Chapter 7 Fire and Air

As wind streamed into his palm through tiny openings, Zaheer targeted Ryder. Compressing the air, he unleashed a powerful gust with a sharp, precise motion. Though small, the whirlwind was deadly, soaring through the air with relentless force and speed, heading straight for Ryder's gut.

Ryder seemed vulnerable, his head tilted back, arms outstretched in a gesture that eerily invited the attack. He muttered to himself, "Not yet, not yet." Onlookers, including those who knew him well, were baffled by his actions, believing he was about to surrender.

Just as the whirlwind struck Ryder's gut, a massive explosion of fire erupted, engulfing the arena in intense heat. Flames burst forth unexpectedly, forcing some students to retreat. A female dignitary swiftly raised a protective barrier, shielding the audience.

Zaheer was stunned, struggling to breathe as the heat and flames ravaged the air. Despite the barrier, the oxygen burned up, worsening his distress. He retaliated with a massive whirlwind, but the inferno only intensified, forcing him to stop. The flames engulfed Ryder's entire body, reducing him to a dark silhouette. "He's using my powers against me," Zaheer realized, horrified.

Now this was an absolute shock for the entire audience including the dignitaries present they were all impressed by what Ryder had just done, Zaheer had backed into a corner as far away from Ryder like a cornered rat he was still in distress by the stunt Ryder had pulled.

Ryder began walking slowly towards Zaheer each step bringing him closer to victory the massive inferno that surrounded him moved with him as he walked forward.

 Zaheer wasn't ready to lose yet so he decided to pull off one final stunt,he took deep breaths it was like he wasn't affected by the heat anymore, he closed his eyes at the same time taking deep breaths then immediately he opened his eyes.

 He took a firm stance and then moved his left and right hand in a circular motion his left hand moved first and the right hand followed, at first little strands of air flowed seamlessly around him it was at least an arm's length from where he stood as he kept moving his arms in a circular motion.

 The wind kept on getting thicker and higher and like that it kept growing until it touched the barrier above them now the same length as Ryder's inferno, the wind didn't have much effect on Ryder's inferno, he just stood and observed what Zaheer had been doing.

The entire arena was silent they could only look and see how fire and air divided the arena, "THIS ENDS NOW !" Zaheer yelled both of them ran towards each other moving the inferno and the hurricane with them.

As Ryder and Zaheer collided, they merged the inferno and hurricane, unleashing a devastating force. The hurricane's massive suction engulfed the inferno, forging a fire hurricane that ravaged the barrier. Flames danced across every inch, straining to breach the containment.

The female dignitary, who had initially raised the barrier, swiftly rose to her feet. With both hands, she channeled her energy to reinforce the barrier, containing the explosive force. After a few tense seconds, the explosion subsided, and the flames gradually dissipated into smoke. As the smoke cleared, the barrier dissolved leaving a clearer view of the two contestants and the combat area.

The concrete floor on the combat area was gone all that was left was the sand beneath the concrete, the heat from Ryder's flames cracked the concrete while Zaheer's wind blew them apart leaving the sandy ground beneath.

 Zaheer was down on the floor, he passed out as a result of suffocation, multiple burns and of course the heat from Ryder's inferno, while Ryder was on his feet it was hard to tell if he was still conscious his face was up like he was looking at the sky his eyes opened button completely white the upper half of his costume had completely burnt off both his arms were lifeless as they hung from his shoulder and smoke emitting from his body he looked like he had been completely dried up it was as a result of his over heating. 

Both contestants had completely blacked out but only one of them did so while standing on his feet therefore he won the match. The entire arena was silent the first and second years couldn't believe that it was their class mates down there. Both contestants were carried out and taken to the healer there was a 30 minute delay before the next match in order to fix the combat area.

****

"Ryder was amazing out there today, he's the only one among the first years that might actually prove troublesome in a one on one fight he's also the second after me among the first years I've never seen such power in him before I wouldn't be surprised if he leveled up after that match" Aiden said inwardly, "He swore to surpass me and that is something I cannot let happen, no matter what it takes".

****

"I knew their powers weren't compatible with each other but this, this was something else, Zaheer also amazed me out there too" Mr Zane said inwardly. "If those two can learn to work together, they'll be an unstoppable force that no single student in the school can overcome not even an entire squad." 

"The next match we have would be 1st year Dax Helion versus 3rd year Eryk Vael" Mr Zane shouted. "This should be interesting" He said inwardly with a smile as walked back to his seat. Dax's hyperactiveness had drastically worsened before the match.

"ALRIGHT COME ON THIRD YEAR LET'S GO, NO HOLDING BACK I AM GOING TO FIGHT THIS MATCH LIKE IT'S MY LAST AND YOU SHOULD TOO" Dax yelled with a firm smile on his face.

He couldn't stay at a place so he hopped from one foot to the other continuously his entire body was flowing with adrenaline, his opponent was already pissed off by his attitude.

 Eryk Vael he was much similar to Dax in terms of size but where Dax had muscle he has flesh it wasn't too much though, both contestants were huge when it came to size but from their powers Dax was at a disadvantage as his power was super strength that of Eryk was shock absorbing which was a terrible matchup for him.

"BEGIN !" The voice reverberated throughout the entire arena.