The team preparation chamber hums with tension as match time approaches. The facility provides these specialized rooms for final coordination before arena combat, equipped with basic visualization tools and last-minute tactical review capabilities.

  Eli paces nervously, the air around him rippling with gravitational distortions that reflect his emotional state. Despite the intensive training over the past two days, he's still our biggest unknown factor, raw potential without the refinement that comes from experience.

  "First team match jitters are normal," Ember tells him, her flame-wreathed hair burning with controlled intensity as she calibrates her pyrokinetic focus. "Channel it into your performance."

  "Easy for you to say," he mutters. "You've done this before."

  "Solo matches," she corrects him. "Team combat is new territory for all of us."

  Desta sits cross-legged in the corner, eyes closed in what appears to be meditation but is actually a deep system interface. Her fingers twitch occasionally as she navigates the facility's combat databases, extracting final bits of intelligence that might give us an edge.

  "Something's changed," she announces suddenly, eyes snapping open. "Match parameters modified twenty-three minutes ago. Team Vanguard has been replaced."

  "What?" I demand, immediately alert. "Who are we fighting now?"

  Desta's expression remains neutral, but something in her eyes suggests concern. "Team Nova."

  The name hits like a physical blow. "That's not possible," I say, though I know Desta doesn't make mistakes about system information. "Nova's team was scheduled against Team Bastion in the eastern arena. And they've been registered longer than us, they should be in a different competition bracket."

  "Administrative override implemented," Desta explains. "Priority reclassification with specialized match designation: 'Showcase Exhibition.'"

  Ember curses, flames flaring around her hands. "They're stacking the deck already. Nova's team is one of the most powerful configurations registered, with sponsorship resources and established fighters. We should be facing another rookie team for our first match."

  "What does that mean?" Eli asks, gravitational distortions intensifying with his growing anxiety. "Who's Team Nova?"

  "My former team," Ember explains grimly. "Led by a luminescent manipulator with three top-tier fighters including a phase-shifter, a crystalline enhancer, and whatever replacement they found for me. All experienced, all combat-tested."

  "This is bullshit," Eli says, running a hand through his hair as small objects begin to orbit him erratically. "They're setting us up to fail right out of the gate."

  "No," I counter, forcing calm into my voice despite the strategic catastrophe this represents. "They're testing us. Seeing if Team Exodus deserves to be taken seriously. Me taking Ember from her team made this personal, now administration is giving her a chance for payback."

  A facility announcement interrupts further discussion: "Match commencement in fifteen minutes. Team Exodus to primary staging position."

  We gather in a tight circle, the reality of our situation sinking in. Our carefully planned strategy against Team Vanguard is now useless. We're facing opponents we haven't prepared for, with unknown configurations and established team dynamics.

  "New approach required," Desta states, her pragmatic analysis cutting through our shock. "Team Nova utilizes luminescent manipulation as primary coordination mechanism. Nova generates light-based communication signals visible only to teammates, enabling synchronized attack patterns difficult to anticipate without advance knowledge."

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  "Ember, you know how they operate," I turn to our pyrokinetic. "Quick breakdown of their combat approach."

  She nods, flames settling into a controlled pattern that suggests focused thought. "Nova creates light constructs that both attack and communicate. Prism, their crystalline enhancer, amplifies these constructs while providing physical defense. Shift can phase partially out of normal space, making her nearly untouchable during attack runs. Their fourth would be a new recruit, unknown factor."

  "System records indicate recent addition: Asset 8213, designation Rebound," Desta supplies. "Enhancement type: Physical impact conversion to kinetic energy. Essentially transforms any attack force into counterattack potential."

  "Perfect," Eli mutters sarcastically. "So if I hit this person, they just get stronger?"

  "Focus," I interrupt, mind racing through possible approaches. "We need a new strategy in the next ten minutes. Desta, can you interface with the arena systems during combat?"

  She nods slightly. "Limited functionality possible without detection. Environmental control systems particularly vulnerable to external modification."

  "Good. Focus on lighting controls, if you can create irregular illumination patterns, it might disrupt Nova's light-based communication."

  "What about me?" Eli asks, clearly struggling to control the gravitational distortions that have intensified with his anxiety.

  "Your gravity wells can disrupt Nova's light constructs," I tell him, an idea forming rapidly. "Light travels in straight lines unless influenced by gravitational fields. Even minor distortions might bend her signals enough to create confusion."

  His eyes widen with understanding. "Like gravitational lensing. Bending light around massive objects."

  "Exactly," I confirm, impressed by his quick grasp of the concept. "You don't need perfect control for this. Even erratic gravitational fields will create unpredictable light patterns."

  "I can work with fire regardless of lighting conditions," Ember adds, flames dancing between her fingers. "And if Eli can create gravity wells to concentrate oxygen around strategic targets, my attacks become exponentially more powerful."

  The strategy takes shape quickly, not the perfect, practiced plan we had for Team Vanguard, but an adaptive approach leveraging our unique team composition against Nova's established patterns.

  "Final preparation check," I announce as the match countdown continues. "Desta, system interface ready?"

  She nods, eyes briefly flickering with code-like patterns as she establishes connections. "Environmental systems accessed. Lighting control parameters identified."

  "Ember?"

  She extends her hand, creating a complex fire pattern that shifts colors with remarkable precision. "Pyrokinetic calibration complete. Enhanced oxygen utilization protocols active."

  "Eli?"

  He takes a deep breath, the gravitational distortions around him coalescing into more deliberate patterns. Not perfect by any means, but more controlled than I've seen from him yet. "As ready as I'll ever be. Just don't expect miracles."

  "Combat commences in five minutes," the facility announces. "Teams to entry positions."

  As we move toward the arena entrance, I feel a strange calm settling over me. We're facing a deliberately stacked challenge, but there's something appropriate about Team Exodus starting its journey against overwhelming odds.

  "Remember," I tell my teammates as the entry doors begin to slide open, "they might have more experience, but we have something they don't, a genuine unified purpose. We're not fighting for sponsors or status or facility recognition. We're fighting for freedom. All ten of these victories matter equally, starting with this one."

  The arena expands before us, a massive oval space filled with various terrain features and environmental hazards. Across the battlefield, Nova's team takes their position, their leader's luminescent patterns visible even at this distance as she recognizes Ember among our ranks.

  "Team combat initiated," announces the facility voice. "Victory conditions: Submission, incapacitation, or administrative decision. Special exhibition rules in effect: No withdrawal option for either team. Match continues until definitive outcome achieved."

  Of course they've removed the withdrawal option. This is meant to be a statement match, administration ensuring that one team definitively triumphs over the other.

  "Team Exodus," I say quietly as the final countdown begins, "let's show them what freedom fighters can do."

  The starting signal sounds, and we surge forward into our first battle as a team.