“Pass the butcher knife, Cecile,” Brandon said hanging out his hand. Cecile moved her hand over her opened mouth.

“Don’t commit murder now.” Brandon rolled his eyes.

“Why would I kill my sister?” Cecile moved and put the butcher knife in his hands.

“That’s only for the killer to know,” Cecile said as she got up. Brandon looked at her.

“Where you going?” he asked.

“I’m going to feed the pigs,” Cecile replied as she walked out. As she walked over to where the pigs were at she took a look at the farm and looked back at the town beside it.

Small.

She fed the pigs some food and water, then finished her other chores as some hours passed by. She walked back to where her brother was and they went home. They lived on this farm, one of many around this small town. They walked up to their one-story house. Cecile took a look at it.

Small.

They walked in to see their dad looking at a picture.

Not again, Cecile thought.

Their dad looked back at them.

"Oh have you finished children?" dad asked, looking back with a smile. He was a fairly old man with greying hair.

"We finished them, dad," Brandon said as he walked to the kitchen. Dad put the back picture back.

We've found him staring at that picture so often after mom died two years ago, Cecile thought.

“Brandon!” Dad said getting up. Brandon came into the living room with a bagel in his mouth, where Cecile and Dad were already.

“You are both eighteen now, what are your dreams?” Brandon swallowed part of his bagel.

“To support you, dad,” dad shook his head while smiling.

“I want you to aspire to something more than this farm life. How about you?” Cecile took a glance at Brandon and Brandon glanced back.

“I want to…support you here on the farm like Brandon.” Dad sighed.

“Well if that’s what you really want to do, I won’t stop you.” Cecile, Brandon, and their dad all came in for a hug.

“Why’d you lie?” Brandon said as Cecile and he got ready for bed.

“I didn’t,” Cecile replied. Brandon stopped getting ready.

“I know you, Cecile. Your goals don’t lie here.”

“Well my goals can change. I want to stay here with you to support dad.” Brandon put his hand to his face.

“I’m fine Cecile, I don’t need you to watch out for me.” Cecile stopped and looked at Brandon.

“I know.” They got ready in silence and then went to their beds that were beside each other. Cecile rolled over to look at the ceiling.

“You remember the last thing mom said?”

After a moment Brandon said, “yeah.”

Be great! Make a name for yourself throughout the lands! Make a legacy for all to remember! Cecile remembered.

“Do you ever think of more than just this farm?” Cecile asked. A moment went by.

“No.” They didn’t talk anymore as they both drifted off into sleep.

The next day they were working on the farm while their dad was selling some crops and animals in a small market nearby. Cecile went to give the cows some food when she found a flyer on one of the cows.

It read, the gods themselves are holding a tournament with the winner gaining powers beyond imagination! Come and become something more, something great!

It also showed the date and location of the tournament. Cecile scrolled through the flyer and found there was even a large money award. Cecile's heart was beating as she rushed through the farm to where Brandon was.

"Brandon!" Cecile said as Brandon looked up from feeding the rabbits.

"Woah! Your cheeks are so red they match your freckles and your hair." Cecile had to catch her breath.

"Ch-ch-just look!" Cecile raised the flyer for Brandon to take. Brandon raised an eyebrow but took the flyer. He took a look and a few moments passed.

"No." He put out the flyer to Cecile.

"Why? We can finally chase something great. Something significant! Wh-"

"No!" Brandon stood up and pressed the flyer to Cecile. Cecile was around 5'3 but with Brandon standing over her at 5'9 he was intimidating to her.

"Have you seen dad after our mom died? I'm not leaving this farm. Somebody's got to support him." Brandon started to walk past Cecile. Cecile was still.

"Did you finish the flyer?" Cecile asked.

"No, I didn't bu-"

"There's a huge cash prize. If we or one of us win we can support dad for life. No more farm life." Cecile turned around to face Brandon and pointed at the prize amount on the poster. Brandon scrunched up his face and put his hand to his face.

"What happens when you lose? What if it's one of those life-or-death ones?"

Cecile skimmed the flyer again.

"Doesn't say anything about that. We'll be fine." Brandon started pacing back and forth.

"We have no fighting experience! How are we supposed to compete in a tournament like this?!" Cecile read through the paper.

"It doesn't say that it's a fighting tournament specifically." Brandon continued to think.

"Ok, before we decide this we need to bring the flyer to dad." Cecile nodded. She and Brandon ventured off to find dad. They found him feeding the chickens. He looked up just as Cecile showed him the flyer. He read through it as Brandon and Cecile's heartbeat through their chest. He looked up and smiled.

"Yes." That is all their dad said. Brandon's jaw dropped while Cecile jumped for joy.

"What do you need to get there?"

Brandon and Cecile packed their backpacks with the essential stuff they needed for the trip.

"I can't believe we are going," Cecile said, heart over her chest.

"You can tell me that again," Brandon said with a tired expression. But that expression quickly turned to a grin. They took their packs out to this big wagon that had a wooden roof on top of it but no doors with a horse pulling it. They found their dad paying the guy that was to take them to Verdici. Brandon and Cecile walked up to their dad and the rider. Cecile noticed there were only two seats.

"Where do we sleep?" Brandon asked. The driver looked at them.

"In the wagon of course." Cecile and Brandon looked at their dad at the same time.

"He's an old buddy of mine. Gave me a discount and is the most reliable rider of the horse that I've seen." Cecile just sighed as Brandon and her got into the wagon. Their dad finished talking to the rider and walked up to Brandon and Cecile.

"The trip will take three days and he'll take you right up to the building where the test is taking place." Their dad got up on the wagon and gave them both a big hug. He looked them both in the eyes.

"Look after each other and stay safe." He brought their heads closer to his face.

"Remember to be great." After he got off the wagon, he gave the signal to the driver to go, and just like that, they were off. They looked back and waved and their dad smiled and waved back. Until he became just a speck and disappeared.

After three days of sleeping side by side in a very uncomfortable wagon, they were in front of this very big metal dome place in Verdici. They got their stuff out of the wagon and they walked into the dome. Cecile was surprised and at the same time wasn't. Cecile lived in a rural area so she was going to see many people of the same skin color as her, white. Going to a capital like Verdici which was known to many people of different backgrounds and cultures, she was bound to see different skin colors. It was still a shock to see people of so many different colors as she and Brandon walked deeper into the dome. There were many people in the dome.

How many people? Cecile thought. Cecile looked around. To her, it might have been in the millions. Suddenly, a stage rose in front of all the people, with a figure on top. They were wearing a happy/sad mask that didn't cover their mouth, with a cape and a black outfit. The figure brought out a horn.

"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the tournament of the gods!" Cecile guessed it was a man due to the voice. Brandon leaned over to Cecile.

"Why the mask?" Cecile responded with a shrug.

"In this tournament, you will go through some trials and then will be bestowed with a power from the gods." The dome erupted in cheer from all around. Cecile started to get excited too.

"Of course, you'll be risking your life to-"

"Huh?" Somebody said from the crowd. The masked figure took on a confused expression that turned into a wicked grin.

"You thought this wouldn't be life or death? The power you could obtain is beyond your wildest dreams and you thought you could walk away scot-free?"

"But the fly-,"

"The flyer didn't state it wouldn't be life or death. If you want to leave you can walk out right now." There was a moment of stillness and silence. People started moving out of the dome as Cecile heard whispers of "waste of time…", "...I value my life", and ".....hopefully I can find a driver quickly…". Brandon tapped on Cecile's shoulder.

"Alright Cecile, let's go too," he said as he started to walk out. He looked back and saw Cecile wasn't walking with him.

"Cecile?" Cecile looked at him with a giddy expression.

"I'm not leaving Brandon. This is perfect! Imagine the legacy this will leave!"

"There won't be any legacy if your dead!" Brandon said throwing up his hands.

"But mom sai-"

"Stop! I know what mom said. But we have to think realistically. This is life or death!"

"I am thinking realistically! I'm sick of the town and the farm. It's all too small. I need something more. Something great." Cecile was grinning with a wicked gleam in our eyes.

Cecile crossed her arms.

"No matter what Brandon, I'm not going back." Brandon focused on Cecile for a moment.

"Are you sure about this?"

"Absolutely." Brandon sighed and grinned.

"We are in this together then." People continued to walk around them. Until there were around one hundred people left according to Cecile's count.

"Now that the phonies have left, I'm going to ask you to drink from these cups." The contestants started to walk toward the cups.

"When you drink these cups though," the announcer said raising his hands, "you might die. If you don't you've passed." The air in the dome immediately tensed. The contestants continued to move forward as one after another drank from the cup. Brandon tapped Cecile's shoulder and gave her a serious stare. They both nodded and started to walk towards the table that the cups were on. As they walked, people around started to spasm and die. Each step towards the table was labored as fear crept in with each and every scream. They got to the table and stared at the cup. Suddenly, Cecile grabbed one and drank it. Brandon followed suit right after. They waited a few tense minutes. The screaming eventually died down and Cecile noticed all the cups had been taken.

"The ones who have lived are the ones that are fit to move on." The announcer raised one finger into the air.

"You have one week. The ten contestants here will go through several trials to decide who gets this power." The announcer turned around.

"I hope you will try very hard to win."

Cecile and Brandon walked out of the dome to a bright day sunny afternoon. Brandon looked toward Cecile.

"Let's check in to our hotel."

Cecile looked up at the dark, starry sky. Cecile and Brandon walked into a bar near their hotel.

"I think it tastes like vomit," Brandon said walking into the bar.

"Maybe it tastes like something sweet," Cecile said, scanning the options on the wooden board high in the air. "Hopefully."

Brandon walked up to the bartender.

"We'd like two of your best alcoholic drinks," Brandon said holding up two fingers. Cecile noticed a man in a coat sipping from a wooden cup. More importantly, Cecile noticed a woman bothering a man of small size.

"Our first time legally buying alcohol. How you feeling?" Brandon said patting Cecile on the back.

"Uhhh…" Brandon followed Cecile's gaze. Brandon put a hand to his cover the top half of his face.

"Let me guess. You want to help him?" Cecile turned to Brandon and nodded. They walked up to the two and Brandon said, "excuse me. I saw you two and I was just wondering if everything is okay."

"It is the not!" The small man replied.

"This woman is trying to take my money!"

The woman gave both of us a look and pointed to her knives on the side of her.

"Scram," is all she said. Brandon took a deep breath. "Please, just leave this man alo-" Before Brandon could finish there was already a knife to his throat.

"I. Said. SCRAM."

"And I said stop," Cecile said as she held a knife to the woman's throat. The woman let out a small laugh.

"Can you plunge that into my throat?"

"If I have to." The woman and Cecile's eyes locked on each other. The woman placed her knife back on her waist.

"Not worth it," the woman said. Brandon and Cecile turned their backs on her. The second they did that a knife plunged into Cecile's back.

"Cecile!" Brandon cried.

"That's what you ge-" before the woman could finish that sentence there was already a knife in the woman's heart. The woman immediately fell on her back.

"How?" The woman asked as the life drained from her eyes.

"I expected you to attack us again," Cecile said with heavy breaths as Brandon rushed to help her.

"So I braced myself for attack and readied myself to attack back." The woman stopped moving as her eyes became lifeless.

"Cecile! No no no no no NO! Anybody! Does anybody know where a hospital is?" Brandon shouted. The man in the coat walked up to them.

"You won't make it to a doctor," the man with the coat said. Tears were streaming down Brandon's face.

"Please, please don't leave me," Brandon whispered. The man in the coat stared at Cecile.

"I have a friend who can help," the man said. Brandon looked up.

"Please, just save her." The man in the coat turned around.

"Come with me."

Cecile woke up with a start. Cecile immediately looked around and saw Brandon sleeping.

"Where am I?" Cecile whispered.

"Your in my house." Cecile looked toward the direction the voice was coming from. She saw a man of excellent height. Over six foot two for sure. He had a goatee and a small mustache going on with ruffled hair. He was wearing black jeans with a black undershirt. Cecile also noticed the black cowboy boots and hat on a table near him.

"A friend of mine healed you," the man said as he took a wooden cup and started sipping a drink again. Cecile studied the man with worry. The man raised an eyebrow.

"Your wondering why we helped you?" Cecile gave a short nod.

"Would you believe if I said it was from the goodness of my heart?" Cecile thought for a moment.

"No." The old man let out a small laugh.

"At least your not naive," he said as he took a big sip of his drink.

"How do you feel?" He asked cup to his lips.

"My injuries don't really hur-"

"I'm not talking about that," he said as he got a seat and sat beside Cecile who was sleeping in a blanket on the floor.

"You took a life today," he said as he studied me.

"Yeah but it was a worthless one," Cecile said as she went to bed.

Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.

"You think that it's that simple? You didn't know anything about that person. You know nothing of their character." Cecile sat up from her bed.

"You know what I do know? She tried to rob a guy and stabbed me. Self-defense is reason enough." Cecile went back to bed. The old man got up and started to make some tea.

"You know, it won't always be that simple. In the tournament, you'll have to kill innocent people." Cecile stiffened.

"How'd you know we were in the tournament?"

"I didn't but that confirmed for me." He made his tea but this time he sat down on the floor in front of me.

"Kid what do you want to accomplish in life?"

Cecile took a moment to answer.

"I want to be great. I'm not sure how, but that's my desire."

"Are you willing to kill people for that? To step over people's lives and dreams to accomplish this?" Cecile wrapped her arms around herself.

"You need to strengthen your resolve. Put your life on the line if you want to win. What does being great mean to you? Take up your weapon and find out." He said the last part with a clenched fist. Cecile stared at the man.

"Why do you even care what we do?" He took a moment to answer.

"You remind me of myself when I was younger. Before the monarchy made me a dog." He walked up to refill his tea.

"Listen up kid. I'm going to train you while a friend of mine trains your…" Cecile followed his eyes.

"My brother."

"At the end of my training, I'm going to give you a power that will help you win the tournament. Combined with the power you'll get from winning the tourney, you could change the world."

Cecile got up and sat on a chair beside him while he was refilling his tea.

"You've won the tourney before?" The man glanced at her.

"Yes." Cecile noticed a change in expression. She couldn't figure out what it was.

"What happened afterward?" He took a sip of his refilled tea.

"The monarchy enlisted me and gave me missions. It was great at first. I wanted to be great just like you now. My name was spreading through the world as a great hero. Then…." Moments passed.

"What happened?" Cecile asked. Cecile looked into the man's eyes and he seemed to be reliving a memory a million times. It was similar to when Cecile's dad would stare at mom's picture for minutes.

"It doesn't matter anymore. All you need to know is that I'm trying to run away from that life. I'll give you my power then go into seclusion." He looked into Cecile's eyes.

"If you win that power, don't be a dog to the monarchy. Promise me"

"What's so bad about tha-"

"Promise me." Cecile stared back at the man. She could read his seriousness.

"Promise."

"Good," he said as he got up. He started to walk out of the room.

"We start training tomorrow."

The training was tough. They were in a mountain range and the man whose name was actually Colt, did not go easy on her. He said he was a cowboy from the wild west, one of the best apparently.

"Ever heard of "Colton the Grim?" Cecile's mouth gaped open.

"I've heard of him in the paper. He is said to be one of the best heroes of the monarchy. Didn't he disappear?"

"This is where he disappeared too," Colt said, pointing at himself. Cecile put a hand to her chin.

"Yesterday you said the power you'll give me combined with the power I'll win, will give me the power to change the world. If it's so strong, why hasn't anybody tried to obtain two powers?" Colt was getting the training court ready.

"Nobody wants to hand over their power and it's illegal to take it through force." Colt finished setting up the training course.

"Alright," Colt said walking to Cecile.

"For this exercise,e you have to shoot this wooden dummy before it shoots you with rubber pellets." He walked up to one of the wooden dummies.

"And I mean in the middle of their foreheads," he said pointing to that spot.

I put my hand on my revolver. A few seconds went by when Colt said,

"Draw!" Before Cecile could even touch her revolver she get a rubber pellet in her stomach. She went down from the pain. Colt put a hand to his head.

"This'll be a while." They practiced hand-to-hand, gun skills, and other fighting-related things. Late in the day, Cecile was on the ground looking up at the sky.

"God, save me please."

It was the time of the tournament as Cecile and Brandon got ready to head out. Cecile looked at Brandon. He looked the same except for a few bruises on his face, but his aura was different. It was a mix of determination but something else Cecile couldn't pick up.

"After the trials today, come back so I can prepare you for the next one," Colt said as Cecile and Brandon finished getting ready.

"Will do," Cecile said as she put on her boots. Cecile was wearing slightly baggy pants, matched with a black shirt and shoes. While Brandon was wearing the same outfit.

"What are the outfits for?" Colt asked, pointing to them.

"We figured it might be a stealth trial at first."

Colt nodded and then walked up to both of them. Then surprising them, he hugged them both tight.

"Make your dreams come true. Fight. Fight for them with all your will." After he finished talking, he released them. Cecile and Brandon walked out the door as Colt waved them on.

It was a race with monsters. It was a simple test in theory. Run and if you encounter a monster, kill them. Until you heard it was in a maze. Not a hard one, according to the announcer. The announcer said it was for increasing monster encounters by boxing them in.

"You are all to enter at the same time," the announcer said, pointing to the maze.

"Get ready." Everybody got into starting positions and then the announcer said,

"GO!" Everybody rushed into the maze. The bushes were high and the maze was wide. Cecile marveled at them before Brandon pulled her along.

"Let's move quickly," Brandon said.

They ran through the maze and got lost a couple of times but as the announcer said, it was fairly easy to right themselves. Suddenly, Cecile told Brandon to stop.

"There's a monster there," Cecile said bringing out her revolver.

"What's the pla-,"

"Watch." Brandon did exactly that and focused on her. Cecile remembered what Colt said.

I'm going to give you a power called "Eyes of Divinity." It has three powers.

What are they? Cecile had asked.

Cecile readied her revolver.

The first one is the "Almighty Scope." The ability to see through walls and far distances.

How far?

For your skill level, I would say, 200m.

Cecile's right eye turned into a red scope.

Bang!

Cecile fired and shot the monster right in the head. It spasmed a bit then died. Cecile looked at Brandon to see that his face was full of shock.

"This is the power?" Brandon said.

"I'll fill you in on what Colt didn't. Let's go."

Time was running out. They were killing the monsters easily but they were getting harder to kill as time went on as they were getting more high-level.

"At this rate, we won't make it in time," Brandon said while cutting through a fox beast with the sword he got from Colt's friend.

"We'll have to kill them faster," Cecile replied. Cecile and Brandon darted forward.

"At this pace, we should make it out in ti-"

"HELP!" Cecile and Brandon stopped and looked at where the sound was coming from.

Cecile put her hand on her mouth. It was a boy fighting a rock monster. He was badly injured but still savable.

"Cecile let's go help hi-" Cecile suddenly moved her arm in front of Brandon to stop him. Brandon looked at her but she didn't say a word.

Finally, she said, "we move." Then Cecile started moving forward again.

"Cecile, we can't just leave him. If a contestant loses this trial they don't even die. But he will to those monster injuries." Cecile looked at Brandon with a cold face. There was no life in those eyes, Brandon noticed.

"If we help him we won't make it in time," Cecile said quietly but resolutely. Brandon studied her.

"Cecile, you understand the choice you're making. If we leave him he's dead."

Cecile remembered both what Colt said and her mom.

Are you willing to kill people for that? To step over people's lives and dreams to accomplish this?

"Yes, I know. This is my decision," Cecile said. Brandon gave a short nod and they continued through the maze. No matter how hard Cecile tried, she couldn't block out the sound of the boy's screams.

They had made it through. Only four people had survived the maze.

"We'll be going to the semis and skipping the next trial due to the deaths that have been incurred. They will be held tomorrow at…."

Cecile couldn't pay attention to any of that. All she heard were screams.

"Cecile." She could hear the blood splatter.

"Cecile." She could hear the crushing of bones.

"Cecile!" Cecile was brought back to focus as Brandon put his hands on her shoulders.

"Calm down. He understood what he was getting into when he joined this tournament." Cecile took in deep breaths.

"Yeah," she said shakily. They got transported back to the dome. The announcer said it was their ability.

What are the limits to that? thought Cecile.

Cecile and Brandon left the dome and walked back in silence.

It was the day of the semis. Cecile didn't sleep well. She had massive bags under her eyes but otherwise was focused and determined. Brandon looked fine but contemplative.

I wonder what he's thinking about? Cecile thought. Cecile had been having doubts about Brandon's opinion of her. She had left someone to die. How did Brandon think of that?

"If you win today," Colt said stretching, "I'll give you a custom-made cowboy outfit. To carry on my will." Cecile tried to put on her best face.

"When we win, I'll come for that outfit." With that, they left for the semis.

Cecile was facing a sword user in her battle. The semis were a 1v1 battle. Brandon's semis were at the same time. Due to this, Cecile had a hard time focusing at first, but before the fight, she remembered the screams and that got her focused.

No turning back now, Cecile thought. The announcer was here and looked from Cecile to her opponent.

"3, 2, 1," the announcer counted down.

Cecile took in a long breath.

"Be great Cecile," she whispered.

"GO!"

There was a bullet in her opponent's liver before he could even draw his blade.

He got up right after.

Damn, Cecile thought. Colt had warned Cecile of annoying powers. Top of that list had been healers. More specifically, self-healers. Her opponent was around her age which lowered her anxiety about attacking him.

No holding back.

Cecile fired a shot but her opponent had already anticipated and moved out of the way. He rushed at her with conviction. In response, Cecile shot his sword hand making his sword fall out of his hand. Then Cecile strapped her gun and moved into hand-to-hand combat. She had been trained in it by Colt.

Guns are good, use them to keep your opponent away. But switch it up to keep your opponent on their toes. Remember, never be predictable. Predictable gets you killed.

Cecile swung but her opponent swung at the same time. The knuckles hit together. A grin spread across both their faces. Punches came in rapidly, but not much was connecting. He was stronger but Cecile was faster and lighter on her feet. She got in three punches before he stopped dodging. He rushed in when Cecile laid him with two punches but he guarded and almost got her in the head. She dodged just in time but it grazed her left shoulder. She immediately disengaged.

That was too close. At least it wasn't my shooting shoulder.

Her opponent picked up his sword and rushed her. Before he could place a step he had two bullets in his chest. He got up, all healed, and continued to run at her.

Damn it! I shot non-vital parts on purpose, Cecile thought. She backed up constantly, shooting him but he healed and got back each and every time. Cecile knew from the second he had gotten up the first time.

I'm going to have to kill him to win.

For this match, if they can't continue or forfeit then you win, but killing is allowed.

I wanted to win without this, Cecile thought but as soon as the thought came up she remembered what Colt had.

You need to strengthen your resolve! Put your life on the line if you want to win!

Cecile's eyes turned lifeless. This time she shot for fatal areas such as the brain but her opponent blocked it. Her opponent came in quickly. Instead of guessing where the attack was going to come from, Cecile just remembered.

I only ever figured out how to use two of the powers, Colt had said.

Alright, but you never told me what the second one was.

Her opponent was about to attack.

We call it the "Eye of Janus."

It lets you see seconds into the future.

The symbol for Janus burned blue in Cecile's left eye. She dodged the sword much to the surprise of the boy. She then pointed her gun at the boy's head who was still recovering from making his move.

"I'm sorry," Cecile said as she fired the bullet into his head. He then spasmed, and dropped down, unmoving. Cecile didn't even get any time to sulk as she was brought down to her knees by fatigue. Colt had told her that increasing The Eye of Janus' foresight depends on the talent of the user and how often they use it.

But there is one big drawback, Colt had said.

What?

Fatigue. And Cecile was feeling it. It was not only hard to stand up but to breathe. It felt like her whole body was shutting down. But she had won.

One more round, Cecile thought.

"Congratulations! You've won your semi-final match. We are going to be having the finals now." Cecile looked at the announcer in panic, but then calmed down.

Brandon will win, and then we'll tell them that we intend to take the prizes for both of us.

The announcer morphed the fighting stage to look similar to the dome. The only difference here is that the light shows through the top of this dome and the ground had been changed to a stage. It was a simple stage, long and sun dust color.

"This is your opponent!" The announcer said, pointing to the figure. Cecile snapped her head up to take a look. Then a big smile spread across her face.

"Bran-" before she could even finish her sentence, Brandon had already run across and hugged her.

"I was so worried," Brandon said quietly. Cecile flexed her bicep.

"There shouldn't have been anything to worry about," she said with a grin. Brandon then looked her in the eye.

"Are you okay?"

"My opponent only got my shoulde-"

"That's not what I mean," Brandon said cutting her off. He focused on her eyes.

"How do you feel? Did you "finish off" your opponent?" Cecile didn't look away. She wasn't going to buckle under the weight of the death.

"I made my decision Brandon and I'll live with that," Cecile said with a soft smile. Brandon smiled back and hugged her again.

"So you know each other?" The announcer said, cutting the hugging short. Brandon looked at him with a soft smile.

"Yeah, she's my sister." The announcer grinned but it was one of those unsettling ones.

"That's a nice reunion. Too bad one of you has to die," the announcer said nonchalantly.

Cecile's blood ran cold. She could feel Brandon's entire body stiffen.

"What?" Brandon croaked. The announcer's grin had now turned to a smile.

"I said this yesterday. Was something in your mind perhaps?"

Cecile felt weak. She hadn't heard him say this because she was thinking about that kid and she had distracted Brandon by being spaced out.

We would have just forfeited! Cecile thought.

Wait, let's just forfeit now.

"Well, I and my brother will just forfeit then."

"No forfeiting for the finals and it's to death. I believe I also mentioned this yesterday."

Cecile started breathing heavily.

How were they going to get out of this?

Cecile and Brandon had made a quick plan before heading to their sides of the fighting stage. They were going to stall for time until eventually, the announcer called a tie.

"3, 2, 1," the announcer counted down. Cecile focused on Brandon.

"GO!"

Cecile's quickdraw was slower than usual because she didn't want to hurt Brandon but also wanted to make it realistic. She was also just got tired from the use of the Eye of Janus. Brandon came at her but unusually quickly and his expression was dead.

Odd, Cecile thought but she didn't pay it much mind. Until he started to swing hard and deliberately. Cecile was barely escaping the attacks.

"Brandon why are yo-"

"You want to know something Cecile?" Brandon practically hissed.

"I hate you. Always have." He continued to press her.

Huh? Cecile thought.

"You think I'm joking? Let me lay it out for you. I've always hated how you would bring up mom."

He must be acting…right? Cecile thought.

"It would always be mom this and mom that. Leaving me to support dad because you couldn't pull your weight."

Yeah, he must be act-, before Cecile could finish the thought, there was already a cut on her arm. It was shallow but a cut nonetheless inflicted by her brother. Cecile stared at the wound and then at her brother in shock.

"Your serious," Cecile said shakily. Brandon put on a frown.

"One hundred percent." Brandon came at Cecile again and she started backing up.

"N- no way, I won't believe it," Cecile said through tears and shaking breaths. Brandon smiled widely.

"You know what? You shouldn't have even been born. That way we wouldn't have to deal with someone as pathetic as you. Father feels the same."

Cecile stopped dead in her tracks. Her expression was lifeless.

That's how you really feel huh? Cecile thought. She looked at Brandon with determination as Brandon rushed her. Cecile pulled out her gun and just as Brandon got close she shot him in a fatal area. Instead of trying to dodge though, Brandon had just let it happen. Suddenly, as he was falling he grabbed onto Cecile. Cecile raised her gun to attack but Brandon gave her a big grin.

"Good Cecile, you've done it."

"Wh-what?" Cecile asked, confused. Brandon gave a strained laugh.

"You actually believed all I said. I never knew I was such an actor." The weight of what Cecile had done hit her like a hammer. Her tears started flowing as she grabbed Brandon tight.

"Why did you do this?! We need to get you to a doctor! You're bleeding out! Announ-" Brandon put a finger to Cecile's mouth.

"If I hadn't made you believe I wanted you dead, you wouldn't have hurt me." Brandon put his hand on her cheek and cleaned a tear.

"Cecile, listen to me. Only one of us was going to leave here alive and I wanted it to be you. I never had big aspirations. I've always just wanted to support you and father. But you Cecile, you dream of a life of greatness. You have ambition." Brandon coughed up some blood.

"Brandon stop talking! We need to get someone! I'l-"

"It's too late for that Cecile. Please, take care of father in my stead." Brandon smiled softly.

"I wonder what mom would think of you now. A strong independent young woman. Brave and courageous. She would be proud to see who've you become." Cecile gave a soft smile through the tears. Brandon coughed up blood once more.

"Cecile I want you to know before I go, that no matter what we have gone through that I have always loved yo-"

Cecile looked into Brandon's eyes. Cecile didn't call his name. She knew that Brandon had passed. She cried and cried, not caring who saw her. She looked up to the light shining through.

This is too much.

Cecile was cradling Brandon for minutes when the announcer came down.

"Congratulations! You have won th-"

"Shut up," Cecile said looking at the announcer. Her eyes were filled with raw fury.

"Did you set up this tournament? Lay the rules like this?" Cecile asked slowly and carefully. The announcer kept his grin.

"I had nothing to do with setting up the rules of this tournament," the announcer said raising his hands, "the monarchy set it up like this." Cecile remembered Colt's words.

If you win that power, don't be a dog to the monarchy.

Promise me.

"Well!" The announcer said clapping his hands excitedly.

"To receive your power, you going to have to meditate." Cecile looked at the announcer with determination.

"Show me."

Cecile was standing on the night sky. Filled with stars all around her. She was sure that she'd finally gotten into the meditative state the announcer had shown her.

"Is it nice?" Cecile looked in the direction of the voice. It was a tall black man, who seemed to be in his twenties to Cecile. He was bald and wearing a black v-neck sleeveless shirt with diamonds in a v pattern in the middle of the shirt. He matched this with black baggy pants.

Cecile studied him.

"Who are you?" She asked. His eyes seemed to burn blue.

"I go by many names. You can call me Panther." Panther put his hands behind his back.

"If you wondering why you're here, I wanted to see if you wanted to join Jack and Erzeb-"

"Who?" Cecile asked in confusion. Panther smiled softly.

"I apologize. I keep forgetting your level of knowledge ." Cecile was starting to get a bit annoyed.

"I don't care about any of those people. Just hand me my power." Panther sighed.

"Very well." He lifted his palm towards Cecile and a rope materialized on her hips.

"I've inputted the information about its abilities into your brain." Cecile studied the rope.

"I need your help," Panther continued, "in case He attacks. And please for the love of The God, don't ask who he is. Just know I need your help to beat him as he threatens the universe." Cecile sat down.

"And why me?" Cecile replied. He studied her.

"Let's say I trust you." Cecile remembered Brandon's lifeless body in her arms.

"I need some time. I'll give my answer later."

Panther gave a nod. With a wave of the hand of Panther's hand. Cecile woke up. She looked at Brandon's corpse solemnly. She took him and walked out of the dome.

"What are you going to do with the money?" Colt asked.

"I've got to go home and bury Brandon. After that, I'll hand most of the money to my father."

Colt looked straight ahead.

"Keep your head up kid. That's what any brother would want you to do." Cecile's expression was a mix of sadness and nostalgia.

"Yeah." Cecile said as she finished packing, "alright, I'm off."

"You'll promise you'll come back for the outfit?" Cecile stopped and looked back. She gave a wide smile but it was laced with a rage that Colt couldn't recognize.

"You can bet on it. I have a bone to pick with the monarchy." With that Cecile got her stuff and headed back to her home with Brandon.

Their dad didn't cry. He just smiled.

"Those were his last words?" Cecile's dad said looking at Brandon's grave.

"Yeah," Cecile said tears streaming down her face.

"Dad I'm sorry-" but Cecile's dad hugged her tight and then looked at her.

"Don't be. We'll always be praying for Brandon to rest in peace." He turned focused.

"Cecile, carry on Brandon's will. Accomplish your dream of being great by helping people. Making a difference in this world." Cecile looked down while sobbing. She remembered all that had happened to her.

She looked up at her dad. With tears streaming down and a big grin, she said,

"Of course."

THE END