Maturinus: School Days

All-Nighter

Sabrina's next chance to defeat The Reaper came in sooner than expected, with the headmaster announcing that the January tournament would be a school-wide event during the first assembly of the New Year. All students would have to compete and, as with the Assault Course, would be graded on their performance depending on both final ranking and the abilities showcased within each fight. So far, it looked like Katie's friends would be relying on Angela's gift more than they'd wanted to. Cherri and Grace had competed the day before, with Cherri going out in the first round after her opponent tore himself clean from the vines she's been holding him in and knocked her out before she could drum up the power for another set. Grace had made it slightly further, managing to make it to the fourth round in her brackets before surrendering against a fire-using Adept that had set the tail end of her mane alight. Neither had been hurt too badly other than some burnt hair and battered pride, but Cherri had been unnervingly quiet for the rest of that evening. She always worked hardest to make her power more effective, and to go out in first round must have stung in a way Katie couldn't understand.

But she was going to have to think of a way to cheer up her friends another time, as her own first match was coming up, and the nerves that came with performing before a crowd refused to shift no matter what she did to calm herself down. It didn't help that Angela had suffered a close call in her fight, nearly breaking one of her wings with a botched dive to avoid a blade of air. She'd been fairly chipper despite her own first round loss, promising to keep up with Katie's progress at home. Unfortunately, this had left her alone in a cubicle for the most part. Sabrina was also in her bracket but had been called up first, leaving Katie to perform a lonely warm-up until her escort of soldiers arrived. The standard medical checks were made and passed without incident, and she walked out into the light with a new number on her chest and back. The stage chosen for all tournament contests was by far the most neutral out of the lot, a flat disk of red resin with no other features. On the other side, the crowd began to pick up in intensity as her opponent arrived, camera orbs swooping in for close ups of both contestants. They scattered once the job was done, revealing her opponent.

"Sabrina?"

She looked just as surprised as Katie did, standing blankly in shock before immediately firing off at the nearest member of personal. Katie couldn't hear what she was saying, but judging by the movement of her lips, half of it definitely wasn't suitable for the mid-afternoon airing slot the Adept Games occupied. But her arguing fell on deaf ears and she was encouraged out onto the stage at gunpoint. Encouragement was prodded into Katie's back as well, a sign to take the stage with leaden heart and limbs, lest she receive a detention. Given the point situation, it wasn't worth losing any over a contest that would be settled within a minute. While she had to fight Sabrina, a fight as even as a rabbit fighting a lion, it also meant that Sabrina had to fight her, which meant that it would be over quickly and with a minimum of bruising. 

They stood opposite one another, Sabrina giving her a small nod before she settled into her fighting stance, her arms raised but loose. Katie swallowed her nerves and mimicked the motion as best she could, hoping she could at least put up a good show that would earn her some credits if nothing else. There was a final beat of silence, and the round started to the sound of the mortar. The next second Sabrina was pressed up right against her, and Katie was gasping through spittle as every inch of air fled her lungs. The token defence she'd mustered faltered and her arms fell to her sides as she was pulled in, barely hearing Sabrina's whispered advice as she threatened to buckle under the pressure of the blow.

"I'm gonna pull back now. Just fall down and twitch a little, and they'll end the round. 'Kay?"

Katie wasn't sure if she nodded in confirmation, or whether her neck had gone into a fit of spasms from the body blow. True to her word, Sabrina stepped back and released, Katie's legs giving out instantly and sending her crashing onto the hard surface of the stage. Her vision was blurred with tears, but she could just make out Sabrina showing her middle finger to someone out of sight as the mortar fired once again.