by Aaron Oster
What was going on? Was this another one of Frush’s skills?
Frush slowly walked towards her, pulling the spear out of his stomach with a cry of pain. She could see blood staining the front of his uniform, but the wound apparently wasn’t bad enough to stop him.
She tried to take another step forward, but she just felt so tired.
Maybe she should just lie down and take a nap. She could always continue fighting afterward.
She dropped to her knees as her vision began to go fuzzy, then she was instantly awake as a fist crashed into the side of her face. She screamed as she was sent sprawling by the blow, clutching at her cheek as she looked around for the source of the attack.
Frush stood there with a wicked grin on his face and Sarah could see that he looked different than he had before. His skin had turned a dark blue color and was flecked with black splotches. His eyes had turned red and his pupils were vertical, like those of a frog.
Just what the hell was he? And how had he gotten through her shield?
It was only then, that she realized that her shield had somehow gone out.
When had that happened? Come to think of it, how had she gotten on the ground? Wasn’t she just about to end the fight?
She got shakily to her feet, once again activating her mage shield, and used icicle spear.
“I don’t know what you just did to me, but I’ll make sure to finish you off quickly so you can’t do it again,” she growled through gritted teeth.
She began lifting her arm to send the spears at the offending boy, when the overwhelming exhaustion hit her again. Her arm dropped and Frush rushed in, slamming a slimy fist into her face once more.
Sarah went down with a cry of pain, but this time Frush pounced on top of her and began raining blows down on her, one after the next. She tried to fight back, but every time she tried to use her skills, she was suddenly too weak to do anything at all.
She cried out as Frush’s fist connected with her nose, with a loud snap. Her nose broke and blood spurted out, once again waking her from her sleepy haze.
What the hell was going on?
Her head was rocked to the side as Frush cracked her across the jaw and her vision swam once again. She tried lifting her arm to ward off the blows, but it dropped as soon as she tried.
She was just too tired, and going to sleep sounded so nice. She should definitely go to sleep, after all, she was in so much pain. If she went to sleep now, she wouldn’t be in pain anymore.
Sarah felt one more vicious blow to her temple, then she blacked out.
∞
“What the hell is going on out there?”
Morgan was pacing back and forth in the booth, as Sarah once again failed to do anything.
This wasn’t right! She stopped her attack when that idiot was wide open. Then she dropped her mage shield and just let him attack her.
“I don’t know what’s going on, but something smells rotten,” Gold said, getting to his feet as well.
Morgan’s eyes flicked quickly to Keldor, who was standing to the side as Frush pounced on top of Sarah and began pummeling her face. He had an oddly pleased look, as though he were in on some sort of secret that on one else knew.
By this point, he should have stepped in and ended the fight, but it looked as though they couldn’t count on him doing that. Then the true horror of what was going on hit him like a ton of bricks.
It was Keldor! He was interfering in the fight. There was no other reason why Sarah would be acting this way. Sure, Frush could freeze someone with a touch, but Sarah was at least twenty feet away from him the first time she dropped.
“It’s Keldor, isn’t it?” Morgan asked, turning quickly to Gold. “He’s doing something to her.”
Gold nodded, already rolling up the sleeves on his robes and tying his belt more firmly.
“What are you going to do?” Morgan asked, preparing to move out as well.
“I’m going to kill him,” Gold stated calmly. “Interfering in an official tournament is a crime punishable by death.”
“Should I come with you?”
He was eager to fight; to pound the ugly bastards into a bloody pulp, then have Eric heal them and do it all over again.
“No!” Gold said sharply. “You stay here. This is a messy situation and the fewer people who are involved, the better.”
Morgan nodded as Gold finished tying off his robe and headed out of the booth.
He hated sitting on the sidelines while his friend was being beaten to death, but Gold was more than capable of handling the situation. He just wished there was something more he could do.
He silently fumed as he watched Frush continuing to pummel a clearly unconscious Sarah and all the while, Keldor just watched. He could hear the crowd becoming uneasy as this went on. They were likely wondering why the match wasn’t being ended, as well.
Morgan clenched his fists as his sides, raging inwardly at his inability to help right now.
He just hoped that Gold knew what he was doing.
41
Arnold watched in mounting horror as Lord Simon’s daughter was being beaten to death.
How could this be happening? Why was this happening? And why wasn’t the referee stepping in to stop the fight? He knew the rules, and while killing wasn’t illegal, the fight should have been called as soon as it became clear that Sarah was unable to continue.
Arnold rose from his seat and began shoving his way through the other spectators, many of which had risen from their seats to get a better view.
He had to make it down there, no matter the consequence. If Lord Simon’s daughter was killed, his life would be forfeit; and he didn’t feel like dying over what was likely some sort of childish grudge.
He finally broke free of the crowd and emerged onto the stairs. He took one step down when a booming voice shook the entire stadium.
“Keldor! You have interfered in this fight long enough!”
Arnold staggered under the force of that voice and more than a few people fell to the ground in a dead faint.
What kind of person could produce that much power with only their voice?
His question was answered a moment later, as Deputy Headmaster Gold walked out onto the fighting grounds.
Arnold felt a shiver go down his spine when he saw him. There were very few people that he was truly afraid of; and that man down there was near the top of his list. He took another step forward, then stopped.
If Gold was down there, then Sarah was most likely going to be fine, but if he went down there now, the entire plan could be in jeopardy.
Arnold clenched his fists as he scanned the crowd for any sign of the signal.
Nothing yet; but it couldn’t be long now. He just needed to be patient.
∞
Keldor’s head whipped up the moment Gold’s voice rang out. He grimaced as his concentration was shattered and he was forced to release his grip on the girl’s mind.
“How dare you interfere in the middle of a tournament match?” Keldor yelled back. “This is a crime punishable by death! Loquin, get this man out of here.”
Loquin dropped in to the ring from where she’d been seated and approached Gold, face set in an angry expression.
“Just what do you think you’re doing, Gold? You know interfering in a match is against the law!”
“Then you won’t mind executing Keldor for attacking my student,” he replied, motioning over to where Frush lay prone on the ground next to Sarah.
As soon as Gold had entered the ring, he’d made sure to knock the boy out. There was now a stone golem standing between him and Sarah, who was already being attended to by Eric.
“How dare you accuse someone of his status of such a serious crime,” Loquin yelled. “You overstep your station, Deputy Headmaster.” She made sure to stress the word ‘deputy’, reminding Gold of his position under her.
“I see,” Gold said, folding his arms and frowning. “Now things are starting to become clear
to me. I’ve been wondering who kept blocking me from speaking to the board about expelling those two boys. Or whose idea it was to let Keldor, a man who is clearly biased against my students, referee this tournament! I can see why a boy who attempted rape and another who attempted murder weren’t immediately expelled. I expected a lot of people to be corrupt, but I never suspected you would be one of them, Loquin.”
The Headmistress’ face went pale for a moment. Gold was speaking with enough force that the entire arena could hear their conversation and he was throwing around some pretty serious accusations. Then she seemed to regain her confidence and laughed condescendingly.
“I’ve known that you’ve been after my job for years, Gold, but this a low even for you. Guards! Arrest this man; if he tries to resist, do not hesitate to kill him!”
“I wouldn’t recommend that if I were you,” he casually said as a group of guards emerged onto the arena sands.
“You all know that I’m too powerful to be killed by the likes of you.”
The guards froze in place, looking to Loquin uncertainly.
“I have a proposal to make,” Gold continued, this time turning to face the judges, who were now on their feet and staring down at the spectacle below.
“Honorable judges; I propose that you allow a diviner to come down and figure out how truthful my statements are. If Loquin is innocent, as she claims, and Keldor didn’t interfere with the fight, then they should have noting to fear. If I am right; then I demand you allow me to kill them both, under the law of non-interference in a kingdom sanctioned tournament.”
This was a gamble on his part. The judges were given the same power as the king when it came to making decisions during a tournament. They could, technically, give him the power to meet out instant justice to both guilty parties. The risk with this was that one or more of the judges could be in Keldor’s pocket, in which case, he’d be forced to flee.
The judges convened for a moment as Gold stared impassively at Keldor and Loquin; both of whom were glaring daggers at him. After another minute of debate, the judges finally convened their meeting and turned to deliver their verdict.
“After some deliberation, we have decided that Deputy Headmaster Gold is not making an unreasonable request. After all, if Keldor was interfering during the match and Headmistress Loquin was aware of this, then this would merit further investigation. We will have a diviner sort this issue out and make our decision based on the outcome.”
“Very well,” Loquin was quick to speak up. “Instructor Blue, come down here and verify that I and the esteemed Keldor are innocent.”
“Not so fast,” Gold immediately cut in. “Honorable judges, I believe that in a situation like this, Instructor Blue may be biased in his judgment. I propose that you allow an outside party to divine the truth in this matter.”
The judges immediately agreed with his decision.
“If we are not mistaken, Duchess Helga of the East Kingdom is here to watch her daughter compete. We believe that she is a neutral enough party to sort this mess out. Is that agreeable to you?”
Gold nodded; then the judges turned their attention on Loquin and Keldor. They had both gone very still, the confident looks they’d had a moment ago now gone.
Clearly, they’d been counting on Blue to falsify the verdict in their favor.
“No! It’s not agreeable to us!” Loquin shouted. “This in a grievous affront to our positions and I demand this ridiculous judgment be rescinded!”
The judge’s eyes all hardened and the one who had been speaking for all of them took a step forward.
“Either you submit to a diviner, or we will pass our ruling now. You claim to be innocent, but you act as though you are guilty. So tell me, Headmistress, which will it be?”
Loquin looked back and a forth between Gold and the judges, then a nasty smile spread across her face.
“I will do neither,” she yelled. “I’ve worked too hard and too long to be stopped here! I’ll get you all back for this; mark my words!” Then, she abruptly vanished.
Keldor stared at the space she’d just been occupying with a horrified expression. Loquin’s actions were basically a confession of guilt, meaning that he was now all alone. He turned back to the judges and tried one last time to bluff his way out of the situation.
“The Headmistress was clearly distraught by this grievous offense, as am I! Now drop this ridiculous charge against me, or you will have the wrath of the merchant’s guild to deal with!”
The merchant’s guild were extremely wealthy and had several nobles in their pockets. Keldor thought this threat alone should be enough to have them dismiss the case entirely.
“Then we will make our judgment,” the lead judge announced. “We find Referee Keldor guilty of interfering in a kingdom sanctioned tournament. Furthermore, we find him guilty of colluding with the former Headmistress, Loquin, to try and kill a student during said tournament. The sentence for both parties is death; Keldor’s sentence will be meted out immediately by acting Headmaster Gold. Loquin will be hunted down by the military and executed for her crimes. We will also be reporting to the king and launching an investigation to see how many of the staff have been corrupted by the merchant’s guild.”
Gold nodded respectfully to the judges, then turned to face Keldor, whose face had gone a sickly pale.
“Well, you heard the judgment,” he said with a grin. “I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t going to enjoy this.”
“This isn’t over you, pompous bastard!” Keldor yelled, then spun in place and made a dash for the exit.
“Oh, I think it is,” Gold replied.
Keldor didn’t even make it five feet. A massive stone spike shot out of the ground; impaling him right through his back and hoisting him into the air. He let out a piercing scream as the spike emerged from his chest, completely destroying his mana-heart. His body convulsed a few times as a massive amount of blood pumped from the wound. Then his head slumped forward and he went limp.
∞
Morgan looked on as Gold impaled the man who had attempted to kill Sarah. He could feel a distinct sense of satisfaction, as he watched the man in his death throes.
It served him right for what he did.
He only wished that he could have killed the man himself.
“I’ve meted out the punishment for Keldor’s crime, but what about Frush and his cousin Grub? They were definitely in on this plan and Grub had probably planned on killing my other student in a similar fashion.”
Morgan turned his attention back to the arena as Gold began to speak once more. He saw one of the judges open their mouths to give a response, when the entire section they were standing in exploded outward in a shower of dust and debris, leaving a gaping hole in the arena wall.
42
Arnold looked on as the once smug referee twitched one last time before going still.
He’d been worried when the Headmistress had entered the arena, but Gold had handled the situation quite well. He could see Sarah now, sitting against one wall of the arena with a healer tending to her wounds.
He was turning his eyes to the judges when he caught a flash of something to his right. Looking over, he saw a man dressed in red flashing a small hand mirror in a pre-prepared code. The man wasn’t looking at him of course, as he wouldn’t know where he was, but Arnold got the message all the same.
A grim smile touched his lips as he turned his eyes to where the judges were now standing.
It was unfortunate that they would have to die. After all, they had allowed Gold to end the man who had tried to kill Sarah. But they were located the furthest from the girl and he couldn’t risk killing her.
He pulled his arm back activating his concave skill.
He didn’t get a chance to use this particular skill very often, so he was more than happy for the opportunity to do so now.
Then he thrust his arm outward, sending the force of his blow to the designated area. There was a loud crack as the air was displ
aced around his arm, then the section of the arena he’d been aiming for exploded outward.
He stood still for a moment to admire his work.
He’d easily killed at least a thousand people with that attack, a new personal record. He just wished he could get an exact count, just so he’d know how many he’d need to kill in order to break it.
Then, as the first panicked screams began to ring out, he dashed down the stadium stairs.
He could just make out Sarah’s form through the rising cloud of dust. He would have to move quickly if he didn’t want to lose her.
∞
Morgan reacted, even as the screams began. He dove through the open window of his booth, dropping the few feet to the arena floor, and dashed across it to where Sarah sat against the wall. Dust billowed around him as he ran and he covered his face to avoid breathing it in.
“Are you alright?” he asked, coming to a skidding halt and crouching down near her.
“Yeah, I’m fine,” she said, giving him a weak smile.
“I’ve patched her up as best I could,” Eric said, getting to his feet. “Her body is all healed up, but her mind may need a bit more time to recover. Now, if you will excuse me, there are likely a lot of injured people that will be needing my help.” And with that, Eric jogged off into the dust cloud.
“We’ve got to get out of here,” Morgan said, pulling one of Sarah’s arms over his shoulders and hoisting her to her feet.
“Yeah, probably a good idea,” she replied, leaning on him for support. “Can you see Gold? He was pretty close to the wall when that explosion went off.”
Morgan shook his head, casting around for a clear way out of the arena.
“He’s pretty tough, so I doubt something as small as an explosion could do much to hurt him.”
“You’re probably right, but I’d feel a whole lot better if he was with us now. What do you think caused that explosion, anyway?” she asked as Morgan began walking toward the exit that looked to be the least clogged up.
“No idea. But whatever it was, I doubt it was an accident.”