Today, the sun had shined brighter than any other day in the summer. The sky was clear, without a single cloud being spotted. The streets were bustling, as cars were jammed on the roads. The horns coming from several vehicles blared throughout the streets. Eeno and Hawk had walked along the sidewalk of the busy street. As the two roamed further down, Hawk's eyes darted everywhere, as he noticed this section was one of the more run down areas of Toshi City. His frantic gaze would stop and stare at an alleyway, where a man in a tattered, purple bowler hat leaned on the edge of the alley wall, his sights met with Hawk's, as the two uncomfortably stared at one another. "This part of town is pretty suspicious." Eeno said, causing Hawk to break his gaze from the man, and look at the Esper, who walked with a stone-cold expression, his vow to defeat Toma was the only thing that resided at the forefront of his mind, especially after Hawk's motivation at the end of yesterday. "At least it's not the slums of Grottolin." The boy said, silently, so nobody else on the streets could hear his words. "It makes sense why a trickster like Toma would stay around here." Eeno stated. "Sadly, this is the shortest route to the arcade center." He added.
Finally, at the intersection, the Toshi Arcade Center could be seen from afar, where Hawk and Eeno stood, on the edge of the sidewalk, ready to cross the street. Its neon words glowed, even in the brightest of days. Its multicolored, illuminating sign was alluring to the youthful masses that would regularly stop there during their free time. The width of the arcade center's building was fairly small and succinct on the surface, and stood at half height compared to the condos and apartment complexes that surrounded it. It even dwarfed in comparison to the other attractions that were built next to it. Hawk and Eeno walked across the street upon the traffic light turning red. They quickly walked to get a better view of the place they were supposed to go to.
"This is it?" Hawk asked, inspecting the size of the exterior of the arcade center. "It looks like something Toma and his guild would settle for, especially in this part of town." Eeno said. Before the Esper could take another step forward, Hawk stopped him by uttering his name. Eeno turned his head to face Hawk. "If anything goes wrong, I got your back." The boy told his friend, who nodded his head as his reply.
The interior of the arcade center was the complete antithesis of its terse-looking exterior. The room itself was spacious, on the second floor of the building, with several different gaming cabinets being either in small rows or standing on their own, in an open space. Skee ball games were planted in the very corner of the room, kids huddled around their friends, who challenged each other in fighting games, and other arcade-goers placed quarters into their favorite minigames, such as basketball hoops and pinball machines. Meanwhile, on the other side, a sizeable crowd of people vehemently played the slot machines, as they sat next to one another, activating the machines with a lever in a craze. The overall appearance of the place itself was as colorful and otherworldly as the games that resided in the center. The design of the floor had an outer space feel to it, with several imprints of stars, galaxies, and meteorites randomly placed along the carpet. "Wow." Hawk said, with an enlightened demeanor, like a child basking in the glory of their favorite toy store. As the boy and the Esper ventured further into the arcade center, Hawk energetically looked around, noticing all of the illuminating machines that were more than alluring. But Eeno was still focused on his primary goal. He walked around, looking for anybody that might stand out from the rest of the crowd. "We need to find Toma and his gang." Eeno said. But as he looked over his shoulder, he noticed Hawk walking in a different direction from his friend, branching off from their path, much to the Esper's visible, yet minor, irritation. Nevertheless, he hurried after Hawk to see where he was going. After following him, Eeno took notice of Hawk conversing with the young girl behind the prize counter, who looked no older than 20. "Any idea where Toma is?" He asked the employee. "Why?" She asked, curiously. As Eeno approached the counter as well, standing next to his friend, it did not take long for Hawk to improvise a story: "My friend and I go to the same school as him. We… Kinda got lost lookin' for him." He explained. But the employee, in a regretful tone, declined Hawk's ambition to seek out Toma, saying, "even if I were to tell you, I'd be fired."
"I need this job to put me through school." The employee added. But Hawk slipped his hand onto the counter, resting it upon the employee's left hand. "I gotta tell you: Your voice is like a harpy's, your eyes are like flowers, and your hair is silky smooth, just the way I like it." The boy told her, staring deeply into her purple irises. "Is… that all?" She asked, almost stumbling over her words. "You got a nice body, too." Hawk added, smiling in the process. Then, shifting her eyes to the side, the employee looked to her left, and then back at Hawk and Eeno. "Toma normally resides in the back room of the arcades. Go past the skee ball games, and you'll find a door that blends in with the walls." The employee whispered to them. The two would then thank her, and ventured off to where the skee ball games were. "Damn." Eeno said, genuinely surprised by Hawk's conversation skills. "I thought I'd have to peer into her mind and detect her thoughts." He also said. "Well, when you're this good, you have to get used to it." Hawk boasted.
As per the directions of the girl at the prize desk, Hawk and Eeno walked past the row of skee ball games. Eeno cautiously stepped to the side, avoiding the possibility of bumping into the kids that were heavily focused on the skee ball game. They did not need to wander far, as they saw an odd clearing that stood out in the arcade center. A small space that was reclused in the corner between two different arcade cabinets: A motorbike game to the right, and a fighting game to the left. Hawk looked over his shoulder to see if they had been followed all the way to where they were instructed to go. But nothing was out of the ordinary, just several kids racing from one arcade cabinet to the next. He then felt a wave of trepidation overcome him, which traveled from his legs, up to his chest. But nevertheless, he and Eeno walked into the corner of the arcade center. The Esper would place his right hand on a small section of the wall, concentrating on finding the door that blended in. Within seconds of detecting a sealed passage within the corner clearing, Eeno finally came across the outline of a door, which he gently pushed open with his telekinetic abilities, slowly and discreetly cracking the door open to make sure nobody saw them.
Beyond the hidden door was a semi-spacious room filled with unused arcade cabinets. Some were familiar to Hawk and Eeno, as the former gawked in awe, scanning through each label that was printed on the top of each game. The boy would touch a button belonging to a red-colored cabinet, only for nothing to happen. Just a pitch black screen. While Hawk and Eeno investigated the area further, the Esper noticed the air was far different than that outside. Inside the storage room, the air was cold, almost as if they had stumbled into a walk-in cooler. Cobwebs draped from the corner of the ceiling, and a low, humming sound filled the silence within the room. In the midst of Hawk examining the inactive arcade games, he noticed Eeno placing a hand on the ground. "This place has a weird layout." He muttered, standing up from a squatted position. "Where to?" Hawk asked. But before Eeno could answer, he began to fiddle with a blue arcade cabinet. "These games aren't even plugged in." Hawk told Eeno, but the Esper continued to tamper with the controls of the blue cabinet: Up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, B, A. Then, a click was made audible, as the arcade shifted to the side, revealing a hidden passage. What stood before them was a set of double doors, the sleek, steel doors opened, revealing the inside of an elevator, which Hawk and Eeno entered.
Inside the elevator, there was only one button, a plain, red button, with no inscription on it as to where it will take them. After Eeno pressed the button, the elevator rumbled and jolted ever so quickly, before finally moving. "That sixth sense ability of yours works wonders." Hawk smugly complimented Eeno. But he would take the accolade in stride. "It's a basic Technique that every Kaigun learns at an early age, alongside levitation and reading minds." He told Hawk. The conversation, after waiting in a few seconds of silence, would take a more drastic turn: "It's better than what Poe could teach me." Eeno said, leaving a bemused expression plastered on Hawk's face, which only lasted for a split second. "Don't worry. You'll surpass 'em." The boy reassured Eeno. "Even if you don't have the support of your father, just know that I got a lotta faith in you, buddy." Hawk then placed a hand on his friend's shoulder. "You're Poe's fears in the flesh."
"It's… exactly what I wish to become." Eeno said, reluctantly. "He never really saw much potential in me. And because of that, I will take many risks to surpass him." He continued, as Hawk slowly lowered his hand off of Eeno's shoulder. "And maybe then, he will realize my potential." As the Esper finished his explanation, a sudden thump could be felt throughout the elevator, as it stopped moving, finally reaching the destined floor.
Upon setting foot outside of the elevator, the two had found themselves in a commodious room, around 16,722.5472 square meters (180,000 square feet) of space. There were several boxes laying around, which were stacked on top of one another, making a small mountain. The first thing that Hawk and Eeno quickly saw were the group of kids unpretentiously talking amongst themselves, with one of the kids sitting atop the boxes. There was also another kid, who caught Hawk's eye. It was the same, bulky and athletic kid from the cafeteria, who was accompanying Toma. It seemed the directions from the girl behind the prize desk was right on the money. Even Toma was there, despite being obscured by the sunlight that entered the warehouse-like area, making him appear as a silhouette. He took notice of Hawk and Eeno as quickly as they saw him and his band of thieves.
"You followed through on the deal." Toma said to Hawk and Eeno, with a delighted face. As the magician announced Hawk and Eeno's presence, one of the thieves aimed an arrow at the two, but remained out of their field of vision. "Y'know, I had to sweet talk the girl at the prize desk. She told us where we needed to go." Hawk told Toma, whose expression of delight elevated to one of unbridled bliss. "You're not half bad." Toma then told Hawk. "If anything, you're more persuasive than I thought you'd be." While the boy and the Esper walked towards Toma, the bulky kid, and a smaller kid, proceeded to forcefully slide the shutter door closed, preventing the blinding sunlight from radiating further into the warehouse, and finally making Toma clear to Hawk and Eeno's eyes. Toma spread his arms out, almost in a welcoming embrace, before going on to say, "this is where we shall begin our bout." Eeno stepped forward, but not before Hawk halted him in his tracks by gripping his shoulder. "Bring this one home, buddy." Hawk whispered to Eeno, as he walked off to the side, joining the rest of Toma's gang near the boxes. The boy would stand beside the bulky kid, who stood tall with his arms folded. Meanwhile, a smaller, more nimble-looking kid, stood to Hawk's left, whilst maintaining eye contact with the boy. The nimble kid in question had the clothing sense of a homeless kid, with tattered overalls, and a newsboy cap, both of which were green. "I'm watching you." The kid warned Hawk within earshot of Toma and Eeno. "Restrain yourself, Quince." Toma assured the nimble kid. "They won't be of harm." The magician raised his hand, causing the archer to cease his potential attack on Hawk and Eeno. Simultaneously, as he lowered his bow, Toma lowered his hand, bringing it down to his side.
"Blessed is the Qiangdu that emboldens our very being. Earth, Fire, Wind, Water. The elements of our choosing it shall bring forth to us, and the shadows of twisted minds it shall combat. For fist and sword is our calling, and fist and sword we shall fall." Toma recited, his eyes glancing upwards at Eeno. Upon breaking his gaze from the pocket-sized book, he firmly closed it shut with one hand. The clasping of the book was made audible throughout the area.
Within seconds of the silence that followed after Toma closing his book, he quickly withdrew seven playing cards from the sleeves of his jacket, hurling them at Eeno, who telekinetically stopped them in mid air, before his eyes, and before they could do any damage. But surprisingly, the cards detonated, causing a sizeable explosion before Eeno's eyes, knocking him onto the ground, as he slid across his back. Toma then darted after the Esper, racing around the smoke. But just before he could land any attack, Eeno got back onto his feet, and attempted to kick the magician in his ankles, trying to knock him to the ground. But Toma leapt over Eeno's head, and landed behind him, with his reflexes being akin to that of a cat. He threw three punches in quick succession, which Eeno narrowly dodged. And as the third punch brushed past the side of his face, the Esper would be knocked back by a strong punch to his gut. He would slide across the ground, and held his stomach in shock. Even though Toma had somewhat of a slim, agile build, the power behind his punches were like that of a bull running at full speed, around 56.327 km/h (35 mph). But, in the midst of the contemplation, Eeno was suddenly struck in the chest by a knee-kick from Toma, which caused him to slide back, the soles of his shoes screeching across the smooth, concrete floor. "Lower your heads." Eeno said to the bulky kid, as well as Hawk and Quince. Without question, the three ducked, as Eeno levitated several boxes over his head, and chucked them directly at Toma, who easily evaded all but three of them, save for a fourth box, which struck him while he leapt over the previous two. Toma somersaulted in the air, as the box that struck him tumbled across the ground, crashing into the wall behind the magician.
The force of the box, given how it had a large motor to a heavy machine, was enough for Toma to be stunned, even for 50 seconds, as he knelt on one knee, dazed and stupefied. But this gave Eeno enough time to pull a unique trick on the magician as soon as his opponent stood up on both feet: Using his Psionic Techniques, Toma began to sink halfway into the concrete. He tried to lift one leg up, but it felt like he had a metric ton ankle weight attached to each of his legs. Before he could even try and counter the force of Eeno's telekinesis, he flew into the Esper's direction, where Eeno proceeded to punch Toma across the face, as hard as he could. And as he tumbled away from Eeno, falling onto the ground shortly after, a small river of blood trickled from Toma's mouth upon coughing. While Toma lay on the ground, struggling to get back up, Eeno raced after him. It did not take long for the magician to regain his composure once again, and notice the Esper running after him. He threw another playing card, which Eeno dodged by tilting his head. But the projectile managed to cut into his cheek, but grazed past him, continuing to fly in the opposite direction. Toma got back up, and swung his right arm outward, as the playing card that slashed Eeno's cheek suddenly changed direction, curving back around, flying past Hawk, Quince and the bulky kid, and was now homing in on Eeno.
"Dumbass!" Toma shouted at Eeno, clearly reveling in the thrill of the fight. The Esper turned around, noticing a twirling, spinning sound coming closer. Eeno tried to deflect the projectile, but it was too late. The card was firmly impaled into Eeno's left forearm. And before Eeno could turn to face Toma, the magician managed to land a clean and devastating punch into Eeno's back. The blow was directed at the Esper's liver, which paralyzed him, temporarily. The paralyzing period lasted for several milliseconds before Eeno swatted his right arm out. However, Toma disappeared before the feral swing could land. The magician was in mid-air, and he threw four more cards in the Esper's direction. Attempting to shield himself from the pending blast, Eeno covered his eyes with his right arm, vainly shielding himself. But these cards did not explode like the others. They were more akin to firecrackers, as the popping that ensued was almost deafening for Eeno. Even the spectators covered their eyes from the bright, flashing that also went off. "This some kinda death match?" Hawk asked, taken back by Toma's style of fighting, which made him appear as if he were out for blood. "Nah, that's just how Toma fights." Quince informed Hawk, in a more matter-of-fact tone of voice. While the cards laced with firecrackers were going off, Toma crossed his arms over his face, shielding his vision, and preventing himself from being blinded.
Though Eeno was blinded by the firecracker-powered cards going off directly in front of his face, he was still able to detect Toma's presence, even with his eyes closed. "Looks like I overdid it." The magician thought. As the smoke cleared, he noticed Eeno had vanished from the position where the firecracker cards detonated. He was astonished at the Esper's ability to move, and also continue fighting, even after being blinded by his trick. Toma, in a frenetic manner, he searched the entire area with his eyes, desperately looking for Eeno. His sight was like that of an owl's, scanning any exploitable hiding spot in which Eeno would reside in. It was as if the magician could see directly through the boxes and small debris strewn across the floor. But as soon as he turned his head to the left, he saw Eeno quickly lunging at him with a readied punch. And Toma would meet this attack head-on with a fist strike of his own.
Their fists hit into one another, their knuckles creating a loud bang in the wake of the collision, and a shockwave was emitted from the impact, strong enough to send everyone to the ground. Despite Toma's attack power being tantamount to a bull's strength, nevertheless, he was unable to withstand Eeno's overwhelming power, and he staggered backwards, clenching his right wrist in pain. He growled in anguish, but whether it was an early sign of forfeit, or his tenacity shining through, Toma failed to react in time to Eeno throwing a second punch, aimed at his face. The attack landed, causing Toma to stagger onto his knees. Then, in a final, yet desperate, maneuver to achieve victory, Toma withdrew another explosive card from his sleeve, and tried to throw it at Eeno. Should he throw the card, it could result in a double defeat, including the hospitalization of both Toma and Eeno. But the card would never take flight from Toma's hand, as Eeno psionically, and by force, dragged the magician's hand down to the ground, and keeping it placed onto the concrete. "Enough." Eeno told Toma, who looked up at him with a hint of disdain in his eyes, believing the Esper was displaying some form of leniency, which the magician called out: "Don't tell me you're going soft, Redstar." He said. "Remove the explosive charge from that card, and I will determine your fate." He then demanded Toma. But Toma was defiantly still, as the crushing pain on his downed hand grew more potent. "Careful." The bulky kid advised Eeno, the latter of whom kept his gaze on the magician. "Once a spell card is released from his hand, its ability will activate." He added. Eeno now looked down at Toma with a vitriolic gaze, one which overpowered the magician's look of angst. "Dispel the card, or I will crush your hand." The Esper's visage was almost neutral, save for his widened eyes, which were sharper than any blade. Hawk looked on in silence and a slightly open mouth, in awe upon witnessing Eeno's anger finally made manifest after years of dormancy. The red-violet hieroglyphics on the card slowly faded into nothing, but Eeno had yet to notice. Instead, he increased the telekinetic pressure on Toma's hand, whose face began to wince and twist in pain, as sweat soon dripped from his brow.
Then, from the other side of the spacious room, the soothing melody of a lute emanated throughout the area, which relieved Eeno of his anger, as his psychic grip on Toma's hand loosened until the magician was in full control again. With a deep exhale of relief, Toma stood up, and looked on at Hawk and Eeno with a sated smile. "You guys are good." He said. "What the hell happened?" Eeno asked himself, as he studied his right hand, then turning it over to inspect the back. "Rambutan." Toma called forth the bulky kid, who stepped forward, alongside Hawk and Quince. "See to it these two are escorted safely off the premises." Toma commanded him before diverting his attention to Hawk: "We got you guys covered from here on out." He then said to the boy, who jumped in a joyous manner and also one of pure elation. "Awesome moves, man!" Hawk stretched out his hand, which hovered before Eeno. To which the Esper high-fived his friend.
Outside of the arcade center, Hawk and Eeno, both of whom were accompanied by Rambutan, were in the process of walking away from the entrance to the arcades. "Say, what happened at the end?" Hawk asked, as Eeno looked down at his hands, which trembled in mixed emotions. "I'm not sure… But that was something else." He said. "I'll say." Rambutan interjected. "I never thought I'd snap like that again." Eeno sighed.
The three had made it to the edge of the sidewalk, where very little cars were driving along the road. "Anyhow, you guys go and get some rest. You've earned it." Rambutan then said to Hawk and Eeno, before turning around to retreat back into the arcade center. However, Hawk would stop him in his tracks, which Rambutan turned around to face him. "So it's true that we're part of the guild?" Hawk asked. "I have to check in with Toma." Rambutan responded with. "But based on what I've seen, you guys are the real deal." He added, before turning back around to the arcade center. "C'mon. Let's go." Hawk politely told Eeno, as he took one step off of the sidewalk pavement. But he stopped upon noticing his friend was still as a statue. An expression of worry was seen on the boy's face, as he asked, "what's wrong?" Eeno looked down at the grate beneath him. He stared beyond the grate's spacings with a hint of lament in his eyes. "I just don't believe it." Eeno said to himself. "It's like I was zoned out, like everything around me became silent, drowned in rage. I thought I'd never reach that point a second time."
"Must be another one of Poe's lies." Hawk said, guessing at why Eeno had snapped at the end of his fight with Toma. "I can't put my finger on it yet…" The Esper stopped himself before he could say anything else. He then directed his attention to Hawk, as he lowered his quaking hands, which shook less than before. "I don't expect you to understand it yet, but you will, someday…" Eeno told Hawk. "There's going to come a day where your voice just… burns out. Your legs feel heavy, and your arms weak. It may be from whatever challenge you're facing now, but your body will just give, and you'll feel like you can't go on anymore." He explained, much to Hawk's visible confusion imbued with a slight fear, as if Eeno's words were similar to an ominous prophecy. "Truth is: I can't run from it." Hawk told Eeno. "I sorta get what you're sayin', but if I let that kinda shit get to me, then I'm losin' a part of myself that I can't get back. And it ain't like I wanna run from it, I just don't wanna let that go." Hawk then said. The two finally crossed over to the other side of the crosswalk together, and traipsed down the street, walking past the run-down convenience store on the corner, where a crooked bent street sign stood before the entrance.