by R. A. Mejia
“Oh, that’s a real shame. Now, he really doesn’t have a chance,” Tony murmurs next to me.
As Myers slows his horse down and turns it towards Vrax, the kobold bares his knife proudly and bangs it on his shield. Instead of waiting for Myers to charge him again, Vrax takes the initiative and runs towards him.
“It looks like the lizard is taking the fight to Myers,” the announcer says. The crowd cheers, and I’m not sure if it’s for Vrax’s bravery or because they think it’s a suicidal move.
As Vrax approaches, you can hear all the bells he’s wearing jingle and ring. I lament the stupid vest he’s wearing. Otherwise, he might be able to pull off a backstab if he could only use [Stealth].
Myers laughs as Vrax, who only comes up to his horse’s belly, gets closer. Instead of giving Vrax a chance to attack, he pulls on his reigns and trots his mount across the field. Vrax is forced to chase after him. And on and on it goes, Myers toying with Vrax. At one point, Vrax’s feet even glow blue, and he makes a surprising leap into the air towards Myers. Myers, already moving, just spurs his horse and goes on running from Vrax for a few more minutes. That is, until the crowd starts to get annoyed. It starts out as a slow hiss but then grows louder. “Finish him. Finish him. Finish him!”
Myers brings his horse to the opposite side of the field and looks up into the crowd. He raises up his lance just once, acknowledging the request. Then he lowers it.
Vrax, standing in the middle of the field, widens his stance and hold out his stone knife like it is Excalibur. He stands unafraid and unflinching as Myers activates his ability with a shout, “Criminatio!”
Both horse and rider seem to disappear from view, and I can only follow their trail because of the red after image of their passing. I see not one trail, but two, no three as Myers assaults Vrax with a powerful attack three times. Vrax’s image becomes a ghostly blur as he takes one step backwards to avoid the first strike. But as his image solidifies, he’s hit with the others. My poor friend doesn’t stand a chance. His health quickly drops to ten percent, and a trumpet is blown, signifying the end of the match.
Vrax is placed on a stretcher and carried off the field as Myers takes a victory lap around the sands and takes in the cheers of the crowd. As I watch my friend being carted off the field, a large hand claps me on the shoulder. I turn to see Tony looking at me kindly. “Don’t worry. The Colosseum's healers will have your slave up and walking around before you know it.”
A few minutes later, Vrax comes walking into the room. His shoulders are slumped, but a quick look at his health shows he’s up to a hundred percent. I rush to my friend and give him a hug. “Vrax, are you doing okay? Are you still hurt?”
Vrax shakes his head. “No, I am fine. I am just disappointed I did not do better in fight.”
“Oh, don’t worry, buddy. You did great. I learned a lot about Myers. I’m already thinking of plans to beat him based on your match.
The statement seems to perk up my friend. “You sure. I didn’t lose too fast?”
“No, man. You got him to show off his special abilities and everything. It was a great fight.”
The two of us leave and return to the Familia Pontius compound to train and prepare for Vrax’s next fight. We realize that, even though we don’t know exactly what moves ‘Killer’ Kyle is going to use, that doesn’t mean that we have to go in totally blind. Speaking with Lanista Lucanus, he tells us that Kyle duel wields two swords. He specializes in quick damage-dealing attacks. There’s no one in the facility that dual wields, but I’m more than happy to help by friend train. Besides, it gives me a chance to figure out the style.
For the next three days, Vrax and I train almost non-stop. I learn the skill [Dual Wield], which reduces the penalty for off-handed attacks, but I don’t really like the fighting style. I find that it’s way too easy to get my weapons caught up with each other, and each attack doesn’t do nearly as much damage as they would if they were being wielded separately. My off-hand weapon, the one in my left hand, only does half damage. I guess I could see some use for the style if I were mixing up weapons with magical effects or maybe using a ranged weapon in my left hand and a one-handed swords in my right. Still, for Kyle to make this a viable fighting style, it must have taken him hundreds of hours of practice or special instruction. Vrax, on the other hand, seems to grow more confident the more the two of us train. He uses his shield to deflect the variety of blows I try to land and is always moving so that his spear is ready to strike. While I don’t know much about Kyle’s abilities, he’ll have to have something special if he’s going to get into range to use his swords. Vrax definitely has an advantage with his longer spear and dexterity build.
Three days pass, and Vrax and I find ourselves in the gladiator waiting area again. Tony isn’t there, but there are plenty of other fighters. When Vrax’s turn comes up, I wish him well and hope our training pays off.
A similar introduction announces Vrax, and this time, there are a couple of cheers in addition to all the boos. Vrax waves to the few people he sees cheer. Across the Colosseum field, ‘Killer’ Kyle comes out when he’s introduced. The man looks similar to when I saw him last. He wears a heavy metal chest-guard but has both his arms free of armor. He twirls his mustache with one hand as he waves to the cheering crowd with the other, then grabs each of the swords at his hips and draws them simultaneously. The blades cross, and there’s a metal ring as they scrape against one another. The fancy move seems to please the crowd.
The announcer says, “For this match, one advantage will be applied to Kyle, and two detriments will be applied to Vrax. Kyle takes the advantage of Adjust Position, which allows him to move his starting location anywhere on the field within fifty feet from the normal starting point. The first detriment is Hobble, and the second is Drunk, a magical spell that will mimic the effects of being drunk for thirty seconds.”
A few people boo at the use of detriments, but many more cheer, happy to see an interesting fight. Kyle moves up the full fifty feet so that he’s as close as possible to Vrax. A thick rope is again tied around Vrax’s waist and secured to the ground. Someone in heavy purple robes steps onto the field. It’s hard to tell the person’s gender from here, but they wave their hands and mutter an incantation. A faint gold glow envelopes Vrax’s head, and I see him sway from side to side. As soon as everyone has cleared the field, the announcer says, “The match will begin in 3 . . . 2 . . . 1 . . . Go!”
As soon as the word ‘go’ is said, Kyle rushes across the field. It’s a long run but Vrax is still suffering from the inebriating effects of the Drunk spell. He tries to cut through the rope at his waist with his spear instead of his knife, choking up high on the shaft. But before he’s even halfway done, Kyle is on him. Vrax instinctively drops to the ground as Kyle swings both swords in a horizontal arc, likely trying to finish Vrax off in a single blow. My kobold friend jabs with the tip of the spear, still held near the head in one hand. I see the spear tip hit Kyle, but his metal chest guard deflects the weak blow. Kyle leaps back, surprised at Vrax’s ability to dodge his attack, but his surprise doesn’t last long. Finally, the effects of the Drunk spell wear off, and Vrax comes to his senses with a shake of his head.
Now, Kyle has to face a sober opponent. Vrax quickly drops into a crouch, his spear held in his right hand near the middle of the shaft. Since Vrax is shorter than Kyle, all his attacks are going to have to come from above, and Vrax angles his small shield to deflect those blows. Unfortunately, Vrax cannot take the initiative since he’s still tied down. Kyle smiles, realizing what I already have: that Vrax is indeed in trouble.
Kyle comes in slowly, his left blade held vertically in front of him, his right blade held back and poised for a quick thrust. He inches forward, step by step. Then he takes one step too many and comes within Vrax’s superior attack range. The spear in Vrax’s right hand glows red and shoots forward at an incredible speed. I recognize the ability [Thrust] and am happy to see the move. It strikes Kyle in his
unprotected thigh and draws blood, but Kyle doesn’t seem to mind. When I look at his health bar, I see that it’s only dropped a fraction. Undeterred, Vrax doesn’t relent. He rushes forward to take advantage of the attack but is pulled back by the rope around his waist. The momentary imbalance caused by the arrested move is exactly what Kyle was waiting for. His person blurs, multiplies, and rushes forward. Suddenly, there is not one, but six Kyles surrounding Vrax, each striking out with twin blades.
The announcer groans. “Oh, it looks like Kyle has used his signature move, Phantom Copy! He makes virtual clones of himself to confuse his opponents. They can’t do damage, but they can’t be damaged either!”
And the announcer is correct. Each of the copies looks exactly like Kyle and circles around Vrax, striking with its blades. Vrax tries to block each blow, but more often than not, blocks or counters a phantom strike. When he does, the real attack comes from somewhere else. Little by little, Vrax’s health is being reduced. He gets so desperate that he drops the shield on his left arm and swings the spear around in a wide 360 degree attack using a two- handed grip. The attack connects but doesn’t do more than 5% damage to Kyle’s health. Still, the move must anger him, because all his phantom clones cross their blades in front of themselves in an X and glow.
The announcer cries out, “Oh, is he going to do it folks? Is he going to use the Battosai Cross Blade attack?”
In an instant the blades flash red, and from each of the phantoms, a red X shoots forward to strike Vrax. My poor friend is unsure how to block so many special attacks, and with his shield dropped, he’s even less able to defend himself. Each of the attacks hits simultaneously, but only one does damage. Long, bright red slashes appear along Vrax’s back, and his health drops from 25% all the way down near 10%. I’m actually amazed the move did so much damage but realize that, since it hit from behind, it must have counted as a sneak attack. I’m even more surprised that the move didn’t drop Vrax below the threshold to end the match. Kyle also seems like he had expected Vrax to be out is phantoms stop moving and approach Vrax, who’s kneeling on the ground, face down in the dirt. They each raise a blade to finish off my friend. But, just as the sword begins to descend, Vrax suddenly spins and activates [Thrust], and the spear in his hands shoots forward, stabbing Kyle in his exposed throat. The move not only does extra damage, but critical damage, and drops Kyle’s health below 50%. But it’s not enough to stop the descending blade from stabbing into Vrax. It seems like the blade barely pierces Vrax’s scaled skin, but it’s enough to drop him below 10% and end the match.
The two stand there glaring at each other. Vrax stabbed with a sword, Kyle pierced with a spear. Then the horn blows and green auras envelope both gladiators, and I see their health bars rise rapidly. A team comes out to extricate the two warriors from their final attacks, while the healers continue to work.
“Ladies and gentlemen, the winner is ‘Killer’ Kyle!” says the announcer, and the crowd cheers. I cheer too, happy to see my friend fight to the end and never give up. Even though he lost, I think I hear a few people chant, “Vrax. Vrax.”
Chapter 34
Vrax arrived a short time later, fully healed, and we returned home. Along the way, I made sure to buy some meat on a stick as a kind of treat for Vrax. Once home, he recounts his fight for me.
“I was very worried when big voice said that they would be casting spell on me, but it didn’t hurt. It just made me dizzy and slow. But I could not cut rope they put around me before Kyle come. So, I just decide to fight with rope on. It only stop me from running away, and I no plan to run.”
“Yeah, I saw all that. You made a good decision there, buddy. If you’d kept trying to cut through that rope, you would have been skewered at the beginning of the match for sure.”
Vrax gives me a sharp-toothed smile at the compliment. “Yip. I make good move. After that, you saw me fight? I try to attack, but he very fast. Very tricky too. Make ghosts of himself that I can’t hit. It hard to find real one to attack, and I take many attacks. Then I think, ‘Why not hit them all?’ and I swing the spear in big circle to try and hit the true Kyle.” Vrax mimics swinging his spear in a big circle. “I hit him too and think that I have chance to attack, but then he use big attack that surprise me and hurt a lot. I fall down and think that I’m going to lose and disappoint you.”
“Ah. Vrax, you could never disappoint me. I knew you were going to do your best against a more experienced gladiator.”
“Thank you, brood brother. I know this. But I just think that when on the ground.”
“Sorry, go on.”
Vrax nods and continues, “I on the ground, thinking I going to disappoint you because I no learn secret to beat stupid ghost ability. I close my eyes, ready to take final blow. Then I hear it.”
“Hear what?”
“I hear footsteps.” I don’t understand completely, and it must show, because Vrax continues, “I hear only one set of footsteps. There are many ghosts. All move differently. All look same. Very hard to tell who real and who ghost. But only sound of one footsteps.”
Then it clicks. “Oh, the phantom copies don’t make sound? They’re like holograms. Then that’s how you were able to stab the real Kyle at the last minute? You could tell which one was the real one from the sounds he made?”
Vrax nods vigorously as he takes a bite from the meat on a stick and chews it. I try to imagine Vrax’s position. On the verge of defeat, he’d almost given up, and yet he still found a way to counter ‘Killer’ Kyle’s [Phantom Copy] technique. I slap my friend on the back and smile as an inkling of a plan begins to form in my mind to defeat not only Kyle but Myers as well.
Once the rest of the fights are over, Sonya comes home. She’s excited that she got to see so many great fighters and can’t wait to fight them all. Once Keans and Mary finish with their work with the business, Vrax and I recount his fight. Everyone listens to Vrax tell his story, and at the end, we all brainstorm on how I’m going to train to beat them. I only have a few days before my match with ‘Killer’ Kyle and then another one with ‘Myrmidon’ Myers a few days after that.
Beating Myers seems to only be a matter of eliminating his speed and power advantages with his horse. If I can neutralize that, I have a chance. Kyle is another matter. He seems to be a genuinely-good swordsman that combines his skill with the blade with illusion magic.
Training for the next two days focuses on one thing, my [Listening] skill. It’s something I picked up while being led blindfolded through some caves by bandits.
Listening
Despite what the ladies may say, you can listen. You have improved hearing and can pick out sounds more easily. With greater concentration and focus you may eventually be able to perform great feats of listening. To increase this skill, you must intentionally focus on the sounds around you.
Novice level 4
Bonus: You can hear things 14% better than normal. When you focus on just listening, you can determine the direction of a sound and hear sounds from 14% farther away.
I’d never actively trained the skill which is why it’s only at Novice level 4 right now, but one of the bonuses from the skill is the ability to tell the direction of a sound, which is exactly what I need to improve if I’m going to be able to tell the difference between Kyle and his phantom clones. The training that our group and Lanista Lucanus come up with is as interesting as it is painful.
In the middle of the training yard, Vrax, Sonya, and Keans surround me. Each has a weapon of their choice. Sonya has two wooden swords, Keans has his bow and padded arrows, and Vrax has a practice spear. Their objective is pretty simple: beat the heck out of me. My objective? Dodge like all heck while blindfolded. Yeah, it’s basically some modified Kung Fu training, but we only have a couple days till my match, and I still need to level up my dodge skill too. So, I’m potentially training two skills at once. The reality of the training is not nearly as cool as I thought it would be. I imagined myself with a blindfold on, dodging left
and right and deftly moving between strikes like I was Neo or Master Po. The reality is that I just get hit a lot. Wooden swords stab into me, the wooden spear trips up my legs and jabs me, and I’m pelted by blunted arrows. I’m forced to take a break several times to let my stamina and mana recover. [Sidestep] uses ten mana per use, which is not a lot for a single step, but it means that I can only use it six times with my current mana pool. Still, by the end of the first day, I’ve leveled up [Dodge] to Novice 3 and [Listening] to Novice 5. I’m also starting to get a handle on actively using the [Listening] skill.
By the middle of day two, I think I’ve gotten much better. I’m still getting hit all the time, but I’m noticing small sounds that preceded various attacks. The creak of the wood as Keans pulls back on the bowstring. The shift of feet or claws on the hard-packed earth before a forward strike. The subtle sound of a weapon cutting through the air as it comes at me. Slowly, my ability to pinpoint the direction of these sounds improves. I dodge more and more of the attacks aimed at me and find that just staying on the move makes a lot of the blows miss all on its own. A moving target is much harder to hit, after all. By the end of the second day of training, [Dodge] is up to Novice 8 and [Listening] is up to Novice 7. While I’m surprised that my [Dodge] skill has overtaken my [Listening] skill, I can only reason that since each use of [Sidestep] is being used to make me dodge an attack, it must synergize with the skill. I only wish that I had an ability that forced me to listen better too.