Combat went… fairly well, considering. She did alright against her classmates, getting beaten, but landing good hits occasionally. However, she got tired very easily and was hollered at by all the coaches, most of all Usda. By the end of the class, her limbs ached and trembled violently, all of her energy zapped.

  In her Weaponry class, every new student was asked to stand and answer a few basic questions about weapons. While she answered some correctly, every wrong answer earned giggles from the others. It seemed that putting new students on the spot was a common thing in the academy.

  Her theory classes were interesting. The experience of sitting in a classroom recording the teacher’s speeches and highlighting information with AIDA screens was… kind of cool. It was a nice break from the relentless workout in Combat. The staff would physically teach the classes as opposed to letting the AU Teacher do it for them.

  Now was the 30-minute break, where the students could relax before they returned to class. Calista met Belinda at the Studitorium in the Hall of Affairs. Many students were inside, reviewing concepts and watching training modules.

  “In our History class, we learned that studitoriums used to be called ‘libraries’ back in the day,” Belinda commented as they walked together. “I think Vorax still has libraries. We’re going there for this year’s Games, I hope I get to see the books.”

  “Are there any guides here about… Guilds and stuff?” Calista asked, scrolling on her AIDA band.

  “There are, but most of the stuff you should know comes from experience.” Belinda suddenly stopped and grabbed the human girl’s arm, guiding her away. They went to a corner with personal study capsules, all of which were being used.

  “What is it?”

  “I wanted to avoid the Favorites. Most of them love to haze the new ones, especially species like you and me,” she explained.

  “Favorites?”

  Belinda gave her a look. “You’re joking.” When Calista only smiled, the Mearthian girl gave a sigh. “Okay. Favorites are the Student Coaches’ best students in their Guilds— at least, by their standards. Aside from the Guild patches, you’ll see a little badge with their Guild color. If I were a Favorite, my badge would be right here.” She pointed to the left side of her jacket. “These are students you really don’t want to mess with.”

  “So the Favorites are the best before the best?” Calista interjected.

  “Exactly. Do not bug any of them off. With other Guild members, you’ll have some wiggle room, but with Favorites…” Belinda bit her lip. “If you get into a Guild, you’ll have some more immunity. Even though you just started, you have a chance. And Student Coaches change all the time.”

  She then led Calista to another part of the Studitorium, where students gathered at tables to study together. The girls sat at a table and Belinda opened the computer, scrolling through the different subjects. “Okay, so what do you think you need to catch up on?” she asked.

  “Um… basically everything.”

  “Well, what do you know? Of the basics?”

  “I know… how to punch and kick?” Calista smiled nervously. “And how to look for weaknesses, sorta.”

  “What about weapons?”

  “Not really.”

  “Armor?”

  “Nope.”

  “…And no fighting disciplines in particular.”

  “Not that I can remember.”

  “So you didn’t study at all?” Belinda turned to her with her brows knitted. “What did you do this whole time you were applying?”

  “It’s a long story.” She scratched her head.

  Belinda blew out her cheeks. “Alright. We have a lot to catch you up on, then.”

  “I really want to know who the Student Coaches are. So far, I only know Harrison Smith… and maybe a few others. Not much, though.”

  “Trojans,” Belinda muttered. “Well, you can just look at old Versus News records if you really want to know the SCs.” She quirked a brow. “You’ve been following the Games, right? Or… are you a more recent fan?”

  “Sorta… like I said, it’s complicated. I do want to be a fighter, though. It’s what I’m meant to be. I know it.”

  Belinda nodded softly. “What’s your next class?”

  Calista checked her schedule again.

  11:30 AM: CT1-97 Armory— Classroom 134-VW, Versus Fighting School— Jinjo, Pilios; Yostako, Emeeli

  12:30 PM: Break Period

  1:30 PM: PC1-78 Weapon Use— Gymnasium 2A, Training Hall— Mathta, Usda; Stisin, Jenna; Gowon, Taraji

  2:30 PM: Lunch Period— Mess Hall, Recreation Hall

  “My next class is Armory,” Calista answered Belinda.

  “And you have a free period. Use that time to study, okay? They’re always hard on newbies. You don’t want to be humiliated more often than the others in your year.”

  Armory proved very interesting, describing the various designs and types of armor that fit different fighters. During her break period, Calista took Belinda’s advice and went to the Studitorium to review.

  There were many disciplines that could fit into all sorts of combinations. On Earth, there were at least 300 alone. There were originally human disciplines, like karate, judo, jiu-jitsu. Then, there were mixes of disciplines from Mars and Mercury that were added on after the Utopia came to be.

  As Coach Usda had shown Calista in her first class, every planet had their own original and mixed disciplines. Those disciplines would combine with others, making many more. In the end, it was up to the fighter to decide which ones worked best with them.

  Calista found herself partial to dance-fighting styles. She was surprised they even existed. Many famous fighters had used these sorts of styles and prevailed marvelously.

  Later on, after her Weapon Use class, Calista was exhausted. During class, many of the superpowered students had continuously teased her by flicking flames, ice, and other elements at her. At least Coach Usda eventually noticed and scolded them for being ‘distracted’.

  Belinda met Calista on the way to the Recreation Station for lunch. Calista was still in her Practicum uniform. She felt disgusting, covered in sweat, and she was dying to go to the spa.

  “You look tired,” Belinda observed as they entered the Mess Hall.

  “I’m not tired. I’m dead.” Calista wiped sweat off her forehead, grimacing in disgust. “I don’t know how you guys do this.”

  “You’ll get used to it.”

  You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

  “I doubt that.” She shuddered at the stickiness of her skin.

  “You want to sit at my Guild table? We can bring guests.” Belinda asked her, nodding to the silver-colored table, which was packed with patch-wearing students.

  Normally, Calista would jump at the chance to sit with an influential group of students. She could already hear her mother screaming at her to go for it. But after the way she was treated so far, with the only nice one being Belinda, and maybe Harrison… she wasn’t feeling too confident about socializing with these people. It was a culture shock she didn’t expect.

  “Um… I think I’m fine,” she said.

  “You sure?”

  “Yeah, uh… I’ve made a couple other friends at the… ‘newbie’ table,” she lied. “Thanks, though.”

  “Sure. You’re invited anytime. I’ll see you.” She walked off to meet her fellow Guild members. Calista watched her as she joined the group, engaging in conversation with a few other girls that seemed nice.

  Maybe later on, she could join them. Once she studied enough and didn’t seem like a formatted file that had absolutely nothing to offer.

  ===

  “Weightless Dodgeball is not to be confused with Hitball. Many commit this mistake despite the two games being very different in nature.”

  Coach Tostama Kolaka walked at an amble pace between the two lines of students flanking her, all of them facing her with their backs straight and their hands laced behind them. Being the only Hajjian coach in the school made her, by default, the toughest.

  Calista was relieved to see Harrison Smith in her class, but she was also confronted with two people she wasn’t fond of seeing. Lílitha Houdge stood out among the throng as the shortest and youngest-looking in the room, her black eyes staring into space impassively. Calista was afraid she’d recognize her at first, but the little woman hadn’t even glanced her way.

  Why would she remember her? She’d fought thousands of other students throughout the week, and it wasn’t like Calista was all that impressive. She was being too self-centered.

  The other person was a Hajjian girl, a Favorite who wore platinum-colored patches and a badge on her shirt. Calista wasn’t sure who she was, but she didn’t look friendly. Her rose red eyes had caught Calista’s emeralds by chance, and they had instantly filled with contempt.

  “I want all of you to split up into 12 teams of five. In this game, you will play a single round of dodgeball. ERMM, please generate a basic team training field for the Weightless Dodgeball game.”

  The corners of the room glowed blue as squares appeared on the floor beneath the students’ feet. Calista stepped back as it lit up like a checkerboard, patterns of blue and red glowing brightly. Panels lined the walls and a thick, black line divided the room in half, as well as outlining the boundaries of the game area.

  “For our new students who may not know the game: the objective is to stay on your side of the field and defend your teammates, while also trying to eliminate your opponent team. The blue squares are safe; the red squares signify elimination and will teleport you out of the area the moment you touch them. The team that is fully eliminated first, or has less teammates than their opponent’s before time runs out, loses.”

  She pointed her sharp fingernail at the panels running along the boundary walls. “These generators will dispense the dodgeballs throughout the course of the game. They’ll change color whenever a player touches them, indicating which team it belongs to. You can hit, kick, throw, or punch the dodgeballs to the other team. Do you understand?”

  “Yes, ma’am,” the new students said.

  She turned to the others. “Abilities are not allowed for this game. If I see a flicker of a flame, or a hint of ice, or any sign of distraction caused by Martian influence… any use of powers will automatically disqualify you and lower your grade by 20 tacks. Understand?”

  “Yes, ma’am,” everyone chorused.

  “Now, let’s choose the captains of each team today.” She brought up an AIDA screen and scrolled through the names, tapping all 12 leaders. “Esther Hoffman, Martin Brown, and Jerry Trolocan, please stand in front of the group and pick your teammates.”

  The throng of students got smaller as everyone divided into their respective groups. As more and more students were picked, Calista got more discouraged.

  One of the leaders, Hillary Kaye, looked over the group with scrutinizing, grass-green eyes that contrasted against her yellow skin. She had wavy blue hair tied up in a high ponytail. Being Paeseoan, Calista expected her to be friendlier, but she didn’t seem that way.

  A teammate of hers nudged her, whispering something in her ear. She sighed, rolling her eyes, and reluctantly called out, “Claudette Dubois.” A human girl approached them, her face glowing with relief. Her curly red hair wildly fanned out around her head, her icy blue eyes sparkling. The Paeseoan team leader sighed again and led her team away.

  “Harrison Smith, Peng Wu, and Friedrich Sooto, step forward and choose your teammates, please.”

  Calista perked up at Harrison’s name, watching him come forward with the other team leaders. “Isa de Merced.” Harrison pointed at a Mercearthian woman with pebbly brown skin.

  “Démus Astro,” Peng Wu called out. A snow-white Voraxian man walked up to him, towering over everyone else with his lanky but muscular frame.

  Name after name and Calista was still standing there. Harrison noticed, his brows knitting, but he didn’t call her just yet. “Lílitha Houdge,” he said.

  Are you kidding me?! She felt herself burning with humiliation when she wound up being the only student left out. “Calista Medley.” Harrison motioned to her, his gaze turned down.

  Her fists clenched. She reluctantly walked to Harrison’s group, glaring at the Student Coach. “Thanks,” she said sarcastically. His sapphire blue eyes glanced at her, but he said nothing.

  They weren’t friends or anything, but did he really have to pick her last? Did she make that bad of an impression when she bumped into him?

  The chosen groups were randomly picked to compete in the dodgeball rounds. It was quite exciting to watch, but also nerve-wracking. As the dodgeballs bounced around the court in all directions, students redirected them to their opponents, harshly shooting them at their faces. A Klausian man even iced one of the balls, getting him and his team disqualified. He got quite the loud earful from Coach Tostama.

  “Team 4 vs. Team 12. Both teams, please step up.”

  Calista glanced at their team leader, swallowing nervously. They took their positions on the blue squares, standing on the left side of the tiny arena. By a happy coincidence, they were pitted against the Hajjian girl’s team. On Calista’s team, herself and Harrison were the only humans playing, joined by a Mearthian, a Seeyastian, and Lílitha.

  The countdown started from three and reached zero. The gravity field was reversed and they all floated off their squares. While the others kept a good balance, some occasionally wobbling, Calista was a mess of flailing limbs.

  The other students watched with mockery as the human girl struggled to get back into an upright position, having flipped upside down. The dodgeball dispensers then started working, projectiles bouncing all around the map. It was an endless array of chaos literally raining down on them.

  “Don’t move so much. You have to ‘swim’,” Harrison said to her.

  “Trying…” She kicked her legs, wobbling unsteadily. A dodgeball bounced off the wall and headed right towards her. Squealing, she closed her eyes and hit it instinctively. It shot across the line, bounced off the wall, and got into one of the opponents’ hands.

  Her green eyes widened as her opponent smirked, shooting the ball back in her direction. She quickly ducked and let it soar over her, flipping over again.

  Lílitha exclaimed angrily, saying something in her native language. The Ilamikoan kicked off the wall and soared to the right, punching a ball in the other direction. It hit one of their opponents hard enough to slam him into a red square. He teleported outside and groaned, punching the floor.

  With a grunt, Calista lifted her foot and kicked a projectile with full force. It bounced off the ceiling, the opposite wall, then hit an opponent in the back. The girl was shot downwards, directly into a red square.

  Calista smiled in satisfaction, but ducked with a scream when a dodgeball flew over her. Looking back, she saw the Hajjian girl smiling, catching another ball to throw at her.

  She quickly kicked off the wall and avoided it by a few inches. The momentum caused her to crash into Lílitha. “Watch where you’re going, human!” she barked, her black eyes narrowed into slits.

  “Sorry.” She couldn’t imagine how much more terrifying this game would be in the real Versus.

  One of her allies suddenly brought his limbs close to his chest, curling into a ball. He sunk down to the floor and pushed off a blue square with his feet, shooting upwards. His leg flew in a spinning kick, sending a ball into one of the opponents’ faces. The force wasn’t enough to eliminate him, but it was a good idea.

  Calista copied him, curling up to float downwards. Springing off her toes, she leaped up and hit one of the dodgeballs, which bounced on the dividing line and hit the Hajjian girl in the face. She flipped over from the momentum, legs kicking to balance herself.

  The Hajjian’s red eyes slowly turned to glare at her, but a smile curled on her lips. She reached up and caught a ball, throwing it at the human with full force.

  Calista moved to avoid it, but just a second too late— the dodgeball hit her right in the shoulder. She slammed against the wall, groaning in pain. It felt like a high-speed Air-Bus had hit her.

  She maneuvered to the right as another ball slammed on the wall, bouncing in all directions. It finally hit one of Calista’s team members and forced him into a red square.

  “Look out!” Harrison suddenly shouted.

  Just as she heard the warning, a dodgeball bounced off the blue square ahead of her and shot straight for her stomach. She doubled over, the air knocked out of her, and started floating down. As she tried to kick her legs, another ball was sent for her, pushing her into a blue square. Her face flattened against the floor, the pain unbearable.

  At least she wasn’t eliminated.

  Another dodgeball bounced off the wall and slammed into her again, pushing her into the red square beside her. She then found herself outside of the map.

  Laughter bubbled from the students around her. Her face burning, she took a deep breath and clutched her stomach as she rose, looking for a corner to sit in.

  Once the game ended, the Hajjian girl made a point to further intimidate Calista, shoving her as she went to a corner to talk to her fellow Guild-mates. It was clear that this girl was the ‘queen bee’ of Fistborn, and Calista had gotten on her radar.

  So much for teamwork.