The stadium vibrated like a living organism. Overhead, drones hovered, whirring as they captured every angle.
The roar of the distant crowd was muted, a distant backdrop to the players' anticipation.
Each footstep on the grass, each whispered calculation, seemed amplified beneath the bright floodlights.
Clusters of players shifted and reformed. Some laughed, joking to ease tension.
Others argued over positions, their voices tinged with competitiveness.
A few silently observed, eyes scanning the field, measuring strength and weakness in split-second calculations.
Deals were struck, unspoken hierarchies established, and a handful of players were unceremoniously brushed aside—ignored, forgotten.
Sparks flared occasionally—tiny bolts of light from fingertips, a brief gust of wind, a minor tremor—but no one dared escalate too early.
This was a game of survival as much as skill.
Opposition Highlights .
The drones swept across the arena, briefly highlighting the opposition:
Seth, lithe and restless, darted between players with uncanny speed.
Draven, a wall of raw muscle, bulldozed obstacles without hesitation.
Liora's illusions flickered across the field, creating multiple copies of her teammates that sometimes confused friend and foe alike.
Eira controlled the air itself, making the ball swerve unpredictably.
Rinvar, immovable and stoic, became a near-perfect defensive anchor.
And then came the tremor—the first official cue of chaos.
Chaos Begins
The ground shivered beneath their feet.
Grass panels shifted, ramps and pits emerged, and the goals warped into grotesque, exaggerated shapes.
The first sparks of superpower energy flared immediately:
Seth zigzagged through opponents, snatching the ball with impossible precision.
Draven rammed into the field's shifting terrain, sending two Tricksters tumbling.
Liora's illusions created multiple teammate doubles, momentarily confusing even the most focused players
Eira's wind gusts made shots curve in impossible arcs. Rinvar remained the lone sentinel, deflecting strikes with uncanny timing.
The first collision erupted like a storm. Graviel's aura—a concentrated push of force—knocked several players off balance.
Ayjin rolled with it, letting out a laugh that was part exhilaration, part madness.
"Okay… that's unfair. But fun."
Minor mishaps piled up almost instantly.
Kai intercepted a ball with a subtle flick of Qi-assisted speed, unnoticed by most.
Mira healed a shallow cut on Eira mid-run, her movements swift and precise.
Liora's illusions accidentally misdirected her own teammate, leaving them sprawled on the ground. Ayjin, ever the thrill-seeker, fell flat on his face, muttering curses under his breath.
Across the field, weaker teams struggled. One particularly hapless player, Alden, fought to keep pace.
The ball slipped past him repeatedly, each failure marked by quiet exhaustion.
His frustration was muted but tangible, eyes fixed on the ball as if it held some personal vendetta against him.
First Goals & Escalation.
The first goals were chaotic, almost accidental.
Blink teleported behind Rinvar and—miscalculating—accidentally scored for the opposing side
Draven's strike tore through a patch of turf, sending chunks of grass flying.Nox's illusions forced Graviel to nearly tackle a teammate, leaving a moment of confusion.
Seth, weaving through the chaos, was finally tagged mid-run by Ayjin.
No team maintained control.
Alliances formed and dissolved in seconds, dictated by survival and opportunistic plays rather than strategy.
Chaos reigned, unpredictable and thrilling.
Amid the madness, Ashen remained eerily calm.
Every movement, every pattern, every flicker of energy was cataloged in his mind.
He positioned himself carefully, avoiding unnecessary attention, observing who posed real threats.
For him, this was no mere game—it was data, patterns, and human behavior distilled into actionable insight.
Round End & Foreshadowing .
Finally, the drones—acting as referees—announced the end of the first round.
Ashen's team had survived intact, minor injuries and fatigue scattered among them.
Alden, on the sidelines, stared at the ball with quiet intensity, already plotting his next breakthrough.
The seeds of something larger had been planted.
The masked overseer's voice boomed, resonant and authoritarian:
"First stage over. Chaos isn't done. The next stage will challenge everything you think you know. Prepare yourselves."
Ashen murmured, almost to himself:
"One step at a time. Let's see how this chaos unfolds."
Beside him, Ayjin dusted off his pants and laughed, unbothered by fatigue or minor bruises.
"And here I thought I was bad at games. This is… a whole new level of stupid—and fun."