People in the audience were surprised to see Yegorka"s battered face. He seemed to have gone through all the circles of h.e.l.l and fought with the devil. He had changed, grown, matured.Yegorka headed to Kyon, his deadly look could incinerate. A bloodthirsty desire for revenge drove him.
When the patriarch adopted the nasty dirty slave, Yegorka realized that life was unfair and didn"t make any sense. First, his father died, then this disgusting dirty b.a.s.t.a.r.d appeared, and after that, the girl he loved rejected him... And just as he thought things couldn"t get any worse the heaven destroyed his house, Flitz stole an expensive gift that was to make his dream come true, and the match in the power barrel, the old man ordered to cut off Yegorka"s dearest b.a.l.l.s! As if it wasn"t enough, his only hope to take revenge on the formacist died along with his uncle Kirsan... The world had rejected the unfortunate boy, and he hated the whole world back. He had nothing to lose. Today Bai"s grandson would die, and if he was lucky, the vicious old man would die soon, too.
Halfway to Kyon, Yegorka saw the beautiful girl sitting in the first row. Truly, her magnificent beauty adorned the gray stands like a delicate rose blooming amid heather. His heart contracted painfully. There she was, love of his life, the unattainable crown of happiness that was so close once... He felt tears sting his eyes when he came to the realization that he had lost his chance. He wiped them off with sleeve and confidently strode to his sworn enemy.
Bai told Kyon quietly:
«Yegorka is very talented! The difference in your development is one phase and a half. You can"t do anything to him. It"s nothing but a sparring match. You can give up at any moment. I"m sure Yegorka will be gentle and careful. He won"t hurt you, he won"t hit too hard. He is clever enough to understand that you are my grandson. Good luck to you!»
Kyon looked at Bai, shooting lasers of contempt, suppressing a desire to give his opinion. The patriarch had deliberately picked up the opponent to make Kyon see his limits and keep his head down. Was the naive old hoping to ruin his plans? There would be amazing prizes for the first- third places at the tournament of the families. How could he miss them?!
«I see, grandpa. Just don"t interfere. I will give up when I see fit.» – said Kyon.
Bai nodded and went to the stands, where Diana and Juno were waiting for him.
Kyon was silent and grim-faced after the patriarch had forbidden him to use a gun. How could he possibly defeat the opponent with an advantage of 15 stages? Kara surpa.s.sed him by 13 stages, and his life was in danger when he was fighting with her. If she had had a weapon, or use the techniques correctly, or hadn"t been unwilling to flash her naked body in public, he would have lost/died. Now his opponent had the right to use a sword. Yegorka was considered the most promising Stone and intended to wipe him off the face of the earth. There was no way Yegorka would ever go easy on him.
As for Kyon, his expensive sword had been stolen, as well as everything else. After the battle with Kara, he had mastered only advanced grades of the elements. He also learned a technique using the science of his past world. However, it wouldn"t give him any significant advantage in this battle. Kyon began to think hard. What should he do?
Thousands of spectators were excited about the battle. All of them had heard about Kyon"s incredible talent, but his first phase development did not inspire confidence in anyone. He would never be able to defeat Yegorka, the famous genius in the middle of the superior phase. Bai must have arranged a mock battle for his grandson. It would take him down a notch or two.
Before the battle started, Kyon grew in his hand a long sword of adamantium, the dark green stuff. It prompted a flurry of comments around the stadium. According to countless rumors, this rock was stronger than any the Stones and even the Browns had ever had. They said it came from the heritage of TsyJi. Was it true? No one could say for sure.
«Why didn"t he create a s.h.i.+eld as he did at the battle with Kara? Isn"t he aware that Yegorka is a fire bender? How is he going to defend himself from the fire? After all, his element of cold is too weak to protect him from direct contact!» - Stephanie asked Lee anxiously.
Stone number one coughed awkwardly. – «Don"t ask me. I have no idea.» - Lee had decided to steer clear from Kyon. He wanted no revenge. He simply ignored his existence. It felt so good, so relieving not to do anything with Kyon. However, when Lee saw him on the arena, he was afraid that Kyon would win and go to the tournament. He could prove himself there too! After all, he always had it his way! Then no one would need Lee, the ex-number one of the family. It was the last thing Lee ever wanted.
Yegorka gave a short snort of disgust as he scornfully glanced at the green sword.
«Let the battle begin!» - The judge announced after Kyon"s nod.
Yegorka slowly moved towards his enemy, showing a clear att.i.tude towards the sc.u.m, aka the patriarch"s grandson. Was the patriarch really expecting a mock battle? Was he hoping he would go easy on Kyon? An old fool! He would kill the snot-nosed brat like a pig in the slaughterhouse. Then he would say, innocently batting his eyelashes: "I have overestimated him, so sorry" and come what may. He wasn"t afraid of any punishment. He would take revenge on his sworn enemy, and that"s what mattered.
Kyon tucked the sword behind his belt and grew two pointed spikes in his hands.
Yegorka nudged his opponent:
«Come on, young and brilliant grandson, show me your brilliant skills!» - Then he accelerated so fast that no fighter in the first phase could ever confront him. However, anyone in the superior phase would consider him slow. His fist inexorably approached Kyon"s head, ready to smear him like porridge around the arena. It would be worthy death for a dirty slave.
Bai tensed. Diana frowned. Juno bit her lip.
At the last moment, something unexpected happened. Kyon took off with extraordinary speed, dodged the fist and aimed the thorns in the enemy"s eyes.
Yegorka flinched in surprise. He did not expect such agility and speed from the opponent. He arched back, but it was too late! He covered his eyes at the last moment.
The first blood spilled on the arena. The audience ohed and ahed. Everyone was shocked. A first-phaser had caught off guard the most promising fighter in the Stone family! It was absolutely ridiculous, but no one laughed. Kyon showed tremendous speed and flexibility, but above all, he was ruthless towards his opponent. All of a sudden, the rumors about his talent began to make sense.
«Was he going to stab him in the eyes?!» - Diana asked her father sitting next to her. She was shocked and upset.
«I… I have no idea…» - Bai didn"t know what to think. His grandson was a real demon! If he had blinded Yegorka, then... He would have won, but at what cost?! The most promising Stone would have become a cripple! Why was he so merciless to his family?!
Yegorka rubbed two b.l.o.o.d.y little cuts on his hand. He was dumbfounded. If he had infused his hand with pure energy, there would have been a single cut. And yet, it was kind of surprising. He said in a low, gravelly voice:
«I must admit, I did not expect you would be so quick. Well, I see you"re serious about maiming me. I am not going to restrain myself, either!» - With these words, he drew a long silver sword. A flaming whirlwind swirled around the blade. It could burn flesh like paper. The residual heat is the worst about this technique. No speed or block would help. Moreover, judging by the saturated orange color of the flame, Yegorka had an advanced grade of the heat element.
«The pointed fire whirl technique!» – An expert in the audience exclaimed. – «Yegorka is serious! If Mr. Kyon doesn"t give up right now, no one can guarantee his safety!»
The audience exclaimed in surprise. It didn"t look like a mock battle anymore. Was the patriarch"s grandson really so terrible that he made Yegorka fight for real?!
«Mind your manners when you speak to your elders.» - Kyon said in a faux-squeamish voice. He threw the spikes away and pulled out the adamantium sword.
Yegorka"s face twisted in a wild grimace. Why on earth should he mind any manners in front of a former slave?! By way of response, Yegorka swung his flaming sword and attacked.
The blade of the sword was about to pierce the flesh, but at the very last moment, Kyon arched unnaturally, carrying out a counterattack.
The audience gasped with awe. It was so close! Kyon had almost hurt Yegorka in spite of the huge difference in development!
Yegorka blushed crimson-red and instantly launched a new attack, quietly growling with anger. He would wash away his humiliation when the former slave cried in pain.
Kyon parried the first attack, then another, and one more... His speed was almost half as low, and yet, he successfully dodged the blows at the very last moment. The residual heat that should have burned his skin long age didn"t seem to affect him at all.
The audience loudly commented on the unfolding events. – «Why doesn"t the flame burn him? The pointed sharp fire whirl technique burns everything half a meter away?!» … «Kyon must defend herself with cold. He can bend it, can"t he?» … «I do not feel any fluctuations of the cold... He is only in the first phase. The cold is not strong enough to protect him from this level of heat.» … «Can you see him move? He is so smooth! What is his level of the battle fist?! I cannot predict any of his movements!» … «I can tell by this technique that his master is really the legendary Tsyji!» … «Someday, he will catch up with Elsa!» … «Well, it"s very unlikely. Elsa has always been the best.»
«Father! Yegorka"s attacks are too violent! He can cripple my son!» - Diana exclaimed with concern, clutching the patriarch"s hand.
Bai hesitated. The first attack with a fiery sword made him believe that his grandson was in danger, but then the situation changed dramatically. Judging by the saturated fluctuations of heat that Yegorka emitted, he attacked without restraint. Judging by the absence of fluctuations of the cold, Kyon didn"t defend himself. And yet, he seems to ignore the heat completely! There must be some explanation for this phenomenon.
«Kyon asked me not to interfere. He will admit his defeat when he sees fit.» - Bai finally said.
Diana nodded uncertainly.
Juno was sitting next to her. She realized how desperately she lagged behind her a.s.sistant. If she was fighting with Yegorka now, she would have died in a second or two.
Another five blows from Yegorka, and Kyon lived to rue the day. The sword hit a couple of inches from his skin. He wouldn"t last long. If he missed a single blow, he was dead.
If he was using 11 battle fists as he did in the battle with Kara, he would have already been killed. Luckily everyone perceived the elements of wind and water as pure energy, so he was free to engage 13 battle fists. No one would feel anything. But Lovr had no idea how to get out of this situation. His opponent was too strong for his current level of development!
Yegorka"s face was distorted with shame and rage. He couldn"t miss this snail, not again! He focused his sixth blow at the enemy"s feet, forcing him to jump up, and then he held out his hand:
«Die, you dirty slave! Volcano eruption!» - Yegorka yelled, antic.i.p.ating the death of his sworn enemy. A saturated orange column of flame fired from his hand and enveloped its target in a dense cloud of fire. There was no room for maneuver in the air.