The arena lights dimmed until the only glow came from the red mark on Gravon's palm.
Every spectator went silent as the floor began to bend.
At first, it was subtle — a slow tilt, like the world had turned into thick syrup. Then the air itself folded, and people gasped as their breath grew heavy.
Riku felt it hit him all at once.
Ten times normal gravity.
His legs screamed. His shoes dug trenches into the floor.
Lira's voice cut through the pressure. You can't out-muscle this. Think of the court like a current — swim with it, not against it.
He dropped to one knee, bouncing the ball once. Even that single motion sounded like a gunshot. The ball dented slightly when it hit the ground.
Across from him, Gravon walked easily, each step creating small craters. His spirit, Obel, loomed like a stone giant, shoulders hunched beneath the weight of its own power.
"This is my domain," Gravon said calmly. "Every inch obeys me."
He flicked his wrist.
Gravity shifted sideways.
The world twisted — Riku was thrown into a wall of invisible force, sliding before he caught himself with a shadow thread. The ball rolled away, crawling back along the tilted ground like it was alive.
"Point 3 — Gravity King."
The scoreboard pulsed. 3 – 2 for Gravon.
Riku spat blood, grinning anyway. "Cool trick."
He yanked the ball up, shadows coiling around his forearms like ropes. "But I can play in three-dimensions too."
---
He ran — not forward, but along the field lines he'd felt earlier. Every few steps, he pushed off an invisible slope, letting gravity slingshot him faster instead of pinning him down.
The crowd murmured as he curved around Gravon like a comet.
Gravon's eyes narrowed. "Adaptive movement…"
Riku hurled the ball. The spin defied the pull, rising against the field and dropping straight through the hoop.
Point 3 — Phantom.
Tied again.
Obel roared, the sound bending the air. Gravon pressed both hands to the ground. The arena's center dipped even deeper, a black circle forming where light refused to escape.
"Final Phase," Gravon muttered.
The weight multiplied. Spectators clutched their seats; Kaori and Serene shielded their faces as stray debris skidded past.
Riku's knees buckled. Lira's shadow enveloped him, taking some of the load. Still, his vision pulsed at the edges.
If we stop moving, we're done.
Then don't stop, he thought back.
He forced himself upright. Each step cracked the tiles. He couldn't jump; he could barely lift his arms. So he used the pressure — bouncing the ball low, letting gravity do half the work.
The rhythm returned. Thud-thud-pause. The sound echoed like a heartbeat.
Gravon advanced, slow but unstoppable, manipulating weight in waves. The ball would veer off mid-bounce, pulled toward him, but Riku countered by releasing phantom echoes that absorbed the distortion.
Two plays.
Two collisions.
Both missed.
Then Gravon whispered, "Zero Field."
The gravity reversed for a heartbeat. Everything lifted — shards, dust, even Riku. Then it snapped back, twice as strong.
The ball shot downward. Riku dove, catching it an inch before it shattered the floor, and hurled it side-arm.
The curve was perfect.
It slipped under Obel's arm, hit the rim, bounced once… fell in.
Point 4 — Phantom.
The stadium erupted again.
Riku collapsed on one knee, gasping. "You're… heavy to deal with."
Gravon's stone-like composure cracked for the first time; a small smirk appeared. "You're still standing. That's new."
---
For thirty more seconds they circled — gravity waves rolling across the court like invisible tides, shadows pulsing to counter them. The noise was pure chaos: lightning-like cracks, deep groans of stressed metal, the muffled roar of the crowd.
Finally Gravon planted both feet, drawing his arms wide. The gravity lines all converged toward him.
"This ends now."
Riku's instincts screamed.
Singularity inbound!
The floor caved. Every loose shard flew toward the center, spinning faster and faster. Riku could barely move — the pull was irresistible.
Lira flared behind him, full phantom form materializing. "Let me handle the drag!"
He shouted, "Together then!"
Shadow energy spiraled outward, forming a disk of counter-force beneath them. The singularity's pull bent it inward, but for one instant the forces balanced.
"Now!"
Riku threw the ball into the collapsing vortex. Gravity seized it, accelerated it — and he redirected that momentum, snapping his wrist at the last millisecond.
The ball curved around the distortion and slammed through the hoop so hard the rim cracked.
Point 5 — Phantom.
Silence. Then the scoreboard froze at 5 – 4.
The singularity faded. The air lightened.
Gravon stood motionless for a second, then let out a quiet breath. The weight around them dissipated like mist.
"Match to Riku Vane."
---
Applause thundered. Kaori whooped. Even Gravon's supporters stood and clapped.
Riku wiped his forehead, every muscle trembling. "That… was hell."
Lira smiled faintly. "And you loved every second."
He chuckled. "Maybe."
Gravon walked over, offering a hand. "You bent my field without breaking. I'll remember that."
Riku shook it. "Next time, I'll dunk through the core."
A small, rare grin crossed Gravon's face. "You'd better."
---
From the VIP balcony, Nyra leaned on the rail, eyes glinting gold. "The Phantom dribbler just rewrote another law of play. Gravity bent to him."
A cloaked observer behind her asked, "Should we stop him?"
She smiled. "Stop him? No. Let him climb. The higher he rises, the greater the fall will be."
---
Riku limped toward the exit tunnel, crowd chanting his name. Kaori tossed him a towel. "You alive, idiot?"
"Barely."
Serene smiled softly. "Then rest. You've earned it."
He looked back once more at the fractured court — still warped from Gravon's power — and whispered, "One match at a time."
The next opponent was waiting.
To be continued...