Tate's fight lasted a whole twenty minutes, and he dominated every single second of it. At least to Lexie's eye, he did. The announcer still referred to Tate as the underdog, exclaiming in surprise every time Tate pulled off a proper offense.

"Oh, and look at that! Down goes another limb from our eight-legged friend courtesy of a well-timed attack by our mundane fighter, Tate."

"Arachnid is going crazy, just look at his pincers move. But Tate has some reflexes on him. Like he has eyes at the back of his head. Shocking."

"Tate, surprisingly, avoids that match-ending blow and manages to stick his dagger right at the arachnid's mechs, damaging two other legs. Ladies and gentlemen, he's almost disabled all his legs, right? How is he doing this?"

While the announcer was surprised, Lexie wasn't.

The thing was that even though Arachnid was fast, as were his pincers, Tate could read him like a book, and had a counter for every one of his attacks.

The best part was that Tate had also listened to Top Dog's advice because he fought so stylishly now, too.

Even with that, most people didn't think he was going to win. In these preliminary matches, one could get a win by knockout, by submission, or when your opponent's health and constitution bar crossed the minimum twenty percent threshold. Tate's approached twenty percent several times, thanks to some minor poisonous qualities from Arachnid pincers, but it never quite crossed.

The 'poison' seemed to affect his energy, dropping it slowly but steadily, but Tate kept on moving through it, through sheer willpower. He was incredible, and the announcer took note of it, saying, "I should remind you folks that Tate should be in excruciating pain right now. Arachnid is a popular underground competitor, and he's been essentially temporarily paralyzing his opponents in matches. But somehow Tate is fighting off the effect, like he doesn't even feel it."

He felt it. Lexie knew Tate enough to note the strain on his face. She also saw the signs when he bit his lips, his moves becoming more jagged. He had the same look on his face as when he'd fought to break Shadow's hold on him.

He didn't have much left in him. He needed to end this fight as quickly as possible.

Lexie knew he'd been drawing it out for maximum entertainment, and it was working. The crowd, who'd initially ranged from uninterested to mildly mocking, were now fully engaged, applauding and whooping when Tate pulled off risky moves.

When Tate went for the finisher, a few of them leaned forward, grabbing onto their seats.

Tate dug his feet in and, with an explosive burst of energy, he shot himself at Arachnid. Arachnid only had three pincers left, and he swung and stabbed with them desperately, but Tate dodged each of them. One of them came at his cheek, and he did a Matrix-style lean back that was a near copy of what Conrad had done to avoid Lexie grabbing the flag, although not quite as neat.

Then, Tate grabbed onto the pincer, so when Arachnid tried to yank it back, it launched Tate. He flipped over in the sky, his body a silhouette against the sun. Finally, he threw the dagger right at Arachnid, and the latter's pincers couldn't stop it.

The blade was blunt, so it wouldn't cause serious damage. Arachnid also managed to catch it by the hilt, at which point an electric charge crackled and sparked over his body.

Arachnid screamed and fell to the ground, unmoving.

It was a knockout.

The audience leaped to their feet and cheered.

So did Lexie's teammates, their excitement and the loud cacophony of their applause bouncing off the walls.

"Hell yeah!" Conrad exclaimed, nodding at the screen, looking every inch the proud father. "Great game, Tate. That's what we're talking about."

"He won! That crafty bastard!" Boris said.

"Ladies and gentlemen, what an unexpected finish!" The announcer said. "And the winner of that preliminary match is Tate!"

"Ugh," Conrad groaned. "I wish he'd picked another name."

"Yeah, Tate sounds like a girl's name."

Both Lexie and Cara glanced at Boris for that comment. He held up his hands defensively.

"Not that there's anything wrong with girl names. On girls."

"It's just not catchy," Jan said. "He needs something catchier.

"Well, there's time for that," Conrad said. "Also, maybe I need to get him another costume. One that better matches his…what the hell is he doing?"

It took Lexie a second to figure out that, after the PHORB had focused on him, declaring him the winner of the fight, Tate was giving it a smoldering look. He probably thought it was intimidating, but it only made him look like he needed to go to the bathroom.

To top it all off, he winked.

"Ew," Cara wrinkled her face.

"Yeah, that was pretty bad," Jan said.

"I told him not to do that, damn it," Conrad sighed. "We need to work on his finishing look when he gets back."

After Tate walked off the field and got back to the room, he was instantly surrounded by teammates. Conrad ruffled his hair and said, "Good job, bud!"

Jan called to him. "Sneaky Tate! You move like a snake, buddy." He thought about it, tasting the words in his mouth. "Tate the Snake. Has a ring to it."

Boris wrapped him up in a big bear hug and was almost teary-eyed as he said, "You were amazing out there. More amazing than you realize. I can already tell you're going to be an inspiration to a lot of people. Don't let the bastards get you down, alright?"

To which Tate had replied very awkwardly, "Thanks."

Is that a song here, too? Lexie wondered.

After the group was done fawning over him, he finally came to sit by Lexie, who was perched on the side of the couch.

"That was really good," she told him.

"Thanks," he grinned. "One down. Three more to go till semi-finals."

Lexie nodded. Her fight would be coming up soon.

Lexie watched the next few fights after Tate's with not much enthusiasm. They just didn't match his in terms of entertainment value, and even the crowd noticed because some of them began to leave.

The first fight was between someone called Elara Prince and Echo, who used sound waves and pulses to attack her opponent. It was interesting for the first few minutes, but then it got dull. Lexie finally understood what Top Dog meant when he'd told her having an interesting gimmick wasn't enough. The fight felt too clumsy; they weren't keeping the audience in mind at all, and they were each focused on winning the fight as fast as possible. Furthermore, they just kept trying the same move over and over, like Arachnid did, even though it wasn't working.

Lexie was now realizing that Conrad needn't have worried about their performance today. His tutelage put them ahead of the pack, and he'd saved their assed by giving them tips and tricks to make their fights enjoyable as well as functional.

The match after that was between two brawlers, and it wasn't any more entertaining. More of the audience left by that point. Those who remained grumbled and often booed, which further distracted the fighters and made them even more desperate to win, which made them even clumsier. Finally, in the end, one of the brawlers eked out a victory. Lexie was just relieved that it was over.

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"That was brutal," Tate said, and Lexie had to agree.

This third match was slightly better, or at least, the fighters seemed more experienced. It was a martial artist versus an archer. By the nature of their fighting styles, there was more choreography involved and more use of the field. They engaged in an intricate dance that kept the audience on their toes. The archer would shoot the arrows, and the martial artist would contort and maneuver to avoid them.

Again, this was fun for the first few minutes, but then it soon got uninteresting too. There simply wasn't enough intensity, like the Tate's match had. It felt like they were so focused on the choreography that they forgot that they were supposed to fight.

In any case, the audience quickly got bored with them too, and the boos began.

"Tough crowd," Cara commented, and Lexie could tell she was getting nervous too. Lexie swallowed and reminded herself that it was easy. She just had to find a balance where there was enough passion and drive to win, but also enough choreography to make it fun to watch. That was the real conundrum that she faced here because while she was fairly certain she could win, she didn't know if she could make that win interesting enough.

No, it's fine, she thought to herself. She'd made another card that duplicated <Lightfoot>but also added to her dexterity. While it wasn't all that powerful, it would help her move more easily and faster around the pitch.

Remember, this is supposed to be a fun thing, okay? Try not to take it too seriously.

Yeah, right. As if there was any hope of that.

Finally, after what felt like centuries of anxiety-laden thoughts, the moment finally came.

"Lexie." The usher knocked on the door and gestured for her. "You're up next."

Lexie exhaled and got to her feet. She took off her tracksuit to reveal her costume and wondered if the rest of the teammates could see her heart pounding out of her chest.

Conrad approached her, placing both hands on her shoulders. "You'll do great. Just remember what I told you."

"Always take the cheapest shot you can?"

Conrad smirked. "That too. But most importantly, remember that people are watching you and you're playing a character out there. It doesn't have to be who you are, it just has to be something they can buy, and are moved by. Alright?"

She nodded. His gaze skimmed over Lexie, and she gave him what she'd hoped was an encouraging smile.

"Break a leg," Cara called. "Not literally, of course."

"Of course." She waved at the other girl and fist-bumped Boris on her way out.

She was led down the hallway and through a door that was basically like a dark tunnel underneath the bleachers of the arena. As they walked, Lexie let her thoughts fill with Conrad's words and let the story craft in her mind. It needed emotional stakes. Dialogue. Fun. It was supposed to be a performance.

She took some pointers from Tate's fight and made it her own. By the time she saw the light and the grass, she knew what she was going to do.

When she got to the end of the tunnel, she spotted her opponent on the opposite side of the field, in a tunnel of his own. He wasn't as tall as he looked in photos, maybe about five-eight. But he sure was stocky. He was wearing army fatigue pants and a green top, with fingerless gloves and a red bandana on his head. Not bad, Lexie thought.

Upon spotting her, he waved, and she waved back.

"Ladies and gentlemen," the announcer's voice traveled across the field. "We have another fight between our upcoming brawler, Tank, and, of course, a once-in-a-lifetime card fighter known as Lexie."

Since Tank's name was called first, he walked out onto the field first to the enthusiastic response of the audience.

Lexie waited a little and followed. When she walked out, it struck her that there were more people in the audience than she thought. Or maybe they weren't more, but it felt like more since they were all staring at her now.

She saw her face on the big black screen, saw her overwhelmed expression. She reeled it in and gave them a smile and a wave.

Some waved back. Most just clapped politely when she walked on, although someone shouted, "Lexie!"

When she peered against the sun, she saw it was Doyle and Abernathy sitting in the front seats, holding a sign that had her name on it.

She couldn't help but smile as she waved at them. Though she hadn't wanted the added pressure of them being here, it was kinda sweet that they showed up.

Finally, she faced her opponent. The countdown began.

She took a deep breath and tried to embody the persona she needed to be for this fight. She'd watched herself do it unintentionally during the 'capture the flag' game with Conrad. There, it looked like she was just playful little girl that would still kick your ass and outsmart you at every turn.

She just hoped she could pull it off.

"How do you feel facing up against a little girl?" Lexie made sure she said it loud enough for her voice to carry not just to him, but to the crowd. Though her heart raced, she used her Elle Woods smile. "They must not think much of you, huh?"

Tank seemed surprised that she was talking to him. No one else had talked during the countdown. As he stared at her, she tried to send him a signal without being obvious about it. Just play along. Come on, say something back.

Thankfully, he got it.

"Or maybe because they know I have little sisters," he said, giving her a condescending, mature adult smile. "My parents work a lot, so I'm the one who has to teach them not to bite off more than I can chew. Sometimes that involves a little discipline. Like what I'm gonna do with you."

Nice. He phrased it in a way where he didn't look like a bully, but instead seemed like a strict older brother.

"You realize to win, that you're gonna beat up a little girl?" Lexie asked.

"Like I said. Discipline." He winked. "Although I'll take it easy on you, since it's your first offense."

That got some people in the audience chuckling, and Lexie smiled.

"How about we play a game then, big bro?" Lexie said the last two words with just enough joking sarcasm. "I'm going to make a bet, right now, that you're not going to lay a single finger on me during the fight. Not even once. If you do, I'll tap out and let you have the win."

He smirked and cracked his knuckles. He was very interested in that because it meant he got the win without seriously injuring her and looking like a dick. "Oh yeah?"

As the countdown struck one, she grinned, "Oh yeah."

The bell rang, and Lexie activated the new <Lightfoot>. The Brawler was fast, but with the new <Lightfoot> dialed up to 70%, Lexie could easily avoid him.

He tried to grab her leg, and she dodged by flipping up and over his shoulder. He spun around and tried to grab her again, but she dropped low to the ground and then skirted back, out of the way.

Ha. That was pretty athletic. Conrad would be so proud.

The active time of her current card said twenty more seconds. Lexie knew that she could use <Can't Touch This> to more easily avoid him, but she was saving that for later.

She wasn't activating her stronger cards yet, to save energy and also to get a read of how fast Tank moved and how he fought. Even as a brawler, he wasn't as fast as Lane or even Ken. Lexie had some experience dodging those boys. She could do the same with this one.

Tank was still underestimating her at this point, so this much was enough. He also had a reason for the fight to go on longer. So they continued their game, Lexie skipping away from him as he charged toward her, his finger skimming her shirt before she escaped again, making the spectators cheer.

"Do a backflip next time!" Someone shouted, but Lexie drowned them out, focusing on Tank.

"Can't catch me," she sang. "Can't catch me, can't catch me, can't catch me."

"Yeah? We'll see about that."

Tank rushed at her again, and at one point, Lexie saw the PHORB hanging right over her. She jumped, winked at it, and escaped with a ballerina twirl in the air that she'd seen Boris do once.

Sorry for stealing that, Boris, she thought as she landed on her tippy toes, only for her heart to jump out of her chest when she saw that Tank was right above her.

She squeaked and shot back. She thought she heard the gasp, but she wasn't sure.

Tank, despite being more of a grappler, wasn't terrible at kickboxing either. During her escape, he tried to hook one of Lexie's legs to trip her. Lexie avoided and activated <Can't Touch This>, which yanked her back right as he reached her.

He frowned and rushed at her again, but the card wasn't letting him have her. When he zigged, she zagged. If he tried attacking from the top, she would still be gone by the time he reached her.

It lasted for another 30 seconds, and on the heel of that, it was <Lightfoot> once more, turned up to 80% to meet up with his speed.

The audience cheered. Lexie was feeling good about successfully avoiding all Tank's grabs and lunges. She was also successfully pulling off the little girl character, if the audience's reaction was any indication.

"Aw, how cute!"

"Yeah, make big brother suffer, Lexie!"

It carried on for some time, and the moves were starting to feel more instinctive, but Lexie felt the mana drain because she wasn't letting herself cool off. She needed to cool off. She also needed to change her fighting tactics so she didn't bore the audience. People would soon start getting tired of seeing the same two cards.

But as Lexie was deep in her thoughts, she didn't notice her mistake. Tank had been wordlessly attacking and driving her into the corner until her back was against the wall. As his fist shot out and slammed into the wall, Lexie squeaked and dropped to the floor, escaping between his legs.

Okay, time for something else.

She opened her old inventory as she ran, selecting a card that she had never used. <Fairest of Them All>. She needed to borrow its visual manipulation attributes. She combined it with the mirroring ability of <Shut Up and Dance>. Then she unleashed it right as she rushed away, and Tate gave chase.

Tank ran after Lexie while she was still on the floor. Lexie ran from him, hopping walls, backflipping, doing even better than she'd done just minutes earlier. Plus, she was faster than ever.

Tank upped his speed to close to his maximum and reached out to grab her.

"Got you!"

He lunged at her, but his arm passed right through the mirage of her evaporating into the air.

That faster, superior Lexie was gone, a figment of an imagination.

"Over here," the real Lexie called out from her safe corner, which Tank hadn't even bothered to look at courtesy of <Fairest of Them All>. "Told you that you can't catch me."

He gaped at her in shock.

"My turn," she said, and she ran toward him, activating <Let's have a blast> combined with <True Windbreaker> to add more force to the attack.

He jerked and sped toward her, too. Before they got close, Lexie jumped and turned herself upside down in mid-air.

It was a move called Hunter's pirouette, a move coined by Jane Phoenix, aka Lexie's mother.

Lexie mimicked it for the people online so that they would have something to say. That would raise her fame.

She got a clean shot at Tank's forehead, turned it up to 70%, and let loose the fireworks.

The projectile slammed into his forehead, knocking him off his feet. Confetti exploded out of it and invaded his nose and mouth. His health bar blinked. And that was it.

Good because Lexie was exhausted. It felt like she'd gone on for long, but it had only been five minutes. Shit. That was almost nothing,

Lexie was disappointed in her results, but the crowd exploded in uproarious applause.

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