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“Thank you,” I tell him, and he turns around. I throw him what is left of the tape and hope he doesn’t mind that I used most of it.
“Seren, what happened?—”
“Round two will begin soon.” Alderic claps his hands to gain everyone’s attention. “As these competitors are more advanced in skill, the winner of each fight will continue on to the next one. If your name is called, come to the center and choose your weapon.”
“It doesn’t matter. Let us just get through this,” I tell him and ignore his deepening frown and growing worry to focus on the guard as he calls out the first pairing.
“Vardan and…Seren.”
My stomach drops and my gaze finds the lieutenant’s as he smiles at me. A vicious, cruel thing that only adds fuel to the burning flame slowly building inside me.
They have planned it so I must fight each skilled competitor, should I win each one. But they have also attempted to weaken and break me to ensure I don’t.
But I willnevergive up fighting, and it is something they will all come to learn.
The first fight doesn’t last long, and even though I end up with more injuries, I win. The next four fights are the same, each one more draining than the last, but my foot holds along with my other injuries.
But the longer I am forced to fight with my injuries, the more foolish mistakes I make.
I fall to the ground a third time but push myself up once again, blocking another attack before giving myself some ground to try to gain some footing between us.
With my injured foot, I am slower than normal, so I counter it by attempting to be smarter than the other competitors. Iwatch my opponents, finding their weaknesses and countering their moves before they get a chance to cause any true damage.
It works well for me, but I know I won’t be able to keep this up and block out the pain for much longer.
“Finish her,” someone screams from the sidelines, their voice filled with nothing but hate.
They do not know me. Not one of them. And yet they aim their complete and utter hatred directly at me. Theywantto see me in pain. To suffer and watch on with glee.
A numbness blankets my every pain and ache, my body becoming something other. A blinding rage slides over me as something snaps inside me.
No more games. They want to take me down, then I’ll drag them with me. Everywhere already hurts, the pain having no bounds or limits over my body, but my soul and spirit is still intact.
Covered in blood and with more injuries than I can count, I manage to make it through as one of the last three competitors. Haddon chooses to go up against me next, a savage smirk on his face, and the guards allow it without question.
Haddon fights with a skill not many have. But his bloodthirst for hurting others and his savage cruelty will only be his downfall.
He lunges forward and attacks me with purpose, but I manage to intercept him. He tries to maneuver me into a tight spot, but I duck low and slash his thigh, moving back to the center of the arena. It barely deters him, only making his savage smile widen.
He lunges forward again, but I miss my stepping and he grabs hold of my arm and twists it, snapping my wrist and quickly unarming me, throwing my blade to the side.
I stumble away from him, grabbing my wrist as it throbs. Hissing through the pain, I readjust my grip and quickly unwrap some of the tape from my good ankle to use it on my wrist.
Before I get the chance to prepare myself, he attacks without mercy while I defend with everything I have. But he manages to shove me to the ground once more.
Not ready to give up, I grab a handful of dirt with my good hand and wait until he is close enough before throwing it straight into his eyes.
While he’s momentarily blinded, I roll to the side and grab my sword from the ground before getting up and spinning around to him. I barely manage to block the blade aimed for my head but luckily manage it.
Before he aims his sword toward me again, I slice mine across his back and spin it before slamming the hilt of it into the back of his head. Just as he falls forward, I move in front of him, grab a handful of his hair, and slam his head down onto my bent knee as hard as I can. A crack sounds out as I break his nose, and he drops to the ground with a thump.
The silence in the arena is deafening as everyone’s gaze veers from Haddon’s passed-out form to me.
It takes a minute for the guards to collect themselves, and I use it to refocus and center myself, pushing my injuries and pain to the back of my mind for just a little longer.
“Oryn and Seren,” the guard growls out before they take Haddon away with more care than any other.
Oryn steps up in front of me, and his gaze trails over me, his eyes widening in shock the more he looks.
