[third person POV]
[Day 4|August 5th]
Leaving to go to the specific aquatic center to start the match-up against Araxie, a serial snuff filmmaker? Check.
Allow your body to sleep but consciously stay awake? Check.
Not regretting the fact that you set up the time for the match to be dead set at 3:00 AM? Check.
Planning on buying those shoes that have the small wheels on them on Saturday? Check.
Admiring the aquatic center since it was another masterpiece of the excessive infrastructure of the International Requiem Academy? Check.
Isaac, was currently checking off the current checklist of his day while standing in front of the massive aquatic center, which was only one of twelve aquatic centers.
And according to Isaac, as of now, he has explored ten percent of the entire campus-city.
It was only 2:45 AM, since Isaac was always a fan of punctuality as arriving early is arriving on time, and arriving in time is late, and arriving late is… well a magician's unprofessionalism.
Usually, considering the contents of the Poseidon's Tarot Match-Up, one would wear swimming clothes like Araxie did.
Unfortunately, Isaac was not prepared for the clothes part, so he improvised and wore the most logical and rational outfit that a magician would wear in this situation.
He was wearing a dark red button-up shirt that is tucked into his black formal pants while wearing black shoes.
Truly a magician's aesthetic to the antithesis of the blue realm of Poseidon.
But to all magicians throughout history that understood aesthetics like these represents freedom of expectations and of unpredictability.
Since a magician is a pure organic anarchist that always walks path towards freedom through wonder and illusions and allows their audience to walk beside them voluntarily, since freedom requires choice, and a magician always gives them that choice since it is the nature of freedom and not conformity to tyranny or the deceptive nature of the jester's Machiavellian.
But in this case, it was against Poseidon; that was in the form of a serial snuff filmer that had a high neuro-cognitive system that made her have random ticks who would shoot at Isaac underwater with an air-compressed pistol while picking five tarot cards and getting electrocuted.
This would be a stage that Isaac would find rather exciting given the creativity of the environment he would be in for ten hours.
"I sense that I have more company than I thought…" Isaac murmured, making his way inside.
As he got in, he admired the interior and the length of the Olympic pool that was in here.
And then he saw Araxie who was sitting on the edge of the pool dipping her toes in there as if waiting for a fish to suck on her toes which she probably is imagining in her unique mind.
But it was just her who was there; there were four others around her that Isaac recognized from the Ruby Point Rankboard.
There was Abellona Morena(Rank 51), who was a fashion model due to her hourglass build, her red hair tied into a high ponytail, her golden tan skin that fit her bright brown eyes. And of course her height.
Now Isaac has seen tall people in his life, even reconstructed dead people and historical figures he never met in his life that rests in his magician's theater.
But he has never met an individual who trumps Sinclair's height considering Abellona's height was as Isaac visualized instantly, a height of 8'7", which would by all means be the tallest person in the current century.
And she had a bubbly personality that masked her intelligence, which processed faster than most quantum supercomputers.
When Abellona's eyes landed on Isaac, she already clocked in cause before Isaac could completely blink, he already found himself lifted up effortlessly and brought into a hug of doom.
"Oh my god!" Abellona cheered, swinging him around in the hug like a rag doll. "I finally get to meet the magician of Class H!"
Well I guess Milicia's claim of being the strongest one in this school was now proven false once more. Isaac thought, totally unfazed by the squeeze of doom that was set upon him. And from Miss. Morena's grip, build, back posture, shoulder, leg position, and leg muscles; she is most likely a master in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Muay Thai, Judo, and Boxing. I can already tell that if she and Milicia were to fight, Miss. Morena would end it in five seconds.
It was indeed intriguing to see how far the people of the outside world can go beyond the physical limits of output that the Moonlight Society has long mastered.
And Isaac has mastered all the martial arts of the known world, along with the Moonlight Societies two hundred esoteric martial art styles.
All of the martial arts of the known world that Isaac mastered was in his own head of the magician's theater where Isaac would reconstruct the greatest masters of each martial art style and would train for what felt like twelve years but it was really just in the span of a few hours at night, since Isaac is able to slow his internal cognitive perception of time in his mind to do all the training he can do in one night.
But when it came to the Moonlight Societies brutal martial arts curriculum, that physical training lasts for twenty hours straight while maintaining two hours of ancient post-graduate academic in hundreds of fields; to which Isaac has mastered the academic curriculum at the age of six, considering he has mastered: Transfinite Arithmetic, Set Theoretic Foundations, Non-Linear Differential Topology, Quantum Computational Logic, Harmonic Analysis, Spectral Theory, Category Theory, Higher Algebra, Algorithmic Information Theory, Geometric Measure Theory, Fractal Geometry, Quantum Field Theory, General Relativity Modeling, Genetic Engineering, Molecular Biology, Neurobiology, Thermodynamics, Statistical Mechanics, Exoplanetary Astronomy, Comparative Political Theory, Economic Theory, Operations Research, Jurisprudence, Legal Systems Engineering, metahistoriography, Sociological Dynamics, Anthropological Analysis, Comparative Literature, Prosodic Engineering, Musical Theory, Aesthetic Theory, Linguistic Theory, and Language Construction.
Of course, it wasn't easy for Isaac at first, but with his capacity to learn and eventually the mastery of his spider geometry, he became quick enough to master all the academic fields they had. And of course his spider geometry still expands that he can instantaneously keep track of ninety-five thought streams now if needed.
"It's a pleasure to meet a fan," Isaac said, unfazed by the squeezing. "But is it possible you could put me down? It would be inconvenient if I were paralyzed and had to partake in a match-up where my paralyzation becomes a handicap."
"O-oh!" Abellona, seeing what she was doing, became flustered and gently put Isaac down. "I apologize! I was so excited to meet you, who is going up against my friend Araxie!"
"None taken, it is understandable that you would want to be excited."
Abellona stared at him for a few seconds. "Wow… you really are understanding as Araxie said."
"Hopefully it was just positive remarks."
"Abellona, control your fangirl side; or else you'll accidentally crush someone." a female Baltic voice that held bluntness and an Estonian's serenity that one would not see in someone that has a mix of an athletic build and a dramatic hourglass physique, and she had long blonde hair that she was trying into a ponytail and had blue eyes. Her name is Lina Runerth(Rank 53), coming from Estonia, and being born and bred in a militaristic occult known as The Church of the Moon.
Yes, as one can guess or infer; they are born from the Moonlight Society, or rather created many centuries ago in order to control Eastern Europe and parts of Eurasia through social and spiritual traditions. They created a cult through indirect religious warfare and psychological conditioning, they remained loyal to the Moonlight Society's cause, even in the modern times they are loyal to the cause without knowing the Moonlight Society exists, given how concealed they made themselves despite how powerful they are and were responsible for all recorded events of human history.
And Lina Runerth was their most devoted and strongest member of the present.
Isaac himself is aware of the controlled cult's existence but is unaware that the person in front of him is their most devoted member and it was a good thing, Isaac was still wearing his colored contact lens, since if he didn't; Lina would recognize him instantly.
And now one would ask how she would know if she is not aware of the Moonlight Society? Well the answer is far more complicated than needed.
And it comes to the Bible, known as the Lamentations of the moonlight, that Isaac's cult made before he escaped; well they somewhat made it. Since the first 4,000 chapters of the Lamentations are directed to the pre-existence of the Moonlight Society that was considered the original civilization and then going by our current times, about 60,000 years ago, there was a civil war that resulted in ten houses; who were the house of Carmona, Sultan, Atika, Lemoine, Izumi, Iglesias, Song, Nairobi, and Anahi, splitting away from the other ten houses, allowing themselves to roam the world while the ten houses that remained where they were formed the Moonlight Society. And now the second 4,000 chapters were about a prophecy that would free the native moonlight society members, to which was actually created by Isaac Mahoka himself, who wrote the last 4,000 chapters but gave credit to his apostles for making it.
And Isaac stole a secret copy of the Lamentations and made copies of it and framed it like it were made by ancient scholars hoping it would land in the school's library retrieval, which it did.
But it also landed in the Church of the Moonlight. And Lina read all of it and became devoted to the Clockwork God of the Moonlight.
In simple terms, Isaac would be in a problematic situation if she figured out that Isaac Mahoka is that person.
"I wouldn't crush him!" She protested, but was flustered with embarrassment. "Okay, maybe a little, but still!"
Lina sighed, turning her attention to Isaac extending her hand out. "That's Abellona. I'm Lina. The other two are Mathias and Nicandro."
The one named Mathias Emilliano(Rank 52), had dark skin, green eyes, and short white hair. He just nodded in acknowledgment of Isaac's presence. Since he has always been the quiet one.
And then there was Nicandro Parmenius(Rank 54), who was charismatically outgoing and was a master of all known martial arts. He had short black-blonde hair, brown eyes, bright tan skin, and of course an athletic build. "Welcome to our apparent doom with our great host known as Araxie."
Isaac listened, shook Lina's hand and kept his serene smile. "A pleasure to meet you all. And I do hope that our doom remains rather theatrical and not bland."
What a restraint this person has over his own strength… Lina thought, analyzing Isaac's grip while pulling away gently.
"You know Isaac," Nicandro said, looking at Isaac's fashion choice as if it were a new species in an environment he was familiar with. "For an environment that is meant for swimming clothes. You sure went through the lengths to do the opposite."
It was true in comparison to Nicandro and Mathias; who were wearing black swim shorts. And Abellon who wore the same swimsuit as Araxie did but with a shining ruby red instead of luminous blue.
And Isaac in their eyes, looked like he was dressed up to gamble and simultaneously looked like he was ready to assassinate a high-profile individual.
"Extravagant is it not?" Isaac asked, taking off his shoes and socks and putting them near a wall. "I recalled that rule 25 of the match-up stated that we wear aquatic clothes."
"Right," Nicandro said, clapping his hands together pointing at Isaac. "Which you aren't wearing, therefore violating the rules."
It was logical, simple logic.
But Isaac being the master of logic to the point he can counter logic with in-depth abstract logic… by using the greatest trick in the book of loopholes.
Circumstantial situations.
"Ah! But you are mistaken, Mr. Parmenius," Isaac began countering. "For example; in situations where a driver and passenger are in normal clothes and are driving and unexpectedly land in the sea or any large liquid bodies. They need to escape from the cars by swimming in the water to find land, and they do so while wearing clothes. And another example, would be if said person fell in the water not knowing how to swim, drown, or become unconscious due to the blunt force of hitting the water; then a person who spotted what was going on jumps in to save them. And they happen to be wearing regular clothing too. And they had no tactical gear on nor any enhancement devices that helped their movement or oxygen intake. Therefore regular clothing can still be considered swim clothing, meaning my formal outfit is a form of swim clothing that is valid through circumstantial scenarios that do happen in real life. And it could happen during this match-up."
It was silent.
"You gotta admit," Abellona spoke up. "That is impressive out of box thinking using highly specific scenarios to validate a loophole in fashion requirements in this."
"He's certainly creative… very creative…" Lina murmured, thinking about Isaac's appearance.
Nicandro sighed. "That was excessive to say, but whatever floats your boat Isaac. Just know you will be at a disadvantage, since you won't be able to have more bodily freedom in flexibility."
"Of course, just how many people are against me is fair considering that the main participants are allowed to have up to four assistants, though they will only get the Requiem Progress Bar reward and not the Ruby Point Reward."
"Which brings us to ask, why didn't you bring anyone?" Mathias finally speaks, his voice deep despite being sixteen. "For someone being a magician… I would have expected you to be prepared, even if it's within a short amount of time."
It's called keeping your cards in your sleeves first.
Is what they all, besides Araxie thought.
Isaac's answer in reality, was really… unexpected.
"About that," Isaac played a sheepish nervous expression on his face, while scratching his chin, seemingly not thinking this entire thing through. "The brain does very imaginative involuntary things, especially when one has not consciously slept yet."
They interpreted that statement as he simply forgot to tell anyone in his social circle if they wanted to help.
"Well, at least that doesn't make you unbeatable knowing you just put yourself into a bad position." Nicandro offered, as he interpreted Isaac's words as a self-deprecating joke.
"Indeed." Isaac agreed. "Though, you know what they say about a magician. The best performance is when the magician is at a disadvantage."
"So you do have a plan against us?" Nicandro gestured to himself and the others.
"Planning would mean I prepared for specific individuals whom I would be against, therefore I do not have a plan. Just simple improvising." Isaac shrugged as he walked by the bewildered Nicandro and the curious Lina.
Isaac then plopped down beside Araxie who was still looking at the chlorine water.
Isaac dipped his toes into the water and instantly got hit with nostalgia due to the temperature being negative twenty degrees Fahrenheit; which would induce someone to hyperthermia in thirty minutes and would cause frostbite in the span of ten minutes.
Though to Isaac, it was a breeze, to his mind that is.
What a nice feeling, Isaac thought to himself, reminiscing about his past again. Though considering it has been almost six years since I've trained my body to be underwater at this temperature given my departure from the Moonlight Society. It would mean that my physical body would have to get used to it and adapt in the water which would take about five hours. One would say that would be another disadvantage to me, but given my endurance and discipline and along with my cognitive mind already visualizing my old aquatic training to help me cognitively feel the coldness of the water from the Moonlight Society; it should help me compensate for the next five hours.
"Hm…" Araxie hummed, tapping her chin six times.
Araxie tilted her head, her midnight blue eyes finally shifting from the water to Isaac's face.
Then, very slowly, she looked back at the pool.
"It's light blue and white," she murmured, her voice carrying that same sleepy, drifting quality. "The water. It looks like someone took the Amazon River and froze it solid, then decided the Amazon was too warm and added Antarctic glaciers for texture. But the Amazon doesn't have glaciers. Antarctica doesn't have pink dolphins. So it's a lie. A beautiful lie."
She dipped her hand into the water, letting it rest there, her fingers barely moving.
"Jellyfish," she said.
Isaac raised an eyebrow. "Jellyfish?"
"They're mostly water," Araxie continued, watching her submerged hand. "Ninety-five percent. You step on one, it stings. You cut it open, it's just... nothing. Water pretending to be a creature. I like that. I requested this temperature because jellyfish don't survive in water this cold. No stingers. No surprises."
She pulled her hand out, water dripping from her fingers, and examined her pale skin as if expecting to find invisible tentacles.
"But the pool is still light blue and white," she added, almost to herself. "So maybe the jellyfish are just... dreaming about being warm. And the water is dreaming about being the Amazon. And we're all dreaming about surviving ten hours without freezing."
She looked at Isaac, her expression dazed but utterly sincere.
"I think that's beautiful. Don't you?"
"Nature is; no pun intended, in its nature beautiful," Isaac admitted.
Isaac did not need to question if it was allowed to have the pool temperature at negative twenty degrees Fahrenheit; given that Isaac had already concluded that Araxie, Abellona, Mathias, Nicandro, and Lina most likely already trained in such cold temperatures; or had recently practiced within the afternoon of Tuesday to now. And the referees that will be monitoring this match-up agreed as long as the other opponent, Isaac Mahoka, knows the temperature to which Isaac already knew Araxie would do it in the cold temperature given it was in the first rule mentioned that it would be in the freezing temperatures, though it did not specifically mention the exact temperature but Isaac already believed it would be where the coldness would affect both physical and cognitive properties.
"Though," Araxie spoke. "I forgot to mention that the other twenty classmates of mine in Class C will also be directly watching our match-up."
"How come?" Isaac prompted, tilting his head with genuine curiosity; though Isaac suspects two reasons why.
"Today, Class C and Class B were supposed to have a gym period together…" Araxie trailed off. "But considering that Class B is under… a rather intriguing political civil war between two factions, one was a defensive style faction under a reluctant leader Aurelie Louise, and the other faction being a pragmatic offensive style faction under Jinhyuk Kwon… so one could say this was an opportunity for Class C to have a field day since they didn't want a bloodbath happening, which is to watch the match-up, making the administration cancel the synchronic gym period, meaning only Class B gets to have that gym period this week."
Isaac nodded, accepting the premise.
This helps Isaac confirm that Class C is under the leadership of a full collective, meaning that not only Class D and Class H have a collective coalition formed, but also Class C has formed one as well.
Which also means, in Isaac's mind,that the possibility of this match-up is actually a threat level assessment considering the assessment of Class B was given to Isaac by Araxie; means that Class C is doing a widespread assessment on their year. And that Araxie, Abellona, Lina, Mathias, and Nicandro are not the leaders of class C.
Though, Araxie's wording is interesting. Isaac thought. She didn't say the rest of her class would be coming, meaning they are going to arrive. But said that they will watch directly… and given my admiration of this aquatic center… and the fact there is no upper level balcony. And given the short time period left until the match-up properly begins. Means that there is a sub-level below this Aquatic Center that probably has a setup of bleachers directly in front of the pool on the sub-level floor. Which should also take into account the fifty-meter pool and along with the sub-level floor; would mean that the pool itself would need to be about thirty feet deep to give the sub-level watching floor enough view to see the entirety of the area inside of the pool. And they would have a nano water proof wireless projector that would scan and replicate a full 360-degree live viewing of the pool and directly connect wirelessly to a screen inside the sub-level watching floor. And given a few other rules; there might be a TV display board in the watching floor to see which five tarot cards she and I pick and show who wins which round and a timer.
But before Isaac can internally articulate more; three individuals have entered the area. Or rather, the three referees that will be officiating this matchup since this particular domain is their specialty.
The first referee was Ye Xian(Referee 019); she was as tall as Marie, had a black half-face mask, dark purple color hair, a double bun hairstyle, and pale gold colored eyes. She was a former aquatic engineer and a bomb specialist for the Chinese military.
The second referee was Jaxon Pelley(Referee 051), a fifty-eight-year-old American who was a former marine and was later promoted to the Special UNSSA Syndicate Division a few years ago. He had short dark grey hair that was slicked back, a goatee, and obsidian-colored eyes. And he was indeed smoking a cigar.
"Please put the cigar away… we are meant to set an example to show our competency…" the woman beside him said with a calm professional tone that was a bit authoritative but polite.
The woman in question was Astra Sommers(Referee 055); a woman who was a former head engineer for the United National Syndicalist States of America. She had a black color asymmetrical bob with a long blunt cut front bang that covered her right eye, and had Goshenite silver-colored eyes.
"Since when did smoking a cigar in a pool area show incompetence?" Jaxon drawled, side-eying Astra.
"Since basic social etiquette began to be a real concept," Ye said dryly, not even looking at Jaxon.
"You wound me, truly."
Astra, ignoring Jaxon and Ye, walked to the students in question while holding a tablet. "Those present: Abellona Morena, Mathias Emiliano, Lina Runerth, Nicandro Parmenius, Araxie Ermengarde, and Isaac Mahoka. Are you all present?"
The ones that were called raised their hands, indicating they are indeed here.
"Good," Jaxon spoke, still smoking his cigar. "We can also confirm based on our other referee who's on the sub level, that the other twenty class members of Class C are accounted for as well."
Ah so my earlier reasoning was correct, Isaac thought to himself, still smiling that infuriatingly serene smile. Good to know.
"Now then, I'm sure you all were told what the rules are. However, we will go over them once more for protocol." Astra said, looking back at her tablet to tell the rules.
THE 25 RULES OF POSEIDON'S TAROT
1. The matchup takes place in the International Requiem Academy's Olympic diving pool. Depth: 50 feet deep. Water temperature maintained for physiological stress testing).
2. Two standard, hydrophobic polymer tarot decks (78 cards each) are submerged at the pool's bottom, scattered randomly by the pool's internal current system. Decks are visually identical.
3. Players wear biometric bracelets that monitor heart rate, oxygen saturation, and time-in-round. Bracelets vibrate at round start and end.
4. Three referees oversee the matchup: Ye Xian, Jaxon Pelley, and Astra Sommers.
5. Each round lasts exactly one hour. The round begins and ends with a synchronized vibration of the biometric bracelets.
6. At round start, players must enter the water simultaneously from opposite ends of the pool.
7. Players must retrieve exactly five cards from the pool bottom per round. Cards cannot be retained between rounds.
8. Cards retrieved must be declared to the referees immediately upon surfacing. Failure to declare cards before touching the pool deck invalidates the round for that player.
9. After both players have retrieved their five cards and returned to their designated platform, they have fifteen minutes to submit their deduction of the opponent's card sequence.
10. Deductions must be submitted in writing to the referees. The sequence must be the exact card suit and number/arcana in the order retrieved.
11. Incorrect deductions result in forfeiture of one air round from the player's compressed-air pistol. If no air rounds remain, the player forfeits the round entirely.
12. If both players correctly deduce the opponent's sequence, the round is declared a draw.
13. If one player correctly deduces and the other does not, the correct player wins the round.
14. Each player receives a compressed-air pistol with fifteen non-lethal rounds. Velocity: 450 m/s underwater. Direct impact causes significant bruising and hydrostatic shock. Firing is permitted only during the retrieval phase.
15. Every fifteen minutes, the pool's filtration system discharges localized electrical surges(the electrical surges have a modified effect that makes it feel like your limbs are being ripped off). Voltage: 500-1500. Duration: 5-10 seconds. The lethal threshold is 2000. Surge zones are randomized and announced by three audible tones.
16. Physical combat(for assistants and players) is permitted during the retrieval phase. Lethal force that will kill or give life-threatening injuries is prohibited. Permanent injury is prohibited. Referees may intervene if Rule 16 is violated.
17. Players may not surface before retrieving five cards. Surfacing early invalidates the round unless you retrieve your five cards.
18. Players may not interfere with the opponent's retrieval after surfacing(but their assistants can interfere with opposition's retrieval during the phase). The retrieval phase ends when both players have declared their cards.
19. Violation of any rule results in immediate forfeiture of the current round. Repeated violations result in disqualification and forfeiture of all Ruby Points earned and earn one strike.
20. Biometric bracelets are non-removable for the matchup's duration.
21. Tarot cards are constructed from hydrophobic polymer with magnetic resonance markers for referee tracking. Cards cannot be concealed or altered.
22. The matchup continues until one player wins six rounds. Maximum rounds: ten.
23. If the matchup reaches the ten-round limit without a six-round winner, the player with more wins is declared victor. In the event of a tie, sudden death round commences with doubled electrical surge frequency.
24. Both players(and assistants) consent to the physical risks of the matchup, including but not limited to: hypothermia, electrical injury, blunt force trauma, and oxygen deprivation.
25. Swimwear only. No tactical suits, no external breathing apparatus, no sensory enhancement devices. Standard academy-issued swimwear or equivalent permitted.
"Does everyone understand the rules?" Astra asked, finishing up by explaining the rules.
Isaac raised his hand. "I do have something that does concern me."
"Oh come on Isaac," Nicandro drawled, looking at Isaac. "Don't tell me you have second thoughts about this."
"None of the sorts actually," Isaac playfully waved dismissively. "My concerns are more for the micro rules; the very critical rules of environmental complexity."
So the rumors are true about this kid, Jaxon thought to himself, a smirk forming on his face. Let's see if he can figure it out without us saying them or the Araxie girl.
"Micro rules?" Abellona questioned, feigning ignorance. "But the rules are as brutally simplistic regarding the environment and this match-up framework focuses on memory, pattern recognition, psychology, physical endurance, and mental fortitude."
It was true; this matchup did focus on those domains, however, Isaac always knows that there is more that meets the eye. And it always needs to open up the bigger picture.
"True," Isaac admitted. "But this matchup also focuses on creative innovation and novel complex problem-solving. And Araxie, I believe, would already have accounted for the following I am going to ask. And what I am asking is: if each team has their own seventy-five tarot cards; then the pool's mechanism will showcase a colored division of two zones; one for Araxie and one for me, right? And if those two zones are color based, then is it correct to assume that those color pigments have toxins that are meant to handicap both of our cognitive functions and physical body? Also, regarding the temperature of the pool being -20 degrees Fahrenheit; is that for the entire depth of the pool or does the temperature increase in its negativity when going deeper? And if that is the case then can it be assumed that the electrical surges also increase in their duration and velocity when going deeper? And finally, regarding rule two about the cards being randomised, that part is not real, since by Miss. Morena's admission alone of it being that this match-up focuses on domains like memory and pattern recognition meaning that the tarot cards sets while on the opposite sides are mirrored exactly the same, therefore that part of the rule in particular is fabricated, correct?"
"By all accounts of your questions," Ye said, her expression remains unchanged. "You are correct."
"Wait wait wait!" Abellona interrupted Ye speaking, looking bewildered specifically on the final question of Isaac's. "Did you bait me…? Or at least set up the bait for someone to confirm it indirectly?" She asked Isaac.
Before Isaac could confirm, Lina spoke. "It was obviously a setup to bait. You just so happened to be the one to be talkative, and it's likely that he most likely knew you would speak of it considering your bubbly personality tends to… speak too much when needed."
"So I was just gullible enough to fall for it…?" Abellona said, her expression changing to an emotion that she doesn't like.
Isaac seeing her expression and instantly understood what she was feeling, decided to speak. "No, you were just eager and excited to hear what I meant. And I only theorized that part of the second rule was fabricated. You only confirmed it accidentally. The fault is not with you."
Abellona, relaxing now, only nodded as Araxie watched, tapping her chin six times once more. "Hm…"
Araxie looked at Isaac with her constant daze expression still looking sleepy while wanting an ice cream float. "It seems nothing gets past you, like an owl. Did you know owls are considered the apex nocturnal predators due to them having highly evolved vision and hearing in the world even in total darkness? And they can be overwhelmingly soft…"
"It's simply paying attention Araxie," Isaac said, displaying a sheepish blush while scratching his face with his finger. "The rules, like human beings, have a heart and mind. Once you understand both mechanisms, you can see the full picture. And yes I have been described as someone who is overwhelmingly soft, it's rather endearing really."
"Poetic…" Mathias muttered.
"I believe that to be high praise, Mathias," Nicandro muttered to him. "Compared to Araxie's comment about our classmate yesterday during lunch about her head being like a lollipop and how many slices it would take to get to the center of her brain."
"Oh yeah, I forgot that Araxie did say that," Abellona said, Nicandro looking at her.
"Really?"
"No."
Ye cleared her throat. "If I can get all of your attention now, so that I can address Sir Isaac Mahoka's questions." Ye pulled out a small remote.
She then pressed the button at the pool as the color began to change into two colors in a fifty-to-fifty ratio.
"As you all can see," Astra began, gesturing towards the pool. "On the left zone of the pool is Lapis Blue, as this is Araxie Ermengarde's side; the toxins on this side contain the effects that cause progressive blind farsightedness and a mixture of short-term amnesia within an hour or three hours. And on the right zone of the pool is Byzantinum Purple, as this is Isaac Mahoka's side; the toxins on this specific side contain the effects that makes the blood inside yourself feels like it is literally boiling, and the muscles stiffens progressively the longer you stay in the water. During the retrieval phase the two main players are allowed to enter each other's zones but once one player or the other player collects their five tarot cards from their corresponding side the player that does not have their tarot cards must not attack the player in their own zone. And finally what is preventing these two sides from effectively mixing together is with the liquid glass known as the osmotic membranes."
Jaxon inhaled and blew out his smoke. "Just to freshen up your youthful minds on what osmotic membranes are in this; is that it allows water molecules to pass through but blocks the pigment compounds. It is also permeable to swimmers, meaning that you can pass through it without difficulty so the pigments don't mix."
"Thank you for interrupting me Jaxon…" Astra dryly said.
"It's no problem, sweetie."
"I told you not to call me that…"
"You've been saying that ever since you were ten years old, I'm sure you can endure it."
Lina cleared her throat. "If you three could continue."
"And as for the temperature and electrical surges," Ye continued ignoring Astra and Jaxon's bantering. "From 0-10 feet the temperature is -20 degrees Fahrenheit. From 10-20 feet it is -40 degrees Fahrenheit. From 20-30 feet it is -60 degrees Fahrenheit. From 30-40 feet it is -80 degrees Fahrenheit. And finally, 40-50 feet is -100 degrees Fahrenheit." She then looked at Isaac. "Sir Isaac, since Madam Araxie and her group already knew of this and consented to this, I must ask, have you done cryogenic endurance training and would you still wish to continue with the match up?"
"I do," Isaac said. "And I have had experience in that training field so we can continue with the electrical surges, which I believe increases by two times in voltage and duration the deeper we go right?"
"Yes, that is correct too," Ye Confirmed.
"We also provide thermal blankets just in case you can't take on the cold," Jaxon chirped which led to Astra side-kicking Jaxon's leg. "Ow! Anywho, any other questions before we get this show on the road?"
"Just one more thing," Isaac said, "regarding a personal bet that Araxie has established." He looked at Astra. "I would like to add of what I would get in winning this match-up; it's more of an additional Ruby Points but not for me, but for a couple of my classmates that have zero Ruby Points, so I would like to add for the following: Adrien Leroux, Aurelian Falk, Nirvan Fajr, Kai Moon, Baldwin Miroslav, Viviana Winchester, Mihal Faust, Sinclair Bosque, Giovanni Bombacci, Leonid Novikov, and Milicia Milosevic, to get 65 Ruby Points personally rather than through my classes own collective contract."
Astra looked at Araxie. "Would you permit that in the winnings of the bet?"
"Of course… I suspected he would add that in." Araxie said.
Astra nodded as Isaac walked towards her with his hand extended out. "Thank you for allowing my own conditions to be in Miss. Sommers."
"Of course." Astra said, shaking his hand and then departed, although Astra did notice something that made her pause for a moment when she looked down and then back at her tablet and typed something in.
After that, all the participants were given their mandatory bracelets for this match-up and went to their side.
"And let's begin…" Astra announced."
"In three…"
"Two…"
"One…"