Chapter 11: Final Round Incoming

By the time the sun reached its peak in the sky, Level Up Arcade had transformed from a retro refuge into a full-blown battleground of pixels and pride.

Dozens of players filled the room—some hunched intently over joysticks, others locked in rhythm on the DDR pad, a few simply cheering from the sidelines. The air was electric with the sound of coin drops, button clicks, and the occasional victorious shout. The smell of vending machine snacks mixed with warm CRT monitors gave the space an oddly comforting authenticity.

Ethan stood behind the counter, leaning slightly on a clipboard, half-drained water bottle at his side, eyes scanning the arcade like a battlefield commander.

He was running on three hours of sleep, two granola bars, and pure adrenaline.

But so far?

It was going better than he could've hoped.

Earlier That Morning: Showtime

The day had started with a line outside the door by 9:30 AM.

Dozens of players—some familiar, others brand new—had shown up with tournament flyers in hand, excited chatter about match-ups and games already filling the sidewalk. A few even wore old-school arcade-themed T-shirts. One guy had come dressed as Scorpion from Mortal Kombat II. Mask and everything.

By 10:15, the doors opened, and the storm began.

Ethan's volunteer crew held the line like champs:

Amanda, armed with a clipboard and commanding tone, coordinated the registration table, guiding players to the proper brackets.James, surrounded by hand-written tournament charts and his own laptop spreadsheet, tracked every match with laser focus.Trevor, the unofficial bouncer and technician hybrid, kept machines running, rerouted players around token jams, and helped clean up one soda spill before it hit the carpet.

Ethan floated between all of them—checking brackets, answering questions, and helping newer players feel welcome. He only had time to breathe between matches.

[Tournament Phase: Mid-Day Bracket Progress – 70% Complete]

[System Status: Stable]

[Customer Satisfaction: 94% – "Atmosphere Excellent" | "Games Well-Maintained" | "Organized Chaos (in a good way)"]

The tournament was alive.

Standout Participants

As the day rolled on, a few competitors began to rise above the rest—and not just for their skill, but for the energy they brought into the arcade.

Marcus "SpinKick" Lawton – Street Fighter Alpha 3

Late 30s, headband, wore a vintage Ryu shirt. Every move he made was tight, precise, and terrifyingly fast.

Rumor had it he competed semi-professionally back in the day. Every time he won, he did a polite bow toward the machine.

Crowd favorite, and he had not dropped a single round so far.Kaylee "ArcadeQueen" Morales – Dance Dance Revolution MAX2

Teenager, maybe 17, with neon sneakers and hair dyed bright teal. She came in early, stretched like an athlete, and then absolutely demolished every track.

Her footwork was so fast Ethan half-expected sparks to fly off the pad.

Even Amanda muttered, "Okay, I give up," after watching her hit a full combo on Max 300."Old Man Rick" – Time Crisis II

Nobody knew his real name. A man in his 60s wearing a worn bomber jacket and aviator shades, he strolled in during the late morning, played one warm-up round, then posted the fastest solo clear time of the day on Time Crisis like it was nothing.

When Ethan asked where he learned to shoot like that, he simply replied, "Arcade in '89. Every weekend."Tyler and Nico – Mortal Kombat II Doubles (Team Division)

These two younger players—maybe college freshmen—came in quiet but turned heads by wiping out older competitors with coordinated brutality.

They weren't just good—they had synergy. Blocks, counters, tag-ins, perfectly timed combos.

"Brothers?" someone asked.

"Roommates," Nico replied. "We skipped midterms for this."

Ethan's Focus: Holding the Line

With the matches flying and the energy rising, Ethan had to stay locked in. Every time he felt the weight of fatigue creep in, his system nudged him with helpful stats:

[Machine Durability Boost Active – 38 Hours Remaining]

[Token Refill Status: 89%]

[Volunteer Efficiency: Holding Steady]

[Snack Stock: Dangerously Low – Suggest Emergency Run]

The Event Planning Tool did most of the heavy lifting, but Ethan still had to make decisions on the fly—shifting matches between machines, keeping wait times down, and throwing on a playlist when the DDR speakers glitched (he'd fix it later).

But it was working.

There were crowds, yes. Some growing pains. A few overheated machines. But no chaos. No breakdowns.

And more importantly?

Everyone was having a blast.

He caught smiles. High-fives. People explaining joystick mechanics to their kids. Old friends reconnecting over co-op Time Crisis rounds. And everywhere, laughter and competition. The spirit of arcades was alive.

Afternoon Peak: The Final Rounds Approaching

By 3:45 PM, the brackets were nearly complete.

The arcade had reached its peak capacity—wall-to-wall bodies, cheers erupting with every major match, Ethan's voice already hoarse from announcements.

The machines had held up, thanks to his late-night reinforcements. The system chimed as the final bracket updates rolled in.

[Final Matches Approaching – Bracket Lock Engaged]

Amanda walked over, handing him a Gatorade with a knowing smirk. "Alright, boss man. Who's heading to the finals?"

Ethan pulled up the final lists from James' bracket sheets, now digitized in the system.

🏆 Finalists – Retro Showdown

🕹️ Street Fighter Alpha 3 – Final Match

Marcus "SpinKick" Lawton vs. Tyler (Mortal Kombat Team Player turned 1v1 finalist)

Marcus is the veteran. Tyler is the wildcard. The crowd's split down the middle.

🩰 DDR MAX2 – Final Track Battle

Kaylee "ArcadeQueen" Morales vs. "Disco Dan" – a surprise entry with old-school style and slick footwork.

Dan danced like a man from another era. Kaylee moved like the machine was an extension of her body.

🎯 Time Crisis II – Final Run

Old Man Rick vs. a tie-breaker competitor: Kaylee's younger brother, Alex, 14, and surprisingly fast with light guns.

David vs. Goliath. One with decades of experience, the other with lightning reflexes and zero hesitation.

🧨 Mortal Kombat II – Team Finals

Tyler & Nico vs. Marcus and his longtime arcade partner, Jun.

Two generations. Four skilled players. One prize left.

Ethan stepped back and took a long drink from the Gatorade. Amanda, beside him, let out a low whistle.

"This is actually kinda epic," she said.

Ethan nodded slowly, the noise of the arcade fading into the background for a moment as he looked around.

He saw people with phones out, streaming or taking videos. Saw kids sitting cross-legged on the floor watching Kaylee warm up. Saw parents leaning in to watch matches like they were at a championship.

And all around them—the machines he'd fixed. The space he'd cleaned. The arcade he had rebuilt from dust and memory.

Tomorrow, he'd worry about rent. About planning the next event. About what came next.

But today?

This was everything he dreamed it could be.

And now, the final rounds were about to begin.