Noel slipped through the door without another word, leaving me alone in the prep room. I stood there for a moment, the taste of vanilla and frost lingering on my tongue, along with that sharp undercurrent that made her Essentia uniquely hers.

My body hummed with borrowed energy. Between Mera’s cinnamon-smoke yesterday, Cheon’s honey-lightning this morning, and now Noel’s vanilla-frost, I was carrying a cocktail of power that made my skin feel too small for my bones.

Not a bad feeling to have before finals.

I straightened my uniform and ran a hand through my hair. The mirror on the wall showed me looking exactly like what I was: a guy who’d just been making out with a girl who supposedly hated him. Swollen lips. Flushed skin. The ghost of Noel’s handprint still visible on my jaw.

Solana would definitely notice. That woman missed nothing.

The door opened, and Usagi peeked in cautiously, like she expected to find corpses.

"Is everything okay? Noel came out looking... weird."

"Weird how?"

"Like she wanted to murder someone but also maybe cry?" Usagi tilted her head. "Did you guys fight again?"

I shrugged. "Something like that."

"Rome!" Her eyes widened. "Is that a handprint on your face?"

"Probably."

"She hit you?"

"I deserved it." I grabbed my equipment bag. "You ready for this?"

Usagi nodded, her cotton-candy hair bouncing. "I’ve been practicing the gum shot trajectory you showed me. Ninety percent accuracy at thirty meters now."

"Good girl."

Her cheeks flushed pink. Something about Usagi always made me feel protective. Maybe because she reminded me of a bunny surrounded by wolves. Cute, harmless, totally outmatched—but she kept showing up anyway, which took more guts than most people realized.

"You think we can win?" she asked.

"I know we can."

"But Nolan... he’s undefeated in combat sims. His defense is—"

"Usagi." I put a hand on her shoulder. "I’m going to let you in on a secret. Nolan Traore is a pretty boy with one good trick. He absorbs kinetic impacts. That’s it. Take away his perfect hero face and what’s left? A guy who stands there and gets hit."

"But Aurora—"

"Has deadly aim but can’t track a moving target worth shit." I remembered the way Aurora’s hands had trembled when she’d kissed me. "She’s fast but not precise under pressure."

"And Mera—"

"Is a horny demon who spends more time thinking about getting laid than strategy." I grinned. "Trust me, I would know."

Usagi’s eyes went huge. "Are you and Mera really...?"

"We’re late." I pushed past her toward the door. "Let’s go win this thing."

Arena A was the crown jewel of Coastline’s facilities. Four times larger than the training grounds, with stadium seating for five hundred spectators, most of whom were representatives from hero agencies looking for new talent. The combat floor itself was a blank canvas—glossy white panels that could reconfigure into any environment at the control room’s command.

Today, they’d programmed an abandoned cityscape. Crumbling concrete, broken windows, collapsed fire escapes. Perfect for ambushes and aerial maneuvers.

"I’ve seen this layout," Noel said as we entered. She’d composed herself completely, not a single violet hair out of place. "Thirty-two buildings. Four major intersections. Water tower on the northwest corner."

"So our original plan stands," I said. "Usagi takes high position on the water tower. Noel goes astral to flush them out. I handle direct combat."

"What about Aurora’s light attacks?" Usagi asked. "Her photon blasts can track targets around corners."

"They’re slow," I said. "Rubber Body can dodge them."

"And Nolan?" Noel asked coldly, still not looking at me.

"I’ll keep him busy."

"That’s your entire strategy? ’Keep him busy’?" She finally turned to face me. "He can absorb anything you throw at him."

I smiled. "Not everything."

Her eyes narrowed. "What does that mean?" 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

"It means trust me."

"After what happened in the prep room?"

"Especially after that."

Usagi looked between us, confused. "What happened in the prep room?"

"Nothing," Noel said quickly.

"Everything," I said simultaneously.

The loudspeakers crackled. "Team Two, please take your position at the south entrance." Reeves’s voice was crisp and professional. "Team One is in position at the north entrance. Match begins in sixty seconds."

Noel touched the small brooch on her collar—her only piece of support gear, designed to protect her physical body while her astral form was active.

"Don’t let my body get damaged," she said to Usagi.

"I won’t, I promise."

"Rome." Noel turned to me, her expression unreadable. "Don’t do anything stupid."

"Like kiss you again?"

Her cheeks flared pink. "Exactly like that."

The countdown began. Thirty seconds. Twenty. Ten.

"Remember," I said quietly. "We’re not here to just win. We’re here to dominate."

The horn blared. Noel’s eyes rolled back in her head and she collapsed. I caught her before she hit the ground, lowering her gently behind a concrete barricade. Her astral form rose through the rubble, translucent and purple-tinged, beautiful in a ghostly way.

"Water tower," she said to Usagi, her voice echoing strangely. "I’ll guide you there unseen."

Usagi nodded and followed Noel’s floating form deeper into the cityscape. I watched them go, then turned toward the center of the arena.

Time to introduce myself to Team One.

I found Nolan where I expected him—in the middle of an intersection, playing hero. Standing tall, shield ready, perfectly positioned to intercept any attack on his teammates. His hero costume looked like it had been designed by a committee trying to appeal to soccer moms: blue and gold with those stupid shoulder pauldrons that screamed "America’s Son."

Aurora was perched on a fire escape above him, her crystalline hands glowing with stored light. Her costume was sleek white with blue accents that complemented her golden hair. Beautiful. Deadly. Completely wasted on a guy who wouldn’t even hold her hand in public.

Mera was nowhere in sight. Probably setting up portal traps in the surrounding buildings.

"Traore!" I called, stepping into the open. "Nice costume. Did your mom pick it out?"

Nolan’s eyes narrowed. "D’Angelo. Should have known you’d come alone."

"Why use a team when one is enough?"

He shifted his shield. "You’re outmatched and outnumbered."

"Quantity isn’t quality."

"Where are your teammates?"

I smirked. "Wouldn’t you like to know?"

Aurora stood up on the fire escape. "Nolan, he’s stalling. Their sniper is positioning."

"Perceptive," I said, winking at her. "How’s your aim today, Aurora? Steady?"

Her cheeks colored. "Shut up."

"Make me."

She fired a photon blast. The crystalline light shot from her palm with pinpoint accuracy, but I was already moving. Rubber Body activated seamlessly, my limbs stretching beyond normal human limits as I dodged left, the light searing the ground where I’d stood.

"Missed me."

"I won’t miss again."

"You sure about that?"

I sprinted toward the building, zigzagging to avoid her follow-up shots. Aurora fired rapidly, lighting up the arena with blinding flashes. One grazed my shoulder and I hissed at the burning sensation. Not enough to stop me, but it hurt like hell.

Nolan moved to intercept, shield raised. "You’re not getting past me."

"Watch me."

I feinted right, then stretched my left arm twenty feet to grab a fire escape on the adjacent building. My body followed, yanked by elastic momentum, sailing over Nolan’s head. He spun, tracking me, but I was already behind him.

"Too slow, hero."

He swung his shield. I ducked under it and punched him in the gut. My fist connected with solid muscle, and Nolan didn’t even flinch. His ability activated, absorbing the kinetic energy completely.

He smiled. "That all you got?"

"Not even close."

I kept moving, circling him, throwing punches and kicks that I knew wouldn’t hurt him. Each one fed his power, but I wasn’t trying to damage him. I was keeping him occupied, drawing Aurora’s fire, making sure everyone was looking at me.

Which meant no one was looking for Noel.

"Where’s my girlfriend?" I asked, dodging another shield swing. "The horny one with the tail."

Nolan frowned. "You shouldn’t talk about women that way."

"She likes it."

"You’re disgusting."

"And you’re boring. No wonder Aurora likes me."

His expression froze. "What did you say?"

"Oh." I grinned. "She didn’t tell you? We spent Saturday afternoon together. Watched a movie. Played some games. Then she put her tongue in my mouth."

"You’re lying."

"Ask her yourself." I gestured to Aurora, who had gone very still on the fire escape. "Hey, Aurora! Tell Nolan what my apartment looks like from the inside."

"Aurora?" Nolan looked up at her. "What is he talking about?"

She didn’t answer. Her face had gone pale.

I laughed. "Huh, communication issues. Shocking."

Nolan’s control slipped. He charged at me, shield forgotten, raw fury in his eyes. I sidestepped easily and tripped him. He caught himself before falling, but the momentary loss of composure was enough.

Noel’s astral form appeared directly behind Aurora on the fire escape. Before Aurora could react, Noel slammed a ghostly fist into the back of her skull. Aurora crumpled, unconscious.

One down.

"Aurora!" Nolan shouted, seeing her fall.

I took advantage of his distraction and closed the distance between us. My hand shot out, fingers wrapping around his throat. Gravity Jail activated, my eyes glowing purple as I doubled the gravitational force acting on Nolan’s body.

He dropped to one knee, suddenly weighing twice as much.

"What... are you doing?" he grunted, struggling against the invisible pressure.

"Showing you why you’re overrated."

I increased the pressure again. Triple gravity. Nolan collapsed to all fours, gasping. His ability could absorb kinetic impacts but did nothing against this kind of force. It wasn’t something hitting him. It was his own weight crushing him from within.

"You can absorb a punch," I said, crouching beside him. "But you can’t absorb physics."

"How are you—this isn’t an adaptive ability—"

"You talk too much." I placed my palm on his forehead. "Sleep."