⸻
📍 Sky Stadium – Combat Ring 3, Ground-Level
⸻
I sat on the bench, my light nano-armor half-unzipped, faint steam rising off my shoulders. Sparks still flicked off my fingertips—leftovers from lingering thunder qi. A Federation drone hovered by and dropped a recovery pack at my feet.
Maxius flopped down beside me like a dying diva, his feathers scorched, one wing dragging like he was auditioning for a tragedy holo-drama.
Maxius (groaning): "Ha! Master, please—I'll do extra whistle drills! I'm ready!"
Fan Yumei (deadpan): "You. Don't get cocky."
Maxius (scoffing): "You always say that. Again. Starting to think it's your favorite line."
Lufei (dry): "She's right. You're just mad she told you not to chase that lady bird."
Maxius (indignant): "IT'S LOVE!"
Fan Yumei: "It's a bat."
Maxius (shouting): "IT'S CALLED LOVE HAS NO FACE!"
Fan Yumei (sighing): "I'm not a love doctor, but that bat was definitely a raging vampire. It tried to suck your blood."
Lufei: "Yup. Destiny's giving him nothing but bad birdances in his future."
Mystic (soft chuckle): "Can I have your perch when you become burnt chicken?"
Maxius (sputtering): "Me!? Burnt chicken?! I'll fight you, flying fish!"
Mystic (yawning without looking at him): "All I have to do is sit on you. Game over."
He flared his wings dramatically—sparkles dancing over his phantom feathers like he'd dipped them in pure ego.
Maxius: "You—I'm your older brother! Do you know how hard it is being this majestic and underappreciated?"
Lufei (deadpan): "I do. I watch you struggle with it every day."
Maxius: "Rude. I'm an aerial phenomenon. The air parts for me."
Mystic: "I'd part too, if I saw those over-fluffed vanity wings charging at me."
Maxius (angry shriek): "You—you flying storm fish disaster!!"
Mystic's cloud form pulsed. Thunder rumbled low in her belly as her body started to condense, white silk-like skin beginning to form.
Mystic (low, challenging): "Oh? Is that a challenge, brother?"
Maxius opened his beak to retaliate—
—but I raised my hand.
Instant silence.
Maxius froze mid-fluff. Lufei just tilted her head. Mystic shrank back down into a cozy fog-ball and nestled into Lufei's side, completely unbothered.
Fan Yumei (quiet but firm): "No fighting. Not even with each other. We don't waste our strength like that."
The kind of voice that ended conversations without needing to yell.
Maxius (muttering): "If I get hit by another drake beast and no one compliments my deflection spiral, I'm writing a letter."
Lufei: "To who?"
Maxius (thinking): "Myself. Or Grandma Ka Sanni. Someone who understands elegance."
I allowed a faint smile.
Their chaos was predictable, in its own way. A weird kind of peace.
⸻
I pulled out my analog notebook—battered, old-school, ink-stained. My visor played match footage in the corner of my vision as I started jotting:
—
• Highlight reels
• Timing errors
• Bond resonance lags
• Adjustments for team sync
⸻
📓 To-Do List:
—
• See Master Sun
• Finalize camping supplies
• Schedule beast upgrade sessions
• Triple training load—no exceptions
• Push Maxius and Lufei into refinement
• Solve Mystic's scaling anomaly
• Prep for Secret Realm entry
• Finalize dome-house expansion design
⸻
My pen tapped against my knee.
The Secret Realm was days away.
Treasure. Inheritance. Death. That's what they meant here.
And Mystic? She was already pushing qi thresholds most adult beastmasters couldn't handle. If we didn't stabilize her core soon, it might turn dangerous—for both of us.
I leaned back as Mystic snored, cloud-form rippling gently. She curled tighter atop Lufei like a storm-toddler in nap mode.
Fan Yumei (whispering): "…We don't have time. But we'll make it."
Maxius: "Is that code for more cold-start drills?"
Lufei: "She means yes."
Mystic (sleep-mumble): "No more stairs…"
I smiled faintly. Then stood.
Fan Yumei: "It's time. Mystic. Lufei. You're up."
⸻
The hallway out of the med-wing still reeked of burn gel and antiseptic.
I re-sealed my armor, exhaled slow. The right side of my ribs ached—nova blast bruising—but I walked steady. No limp. No flinch. No looking back.
Outside, the crowd's roar built like incoming thunder. My visor dimmed as the stadium glare hit, and I stepped into the light, jaw set, eyes scanning the field.
🎙️ "MATCH RESUMED — ROUND TWO: Command-Only Format. Federation Division Protocol active."
I raised a single hand.
And gave the signal.
⸻
Round Two – Command-Only
Mystic moved first.
No fanfare. Just a drift forward—storm-wrapped light pulsing faintly around her baby leviathan frame. Her fins flared wide. Calm. Too calm.
Lufei stepped out of my shadow. Light-footed. Precision incarnate. Her antler rings pulsed once—briefly syncing to my qi.
Across the field, Kelan Shu's stormscale drake lowered its massive head, frost forming along its back as it growled.
This wasn't just Round Two.
It was a rematch.
⸻
I sent a low three-tone whistle—inaudible to most.
Lufei zigzagged wide, moving fast.
Mystic dropped low, sent a microburst ripple across the arena—dust kicked up, warping the light.
The drake struck at Lufei first.
Frost coiled around its mouth as it lunged.
Click. One sharp click from my tongue.
Lufei twisted, dropped a Glimmerburst Decoy—flash burst right in the drake's face. Partial blind. Retreated by instinct.
Mystic surged forward, using the afterflash as cover.
She didn't attack yet.
Just hovered.
Waiting.
I drew a rune-sequence on my forearm—slow, circular.
The drake recovered, swung wide, scattering frost qi.
Mystic phased into her cloud form—frost passed through harmlessly.
I double-whistled, snapped fingers.
Lufei disappeared into Quiet-Step Matrix—movement muted.
Mystic activated Sky Cloud Domain – Microburst Sync—storm pressure narrowed the drake's sensory window.
The beast roared.
Then launched a Spinal Frost Breaker at Mystic—direct shot.
I lifted one finger.
Mystic inhaled—
—and released Call of the Whale.
The sound hit like a deepwater gong—compressing air, stunning orientation systems.
The drake staggered.
Six-note rising whistle.
Lufei charged with Antler Spiral Fang—low and fast, straight into the drake's left foreleg joint. Clean hit.
Mystic followed with Thunder God Strike—forehead crest lighting up like a divine beacon.
CRACK.
The lightning bolt slammed into the drake's exposed flank, searing through scale and energy barriers.
The drake collapsed, groaning under its own weight.
⸻
📱 Live Commentary Feed:
———
"Lufei did a flank reversal like it was scripted."
—
"That whale's a juvenile?! That's terrifying."
—
"Delayed timing commands. Elite syncing confirmed."
—
"She's not even using her full beast team."
—
"That call stunned the drake's core rhythm."
—
"This isn't instinct. It's command mastery."
—
Commander Qian Shiyan (Official Feed):
"Technique confirmed: Whale Call. Execution Tier: Elite."
⸻
I gave the final three-chirp signal.
Lufei backed off, raised her barrier.
Mystic climbed high—
—and let go.
Storm of the Fallen.
A spiraling cyclone of wind, mist, and electricity collapsed down like a judgment.
The drake thrashed in confusion, blinded by storm pressure.
Kelan Shu flinched.
His first mistake.
I didn't smile.
I gave the final command.
Fan Yumei: "Strike to end."
Mystic dropped like a ghost. Headbutt compression, lightning arc, thunder ripple.
Lufei timed it—rear antler sweep, plus a blinding flash decoy.
The drake didn't even see it coming.
Impact.
Collapse.
⸻
🎙️ "BEAST DOWN — ROUND TWO TERMINATED. VICTORY: FAN YUMEI."
⸻
📊 MATCH SCORE – ROUND TWO: FAN YUMEI vs. KELAN SHU
———
• Combat Synergy: 10/10
• Command Execution: 5/5
• Tactical Adaptation: 15/15
• Qi Bond Resonance: 10/10
► Total: 40/40
———
Kelan Shu:
• Combat Synergy: 9/10
• Command Execution: 5/5
• Tactical Adaptation: 12/15
• Qi Bond Resonance: 9/10
► Total: 35/40
—————
🎙️ "Winner by command-only round: Fan Yumei — Division Six."
—————