Chapter 7 #2
My heart started racing again—I thought I might be having a panic attack.
The two climbed reluctantly into the ring, indecision written on their faces as they positioned themselves across from each other.
The order to begin was given. I watched Lorena attack Adrian while he blocked and studied each move.
She was quick to strike but left her guard open.
Adrian noticed this too, and he timed the moment she dropped her guard perfectly—with a thunderous punch, he knocked her down.
The blonde fell and dragged herself to the corner of the platform, too disoriented to get up.
Adrian waited for his opponent to rise, but it was clear she wouldn't be getting off the floor anytime soon—her nose was broken.
“Finish it, Adrian,” Zion commanded from beside the ring.
The boy seemed paralyzed, still bound by the old rules.
“You have three seconds, or I'm coming up there myself.”
We watched in horror. The boy must have sensed the threat was real and made his choice.
He approached his seated opponent, placing both hands behind her head.
She tried to break free, but before she could, Adrian pulled her into a brutal knee strike.
Lorena slid to the floor, limp as a rag doll.
Zion counted to ten and declared Adrian the winner of the first match.
“Kyller, come here.” His voice made me jump, snapping me out of my stupor. “Heal the girl.”
He pointed to the body on the floor. Her nose had been reduced to jelly from the blow.
“I'm not authorized to perform this kind of procedure without my superiors' supervision,” I explained as I stood up. When students got hurt during training, they usually ended up at the hospital.
“I've already spoken with your superiors. You won't have any problems if you follow the order.”
Well, that caught me off guard. Besides the king and his three Pillars, there was no higher authority than Zion, and no one would be crazy enough to disobey an order from the general. So I went to Lorena without another word.
I took a deep breath, told myself to stay calm, and placed my hands on the sides of her head.
I scanned to assess the damage and positioned my fingers around the bone that had shifted out of place.
Then, with a pull and an audible crack, I set it back where it belonged.
Next, I drew on a bit of my power, and soon a white light glowed at my fingertips, radiating a tingling warmth.
I touched her temples and watched the energy flow into the girl's head.
I visualized the cartilage reshaping and the blood vessels regenerating until her nasal structure returned to normal.
Contrary to what people thought, healing with the gift wasn't simple at all.
The energy wouldn't regenerate organs unless you directed it to.
We needed to know and understand every bone, muscle fiber, cartilage, and blood vessel to shape the repair.
That's why we spent four years in college learning the contours, feel, function, and composition of each organ before starting residency in the fifth year, where we put what we'd learned into practice.
Otherwise, how would we know how to repair a kidney without understanding what it was, what it looked like, and where it belonged?
When a bone broke into two or more pieces, things got complicated—a broken bone had to be removed and reconstructed, or it could end up piercing surrounding tissue.
That's why elmedics were required to master the art of surgery.
Having the gift was useless if you didn't know how to use it.
After ten seconds, Lorena's eyes flew open and she sat up with a start, shielding her face as if still in combat.
“It's okay, it's over,” I said, trying to calm her down.
Even healed, the bruising below her eyes and nose persisted. Removing the blood that had leaked between the tissues was delicate, time-consuming work—I preferred to let the body handle that on its own.
“What happened?” the girl asked, looking around in confusion. Zion and Adrian were standing beside her.
“You got knocked out in two minutes,” the general replied. “Kyller healed you.”
The girl looked from Adrian to Zion, then to me, genuine confusion written on her face. She stared at her opponent for a long moment, then shrugged, got up, and sat on the bench beside the ring, taking the defeat in stride.
The trainer continued calling pairs, and with each round, we began to accept the new rules a little better. Some students hesitated at the order to knock out their opponents, but one look from Zion was enough to change their minds.
I kept healing those who fell—at least the damage wasn't as bad as I'd imagined.
So far, I'd restored a broken nose, two dislocated arms, six cracked ribs, and three concussions.
At some point amid the chaos, I started feeling guilty about my cowardice, and after a while, the idea of being knocked out didn't seem so terrifying anymore.
But that acceptance still couldn't stop me from wanting to run.
The truth was, I remembered what it felt like to be beaten to the brink of death, and I wasn't comfortable with the idea of going through that again.
“Ethan and Kyller, get in the ring. Adele, you cover for Kyller now,” Zion ordered.
I stood up, summoning what little courage I could muster—and I have to say, it wasn't much, just enough to keep me from running.
Ethan was one of the best students in the class, and I'd watched some of his matches, so I knew kicks were his strong suit.
I positioned myself across from him in the ring; his eyes gleamed with amusement, but I tried not to let it intimidate me.
“Begin.”
Zion's command sent my heart racing, and with every ounce of bravery in my cowardly body, I took a step toward Ethan.
Δ
“Kyller?” I woke with a start. The faces of Zion, Breno, and Adele swam into view, and for a moment, I felt like a corpse at a wake.
“What happened?” I asked, disoriented. The next second, it came back to me—I'd fought Ethan and lost. I brought my hands to my left eye and felt it swollen and sore.
I remembered taking punch after punch, kick after kick, until one landed harder than the rest. When I went down, he kicked me in the face so hard my brain rattled like jelly.
“You passed out, so Adele tried to heal you, but it wasn't working,” Zion said.
I studied them, confused. Then, looking at Adele, I remembered why.
“I'm resistant to healing—I'd need someone at level 800 for it to take effect.” I sat up right away, a little dizzy.
“Why didn't you tell us before?” the girl asked, irritated.
“I forgot.”
“Are you okay now?” the general asked, scanning every inch of my face.
I touched the sore spot and shrugged, still dizzy.
“Yeah, I’ll be a hundred percent in five minutes—my healing’s already kicking in.”
His eyes fixed on the left side of my face with obvious concern.
After a few seconds, apparently satisfied with my answer, he turned and headed back to the ring.
Breno helped me up, and I made my way to the losers’ bench.
Looking in the mirror on the side wall, I saw I had a black eye.
I could also feel a rib knitting itself back together, but it still hurt like hell when I moved.
“Don’t worry,” Breno whispered in my ear, squeezing my waist as we approached the bench. “You’re still the prettiest girl here, even looking like a one-eyed panda.”
I suppressed a smile, momentarily forgetting how badly I’d just gotten my ass kicked.
“I hope you have better luck than me in the ring.”
Breno smiled, letting go of me as we reached our destination.
“I’m not worried. Even with two black eyes, I’d still be the best-looking guy in this place.”
If Zion weren’t there, he’d be right. This time, I just snorted in amusement, and Breno shot me an exaggerated wink before returning to his spot near the ring. Lorena, her bun pulled painfully tight, made room for me to sit beside her. She said nothing.
I continued watching the fights, and Breno was called to duel Naoki, a level 300 ice elemental from Yonser—so pale he made your eyes hurt in the sunlight. As expected, my friend won. When he sat on the winners’ bench, which was on the other side of the ring, he shot me a smug smile.
The fights continued, and now it was time for the last pair.
Hiro Zois, who had level 400 impenetrable skin, and Aish Zuri, the newcomer we’d discovered had the gift of speed.
The scene was ridiculous: Hiro was enormous, a Drutes descendant, though his blond hair and pointed ears softened his appearance somewhat—not that it made his intimidating size any less daunting.
And Aish… Well, Aish looked like a child next to Hiro.
Her skin was black as a starless night, her hair woven into dozens of small braids gathered in a high bun, and her body, though small, was well-defined.
It was like watching a train about to collide with a motorcycle.
“Begin,” Zion ordered.
Hiro didn’t move from his spot, and the girl must have been too scared to budge. Every student was watching the newcomer who’d been thrown to the class lion.
“I said begin,” Zion repeated.
Hiro raised his hands in surrender.
“I can’t, trainer. I don’t even know how I’m going to knock out a girl this size without hurting her.” The giant gestured toward the newcomer, his thick eyebrows knitted together in concern.
“Hiro, I told you to begin,” the general hissed.
From where I sat, I could feel the power his voice carried.
“I can’t, trainer. I’ve never fought a woman.”
“And that’s why I put you with her.”
When Hiro didn’t move, Zion took a deep breath and stepped toward the ring. As soon as he raised his hands, shadows began to gather around him. However, before he could do anything, Aish flew at the giant.