Paths of Extinction

Chapter 8 The Challenge

“You two.”

Saturday morning, as class E was preparing for Professor Nayro’s practical lesson, Julia approached Azmer and Rodrick. 

She first made sure no one was looking before giving both of them a piercing glare. Azmer frowned and kept his stand but Rodrick stepped back fearfully.

“What did you do to the Defect? It has been four days. And don’t try to bullshit me.”

Although he was inferior to her, Azmer didn’t obediently answer, he clicked his tongue and acted oblivious. 

Upon seeing his adamant silence, Julia raised her hand and oppressively poked his chest.

“If you’re not going to speak then you better be prepared for later…”

As she turned around, Rodrick couldn’t help himself and spoke up.

“W-wait.”

Azmer tried to warn him but it didn’t work. 

“The loser asked for it! I… I mean we had to rough him up a bit.”

“We? There is no we, Rodrick.”

The blonde-haired student snorted and opted to walk away rather than get involved. Thus, left alone facing the menacing Julia, Rodrick wryly smiled and tried to explain himself in a favorable way.

“H-he attacked me out of the blue. To begin with, Defects have no play among us.”

“Is that why he didn’t show up for a week? Because you beat him up?”

“Y-yes!”

As he remembered that Zeke was beaten up outside of the school, and that Professor Nayro was nearby, Rodrick grew some confidence and tried acting slightly defiant.

“I didn’t break any rules. It was outside of Ery-”

He suddenly stopped talking, his surprised eyes looking at the big front entrance of the training facility; There, he saw a calm Zeke come in and head straight toward the Zyth Professor.

Julia followed his gaze, equally surprised by her classmate’s unexpected visit. Zeke rarely, if not ever, attended practical lessons due to his inability to wield Aether. He would only come to ask Nayro about a couple of things, but even that was an infrequent occurrence.

Moreover, the current Zeke was relatively healthy and unscathed. 

Julia proceeded to ignore the startled Rodrick and made her way to Zeke, whose eyes were solemn and cold as they snuck a glance at Rodrick.

“You should be glad he’s okay.”

Azmer returned to his friend’s side and muttered those words while letting out a sigh of relief.

“How?”

Rodrick wasn’t particularly pleased to see Zeke appear, especially not looking like that. He was pretty sure the beating would have hospitalised him and rendered him incapable of attending Erys for a week, at least.

…

“Zeke, my boy!”

Upon noticing his incoming student, Nayro plastered a wide smile on his alien-like face. 

The several students gathered around the professor were confused, as Zeke was wont to distance himself and not interfere in their training lessons.

“Good morning, Professor.”

Zeke took a deep breath as he focused solely on the Zyth. 

“I’d like to challenge someone. Do you mind being the overseer?”

Every student in Erys could challenge another, but there were strict rules. First, the challenge must be approved by the challenger. Second, there needed to be a teacher to act as an overseer and ensure neither parties sustain ‘severe’ injuries.

“A challenge? My boy, are you sure?”

Nayro was an open-minded individual, and even though Zeke was a Defect, he did not seem to pay such a crucial detail any attention. Instead, he scrutinized him with what could only be described as keen interest, one which deepened after Zeke’s unexpected questions regarding Life Aether.

“Who are you going to challenge?”

“Rodrick Dontoryian.”

“Wait wait!” Julia intervened and tried to pull Zeke to the side but he shoved her hands away, his eyes still focused on Nayro.

“What are you even doing? This isn’t how you do it.”

Nayro ignored Julia and looked around, soon spotting Rodrick. He beckoned for him to approach, which he did, along with Azmer.

“Rodrick Dontoryian, you have been challenged by Zeke Orland. Do you accept?”

“Hah?!”

Rodrick thought Zeke was going to complain and snitch, so when he heard he had been challenged, he could only stand there, stupefied.

With his beady eyes, he looked at the expressionless Zeke, wondering what he was up to. However, in front of so many witnesses, Zeke had no room to use under-handed attacks. 

Put simply, fighting against a Defect was a guaranteed win, but a win like that did not matter. In fact, it would sully one’s honor as it meant battling against a weaker opponent, one that could not use Aether.

Such facts notwithstanding, Rodrick did not think about rejecting. This was a heaven-sent chance to beat and ridicule Zeke again. Admittedly, Professor Nayro would not let him go ‘all the way’, but Rodrick did not care. As long as he got to mock and humiliate Zeke, he was pleased.

“I accept.”

The moment he uttered those words, Azmer pulled him by the collar and dragged him a couple of paces away.

“This is highly suspicious, Rodrick. Why are you even accepting the challenge?”

“What do you mean? He’s the one who challenged me. I won’t be punished if I break a leg or two.”

“Does it seem sound to you that he’s back so early? Also, if he really stood no chance of winning, why would he challenge you in front of everyone? Think for a damn second!”

With an evil grin on his face, Rodrick shrugged and walked back to Nayro’s side. 

“Very well. Everyone, stand back.”

The students were perplexed and astonished by Zeke’s suicidal actions. Still, they followed the professor’s instructions and edged near the wall. 

Meanwhile, the Zyth activated the hidden mechanism inside the facility, which raised a half-spherical translucent barrier around the center of the ‘arena’.

“I will be the overseer and the judge.”

Then, he turned to look at Zeke, “My boy, even though you’re a Defect, I can give you no advantages. Victory will be determined if one is incapacitated or falls unconscious.”

“I understand. Thank you, Professor.”

After a single nod, Zeke walked to the readied arena and fixedly stared at the grinning Rodrick.

Professor Nayro stood at the edge of the ‘arena’ and signaled both of them to get ready. Rodrick seemed relaxed while taunting Zeke.

As the Zyth’s slimy long hand fell down, the battle began and neither of them moved an inch. Rodrick clicked his tongue while shaking his head, trying to control his laughter.

“Must you really do this? Beating a Defect is a bit too-”

Unfortunately, he wasn’t given the time to finish sentence. Zeke, who had been a distance away, instantly appeared in front of Rodrick’s face.

With subtly glowing fists, Zeke punched the target several times on the chest, making him stagger. The retaliation came sooner than expected as Rodrick activated his ability, resulting in a strong gust of wind to appear.

Nevertheless, the gale wasn’t enough to push away Zeke, who raised his left leg and delivered a swift kick, accurately hitting Rodrick’s head.

The attack was so strong that his opponent was smashed on the ground, his body convulsing and his eyes rolled to the back.

Rodrick showed no signs of movement, he was clearly unconscious. However, Zeke wasn’t going to stop, he quickly approached him and was about to use ‘Fists of Furry’ again but his body was instantly immobilized by thin purple tentacles that surged from the ground.

“The match is over. Zeke Orland is the winner.”

Nayro appeared between the two, his creepy black eyes were focused on Zeke as if assessing him.

He wasn’t the only one surprised, almost all the students were in shock. Azmer was the exception, his narrowed eyes were glued on Zeke. Even before the fight had begun, he knew Rodrick would lose, after all, it became clear that Zeke could use Aether when he saw him punch his friend last time. Moreover, his appearance today and his unexpected challenge did not bode well.

Rodrick wasn’t prepared and clearly did not take the fight seriously, which ultimately led to his shameful defeat. Still, it was a fair fight and he could only blame himself for doing this.

“A late awakening?” Muttered Julia to herself, her mouth half-open. Even she could not see how Zeke managed to cross that distance instantaneously, it almost seemed like teleportation.

“It has to be, right? How else would a Defect be able to move so fast?”

Her closest friend, the curly-haired Rebecca, was equally dumbfounded. Late awakening was an extremely uncommon occurrence, one that usually happened to people like Zeke, those who should have been able to manipulate Aether due to their genetics, but for some reasons couldn’t.

“Professor, I’d like to issue another challenge.” 

Zeke’s surprising declaration made Nayro tilt his head to the side then look at Azmer.

“No problem. Who’s the challengee.”

“Azmer Lorson.”

“I refuse the challenge.”

Azmer was quick to respond, unexpectedly rejecting Zeke on the spot. He did not look afraid, but that didn’t mean he wanted to take any risks. 

Zeke’s accomplishment, although minor, was bound to raise some questions and possibly erase his status as a Defect. 

Azmer was considerably stronger than Rodrick, and he wasn’t foolish enough to drop his guard, even against a Defect. However, the cons of accepting the challenge far outweigh the pros, therefore, declining was the safest and best option for now.

Already anticipating such an outcome, Zeke turned his eyes to Julia Lopmore. But, after much consideration, he decided against it. 

She was the strongest person in class E and, currently, he did not have the means to counter her ability.

With his objective completed, he turned around to leave only to be stopped by Nayro.

“Zeke, my boy! Won’t you be joining our lesson today? I’m sure everyone is interested in learning more about your ability.”

“No, thank you.”

…

“Ah! Sweety! Are you alright? Sorry we couldn’t come earlier!”

A voluptuous woman wearing heavy make-up was consoling her daughter, Amy. She was one of Amelia’s bullies, the girl was struck by Zeke’s ‘Voltage Zap’.

She had been resting in the Infirmary for a few days and was totally healed of all wounds, internal and external. However, Amy was in tears as she hugged her mother and constantly complained.

Amy’s overprotective mother reassured her daughter then, with a loud and rude voice, shouted at Xavier.

The doctor was minding his own business and smoking a cigarette next to the open window, but his time of peace was interrupted.

“What are you people even doing here? My daughter should have been brought to the hospital!”

The man threw his half-finished cigarette and went to sit behind his desk. 

“We need the parents’ approval for such measures. Furthermore, your daughter recovered relatively quickly.”

“What do you mean ‘recovered’?! She’s traumatized!”

“I’m sorry to say, but we only deal with physical injuries, not psychological ones.”

“What?!”

The woman’s fuming red face distorted as she saw the man’s nonchalance and uncaring attitude. 

“Who did this to her?! I want to see the culprit!”

“Do I have to repeat myself? I said we only deal with wounded people here. If you want to know more, go speak with her teacher.”

“...”

“I-it’s fine, mom. I’ll talk to Teacher Erayne.”

“No! I expected Erys to take care of its students! I’m going to talk to the principal.”

Hearing this, Xavier scoffed at her words and dismissively waved her hand at her.

“Good luck with that.”

…

After the brief fight against Rodrick, Zeke had no reason to linger in Erys or its campus. He directly headed home and went to sleep as he had been awake the whole night to prepare for the challenge.

Over the past four days, he focused on mastering ‘Voltage Zap’, raising his Stats, and unlocking a new path.

[User: Zeke Orland]

[Race: Human]

[Level 2 (17/30 EXP)]

[Strength: 43]

[Agility: 39]

[Aether: 23]

[Fortitude: 6]

[Paths: Martial Arts (1/12) inactive | Aether Voltage (16/22) active | Groundbreaker (1/32)]

[Skills: Fists of Fury(Proficiency 100%) - Aether Control(Proficiency 36%) - Voltage Zap(Proficiency 100%) - Spark (Proficiency 0%) - One-star Side-kick(Proficiency 56%) - Life Motus(Proficiency 15%) ]

[Available PE: 0]

The Groundbreaker Optimal-Path, once unlocked, rewarded him with a decent amount of stats as well as a new skill: ‘One-star Side-kick’.

Zeke was unable to change the trajectory of ‘Fists of Furry’, so he could only aim at the chest. However, ‘One-star Side-kick’ was flexible and more potent, enough to immediately knock Rodrick unconscious.

There was also ‘Life Motus’, which allowed him to instantly but unidirectionally move towards a specific spot. He needed to be facing his destination, nevertheless, it was an incredibly useful skill, one which he had to use to catch Rodrick off-guard. 

He could have charged at his opponent, but there was a big chance he might have been swept by Rodrick’s unique ability ‘Wind Gust’.

Apart from those two newly-acquired skills, Zeke poured all obtained PE into the Aether Voltage Path, which he hoped would become his bread and butter.

While Groundbreaker was certainly enticing to invest in, that could be done once Aether Voltage was mastered. As it turned out, the more he invested in a path, the more skills he would get from it, which was how Life Motus was acquired.

‘I did it. Now, I have to prepare even more.’

Once awake, early at night, Zeke was feeling satisfied and ecstatic. He couldn’t fully pay back Rodrick for what he had done, but the sensation of triumph was exhilarating.

Finally, he had fought back against his bullies and did not content with getting mocked and beaten.

Still, this was but the beginning as many more battles were far away. By the time he came back to Erys, he suspected that everyone would have heard about his fight, and that would garner him a lot of attention from other first year classes.

…

Saturday and Sunday passed in the blink of an eye, and all Zeke did was complete his task and focus on mastering Aether Control, One-star Side-kick, and Life Motus.

Aether Control, specifically, was a tiresome skill to train in. Opposite to ‘Voltage Zap’, which drained his Life Aether, this made him absorb more than his body could handle, consequently leading to nosebleeds and extreme dizziness. However, it didn’t come without perks, as the more enhanced it, the more the System would reward him with either EP or stats.

Monday morning, It has been a week since Zeke properly attended Erys. As he made his way to class, he noticed that some of the students were sneaking glances at him.

He wasn’t smug or arrogant, he kept a straight face and paid none of them any heed.

Unlike the past, Azmer and Rodrick did not block his path and drag him to a secluded spot for a regular beating. That, in itself, made all the training he went through worth it.

“Zeke!”

Amelia ran from behind, looking cheerful and energetic. 

“Oh, good morning.”

“Good morning? Is that all you got to say after beating up Rodrick?!”

She was grinning from one ear to the other, clearly aware of the fight. It has been but a couple of days yet she knew about it, which was surprising since she was a Defect and wasn’t supposed to be attending any of the practical lessons last Saturday.

Noticing his silence, she giggled and added,

“I knew you’d rise up sooner or later. Now that a Defect is fighting back, the bullies will think twice before attacking any of us.”

“You still have to be careful, though.”

“Hehehe… I know! Speaking of which, Amy and Emma from my class stopped their abuse. Probably afraid to be found out.”

“Good for you.”

“I have you to thank for that!”

The two chatted for a bit until they reached their respective classrooms. Amelia seemed joyful to be getting the gazes of intrigue from her fellow classmates. She was Zeke’s friend and that made her feel less likely to get picked on.

As his classmates were taking their seats and waiting for Teacher Christopher Balrant to arrive, Zeke took out his books and reviewed his homework. However, he was soon interrupted by Julia.

“Well well well… if it isn’t the hero of the hour.”

Slowly, he raised his head and solemnly stared at her. “What do you want, Julia?”

“So you’re a late awakener, huh. Still, I like how Rodrick got his ass handed to him.”

“...”

“Why are you always so gloomy? I’m trying to converse. You look more pleasing to the eye now that you’ve grown a pair of balls.”

“Such vulgarity is unbefitting from a girl. Then again, I didn’t expect much from you to begin with.”

The girl pushed her long beige hair to the side and, while sitting on his table, leaned closer.

“If you ask nicely, maybe I can help you master your ability. I’m not the strongest in the class for now reason, you know…”

“No, thank you.”

She softly chuckled and pushed her head back, glancing at the quiet Azmer sitting at the back.

“I won’t trouble you with my homework, since it turned out you’re so against it. In exchange, I wouldn’t mind a fight. As a fellow close-quarter fighter, your ability was most intriguing.”

He scoffed at her words and started writing in his notebook.

“If I were you, I’d worry about today’s essay.”

“Ah… shit! I forgot about that!”

Panicking, she jumped to her seat and frantically took out her notebook. Alas, it was too late as the teacher came in, and with his arrival did the classroom turn deadly quiet.

He swept his gaze across them before focusing on Zeke, but he did not comment and, instead, began his lesson.

Zeke did not slack off in terms of theoretical studies, but since he was already the top of his class and had a solid foundation, he had no trouble comprehending anything.

Once the lesson was done and everyone was preparing to leave for a short break, Christopher called for Zeke, as expected.

“Zeke, you are to meet me at the front of the Administrative Bureau this evening.”

“Yes, sir.”

Students that enrol into Erys have to undergo a testing of somesort. Of course, since Zeke was a Defect, he did not have to go through the testing, but now that his abilities became public, he was obligated to follow the protocol.

The test was meant to gauge a student’s abilities and give them an appropriate ranking.

Whether it was the first years, second years, third years, or even the few fourth-years, each had an individual ranking system across all the classes.