"Today's match will use Eastern standard rules. Now, without further ado, let us bring forth the beasts!" The trumpets sounded a third time.
A cleverly concealed trap door opened in the middle of the fighting grounds. Soon the backs of a dozen snarling spike-hounds rose into view between the two teams. The mutant creatures leapt eagerly into the arena. They flexed their spines and pawed the ground, growling as they scanned the fighters. The chains holding them in place fell away. The hounds smoothly broke into three small packs, then charged the nearest Gladiator. Gavin raced forward trying to keep up with lightly armoured Sadira and Ravius. Vintia and Karmal stayed back, preparing to use their elemental magic against the dog-like monstrosities.
Swift-footed Sadira's long strides devoured the ground between her and the pack. She was eager to spill first blood and win extra points for her team, but the Quickling, Steel Harmony, beat her to it, speeding forward in a blur of motion, scoring a kill with a well-aimed, and lucky, thrust of her needle-bladed rapier. Sadira sounded her war-scream, leaping into a pack of hounds. All the stress and worry of hectic days spent in exhausting training and tiresome research melted away as she whirled among the growling, scaled monsters. Her deadly twin swords quickly tasted blood. She was in her element now, magic pulsing through her veins as she conjured shadows to confuse her foes, feet dancing to the heated rhythm of her unquenchable bloodlust. Cunning Ravius followed her, finishing a wounded hound with a precise thrust of his three-pronged weapon. The smiling skirmisher followed this with a crude gesture at the passing Steel Harmony.
Gavin ducked under a pouncing hound, thrusting his spear upwards into the creature's furry, scaled under-belly. Momentum carried it past him, his grim war-spear's barbed edge ripping it open from end to end spilling entrails onto the bright sands. The audience applauded gently.
Vintia and Karmal let loose with their elemental magic. Fire and lightning streaked across the arena; Gavin watched in amazement as Shield-Splitter walked right into Karmal's exploding fireball, but the massive Ogre was only slightly blackened by the explosion; Gavin felt certain he had moved into the spell's blast on purpose.
"MINUS THREE POINTS RED!" shouted the announcer. Karmal screeched in protest. Gavin risked a glance at the score; they were still leading by four points. Their elemental barrage had added quite a few of the hounds to their tally. Sadira finished off the last of the snarling beasts within her reach with a savage double downwards chop of her twin swords. Across the arena Blue Calamity thrust his war-spear into a charred, but still crawling hound.
"NEXT ROUND!" shouted the announcer. The crowd cheered lethargically, enjoying the spectacle, but not really impressed enough to be roused into paying serious heed.
Eight shining clockwork men, made of brass and steel, clamoured out into the arena. Instead of hands, each of the brass soldiers had short sharp blades, suitable for thrusting or chopping motions. Their geared limbs moved with precise, mechanical motions as they fanned out and attacked the Gladiators.
Ravius had been researching the monsters most often seen in local matches, at Sadira's request. Thus, he knew something of the automatons used in this arena. "Use lightning and fire!" he yelled to Vintia and Karmal as they readied another volley of lethal spells.
Sadira's first strike bounced off metal skin, leaving only a dent but doing little else. Her hand numbed momentarily as her sabre sang against the metal, vibrating. With the next motion in her dance, she thrust her other blade up and under the creature's thick chest armour into its vulnerable gears. With a wrenching screech, its metal innards ground and snapped against the tougher metal of her blade, spraying black oil onto the bloody sands. The mechanical man collapsed and lay still. She took a jab from a blade while she wrenched her sword back out, before dancing away.
Gavin blocked the attacks of another metal man, but could not get a solid hit. He was not sure where they were vulnerable. He watched the brass men carefully, looking for a flaw in its movements to exploit.
Ravius tripped one with his net, sending it crashing to the ground, and with a brutal lunge, he thrust his trident into its neck under the chin. The automaton's back arched as if in pain and then it toppled back stiffly, crashing into the sand.
Across the arena, the three smaller members of the Blue team danced around their metal opponents, drawing their attention away from the massive Shield-Splitter who smashed two of them to the ground with a measured pair of strikes from his immense war-cleaver. The muscular Ogre looked around for more foes to attack, but all those who remained were out of reach.
Vintia and Karmal unleashed their lightning spells, aiming at a pair of metal men that the little defender was holding back with her shield. Electricity danced through the air, and the brass soldiers smoked and sparked as they fell to the ground, crackling. A smattering of applause rippled through the crowd.
A single brass soldier remained, standing awkwardly in the middle-ground between the two teams. It whirred and trotted slowly, appearing to have malfunctioned. Both teams raced forward. Sadira was forced to dodge around the massive Shield-Splitter as the Ogre powered in, swinging his gargantuan cleaver at the brass man's midsection.
Gavin, knowing he would never reach the clockwork man in time, put all his might behind his spear, running forward to throw it. As the weapon arced through the air Karmal shouted a word of power, and lightning crackled along its barbed point. Luck was with them and Gavin's lightning infused spear struck home, lancing into the metal man’s head, causing it to explode, just as the Ogre's huge cleaver struck, splitting the brass man in two in two.
"RED TEAM KILL!" shouted the announcer. The spectators, slightly more interested now, clapped and cheered with more vigour, although more for the impressive display of aggression than any real interest in the competition "FINAL ROUND; LET LOOSE THE RAZORFIST MAULER!" The crowd cheered.
The final creature rose slowly into the sunlight, winches moving the trap door platforms at half speed to give the crowd a good look at it before the Gladiators attacked. It was a masterpiece of the necromantic arts; a ten foot abomination made of the sewn together flesh and bone of dozens of lesser creatures, animated with powerful magic. The creature was vaguely humanoid in shape with short, stout legs, and a thick body to which runed steel plates were bolted. Three heads sat on the mauler's shoulders, comically small atop the grotesque mountain of necrotic tissue. The creature's only obvious weapons were huge saw-edged blades at the end of its broad arms, but hooks and spikes protruded from all over its terrible bulk. The sun shone off its dripping putrid skin.
Sadira sheathed her sabres, drawing Bellasdoom, her elegant greatsword. Gavin drew his short sword. He looked at the score; they were well ahead in points, but the Mauler was most definitely a high value kill. They could still lose if the Blues beat them to the killing blow.
As the chains fell off the fleshy abomination, both teams charged forward, channelling power, hefting weapons, and weaving spells. Sadira flew across the fighting grounds, barely touching the ground, verdant magic lending strength to her strides. Gavin, watching the Blue team, shouted a warning. Too late, Sadira saw a tiny form moving into her path. The Quickling! She leapt into the air. The crowd gasped as Steel Harmony's path intersected with Sadira. Something hooked her leg, sending her flying. She rolled, barely able to avoid smashing into the ground head first. Picking herself up, Sadira seethed in frustration. Part of her wanted to track Steel Harmony down and kill the little bitch, but her team needed her. She put her anger to better use instead, powering toward her goal.
"MINUS FIVE POINTS BLUE!" shouted the announcer, penalizing the Blue team for interfering with Sadira.
Gavin and Ravius kept moving toward the Mauler. The creature was swinging its massive blades at Blue Calamity. The Shadow-Elf seemed to shimmer in the darkness of the beast's own shadow, never quite where he seemed to be, avoiding the creature's attacks with ease. He whipped the creature, jabbing it with his spear, causing it to turn its attention away from his team-ma
te, Shield-Splitter. Primal magic pulsed through the massive Ogre as Sapphire Lotus channelled power into an enhancement spell on him. His overhand cleave cut a massive chunk out of the Mauler, as Gavin and Ravius slammed into it, the momentum of their charge driving the cruel points of their weapons through its steel armour. They stabbed at it in a frenzy. Gobs of putrid meat went flying, but the creature ignored their vicious assault, swiping at them relentlessly, its dead flesh oblivious to pain. Finally, it shook its ponderous bulk, sending them staggering away. Ravius was forced to roll backwards to avoid getting crushed. Gavin felt something snake around his leg and tug; he fell hard onto his back, barely able to roll out of the way as the Mauler's serrated arm-blade sank into the sand inches from his face. He thought he heard Blue Calamity snicker, but no penalty call came from the announcer.
Shield-Splitter landed his second blow as Sadira leapt onto the creature from the other side, her sword slicing deep into its meaty flank. The Ogre's muscles, swollen and distorted by the power Sapphire Lotus was pumping through him, heaved as he brought his enormous war-cleaver down in an overhand swing, cleaving one of the Mauler's arms off entirely. Vile fluids spewed. The appendage quivered on the ground, still animated by powerful magic. The crowd cheered loudly.
Karmal's fire and lightning scorched the creature, and Steel Harmony sped into her path preventing her from following up with another attack. Sadira, Gavin, and Ravius hacked, stabbed, and chopped into the Razorfist Mauler, desperately trying to land a telling blow. Sadira felt the deft touch of Blue Calamity's Whip, yanking a powerful swing of her sword to one side. Shield-Splitter roared and brought his weapon crashing down again. The magic feeding the Ogre's strength was so powerful that a blood vessel burst in his arm, spraying crimson as he recovered from the swing.
"MINUS FIVE POINTS BLUE!" yelled the announcer, struggling to be heard above the sudden din of the crowd as the Ogre struck again.
Blood, slimy flesh, embalming fluid, bone, and metal erupted as the Shield-Splitter's War-Cleaver split the Mauler mostly in half with a colossal downward swing. The crowd, brought to life by the dramatic race to destroy the Razorfist Mauler, cheered enthusiastically. Gavin and Sadira looked at each other. They had been winning in points before this round, but the Mauler was a high value creature. They held their breaths.
"RED TWENTY-SEVEN POINTS, BLUE TWENTY-FIVE. RED WINS!" shouted the announcer over the cheering. "GLADIATORS, SALUTE!"
The Red team stared daggers at their opponents as they lined up. Sadira was acutely aware that the purposeful interference of the Blues had nearly cost them the match. They drew their weapons for the crowd; she looked over at Blue Calamity, whose whip had deflected one of her attacks and at Steel Harmony, who had tripped her early on. The former looked back, impassive behind the mask, the later smiled at her sweetly."Welcome to the big leagues, loser," she heard the Quickling whisper.
"A ROUND OF APPLAUSE FOR THE BLUE TEAM, WHO GALLANTLY GAVE UP A TEAM-MEMBER IN THE NAME OF FAIRNESS!" The crowd cheered and clapped as the Blue team bowed, showing more appreciation for them than for the victorious Reds. Sadira snarled at this, while Ravius and Gavin shook their heads. Her team had trained hard and won despite interference from the Blues, but their victory felt hollow as the audience hailed the cheating Blues as heroes for fighting with one less Gladiator in the name of fairness and honour.
Chapter Eighteen: Regina's Gambit
1143/10/23 AR, Scorpion's Oasis
"The Great Games are fixed; there are a thousand ways to make sure that the wrong Gladiator never makes it far enough to become a Chosen." Oratho diKrass, Heretic.
"Gladiators are often seen as pawns in the politics of the Domains. The analogy is interesting, for like pawns in the game of chess, some Gladiators can become much greater if they make it far enough." Chosen Mazurin
A jovial Sulius ul-Cyrus met with Sadira, Gavin, Ravius, Vintia and Karma, both individually and as a team after their first match in Scorpion's Oasis. The Chief Promoter apologized profusely for his earlier manner, noting that he was under a great deal of pressure. The Reds had not won a season in the resort town for years; Regina diCouture, the Chief Promoter of the Blues, had dominated the little arena near the Oasis since her arrival. Sulius was the fifth in a long line of Red Faction promoters to match wits with her; after several seasons he had come to feel he was only allowed to keep his position because no one else wanted it.
Part of the problem was that most of the Gladiators who signed on with the Reds in Scorpion's Oasis were disinterested in the Faction's fortunes. A few were old timers, master ranked Gladiators who would fight on their own schedules, perhaps a match per season. Some were ambitious mid-rankers, who cared only for their own careers, usually fighting only in matches that they knew they could dominate. Many saw the lush surroundings and low pressure of a constantly losing team as an excuse for a good vacation before moving on to more competitive arenas. Sulius explained to his newest acquisitions that he wanted to win, and that he had been harsh because he could not afford any more fighters in his roster who would not do their best for the Faction.
"Even if you'd lost, your willingness to train so hard showed me that you are worth taking on," was the refrain that Sulius repeated to each of them. "I will give you every resource that I can provide." He was so sincere that all of them, even temperamental Karmal, accepted his apology.
Thereafter the five Gladiators found the Chief Promoter to be cheerful and helpful, showing them every courtesy and treating them with profound respect, proving to be an excellent host in every way. They quickly forgot their initial resentment of the man, especially after they began to see that his assessment of the rest of the Gladiators in their Faction was quite accurate. The rest of the Red Faction seemed rather insular and lacking in spirit. They were nearing the end of yet another losing season and morale was low. As Gavin, Sadira, and the others continued their hard training regimens on the practice grounds, they noted a distinct lack of vigour in many of their peers. The Reds seemed to shy away from the part of the training area where the Blues could see them...
-----o
For Sulius, beating the Blues in their own challenge had won the Red Faction a little extra prestige in an otherwise disastrous season. His nemesis, Chief Recruiter Regina diCouture of the Blues, had managed to steal a little of his fire with her "four, in the name of honour" stunt, but his team had won nonetheless. Taking a gamble on the new Gladiators had worked out well, so far. With a few more matches like that, he would not have to face the usual humiliation of having Regina's Blues triple his Reds in the points when the season ended. It would be the first time in five years... Sadira and her team had agreed to fight again in the last challenge of the season in six weeks, which allowed them time to rest and train. Sulius had known that Sadira was one of the best talents the Reds had seen in years. Offering her an early entry into the Faction games, and including her friends had been the only way to lure her to his arena. Even so, he had been surprised that she had chosen Scorpion's Oasis. If she wanted to make her way to Brightsand Halls Arena, there were better options than here. He wondered if the machinations of the Chosen had helped bring this rising star to his side. Probably he would never know...
To his supreme satisfaction, the other four Gladiators on her team appeared to show real potential. They reacted well to his earlier pressures. They had pride. He sensed their potential. He could make a real star out of the fiery red-head and the others were excellent support material. He hoped bringing them into the high pressure Faction Games this early in their careers would not ruin them. Over the next few days, he gave them a great deal of thought. Part of a Chief Promoter's job is to make sure that all Gladiators working for the Faction reach their potential. It also helped take his mind off yet another losing season. Would giving them more responsibility bring them together? He would not pressure them too hard, certainly not for a meaningless victory this season. He could allow them to make their own challenge; it would give them a chance to establi
sh a strategy for next season and get a better feel for the Faction challenge system. It seemed like a good idea to him.
He continued working, absently dreaming of the astonished look that would appear on Regina's haughty, exquisite Elfin face if the Reds ever managed to beat the Blues in Scorpion's Oasis over a full season.
-----o
"A single-team trial survival match with standard additions from Marius and Southshire..." Sadira said. She was slowly, painfully gaining proficiency with the complex Faction rules, with assistance from Gavin and Vintia. "Are we all agreed? I need to get this revision to Sulius and the Arena Master today."
"I'm sorry... can you repeat what the additions mean?" asked Ravius, frowning. He had been too busy scouting the Blues to see what kind of Gladiators they might face to have learned much about the complex process of making challenges. "I want to make sure I understand."
Sadira tried not to sound frustrated as she went over it again. "Marius's additions double the loss of points for any team member unable to stand at the end of the match. This makes defence even more important. If the Blues let anyone tap out, this rule will make them pay a rather hefty penalty, enough to guarantee a victory for us. We included this addition because you, Ravius, haves told us that they don't field many defenders and we have Vintia and Gavin." The two defenders smiled. Sadira continued. "The Southshire rules add points for monster kills with a maximum equal to your survival score. This addition will encourage the Blues to attack hard, which might get some of them in trouble. Also with Karmal and Vintia casting strong spells and my fighting skills, we should be able to keep close to this points cap even though we aren't all attackers. Overall, with our Defenders and Ravius backing everyone up we should be able to last a long time without anyone dropping, and rack up enough kills to max out our score. The Blues will have to field a really well-balanced team to even come close." Sadira exhaled emphatically; she was tired of talking. Faction challenges seemed needlessly complex to her, as if designed to foil the novice on purpose. Gavin had told her the intricacies came from centuries of accumulated rules and rulings.
Bloodlust: A Gladiator's Tale Page 28
