Impossible Situation
~After the 7 years of anarchy following the 'Rip', an estimated amount of 29 percent of the world's population was lost. This resulted in a total amount of 5.7 billion surviving people left on the planet. Ability users are only 2.1 million in total~
TIME PASSED: Approximately 420 hrs (Day 18)
LOCATION: Valeria (Ruined World)
"This can't be happening..." Tenny gasped.
"This is impossible" Kyron muttered.
Over 11 days had passed since they started their fight with Michael. They had fought, and lost, against him over 130 times. Their battle barely lasted five minutes, and the maximum time they both lasted was ten minutes. Taking account of the battles they had between themselves after they lost, which lasted an average of a bit over 2 hours, time flew by quickly. Ever since they passed the first stage, they had fought among themselves for over 270 hours, while their cumulative fight with Michael was just a bit over 15 hours.
Furthermore, Tenny saw no sign of Michael reaching the limits of his abilities. So far Tenny had seen Michael use 59 different abilities, but he had a hard time keeping track and figuring out their weaknesses. Sure, he had deduced the weaknesses of some, but he still had a long way to go. Time was also against them. They had less time available than what they had spent. They had also battled Michael for a mere 15 hours total... Not enough time to draw out information.
Both himself and Kyron were at an impasse, and they saw no way out.
"Well, it looks like I've won again." Michael broke through the silence.
Both boys slumped to the ground, as they were exhausted, both physically and mentally. Since Michael provided no healing during their battle, they had limited energy and were driven to their limits even as quickly as 10 minutes.
"How do you expect us to win this... It's impossible." Tenny said to Michael.
"You should have just said you didn't want us coming with you to Orion," Tenny muttered.
"Hmmmn, So that's how you feel?" Michael said, placing his hand on his chin thoughtfully while turning to Kyron.
"How about you Kyron? How do you view this?"
"W-Well, one can't help but wonder if this game isn't rigged," Kyron mumbled. "I honestly don't see us winning before the deadline."
"So that's what you think..." Michael said as he removed his hand from his chin and started smiling. He looked at the both of them as they looked ready to give up. He couldn't have that.
"Well... In all honestly, when I set this training up, I did so knowing you both wouldn't win." Michael confessed.
"Haha! I knew it!" Tenny exclaimed.
"But... Why?" Kyron inquired softly.
"Well, for one, you both were not included in my original plan, and I did not want things to derail more than they already have" Michael answered calmly. "Also, things will get exponentially more dangerous from this point onward, and I couldn't afford to lose you too," Michael said.
"You mean you couldn't afford to have us slowing you down," Tenny said sarcastically.
"Well, there's that too," Michael responded, returning the blow to Tenny, who shut up at the comeback.
"As I was saying..." Michael continued. "That WAS the plan. But both of you exceeded my expectations and cleared the first phase sooner than I expected, and made tremendous progress and growth. Especially you Kyron, your evolution was unexpected, and your adaptations... Impressive"
Michael's smile grew wider.
"O-Oh..." Kyron said.
"What about me?" Tenny protested, visibly upset.
"You exceeded my expectations too," Michael said.
"And that's why I hope you both won't stop impressing me now. Find a way to beat this impossible situation, and prove me wrong!".
"But how? There's too large a gap between our abilities, we can't possibly win against you." Kyron protested.
"Let me give you a little tip... Stop thinking as individuals, and start thinking as a collective." Michael said.
"What?" Tenny flatly asked.
"Can you tell me the purpose of the first exercise?" Michael asked.
"Well, the first stage was to enable us to discover our weaknesses and improve on ourselves. By matching us up against each other, we were able to improve on where we were lacking and develop what we already had since our abilities are so incompatible." Tenny analytically said.
"Correct, impressive that you figured that out," Michael said, smiling. "What of the second part of the training?"
"Well, It's designed for us to properly practice and utilize what we have learned. By facing a stronger opponent whose abilities are countless, we can find multiple uses for our abilities when facing various situations and abilities. It is also training for you since you want to use your abilities and increase your body's capacity." Tenny finished.
Michael paused for a while, as the smile disappeared from his face and he closed his eyes. He took a deep breath as he finally spoke.
"Well, you're not wrong for the most part. It's true that by pitting you both against me, you have the chance of using your abilities against multiple ones, giving you various experiences, but that is not the primary reason."
"W-What? Then what is it?" Tenny asked, surprised.
"That is for you both to figure out. If you can't you will lose this training, and you should forget about coming with me to Orion. However... should you learn the true meaning behind this training, your chances will rise from 0 to 10 percent."
"That's not much of a chance is it?"
"Well, it's better than nothing!" Michael stated.
"You still have 300 hours left. Figure it out before your time ends. Now... Back to Stage 1!"
Michael motivated them as his voice rose higher, and the boys resolved to win, bracing themselves for the coming battle.
TIME PASSED: 500 hrs 39 mins (Day 21)
PROGRESS: [Challengers' maximum record '25 Minutes']
TIME LEFT: 219 hrs 21 mins
TIME PASSED: 600 hrs 59 mins (Day 26)
PROGRESS: [Challengers' maximum record '1hr 03mins']
TIME LEFT: 119 hrs 01mins
TIME PASSED: 702 hrs 55 mins (Day 30)
PROGRESS: [Challengers' maximum record '2 hrs 12mins']
TIME LEFT: 17 hrs 05 mins
"Well, this is the last day we'll be spending here..." Michael started.
"And you have about 17 hours left. You'll be fighting me now, let's hope this goes different than the previous tries."
Kyron and Tenny stood up slowly from the spot they were resting from. They both smiled, determined to win, no matter what it took.
"Like I said before..." Tenny stated, looking to Kyron, who nodded to him and he nodded back. Both boys turned to their target with smiles on their faces, and the resolve to win, as they said simultaneously
"...WE WON'T LOSE!"
[NOTICE: THE FINAL DAY CHALLENGE... IN ESSENCE... THE LAST TRIAL!]
TO BE CONTINUED...