Phantom Thunder

Chapter 9

There was excitement in the dorm the next morning. I could feel it tickling my insides with anticipation. The grogginess that usually accompanied each and every student in the morning was expelled by the toll of the bell. I could sense the change in the atmosphere. It kept me alert.

"What's the buzz about?" I asked Lilian as we walked down for breakfast. She'd told me to change into my fighting gear so we could go right to the gym after breakfast, but she didn't tell me why.

"Challenger" she said.

"Are you... Nervous?" I asked. It was the only word I could put to the faint vibe she radiated.

"Psyched. I'm psyched." She seamed to be reassuring herself. The fact that Lilian was "psyched" about something, and clearly nervous made me feel slightly terrified. What was coming?

Normally, everyone stuffs themselves at breakfast. But that Friday morning, people pecked at the food like bored chickens. No one got seconds. I followed suit, just because everyone was doing it, it would probably be wise to stay with the flock, seeing as I had no clue what was happening.

After breakfast, the five of us (Lilian, Spark, Seth, Blake and I) all went to the gym together. Their mood was light and happy as always, but there was an underlining excitement that I could feel vibrating in my bones rather than tickling across my skin.

Lilian asked me to warm up with her. "Please explain to me in detail what is going on" I requested.

"Every Friday we do challenger. Sometimes it's with weapons, but normally it's with fists; the one weapon we all have in common. Basically it's unarmed fighting. There's a list of rankings. You can challenge anyone. The winner gets the better spot. So if the first ranked person and the third ranked person are fighting, and the third place person wins, they switch.

"Also, you can't fight the same person twice. You can't turn down a challenge unless you've fought five times. You get three challenges, and everyone gets up to five fights. I think that's about it..." She pursed her lips as if she was trying to remember.

"So you just beat each other to death?"
"Hmm" Lilian mused. "You could, and then drag their dead body out of the ring."

After a pause, she laughed. Supposedly my expression was funny. "You're opponent needs to have both feet out of the ring. At any one second where at least one foot is not in the ring then the game is over. Intentionally using a bone breaking technique is against the rules. You go straight to the bottom of the list. If you kick your opponent in the ribs and one of them fractures, that's totally fine."

I'd always fought to defend myself. No limitations, just fear. This was different. This was fighting to win, not fighting to a survive.

Lilian and I practiced different strikes and blocks on each other. People slowly filtered in. Around ten minutes before we were actually supposed to be there, a girl came in carrying a large chalkboard. She leaned it against the wall. Everyone crowded around. By that time, no one was left in the dorms or the dining hall. Other instructors were there too.

It was a list of names. People murmured in anticipation. The first name was Titan then Knives then Spark. Blake was sixth. Lilian was eighth. Claice, Koas, Storm, Seth. The last name on the list was mine.

"Find your challenges" she announced to the group.

I read the list. I didn't know anyone. I figured fighting the third last person would be a good place to start. "Who's Autumn?" I asked Lilian.

She scanned the chaos. "Autumn!" she yelled. One of the girls looked up. She had crimson orange hair, and stunning brown eyes. Lilian beckoned. Autumn wove her way through the crowd to my side.