Destiny (Anime Style)

Chapter 8: Burning Spirit

It was almost time. There were exactly 31 applicants for guardian trainees, and Ravi was one of them. They all listened carefully as Derek, the one in charge of the practical exam, explained what was it going to be about.

Leah said he had 3 years of experience, so he was probably 18 or 19 years old. He had short blond hair and green small eyes which together formed a very mean, serious and kind of ferocious face. He was also taller than all the applicants and had a very muscular body. Just for the exam, he was also wearing the same tight training shirt with short sleeves, training boots and black training pants, that all the applicants were wearing.

"OK LISTEN UP!" he yelled in a threatening voice. "I'm only gonna explain the rules of this exam once! So, you better pay attention!"

Everyone listened closely. The exam was almost always different, so there was no way to predict what was it going to be about.

At that moment, Derek took out some pieces of armor and put them in the lower part of both of his arms. "This is what it's going to be about!" he said with a malicious smile. "You'll be standing in front of me in teams of 2, and you are gonna fight ME"

After saying this, everyone around, including the spectators, were surprised and began murmuring.

"He has to be joking" one person said.

"There's no way they can beat Derek in a battle. Not even been 2 against 1" said another.

"Well, seems like we won't have any new recruits this month" another one added.

Leah heard all of this and began worrying.

Then, Derek continued explaining. "You don't need to worry. Not even I am as bad as to expect you to beat me, but these arm protectors are another story" he said while showing his arms. "All you have to do is c***k them. If you manage to break or even cause the slightest fissure on any of these, then you pass. I have many more, so you don't need to worry if one team breaks them too early, because I'll have another waiting"

Those arm protectors, besides just looking cool, seemed hard and very heavy.

Leah, who was listening to everything, began thinking. 'This is totally different than my exam, but it also sounds a lot simpler. Where is the difficulty? Could it be that... Derek is not going to hold back at all?' She began worrying even more. Even if they were 2 against 1, they had no chance of winning against that bully.

"Ok! Now I want you all to go to one side of the arena! I'll be calling 2 of you randomly!" Just as Derek said this, another person entered the field.

"I hope you weren't thinking of beginning without me, Derek!" the mysterious woman claimed in an imposing voice, only to reveal it was a middle-aged and dark-skinned bald woman with a very long violet-purplish coat of modern design and some accessories all around.

"Of course not, Ikora" Derek replied with a mischievous grin.

The mysterious person's name was Ikora. She was one of the 3 main Vanguard commanders. Another one of those was Cayde, who Ravi met previously.

"You may already know me" the bald woman told the applicants. "I'm Ikora Rey. And I'm also gonna be forming part of this exam"

"Excuse me Ikora, but you'll only be in charge of the safety" Derek replied, defiantly.

"And that's enough for me. I know you, Derek. You are a very powerful guardian, but unfortunately, you are too cruel and like fighting a lot"

Derek just smiled maliciously at those words. "That's only because I'm strong!" he claimed with confidence. "If these weaklings want to be guardians, they need to know how hard it's going to be! And if they can't adapt, then they should just give up!"

Ikora took a long sigh of disappointment. "Hopefully someone will put you in your place one day" she finally muttered while heading towards one side of the arena.

"Very well, let's begin!" Derek claimed, excited.

And so, all the applicants got in position and prepared to be called randomly in pairs. Then, the first team, a boy and a girl, finally approached the very middle of the arena, where Derek was waiting for them.

"Are you ready?" the girl asked the boy.

"Ready!" the boy claimed with determination.

"That's the spirit!" Derek added. "Don't forget that if you wanna give up, you just gotta yell it. And if by any chance both of you end up unconscious or down on the floor for 10 seconds or more, then that means you lost"

A few seconds later, the alarm that signified the beginning of the fight sounded, and the pair of applicants immediately rushed to attack Derek, aiming for his arms, directly. However, the muscular trainee easily dodged the attack with an amazing speed, only to hit both applicants at the same time with his bulky arms mere moments later, leaving them down for the count and unable to continue.

Simultaneously, the others taking the exam just couldn't believe it. They clearly didn't expect the exam to be this brutal.

"Hey, you... you can't be serious!" one of them claimed in disbelief.

"This is not fair!" another girl added with her eyes wide open.

On the other hand, the spectators weren't really surprised, since this is what they were expecting after all. Leah too was really worried and she also began regretting helping Ravi with the registration at that moment.

The boy who was apparently defeated however, began standing back up again, only to be noticed by Derek who then rushed to attack him once again some moments later. "YEAH, THAT'S IT APPLICANT! A FIGHT ISN'T OVER UNTIL ONE OF US CAN'T FIGHT ANYMORE!" the one in charge yelled while attempting to punch the poor boy.

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" Ikora shouted, and then, a purple barrier suddenly appeared between the boy and Derek almost like a force field, protecting the boy from the brutal attack mere moments before it could make contact.

"HUH?! YOU CAN'T BE SERIOUS! THIS WAS THE BEST PART!"

"The fight's over Derek, you won. Now call the next pair before I decide to fight you"

"Tch!" Derek complained.

The current pair returned to one side of the arena. And the next one entered. That's what this exam was all about: just Derek having fun with the applicants and toying with them while beating them up. And the worst part was that he wasn't even getting tired... Not even one bit.

In any case, right after the 10th team lost, one of the applicants began murmuring to himself. "Damn it... What a stupid test. I can't believe that i***t expect us to fight him"

Ravi, who heard this, began talking with him. "There has to be a trick, don't you think?"

"A trick?"

"Yeah. It's absurd to fight him if it's impossible to win"

"Heh... there is no trick. That's how exams with this asshole are. He just wants an excuse to beat us up"

"How do you know?"

"Because I've been an spectator many times, and he always does the same" After saying this, the guy took a long sigh. "I wanted to be a guardian because of my family, you know? We live in a poor sector of the city, and I thought I would be able to help them if I took on this job... But, when one encounters bullies like this moron. All of one's illusions and dreams just disappear"

The bluenette found himself in shock at what the guy said. And then, he took some time to look at all the defeated applicants who were just lamenting themselves. Some of them were complaining with rage. One of them, a girl, was even crying desperately and inconsolably. That's when Ravi noticed that being a guardian was a lot more than just a way to protect the city, it was also a need that some people had, or a dream that some others wanted to make true.

Finally, after the 15th pair of applicants was defeated, leaving only 1 remaining; Ravi stood up and headed to the middle of the arena... by himself.

"So, you are the last one" Derek muttered as Ravi just stared, seriously, at the malicious man in front of him. "Mmmh... Being just you isn't going to be fun at all... I know! Why don't you ask for a pair?!"

"A pair?" Ravi asked, a bit puzzled.

"That's right! There are many trainees watching as spectators, maybe one of them is willing to help you"

The bluenette turned around, immediately, and faced Leah, directly. Then, he had an idea... A very risky and crazy idea. "You know? You are not as strong as I thought" the bluenette boy claimed while smiling and raising his hands in sign of sarcasm.

"Huh?"

"You heard me. You are actually more of a coward!"

"What... WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY!" Derek yelled in fury as everyone around found themselves shocked, including Leah and Ikora of course. None of them could believe Ravi was making fun of Derek. "HOW DARE YOU, YOU i***t!" the bully added with a face full of anger.

"Oh, come on! It's not my fault that you need to beat up amateurs in order to feel good with yourself!"

"THAT'S IT! TAKE THAT BACK RIGHT NOW OR I'LL KILL YOU!"

"Sure, with one condition" Ravi finally stated while smiling.

"Huh?"

"How about we... make a bet" the blue-haired boy finally claimed as Derek widened his eyes, slightly, only to start laughing mere moments later.

"A bet? HAHAHAHA... NOW THIS IS INTERESTING! WHAT KIND OF BET?!"

"It's very simple... I'll choose 1 person from the ones spectating, and we'll fight you just like you want. If you win, I'll take back what I said and give up on becoming a guardian. But if we win..."

...

...

...

"...I want every single applicant here to pass the exam"

"Ohhh?"

Everyone around was surprised. This was the first time someone had ever asked and/or done something like this after all.

"So, what do you say?" Ravi asked while hoping for the bully in front of him to agree.

"Heh... Of course I accept! I'll turn you into my punching bag!" Derek finally claimed while clenching one fist.

Meanwhile, Ikora was staring at Ravi with curiosity. She never met someone like him. And what is more, this bet was technically not part of the exam at all. But, she still allowed it just because she had a wish to see how this whole situation was going to end.

"Very well, it's time to choose my partner" Ravi then claimed as he turned around and immediately faced Leah once again. "HEY LEAH! COME DOWN HERE AND LEND ME A HAND!"

"Huh? M-me?" the young girl asked in surprise.

Then, everyone's gaze turned to her and she immediately felt the pressure. Therefore, after getting all nervous and taking a long sigh, she finally accepted to enter the arena and change into the training clothes Ravi was wearing. She was now ready to fight as well.

"HAHAHAHAHA..." Derek began laughing hysterically. "She's your partner?! I was expecting something better since you were so confident about winning!"

Leah felt a little annoyed by that comment. "Ok Leah, it's time to show this guy what we are made of!" Ravi claimed while facing the young girl.

"Yeah!" she firmly replied.

And so, it was finally time for the final fight. All the spectators were carefully watching, as well as Ikora and the others taking the exam. Ravi and Leah prepared to attack until suddenly, the alarm sounded and the clash began.

The bluenette and the young girl immediately rushed to attack Derek. 'Heh... how predictable' this last one thought with a devilish grin. But then, Leah moved to the left and tried to kick Derek from one side instead. The bully managed to block the attack, but it was a lot stronger than he originally thought. 'What the...?' Just as this happened, Ravi attacked from up front and aimed for the arm protectors directly, landing the hit, but not with enough power to break them.

"Ggh!" the blue-haired boy groaned as he backed up a bit.

Leah, who was still close to Derek, saw an opening and restrained him from his arm.

"Tch!" Derek grumbled.

"RAVI, DO IT NOW!" the young girl yelled to her dear friend. "ATTACK ONCE MORE, BUT THIS TIME... BURN HIM!"

Ravi immediately understood what she meant. She wanted him to use his fire, and it was actually the best choice. He wasn't gonna be able to break those pieces of armor without some extra power after all.

At any rate, he rushed to punch Derek once more. 'I won't hold back!' the boy thought with a determined look on his face. 'This stupid exam was designed to be impossible from the beginning. But I'm sure you never expected someone like me to appear! I'll show you! I'll show you I'm not the same as everyone else!'

Ravi was determined to break those protectors. But then, Derek's face changed into a more serious one as he lifted his entire arm along with Leah.

"What the...?" the young girl claimed in disbelief as she realized she wasn't restraining Derek anymore, it was him who had her at his mercy instead.

"I THOUGHT THIS BLUE-HAIRED i***t'S PARTNER WOULD BE STRONG! BUT APPARENTLY YOU ARE JUST AS WEAK AS HIM!" Derek yelled at Leah while throwing her directly towards Ravi.

"ACK!" Both Ravi and Leah groaned as they crashed into each other and fell to the floor.

"What happened to all your motivation, eh? Weren't you sure you could beat me?!"

Both Ravi and Leah got up slowly as Derek kept talking.

"Listen carefully you 2! In a fight, the most important thing is power! It doesn't matter how well you fight together, if you aren't strong enough, you'll lose!" He approached them slowly as he kept talking. "Guardians nowadays are so fragile and pure, and I'm sick of that! The only way to ensure the city's safety is to not show mercy to our enemies! JUST LIKE I WON'T SHOW MERCY TO YOU!" As he said this, he finally used his own guardian powers and appeared in front of Ravi in a flashing thunder.

That's right, he had the same lightning abilities as Leah, but on a whole different level. Then, he landed a potent punch in Ravi's gut which inevitably left the bluenette out of air.

"GUH!" Ravi grumbled in pain as he was then sent flying directly into a wall.

"RAVI!" Leah yelled with desperation.

"It's your turn now, pretty face!" Derek said with a malicious grin as he tried to punch Leah this time. But then, she activated her own powers too and barely managed to dodge the attack, only to fell on the floor after that. "Hmph! I see you have the same power as me. It doesn't matter, you and I are on totally different levels!"

This was bad, and Ikora clearly knew it given that she was about to stop the match. Nonetheless, she then turned to see Ravi still laying apparently defeated over the rubble, and for some reason, she decided to let things continue. The woman in the purple coat had a feeling that something amazing was about to happen, and she definitely wanted to witness it.

On the other side, just as Ravi was laying in pain against the wall, he also had some intense and troubling thoughts coursing through his mind at that very moment. 'This... this has to be a joke. This guy really doesn't care if I die'

For some reason, he started remembering all the great stuff he saw at the city: the many friendly people, the beautiful places, the exquisite food.

'Leah, you showed me all the good stuff around, but you forgot to tell me about the bad things. You didn't tell me there were bad guys who weren't necessarily Fallen' The young boy slightly moved his head just to watch Derek. 'People like this i***t who just use their own strength to take advantage of others' An expression of frustration appeared in Ravi's face. 'I was... so excited... But apparently, what that other guy told me was true. It can all go to waste because something unfair happens. I guess... it just wasn't meant to be'

Ravi closed his eyes, he seemed to have lost all hope of winning. But then, something he once told Leah came into his mind out of nowhere... Something that defined himself more than any other thing he had ever said in his entire life...

...

"I've survived my whole life through persistence and hard work"

...

He then opened his eyes again, instantly. 'Wait a sec... Since when did I let someone else decide my limit?' he thought while clenching his fists. 'My whole life, It's always been me who decided. And that won't change any time soon!'

Meanwhile, Derek was about to attack Leah. "It's time to wrap things up! I don't think your boyfriend can move anymore, you are all alone!" the bully yelled to Leah.

This last one on the other hand, was completely out of options. The only thing she could think of was to follow the rules and give up in order to end the exam. But then, Derek released even more lightning and molded it into some kind of electric sphere around him.

"I'LL FINISH YOU WITH MY GREATEST ATTACK!" he yelled while rushing towards Leah with the intention of tackling her with that giant energy ball surrounding his body.

At this point, Leah was desperately trying to think of some other option, some other way to win... but she just couldn't find any. 'This guy... is a monster!' she thought with fear as Derek was still heading towards her. 'I... I've only been a trainee for 1 month, there's no way I can beat this guy! I... I'm sorry, Ravi, but I can't fight anymore!'

However, just as Leah was about to give up, Ravi appeared and stood up between her and the incoming attack with the intention of intercepting it.

"WHAT THE... RAVI!"

The blue-haired boy immediately activated his fire in his whole body, but mainly in his arms, and stopped the giant electric ball on its tracks, turning the whole fight inti some kind of clash of resistance.

A huge shockwave just covered the whole arena and even reached the seats around. Both Ravi and Derek were clashing like 2 cars trying to push each other, and everyone around just watched in shock at the impressive display of power from both of them; all while dust and wind were spreading through the room, and the floor began cracking.

As Ravi was trying to push back the giant mass of energy, Derek just kept on advancing. The blue-haired boy was losing terrain little by little.

'I will become... a guardian!' Ravi though while suffering to resist the attack.

'This guy! He's not even a trainee but he already has his powers?!' Derek thought in disbelief.

Then, some images came into Ravi's mind, images of when he was a kid and used to care only for himself. 'I don't wanna be that selfish punk anymore! I wanna change, and I'll start by fighting this i***t in front of me! For the sake of others!' Ravi's hands began burning again. He was once again releasing more heat than he could control.

Suddenly, Derek came out of his sphere and went for a direct punch covered in lightning. "JUST FALL AND STAY DOWN ALREADY!" he yelled to Ravi with rage.

"AHHHH!" Ravi yelled back, furiously, as he too went for a punch, but surrounded with flames.

The next second, both of their fists collided, but not against each other, against Ikora's barrier.

"WHAT THE...?" Derek claimed to Ikora. "WHY DID YOU PUT UP YOUR BARRIER?!"

"OF COURSE I PUT IT UP! JUST LOOK AT HIM!" Ikora said, referring to Ravi. He was barely holding on while slowly falling down and losing consciousness. "He can't fight anymore! The battle is over! He lost"

Just then, Leah intervened. "HE DIDN'T LOSE... CAUSE HE WASN'T FIGHTING ALONE!" She then claimed with determination as Ikora and Derek watched her in surprise.

The human girl had caught Ravi before falling completely, and then she also activated her light-blue lighting only in her right hand, charging and charging energy without stopping. She was aiming for one last and desperate attack, after which she yelled some potent and very impactful words to everyone around.

"I WANT EVERYONE PRESENT TO KNOW SOMETHING!"

"The fight is over Leah! Stop this!" Ikora yelled only to be ignored.

"I DON'T CARE! BECAUSE EVERYONE WATCHING THIS EXAM, AS WELL AS THE ASSHOLE IN CHARGE OF IT, MADE A TERRIBLE MISTAKE!" At that moment, the young girl raised her hand charged with lightning while holding Ravi with the other and then continued. "YOU ALL UNDERESTIMATED THE GUARDIAN NAMED RAVI AZAROV... AND HIS BURNING SPIRIT!" she then finally shouted while hitting the floor with the palm of her hand.

As soon as she did that, an extremely huge spark of lightning came out of it and went through the floor hitting Derek directly, causing a big explosion, and making the bully crash directly into the wall behind him, breaking it completely. When the dust settled, Leah was panting with exhaustion while still holding Ravi tightly. She had never made such a powerful attack before in her life, though she also had no idea how she accomplished such feat.

"And now... the exam... is truly over" the girl finally stated while panting.

On the other hand, Ravi was still barely conscious and hearing all of this. But then, a slight and gentle smile appeared on his face as he finally passed out completely while still being carried, gently, by his dear friend.