CHAPTER 5: Pinned Down

A drone buzzed around the central tower, filming the final battle for all to see. Spectators cheered in excitement at the giant screen, while the pro Symbiolics upstairs watched the last four displays. Kurt leaned on the table with one arm, adjusting his prosthetic leg with the other. "Would it have killed the stadium staff to put some chairs in here? My bad leg's killing me." The blonde haired Bron chuckled and said, "Game's almost over, old man. You'll be fine." "I'm thirty-five, not old." After twisting the false shin back in place, blue lights on the metal turned on.

Kurt stepped over and watched Komo's screen with Percy. "You know, that ninja kid's made it farther than I thought he would, but I guess that's because this girl's keeping him safe." For a moment, Percy allowed his eyes to glance at the neighboring screen. The boy that he met before the tournament held his shurikan with a look of determination on his face. "He kind of reminds me of you," said Bron, nudging Percy's shoulder, "You've always had us protecting you." The leader of the trio laughed and shoved his friend back. "Right..." Percy smiled as he remembered their meeting at the gate."Good Luck, kid." I guess I did say that.

ZAP! Lightning strikes past Gren as he leaps up the tower. His shuriken draws in water around it, ready to fight back. "Shuriken W-" A perfectly timed arrow knocks it out of his hand, leaving him open for another shot from Victor. The crystal gauntlet fires another lightning bolt at the boy. "AAHH!!" The electricity stuns his body, causing him to fall from the high tower. Just before landing, Komo dives under and catches him. "Come on! I need you to bring them down to me! OW!!" An arrow hits her back and bounces off. The red outline flashes around her, then turns yellow. Gren shares the same color and recovers from his temporary paralysis.

"They've got us pinned! I can't climb up to them." "Tell me something I don't know," shouts Komo, blocking another arrow, "My shield's not big enough to keep this up! So think of something!" Her shield...THAT'S IT!! "Cover me!" Gren runs towards the dead tree, and Komo's weapon begins to glow dark blue. "Dragon Scale!" From the center of the shield, a translucent dragon appears and spreads it large wings over the duo.

As Victor and Ellia continue to rain down heavy fire, the dragon begins to crack. Temporarily safe, Gren ties his scarf around the dead tree and pulls tightly on the other end. "Komo, give me your shield!" "What!?" "Slingshot!" A final arrow breaks the translucent dragon apart, and Komo places her shield in the middle of the scarf. Victor covers his face from the shattering dragon, then looks with wide eyes at his opponents. Komo pulls back on the shield, then quickly lets go. The stretching scarf snaps back like a rubber band, launching the projectile at incredible speed.

GONG! Direct hit against Victor's chest, sending him plummeting to the red stone below. The impact startles Ellia, who floats in place for a moment. "Now me!" shouts Gren after untying the scarf. Komo cups her hands for her partner to step on and throws him into the air. His fingers just barely miss the fairy, but not his scarf. With her legs wrapped together and the added weight from Gren, Ellia struggles to maintain flight. She spins into the tower, smacking the boy against it, then does the same to a boulder. With her last arrow, Ellia swipes across the scarf, causing Gren to fall. However, she had floated too far down.

Komo jumps as high as she can and smacks the fairy with her shield. Ellia tumbles to the ground, but recovers and fires her last arrow from a kneeling position. Once again Komo is hit, this time in the stomach. The annoyed Victor rejoins Ellia, and Gren rubs his head as Komo picks him up by the shirt and forces him to stand. Now all fighters share a red outline and heavy breathing. Gren makes the first move, leaping onto the nearby boulder. "Don't do anything reckless!" The pixie warns her partner, but Victor wasn't listening.

The sniper furiously grunts and fires his guantlet's crystal beam. "SPECTRUM BLAST!!" Komo slides on the dirt and blocks it with her shield. The rainbow light bounces back towards Victor, but he does the unthinkable. Quickly grabbing Ellia's wrist, he moves her in front, causing her to take the blast. "AAHH!!" He then tosses her blinking body at Gren, forcing him to trip over her. Komo growls and tackles forward, but Victor dives out of the way. Now on the stone floor, he primes his gauntlet and takes aim at the shieldmaiden. "You lost when you chose to defend that loser!"

Gren's shurikan becomes enveloped in rushing water as he rises from the dusty ground. A clear chance for him to sprint and strike Victor down presents itself, however, doing so wouldn't stop the lightning bolt from taking out Komo. The boy's eyes shift back and forth between his partner and his enemy. Could he just give up on her like Victor did to Ellia? A bright light flashes from the twin points of the gauntlet, followed by a zigzag bolt of lightning. The shot travels just over the ground, leaving a wake of dust behind it until it's inches from the shield maiden's face.

Komo's eyes displayed fear for the first time, until Gren suddenly jumped in front of them. The lightning struck his crossed arms in front of his chest. His eyes tightly shut from the shock. Gren's body collapsed and slid across the rocky surface, and the red outline around him blinked once. Twice. Thrice. The haunting buzzer noise from his watch sounded lower in pitch, like the electricity had affected it somehow. Gren had lost.

A few seconds passed before Komo and Victor realized what had happened, and the smirking teen couldn't contain his excitement. "HA!! What a joke! Did you really just give up your chance to-" Victor's mouth was fed the blunt part of Komo's shield. A trail of spit followed him to the ground, where his outline blinked three times. The giant screens in the arena declared Komo as the winner, and the crowd uproared from the thrilling climax.

In the upper room, the pros watched Komo's screen, stunned by the outcome. "Ouch!" said Bron, "That dude's gonna need some new teeth after that hit!"  Unphased, Kurt limped away. "He'll be fine. It's time to make our picks...and find a chair." The two began to leave the room, but Percy remained. Wow, kid. After everything you told me about becoming the best Symbiolic in the world, you just...gave it up... The last, active screen in the room showed Komo looking down. She had won the tournament, guaranteeing her an apprenticeship, but felt nothing from it.