Chapter 319 - 319. Only Silence

There was a golden moment where Asher felt as if time had stopped. The voice had not said it was the start and all he and Laura could do was stare at each other. Neither of them thought they would face the other in the end. One moment there had been a room full of other students and now there was just them. Neither had realized just how much they had been stuck in their own heads to miss so many students leaving. 

Yet, this was not what either was truly thinking about. Asher was preparing himself to deal with Lauras' insane speed. Laura was preparing herself to deal with Asher's strange methods of countering and throwing. However, there was way more about Asher that Laura was worried about than things Asher was worried about when it came to Laura. 

"Final match, Begin!" The robotic voice announced the start. However, at the first letter, they had already started to battle it out. 

It was an instant before Laura got to Asher.. He had no way to block her first hit. It was straight forward and easy to read but Asher was not ready. It was a nearly fatal mistake if Asher had not been in his stance and was currently spinning from his shoulder to a kick. The speed that Laura had used had been completely transferred and Asher could barely control the strength his foot flying toward Laura. 

When the kick made contact Laura had managed to move back just enough so only her shoulder was hit. This caused her to fly backward and lose the breath in her lunches while Asher fell back the same after his spin. 

Both were disoriented and struggled back up. "Just had to go right for the face? I'm lucky you hit my shoulder instead." Asher was glad he had dodged enough. If he had not then he would have been down no matter what. 

"Oh, right. And your kick back to my shoulder was all the same in the grand scheme." Laura had a hand held to her shoulder and knew it was a hard hit. But she could see that Asher was holding his too. "I guess it's time to show off a little," Laura smirked as she stepped forward. 

This was the instant that Asher swore he could see five Lauras' around him. She was moving so quickly that she was leaving after images. It was the fastest that she had ever pushed herself and he knew that the result would be a complete and utter collapse afterwards. She had saved this trump card for the final match. 

Watching this Asher knew the true feeling of confusion. He had never been able to fully keep up with Laura's speed. But now, there was not even a hope. The more he tried to turn his head or move his eyes the less he was able to see and the more he felt dizzy. 

"Damn! You're fast!" Asher yelled and stomped a foot in annoyance. He forced his eyes shut to get rid of his unsteady mind and found that the steps he heard were in a rhythm around him. It was like a musical beat. It didn't stop. 

The only time ti would falter was when Laura would hesitate to create the after image effect. However, when it stopped slightly longer behind him, Asher could feel the hit coming. 

Feeling the hit coming at the back of his head, Asher threw himself to the ground. The surprised screech from Laura as she flew over his head and on to her face. Asher's eyes burst open and he crouched like a tiger. His leap was full of sheer will and determination. His hands grasped at Lauras' wrists and pulled them behind her back completely arresting her. 

"The final victor is is Asher! Please allow for the medical staff t examine first place and second place. The evaluation grade will be left in a written report and a video analysis for the top thirty students. The remainder will be given other evaluations. Please leave the gym now." 

That was it. Laura pushed herself up and showed off the nice bruise she had from falling face first. 'You just needed to duck. How did you eve know?" Laura had no idea how Asher had pulled it off. 

"I noticed that it was like a super fast techno beat when you ran. Every time you stopped it was like a beat. When I heard it stop longer from behind I just dropped." Asher wasn't sure if this was luck or skill. It was a grey area between the two. 

"I didn't even think of that. I was always practicing that trump card while listening to music. Cara would have crushed me too that way. Ugh, I'm freaking hungry." Laura had used a ton of her energy and one of the nurses that came over gave her a protein shake immediately. The staff had been briefed on the needs of every student participating and they were at the ready with anything for any possible issue. 

"Honestly, I can't believe I noticed it. I was just lucky. Well...I don't know." Asher walked out when Laura had gained the assistance from the nurses. He wasn't just going to walk out alone. The group would come back together at the same time. 

The exit to the gym led them in to a large room, "Congratulations!" The room was filled with thirty other students, multiple television monitors, and other staff members assisting the students still in need of healing. 

"What's all this? I thought we would just be sent home or something?" Asher wasn't sure what was going on at all. 

"They won't tell us. But looking at Laura and watching your fight, you totally won. That was so smart ducking at the last minute!" Jane was the first to get to Asher. The others of their group came up. There was a slightly red faced Jackson and Sammy who were trying their best not to look at each other. Louis, who was leaning on a chair from his own elemental exhaustion. Art was standing behind Jane sporting some nice bruises just like Jane. 

"You are the top thirty of the class when it comes tp those whpo wish to pursue heroic jobs or law enforcment. This is a respectove right of the top thirty. If you all wish to proceed then please remain here. If you wish to leave then you may exist. This is the only chance. If you stay you will be switched to different classes. The top students will receive mentors or special training." It was none other than Garnet who stood in fron t of the room with coach Winters and the principal. 

"I don't see anyone leaving. Good. I would expect my students to have a strong drive. Firstly, this is to be kept secret. Learning this would defeat the purpose of our tests and grades. Now that you have passed the evaluations you have been determined to be ideal candidates for the heroic courses. Your curriculum will change after you are presented the option and you may even skip grades to match the skills and talents you have. Congratulations. Each of you has received a unique scholarship." The principal clapped his hands together. 

Coach Winters stepped forward, "Asher, Laura, Jane, Art, Jackson, Louis, and Sammy. You seven are the top seven students. Normally only five would gain additional benefits but since you are all part of the same group along with Cara who gained these benefits we made an exception. This is also due to the performance in the Ricktor tournament. It won the school additional funding just for you seven, well, eight including Cara. Please leave through this side door and await your own meeting." 

The group followed their instructions in awe. They had no idea Cara had been holding this a secret. "I guess we know why Cara always pushed us so hard at times. She once woke me up when my alarm didn't go off and dragged me downstairs saying that I could never miss a day of workout." Art had shrugged this off but it made much more sense now. 

The group could hear a slight commotion behind them about how it wasn't fair that they received additional resources but Garnets' harsh voice stopped them instantly. The principal began to explain the details just as the door closed and the group found themselves in a comfy waiting room with a single monitor and multiple handbooks. 

"Looks like we will be having a class now. I guess things are going to get a little more complicated." Art hung his head. He had already forced his way forward in math and now he would need to learn more. 

Coch Winters burst in tp the room and looked at all of them. "Now that you all have your handbooks it's time for you to know why we have this meeting. In the simplest terms, we are fighting a war. There are three villains that have currently been growing an army. But so have the heroes. We estimate that there is only a short while before they act. Due to this and your achievements. Every single one of you is now a junior, will lose summer vacation for additional school, and will move to senior year with the rest of the junior class. That leaves you with two mores quarters to learn what you need as a junior." There was only silence in the room.