The beast expels a mighty roar laced with a foul smell I can only describe as rotten fish mixed with Gene's used garments from the academy, and launches its tail at us. Our trio barely jumps out of the way before the barb can strike us, and we're soon back on our feet and running to the other end of the arena like hamsters on a wheel. I turn to the As-Yi with wild eyes.

"This is your idea of your best warrior?" I scream. "You call this fair?!"

"It was never supposed to be fair," Xea yells down in response. "This is a test of bloodlust and ingenuity. The Ka-gho are creatures that have dwelled at the heart of our lands for centuries, and they are always happy for a brawl. So, whenever possible, we oblige, and even we rarely win. If you can defeat one, then there is little reason to question your valor."

And people call me deranged; with logic like that, it's a miracle these guys have survived this long. Hell, even my midnight assessment of ranking my own people at the bottom of the cultural food chain feels a bit hasty now.

As we reach the other side of the arena, I paw at my side and realize that my father's dagger is nowhere to be found. I turn back to where the pile of weapons lay, and I spot it under one of the Peludesian shields. I turn to the others, and realize Gene never even grabbed a weapon, leaving us with only Connor's sword to protect us from the Ka-gho, which is now staring at us and preparing to strike.

"Do you have a plan, master General?" I ask Gene. "Surely, there must be some strategic skill in there... somewhere... probably buried under some childhood trauma-"

"I have a plan! An inkling of one at least," he says, although I would have loved a bit more authority in his voice when he said it. "With a beast of this size, a weak spot is usually located in one of two areas: Near the base of the neck, or the underbelly. If we time it just right where one of us is the distraction and the other two target one area each, we may be able to bring it down."

"What do you want us to bring him down with, our shoes?!" I retort. "The weapons are on the other side of that reject of nature!"

"I'll strike the neck first, giving you time to grab a weapon," Gene replies as he snatches Connor's sword.

"Wait, so that means..." says Connor, realizing his general is setting him up for death (And he thought I'd be the end of him!). His eyes widen and he turns to Gene in disgust. "You can't be serious! I'm not going to-"

The Ka-gho roars viciously, disrupting our argument. Gene raises his sword and I take a running position.

"I'm afraid you don't have much choice, my Lord. At least you can impress your daughter!" Gene bellows as the Ka-gho charges toward us. Connor screams and darts as far up the arena's walls as possible. His fear must be incredibly tantalizing, because the plan works and the Ka-gho bolts to the corner and attempts to pull Connor down with his tentacles. Meanwhile, Gene and I take the opportunity to strike. I bolt off toward the weapons while Gene runs up the side of the arena, getting as much height as he can before jumping onto the creature's back, hacking away at the beast's thick hide near his spine and throat. The blade penetrates just barely, with only a trickle of blood leaking from the wound. The Ka-gho growls and wraps his tail around Gene, throwing him back to the pile of weapons just as I grab my dagger; Gene's own weapon remains stuck in the beast's back. I give him a hand to stand up and check if he's injured.

"I assume it didn't work."

"No..." he groans.

"How are you feeling?"

"My teeth feel numb and I think I can hear colors."

"Perfect, that's how I feel after a long night on a debutante's boat. Get another weapon and let's fight on!"

Now irritated, the Ka-gho turns away from Connor and charges back at us, his mouth now wide open to swallow us whole. I duck low and launch myself under the Ka-gho just as he moves to bite me in two. Gene grabs a long hammer from the pile and slams the beast on its head to keep him occupied as I hack into his stomach. This strategy is little better than slashing at the neck; it takes all my strength to ensure the blade does not get entrenched in the beast's fat like Gene sword, and even when I pull it free, only dribbles of blood paint the tip. The creature shifts its leg to squash me, but I'm pulled away by my feet moments from being flattened by none other than Connor. I hear Lina shout a quick "Go, Dad!" over the crowd's howls which confirms I'm not hallucinating.

"Why on Earth would you save me?"

"Don't get sentimental, Saint. If you die, that means I actually have to battle this unholy chimera."

And that makes much more sense. His momentary blink of goodwill is vaporized when we're slammed into the wall by the Ka-gho's tail, sand and dirt falling free from the wall and coating our clothes. Then it hits me. Not the tail, or a foot, or a mouth tentacle, but a plan! As violent and batshit insane as the Peludesians are, they're terrible architects. A quick yet in-depth survey of the arena reveals that it's little more than shoddily packed mud with some poorly placed vines and scales jutting out of it for support. I find building with natural resources to be impressive, but this is hardly better than a hole in the ground. Connor and I swoop low to miss another of the Ka-gho's strikes and regroup with Gene as we run back to the other side of the arena.

"The walls!" I shout.

"I already tried jumping off of them!" says Gene. "It's a miracle I could jump at all; they're incredibly slippery."

"Exactly! This place is practically melting with each hit! Get the uggo, or whatever he's called, to slam into the arena hard enough and it'll be trapped under the rubble."

"Do you seriously think that will work?" asks Gene.

"I don't have the exact calculations since I'm terrible at math, and I'm 80% sure I have several bruised ribs distracting me, but it's better than getting eaten alive!"

All three of us turn back to the Ka-gho to see what I could swear is its smile, then back to each other.

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

"Fair point. How fast do we have to move for this to have a chance?"

"Fast."

Gene and Connor nod and we take position on the gate wall of the Arena. The Ka-gho charges again, its footsteps thundering heavier and heavier as it draws closer, and just as its teeth come mere centimeters away from our clothes, we duck and roll to the corners, feeling a wave of force as the beast's head collides with the gate, causing the entire arena to rumble. Gene smiles from the other side of the beast.

"It's working!"

"Again!"

We run to the other side and repeat the exercise, waiting until the last moment before leaping to safety, and feeling the miniature shockwave as the Ka-gho hits the sides with frustration. The crowd shares its anger and begins to heckle us.

"This is a fight, not a race! Stab him! Hit him!" they beckon, but Xea is strangely silent, a small smirk on her lips. I turn back to the Ka-gho, and I can see its knees buckle and hear its hoarse, dazed breath; it's tiring. The arena is in just as bad shape, with medium chunks of the walls falling free.

"One more lap, and we'll be free."

"Orenson, what are the chances we get flattened under the rubble with the creature?" questions Connor breathlessly. My eyes widen, and I tap my foot with a sigh of embarrassment.

"Honestly? Pretty damn high."

"Damn you, Ozzy!" growls Gene. I pat my battle comrades on the back and smile wildly.

"It's still a better death than digestion, lads!"

Realizing we're too far into the plan to stop or come up with anything less insane, we line up on the wall and clench every muscle in our body as the Ka-gho charges, this time spinning his tail in front of him hoping to ensnare us before we run. Unfortunately, the Ka-gho tried this too late, and his legs gave out before he could connect. We slide out of the way with ease as the beast tumbles into the wall, causing the entire side of the arena to crumble. Tons upon tons of rock and sediment cover the beast, hindering any escape, along with hundreds of Peludesians in the stands above falling into the pit, growling and moaning with pain and confusion. As the dust cloud dissipates and they start to stand and realize what happened, they turn to us with anger and hiss... but they don't approach. Instead, they begrudgingly bow, and the half of the arena still properly seated follow suit. The As-Yi rise from their seat and start loudly clapping while the guards unshackle our crew and hurry them to the top of the arena.

"Impeccable! Most impressive!" shouts Xea with a disturbing amount of praise. "It took many past winners much longer to realize that is the best, if not only, way to defeat an angry Ka-gho."

"Wait... you wanted us to turn your royal arena to dust? All for a win?" says Connor with a shock. Xea and the rest of the As-Yi merely nod.

"Of course. Any warrior must be willing to sacrifice for victory. Besides, we rebuild our arenas yearly after the rainy season anyway."

Connor stands dumbfounded, his hands holding his head so tight, his nails begin to dig into his scalp.

"Please tell me we can go now. I can say with complete certainty I never want to see any of you again."

"Sure, you may leave, although out of the three, your showing was the worst. You escape by association, not merit," Xea says with a roll of the eye. Connor shrugs and walks up the arena steps to Lina, only caring that he survived. Xea then turns to Gene.

"Impressive display, but very unoriginal plan of action. I expected more from you."

Gene's eyes widened. He hadn't received such a backhanded compliment since our archery instructor lambasted him on his aim while complimenting his forceful stance. Actually, the compliments on his stance got a bit creepy, so perhaps not the best example.

Xea finally turns to me with a toothy grin.

"Now you, you are a sly one. You wear your foolery like a flamboyant coat, lulling enemies into a false sense of superiority. That is a talent we do not see often here. You have a clear, unique mastery of battle. Where were you taught?"

"Same place as that guy," I answer, pointing to Gene. The As-Yi look at Gene again with wide eyes.

"You could learn many things from this man."

"Oh, I think I'm learning quite a bit, trust me," he chuckles. He turns to join Connor, Natalia, and the rest of the crew at the top of the steps. I walk to join them, but the As-Yi grab my arm.

"You are all here for different reasons. Your king fights for self-preservation and greed. Your friend fights with heart, but he's stunted by fear. You fight with heart as well, but also something else... anger, vengeance, perhaps a shred of nihilism. What is it that you want? That which you seek?"

I look in Xea's eyes silently, impressed and bewildered she gathered so many details just from running for our lives. Images of my mother and father flash in my head as I look up to the top of the arena, holding back a sneer at Connor and Percival, which shifts to a nostalgic smile when I turn to Gene, then a longing pause at Natalia as she brushes a stray hair from her arm. I turn back to the As-Yi with a stony stare.

"I want many things; overflowing riches, good booze, carnal passions, and the people of my homeland to not have to worry about where their next meal comes from. But what I seek... what I seek is to have a family again."

Xea nods in understanding and stands on her tiptoes to brush my face.

"I hope you find what you seek, Saint Orenson."

She smiles at me as a pink cloud covers my eyes and slithers into my nostrils. My eyelids begin to droop and I slur out a small "Not again" before hitting the floor and everything turning black. Once I awaken again, I see the entire crew back on the ship, floating on the water just outside of the rift between the islands. The rest of the crew wakes at around the same time, with Connor and Gene right next to me, the king rubbing his head with a groan as everyone hops to their feet.

"Wh-that's it? No feast, no gifts, nothing?"

"Be glad we escaped at all, Connor! We could've rotted on that island, but you didn't seem to care as long as you saved your own hide! Show some empathy for once, goddammit!"

Connor's eyes widen, as does the rest of the crew's, especially Gene's; shock that he was able to complete his tirade radiates out of his expression. Although, I'm sure anesthetic flowers help create that wide-eyed look just fine. Connor prepares to tear Gene a new one, but he instead spots his daughter waking up near the middle of the deck, her eyes fixed on him. Connor's rage then turns to a thin facade of a smile. He pulls in Gene for a hug and whispers in his ear.

"If you ever speak to me like that again, I'll throw you in the sea. Understood?"

He releases Gene from his grasp and Gene nods, a scowl painted on his face. Gene trots away to his quarters and Connor walks over to his daughter, picking her up with a smile.

"Now, dear girl, let us celebrate your father's victory!"

The girl squeals with happiness as her father carries her away. I slowly rise to my feet and shake the grog from my head. I look up and am met with the impressed smile of a half-sleep Natalia.

"It was a very... interesting match, Sir Orenson. I look forward to seeing more of your gentlemanly bouts soon." she says with a coy smile, before floating away to her quarters. I watch her leave with a smirk. I'm unsure whether 'gentlemanly bouts' meant duels for sport instead of money, or something more vulgar, but I'll happily take it as both. As I raise a howl to rally the dazed crew to begin our voyage home, I ponder what I told Xea; completing this mission would give me back my mother, but was that all I was seeking? What else do I want family to mean outside of the two of us, outside of memories now stung with the pain of death? And how could I stand to seek such a thing with a clear conscience after aiding Connor in his schemes? I'm not sure... I don't think I can be sure for quite a while...