Theo slid across the sand, spinning his blade as he ducked the attack aimed for his neck. His abdomen screamed out in pain as his muscles contracted over the handful of wounds he had accumulated. If there was one thing he could say about the swordsman, it was that he was consistent. The rest of his body bore very little damage - as if Dent was solely focused on weakening the vampire’s core with every attempted attack.
Seemed a bit mean, in his opinion. The damage he had managed to land on the man was more varied in comparison, and while nothing to shrug off, it didn’t look as though Dent’s wounds were really slowing him down. With his shirt and suit soaked through, Theo was not only losing a lot more blood, but his movement had become stiffer and less fluid.
“Hurry up and finish me,” the vampire said with a grin. “Am I not worthy of a quick death?”
“On the contrary,” Dent replied, sweat running down his face. “I cannot make any mistakes against you.” He lashed forward before feinting away.
As flattering as it was to have the swordsman think so highly of him, Theo was actually tiring. Whether it was the blood loss, or just starting the day with zero energy, the current battle had him lagging with exhaustion. How boring it was without his usual skills. Couldn’t even bite his opponent, which seemed unfair.
Maybe it was time to call it.
He stepped forward and stumbled down to one knee, resting the point of his blade down into the ground to try to stabilize himself. Although he expected Dent to surge forward and finish the job - he did not. Instead, the swordsman remained at a safe distance, with his sword ready.
“Another trick I won’t fall for,” Dent said.
Theo chuckled before pushing himself back up to his feet. His legs shook, and he struggled to stand tall with the wounds across his stomach. “Had hoped you’d take me out and save me the embarrassment of submitting.”
“No shame in knowing when you are beaten.”
The vampire ran his tongue across his sharp teeth. Light-headed now. Vision slightly blurry. This was going to be where he’d draw his second sword, but concealed weapons were against the rules. It wasn’t likely he could get any grappling action in without taking another blow to the stomach. With how their positioning had reset again, Dent would be at the start of his flowchart, nearly all options available to him.
“Thirty-three percent chance,” he said, raising up the Demonkiller to point towards his opponent.
Dent smiled. “I’ll take those odds.”
----------------------------------------
“He lasted longer than I expected.” Humphrey said.
Sally didn’t respond, but kept her eyes focused on the fight. She then winced as a figure dropped onto the ground.
[Dent wins!]
A flash of blue, and the vampire returned first while the swordsman had some time to bow to the crowd. Theo shrugged and went to sit down beside the zombie.
“Nice try, pup.” She gave him a pat on the leg. “You got more hits on him than anyone else so far.”
“Unfortunately, you just couldn’t make the cut,” Humphrey said and grinned. He turned as a second flash of blue signaled the return of the winner.
“Don’t worry,” Sally whispered, “I’m going to make pops regret going against me.”
Theo raised his eyebrow. “You have a plan to win?”
“Oh no.” Her smile widened. “I’m going to lose so hard he will hate calling it a win.”
The vampire nodded slowly. While psychological warfare wasn’t against the rules, it seemed unfair to some degree. That said, the Death Knight did need taking down a few pegs. He looked up as Dent came to stand by where he was seated.
“Good fight, Theo. I will admit I underestimated you.” He held out his hand, which the vampire shook.
“I appreciate that. However, I’m pretty sure I was barely holding footing there for the most of it.”
Dent shook his head. “Honestly, I’d like to spar more when we have time. You can see my process, so maybe you can help me close up some of the gaps in my approaches?”
Theo rubbed his chin. “Yeah - sure. That sounds like it could be fun. I should learn how to actually fight.”
Sally rolled her eyes as the swordsman moved away, smiling. “I could teach you how to fight, pup. Here, let me give you my ten top tips.”
Dent walked over to the side wall where the rack of swords was still standing. He placed the one used against Theo in a slot and considered the rest.
“Not your normal sword?” Humphrey asked.
“Hmm? No. That one is best for jabbing and small slashes, and I intended to focus attacks only when his core was open.”
The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
The Death Knight nodded. “Intriguing.”
“How are you planning to approach your fight with Sally?” Dent glanced towards the zombie, who was animatedly explaining something to the vampire with her fingers.
Humphrey exhaled. “It will not be easy however I approach it. I think… I will have to be ruthless and finish things as quickly as possible.”
The swordsman grunted. “She won’t make it that easy, you know?”
“My sword can be very persuasive.” He pulled a face at what he was saying. “I wouldn’t be facing her if it were possible, but I can’t back down either.”
“So eager to lose to me?” Dent grinned.
Sally held up ten fingers. “And lastly, half the battle is in their head.”
“Pretty sure I knew that already,” Theo said, as he nodded. “That’s what I told Edward.”
“Yeah, well. You gave him a headache, so you did a pretty good job. Maybe the decapitation helped with that.” She sat back in her chair. “One more fight between two Players and then it’s my fight with pops.”
“Need any last minute pepping up?”
She wrinkled up her face. “No, if I just sit here and stare at the clock, it will make the time go slow enough where I will eventually feel ready.”
The vampire gave the room a quick glance. “There’s no clock in here, Sally.”
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“Rats.” Sally stood once more in the center of the arena, sword in hand.
“No hard feelings for anything that happens here?” Humphrey rolled out his shoulders before lifting his sword up ready.
“Can’t promise that.” She stuck her tongue out. “You are a sore loser.”
“I’ve never lost a duel,” he responded. Mostly ignoring the one time that he did.
“Yeah, well-”
[Sally vs Humphrey begin!]
The Death Knight wasted no time in surging forth and swinging his large blade in a wide arc, aiming to decapitate the zombie.
Sally raised her sword up, bracing the flat of it with her other arm as the impact vibrated down her bones. She slid across the dirt and prepared for the follow-up. Already it had come out - but in the form of an unexpected kick as the plated boot of the large figure shot forth. It connected with her right leg, which cracked under the weight of the strike.
She tried to step away but dropped to one knee with her inert limb. The greatsword was there, pressed gently against her neck.
“Submit,” he growled.
Sally stuck her bottom lip out, as fresh tears rolled down her cheeks. “You broke my leg, pops.”
“No.” He narrowed his eye sockets. “Do not turn on the waterworks for me, young lady. Submit or I’ll remove your head.”
She winced as the blade pressed harder against her neck, drawing blood. “What would Norah think of how mean you’re being?”
“That’s not…” Humphrey raised his gaze up to the stands. A pair of bright yellow eyes were glaring down at him, as the Mummy sat with crossed arms. “I don’t think you…” He turned his head back to her, to find the zombie no longer there.
A scuffle of dirt and then her sword plunged into the side of his knee as she scurried past him. He spun on his good foot and lashed out at her.
Sally brought up her sword, but due to her awkward movements with her broken leg, she misjudged the positioning. With a clang, the greatsword hit the handle of her blade, severing her fingers from her hand. She rolled to the floor amongst the falling digits, grabbing the sword up with her left, into a crouched position.
Already another attack was coming for her. A darting jab that she barely deflected away, the force knocking her back to the ground. Warmth flooded down the side of her face as she wriggled back into a crouch. Dizzy and numb now, and things looked… oh, she had lost an eye. The blow had been deflected and not killed her, but had put a wide gash through the side of her head.
Humphrey thrummed with energy as he took a step toward her and raised his blade. “Submit.”
“Never!” She growled and tried to get up to her feet, barely managing it against complaining limbs, using the sword as a crutch.
“Why are you so stubborn? You cannot continue to fight like this.”
Sally grinned, blood running down her cheek and into her mouth. “I’ll answer that, but you have to answer my question after.”
He nodded, gesturing for her to continue.
“Easy. Someone very important to me taught me to never give up.” She raised her fingerless hand to point at him.
Crimson flame flickered behind his helmet as the Death Knight sighed. “And what is your question for me?”
“Why is it your normal duels are all fun and games, but you showed me no mercy or care?” She wavered in position, crimson dripping and pattering on the loose sand.
He paused for a moment before lowering his sword. “It is because I know and love you so dearly that I take you more seriously than anyone else in this world. I fight you as though I were fighting the greatest villain in the System.”
Sally exhaled through her nose. “I could still take you… but since you are my protector and father, I will take your advice on this one occasion.” She dropped to her knees and let go of the sword. “I love you, pops, and I submit.”
A flash of blue took her away and back into the VIP suite.
“Well, swords fucking suck,” she said and rolled her eyes, before collapsing onto her seat next to Theo.
“That was… painful to watch. It went as you had expected?”
“Thought he’d get sad rather than mushy, but it worked as an emotional outlet even if I did just get repeatedly maimed for no reason.” She clicked her fingers. “Oh! Let’s elope before pops gets back.”
Without taking a moment to deliberate, the pair vanished in a flash of blue, just as a third teleportation illuminated the chamber signalling the arrival of the Death Knight.
He turned slowly, the rather uncomfortable looking Dent being the only person left in the room. Humphrey deflated. “Was she mad? Perhaps it was unfair of me to be so harsh on her.”
“I’m surprised,” Dent began, “not only that you had that layer of ferocity, but that you would level it at Sally, of all people.”
With a grunt, the Death Knight sat down. “Usually I duel for the sport of it, even against the foes we used to go up against. The goal with Sally was just to kill her as quickly as possible and not drag the process out. Of course, I should have known if anyone would avoid death, it would be her.”
“Yeah.” Dent scratched at his beard. “Say, you’re going to go back to the fun-style against me, right?”
Humphrey grinned. “Wouldn’t you like to know?”
----------------------------------------
Edward paced around his office. He wasn’t even sure why he was here instead of back home resting. The Council was down to a skeleton crew once more, with most people watching the tournament. It would be the perfect time to do some mischief while all eyes were elsewhere.
But that was the crux of it. He didn’t want to get up to any plotting in the shadows.
Instead, he wanted to know who else was doing such - and right under his nose, too. All the books on the shelf were white opals once again, but that didn’t mean much. Perhaps the intruder had already gotten what they wanted from here in the building and had moved on.
But what did they want?
“Observer?” he said, stopping in place and crossing his arms.
The air shimmered as a floating skull glowing with orange flame appeared on the other side of his desk. “How can I be of service?”
“Is it possible to get the logs of anyone who visited the Administrative District yesterday?”
“Possible, yes. It would require higher-level authorization. Shall I make the request?”
Edward worked his jaw. “No. You are dismissed.”
The demon narrowed his eyes as the skull faded away. There was more than one way to skin a betrayer.