Ember and Mirror

The Gates of the Arena spread open.

Rikushi, cloak fluttering, stepped forward with purpose. Valentine, cracking his knuckles. Glonk, stoic as ever. And Blaidd, his icy aura trailing behind like frost in summer heat.

As they walked toward the battlefield, Rikushi spoke loud and clear.
"Valentine, Glonk--you're on the front. Keep pressure high. I'll move mid-range. Blaidd, watch our backs. If they slip past us... make them regret it."

Across the field, the Iustitia Clan emerged. Reiku, smug and seductive as always. Davie, silent and calculating. Rumoto, spinning his ice-infused battle axe with a grin. And Rez... red eyes glinting, arms folded like a king.

Reiku issued her plan--Davie and Rumoto in the front, herself mid-offense, Rez to support.

Rez cut her off. "No. I'm going for Rikushi."
Reiku sighed. "Then don't mess this up for us."

The horn sounded.

And battle broke loose.

Valentine lunged at Davie, fists swinging with a fury only family could fuel. Davie, caught off guard by the sheer speed, stumbled back and switched to his rifle, unleashing a hail of bullets. But Valentine struck the ground, kicking up a storm of sand, vanishing into a dust cloud. Muffled grunts and metal echoes followed.

Rumoto charged Glonk, his axe roaring with cold energy. The blade came crashing down--

Clang!

Glonk didn't flinch. The axe bounced off his shoulder like a pebble on steel.

"...What?" Rumoto breathed.

Then Glonk moved. One clean uppercut. Boom--Rumoto flipped midair, landed with a crack, and didn't move again.

On the other side of the chaos, Rez met Rikushi.

"You've gotten soft," Rez taunted, his fingertips shimmering with Mirror Magic.

"I don't even know who you are" Rikushi responded. He conjured a fireball and hurled it.

Rez smirked, catching it with a mirror shield, spinning it midair, and redirecting it with amplified heat.

Boom! The spell scorched a crater into the far wall. Rikushi dodged, sliding across the sand, singed but alive.

He pulled out his rifle artifact, locking a glowing Fire-infused bullet into the chamber.
Bang!
The round pierced Rez's shoulder, sparks exploding from the impact.

Rez dropped midair, gasping. His gems flickered and fell to the ground.

Rikushi chambered the second shot--Rock.
Bang!
The sand beneath Rez's feet exploded, pinning his legs under rock and soil. Blood now seeped from shoulder to thigh.

"You... bastard," Rez growled.

His eyes turned black.
Veins bulged.
Rage Mode.

Rez conjured a jagged blood spear and hurled it like lightning. It pierced Rikushi's left hand, pinning it to the ground.
Rikushi screamed in agony.

Then Rez grinned, extending his palm. The blood in Rikushi's hand began to ripple... then flow backwards--into Rez's gems.

Rikushi writhed in agony, the pain searing, soul-deep.

But before Rez could savor his kill--

Two silver flashes.

Blaidd appeared behind him.

"Die cold."

With one fluid motion, Blaidd plunged both ice-daggers into Rez's neck, twisting as frost erupted from the wounds.

Rez gasped, choked, and dropped.

Dead.

Silence fell.

Reiku dropped her pistols. "I surrender."

Davie raised his hands. "So do I."

The arena erupted in a roar.

Victory for Team 1.

Rez is resurrected by the clerics and brought to the hospital.

Rikushi and the rest head back to the locker room to prepare for their final fight for 1st place and to watch the other fight.

Rikushi peeks at his fist, clenching it, remembering the pain and savoring the victory.

But in the shadows of that win, a storm brewed.

Because if this was the level of power wielded by just one team... then the deeper rounds of the Arena Games would demand more than just strength and speed.

They'd demand blood.