Keijo!!!: Counter Attack! - Part 1
Enro sat in his mother's blue sedan. The arctic fox's mind was buzzing with anticipation. Soon they would arrive at Moonlight Academy, one of the top keijo schools in Canada. Many who attended there, went off to compete at the national level.
"It's not too late to turn around." Nora said. "I'm sure there are plenty of other universities that would take you."
"Mom, I want to do this. It's what I've been training for."
Nora sighed. "I know. I'm just not completely comfortable having you out on the land in front of all those people. Keijo is still a female-dominated sport and some people out there are really judgmental."
Enro lowered his ears. "Afraid I'm going to embarrass you?"
"Of course not sweetie. No matter what, I will always be proud of you. I just don't want to see you get hurt."
Her concerns were definitely reasonable. Up until a few years ago, only women were allowed to compete in keijo tournaments and attend their schools. After years of protests, they finally opened the sport to men as well. This did not sit well with many veterans of the sport. Even with the new laws in place, it was difficult for males to be accepted into keijo schools. The amount of experienced women in the sport outnumbered the men a hundred to one. Despite these hurdles, keijo had its first male to compete in a national tournament. It was a historical day that no one would ever forget.
The matchup was between a canadian arctic fox by the name of Joseph Sloane and the french-canadian tiger Kari Belanger. Enro watched the fight while studying for his SAT exams. When Sloane walked onto the land, the entire stadium booed him. However, Sloane did not seem affected by it. He stood tall with his head held up high. His body was slim yet well-toned. Given his style of countering attacks, too much muscle would slow him down. Of course when Belanger came out, the crowd erupted in cheers. She took it all in and waved to her adoring fans. Belanger was an infighter which meant she was all about finishing her opponents with powerful strikes. She was one of the main opponents to the integration of the keijo league. Enro wanted to see Sloane wipe that smug look off her face. The battle took place on a regular circle platform called "the land" that floated in the middle of a massive swimming pool. Both competitors wore a one-piece swimsuits that covered their torso. They could only touch the land with their feet and had to fight only using their butts or their chests. The first one to fall down or touch the water was the loser.
The fighters got into position and the announcers counted down, five... four... three... two.. one and they began. Belanger rushed Sloane and swung her hips directly at his stomach. Sloan spun out of the way and answered with a strike with his own to Belanger's ribs. The tiger didn't even flinch from the attack. The stadium laughed at Sloane. Even the announcers could not help but snicker at how ineffective he was. Belanger slammed her butt into Sloane's stomach and sent him staggering back. Sloane's legs shook a bit but they soon stabilized. Belanger swung her hips at Sloane's head but he dodged it just in time. With her momentum, Belanger spun around and struck Sloane in the chest with her boobs. He had nothing there to cushion him from the blow. Sloane was hunched over at the edge of the land, holding his ribs. Belanger slowly walked up to her opponent. The stadium chanted Belanger's name and the announcers claimed that the match was all but over.
"Come on." Enro whispered to the tv. "Get up."
Belanger gave one final swing of her hips at Sloane's lowered head. What happened next is still being debated among keijo experts to this day. Belanger was not only knocked off the land, she was sent flying so far off it that she reached the other side of the pool. The entire stadium was silent. Sloane stood on the land, panting and holding his ribs. The announcers finally stammered out that he was the winner of the match. The television was silent but Enro cheered as if he was in the stands.
After his bout, every news outlet begged Sloane to tell them how he won the match. He refused. He said it was the only thing he had to put him on par with the veterans. He welcomed another match against Belanger to prove it was not a fluke. Belanger refused on the grounds that she refused to compete with a cheater. She even went so far as to start a campaign to have Slone removed from professional keijo if he could not explain how he won. Sloane did not give in. Pressure from Belanger's fans and other veterans twisted the arm of International Keijo Committee. Many on the committee already disliked the idea of male keijo players so it did not take much for Sloane's ban to go through. This treatment discouraged other males from competing in fear of their victories being called into question.
Something inside of Enro told him that Sloane did not cheat during his match. He watched the tape hundreds of times but couldn't figure it out. Enro came up with theories and went through dozens of scenarios in his head. It was at that moment he was hooked on keijo. He trained his tail off every moment that he got between classes and entrance exams. He wanted to be a counterer, just like Joseph Sloane. Enro knew that if he wanted to get serious about it, he would need his mother's help. After a bit of convincing, she agreed to pay for weekend lessons at the local gym if he kept his grades and test scores up. The deal was struck and his official training began.
Enro was the only male in the class. The other students often talked behind his back. When their harsh words got to him, he remembered how Joseph Sloane stood tall against the naysayers in the stadium. Enro held his head up high and ignored their comments. He would let his actions on the land do the talking.
The first few lessons were a trial. The coach was red fox named Sarah Eckhardt. Apparently she used to compete in competitions all over Ontario. She had them all do practice matches to gauge their skills. His first match up was against a black cat with blue eyes. She had the muscular build of an infighter. The coach blew the whistle and the cat sprinted at Enro. He watched her movements carefully and waited until the last minute to dodge out of the way like Sloane did. He waited a bit too long. Her hips slammed into his ribs and he was in the water. Enro could hear the muffled laughs of the other students.
He resurfaced and shook the water from his short hair. "Again!" he shouted. Enro climbed back onto the land. "I want to go again."
"Hold on now." The coach said. "We have a lot of matches to go through."
The black cat raised her hand. "It's fine coach. This one will be just as quick." The two opponents squared up and the coach blew the whistle. Once again, the black cat sprinted at Enro and swung her hips at him. Enro ducked out of the way perfectly. She swung three more attacks that all missed their mark. Enro backed up to the edge of the land.
"What happened to that quick match?" The coach taunted.
The cat gritted her teeth. "Beginner's luck!" She ran towards Enro and sent a vicious swing towards his stomach. Enro spun out of her way and slammed his hips into her side. The blow knocked her into the water. The coach blew the whistle and declared Enro the winner.
Enro got out of the pool started mumbling to himself on a bench. "That couldn't have been how Sloane did it. It's way too simple."
"Not bad boy." Coach Eckhardt said. "Why didn't you do that in the first round?"
"I was testing a theory I had for how Sloane won during nationals. At least I can strike that one off the list."
The coach laughed. "The goal of this exercise was to see you skills in action. Based on that first match, I was about ready to send you home. Maybe save the experimentation for another time."
"But I have to find out how Sloane won that match. I want to play the way he did."
The coach sighed. "Look kid. I don't know much about Sloane but I do know that you have a lot talent and it will be wasted if you try to play like someone else." She patted his shoulder. "Find your own style." The coach went off to oversee the rest of the matches.
Enro conceded that she had a point. It would be impossible to copy Sloane's moves completely. The entire keijo community couldn't figure it out even with their vast resources. That didn't mean he was going to stop. It meant that he would have to wait a while before unlocking Sloane's secret. In the meantime, maybe focusing on his own style was best. He spent months at that gym, watching the fights and learning everything he could. Coach Eckhardt put them through a rigorous conditioning regimen of a five kilometer run followed by fifty squats. While the lessons were helpful, they had their limits. To be a true professional, he had to train where they did.
Enro and his mother arrived at the gates of Moonlight Academy. The campus was absolutely stunning. Every building looked brand new and the grounds were well-kept. They followed a line of cars to the massive keijo stadium. It was a pristine building with purple flags that bore a howling silver wolf.
Enro's mother dropped him off at the front. "I'll go find parking. Go ahead and check in. I'll be there in a second." She drove off into a sea of cars. The building was quite intimidating up close. How many pros stood where he was standing now? Were they just as anxious during their exams? Statistically speaking, the majority of people in this situation would be nervous. Given how many pros this academy puts out, at least some of them would have been terrified during their entrance exams. Therefore, nervousness isn't an indication of whether one belonged here. Good old logic. It kept Enro level-headed when emotions got in the way.
"Hey you!" a voice called from behind. It was a female grey wolf with short black hair. She looked no older than Enro. She pointed at him. "That bag on your back. You carrying it for your sister or something?" The only reason someone would ask that would be to follow up with ridicule regarding his participation in the exams. It would be a waste of his time to engage with someone like this. Ignoring them had a chance of provoking an attack in an attempt for the wolf to heal her wounded pride. Enro turned away and continued walking towards the front door.
"Don't ignore me!" the wolf yelled. Enro could hear the rapid tapping of paws quickly closing in on him. Given her build and the distance they were from each other, her could dodge her attack in three...two... Enro heard the familiar sound of bodies clashing behind him. He looked back to see that the wolf he angered had her hips locked with that of a brown-furred cat with long hair. The cat twisted her body and pushed the wolf back.
Enro's assailant scoffed. "Pathetic. Why are you protecting him. Keijo is a woman's game. Men are a disgrace to the sport."
The cat crossed her arms. "You are the one who brings disgrace to keijo by attacking a defenseless opponent. He has more of a right to be here than you do." The wolf gritted her teeth and prepared to attack again.
"Enough!" They all turned to see a tall saluki with dark-blonde fur. She wore a polo shirt bearing the school's colors. She had the biggest pair of boobs that Enro had ever seen with a butt to match. Getting into a keijo match with her was just asking for trouble. "The next one to attack someone off the land will be sent home."
The wolf growled and pointed at Enro again. "Watch yourself boy! You better hope we don't meet during the exam." She stomped off into the building.
"Are you two alright?" The saluki asked.
The cat wrapped her arm around Enro's neck. "All good here!"
The saluki gave them both a warm smile. "Stay out of trouble you two." She turned away and went back to greeting the competitors.
The cat leaned in towards Enro. Her face was only inches away from his. Her hazel eyes stared into his blue gaze. "Hmmm..." she stepped back a bit. "Yep! You're going to make it through the exam. No doubt about it!"
Her analysis was so quick but she seemed so certain. How could she know something like that just by looking at his eyes. He was at a loss for words. "Oh!" the cat said. "I never introduced myself." She stretched her hand to Enro. "Sonya Salem."
Enro remembered his manners and shook her hand. "Enro Shiva."
Sonya grinned. "Nice to meet you Enro! So, you're a counterer aren't you?" Enro nodded. Sonya snapped her fingers. "I knew it!"
"Um... how did you know that I was a counterer?"
"It's the way your leg twitched when she ran towards you. You were getting ready to spin left and dodge her attack weren't you?" Enro was mortified. He didn't realize his moves were so predictable. If any of his opponents were this perceptive, he would go down in the first round. Was he really at a level to compete with these girls? Sonya waved her hands in his face. "Hello? Anyone home?" Enro snapped out of it. Sonya smiled at him. "If you are worried about the exam, don't be! Like I said, you are definitely going to pass."
There it was again. That certainty in a complete stranger. "About that." Enro said. "How can you be so sure? You haven't even seen me fight yet."
Sonya pointed to her eyes. "I could see it when I looked in your eyes. You have the fire in you. You're running towards something and I bet you won't let anyone get in your way. However, what exactly that thing is, only you know." So there were limits to her perceptiveness. "Oh and don't be afraid of hiding your tells. They are pretty hard to spot unless you have eyes like mine."
Enro tilted his head. "Eyes like yours?"
"Yep! These eyes don't miss anything. They've been like that as long as I can remember. I can do those spot the difference pictures in a second!"
"Sound's pretty useful." That was an understatement. With sight that good, she could predict an opponent's every move and change her strategy on the fly. With proper training, she would be unstoppable.
Sonya's head darted up and she stared at the sky. "Oooo that's a pretty raven." She looked back at Enro and tilted her head. "What were we talking about?"
Enro sighed. Of course a gift like that would be given to someone with the world's shortest attention span.
"Enro!" yelled his mother. She walked from the parking lot waving her arm. "I thought I told you to go register." She looked at the cat. "Oh. Who is your new friend?"
Before Enro could answer, Sonya leapt between them and stretched her hand towards his mom. "Sonya Salem. Nice to meet you Mrs. Shiva!"
Nora smiled and shook her hand. "Actually, it's Miss Martel. But you're an adult. Just call me Nora."
Sonya grinned. "Alright Nora." She grabbed Enro's hand. "Come on! Let's get checked in!" She dragged him into the stadium.
The inside was even more impressive. Purple banners hung from the ceiling. The walls were lined with pictures of pros holding medals and trophies. Some of them solo, others in pairs or groups. A massive trophy case sat in the center of the lobby. The gold and silver sparkled under the lights. There was a row of tables set up near the trophy case. They went over to check themselves in for the exam. They were told to report to the pool in an hour, ready to go.
"I'll let you two get ready." Nora said. She leaned in and have Enro a kiss on his forehead. "I'll be cheering for you a loud as I can out there. No matter what happens, I will always be proud of you. I love you."
Enro smiled and gave her a hug. "Love you too mom." She waved them goodbye as the two set off towards the locker rooms.
Since keijo was integrated only a few years ago, many of the stadiums and training facilities only had female locker rooms. The leagues did not want to shell out the money for male locker rooms so they made the existing ones unisex. Some were concerned about this move but after a pervy man male competitor was sent crashing through a row of steel lockers, they knew that the athletes could handle themselves. After that incident, no one would dare take any actions that were less than professional.
When Enro walked into the locker room with Sonya, a few of the girls glared at him. He made sure to keep his eyes locked on theirs. They were looking for any excuse to have him removed and he refused to give it to them. Enro and Sonya found a less busy corner of the room and changed into their swimsuits. Enro wore a dark green one piece suit while Sonya's was hot pink. It definitely suited her personality. They both locked up their things and got out of the tense atmosphere of the locker room.
The pool was the size of a football field. There were dozens of lands placed on it and floating barriers to separate them. The ceiling was open but looked to be retractable in case of bad weather. Each end of the pool had a massive jumbotron with the message, "Welcome to Moonlight Academy." on it. The seats were not completely packed but it would have taken an entire small town to fill them all.
"It's so pretty!" Sonya said. A nod was the best response Enro could muster. The sight was almost worthy of tears. This pool was fit enough to host tournaments for pros. A few of the competitors stood along the edge of the pool doing stretches. Some warmed up with drills and practice attacks. "Let's get you warmed up!" Sonya said.
She taught Enro a few quick drills to get the blood pumping. Mainly it was footwork and basic leg exercises. It wasn't anything that catered to a specific style.
"Hey Sonya," Enro said during a calf stretch.
"Yes?"
"I never asked you. What is your fighting style?"
Sonya giggled. "Isn't it obvious? I'm an outfighter!" In hindsight, Enro realized how foolish the question was. Considering her high-energy personality, it only made sense that she would be an outfighter. She wore her opponents down with her intense speed and quick strikes. The problem was that her build made her a bit of a glass cannon. If she were hit by a direct attack, it would usually mean the end for her. Enro wasn't worried about her though. Her clash with the wolf in front of the stadium was a testament to her overwhelming speed.
A familiar voice came from the sound system. "Hello. Hello. Testing." Enro looked to the center of the pool and saw the saluki that he met before, standing on one of the platforms. "Hello and welcome to the Moonlight Academy entrance exams. My name is coach Mabel but most of you know me by my keijo nickname, The Blonde Bombshell." The crowd made a descending whistle sound like a bomb on its way to the ground, followed by a large "boom!" Coach Mabel bowed to the stadium. "But today is not about me. It is about the next generation of keijo players that will grace these halls with their presence. Hundreds from all around have gathered to join our freshman class but unfortunately, we can only accept the top fifty. The matches are structured to be rapid fire elimination style. In order to see as much of each potential student as possible, you will be paired up randomly for three minute matches until you have lost three times. The matches will go on for three hours, until each applicant has lost three rounds or has decided to retire early for the day. It will not only be a test of your technique, but your drive and endurance. Fight well and regardless of what happens, hold your heads up high. Without further delay, let's begin!" The force of the crowd's cheers resonated in Enro's chest.
The jumbotrons displayed a grid that mirrored the one created by the platforms on the water. It quickly paired two faces and shrank the image into one of the cells in the grid. This went on until Enro's face came up. He was paired with a female cheetah with red hair. Lucky for him, the land he was assigned to was only a few rows away from where he was.
"Looks like you're up!" Sonya said. She patted Enro on the back. "Try to go easy on them big guy!" Enro chuckled but felt a tension rising in his chest. There was a bit of fear but it was overwhelmed by excitement. This was his chance to prove that he belonged here. When thoughts of doubt crept into his mind, he remembered back to Sloane's fight during nationals. If Sloane could make it there, he could get into this school.
Enro made his way to the land. His opponent was smiling and jumping from side to side. Her red hair danced on her slender shoulders. She never took her green eyes off of Enro. She was clearly an outfighter like Sonya. Enro spread his legs and lowered himself into the ready position. He couldn't help but smile. The moderator for the match stood on a smaller platform next to the land. It was a female snow leopard in a white swimsuit. She raised her arm and hovered her whistle in front of her lips. "Fighters ready? Three... Two... One..." The whistle rang and the combatants dashed towards each other.