We had just finished our training session when we spotted Jane, Dane, and Ashylene's sisters heading to the next room. We were shocked to see them training, since they usually lazed around all day and relied on their family's reputation. 

This was bad news for us, because Jane and Dane were friends with some of the top 10 contenders, even if they didn't hang out much. They would probably show no mercy in the tournament. 

"Wow, it looks like the others are taking this seriously," Sandra said as she put her bag on the bench. "We're screwed, guys," Dwayne said as he stretched his limbs. I followed suit and dropped my bag, then started to stretch as well. Sandra and I were talking about the tournament, but I was secretly hoping for a way out of this mess. I knew I had no chance of winning.

 "Guys, you know I'm the weakest here, right? I can't use my abilities as well as you can," I said to everyone, hoping they would agree.

 "I mean, I won't be able to take down anyone, let alone win," I added, looking at Ashylene with a serious expression.

Ashylene walked towards us and said, "We're in this together, whether you're weak or not. Everyone has to participate in this tournament, and there's no way out."

She walked away from us, creating some distance, and then added, "The only person you should be afraid of fighting is me.

Now come at me with everything you've got, and I'll show you why the others are nothing to worry about." We stared at each other, baffled by her words.

 Sandra drew her sword and said to Dwayne and me, "I don't know what she has told you since you became friends, but one thing I can assure you is that she's the strongest in the school, and maybe even in the world." 

Dwayne looked at me and covered his body with his metal suit. He said, "Today we'll show you what we've learned so far. Tinashe, stop whining and show her what you can do."

Sandra looked at me with hope and a spark in her eyes, as if she believed in me. I felt a surge of happiness. I rolled up my sleeves and shouted, "Let's beat the crap out of our friend." 

Sandra moved with explosive speed and swung her new sword at Ashylene. Ashylene dodged it by jumping back, but before she could land, Dwayne shot ten star-shaped metal projectiles at her.

 She heated the air around her and melted the metal, but as soon as she touched the ground, Sandra swung her sword at her again.

Ashylene tried to melt Sandra's sword, but it didn't work. Ashylene jumped back again, surprised by how Sandra's sword resisted the temperature change.

 Dwayne walked forward as the room was filled with silence. I watched him as I charged up my ability. "I've changed the structure of the blade and made it more durable and heat-resistant.

 In simple terms, your ability to change the temperature of incoming objects won't affect my new blade," Dwayne said confidently as he materialized some more star-like weapons with the same properties as Sandra's sword

Ashylene smiled at us with a clear and honest expression that was so cute it made me blush. "Okay, it seems you've improved greatly.

Come on, let's go for round two," she said as she leaned forward, ready to attack us.

"She's coming at us this time," Sandra said, taking a fighting stance. Dwayne also prepared to fight.

"I'm done," I shouted as my whole body was covered with electricity and my eyes turned blue. I moved with explosive speed and kicked Ashylene, but she blocked it.

Sandra saw an opportunity and jumped in to join the attack. Dwayne also came near us, shooting his metal rods at Ashylene.

He manipulated his armor to make him faster and float in the air so he could keep up with us. "You thought I wouldn't find a way to match you in close range fights," he said.

But Ashylene was adapting and increasing her speed. I couldn't maintain my new form for long because it required me to charge it before use.

"Guys, I'm almost out of gas," I said as I kicked Ashylene again, but she blocked it with her hands without flinching.

"Let's finish this now in one strike and take her down," Dwayne said as he summoned more rods and made their tips sharper to increase their aerodynamics.

Sandra took a martial art pose called the lion's lightning and the air around her changed.

I concentrated all the energy I had on one point on my leg and crouched, touching the ground with one leg and stepping back like an athlete ready to run.

"So this is going to be your final attack," Ashylene said as she leaned back. "Show me what you can do to me."

I noticed something strange about the area she was standing on. I felt some charges around her, but I didn't pay much attention to it.

We all launched our attack at the same time. The ground beneath us shook from the shockwave we produced when we ran towards her. Sandra and I jumped in the air and attacked her from above, while Dwayne's rods approached her from below.

I saw Ashylene smile as we approached her, but then something unexpected happened. We stopped midway, paralyzed by the electric charges she had created.

She had formed a barrier around herself to block our attacks, and since they were not strong enough, we failed.

Ashylene vanished from my sight as my speed reaction returned to normal. Then she kicked me in the gut and I flew in the air and hit the wall.

Sandra looked at me and then at Ashylene, who was already close to her face. She spun around and kicked her too, and Sandra flew away.

Ashylene disappeared again to attack Dwayne. She reached him in a second, but her legs were suddenly bound by something. She looked down and saw a metal chain wrapped around her ankles.

She looked up at Dwayne, who had made a hammer-like weapon out of his armor and hit her hard with it. She was pushed back about eight meters.

Dwayne looked at Ashylene and then disappeared from her vision. This confused all of us. Dwayne was controlling his armor to move at extreme speeds. He only had to estimate the distance he needed to move and then prepare his attack.

"Dwayne's adaptability is surprising. He has somehow found more than one way to deal with fast opponents," Ashylene said as a barrage of rods attacked her. They all hit her barrier and sparked electricity.

"How did you do it?" she asked Dwayne. "Is adaptability part of your ability?" She raised her left hand and opened it at Dwayne. Then Dwayne removed his armor.

I was surprised and I shouted at Dwayne why he had removed it, but before I could finish my sentence, Dwayne was hit in the gut and kicked. He followed us and hit the wall.

"Well, we lost," I said as I dusted myself off.

Sandra laughed and said, "No way we can ever beat you. You have become too strong for us." She drank some water from her bag.

"Speak for yourself," Dwayne said as he removed his armor. He had apparently worn it again before he hit the wall, so he wasn't injured.

"Ha-ha-ha, like you can beat her," I said sarcastically.

Ashylene looked at me and said, "Dwayne is strong. He may soon become someone stronger than I am."

My jaw dropped in shock. Sandra looked at the wall that separated our room from the one where Jane, Dane, Sarah and Tanaka were training. It was freezing over. It seemed like Jane's ability.

"Oh shit, another monster like you, Ashylene," I said as I looked at the wall and back at Ashylene.

"Well, it seems like we aren't the only ones training," I said.

After an hour of intense exercise and training, we left the training room. We had trained enough to prepare ourselves for the tournament. Our rivals stayed behind and continued training. We said goodbye to each other and left.

Days went by as we trained every day and learned new things about our abilities. As days went by, the day of the tournament finally arrived