As everyone was leaving the arena, it was announced that both duelists were still alive but in intensive care. They hadn’t given any more information on what had happened to either man. Some people around had mumbled different theories as they slowly filed out of the coliseum. Jack had so many questions after the duel. “Why weren’t they using guns? it was like a duel from 1000 years ago”

Chad sighed and said, “I agree, I wish the more advanced duelists would use guns but any time someone with a firearm tries to compete; they get beat time and time again.”

“What about grenades, robots, or machines?” Jack asked flustered.

It was Sable’s turn to speak. “I don’t know as much about technology as you, but I do know that it’s basically the same deal. The abilities they can create are more impressive and unpredictable. Imagine a duelist who had walked in with a bandolier of grenades. Seeing that person, you would know they planned to throw, or use those grenades so you would always be ready. By not having your weapons visible gives you a large advantage.”

“This isn’t a perfect rule though,” Chad said picking up where Sable left off. “As you saw he did bring in a gun, he just kept it hidden the entire time. There are duelists who use all the things you talk about, and they do it well, but none of them through 10 years could compete against those two in the ring….”

“Those two….”Jack said quietly. The boys went silent thinking about the two duelists who had suddenly collapsed. “So now I really gotta know what happened between them to cause a duel to the death in the first place. I’m definitely thinking it matters now.”

Sable and Chad both looked at each other knowingly, then looked at Jack. “What do men always fight over? The rumor is it’s a woman. No one knows who she is, but they have feuded over her for years.” Jack just couldn’t believe they would fight to the death over a woman. All of a sudden out of the corner of his eye he got a brief flash of red. He immediately remembered the monster and quickly looked over, but it was just a red handkerchief blowing in the wind. After calming his breathing, he started to wonder if the monster below the city had something to do with the men seemingly being poisoned. He had been having trouble sleeping since seeing the monster and it was all he could think about. Nothing had happened since he saw it below the city and started wondering if they had killed it and just not bothered to tell him. He decided he would go and talk to the head of security later to see if they had an update.

They were traveling through the city on their way back to the academy. None of them had classes because of the duel, so they were taking their time and soaking in the sights. As they traveled, Jack decided to check out the old shop where he had originally found Pyke in. The store was no longer infested with mechanical critters and the shopkeeper was happy to see them. “Welcome back!” He jumped at the sight of customers. “How has the academy been treating you?”

“Fine, thank you very much. We were passing through the neighborhood and wanted to see your wares.” Jack said smiling.

“Ah, well I have the finest magical items you can find on this side of the east sea. Is there anything, in particular, you are looking for?” He put on his best salesman persona.

“Nothing specific, just looking for useful items,” Jack replied.

“Well let me show you some of my favorite wares.” He walked over to a shelf behind his counter and pulled down a small wooden box. He beckoned them close and opened it with a small flourish. Inside the box was a set of rings. There were three rings in total, they were a very simple silver design. Looking closer you could clearly see they had some sort of enchantment on them. “Power Rings. A simple design. You pump your mana into them over time, then when you need extra mana, you are able to consume the power from the ring. These ones are special because they don’t break. You can use these again and again.” He was going all out with his salesman techniques and flourishes, but it wasn’t working on Jack at all.

The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

“Wow, that does sound very useful. But that’s not really what I need. What else do you have?”

Without any hesitation, he slid the box to the side and pulled out a potion he had hidden beneath the counter. The potion bottle was half full of a shimmering fluid that seemed to change color depending on the angle you looked at it. “This is a synthesized light particle manipulator. A highly specialized fluid that can make anything invisible to the naked eye for a short period of time.”

“Wow. That is really cool.” Jack held the bottle up to the light. If you looked directly at it, the liquid seemed to blur and distort. “But I’m not sure if I would need something like that.”

“Tough customer.” He looked Jack over and noticed his maintenance badge. “Ah! A man of science and technology. I have the perfect item for you. He walked deeper into his shop. The shop seemed to just go on and on. The three guys stayed near the front as the shopkeeper mumbled and banged around deeper in the shop. After a few moments, he came back with a slightly dusty-looking wrist bracer. The bracer looked very technical and had a big screen. It was basically just a long bracelet that covered half your forearm. The shopkeeper lifted it up to his face and blew the dust off, then he passed it towards Jack and motioned for him to try it on. The bracer had soft worn-in leather on the inside that was surprisingly still squishy. He put his arm in it and flipped the other side closed, buckling it shut. The device was pretty advanced because it seemed to sense his arm and the leather changed pressure, conforming slightly as it was buckled shut. The device was surprisingly sleek. There were no protruding edges and it easily slid under his shirt sleeve. Jack held it in front of himself and examined it.

“What does it do?” He asked excitedly.

“That there is a must-need tool if you want to be serious about working with machines.” Thinking back Jack did remember Ms. Posie wearing something like this. “It is a multitool that gives you information on connected machines or equipment. It also has an extremely upgradable interface that is highly universal and can connect to almost anything.” The wristband turned on. A small screen projected up from the device. The display was incredibly clear and easy to read. The machine was booting up and was displaying some basic startup code. After a moment the device displayed a basic interface that had fundamental information displayed in the corner like the date and time. “It’s called a cyber pad. They come in all shapes and sizes.” Jack started messing with the interface. It was very intuitive and has able to show an impressive amount of information without any assistance. With his interest peaked, Jack got to haggling.

While the shopkeeper had been selling to Jack, Sable and Chad had been wandering around the shop, examining the items. They had found some unique items, but nothing of real interest. In the end, Jack ended up purchasing the bracer. While he was ringing up the items the shopkeeper started to make small talk. “So, were you guys at the coliseum today?”

“Yah, Albert vs Darius.”

“How was the match?”

“Uh, it ended kinda weird.”

“hmm?” the shopkeeper didn’t look up as he was ringing up the item.

“Well, it looked like they both may have been poisoned,” Jack said.

“Oh,” The shopkeeper was silent for a moment. “That’s not good. Poison you say? Hmmm. What happened?” The boys went about describing the incredible duel and the surprising ending. “My goodness. That certainly sounds like they were poisoned.”

“Why do you think someone would have poisoned them?” Jack asked.

“Well… those two are very famous and have many enemies. They are both very opinionated and have fought many duels. They are also both heirs to family fortunes. Albert Lancaster resides here in the city and is one of the strongest users on our continent. Darius Angevin is from a nearby country that is supposed to be our ally. The fact that they were both poisoned can not be good for the nation.”

“What do you think would happen if either one of them were to die?” Sable asked.

“Well, if Darius were to die I imagine the country of Syphos where Darius is from would very likely question their friendship with the royal family. Albert on the other hand, his death would mean the country losing one of its strongest warriors. It would be a huge hit to our military strength. Losing either one would be crippling for the country. Losing both is unthinkable.” The shopkeeper was quiet after that while he packaged up the bracer for Jack.

Soon after they left that shop. They continued through the city and talked amongst themselves about what could have possibly happened. Jack had told the boys about the monster that had attacked him. “Do you think the beast was involved in the poisoning?” Chad asked quietly.

“I don’t know,” Jack said. “But I’m really starting to not like the city.”