It would not be long now. Even with his joints clamped tight, water was still leaking in ever so slightly. And it was not like he could move, the thickness of the water reduced the speed of his twisting limbs. If Azim did not come up with a solution soon, he was going to short circuit.
The battle raged on around him. There were about 15 combatants left. The difference in number from the start of the match was dawning on everyone. Most contestants were starting to switch up their tactics, either getting more aggressive than before or more cautious. Then there were the dangerous few, who only seemed to get more excited as the end of the battle drew near and doubled down on their existing strategies. The five Azim had made note of were all still in the match, and were part of this latter group.
Only a few people had seemed to even notice the metal man stuck in the blubbering bubble, though even when they did they appeared to ignore him. The robot figured they were clocking him as already out of the match, and found it not worth their time to even finish him off. It was understandable, the android supposed.
However, this thought process led Azim to a conclusion. If he could not break out of the hunter’s bottle spell himself, he could potentially get one of the others to free him on accident, and maybe even eliminate them from the arena in the process. It would be a long shot, but it was the only chance he had. Not only so, but he would only have a single attempt at this plan, for once he loosened his limbs to move accordingly, the robot would be opening up the gaps between his armor once more, letting in all the water around him. After doing so, he would not have much long before the water shorted out his systems. Azim would have to break out on his first and only try.
The robot looked around for who could potentially be his escape assistant. He assessed that he would need someone who did not think too hard. Someone overconfident who could be compelled into finishing off the trapped combatant. Someone… who would not give the opportunity a second thought.
Catching Azim’s digital eye was the half-giant berserker, who was finishing up a poor participant who had gotten in his way. The scrawny man looked to be a witch, casting Fireball after Fireball thanks to a wand in his hand. It was not enough. The lumbering swordsman blocked each incoming flame with the bottom of his blade, tilting it slightly to the left or right depending on the swing of the witch’s arm. It looked like he was not even trying. Azim wondered how the witch had even managed to last this long. He was clearly nervous, like the reality of the situation was setting in, and only now was he realizing just how out of his depth he actually was.
Still brushing off each ball of fire as if it was a fly, the berserker got closer and closer until finally getting within a meter’s distance of the man. Realizing there was nothing more he could do, the trembling man lowered his wand and looked up nervously. The half-giant looked down at the man, smiling, proud that he had broken the man’s will. With a lift of his arm, the wide, chipped blade rose brazenly above his head. The witch beneath him just put up both arms, trembling. The berserker did not care.
The yellow light had fully faded before the berserker’s sword had even touched the ground. It was swift and powerful; utterly merciless. For a rookie, the display was especially impressive to the audience. The side of the arena’s crowd that had been closest to the elimination roared with cheers and applause, commending the half-giant for his ruthlessness. Taking in the warmth of the crowd, the half-giant raised his sword once more in triumph, momentarily forgetting about the match around him still going on and getting himself lost in the cheer. He was a perfect target.
Azim knew this was going to be the only time he could use any magic. Trapped in this bubble, his body language obscured by the distortion in the rippling water, and the aquatic prison soundproofing his voice, this would be the only chance the metal man would get in which he could cast a spell without anyone realizing.
As the half-giant cheered, pumping his large blade in the air, he felt a pulling sensation coming from his hand. The sensation was so strong, it nearly made him stumble. How odd…
He looked up at his sword and saw that it had jerked away from him, as if him trying to pull him somewhere. The berserker did not let it rattle him too much, thinking he must have just imagined it. That was, until it happened again. As he lowered his arm, he saw the weapon try to pull away from him once more, again pulling him with it. What was going on?
The towering combatant looked up to see where his blade was pointing, only to see the strange, armor-covered combatant that was trapped in the hunter’s bubble. He had seen the exchange happen. He had watched as the metal man helplessly found himself surrounded by the aquatic entrapment, completely immobilized. He stared at the trapped man. He was still moving helplessly, flailing his arms slightly but unable to move anywhere. Why had the berserker been drawn to him?
Had it been his sword? Had his sword pointed him out? The half-giant assumed it was possible. It was a magic item after all. The sword was capable of absorbing magic projectiles like lightning or fire and converting it into increased power, releasing it all in its next swing. The more the berserker blocked magic attacks from opponents, the more the sword absorbed, and, subsequently, the stronger it became. Maybe the sword was also able to detect magic? Or just strong opponents? But the armored stranger had not used any magic attacks, as far as the half-giant had seen. Had he? The lumbering figure was unsure, but the more he thought about it, the more he just figured it was his sword that was drawn to him; that it was telling its owner to eliminate this target. And the berserker was happy to oblige.
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Without thinking about the situation any further, the half-giant charged forward toward the bubble, his sword sailing through the air behind him. The lightning warlock that Azim had also made note of stepped in from the side and fired an intense stream of electricity at the berserker, but he was quick to swing his sword forward and block it. Despite being made of metal, the sword did not conduct the electricity and shock its wielder. This was thanks to his enchanted property.
Even as he absorbed the warlock’s blast, the half-giant remained focused on the bubble and the metal man trapped in it. He no longer showed the same devilish smile he had worn only a moment ago. Ignoring the warlock and running past him only infuriated the lightning user, causing him to charge up another blast between his hands. The man fired this new burst of lightning at the half-giant from behind, who stopped his sprint for a moment to put up his sword, absorbing the blast once again. This time, however, he did not keep running. Once his blade had finished absorbing the attack, the berserker swung the giant weapon toward the warlock, shooting back a stream of lightning bigger than either of his own attacks. The charge struck the warlock with an intense voltage, electrocuting him and vaporizing him into yellow light in mere moments.
With the bothersome nuisance no longer intruding, the half-giant returned to his prowl. As he closed in on the metal stranger, his grin started to return. With each step closer, the half-giant was getting more and more excited. This was going to be such an easy kill. Such a satisfying kill. He had a poor sucker just helplessly waiting to get sent back to the room of losing combatants, and the berserker was going to be the one to deliver him there. As he reached a distance of only 2 meters away, the half-giant reeled back his sword.
Azim was ready. This was what he had been waiting for. The lightning warlock had been an unplanned distraction, but he supposed it was all for the better. It was one more person Azim did not have to deal with on his own, and if the robot was being honest with himself, which he always was, he likely would have had a difficult time against a lightning user.
The android had still barely moved since closing his gaps. He, of course, had to extend his arm slightly and spread his metallic fingers apart when casting Scrap Return, but he had been careful to move as absolutely little as possible when he did to minimize the amount of water that entered his system. Now, as the half-giant drew close, Azim’s one chance was approaching. This would be when he let all of his joints loose, allowing himself to move almost as freely as if he were not trapped in a thick bubble of magic water. It was now… or never.
It was now or never, thought the half-giant. If he did not take care of this guy right here and now, then someone else would come and take the kill instead. And he would not have that. He wanted the glory of victory, and after the applause he had just received, he was not about to let it die down.
With a grand swing of his sword, the berserker’s weapon sank into the bubble, gliding through its thick contents with ease. As it approached the metal man trapped inside, his grin widened even more. This was it.
Azim’s hands slammed the sides of the incoming blade just as it approached his upside-down torso. As the blade pushed onward, it pressed against his armored chest, but the robot would not be deterred. His clamped hands held on tight like a vice, securing himself to the sword as it passed through the bubble. The half-giant’s wide grin turned to confusion mid-swing. Unable to change the course of his sword, the berserker was unsure what was happening or what he could possibly do about it.
Before the half-giant could do anything, his blade had exited the bubble prison, and the armor-covered stranger had come with it. If that was not bad enough, the metal man was still holding onto his sword, with a grip that was giving his own a run for his money. The berserker tried to pull his blade back but was met with resistance from his opponent. After pulling for a couple of seconds, causing the armored man to drag his feet across the arena floor, the half-giant found his weapon back under his own control, as the metal man had simply let go of it.
He brought down the chipped sword in a wide, downward arc, but Azim was faster. The robot ducked to one side, letting the sword crash into the arena floor. Taking advantage of the half-giant’s vulnerability, Azim jumped and stepped onto the top of the sunken blade, digger it further deeper into the ground. Following up the step was a hearty, metal-booted kick to the berserker’s face, coming up into his chin and knocking him back several feet. It wasn’t until the lumbering swordsman looked back ahead at his opponent did he realize… he had left his sword behind.
Anger overtaking him, the berserker charged forward, both for the sake of getting his weapon back and taking revenge on the jerk that had knocked it away from him. Once again, however, Azim was faster.
The robot jumped down in front of the handle of the large weapon, grabbing it from behind with his left hand and hiding his hold on it. As the berserker got within reasonable distance of him, Azim ripped the chipped blade out of the floor of the arena, swinging it in a smooth, tilted arc up toward the half-giant’s neck. The stroke was clean, turning the combatant into a shower of yellow sparkles before he could even react to the incoming blade. Just like that, Azim was freed from his watery prison. Not only that but 2 of the 5 noteworthy participants of the match had also been eliminated.
Because Azim had been holding onto the half-giant’s sword at the time he had dissipated, the enchanted weapon had remained in the ring and in Azim’s grasp. The robot had, of course, not planned for this detail, but admitted to himself that this was a pleasant bonus. While the robot could still not use magic during the fight, especially now that he was out of the view-distorting bubble, he at least now had a weapon, and a sizable one at that. The tide of the match had shifted, and Azim was going to take full advantage of it.