Project Renegade: Tournament of Champions (Book 3)

The Rivalry

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Somewhere on the outskirts of Sky City...

BOOOM!

A whirlwind of dust blew across the desert. Then the entire ground shook, shockwaves creating large cracks on the mountain's sides. Dante zipped across the sky, his palms shaking with gusts of wind around his fist. "Shit. " Dante thought as Ryan lunged into the air. Ryan slammed his feet in Dante's chest! Dante crashlanded, a cloud of dust surrounding the area. Ryan landed back on the ground, his scales appearing on his elbows and neck.

" What's the matter? You're slow! " Ryan laughed. 

Dante growled, and with the clench of his fist, Ryan felt a vortex of wind SLAM him in the chest. Quickly, Ryan managed to slow down by clawing the ground. However, Dante wasn't close to finished. With the sound of a roaring jet, Dante zoomed across the land, his entire bottom half covered in a violent cyclone. Ryan flipped to his feet and caught Dante stopping him in his tracks.

" Is that all? " Ryan taunted.

" Shut up. " Dante raised his fist.

The whirlwind from beneath Dante shot up, running through his body, and it burst out of Dante's fist. As his dreads blasted into the air, so did Ryan, a violent boom following his ascent. Dante smirked while wiping his brow. " That better? " He thought seeing Ryan's body disappear the higher he got. " Okay, that's new. " Ryan thought while flailing his arms.

" Okay, let's kick it up a notch. " Ryan's eyes glowed green as mist burst from his palms.

WHOOSH!

Like a blur, Ryan crashlanded, creating a giant dust cloud. Dante laughed, flying in at high speed. The two clashed with a flurry of fists seemingly equally matched. Ryan spun around with movements like water. Using this momentum, he managed to lift Dante off his feet with a powerful uppercut. Dante fired back, shooting a gust of wind out of his feet, making Ryan sink into the ground! The two jumped backward, giving each other some space. 

" You're not....terrible. " Dante coughed.

" Same to you. " Ryan huffed smoke from his nostrils.

WHOOSH!

In an instant, they were in each other faces, blocking and throwing out attacks. Ryan swept for Dante's legs, but he floated in the air, countering with a knee to the chin. Ryan backflipped, slamming the front of his sneakers in Dante's jaw. With a laugh, Dante regained his footing shooting another powerful wind bullet. Ryan burst into the ground, cracking through the dirt and stone. However, the boy spun out of the earth, landing a devasting roundhouse at the back of Dante's head. 

BOOM!

Dante slammed through the ground but didn't stay long. He already flew into the air using his projectiles to force Ryan to dodge. While running, Ryan inhaled deeply, embers forming around his mouth. Next, Ryan breathed a pillar of flame, causing Dante to block with a wall of wind. With the swipe of his fingers, Dante sent down an air slash. The ground ripped open with the cut barely catching Ryan's face. With a mighty lunge, Ryan pounded his knuckle in Dante's cheek sending him flying off. Continuing the assault, Ryan used the mist from his palms to launch him closer. He grabbed Dante's shoulders, pulling him back to the earth. Dante reversed the attack, managing to get on top of Ryan and pin him. 

Ryan huffed, delivering swift kicks to Dante's chest, lifting him off of him. Ryan rolled back to his feet and grabbed Dante sending a surge of electricity throughout his body. Dante grimaced, pushing through the pain. A small cyclone appeared on Dante's fingertips as he shoved it in Ryan's face. The sheer force of the wind tore through the earth while sending Ryan blasting off in a twister. Vaxis appeared around Ryan's body, and the twister burst away with a roar. Ryan slammed his feet into the earth, sliding backward. Dante fell to one knee, feeling the blitz of electricity run through him. The two stared into each other's eyes and smirked, both speaking in unison.