Strolling out the double doors onto the sands a few hours later, Zahn smirked at his new spell notification one last time before dismissing it. His last fight, futile as it was against four spears, had finally unlocked a spell change that he’d been waiting for. Pushing his opponents as far back as he could with a wide Shift, he’d thrown spell after spell like he was a warm-up pitcher until the little oblong red and orange wad morphed into something sleek, sharp, and able to punch a hole in a body. The body in question was his last kill, when his new Fire Bolt spell punched into the tall boy’s face and sent him to the ground before his teammates could turn Zahn into a Custom kebab.

Through repeated use, your Spell has changed form!

You have unlocked: Fire Bolt!

Fire Bolt

Spell

Level: One

Tier: Basic

Effect 1:Solid flames shaped into a missile, the spike can travel up to twenty meters before losing its integrity. When cast, Fire Bolt travels under its own power to the target in a straight line, impact discharging any remaining heat into the designated target.

Effect 2: 10% chance to inflict status Burn.

Effect 3: 10% chance to pierce through target armor value below 100.

The new spell sat happily over his palm, looking like a fat needle nearly the size of his dagger’s handle. Zahn had practiced casting the spell the moment he’d returned, and found he could cast the spell in one hand then transfer it to the other. He needed to keep feeding the thing mana to keep it alive, watching the spell with Mana Sight showed him how quickly it burned away the energy but his recent practice moving low-tier magic through his body was helpful. Now, he walked casually over the sands as he listened to the bulk of the Gladiators yelling curses and laughter at each other during their stage construction, lightly bouncing his new toy in his off-hand.

The fighters he faced were apparently forced to contribute to the labor while he respawned, if their gear was any indication. Instead of confident and successful teammates facing down their Player opponent for the last time that day, a small group of dirty and tired fighters glared sullenly at the wretch approaching. The chubby kid he’d trounced before looked the worst, laying flat on his back and sucking wind while staring at the sky.

Burnato stepped in, imposing himself on Zahn’s walk with a snarl. “Cut the shit. No spells cast before the match, I already told you. And stop boosting yourself with magic you fucking-!”

Two shuddered into view, laying an arm over the bigger hulk’s shoulders. “Now now, that one’s not a rule. From what I’ve seen, it looks like our level four here has been using some kind of Physical Enforcement before each fight. Has to be why he can kill another fighter fifteen levels higher than himself, no?”

The fifth position growled as he threw the higher-rank’s arm off, “He’s not supposed to be casting fucking spells at all! This is the Collisae, not a fucking college!”

The sneak smirked, nodding at Zahn. “Just try and tell that to One. Ditch the Bolt, little Z. You can always summon it again in a minute.”

Zahn grinned right back, enjoying the exchange between his bully and friend. “No problem Two, never even intended to use it.” Dropping his focus on maintaining the magic, he felt the little entity over his hand shrink in on itself until the structure holding it together lost too much energy and collapsed. Brushing the spent Fire mana off his hands, the Player idly watched the dark red mana flakes dissolve into nothing before turning back to his stroll. “Last fight today, yeah? Think they’ll be done with the stage by the time I get back?”

Two smiled as he faded away, his too-white teeth lingering last. “Likely. Just focus on your fight.”

Nodding at the empty space over Burnato’s shoulder, Zahn ignored the man as he stepped around the bulk and crossed the remaining space to his circle. The stage’s construction took up most of the arena’s grounds, leaving their fight next to one of the completed sections edging right against their barrier border. Stopping at the sunk stone circle, the Player smiled as he eyed the five ready to face him again. The faces looking back ranged from despondent to downright cantankerous, without even a single set of eyes happy to see him.

For a moment he considered changing his plans, perhaps surprising the group with another burst of fire or mental assault. Death after death he’d been opening with a huge spell first, even if he hadn’t found which combination was the best for this match-up. Shaking his head, Zahn dismissed the daydreams of making flames so much hotter or a psychic attack that might be able to cripple a target and simply crossed the rocks.

The team jumped into action, the nearest lad barking out something in surprise as he tried to leap upright and wobbled to catch his balance. The other members similarly startled, moving as quickly as they could to try and counter attack against whatever was coming.

The result almost made Zahn laugh out loud as he continued his easy stroll, crossing the dozen steps to stand in the direct middle of the ring before planting his hands on his hips. Looking around at the teens surrounding him, he cracked another smile before he could begin his banter. “Well? Just going to stand there?”

The five exchanged looks, their flimsy Party Chat vibrating with beads of dark purple light as they tried to plan. With four spears, a net, and a longsword ready to strike him down Zahn found it harder and harder to keep his face straight while the quintet panicked silently.

“Hello~o? We have started, yes?”

His mocking finally drew a reaction, with the spearmen in front of him snarling and moving forward together. He tensed as they neared, trying to keep perfectly still with arms splayed and his best uncaring smile on his lips. Come on, I’m not even gonna fight you. Just give me the rush. He flinched as a weapon punched into his back, making him stagger and drop his silly pose.

-95 Health. ??? used Stab!

You are bleeding!

Blinking the popups away, Zahn managed another half grin at his attackers. “Seriously, I’m not even moving and you can’t manage a one-shot? Come on, I know you’re tired but-”

The group struck again, stabbing his torso from all sides as they deemed his death imminent.

Zahn woke up with a stretch, miming yawning as if he’d had a nice nap. Fucking stingy death, at least give me a taste. Lacking his glorious feedback, the Player opened his eyes to see a rather cross Warlock glaring at him from the opposing couch. The chef seemed to have been waiting patiently, if the bubbling stew nearby was any indicator.

“Mornin’.”

“What the fuck was that?” Ethan jumped to his feet, gesturing wildly. “I mean, what was that? What the hell dude, have you lost your damned mind?” The summoner’s little minion ambled into the room, its bright eyes flickering between the Players. “What the fucking hell do you have to say for yourself?!”

Iengoris jumped up onto a seat, head turning as the vessel scanned the room. “Sounds exciting. This why you’ve been in a mood?”

Zahn ignored the imp and tried to brush Ethan off. “It’s nothing. Just wanted to skip the last fight is all, and now I’m down to three. If those jerks think they can milk the other half level out of three off me, they can suck-”

“Shut up.” The blond pointed an accusing finger, staring angrily at the Custom. “Why the hell would you go out there and just fucking kill yourself? We have to take these fights seriously, and you’re out there just being a worthless jackass!”

“It’s not that!” His excuses seemed made of vapor, for how little he moved the ‘lock. “I was just sick of it, even if I can shove them all around the field they just swap out to polearms and leave me like a hog in a hunt. Not interested in that role, thank you.”

The imp’s ears flopped as it twisted its head from one to the other. “Uh-oh.”

Ethan turned his glare onto his minion, “What. What, for the love of fucking god you little monster. Just speak, damn you.”

“He’s already caught it,” small demonic shoulders bobbed in a shrug. “Just as soon as he learns about it, and he’s already hip-deep in the addiction. He left his Rank-up reward in his deaths, and now he wants it again.”

Ethan slowed down, his arms raising for another shout slowly sinking back to his sides. “What? No. That’s not… Is that even a thing?” He looked over at Zahn with wide eyes and a furrowed brow, “You’re not, are you?”

“Why not?” Iengoris shrugged again, hopping up from his seat to pace the top of the couch. “We’re all just energy, minds included. You carry over certain effects between lives, I know at least half of our buffs are time-based and don’t give a rat’s ass how many rebirths they persist through. It’s just a shame he’s already hooked on it.”

Zahn stood, feeling his temper pulse under his skin. “Can you two stop talking about me like I’m not even here? You’re getting mighty fuckin’ annoying.”

Ethan scoffed, giving Zahn a dark look over his shoulder as he copied his minion’s pacing. “You’re not. Sorry, I don’t count the opinions of the fucking suicidal. Even if it wasn’t sheer goddamn cowardice.”

A jolt of cold ran down Zahn’s back, like he’d shot a spell from nape to tailbone. He felt his neck tighten, even as his vision started to blur. “That’s not what that is,” his voice rasped out barely louder than a whisper. “Don’t you dare talk about that. Don’t you dare insult them. You don’t know anything.”

“Yeah?!” The blond spun, raising a finger in Zahn’s face, “You don’t get to tell me what I can and can’t say! You’re not immortal, asshole! Everyone here already knows you’re a Player, and the second a Priest shows up he’s gonna turn your little kill-myself stunt into-!”

Zahn blinked and found himself standing far too close, gripping the offending finger like a vise. A low growling rumbled out, as if falling rocks had learned to speak. “I. Said. Don’t.” The room shook as he fought to stay in control, the pounding blood in his ears echoing around the room. He could feel the other man’s pulse under his grip, the tiny thudding growing faster and faster as he tried to stay focused on the moment. The world around him faded, falling to darkness that encroached from the sides to blacken his vision. Memories of old friends and lost love threatened to break in, and he squeezed his anchor to the present with all the strength he could. “Don’t.”

What felt like eternity passed as he swayed, the rippling climbing his body higher with each heartbeat until it crested his skull. The rhythm threatened to sweep Zahn away, to drag him back into his past and wrest control away from his body. Silence was filled only with the drums pounding in his ears, the endless march that tried to bury him under its weight.

From an impossible distance, a tiny voice made itself heard. Like sandpaper against glass, its coarseness acted as another desperate lead he could follow back to the present. “If you could release my Master? I really should be attacking you already, but I never liked that finger either.”

Zahn blinked hard, trying to drive the darkness away. As light returned, Ethan’s red face took up the center as the powerful Warlock tried to free his broken finger. Tears hung in the blond’s eyes, reflecting the cold wet trails on the other Player’s cheeks. Taking in a shuddering breath, Zahn forced his fingers open and watched Ethan scuttle backwards cradling his wounded hand. Trying to move felt like his body was welded iron, with each joint fixed and rigid. “Sorry.”

The Warlock continued to scowl, nursing his digit from the other side of the Hearth. “It doesn’t matter. You’re not going back out there until tomorrow.” He crossed the room, never turning away from Zahn as he circled around the furniture. “You can serve your fucking self. Don’t sleep in.”

Zahn’s eyes followed him as he slunk into his room and slammed the door, leaving the imp for company. He looked steadily at the little beast, it's too-steady gaze boring into him right back.

“Nice trick, level three. See if you can’t do it tomorrow too, eh? You’re fighting him after the two of you pair up for some Fodder.”

Crossing the threshold onto the sands felt like stepping into an oven, packed with screaming noise and blistering lights. Keeping pace with his partner, Zahn stepped quickly and silently thanked his recent determination to actually run in the mornings. Ethan had been sparse with his new information that morning, even as the hours ticked by and both Players’ agitation grew at the wait. When dawn had crested through their small windows, the sounds of bodies moving and idle chatter began and grew above until the former silence of the sands were a distant memory. Jogging and high-stepping alongside his grumpy teammate during their lap, Zahn tried not to stare up and around at the thousands of people packed on the stands, even as they roared mass approval at the Gladiators.

He found they followed a set path, tracing the steps of the group before them as eight sets of fighters made their way in a complete circuit before stopping next to their smaller fighting rings. The central wooden stage already bore the top five, each of the numbered Gladiators posing and beckoning at the masses for more adoration while the endless voices rang out in fervor. Zahn fought to avoid shading his eyes, the sudden need to look up into the crowd exposing him to the bright sunlight as if he’d spent days in darkness. Squinting against the sky, he found his eyes tracing the double metal doors hiding the Ringmaster’s quarters even as the portly man appeared above them on his balcony.

“Hear me, good people!” The crimson manager’s voice echoed and vibrated the air as the magic boosting him did its work. “And welcome. Welcome! I bid you welcome, here to my very own Collisae. Are you ready for a fight?!” The screaming crowd roared back, a senseless mass of noise that could only mean thirst for blood. “I said, are. You. Ready?!” Again the crowd went off, the chaotic noise singing in Zahn’s veins as he fought the urge to join in. “This very morn, we have amazing news for you all! Two complete teams have joined our ranks, and this day shall be their bloody debut! New blood! New life! New deaths!”

The roar shook the sands, making the ground feel unstable even as the gates holding back Fodder creaked open. Zahn eyed the moving doors to the left, trying to keep his circle between himself and the monsters as a stream of beasts left their pens. The animals seemed to be obeying a command as they filed up onto the grand stage, keeping to the edges as they spread out until a silent command was given and the doors began to close. He could feel the brief vibration behind his ear, but wasn’t able to tell more than it went off before the next surprise started.

The beast nearest to their ring turned and leapt, nearly diving straight at him as it jumped from the stage into the center of their ring and shook itself. Ethan stepped forward silently, holding a sword out flat and flicking his head at the trailing Zahn to follow. The monster they faced looked like a wolf shortened to hunch it's back, displaying prominent spikes not unlike a hedgehog’s. The combination of animals and size made him think the thing to be a man-eater, and its wide fanged jaws only served to reinforce the idea. Staring at the thing with his mana vision active, he could see what looked like a ring version of his mind-halting purple orb within the animal’s head shrink and weaken with each passing second.

Before he could choose a plan of attack, the dreadful voice rang out magically again. “Behold, your first round! Nine teams have been chosen to start, with your own beloved First Five taking center stage! I give to you, the Blood Games! We cannot wait to begin, and show you all the wonderful progress our brave fighters have made since you saw them last! Can I hear your answer?!”

The senseless roars began again, rising and falling together as the endless masses did the strangest thing Zahn could think of at the moment - and rose in song.

“Take, me out to the Blood Games! Get, some gore on the crowd!

Get me some cockroach-and-cracker snacks, I, don’t care if we ever come back!

So let’s root, root root for the Play~ers, if they, don’t die it’s a shame!

‘Cause it’s one, two, three hits you’re dead at the grand, Blood, Games!”

The macabre tune made Zahn’s blood pound, his heart hammering in his ears as he heard the mass blessing go out. He saw a glint of purple to his right and tried not to stare, grabbing the contact by mental feel. They love us! He shared with Ethan, pushing the thoughts towards him like beads down a string. He could feel the other Player’s agitation like a fuzzy vibration, or rubbing his cheek against something with spiky fur in reply.

I never let you join my Party Chat? Cut the shit. Even with his anger coloring the message, Ethan’s voice still sounded the same as out loud. And leave my thoughts alone! Deny. Reject. Disconnect! Augh, I hate you. Turn it off!

Grinning wide, Zahn let the connection drop as he refocused on his new opponent. The spike-dog still sat hunched in the middle, its spines longer than his arm and rattling lightly as it breathed in and out. He had a moment to consider if the thing knew it was living its last before he blinked and saw the little ring vanish - waking the thing up. Its eyes snapped open, showing bright red circles for irises as its head whipped around to witness Ethan’s opening strike.

The beast hissed, its voice hoarse as it spun and planted its clawed feet to ward off the attack. As it spun away from Zahn, its huge spikes stood up like cat’s hair making a veritable bush of spears that drove the lowbie back against the curved barrier. Sucking in his breath to gripe, the Player paused and cocked an eyebrow at his own idiocy before charging his throat with mana and taking a deeper breath. Ethan swung and sliced at its face, making the monster jump to the side and swing its own claws in return. The side angle was enough for Zahn to aim at the head rather than the flank and he let loose the thinnest stream of fire he could out his face.

Spewing his Fire Breath spell as a ribbon was hard, like trying to breathe out through a thin straw as the tube shook and jumped. Holding the attack caused a wondrous reaction, with the beast yelped and hissed flailing and failing to escape their confined dueling pitch. The constant noise changed as it faded, from the random and constant shouts and screams into the crackling roar of his fire spell as it launched out of his mouth. His body demanded air, twisting his aim as his thudding heartbeat reverberated through his depleting lungs making his entire chest shake. He lost sight of their prey, with his vision darkening from the edges while he caught a glimpse of Ethan swinging his weapon and moving in.

Finally dropping to a knee, Zahn spat the spell remains off his tongue before sucking in a deep, clean breath of cold air. The rush of relief spread, making his head pound as new oxygen filled his brain’s needs and showed the Player his new body still took its pound of pain for his abuse. Finding himself on his hands and knees, Zahn leaned back to sit on his heels while he tried to find the monster and witnessed Ethan performing his finisher on the prone beast. Its entire right side smoldered, thick barbed spines blackened and cracked apart over its charred back leg. The thing didn’t even fight back as the Warlock sunk his sword into its neck and finished off the beast, laying near helpless after their opening moves.

He stared longer than he probably should have, as his partner paused in the execution to give him a disturbed stare and shook his head. Blinking in reply, he found the other’s mind surprisingly open as motes of purple light danced between them. What the hell was that? Good job, asshole, now everyone’s looking at us. Stand up. Stand. Stand, Zahn!

He dumbly nodded at the repeating instructions, wobbling to his feet as sound trickled back into his consciousness. The roar of the crowd was deafening, making the same sets of two sounds over and over as they shouted something and bellowed their approval. He could see little objects raining down, smaller than his hand as they sailed through the air and mostly landed on the raised wooden stage above him.

“-special skills with the element of Fire, here for your entertainment!” The wretched voice of the Ringmaster returned, seemingly fighting the crowd to be heard even with his magical echo. “As you all know, our proud fighting school has never hosted a Mage class before, and our newest addition only goes to show why - no mere beast can dare to face such living flames! Give it up, for Fire Zahn!” The blatantly false cheer in the red robe’s voice never reached the crowd, as the reply of roars and cheers hit him like a physical wave.

He tried to give the adoring crowd a smile and wave, to be rudely caught by the other Player’s rising hand. Ethan raised their gripped fists together, inciting another wave of shouting cheers that nearly deafened him. The blond fighter’s voice pulsed in Zahn’s mind, drowning out the other noise as he berated his teammate.

Good. Fucking. Job. We aren’t supposed to stand out, dumbass, and certainly not this early. We finished our Fodder first, which just means they’re all watching.

Isn’t that a good thing? Zahn couldn’t find the issue currently crawling its way up Ethan’s ass, but he wasn’t about to let the other Player dump on his parade. Isn’t that the whole reason we’re out here, fighting in the public match?

Gods, you’re an idiot. He could almost hear the sigh from the other man, even while he tried to pull his mitt free. No, we’re here to make the Five look good. Now, we have to join the versus fights. Start walking, we’re due up on stage before the next event. Fuck I hate you sometimes.