4.18

“Well folks, I’ve just been told that I forgot to count to ten in the last match. I got so caught up in the excitement of it all that it completely slipped my mind. That means that the previous match didn’t count and so it goes as one victory for the Circle of Shepherds.” The announcer’s usual energy of unbridled enthusiasm was toned right down. The crowd jeered and groaned.

One of the elephants approached the announcer. This one looked the oldest of the group. With a set of large tusks, one had been broken in half. It talked to the announcer with the microphone still on.

“Are you sure?” said the announcer. His responses could be clearly heard. “Let me just confer with my boss. I’m sorry this happened. Right. Yep. He says there’s no need because they could clearly tell she couldn’t fight anymore. They don’t feel cheated. Once again I’m so sorry.” The elephant walked into the centre of the slate and waited for his opponent.

“The last match did count, a victory for the Iron Fangs. I’m sorry folks, that was completely my fault. We’ll be going ahead with the third match as normal. The winner of this match will determine the victor between the Circle of Shepherds and the Iron Fangs. I’ve enjoyed these matches so far; they’ve been top notch. I hope all of you have.” The embarrassment had left his voice and he was back to his over-the-top energy. The stadium burst into life with cheers, and everything was back on.

The third member for the Iron Fangs stepped up onto the slate. She wore a tee shirt and pants but no shoes. Her hair was tied back in a low ponytail, and she carried a confident air that everybody could feel.

“Who do you think will win?” asked Silas.

“I’m gonna say the elephants,” said Freja.

“The Iron Fangs,” said Jimena.

“I really don’t know,” said Hunter. “It’s really anyone’s game.”

“You can’t just sit on the fence like that, it defeats the point of trying to guess a winner,” said Silas.

“Fine, I think the Circle of Shepherds.”

“Why?” asked Jimena. Hunter was about to snap a response, but he noticed they were all smiling at him. He stuck his tongue out and approached the edge of the mezzanine so he could get a better look.

“I won’t make the same mistake my sister did,” said the elephant. “She still has much to learn. She underestimates her opponents too quickly, giving her a false sense of confidence, clouding her judgement.”

“I’ll give it my best. You’re all pretty intimidating, that’s for sure.”

“The final match between the Circle of Shepherds and Iron Fangs. Hold onto your seats folks, because this is gonna be exciting, I can feel it. Ready? Go!”

The two fighters waited a moment, assessing each other. The fighter for the Iron Fangs rose up from the slate and hovered a few inches above the ring. The elephant stood there, waiting.

The woman sped toward the elephant; the monk stood there, still as a statue. She came in fast, her foot ready to connect. The elephant shifted and the woman quickly faltered on her path and whipped away from her opponent. A look of doubt had taken over her face, the elephant remained still.

“What’s going on?” Silas asked.

“She sensed what her opponent was capable of and quickly reassessed her tactics, changing them.” It was Tatsuta.

“You’re back?” asked Freja.

“My own team can annoy me sometimes, so I choose to stand with others and watch the fights. Giving advice where I can.”

“Even to your opponents?” Hunter asked.

“Why not? If I can help them improve, it means our fight will be even better. Keep watching, you don’t want to miss this action.”

The woman now floated higher in the air, maybe twenty feet. She slowly sailed through the air, assessing her opponent. If the elephant was able to make any ranged attacks, he refused to do so. He stood in his starting position, not having moved at all.

“She’s intimidated by him,” said Tatsuta.

“How can you tell?” asked Jimena.

“When you’ve fought as much as I have, you get a sense of other people’s fighting spirits. At the start, hers was burning like blue-hot fire. His was almost unreadable. However, hers as become cracked and his is subtle, but there.”

The fighter for the Iron Fangs calmed herself down with some breathing and then raised her arms. The elephant looked a little surprised as his body slowly rose from the slate. The look of surprise quickly returned to calm reserve.

“I don’t like doing this part, it takes up a lot of my energy,” said the woman. “But I manipulate gravity in a small space. I have complete control on what moves and where. Though the more I move, the faster I tire out. Its time to finish this.”

“Very clever. Very useful power. Its clear to me I can’t move myself, it’ll be interesting to see what you do to me.”

“I’ll do my best.” The Iron Fang rushed at her opponent. The elephant braced himself but was suddenly whipped to the side. She followed the elephant and managed to land a heavy kick into the side of his head.

“Ouch, that looked like it hurt,” said Silas.

“So it’s a battle of attrition. If she can knock him out, or if her strength fades using her power,” said Hunter.

“Why doesn’t she just force him out of the ring?” asked Freja.

“She sees no honour in that,” said Tatsuta.

“Well played,” said the elephant.

The Iron Fang divebombed toward her opponent. The elephant was jerked upward. The Iron Fang snapped up and landed a powerful punch into the elephant’s back. He dropped back down and landed on the slate, cracking the fighting ring.

The monk picked himself up and closed his eyes. He breathed deeply and his ears twitched.

The woman flew in fast and as she went to hit him, she sent him flying back. She pursued with immense speed and quickly circled around him, determined to strike him from behind.

The elephant turned; his eyes still closed. He grabbed her by the wrists, pulled her over the top of his body and threw her into the slate below. The floor cracked again. The elephant dropped to the slate and approached his opponent.

“You fought well. Now count.”

“Oh, right.” The announcer counted to ten and the match was decided. “The winner of the third match is the Circle of Shepherds. That means the Iron Fangs is the first team to be eliminated.” The crowd cheered and stomped their feet.