On the morning of the first match, Emika texts with Hideo. He wishes her good luck, and their messages turn briefly flirtatious; Emika texts “Your moral support is going to distract me in the arena” (206). Over light breakfast the team views the world created for the first match: a racing level of ice, snow, and glaciers. Each team member will race forward on his or her own hoverboard, trying to take out opponents and help to acquire the other team’s Artifact. The Phoenix Riders arrive at the Tokyo Dome, filled with fans. Each team member sits inside a glass cubicle while they play. After introductions and analysts kick off the event, the competition begins. In the virtual level, Emika feels at home on the hoverboard while the others waver at first. She notices giant creatures frozen in the glaciers: a polar bear, a dragon, a saber-tooth tiger.

On Asher’s instruction, Emika gets a lightning power-up, then uses dynamite to collapse an ice monument. She warns her team to flee, then uses the lightning to freeze opponents. As the monument collapses, one opponent, Darren Kinney, gets trapped in the rubble; this “strike out” means he will regenerate far behind the teams.