Chapter 24 - Girl on Fire (Part 2)

(Scarlette's POV)I summoned as much energy as I could, so much that even Cadel would feel stuffed. I swirled my flames around me, rapidly increasing the output. I was soon encased in my own ball of fire.But I was not done yet. I had to break out. I increased the size of my fiery sphere, using the rapidly expanding hot air to my advantage. It was getting harder to breathe as my own flames consumed the surrounding oxygen, but my sphere was almost the same size as Kazen's plasma one now. It was a sphere threatening to burst out of another sphere.I sensed him trying to squeeze me in, but with a shout, I released a burst of energy. My sphere exploded, dissolving Kazen's plasma prison in one fell swoop.Kazen however, was quick to follow up. As the crowd roared their approval, he released another plasma beam at me, which I just barely managed to dodge.I was panting, trying to replenish the oxygen in my body. That trick took up a lot out of me, and I was bleeding from various places where he had struck me with his mini plasma lasers earlier.I sensed that my friends were concerned, and I really wanted to look at them just to feel their support, but I couldn't get distracted for a second.Kazen was not letting up. Just how much plasma did he have? I returned fire, sending waves of flame over in his direction, but they just deflected off the new shield he had just spawned around him. My lack of defence was turning the tides in his favour.But I wasn't out of options yet.What I was about to attempt was a highly advanced skill, one that only top-tier Fire-Ability users could pull off: cauterisation. By applying just the right amount of heat, I could temporarily stop my bleeding. It wouldn't fully heal my injuries, but at least I could prevent further blood loss. If I lost too much blood, Dr Connor would intervene and end the fight anyway.I quickly retreated, putting some distance between myself and Kazen. Flames erupted around me as I tried to obscure his vision. With the few seconds I gained, I began cauterising my wounds. It required extreme precision and a delicate touch, but thankfully, it seemed to be working.But Kazen wasn't giving me enough time. He flew over, bombarding me with his plasma missiles.Desperate times called for desperate measures. I still had one last trick in my book. This was a move that my friends didn't know. This was a move that I didn't want them to know. But I had to do it. Losing. Was. Not. An. Option.Flames consumed my body, and fiery wings erupted from my back. My feet reshaped into blazing talons. To the audience, I must have looked like a phoenix reborn in the arena. But this wasn't just a phoenix. It was a falcon.I had given Cadel a brief preview of this move during our training, only revealing the wings back then. Now, the transformation was complete.Kazen's eyes widened in disbelief. I immediately took after him, deflecting any incoming attacks with my wings. Kazen's expression changed from one of shock to one of determination. I sensed that we were approaching the finale of the fight.Once again, I collided into him, hammering away at his shield with an onslaught of attacks. Kazen was momentarily forced back, but he too kept pressing forward.WHAM! WHAM! WHAM! WHAM! I was relentless. WHAM! WHAM!CRACK!He was finally defenceless. My vision clouded over — red was all I could see.As we careened to the ground, I latched on to him with my claws. I sensed him battering me, but I did not care. I needed to win.For that, I needed to hurt him.With a surge of strength, I thrust my talons into his stomach and twisted, penetrating his skin and probably rupturing a few organs in the process. He vomited out blood. We crashed into the floor, throwing up a cloud of dust."Beep!" I heard what sounded like a whistle blowing. I stood up and spread my wings, pinning him to the ground. "Beep! Beeeep!"What was that sound? It was none of my concern. As I prepared to continue my rampage, I felt my flames forcibly extinguished. I couldn't move a muscle. I let out a screech of rage.Cadel? There was no way—Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Dr Connor running towards us, whistle still in his mouth. He held out a long metallic stick, its tip crackling with energy. The Esper Nullifier. It was what all school faculty and guards carried to instantly shut down a student's Ability while forcibly immobilising them.I peered down. Kazen was lying in a heap, blood pooling around his stomach.Oh my God… what have I done?"Scarlette Falcon, you have exceeded the safety limits established for this duel. To ensure the protection of both you and Kazen, you are hereby disqualified from the match. Kazen Rain is declared the winner."Huh? Did I lose? What just happened? The last thing I remembered was activating my Ability and transforming into…Oh no…It was a moment of desperation. I had no choice. Excuses swirled around my head as I collapsed to my knees. Kazen was still conscious, but he was losing a lot of blood. If anything, he looked annoyed. A team of medics on standby rushed into the arena. A couple of them held out their hands, emitting a green and yellow glow. Ability holders.Two of the medics ran towards me, beginning their healing process on me as well. The stadium was dead silent. I couldn't bear to look at them. I couldn't bear to look at my friends.I felt a warm, soothing sensation as my wounds healed. After a short while, they joined Kazen, who was being loaded onto a stretcher."Miss Falcon, could you please follow me?" Dr Connor instructed."Uh huh… oh," I mumbled. I got to my feet, shuffling after him.I followed him as we weaved through the inner workings of the Dome. Eventually, we arrived at a small room. It looked like a storeroom, but there was a desk with two chairs in the middle."Take a seat," Dr Connor ordered.I slowly sat down, refusing to make eye contact with him.He took the other seat."You realise what you did?" he asked.I nodded meekly."There are rules for a reason. Breaking them is strictly prohibited. You understand where I'm coming from?"I nodded again, still looking down. I felt the urge to cry, but I held it back."So, Miss Scarlette. Could you explain what happened?"My breathing was laboured. "I... lost control," I admitted. It sounded awkward, but it was the truth."You… lost control?" Dr Connor squinted at me.I didn't respond. My clothes were in tatters. My hair was a mess, and so were my emotions. The last thing I wanted to do right now was get interrogated.He sighed. "How exactly did you 'lose control'?" he pressed."Whenever I do that bird move. I uh, can't really control it. It just acts on instinct.""… SO WHY DID YOU DO IT?! YOU COULD HAVE KILLED HIM!" he exploded.I flinched, surprised by the sudden change in volume. "I panicked! I didn't know what else to do!" Tears were starting to well up in my eyes, blurring my vision.Dr Connor must have noticed this, for he softened up. "You do realise that there are consequences for breaking the rules, yes? Putting another student's life in danger is an extreme violation of the rules! Normally, you would be…"He let the sentence hang, but I knew what he was going to say. I was no stranger to expulsion Wait, hold on… Normally? I looked up."I remember you. You asked me about the existence of 6-Stars during our first 'Combat Fundamentals' lesson. I said I didn't know anything about it then," he paused. "I wasn't exactly lying, but I wasn't telling the truth either. What I can tell you next is strictly confidential, and if anyone finds out, we'll both be in big trouble. What do you say?"I fidgeted in my seat. What were his intentions? It sounded like something a teacher shouldn't be sharing. Still, he had admittedly piqued my curiosity. Rank was a sensitive matter to me, and he was about to shed some light on the elusive '6-Star' Rank. Anyway, I wasn't really in any position to fight back. If he felt like it, he could get me expelled for the second time.I was wary and confused, but I decided to play his game. "Okay. What's up?" I asked, blinking the tears out of my eyes."Promise me you won't tell anyone about this."I was getting a bit impatient, but I nodded. "Alright."Dr Connor took a deep breath."6-Stars… do exist."I felt my breath latch in my throat. Was he telling the truth? If so, this was a major revelation! I had to share it with—no, don't get ahead of yourself, Scarlette. I had promised to keep this a secret. Still, his reply just begged more questions to be asked."Really? Where are they? Does our school have any of them? Why are you telling me this?" I fired."Relax. I told you I was only half-lying, because I don't know everything myself. All I know is that they exist. The Administration doesn't share these details with us, but I have connections in the Research Division. We did a little bit of digging, and we found some data regarding the existence of 6-Stars—hey, are you okay?"I found myself reeling forward, steadying myself against the table. I felt a bit light-headed. It seemed the fight was finally taking its toll on me. However, I did not want to waste this opportunity to learn more about the 6-Stars."Yes… please continue," I managed to gasp."Very well, I'll make this quick. To my knowledge, we have no official 6-Stars in this school. But one of your classmates does have connections to one."I sat up, my alertness fully returning. Connections?"Kazen Rain. His brother, Soren Rain, is a 6-Star."I didn't know how to react. I brushed my bangs out of my eyes and squinted at him, trying to process the information."Umm, that doesn't really help make me any less confused. Kazen's brother is a 6-Star? What's his Ability? Where's he at?" I stammered."We don't know. All we know is his Rank.""You're telling me this for a reason, right? What do you need my help with? I think things are… a little bit awkward between Kazen and me right now…"He looked me straight in the eye. "We don't need your help with Kazen. We believe there's another possible 6-Star in our school, and you have excellent connections with him. I need your help to squeeze any information out of him."I felt my throat go dry. "You don't mean…""Yes, I'm referring to Cadel Ren.""And if I don't help?" I let my voice trail off, fully knowing what the consequences were."Then I'm afraid we will have to expel you."