It all sounded so fitting, so appealing. It had to be the truth. What else could''ve been the real reason behind three obviously powerful high school students all together in the same team and on the same school? Kacie''s quick mind feasted on this new insight voraciously, such that she didn''t even know when she voiced out her agreement.


    "Your analysis is spot on Zavier!" Her eyes danced in excitement. Her own brain had been struggling to decipher this mystery. So, when Zavier proffered such an attractive solution to the mystery, she jumped on it immediately.


    "Honestly the fact that such a powerful trio all school together is a dead giveaway. Think on it; if this was actually true, if such an A-team actually existed, then they would have been offered early admissions into Caesar University on grounds of extreme talent!"


    The slick Zavier nodded, encouraging Kacie''s whim.


    Spurred by Zavier''s approval, she built on his theory and continued to analyze the situation ording to the new data;


    "By all ount, Zavier might actually be right on this count. No group of high schoolers can be this powerful. It can only be lecturers or even professors pretending to be contestants, just so they can blend into thepetition..."


    Kacie''s face lit up when she remembered another factor; "The masks!" She eximed.


    "That exins the masks! They''re obviously older and more matured, hence the masks!"


    Kacie was twitching with excitement, gleeful and high on the fact that she had just sessfully cracked the case. Nadia on the other hand wasn''t as smart as the other two, but she followed their conversation closely and got enough to know what they were talking about. They had figured it all out! And thanks to Zavier!


    The diabolical genius behind all of this couldn''t help but praise himself inwardly. Although on the exterior he maintained some semnce of normalcy, deep inside he was scratching the floor of his mind. Forcing back the tide of his own swelling emotions, he continued to keep up the charade of one that was seriously analyzing an impossible situation. An Academy Award was in order for him. He had yed the part beautifully.


    Muchter that night, while a majority of the others had gone to bed, Calista rolled in bed unable to sleep. It wasn''t like it was because of some issue that was bothering her. Sure, she had a lot on her mind, but at that particr moment, she was waiting for 12am to strike. There was urgent business to be attended to. She felt every single moment pass in the darkness as she waited for midnight toe like some enstranged lover that was to be back soon.


    Finally, after an agonizing couple of hours, the stroke of the midnight bells echoed through the grounds of the university, signaling all that midnight was at hand. That was Calista''s cue. She jumped out of bed and hurried along on her feet towards the rendezvous point she had previously arranged with her students. Calista''s quarters was with the staff and other chaperones from the variouspeting high schools. But her destination was a bit farther than usual.


    The conference room was usually open all day and all night for study group sessions and other misceneous activities. So, she had no doubt that it would be open. She hurried along on her short legs through the halls and corridors, breezing through like a ghost or a creature of the night, until she eventually arrived at the entrance to the conference room. Just as she had expected, every single one of her students were there as arranged. All five of them. There was no need for greetings, the atmosphere was like that of a war council.


    After counting to make sure everyone was present, she led open the doors and led them all in. The coldte breeze wafted through the windows of the University''s castle-like structure. A lot of them were on their pyjamas and shawls, but that did nothing to keep out the cold. But they weren''t here to befortable. Calista had arranged for this meeting at this time and at this location because of the seriousness of the matter at hand.


    The conference room was just perfect for this debriefing. As her five students took their seats, she climbed up the podium and began her address;


    "Thank you all for making out time to be here. Not that I gave you much of a choice anyway, but still, thanks for being here."


    They giggled at her light joke, and the atmosphere warmed up a little.


    "As I''m sure you are all aware, the second round is soon to begin. But before we begin, I''d like to ask, if anyone has anyints about the first round, raise your hands now."


    Within the blink of an eye, every single hand shot up in the air.. Calista''s indifferent countenance turned into a deep frown.


    "That was a trick question, and you all bungled it! Brace up, the whole lot of you! This isn''t a walk over! No one cares about yourints! You all need to buck up and realize that you''re not in high school anymore!"


    It wasn''t the perfect pep talk, but it was more than enough to rile them up from their apparent state of slumber.


    "Now that we have that out of the way, we can now discuss the matter at hand which is the second round..."


    They all kept quiet, looking at her expectantly, waiting for her to hit the nail on the head.


    "It goes without saying that the rules are somewhat different from that of the first round. Normally, fifty percent of the entire contestants are supposed to be eliminated in the first round..."


    There was a gasp somewhere in the background.


    "Are you surprised? Yes, that''s normally how it goes in the first ground. However, due to some freak ident, it seems like the number of participants left has dropped to a figure south of five hundred."


    Calista listened for any kind of reaction but didn''t get any. That''s good, she thought. They were the A-team after all.


    "Unlike the first round, the second round is going to be a teampetition in which the lead teacher selects one person to represent the team in a one on one ry. This is a contest that only ends when thest person on one side is either defeated or concedes to defeat."


    She didn''t want to bombard them with too much information at once, so, she slowed down her pace in other for them to assimte all they had just heard. As soon as she sensed they were back on track, she continued;


    "The second round is also an elimination round. And the elimination process will continue until the final team emerges as the champion."


    Calista pressed her palm firmly against the table in front of her and lowered her voice in a somber tone;


    "As I said earlier on, the contestants left are now fewer than five hundred. I will not lie to you, this year is a bit of an anomaly, and I personally haven''t witnessed this many contestants eliminated at the first stage before…"


    She let that part sink in well.


    "So, our strategy for the second round must carry all the shocking audaciousness of a savage assault. So, all hands need to be on deck in order to achieve the desired oue here..."


    She red at every one of them, pausing to make sure that she initiated eye contact with each of them as individuals.


    "...and just in case that wasn''t clear enough, the desired oue I am talking about is nothing but absolute victory. It is attainable, and I demand it from all of you. There can be no weak links."


    As she dropped thatst part, Calistaid heavy emphasis on the need to work as a team, everyone had to be on their best behavior.


    Kacie quickly perceived the urgency and seriousness of the situation, and quickly moved to analyze the situation as it was. Her calm, suave personality went hand in hand with her ability to reason properly. After all, the reason they were all here in the first ce was to brainstorm on ideas that would take them forward and ensure their victory in the next round. There was simply no time for dilly dallying. So, she spoke up in her calm assertive voice, drawing attention to herself;


    "In lieu of what Miss Calista has just said, I believe our best bet would be to start strong and finish even stronger..."


    Everyone was now looking at her, just as she had intended. She continued to ride the wave, hoping that it would permanently shift the attention from Calista''s and Zavier''s showdown to the real issue at hand.


    "What ever subsequent n we agree on, one thing will always remain constant; we need to put our best foot forward, and save our ace card forst. All other tactics wee up with should be built on this first step."


    A couple of people agreed with her. In order to convince the lot that were still nurturing doubts in their minds, Kacie went on to analyze the situation further;


    "The whole structure of thispetition is based on the contestants itself. There are no other obstacles or strengths that outside of the human factors here. That is the beginning and end of the nature of this round."


    This was the basis of her reasoning, and everyone followed her as she walked them through her thought process.


    "Therefore, if we can structure our line up in such a way that the strongest willest, we can dominate the rest of the contest physically and psychologically. The summary of this tactic is that we need to bring the hammer down on the enemy at thest minute. This is all so that our team can be in (and maintain) a position of strength all through the match."