- He is a against a very bad match up.
Cloud was currently looking at the fight from the spectators seat. He'd been surprised and pleased by Logan's actions so far but he was mostly surprised by Logan's opponent's build.
- Now, how will you get out of this dilemma?
***********
*Bang* *Bang* *Bang*
Logan and Diones clashed again and again. In all of their clashes so far, Diones didn't even manage to land a hit on Logan. But despite Logan managing to land all of his into Diones, Diones seemed unaffected at all.
Logan's gloves started turning crimson. Even to the point where the spectators knew what was truly happening.
- What is this!? What is this!? - shouted the commentator - Despite all of our bets, the unknown newcomer is doing quite well against our last year's silver ranker! Punch after punch. Kick after kick, the one with the jester mask deflects them all whilst his land precisely on our silver ranker's body. But what is this? Diones is unscathed? Even before all of those clashes, no sign of damage is left on his body. Just what you would expect from him!
Most of the fights between this section only took at most 5 mins. Diones's and Logan's fight already exceeded that number. Currently, they were the only ones left fighting in the arena. After all, they couldn't start the new sections without them finishing their fight.
- Log.....
- I know..... - Logan once again forced his shocked body to get in to his previous stance.
Locus was but a spectator in this fight. Logan knew that she wouldn't involve herself unless it was a perilous situation for him. After all, he was the one who needed combat experience.
His hands were bloodied. But he couldn't care less. Locus's training inflicted more pain than what he was currently experiencing.
- "Think! Where should I attack him? Punching his body is like punching against a steel wall. The force returns to my own fists if I'm not careful, and that puts a strain on my body. I'm indeed lacking training, I need to perform the motion just like Loc told me to, that's the only way for me to succeed and to minimise the damage done to my fists. Think!! The human's body weak points, the neck and his triceps to decrease his arm movements and defence overall, this might be playing dirty but all is right in war!"
Diones ran against Logan. From Logan's perspective, he looked like a giant.
- You're like a cockroach. You are hard to hit and when it does hit, you somehow manage to deflect the blows! But you might as well give up! You feel it to right? Even my master has a hard time fighting against me! In your case, you do not have enough power to penetrate this defence of mine. It's my win!
Logan observed Diones. And the next moment, he abandoned his stance and ran against him.
Mistaking Logan's charge as a desperate call, Diones threw a palm strike towards the straight line his opponent was moving towards. It was one of the techniques his master taught him. A martial arts that emphasised the development of muscles and personal strength. Fist of the tyrant. The palm strike was called the tyrant's arrival.
As soon as Diones threw his palm strike, a concentrated wind current flew towards Logan. It was just like casting a wind spell. Even when the technique was not directed to the spectators, they could still feel the pressure this emitted.
The technique Diones had performed covered a wide range around the line his opponent was tracing.
But Logan couldn't stop his charge now. His opponent had taken the bait once again and had given him an aperture to exploit.
Everyone thought that the one with the jester's mask was done for. Just like Diones, the majority of people thought that Logan abandoning his stance and running towards Diones was just a desperate attempt at victory.
But just before the wind could strike Logan, Diones all of a sudden felt intoxicated. The feeling would be better described as one being drunk. It was also in that moment that he felt an unforeseen jolt of pain in his neck.
His breath getting caught up his lungs. His arms, unusually sore.
He stumbled backwards, but then it happened again. And again. And again.
Diones could not understand what was happening.
********
- How is that possible?! - Cloud and Diones's master shouted simultaneously across 2 different places without the acknowledgement of one another.
From Diones's perspective, he was just suddenly receiving damage out of nowhere. But for the trained eye of experts, they could see what was truly happening.
- Is that space magic?! I repeat is that space magic?! Is that a special tier spell we're witnessing ladies and gentlemen?! If that is so, then our newcomer might have violated the rules! - shouted the commentator - But I am told here that no, the elemental detector has not detected movement of elementals! That is no magic ladies and gentlemen, no! What a waste!! What is this then!!!
*Bang* *Bang* *Bang* *Bang*
- What is happening big brother Cloud? - asked Bucky. Everyone from the St. Gaia chapel had expectant eyes.
- ...The one with the Jester mask. Let's call him Jester. He is moving so fast that to the untrained eye, it just looks like space magic. But even without that, the only way for you to get to that speed is by using the help of wind elementals. For him to be able to do that with only his body. That guy is what you would call another kind of genius.
- "He is aiming for soft areas I see. But even with, that, he shouldn't have enough power to penetrate Diones's defence! How is he doing it?!" - thought both Cloud and Diones's master.
*********
- Huff.... Huff... Huff.....
Diones had trouble breathing. His neck was being continuously targeted. And when he was to try and defend it with his hands, his triceps, suddenly felt sore.
The punches were not enough to hurt him, but they were enough to disrupt the flow of air. At this step, he would be knocked out due to lack of oxygen entering his body.
It was in that moment that he proved he was the silver ranker of last years martial arts only tournament.
- Ahhhhh!!!! - Diones shouted.
All of a sudden, Logan felt his body tremble. And with that, he was suddenly paralytic. It was only a second, but it was that second that Diones needed to execute another technique of the Fist of the tyrant.
After shouting, Diones punched the floor, cracking the white slabs below his feet and creating a current of wind gushing upwards. Logan could do nothing but to observe as his light body was swept upwards by this current of wind.
Logan had suddenly lost his footing and momentum.
For humans who did not use elementals or any other forms of techniques, being airborne was deadly. There was no way for Logan to move and Diones knew that.
As such, he jumped upwards towards Logan's exposed back.
Everyone observed with bathed breaths as they thought the fight against Jester and their silver ranker was about to end.
***********
Locus observed as Diones pounced over Logan. Even though her student and best friend was about to be finished off by someone who could possibly kill him, she still did not move.
Locus grinned. After all, the martial arts that he taught Logan, the wing chun that he taught him wasn't that weak.
After meeting Logan, memories started to resurface on her mind. Of her past life mostly.
Even with that, there was still a fog on her mind and questions to be answered.
What was she doing before meeting Logan?
Where did she come from?
What was with her lost memories?
How did she know how to use her own powers even though there was nothing like that in earth?
Maybe when these memories eventually return, she would know where this new wing chun of hers came from.
The wing chun in Locus's mind was an incredible martial arts. Deadly, logical, disciplined. But still not enough to go against the irregularities of this world.
- My body remembers the changes but my mind does not. This wing.... no, it's not right to call it that anymore right. It has changed past recognition. So in honour to this new life of mine, in honour of the one who will make this martial arts the strongest in this world, I'll call it...
*********
- You've got no escape now! This is the end!!
Diones jumped enough to arrive to Logan's height. When there, he joined his hands together and elevated them over Logan.
He was planning to smash Logan towards the ground.
But it was at this moment the Diones felt something and a cold sweat poured over his back.
Diones couldn't see it for Logan wore a mask. But he still felt something odd.
Logan grinned, even in the face of defeat, he smiled.
Not wanting any more trouble than what he already had in this fight, Diones didn't waste any other second to bring his hands towards Logan's back
But just when his fists were about to touch Logan.
- Rogue arts. First art, Cherry blossom.
Diones heard those words.
All of a sudden, with great precision, just as easy as he would do it on land, Logan turned to face Diones.
The path of Diones's strike suddenly covered by Logan's right hand.
- I'm gonna break that measly hand of yours along with your body!!
But when fist collided with palm, Diones felt something strange.
It was as if he was hitting into nothingness. Not only that, but his strike had suddenly had all of the force behind it drained.
Logan used this momentary sense of confusion of Diones's to get over this predicament. Using Diones's stopped hands and his own flexibility, Logan impulsed himself over Diones.
There, Logan delivered a right elbow strike towards Diones's scalp.
From the moment Logan was airborne to when he gained an advantage, only 4 seconds had passed.
The spectators were awed by this performance. This was still something to be expected in this world, but they never thought they would even begin to see this kind of skills until the quarter finals at least.
But everyone from the spectators, the commentator, the participants, and Cloud, no one expected Logan's elbow strike to deliver any real damage, less when he was airborne, less when he was fighting against a defence monster like Diones.
It was then that something bizarre happened. In the blink of an eye, Logan's strike accelerated. It was so sudden that it created a shock-wave visible for all to see.
But Logan wasn't finished yet. After all, a blow of this caliber wasn't enough to penetrate the defences of the opponent in front of him.
- Rogue arts, second art. Humming in the silent night.
Like a chant, the moment Logan finished that sentence, his elbow started fiercely vibrating.
It was also at that moment that Diones heard a gentle humming. He had heard this sound before when he was being hit by Logan in the neck, but it was clearer in this exact moment.
Just like before, a feeling of intoxication inundated his body, leaving him with almost no force to struggle free.
All Diones could do was wait for the blow to happen.
But the Jester must not be able to damage him right? After all, he would have done that in the beginning right? - that's what Diones thought.
*BAAAAAAANNGGGGGGG* *SMAAAAAAAAASH*
Logan's blow contacted Diones's head with enough power to send him colliding towards the arena's ground.
The collision created a dense cloud of dust that surrounded their arena and some more around it.
And from that dust, a silhouette of a small person rose up.
Then, the dust started to lift up.
What could be first seen were a pair of black boots.
Then his black pants.
Then a pair of crimson gloves of where a strange red liquid was dropping off from.
Then a strange looking closed black jacket with its zip inclining over the left side of the jester's body.
Then finally, a red hood and a bizarre white on one side and black on the other jester mask with horizontal crescent moons for eyes and a creepy smile for a mouth.
Diones body stayed on the floor.
No matter how much one waited, he did not get up.
If it wasn't because he was breathing, everyone would have concluded that he was dead.
Diones. The silver ranker had been knocked out in the first round of the tournament.
By a jester who appeared out of nowhere.