Sigma/Star

Chapter 124: The Duel

The hum of Rex's machine seemed strange and different. It wasn't louder than any other Goliath, quite the opposite really, but the sound it produced just felt weird to Porter, as the two combatants stared each other down on the Bump. There was no tension in the air though; what little there was only came from Porter's determination to show up this upstart, while Rex just appeared to be happy to get a chance to fight someone.

The sword was what Porter knew would help him to victory. The Whisper's blade was so massive, so powerful, yet so heavy, that it could never compete with Porter's speed. In a duel where landing blows on each other was enough to garner a win, that was going to be the critical weakness to Rex. It could just never be moved fast enough to answer Porter's movements, that much the young pilot was sure of.

That really only left some sort of surprises that the foreign Goliath might have hidden within it. Shotuku had explained that Dalarcyian battlesuits couldn't rely on the chi of their operator, and had to be constructed to be technologically more advanced than traditional Goliaths. Did that just mean it had better baseline capabilities or was their some greater secret lurking within its glassy frame?

Shotuku shook his head in between the two fighters, disappointed but not shocked at the fact that he had to oversee this fight. He was barely a speck on the ground compared to the awesome size of the warmachines, but it was his job to be the referee for the fight. Everyone else was gathered on an edge, ready to watch Porter embarrass himself against an enemy he knew nothing about. Sigma and Alpha watched on as well, among the students. It would be their job to prevent the Goliaths from possibly trampling anyone, for their strength could push them back and their speed could move people out of the way.

"You ready then, Porter?" Rex grinned in his cockpit, growing visibly more excited every second as the duel's start drew closer.

"Ready as I...always..." The rest of the group groaned as Porter failed his attempt at a suave comeback, changing his mind halfway through the sentence. Whatever, Porter thought. I'll just impress them with skill instead.

There was a brief period of silence in the air between the two combatants. And then the clash began. Porter dashed forwards first, closing the gap between the two instantaneously, his twin swords slicing the still air.

As Rex went to counter, lifting his blade to defend the impending attack, Porter's speed increased once more. His Goliath turned into a blur, becoming hazy as it passed straight through the Whisper, leaving nothing but a trail of translucent afterimages that faded away after a second.

The pause returned once more between the two, the White Storm standing stoically behind Rex, facing out to the ocean behind the Bump. A line formed across the chest of the Whisper, a thin cut that had only slightly scratched the surface of the battlesuit's armour. It marked what might have had happened, and was a symbol to the rest of the group.

"The victory to Porter than," Shotuku announced, though he did it with no great emotion or conviction.

"The what now?" Nami's words tumbled out of her mouth in confusion. Every aspect of the fighting had taken place in the blur of motion when Porter had passed through Rex, and she hadn't been able to follow a single second of it.

"Porter pulled his blow, but that would have executed a normal pilot if he had gone through." There was a hollowness to Shotuku's words, a lack of pride in one student defeating another, particularly one Shotuku prized as much as Rex. "As such, he is the victor here."

"I don't know," Ardwen said, tapping his finger against his chin. "That feels like a lot of build up and waiting for nothing."

Shotuku shrugged. "That was an experienced student of many battlefields and wars, up against someone who has never been trained. What did you think was going to happen?"