Chapter 24

—Jay's group of prospects, officially labeled 'division #3', starts to head to their new waiting areas in preparation for their fight. Jay's nerves hadn't completely gone away, but making small talk with his opponents—Blaze and Sandra—helped him realize that some people there also feared their competition. This match was his first hurdle of many in his quest to become the Nexus' number one player and one step forward in saving his mother.

As Jay is taking directions, walking down the halls of the Decimation, he spots Ivy, Kira, Axel, and Dillan all talking with each other at the field entrance. Axel notices Jay shamble over in their direction, and he waves to him with a smile on his face.

"Now it's your turn!!" Axel exclaims.

"Sure does look like it!" Jay responds.

Ivy and Kira had just become Slayer's as well, not officially, but they've secured their spot. There's no doubt that there will be some celebration or ceremony that'll endow each successful prospect into the Guild properly, but all of Jay's friends have just pushed past their boundaries.

Ivy, Kira, and Dillan all walk over to Jay as well, standing next to Axel.

"Congrats, you guys! I'm glad you all passed." Jay says brightly.

"Of course!" Ivy responds, putting on a serious face, "*I mean, I know I'm destined for greatness*..."

"Alright, shrimp, when were you the class clown?!" Axel puts it bluntly to Ivy.

Axel and Ivy start to argue as usual when Dillan steps forward to face Jay head-on.

"You'll do just fine! I know it!" He says, putting up a thumbs up.

"Yeah, thanks," Jay responds.

Kira glances at Jay as well, walking closer to him. Jay didn't sense any Aspect near her, but he was still anxious about talking to her since she most likely found out about his training.

"Don't sweat it, just keep your focus up." Kira winks, "As long as everything goes according to plan, you should get by."

"Right," Jay says.

Blaze and Sandra walked past Jay and his friends without saying a word. They were right in the sense that they were opponents, but Jay wishes he could've at least talked with them some more. After Ivy's match started, they went silent, so Jay followed suit, not saying much after.

Tide also walked past Jay and his friends but kept an eye on him. Axel and the others refrained from making a scene and stayed quiet as Tide walked down the hallway. Jay sighs after Tide leaves his sight.

"Hey, don't worry about him. Just focus on being one of the two that wins this!" Ivy says, "One of those spots will most likely be Tides, so just stay alive until everyone else is dead!"

"Yeah, but..." Jay starts to speak but gets cut off by Axel.

"Let me guess. You don't wanna be a chicken?!" Axel says, staring directly into Jay's eyes, "I didn't either, and I got myself in trouble. Dillan's the one who ultimately saved me."

It was weird to hear Axel say such nice things about Dillan, and only after a single match. Axel's tone was also more calm and severe, which cemented every word he said into Jay's head.

"Right..." Jay responds.

"What did you hit your head or something?" Kira asks Axel, "I thought you guys didn't like each other."

"The only one who hit their head is you!! don't forget what you did to those innocent prospects during the first section of the tryouts!!" Axel responds, "sosiopath..."

"*What* did you call me?!" Kira shouts.

"*I SAID YOUR CRAZY*!!" Axel shouts back.

Jay looks past his friends as Axel starts another interesting conversation—with some wild words thrown in the mix—and back at the field entrance. He notices a familiar figure standing with half of their body visible to Jay, almost luring him in. Jay only had a couple more minutes anyways, so he turns to his friends.

"Thanks for the kind words guys, hopefully, I can clutch this up!" He says, trying to put on a smile.

"You got this!!"

"Don't worry so much! You can handle this!"

"Just don't mess up like in my fight with Helmet!"

"Focus, and you can win."

Jay says his last goodbyes to his friends as he makes his way to the hallway leading to his waiting chamber and confronting the figure who is still hiding. Jay turns to them as he walks by and stops to have a conversation.

"What's up?" Jay asks.

"Remember what I said to you when we talked about Preloading?" Helmet asks.

"Yeah, it was 'visualize and execute,' right?" Jay responds.

"Exactly." Helmet nods his head, "I heard about your training and what it entailed. If you're serious about this, then remember those words I told you."

"Ok," Jay responds.

Jay and Helmet part ways shortly after. Helmet needed to go to the Guildmaster V.I.P area to grade Jay's match, and Jay needed to get ready for his match. It was strange to see Helmet again, but Jay continued to listen to his advice repeatedly.

'Visualize and execute...' Jay thinks. He didn't know what it meant, but in general, he said it in his head whenever he needed the motivation to keep trying something. It was probably the correct usage for it, but Jay wouldn't know unless Helmet told him.

Jay wishes he could ask Helmet about it now, but he would be late if he kept chatting with people, so Jay went down the same hallway Axel and Ivy went down for their matches. He was looking for a door with his name over it.

Jay's friends also started to head for their destination, that being in the crowd to see his match play out. Axel and Ivy wished their best friend the best, but they had their doubts. Helmet made it a point that he would have to win by using combat skills alone, which is easier said than done.

Axel and Ivy both used Aspect for their fights like it was second nature, which they've never really thought about until now. Axel, in particular, doesn't know how to imagine playing the Nexus without the use of Aspect at his side.

"Where do you guys want to sit?" Dillan asks the group.

"I don't mind anywhere, but let's get a good view at least!" Ivy responds.

Axel and Kira nod in unison, agreeing with Ivy. Dillan understands and starts to lead the rest of the party to the upper bleachers.

Everyone had beaten the tryouts and will become Slayers. The only one left to make it is Jay.

—-—-—-—-—-—-—-—-—-—-—-—-—-—-—-—-—-—-—-

"Sorry for my sudden disappearance, Head-Guildmaster. It won't happen again." Helmet says to Corvus.

Helmet has just entered the V.I.P room once more, where Crash and Rayna minded their businesses respectably. Helmet had left to cheer Jay up, which he had his reasons to do.

'Hopefully, the loss doesn't come across too hard on him...' Helmet thinks.

"That's ok, just make sure to let me know your absence beforehand," Corvus responds.

Helmet walks over to his work area and sits down, opening up his game menu to access his notes once more, creating a new page for Jay's match. Crash leans closer to Helmet as they were working right next to each other.

"Did you go congratulate your referral?" Crash whispers, but rather loudly.

"No, there's no need to do something as minuscule as that." Helmet responds, still looking at his game menu, "I'm on schedule as the rest of you are.

"Then where'd you run off?" Crash asks.

"Why do you want to know, gills?"

"Aw, cmon, don't be like that to your best friend!" Crash responds, "Ok, how about this? I'll give you some of the best fishing bait I have the next time you wanna tag along for a hunt!"

"Gross." Helmet responds, "But I'll pity you. I was advising a player for this next match."

"Oh. Was it one of your referrals then?" Crash inquires.

"Yes. The player's name is «Jay Corvidae», and I don't expect him to win this match or even come in second place as the rest of his friends have." Helmet says.

"He has friends in the tryouts?" Crash continues to ask.

"Yes, they make up my entire referral list." Helmet explains.

Rayna suddenly turns in her chair to face Helmet and Crash. She had a relatively lax face with an even lazier attitude.

"So you just gave all your referrals to a group of friends without taking into consideration their skill set?" Rayna asks.

"Not at all." Helmet responds, "They are rather talented individuals, with two of them qualifying in the first two matches. The player in this friend group who will be contending in this next matchup, however, will have some underlying trouble."

"And why is that?" Rayna asks, "Is he not good?"

"That's a hard question to answer." Helmet says.

"That's a hard question to answer? No offense, but it's a yes or no question!" Crash chips back into the conversation.

"As I said before, he has some underlying issues I can't seem to explain." Helmet says.

"Like what?" Rayna keeps prodding for Helmet to budge.

"He...he doesn't... he doesn't have access to Aspect," Helmet says.

"*WHAT*?!" Crash shouts

"That's impossible! And you know it—" Crash says but is cut off by Helmet.

"It's true." Helmet says with unwavering contention.

Crash and the rest of the Guildmasters can't see Helmet's face since his visor is so tinted it hides his actual features. For a split second—however—Crash swears he sees the determination inside of Helmet's eyes. Rayna is silent.

"You..." Crash starts, "You've gotta be pulling my leg, man..."

"If you want proof, I can relay it to you." Helmet states.

"Please do!" Crash begs.

"What's this you guys are arguing over?" Corvus says, walking over to them.

Corvus was about a meter away from Helmet and Crash. Rayna was about the same distance but had just turned to comment their way.

"Mr. Corvus, Helmet—" Crash starts to say.

"—I have a referral in the arena who doesn't use Aspect." Helmet says over Crashs voice.

The room falls entirely still. Saying something with that much weight and confidence was sure to gain a negative response from Corvus. Crash silently prays for Helmet while Rayna keeps listening in to Helmet's every word.

"What? Are you completely serious?" Corvus asks Helmet.

"Yes." Helmet responds, "I have not once seen him use Aspect a single time. Not when he fought for his referral, not during the first and second rounds of the tryouts, and not even when I do private observations on my referrals as a whole—"

"He doesn't use it." Helmet finishes.

Corvus takes a second before actually responding, giving Helmet a stare that is indescribable. It wasn't hostile, but it wasn't friendly. Then, he sits down next to Helmet and puts his hand on his chin.

"I've... never heard that one before," Corvus says in a light tone, "Usually, Guildmasters with bad referrals say that their levels aren't too good, not that they can't use Aspect."

"I promise you. I'm not lying in any way, shape, or form."

"I can sense the truth in you, Helmet. I want to know your reasoning in letting him participate in this competition, as well as how he got this far."

Helmet nods and starts to explain how he met Jay and his friends and explains Jay's overall performance. Corvus prepares himself for Helmet's entire side of this developing story.

"...So you confronted him about his issue as he told you?" Corvus asks Helmet, assuring what Helmet has told him was entirely accurate.

"Yes, and then he demonstrated." Helmet explains, "As I said, whenever he calls out on Aspect, his body just freezes, almost like every muscle in his body cramps up."

"And you're sure that isn't his power?" Crash jokes.

Helmet and Corvus stare at Crash after his comment.

"Sorry..." Crash says, "I just find this hard to believe still."

"Is there anything else you know about him? He most likely will fail the tryouts, but you seem to hold him up on a pedestal for some reason." Rayna speaks up, continuing to prod Helmet for answers to her questions.

"There is a skill that he has potential in learning. I just don't know if my advice alone will help him in mastering the fundamentals."

"A skill? Like what?" Crash asks.

"I'm not gonna spoil it." Helmet says, "He most likely hasn't grasped my words anyway, so explaining it now wouldn't make sense.

"I'm not very appreciative by your lack of explanation, but you've said enough for me to believe you," Corvus says to Helmet.

"However, if this 'Jay' character doesn't come up in the top five at least, I will have to talk with you privately about the referral system."

"Yeah, maybe don't treat them like handouts," Rayna says, continuing to stare Helmet down.

"Hey, give him a break. Helmet gave this kid the chance of a lifetime!" Crash adds.

"Everyone, prepare to judge the match. Remember to keep detailed notes on players, especially the top two." Corvus says, walking back to his desk and chair

"Understood."

"Right!"

"On it..."

The Guildmasters prepare to grade the upcoming fight. Helmet still had Jay in the back of his mind, while the rest of his peers seemed to hold him accountable if Jay failed miserably.

Rayna has a lot to say at this point but continues to keep her words to herself.