Deep breaths were always a good way to deal with the knots in her chest whenever she got nervous. For as amazing as she was, stage fright was still something that she never got over. A deep inhale from her nose and a steady exhale from her mouth steadied her heartbeat as she stood up in the small locker room that she found herself in. A voice came out from a nearby intercom, signaling her upcoming performance.  

"Stay in your seat folks, the final round of the Argus Open is about to begin!" 

Eleanor chuckled a bit as she picked up her signature weapons: IXA and Narukami. 

She wasn't going to pretend that crafting such complex weapons didn't cost a pretty penny, but the investment was well worth it. Fighting was a passion of hers. The rush was something that she couldn't replicate anywhere else. 

"Ladies and Gentlemen, you are about to witness a battle unlike any other!" shouted the announcer as Eleanor approached the battle arena, "A clash of two champions in their own right!" 

As Eleanor stepped into the open ring, the cheers of spectators rang through her ears as she took another deep breath. The yells of the people were certainly loud, but it always seemed to be her mother who cheered the loudest. 

Screaming and waving her arms around, Eleanor's mother shouted with glee as she saw her daughter. Eleanor eagerly waved back.

"The first of our finalists is the amazing Eleanor Vance!" 

With a wave of her weapons, Eleanor stepped up to the flat battle arena as her red-haired opponent came into sight. 

"And her opposition: Hometown Champion Pyrrha Nikos!" 

With a smile on her face, the elegant Champion of Argus stepped onto the opposing side of the arena. A wave of excitement washed over Eleanor as she smiled at the opportunity to finally fight her. 

"I've heard a lot about you!" grinned Eleanor, "Making all sorts of big waves around here means that you're bound to show me a good time!" 

"I've actually watched some of your fights on TV. I'm a bit of a fan..." chuckled Pyrrha, "It's an honor to be here with you now!" 

"I'll be sure to live up to your expectations," Eleanor said as she raised her weapons. 

Pyrrha did the same as the crowd fell silent, waiting to see who would make the first move. 

"A sword and shield user... She's a bit similar to me..." thought Eleanor. 

Pyrrha was the first to make a move, quickly closing the gap between the two of them and slashing at her with a powerful right swing. Eleanor skillfully dodged, ducking under her sword, as she counterattacked with a swing from Narukami. Pyrrha was able to block the sword with her shield, but the force from her attack sent her staggering back. 

"She's a lot stronger than she looks!" she thought as she rushed back in for another attack. 

Their two blades clashed as each tried to gain ground on the other. Eleanor was actually surprised that Pyrrha was doing as well as she was. She must have been the strongest opponent that she had gone up against in a while. As their respective swords locked, Eleanor couldn't help but chuckle. 

"They weren't kidding when they said you were talented!" Eleanor complimented, "You're amazing!"  

"Thanks, but I'm not through yet!" 

Pyrrha leaped back as the mechanisms in her sword activated, turning her blade into a large spear. As she brought the spear above her head, Eleanor raised IXA and turned it upside down in preparation for an attack. When Pyrrha threw the spear at her with incredible speed, the large bottom part of the lance-sword morphed into a shield, blocking the spear. 

The spear bounced off of the newly-formed shield and spun in the air as Pyrrha leapt up and caught it, transforming it back into its sword form. While in the air, she turned her body so that she would fall straight onto Eleanor's shield, using the momentum from her fall to boost her attack power. As she fell, she threw her own shield to Eleanor's left, ricocheting it off the ground so that it would strike her in the side.  

As her attention was solely focused on blocking Pyrrha's falling attack, she wasn't able to properly counter her second attack with the shield. Pyrrha's shield stuck Eleanor in her side, causing her to lose her grip on IXA as she backpedaled. The Champion of Argus immediately pressed her advantage as the crowd cheered her on, darting around the stationary IXA and swinging at her with her sword. 

Eleanor skillfully blocked her attacks with Narukami, but she was quickly losing ground as Pyrrha turned on the aggression. She found herself being backed more and more to the edge of the ring, threatening her loss. Eventually, she found herself completely disarmed, her weapon flung out of her hands by a clever reversal by Pyrrha. As she swung her sword again to end the match, Eleanor took a deep breath and listened. 

She could hear it. 

Pyrrha's Echoes. 

The slight shifting of her left foot, indicating that she was putting weight on it. The muscles in her shoulder tensing as she swung the blade. The sound that the air made as it warped around the sword. 

She could hear it all. 

Every move that Pyrrha made sent vibrations through the ground and Eleanor could read those vibrations effortlessly. 

Before Pyrrha's sword could even come close to her, Eleanor ducked under the blade, watching as it flew over her head. Pyrrha continued to swing and jab at her, but Eleanor could see her every move coming from a mile away. All she had to do was dodge.

"W-What is this?!" thought Pyrrha as she watched Eleanor weave through every one of her attacks, "It's like she's moving out of the way of attacks that I haven't even done yet! Is this her semblance?!" 

With Eleanor completely on the defensive, dodging left and right, it gave her the opportunity to notice her opponent's attack pattern. She immediately took advantage of a split second where Pyrrha was wide open, delivering a strong kick that sent her to the other edge of the arena. 

Pyrrha caught her breath as she slowly stood up to face Eleanor. 

"I'll be honest, I think I've met my match," she chuckled, "There's no way that I can beat someone like you." 

"Don't count yourself out just yet," Eleanor replied as she picked up IXA and returned it to its lance form, "It's been a while since I've had to think on my feet like that!" 

The two of them shared a laugh together before getting right back into it. This next clash would end it. 

As Eleanor advanced towards Pyrrha, she activated the shield form of IXA to block oncoming bullets that were being shot at her. Closing the distance between the two of them, Eleanor switched IXA back to lance form as she used two hands to deliver powerful blows to Pyrrha's shield. Pyrrha was quick to notice that IXA was much heavier than Narukami, leading to much more powerful swings. Eleanor's speed, however, was uncompromising. Her attacks came out without missing a beat.

Pyrrha teetered on the edge as her only means of defense were forced out of her hands. Without her shield, Pyrrha was helpless to stop Eleanor from using IXA's shield form to push her out of the ring.

"And it's over!" screamed the announcer, "The winner of the Argus Open is Eleanor Vance!" 

Cheers rang out from all around her as Eleanor leapt off the stage to help Pyrrha up. 

"How old are you, Pyrrha?" asked Eleanor, "You're pretty damn talented!" 

"16," she replied as Eleanor helped her up. 

"Huh... That means you should be thinking about a Huntsman Academy, right? I assume you are going to one?" 

"Like minds think alike," Pyrrha chuckled, "I am thinking about applying."

"Really?! I actually just got admitted into Haven myself! I'll be heading over there once the school year starts!" said Eleanor excitedly, "I can't wait to see you there!" 

"Actually... I was considering Beacon..." Pyrrha sighed. 

"Beacon, huh? I haven't been that part of Vale, so I can't comment," replied Eleanor, "But wherever you end up, I'll still be rooting for you all the way. You're crazy good, so keep up that good work and we'll do this again at the Vytal Festival!" 

"For sure!" 

The two shook hands in admiration and respect before Eleanor turned to leave with a wave. 

Pyrrha actually didn't  mind that she lost. She felt as though she made a friend today. 

She wondered if she would ever see her again.