The remaining students stood scattered across the secondary forest clearing, the afternoon sun warming their sore muscles from the free-for-all. Medics had finished checking the worst injuries, and the air still carried a faint smell of scorched grass and disturbed earth. Killerblade stepped forward again with the mic, her expression sharp and impatient.
"Next challenge is Capture the Flag," she announced, voice carrying clearly. "Groups of three to six. You'll stand at opposite ends of the forest each with a flag. The goal is to get the other team's flag back to your end without losing your flag. The game will last at most ten minutes. Once the time is up, if there is no winner the team with the flags closest to their end will win. Form your teams now. First matches start in ten minutes."
Murmurs spread through the crowd as students began clustering together. Some moved with confidence, others looked uncertain after the heavy cuts from the first challenge.
Markus felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned to see Sarah standing there with a grin, pointing back toward where Domanic sat cross-legged on the grass a short distance away, eyes closed, trying to meditate and recover.
"So you all trying to form a five?" Sarah asked.
Before Markus could answer, Amber and Noboru jumped up from where they had been sitting.
"Yeah!" Amber said quickly, already moving.
Noboru grinned wide. "Let's do it." The two of them jogged over to Domanic and started circling him excitedly, talking over each other.
"Come on, Domanic, join us!"
"This is gonna be good."
Domanic kept his eyes shut at first, breathing steadily, but a small smile tugged at his mouth as they kept circling.
Markus laughed dryly and started walking over. Other students around the forest were forming teams, voices rising as groups called out to friends and acquaintances.
Before Markus reached the others, Nathan appeared at his side. Green hair fell above his eyes as he smirked. Vines coiled loosely around his ankles while small flowers bloomed and faded with each step he took.
"Heya Markus," Nathan said casually. "Can't help but notice you all are one away from six. Wouldn't mind me joining, would you?"
Again, before Markus could get a word out, the others spotted Nathan and jumped in.
"Yeah, come on!" Noboru called.
Amber waved him over. "We'd love that."
Nathan laughed and joined the circle around Domanic. The sand user finally sighed, opened his eyes, and shook his head.
"You guys are impossible to focus around," Domanic muttered.
Markus burst out laughing as the six of them stood together. Their team felt solid. They spent the short time before the first match reviewing quick ideas, keeping voices low.
The first game kicked off with two other groups stepping up. One team of five and another of four headed to opposite ends of the forested section set aside for the challenge. Flags were planted, one red, one blue, on simple poles at each base. Killerblade gave the signal.
"Go!"
Both teams moved with purpose. The team of five sent two members forward fast while keeping three back to guard. Powers flared across the trees. One fighter launched blasts of kinetic energy that cracked branches. His teammate created floating platforms to cross rough ground quickly. The defending side countered with a wall of hardened light and a gust user who tried to blow attackers off course.
The fighting spread through the forest in bursts. A girl from the team of four used enhanced agility to swing through branches, dodging attacks and looking for openings. Her teammate laid down patches of slippery oil on the ground that caused two opponents to lose balance. Shouts echoed as small skirmishes broke out. One player got tagged hard by a combined attack and had to sit out, clutching his side.
Tactics showed in every move. The team of five tried a coordinated push, using their numbers to overwhelm one flank. But the smaller team of four played smarter, faking a retreat to draw enemies in before springing a trap with hidden tripwires made from wire powers. Time ticked down. With under two minutes left, the team of four managed a breakthrough. Their agile girl snatched the opposing flag and sprinted back while her teammates delayed the pursuit with everything they had. She crossed her end line just as the clock hit zero.
Cheers went up from watching students. The team of four celebrated while the losers shook their heads, already talking about what they could have done differently.
"Solid tactics," Markus noted from the sidelines. "Numbers don't always win."
Their turn came next. Markus, Noboru, Nathan, Domanic, Sarah, and Amber stepped up as the team of six. The opposing team was another full group of six, looking focused and ready. Both teams headed to opposite ends of the forest section. The red flag waited at their base, the blue flag at the other.
Killerblade raised her hand. "Begin!"
The game started. Noboru blurred forward immediately, racing up a tall tree in a streak to get a high view of the layout. Markus moved next, spreading a layer of ice across the forward ground in front of their flag. Anyone running straight through would have a hard time staying on their feet.
Nathan started to move off for a flank when Domanic put a hand on his shoulder and pulled him back. "Wait. Come here." They slipped behind a thick tree and Domanic whispered something close to his ear. Nathan's eyes lit up with understanding.
Amber and Sarah waited at the edge of their base. When Noboru dropped back down from the tree, Sarah got up, sprinted forward, and propelled herself into the air with jets of fire from the soles of her feet. She laughed as she vanished into the upper branches.
On the other side of the forest, the opposing team of six gathered quickly. Three of them stayed back to guard their blue flag while the other three moved out, trying to slip through toward Markus's team's red flag.
One of the attackers crept behind thick foliage, moving low. He spotted the ice-covered grass ahead and Markus standing watch. The attacker crouched and circled wide, then climbed a tree and scaled along branches to bypass the icy patch. Once he thought he was safe, Noboru suddenly appeared on the branch right next to him.
"What's up?" Noboru said casually.
The attacker startled. A pillar of ice shot up from below, encasing half his body. Noboru knocked the first guy down with a quick strike. The remaining two darted back. One swung down from the branches and ran hard toward where she thought the flag was. She froze in place when she saw twenty identical red flags dotted across the ground in front of her. Something that should not have been possible.
From behind, Noboru tried to strike her, but she dodged smoothly. When a pillar of ice came at her from the side, she hopped onto it using telekinesis to flick her wrist and redirect her momentum straight toward Markus. They threw hands in close combat. She swung and Markus's arm suddenly froze mid-motion from her telekinetic grip. He pushed back with his own ice, forcing her to release.
While that happened, Noboru dashed around searching for the third attacker. He found the guy hiding under a bush, grabbed him, and threw him toward Markus. Markus caught the shirt and slammed the attacker into the girl, knocking both of them over in a heap.
Once the three were down, all twenty fake flags dissolved into sand and flowed together, reforming into Domanic. He looked back at the thick foliage Nathan had grown to hide their real red flag in plain sight.
"Good call on the decoys," Markus said quickly, breathing steady.
Domanic nodded. "Nathan's plants sold it."
They heard a shout. A fourth person from the other team burst from the foliage, grabbed their red flag, and started running. Nathan cursed and threw a seed that shot out into a thick vine, trying to snag the runner. Markus sent a wave of ice after him. Noboru prepared to blitz forward. Domanic shifted his arms into tendrils.
Then Amber raised her arm and swatted hard to the right. In front of everyone, a tall tree toppled over with a crash. From behind it, in the shadowed area, Sarah burst out in a blaze of flames a laughing scream echoing through the surrounding., carrying the opposition's blue flag. She fell toward the runner, spun mid-air, and slammed the flag into the guy's face while grabbing their red flag at the same time. Both flags hit the ground with her on top as the runner went down hard.
The ten-minute timer ended seconds later. Golden light flashed across the forest.
Their team had won.
Cheers erupted from their side. Sarah stood up, still laughing, holding both flags high. "That was perfect, Amber!"
Amber lowered her arm, and fell to her knees grabbing her side and panting heavily, looking surprised but pleased. "I just… felt the tree was ready to fall the right way."
Noboru blurred over and helped her up. "You made it happen. Great job."
Markus helped the downed opponents up, showing good sportsmanship. "Tough fight. You guys had good coordination."
The other team nodded, breathing hard, and headed back to the main area. Killerblade announced the result over the mic and called the next groups.
Their team walked back together through the trees, adrenaline still high. They found a shady spot near the edge of the forest clearing to sit and recover while other matches played out.
"That plant cover was smart," Markus told Nathan. "Hid the real flag perfectly."
Nathan grinned, a small flower blooming on his wrist before fading. "Domanic's sand copies was the real mind breaker. We made them think they had it."
Domanic shrugged modestly. "Team effort. Sarah coming in from above at the end was the unexpected but appreciated winning move."
Sarah wiped sweat from her forehead, still smiling. "Amber forcing that tree down at the exact right second? Chef's kiss. I almost lobotomised myself."
Amber had already passed out sleeping soundly in-between Noboru and Sarah.
They watched the next matches while resting. Some teams played aggressively, rushing straight across with heavy hitters. Others tried stealth and trickery. One game ended in a messy draw when both flags got stuck halfway. Another saw a team of five pull off a clever diversion using illusions to walk away with the win.
Between games, the group talked strategy for future rounds. Markus suggested better ice patterns to slow multiple attackers. Noboru offered to scout higher and relay positions faster. Nathan grew a few practice vines to test reach. Domanic showed how he could maintain multiple sand clones longer if he stayed anchored. Sarah worked on controlled bursts so she wouldn't tire too quickly in longer fights.
Hours passed as more teams rotated through Capture the Flag deeper in the forest. The sun moved across the sky, casting longer shadows through the trees. Some groups won cleanly. Others lost because of simple mistakes, like leaving their flag too exposed or failing to communicate when split up. Killerblade and the monarch watched closely, occasionally noting things on tablets.
As evening approached, Killerblade called an end to the day's challenges. Students headed back toward the main facility buildings, walking along forest paths. Their group walked together, discussing the matches, what worked, and what they could improve before the next round.
Inside the lounge area they grabbed food and drinks. Conversations mixed with normal college talk, upcoming assignments, tired complaints about early lectures tomorrow. But the tournament stayed at the center. Jamie stopped by briefly from the support section to hear how it went. He listened quietly, offered a few analysis points on positioning, then headed off to his own work.
Later in their dorm room, Markus and Noboru sat on their beds reviewing the day.
"Team's coming together," Markus said.
Noboru nodded. "Yeah. Amber's confidence is growing. That tree move today? She owned it, and she didn't pass out until after."
Across the facility, Amber lay in her own room, replaying the moments in her head. The threads had felt clearer during the flag games in the forest. She practiced on a small object on her desk, making it slide left instead of right. Small wins, but they added up.
The Capture the Flag challenge had tested coordination more than raw power. Their group of six had passed with strong showings through the forest. Tomorrow would bring whatever the next test held, but for tonight they could rest knowing the training weeks had paid off in real teamwork.
The facility quieted as lights dimmed. In the distance the Forest Scale stood dark and still. The tournament continued, cutting more students with each round, but their team remained intact and motivated. They would meet the next challenge the same way, together.