The Four Territories

by Stevie Collier

  “Show us ya tits!” the fighter to Esh’s left called out. The crowd exploded with laughter, all but the perverted skinny guy whose pants seemed to have grown.

  The announcer’s face did not twist in disgust as Esh’s had. Her face was blank, and he knew she was very used to these sorts of humanoids in her line of work. “You may enter the arena!”

  A group of slaves began to heave on a thick rope, the veins in their arms bulging from the strain. Esh remembered what his Master had said about it not being a good idea for him to wish an end to slavery. If not that, then what would he wish for?

  Ever so slowly the barred entrance rose to reveal the ashy battlefield. The fighters ducked under the gate as they ran inside, there arms wide as they greeted the crowd which was met with loud cheers and screams.

  As Esh took his turn to enter the arena he stopped midway, his mouth open in awe. The arena was completely filled and overflowing with humanoids. They were practically crawling over each other just to get a better view of the fighters, some even fell over the railing and smashed into the ground. Females flashed theirs breasts while males gave lude hand gestures. They were like animals.

  Esh was shoved from behind but was barely budged. He could smell foul breath wafting into his nose. He turned to stare into the same tattooed eyed male who had shamed him a few sun-cycles ago. He was picking his nose and smiling that same toothy smile.

  “Imma rip yeh nuts off,” he said matter of factly. He just started at Esh, his finger working overtime in his nostril before pulling out a green nugget and shoving it into his mouth.

  Esh made it his goal to finish this one off before anyone else.

  “Come on, come on! Everyone in, the gate is shutting!” yelled the announcer female. “If it shuts and you’re not inside, tough shit and better luck next time.”

  There were no tactical positions in the oval shaped arena. No platforms or boulders to take cover behind. There was only flat land with ash and trash blowing in the wind. His best option was to hug the wall in order to protect his back.

  Something wet poured over his helmet, the liquid made its way through the crevices and burned his lips. A humanoid in the audience had poured hot slag on to him from above. Some of the other fighters noticed this and laughed at him.

  “Watch out!” someone cried and Esh looked up just in time to see a heavy chair being dropped onto him. He jumped out of the way just as the chair exploded into a thousand pieces right where he had been standing.

  Esh saw Barish wrestling with a male in the crowd. He lifted the male up with strength Esh did not know he possessed and chunked him over the edge. The male slammed on top of the broken chair, both his legs in an unnatural position. A metal splinter had pierced his rich clothing and exited through his stomach.

  The wealthy male’s eyes stared down at the protruding metal rod and shook his head in disbelief. Esh turned but heard the male’s blood curdling scream of pain when the reality of his situation kicked in. The contestants must have smelled blood for they were now going absolutely berserk swinging their weapons around and giving loud war cries. Three of the fighters rushed past Esh and began stomping the dying male to death.

  Esh looked up to see Barish giving him the thumbs up. He didn’t return the gesture.

  If the crowd had been loud before it was nothing compared to the noise they manifested when the King made his entrance. Esh watched the old royalty waddle onto a large platform raised high above the arena. He wore no shirt exposing his gigantic hairy belly created through years of hot slag and bad nutrition. Both his arms had flabs of skin and fat jiggling off the triceps with each step. He was covered in half naked females who were obviously giving up their bodies to this disgusting male for reasons Esh knew had nothing to do with his looks nor his charisma.

  The King was moving his mouth but Esh could hear nothing. His speech was then echoed by assigned callers, which was the same profession that called out the oncoming molten rains. The King’s words made it to Esh’ side of the ring.

  “Such a beautiful sun-cycle in the beautiful city of Zel,” repeated the caller. The crowds cheered in waves as the words met them. “I look upon a very fiery group of young fighters who have decided to give their lives in order to serve their King’s enjoyment.”

  The fighters all spat on the ground at these words. They were in it for the currency and the King’s wish, not to please his majesty’s wrinkled face. Esh chuckled as this was to be the only thing he would have in common with the other fighters.

  Something shiny and heavy was wheeled onto the platform from the same room the King had come from. It was rectangular in shape and was filled with blue sloshy liquid. Esh wasn’t the only one to notice, but the other contestants saw it too. None of them had ever seen such a volume of liquid; it was unheard of. Esh didn’t know such things even existed. Yet that wasn’t all. Something was swimming inside of it.

  32 - Let the Bloodshed Begin

  With his curiosity getting the better of him, Esh made his way along the wall in order to get a better look at the mysterious swimming beast. He had only read of creatures of the blue world but there had never been any illustrations or sketches. He’d read about how large sea creatures could grow due to the availability of space and the lack of gravity, but that was really all. That being said, whatever was in the liquid cage couldn’t have been much larger than he was. He had to get a better look.

  “I wish you all good luck and much blood shed. You may begin!” the callers called.

  There was no pause, no time to let the words sink in. The fighters were at each other’s throats in less than a heartbeat. Esh was targeted by a mid-sized male holding a curved blade. He gave one more look back at the liquid enclosure and just for a second he was able to get a glimpse of the most beautiful female face he had ever seen pressed to the enclosure’s window. He could have sworn she mouthed the words help me.

  Esh was brought back to reality as he was tackled to the ground, the breath taken from his lungs. He rolled backwards onto his feet. There was no time to unsheathe his borrowed greatsword as the curved blade was swiped towards his neck. The opponent’s efforts were unskillful and desperate.

  Esh merely pulled back a fist and punched him in the face, feeling the nose shatter underneath his knuckles. The male stood for only a moment before falling backwards. Esh would take that as a submission.

  He turned just in time to dodge an oncoming severed head, the thrower being the black-eyed male.

  “I made you a promise, did’n I?” he said, walking slowly towards Esh, completely disregarding all the chaos happening around him. “Time to snip off them nuts, you pretty thing you! Come eer.”

  Esh listened. He met the male half way but still did not draw his sword. He knew he wouldn’t need to. The black-eyed male didn’t seem to even take notice, his eyes were on the prize. The prize being Esh’s genitals for whatever reason. He wielded a sword that was much too heavy for him so he let it drag in the black ash as he made his way towards his prey.

  When he was a foot away the black-eyed male opened his mouth to speak but Esh didn’t give him the chance. He grabbed the male’s curly hair in a tight lock and pulled his head close to his chest. Esh then dug both of his thumbs into his eye sockets, relieving the male of his ugly eye balls and producing a high pitched scream from his mouth. The blind male did not drop his blade, which impressed Esh, but that might just be because the male was in a state of shock.

  He released his grip on the male’s hair and watched him wail in agony. Some of the other fighters paused their brawling, their gaze going from the screaming blind male to the two eye balls now stuck to Esh’s thumbs.

  He wiped the slimy spheres on his leggings and backed himself closer to the wall, but not too close. He reassessed the situation. Already the contestants still standing had been brought down to about half the size it was originally.

  It was the gigantic twins that now gave Esh their attention. Both held weapons that they had not started the
battle with. One brother grasped a Warhammer in one hairy fist and beat it against his plated chest piece. The other brother twirled a sword in each hand, an arrow stuck between his shoulder pauldrons. Esh decided that would be his first target.

  Fighters made sure to keep out of their paths as the twins began their charge towards him. Their armor clunked heavy as each foot pounded the ground. It was time to unsheathe the sword. As he did so he heard a yell of approval coming from behind him in the stands, no doubt it was coming from Barish.

  The twins roared in unison, both lifting their weapons for one crushing sweep. Esh rolled to his right just in time as the twins’ weapons pounded the ash. The ground was still quaking as Esh jumped to his feet, the greatsword held out in front of him in both hands.

  Esh discovered within just a few seconds of their skirmish that the twins did not use their companionship to their advantage, but relied on their brute strength to win their battles. As he dodged and blocked certain blows he found times at which one of the twins could have easily flanked him and made his life much more difficult. Yet there was no strategy, only brutish swings that were easily dodged.

  Esh was much faster than his fellow giants and thought it best to defeat one of them at a time. He ducked a thrust from the sword bearing twin and spun around him cutting the tendon behind his foot wide open. The twin cried out and took a knee. Esh started to pace backwards to lure the hammer twin away from the wounded one who still seemed to have the strength to swing his sword.

  As soon as the brother had been steered a safe distance away, Esh went to work. He stopped backpedaling and stood his ground, taunting the enemy. The brother took the bait and brought his warhammer down with a victorious smile on his face. With a loud clang Esh reflected the hammer blow just in time with the edge of his greatsword. He slid the blade down the staff and hacked all four fingers off.

  “Do you submit?” Esh asked him as the warhammer slid from the twin’s bloodied hand. The male only gawked at his fingers, his face stupid with lack of understanding. His eyes flicked to Esh, the whites now red and the veins pulsing a deep purple. He grabbed the warhammer with his left hand but Esh had already prepared for it. He turned a full circle, his blade swishing in the wind as he cut the twin’s arm before he could even lift it. The skin peeled open showing bright red muscle right before the blood started to flow. The arm fell from the warhammer and dangled useless at his side. The male still did not cry out, his gaze still on Esh.

  “I asked you if you submit!” Esh cried. He looked around him and his heart started to pound. Fighters were running out of other opponents and it wouldn’t be long before he was surrounded.

  “Finish him!” called the callers around the stadium. Esh’s head twisted around the arena before he realized it was the king’s words he was hearing. And they were directed at him.

  He would not be ordered around by some fat male with a scepter. He turned and looked for the next target, ignoring the command.

  “Finnish him or be disqualified!” came the cry and the crowd began to chant “Finish him! Finish him!”

  Feeling he had already proven to himself that he was quite the fighter, there was no real need for any more bloodshed. These opponents were no match for his abilities and Rift had already shot down his wish idea. But wait, maybe there was another wish he wanted. He had never asked for anything in his life, but was there anything he desired?

  His thoughts were clouded for an instant by the breath taking liquid angel that he had caught a small sight of. Had she really been asking for help? And had she been directing this plea towards him? Or was it just him seeing what he wanted to see? Either way, his knees felt weak and he knew what he wanted to wish for. If the king could not release all the slaves surely he could release just one.

  Esh whirled himself around and stuck his greatsword at an angle down the twin’s neck. This wasn’t an execution, it was mercy. This male would never have survived outside the arena with two useless extremities.

  Esh kicked at his chest and unstuck his blade from the spinal cord. The crowd cheered and he allowed himself to shove his borrowed bloodied sword into the air in a sign of triumph. Master Rift would have murdered him if he ever found out.

  There were only four of them left, not including the wounded who had submitted. Two opponents faced off, one with a spear, the other with a metal shield. The third opponent, the necrophile, circled the fight looking for an easy kill. He must have forgotten Esh for his back was turned completely to him. He would have no issue with his conscious in taking this sick humanoid’s life.

  He rushed towards the necrophile, using the soft padding of the ash to silence his footsteps as he closed the gap. He swung the greatsword around his head and aimed the blade right under the ribcage where there was less meat to chew through. It was a clean cut.

  The necrophile was still standing and his head pivoted just enough that he could see the one who had done him in. The top torso and femur slid apart in opposite directions, slimy blood strings trailing behind.

  The two fighters had stopped their combating, having watched Esh cut the necrophile in two. The shield bearer let the shield drop to the ground. He put both hands up and said, “I submit to you sir.”

  “Are you fuckin kidding me! Help me take him out,” the sword bearer said, taking an aggressive stance towards Esh.

  “I don’t think so, you’re on your own!” the male turned and ran towards the entrance.

  The sword bearer was half Esh’s size and had probably made it this far off of pure luck, the better fighters finishing each other off earlier in the battle. This was no fair fight.

  “Do you submit?”

  “Like hell I do!” The sword bearer ran towards Esh yelling at the top of his lungs, blood lust in his eyes.

  Esh had simply to step out of the way, leaving one foot in place. The male tripped and went face down into the soot.

  There was a pause and then the male said, “Shit! I give! I give!”

  The male threw his sword out of reach and kept his head facing down in the soot, too ashamed with himself to look up.

  “We have our first winner!” cried the female announcer and the callers repeated the message. The crowd erupted in a mixture of cheers and boos. Fights broke amongst them as wages were won and lost.

  The entrance door creaked back open. All of those who had submitted and could still walk left the stadium. The announcer strode over to Esh and grabbed the wrist holding the great-sword and tried to lift it.

  “You’re the victor dammit,” she hissed. “Wave your sword in the air! Give these rich idiots something to cheer at.”

  Esh did so and the crowd approved. A smile showed under his helmet. He had never been loved before by so many. He could get used to this.

  “What is your name, young male?” cried the callers. The king stood in front of his liquid cage and peered down at him.

  The announcer elbowed him hard in the ribs. “Come on, shout to the callers your name. Your king wants to know!”

  Esh shook his head, “I signed up as anonymous. Tell him that.”

  The small announcer’s face grew more red than normal and Esh was sure that it was about to explode. “This is your king and he demands a name! This is an hono——”

  “I said I signed up as anonymous and I wish to keep it that way.”

  She dropped his arm and started to walk off the field, “Suit yourself, you dumb bastard.”

  The crowd lost interest in Esh and gained interest in the fist fights that had sprung out through the stadium all the while wages were already being taken for the next block of fighters. Esh made his way out of the arena, the entrance closing behind.

  “Wait! What about the others who submitted?” Esh asked the announcer who was already calling out the names of the next fighters. He pointed over his shoulder at the wounded still trying to crawl for the exit.

  “What’s it to you? They’re greowld feed now,” she said without turning to him, her face still in her list. />
  He grabbed her shoulder and turned her forcefully, her face turning a darker shade of red. “You can’t do that to them! They submitted!”

  She pushed his arm off of her shoulder and stuck her finger in front of his helmet, “You ever touch me again I’ll have the guards throw you in there with them!” She shoved his face backwards and went back to her work calling out names. The talk was over with.

  Esh walked to the entrance and peeped through the bars. He could see no one had helped lead the blind male out of the arena. He had one hand over his face and another out to feel for anything in his way. The brother with the chopped ankle was dragging himself to the entrance but had only made it half way. “Help me!” he cried. His brother with the limp arms had sat back onto the ground staring blankly at nothing in front of him.

  There was another fighter who had submitted but had not been physically able to move. He laid face up with a spear sticking right out of his gut. He was screaming out a name Esh did not recognize, probably a spouse or family member. Even if someone had taken the time to pull the spear out and carry the male from the arena he would have bled out within a few minutes.

  The floor underneath the ash began to rumble and split apart. At first, Esh thought it was another Wisp attack but disregarded the idea once he turned and saw more slaves rotating a metal crank that jutted from the ground. Esh’s attention focused back on the arena and watched as three holes in the ground creaked open slowly. Large hairy paws flicked in and out before the trap doors had even completely opened.

  To Esh’s horror, one of the doors was directly under the speared male. It was only a few seconds before the hole had grown large enough for the male to fall sideways inside. A loud roar broke and everyone in the audience cupped their ears. Esh tried to cover his as well but forgot he was wearing a helmet. It was more of a wailing moan of pleasure than a roar and it was unlike any other animal Esh had ever heard. If the speared fighter had been screaming it would have been impossible to hear.