It didn't take long for the combatants to appear on the field. This time around, there were no biomes to populate the field, effectively cutting the size of the arena down to a fifth of its previous size. Then it was raised up into the air, and the big screen displays were pulled back. It was Seymour and Azule, facing each other on a pedestal for the entire colosseum to see. Once the field reached the pinnacle of its ascent, the audience hushed. The whole experience felt ritualistic; a whole different energy from the 4v4s and 2v2s.
Then the countdown began. Ellie was crying on Reyna's shoulder. Gabe, for the first time in forever, had his focus completely locked on Seymour rather than Vance, and Abby, though clinging tighter to Lev's arm, had her eyes locked to the field, and her teeth clenched in anticipation. SPHR all seemed to hold their breath as the timer ticked down, Reyna gnawed on her lip, trying to chew away the nerves, and Lev, most focused of them all, watched Azule with eyes like a hawk. He had to learn plenty of harsh lessons about himself after his first loss against the Azure Emperor, so to make up for it, he'd see everything Azule was capable of, memorize it, and return the favor someday.
Fighters, to your marks!
Then came the countdown, then the buzzer, and then the battle had begun. Azule began with a show of force: A flash freeze that even the barrier between him and the crowd had trouble keeping at bay. The whole colosseum felt a slight chill as the dust settled, revealing the stage frozen over in glossy ice. Gasps resonated from the crowd in premature shock, assuming it was all over for the gazelle boy...
And yet, standing firm in a pile of slush stood Seymour, eyes closed and palms pressed together, just as he often stood by Sylvia as they sparred. The crowd renewed their gasps in impressed surprise, but Azule beat them to the reaction. The moment Seymour appeared unharmed, the scythe-bearer lifted his hand and narrowed his eyes. It was as if the entire field was under Azule's control as spikes of ice rose up from the ground, baring themselves at the faunus. Bo staff in hand, Seymour braced himself for a sprint. It seemed like everything before then had been a formality, as the next moments sent the fight into spirals.
From their standstill, both opponents made an immediate dash for an advantageous position. Azule raised his scythe against Seymour while covering blind spots with ice, while Seymour danced around blows with the grace and poise his animal counterpart offered him. Of course, that could only be determined by those with a discerning eye, as the two fought in a blur. Seymour proved to be faster than anyone would have thought as he worked around the icy prince's attacks, barely scraping by the black blade of the vicious scythe he wielded. Then something...different, happened. Azule very definitively threw his weapon away, tossing it off the field all while looking as calculated as ever. It looked like Seymour was taking advantage of a horribly misplaced swing, but when Azule took hold of his bo to counter, it was clear who had the advantage.
At that point on the screen, a major deficit was apparent. Seymour was down to 50% while Azule rested at a comfortable 75%. The rapid freezing of Seymour's staff seemed to put an end to any hope he had, but after feeling the chill against his hand, the faunus relinquished his weapon before he could lose any more aura, and, in a bold move, pressed forward with confidence. Every step caused Seymour's percent to drop though, and to the crowd, it seemed unwarranted, but both competitors could clearly see the field of icy needles under their feet. Azule had been prepared. Seymour was not. Each movement of the faunus's foot saw shards of ice pressing deep into his skin, his fingers looked like they were freezing over, his hair was stiff as he moved, and all the while, Azule picked up the pace.
It was with Seymour at 20% and Azule at 60% that the battle shifted. Azule had kept his assault at varying distances to keep counter chances at a minimum, but in a split second, Seymour broke from his defensive habits and took a close range blow straight to the chest. Then he took Azule's wrist before the blue haired boy could back away, drove him into the ground by his collar, and dug one finger into his neck, and the other into his ribcage. Two seconds later, the buzzer sounded.
Azule Storm: 0%
Seymour Shen: 0%
DRAW
Seymour picked himself up from Azule's form, taking slow, deep breaths. A deep sage-green sheen passed over the faunus, indicating that his aura had indeed run completely dry. The same occurred with Azule, a brief flash of blue shimmering briefly over his body before leaving him unconscious. Medical teams rushed out much faster than any time before, taking both competitors off the field in a rush of commotion. Murmurs were making their way through the crowd, unease filling the space that the match's silence had left. Will they be okay? Did Azule die? 0%? What did that kid do? Cheater? Illegal? Assassin? Murderer?
SAGE didn't know how to take it all. Ellie was biting back her tears, hiccuping as quiet as she could. Gabe was squeezing Vance's hand as tight as possible, though by the look on his face, it didn't seem like he knew it. Abby had Lev in a similar position, but like Ellie, she had tears streaming down her face. Whether they were angry tears or upset tears, nobody could tell. Reyna had her hands folded, unsure of what she should be doing to help. She felt a strange sense of uselessness that ate at her gut as they waited to hear some kind of news. And Lev...Lev had seen it all. Azule had played the long game after his initial burst fell through. Seymour didn't drop at an instant, which meant that getting up close would mean dealing with a lot of mobility and power. Instead, he forced the gazelle boy to move into his own injuries while keeping the distance between them with his scythe...
But Seymour had been getting close since long before the last moments of the fight. Not once did Azule land a real blow against him. Meanwhile, his staff had been chipping away at the icy defenses, creating a chink in the Azure Emperor's efficient defense. Azule saw it, and changed the playing field as fast as possible. From then on, Seymour had simply been biding his time. In short, Azule had played everything perfectly...but Seymour knew the game before Azule could play it. Lev swallowed hard as the reality hit him that Seymour might not be as harmless and cute as he made himself seem. Not in the slightest...
Before the crowd could erupt in further panic, an intercom quickly sounded off with the slow, familiar drawl of Dr. Monarch:
"Remain calm, ladies and gentlemen...Both combatants are healthy and unharmed. Because he was the last hunter standing, Seymour Shen has been chosen to proceed to his next match after a full recovery. Matches will proceed as planned."
And with that, everyone seemed to slump a few inches down into their seats, letting out one large, simultaneous sigh of relief. SAGE still looked a bit worried, but otherwise, everything relaxed. After a few minutes' break, matches continued on. Gabe eventually got antsy enough to check on his leader, returning with the news that he would be remaining in the health bay until Azule woke up and they were both determined fit to leave.
