Janus thew his hands up in front of him. creating an "X" shape with his arms as Maluk swung the flail forward.

"Turbo Dozer!"

There was a sense of thrill in Maluk's voice as he performed his Special Technique. The ball of the Ion Flail became engulfed in blue energy as it hurled in a straight line towards Janus' arms. He closed his eyes and turned his head, terrified to look at the incoming attack head on. As his eyes shut, he felt his entire body get pushed back as the ball of the weapon smashed into his arms. His guard broke, sending his arms apart and making him stagger backwards from the blow. Janus panted as he regained his balance. After blinking a few times, he stared at his arms. 

A bit sore but still attached. He thought. I guess blocking really does negate damage in a Ranked Challenge.

Janus returned his attention to the fight. Maluk continued to advance, putting his weight onto his back leg as he readied up another Turbo Dozer. Janus glanced behind him and noticed that he was near the edge of the mat. A small section of the air above the edge of the combat area turned red with a digital-looking pattern once his foot got closer to it.

Nowhere left to run... Janus noticed Gurk and Itzel standing up as to get a better view of the match. Itzel had her projection in front of her. She cupped her hands around her mouth as she looked back at Janus. 

"You can still win by time out!" she shouted. As Janus continued to look at his teammate, the sound of a heavy object hurling through the air combined with the crackle of electricity brought his eyes back to the fight. 

"Turbo Dozer!"

Janus didn't bother to turn around and look at the attack. His reflexes made him roll forward, landing on his arm before setting himself upright as he balanced on his knees. The flail soared over him and pierced the intangible red wall. Now to Maluk's side, Janus ran forward while the Ion Flail retracted. Janus then ended his sprint abruptly, adjusting his body to perform his only Special Technique. 

"Ion Tail!"

Janus’ body rotated, the back of his foot darting upwards as he performed a rising roundhouse kick. The plasma that engulfed his attack was darker and more massive. The attack dragged Maluk up into the air with him as a transparent blue after image followed behind Janus. Both fighters soared multiple feet vertically, their peak matching the height of the bleachers. At the apex of the move, Janus' other leg spun around, striking Maluk in his chest and sending him on a meteor-like trajectory back towards the mat. Brilliant amethyst-like flames engulfed the fighter as he crashed onto the ground, bouncing on his back as he smacked the floor. 

Janus landed upright, taking in a deep breath as he watched his opponent writhe on his back with purple embers scattered across his body and the ground beside him. The audience let out a unified gasp. Some kept their eyes glued to the arena while others were flabbergasted by what the challenge display showed; the only areas where Maluk had the advantage were in the Guard and EV gauges. The Enhanced Variant of Ion Tail had put Janus ahead by a slim margin. Stealing a peek at the screen, Janus could see that his stamina sat at roughly eighty percent while Maluk was left at almost three fourths. The timer continued to tick down, being at "20" when Janus decided to return his attention back to Maluk.

"That's what I'm talking about Janus!" Itzel shouted at the top of her lungs. From the corner of his eye, he could see Itzel jump from her seat and pump a fist in the air. Gurk stood up too, nodding his head up and down as the rest of his body bobbed in a rhythmic manner. "You don't need to knock him out!" Itzel continued. "Just make sure he doesn't land another hit on you for twenty more seconds!"

Janus tilted his head up to let Itzel know that he had heard what she said. Maluk rolled over and used the shaft of the Ion Flail to set himself upright. The viewers continued their chatter as they watched Maluk get back into his fighting stance. 

"Come on Maluk!" Siergi called out in annoyance. "I know you can take this guy! You don't start showing off until you know for a fact that you're gonna win! That’s the first rule of being a Broadcaster on Rumble Circuit! Unless you want to end up on some guy’s Failure Compilation video!"

Maluk shook his head from side to side. He resumed his usual fighting stance with his weapon held between his two hands and covering the front of his body. The last shred of friendliness faded as Maluk became silent. The flail came down at Janus at a diagonal angle. Janus moved backwards, letting the ball crash into the ground. Maluk reeled the weapon back, raising the rod above his head once more.

"Quake!"

The ball dropped onto the ground again. Janus timed his jump so that he cleared high over the shockwaves emitted by the Special Technique. As Janus leapt into the air, he took another look at the Challenge Display in front of the audience. 

Fifteen...

"Don't forget to use your EV, Maluk!" Arva exclaimed. Maluk's attention went unaffected as he pulled Ion Blade back with one hand. 

"Turbo Dozer!"

The ball shot out like a projectile towards Janus' head. He weaved to the side. He could feel the static that encompassed the ball as it narrowly avoided his face. Despite the Challenge Display being behind him, Janus knew that Maluk had a full EV bar after using that last Turbo Dozer. 

I have no idea what this guy's Signature is... He could feel his heartrate all throughout his body. The space between the two was the perfect distance for Maluk to attack with his flail and be too far away for Janus to properly counterattack. The other fighter’s lips opened, showing his teeth clenching against each other. With both hands, Maluk brought the length of the Ion Flail behind him. 

"Skull..." Maluk said with exasperation. He leaned his body forward, slinging the ball high so fast that the weighted part of the weapon flew towards Janus at a sideways arc in a static-filled blur. Janus raised his hands above his face, this time keeping his eyes open just enough to maintain a visual of his rival. "Wrecker!" 

The balled smashed into Janus' forearm. Even though his guard remained up, the force of the attack made Janus step back. The metal made another thud as it bounced off his forearm's and continued in its circular trajectory. It went past Janus and around Maluk's back in less than a second. Maluk let the attack continue, this time aiming for Janus' mid-section as the ball continued in its rotation. Janus was swift enough to lower both of his arms, managing to block the second attack at the cost of his entire body turning around towards the crowd. 

Now with his back facing Maluk, the bulky man let the ball swing for one last revolution. There was a bell like sound. And then a crushing feeling as electricity and solid metal plowed into Janus' shoulder. He shouted as his body flung black, piercing through the red barrier that encompassed the fighting area. The digital wall smashed to virtual bits as Janus soared off the mat and onto the cold tile floor face first.