The last twenty minutes passed us by in a blink as I talked with Drakara, and she threatened to beat me, and I laughed and pointed out that I would win and wash, rinse, repeat. You get the idea. It was a lot of fun … for me anyway.
“Why, you little red shit! I do not have a thing for strong women! Men! Elves! Fantasy races! Or your Master!” Drakara yelled, her scales still blushing. Which is a thing I just learned drakes do.
“Oh! Come on! Don’t lie to me! I see that blush. What do you have a thing for your Master too?” I asked, a mischievous smile on my face.
“No, my Master is nowhere near as good-looking as yours—” Drakara snapped her jaw shut with a loud snap as she quickly realized what she had just said.
My smile only broadened, and I was about to say something when we were rudely interrupted by a man with a clipboard, “ENOUGH!” he yelled as he entered the room. Drakara and I froze and turned slowly toward him, eyes slowly widening. The man tapped his clipboard impatiently for a moment as he waited for us to stop talking. “Zeana Si’enn, please make your core selection so we can start the fight on the field rather than in the waiting room,” the man said, a little impatient.
“Oh, right,” I said, then thought momentarily, “Storm core, Healing core, Ice-claymore core, and Shield core. I’ll stick with my starting four cores.”
The man nodded and left the room, writing something on his clipboard. Once he was gone, Drakara looked at me, puzzled, “What was that about?”
“I have too many cores to compete at … um … your current level,” I said, a little hesitantly.
Drakara stared at me flatly and asked, “You have no idea what level you’re fighting at, do you?”
“Nope, not a clue,” I admitted.
“We have been fighting at the apprentice stage,” Drakara explained with a sigh, “It’s the stage before Master.”
“Oh, thanks,” I said with a smile, and the speakers came on.
“LADIES AND GENTELMEN! IT IS TIME FOR OUR NEXT FIGHT OF THE DAY!” Felix, the announcer, yelled, booming through the Colosseum. Drakara and I stood and began making our way to the arena floor as he continued. “IN THIS CORNER, WE HAVE THE DARK HORSE OF THIS ENTIRE TOURNAMENT, THE RED BARON OF CARNAGE HERSELF! GIVE IT UP FOR ZEANA SI’ENN!!” the crowd roared with cheers and applause as Drakara and I walked out of the hallway and waved at the gathered crowd enthusiastically.
“AND IN THE SAME CORNER, for some reason, WE HAVE THE VISIOUSE GOLDEN DRAGON OF DREAMS! GIVE IT UP FOR, DRAKARA DAR’TH’ULE!!” Felix added a moment later as he finished getting everyone’s applause for me.
I looked at Drakara as she walked to the other side of the arena’s center and asked, “Your last name is Dar’Th’Ule?”
“THE FIGHT WILL BEGIN IN TEN!”
“Yeah, what of it?”
“NINE!”
“Oh, nothing.”
“EIGHT!”
Drakara scowled at me, “What is it?”
“SEVEN!”
“Really, it’s nothing,” I said, waving a hand.
“SIX!”
“No, it’s something—”
“FIVE!”
“What is it?”
“FOUR!”
“Okay, okay.”
“THREE!”
“I’ll answer your question.”
“TWO!”
And with a steep bow, I said, “By your command, Darth Ule.”
“ONE! FIGHT!!”
Drakara didn’t speak for a second as she processed my words. Once I looked up with a shit-eating grin on my face, I saw that every tip of her scales were red with a blush as she scowled and yelled, “YOU ARE SO DEAD, YOU LITTLE NERDY SHIT!!”
The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.
***
Drakara yelled and launched herself toward Zeana with a burning fury in her eyes. Her Force chakra coursed through her like a torrent of flames, and she swiped down at Zeana with a golden glowing clawed left hand.
Zeana never lost her grin as she leaned back, and the glowing claw passed centimeters from her chest, struck the ground with a loud boom, and sent a shockwave out that pushed Zeana back a step. Drakara quickly followed up her attack with a right uppercut lunge that barely missed Zeana again. With a growl, she kicked at Zeana’s legs with her clawed right foot, and Zeana flipped forward in a single languid movement and landed behind Drakara.
“STAY STILL!” Drakara yelled as she quit cycling her Force chakra and switched to her Blood chakra. Hundreds of needle-like streams of blood shot out from her scaled hair and Nearly impaled Zeana, but she flipped backward and landed next to Drakara as she pushed off with her left leg and turned it into a spinning kick with her right leg.
Zeana’s tail shot up and blocked the attack, stopping its momentum as four more grew out of her. Drakara cursed internally, followed up her kick with another, and pushed back, launching her backward several meters. As she jumped back, she glanced up at the clock and saw it had only been five seconds. ‘How is she keeping up with me!?’ Drakara thought, ‘I’ve been going at full speed from the start! How is she keeping up?!’
Drakara landed, took a long, deep breath, held it for five precious seconds, and exhaled. She then gave a calculating glare toward Zeana as she quickly began cycling her Dream chakra. Zeana’s eyes never left Drakara’s, as though she could guess what she had planned. Once Drakara’s Dream chakra filled her body, a second later, she concentrated it and created five mirrored clones of herself behind her.
Drakara jumped high into the air toward Zeana as her five clones charged at the little fox, twirp from all sides. Zeana’s eyes never left Drakara’s real body as the clones fell upon her. Zeana twisted and turned, dodging every attack with ease, and as Drakara fell upon her, Zeana used her tails to bat away the clones with a single swipe as she blocked a two-clawed swipe from Drakara.
Drakara’s attack hit hard, and Zeana took a knee to push up and back at her. Drakara grunted as she was pushed back a meter and growled, “How are you doing this!?”
“How am I doing what?” Zeana asked over her shoulder as her tails swayed back and forth in long, slow movements.
“HOW ARE YOU KEEPING UP WITH ME!?” Drakara yelled, “I’VE BEEN GOING AT FULL SPEED THIS WHOLE TIME! HOW ARE YOU KEEPING UP!?”
“You were?” Zeana asked, sounding a little startled. Then she thought for a moment, “It didn’t feel like it.”
Drakara looked at her with her mouth agape. Then she gritted her teeth, and with a roar, she sent a stream of her clones at the little monster. Zeana dodged, blocked, and countered the clones’ attacks, dispersing them within an instant. As Zeana fought, Drakara watched closely and noticed something she hadn’t noticed before. Zeana wasn’t faster than usual. She wasn’t even faster than Drakara. She moved a second before an attack came so it would barely miss.
An ache in her Dream core began to form, and Drakara quit sending out her clones as she began cycling her Edge chakra. Zeana waited patiently as she glanced up at the timer, and Drakara did the same. Three minutes and forty seconds remained. She had three minutes and ten seconds to end the fight.
With a growl, she charged at Zeana and swiped at her with a flurry of golden-silver attacks. Zeana bobbed and weaved her way through each attack, but whenever she tried to get behind Drakara, she got held back and forced to stay in front of Drakara. After nearly a minute of attacks, Drakara landed her first real hit.
With a loud crack from Zeana’s left shoulder, Drakara smashed her claws into it, shattering Zeana’s collarbone and tearing her gi. Drakara smiled just a little as she continued her assault. Zeana’s tails whirled around her furiously as she made them block more and more of Drakara’s attacks.
Although her guard wasn’t perfect, with Zeana’s left arm badly injured, she could hardly move it and winced whenever she did, which led to several more openings that let Drakara cut Zeana’s gi but never her skin. The sound of bones breaking followed each hit with satisfying CRACKS.
With another hit, Drakara felt her Edge core ache, and she stopped cycling it. Zeana noticed as she jumped back, getting more distance between them. Drakara smiled and said, “What’s wrong? Having trouble keeping up?”
Zeana heaved in air as though she was struggling to breathe. A loud SNAP CRACK resonated through the air, and Drakara looked dumbfounded as Zeana’s arm righted itself. She rolled it in her socket and stretched out her shoulders as a knowing smile spread across Zeana’s face, “What’s wrong? Having trouble winning?” then she looked up at the time remaining.
Drakara instinctively followed her gaze and saw forty seconds left on the clock. Drakara cursed and quickly cycled her Force chakra as she charged forward with a wide haymaker aimed for Zeana’s head.
Thirty-nine seconds.
Zeana ducked under the attack and dodged right.
Thirty-eight seconds.
Drakara brought her knee up to try and strike Zeana’s abdomen.
Thirty-seven seconds.
The knee barely grazed Zeana’s side, and she got behind Drakara.
Thirty-six seconds.
Drakara quickly quit cycling her Force chakra and changed to her Blood chakra, sending her needle-like bloodstreams at the little monster.
Thirty-five seconds.
Two of Zeana’s tails shot in front of her and were impaled by the blood.
Thirty-four seconds.
Drakara bent forward with a violent jerk, pulling Zeana off her feet.
Thirty-three seconds.
With a crash, Zeana slammed back first into the metal arena ground.
Thirty-two seconds.
Blood shot out from under Drakara’s scales on her arms, covering them in sanguine claws.
Thirty-one seconds.
She lunged forward, jabbing her claws down to Zeana’s chest.
Thirty seconds.
Her claws never made contact. With a thunderous boom, Zeana disappeared, and Drakara’s claws hit the arena floor. She froze and stared at the space for a second before a literal chill ran down her spine, and she slowly turned to face her opponent.
Zeana stood behind her with a complete set of ice armor and two long ice chains in her gauntleted hands, and Drakara’s blood ran cold. “You know,” Zeana began, “you have a pretty cool last name. Really chilling.”
Drakara couldn’t help but chuckle as she said, “Fuck you and your bad puns.” Then, in a blink, Zeana’s whips shot out and shredded Drakara, causing her to burst into a moat of golden light, ending the fight with twenty-four seconds remaining.
***