Chapter Text
Kai left the training hall and walked out from under the arena, reaching the edge of the grounds. He looked up at the reddish sun, which somehow seemed smaller than when he had first arrived, yet its position hadn’t changed at all. The sky was still filled with stars, and the view was unrealistically beautiful. Since the Colosseum was situated on a high hill, he could see a large portion of the ancient-looking city sprawling across the vast expanse revealed by Max’s holographic map.
"Enjoying the view, Leader?" Max’s voice rang out from behind him. "You’d better get used to it. It’s your new home."
Kai turned to see him leaving the Colosseum, grinning like a child, looking utterly relaxed as he strolled past.
"What do you mean by that?"
Max stopped once he cleared the paved ring surrounding the Colosseum and flopped onto the green, sweet-smelling grass, staring at the star-filled sky.
"The sun doesn’t set here," he said, completely ignoring the question. "It just grows or shrinks, indicating whether it’s day or night."
Kai rolled his eyes and turned to walk away, but Max’s mocking voice stopped him again.
"Tell me, Leader. Which residence do you fancy?"
"Excuse me?"
"Just look," Max laughed, never taking his eyes off the sky. "Plenty of buildings, and not all of them are occupied. Just pick one you like, and it’s yours. You need a place to rest."
Kai gave up on trying to engage with him and descended the hill, entering the city that completely surrounded the Colosseum. He wandered through the maze of buildings, not caring about the direction he was heading. He was still trying to process everything, and usually, walking helped him plan his next moves—but this time, he felt completely stuck. There was no way to leave this place ruled by twelve unseen Lords, and that masked man had appointed him leader of four strangers he’d only just met.
No matter how he looked at it, the situation was bleak. For now, he had to adapt; otherwise, he wouldn't survive this world, and he certainly wouldn't find a way home.
Lost in his thoughts, Kai was snapped out of his trance by a voice that was far from friendly:
"Well, well. A new Guardian."
Kai looked up to see a tall young man with black hair and a sharp, piercing gaze, flanked by two others. They appeared to be twins, identical in every way, with pale blue hair and golden-tinted eyes that looked at everything with a sinister amusement.
"Aren't you going to introduce yourself?" the dark-haired youth asked again, grinning. "I’m genuinely curious who you replaced. I eliminated about three Guardians in the last tournament."
"His name is Kai," came Alex’s harsh voice, approaching from the Colosseum, followed by Hannah and Mira. "He was chosen to be our new leader."
"Leader of the Earth Guardians?" the young man sneered. "Honestly, it was a pleasure eliminating the last one in the tournament."
"Count yourself lucky you're still here, Al," Hannah snapped back. "As I recall, Alex wiped the floor with you in the finals."
Al’s face darkened at the remark; he hated being reminded that he had lost to Guardians whose planet had only been in the Nexus for two years, especially since Al himself had been there for nine months.
"I was just trying to offer a warm welcome," Al said, trying to mask his fury.
Their conversation was interrupted by a loud metallic clanking. Turning the corner, the Duel Robot appeared, with Max sitting on its shoulder, as thrilled as a child. When he noticed the others, he waved happily.
"There you all are! I finally got him to leave the arena. Isn't it amazing? I’m going to have the coolest minion ever."
Kai noticed that everyone present—even Al and the twins—rolled their eyes, visibly annoyed by Max’s unexpected and uninvited arrival.
"Anyway," Al said, ignoring Max and his robot entirely. "I thought it would be helpful to show the newcomer how things work around here. We wouldn't want him to be overwhelmed in his first tournament."
Alex didn't respond; he only stared at Al with contempt. The challenge hadn't been directed at him, so he couldn't intervene much.
"So, what do you say?" Al asked again. "If you decide to go through with it, I’ll be waiting at the Colosseum in an hour."
With that, he turned his back and walked away.
"Who is he?" Kai asked, feeling uneasy.
"Just one of the Guardians from the world that’s the reason I’m here," Max said cheerfully, sitting cross-legged on the robot's shoulder.
"Can you repeat that?" Kai was more baffled than ever.
"Ugh," Mira sighed. "Two years ago, the planet Arkmar wanted to invade Earth. But the planet wasn't registered in the Nexus yet. So the Lords were forced to bring in a Guardian, officially putting Earth into this system."
"And that’s how I got here," Max added, proud of himself. "You could say that I'm the first Earth Guardian. Does that make me special?"
"This just shows that the Lords picked the first person they stumbled upon," Hannah said. "Anyway, the only thing 'special' about you is the fact that you're still here. Aside from you, the longest-tenured Guardian in the entire Nexus has only been here for eleven months. You’re just a glitch in the system."
"Regardless," Max chirped. "Let's get our Leader ready for the duel! Let's go, my minion!"
"Don't change the subject!" Hannah shouted, exasperated, but Max wasn't listening, and the robot was already clanking toward the Colosseum, emitting deafening mechanical noises.