concluding battles of the first round.

FRED OLIVEIRA VS BEATRICE ROSSI.