Interborough Competition, Part 1

"New York Interborough Competition?!"

"The New York Interborough Competition!"

Just as always, it's a while after our last mission, and Nick is bringing us more exciting news. "The New York Interborough Competition, or, the NYIC, for short, is an event where the five squads made up of Junior Slayers stationed across New York: Slayer Renzu's squad from Queens, Brooklyn's squad, Manhattan's squad, unfortunately Bronx's squad, and of course, us, all come to the Slayer Organization Headquarters to test their metal against one another," Nick explains. "In this tournament-like competition, you will be observed by important Slayers within the Organization, and even the Chairman himself. Those who do good may even get promoted if the Chairman thinks you're hot stuff!"

"Promotion…huh…?" Austin asks.

"That's why we're here!" Grover adds.

"So it's just a tournament?" I ask.

"Just a tournament," Nick answers.

"I figured that it was time for a tournament arc…" I say under my breath.

"How does the competition work?" Jamie asks.

"Since the NYIC is already a perfect event for testing Junior Slayers, there's no need for the Slayer Organization to change up the events, so the NYIC is the same every year," Nick begins to explain. "There are three rounds. Round one will involve a battle against another squad. You will then be told everything about who you are fighting beforehand -name, Cursed Ability, the arena in which you are fighting in, etc- and be given a full day of prep time in order to research your opponents and strategize for the fight. Every squad will fight twice. Round two, however, is when things get tricky. Three Junior Slayers will be randomly assigned as a team and from there randomly assigned a Pro Slayer opponent and an arena, and the fight will commence directly after. Instead of testing teamwork and intelligence, this round tests adaptability and individual strength, for times where missions go as planned, and for times where you need to improvise. We don't actually expect you to beat your Pro Slayer opponent, just do your best."

"Do we get a chance to fight you in the second round?!" Grover excitedly asks.

"Maybe, maybe not," Nick answers with a smirk. "Who knows if I'm participating or not?"

Grover sulks.

"Round three is a bit different, not everyone gets to participate," Nick continues. "Judging based on your performances from the first two rounds, eight Slayers will be selected to participate in a bracket-style tournament, including a losers bracket for third place. This round purely tests combat skills in a one on one battle. So there you have it, that's the NYIC!

"So we're just fighting against other Slayers? No demons?" Jamie asks.

"Yup!" Nick answers.

"Is there a chance that we will be fighting someone else from our group?" Mikey asks, and out of the corner of his eyes, I can swear that Mikey is leering at me.

"Not unless you happen to get picked for the eight man mini tournament then get randomly matched up against someone from your group, no," Nick answers.

"Do we...have to take part in the competition?" Ella asks shyly.

"Yes, Ella, you do," Nick sighs. "Every NYC Junior Slayer will be."

"How old are the fellow competitors?" I ask.

"Fellow rookies, so a little older than you guys, a little younger," Nick answers. "Around your age, like Renzu's squad."

Good. Fighting adults is scary.

"How does this compare to the Slayer Entrance Exams, how far are we allowed to go in a fight?" Austin asks.

"You can do as much damage as you want, as long as you don't permanently cripple or kill any other Slayers," Nick answers. "At least on purpose. The Pro Slayers there will be able to sense your bloodlust with ease, so try not to get too crazy. The competition is to test yourselves, not eliminate our man power."

"How good do we have to do to get promoted?" Jamie asks.

"Even better than you guys are doing now!" Nick laughs, causing the rest of us to look glum. "Any more questions?" Nick then asks.

"Yeah," I say as I raise a hand. "Renzu's squad only has three members. It's not fair if we have to face them."

"Yeah, and I want to settle the score with them fairly for having to save my ass back there…" Mikey growls as he punches a fist into his palm.

"Ah, thanks for reminding me!" Nick replies. "The other borough's squads have three members. Staten Island's squad -us- has six. That's because SI is separated from the other four boroughs, meaning we have to defend this little island all by ourselves, while for the most part the other four squads work together often to defend the bulk of NYC."

"So they all know and have relationships with one another," Austin says as he adjusts his glasses.

"What are you getting at?" Jamie asks.

"What I'm saying is that we're at a severe disadvantage," Austin explains. "Other than maybe Renzu's squad, we'll have no allies in this competition, as well as limited knowledge on the powers and abilities of our competitors, unlike the other squads, who may know a lot about one another."

"Great," I grumble.

"Just makes this more fun," Mikey replies.

"Alright, now go divide yourselves into two teams of three. I suggest an Attacker, Supporter, Shooter combo but I know you guys won't listen," Nick finishes as he sits down at the kitchen table and begins scrolling through his phone.

An Attacker, Supporter, Shooter combo? Well I'm an attacker and Mikey won't want to work with me, so it's most likely Austin and I. Now for a supporter, do I pick Ella or Grover? Speaking of the devil himself, Grover walks up to me.

"Luis! Let's work together, buddy!" He exclaims!"

But that's when Ella approaches me as well. "No, Grover!" She booms. "Luis, allow me to be-b-b-b-b-b-b-b-b," Ella stammars, as her voice grows quieter.

"Ella?" I ask, raising an eyebrow at the girl.

"Your supporter…" Ella softly says, so quiet that I can barely hear her.

Well…I have to pick between two of my friends? This sucks! But then…an idea comes to my head.

I sling an arm around Ella and Grover and pull them in close. Ella blushes and yelps, as Grover raises an eyebrow at me.

"You guys remember the Slayer Exams?" I ask, causing their eyes to sparkle.

"Great idea, Luis!" Grover cheers.

"So I suppose it's us three?" Austin asks, sounding mildly annoyed as he turns to face Jamie and Mikey. 

"Awesome! I'd love to be with you, Austin!" Jamie exclaims.

"Yes well, for an Attacker, I'd at least choose you over Luis. Not over many other Slayers, however," Ausin replies, causing Jamie to sulk

"Whatever. I'm only working with you two because I don't want to work with the de- er…Luis. And I can't work alone. Just try not to get in my way," Mikey grumbles.

"I'd really appreciate it if you tried not to call my "demon" around the others," I sigh to myself.

"Lord Bumblebee! We've made our teams!" Grover calls to Nick, who turns off his phone and peers up at us, taking note of where we're standing. 

"So you didn't do two Attacker, Supporter, Shooter trios? Figures," Nick sighs. "You kids never listen to my advice, but I'm sure you'll be fine." Is he…sulking? "Oh! And one more thing! You guys need to pick a team name! Normally, you would just be "Slayer Hachi's Squad," but since they're two fo ya', you need a name. "Slayer Hachi's Squad, team so-and-so"."

"Team Grover!" Grover cheers, without a second thought.

"Yeah, I knew he was going to do that," Ell replies with a small chuckle.

"And you three?" Nick asks as he turns to Mikey, Jamie, and Austin.

"Team Au-" Austin begins to say, but Mikey cuts him off.

"Team Mikey," Mikey blurts out.

"Alright, writing that down…Slayer Hachi's Squad, Team Grover, and Slayer Hachi's Squad, Team Michael," Nick mutters to himself.

"WHAT?! NO!" Austin cries, but it's too late. "I'm the smartest one here, I should be the team leader!"

"Yeah? So what? I'm the strongest," Mikey apathetically replies.

"We'll see about that in the competition…" Jamie growls.

Mikey shrugs in response.

"You…you…you're impossible to work with!" Austin stammars.

"The NYIC is one month from today. I'm still still going to assign you guys your regular missions, but trust me-" Nick begins to say. "You will want to train."

"Did you win the Interborough Competition when you were a kid?" Grover excitedly asks.

Nick turns to face Grover with a smirk. I'm the strongest Pro Slayer. Of course I did," he cockily answers.

So we have homework now?

***

A month comes and goes.

I find myself at the Slayer Organization Headquarters yet again. Today, I'm here with the rest of the squad (including Mikey, who's finally finished with his suspension of course). We're here for the Chairman's orientation regarding the Interburough Competition, and right now, I'm waiting in a large hallway leading into the center arena of the Slayer Organization Headquarters alongside the rest of my squad.