章 14: The day of the battle Part 1
The training continued for hours without rest. By the time the three days were up both Tia and Eva were passed out from exhaustion. When they weren't training with Tempus, they were forced to their normal lessons and school life, with only the late nights to catch up on food and sleep. And with very little time remaining the three of them moved to the location of the arena.
"I see you didn't cower away, Mr Tempus. Although with wounds like that, I don't think you'll have a chance." Beck waited outside the back entrance to the arena for them to show up. The arena was packed with students who had heard that their headmaster was taking part in a fight and couldn't contain their cheering that shook the large stadium.
"It was just a little extreme training, that's all. Why choose this place to do the battle?" Tempus asked.
"Although it is far from the academy I didn't want the barrier to interfere with your magic. I would like to fight fair and square."
The arena sat on the outskirts of the town. Far larger than any training arena Tia was used to. It was common for various events to be held at this stadium, but with over 100,000 seats it was never filled, until today.
"I'm going to go and take my seat. Good luck." Eva held Tia close. She hugged her tightly unable to let go. As her friend, she worried that they wouldn't win and that Ren would end up taking her life. "You'll do fine..."
"Look after her, Tempus." She added.
"Don't worry. You can count on me."
Eva ran into the stadium and joined the crowds which were protected by multiple layers of reinforced glass.
"Follow me, you two. We still have a few minutes until the start so you can wait in the starting area."
They followed closely behind Beck. The faint sounds of cheering leaked through the walls as they travelled towards the waiting area.
Inside the waiting area, Ren stood in front of a sandbag unleashing thousands of punches on it within seconds.
"Oh, I see," Tempus said. "This place is like a little arena where we can get changed and warm up if we have to. What a neat idea."
"This place is used for more than just battles. All sorts of sports are played here and viewed by 10s of thousands." Beck replied.
"Oi!" Ren shouted. "So you didn't run away, huh?" Ren shoved his face at Tia, staring her down. Tia attempted to stand strong and stared back. But Ren moved as close as he could until there was only a hairs distance between them.
"Stop it, Ren." Beck's call caused Ren to retreat, resting on a bench before the start of the match.
"I see you've got your minion under control," Tempus said
"WHO ARE YOU CALLING MINION!" Ren screamed attempting to attack Tempus, only to be stopped by Beck.
"I could say the same thing to you? Do your words from three days ago still hold up?" Beck asked.
"Of course!" Tempus replied. "Tia will take both of you on. I shall watch from the back and do nothing."
"I look forward to it," Beck said with a grin mounted on his face.
"Shall we go over the rules?" Tempus asked, double-checking that there was nothing suspicious about this event.
"Allow me to explain. Since we challenged you, you will be able to pick what type of arena you want. Other than that, anything goes. You can use whatever magic you wish to take out your opponent."
"What about killing?"
"Sometimes you have to. Should someone get injured to that state, we have expert medics on the side ready to heal any major wounds."
Beck spoke with every answer prepared. Tempus listened to his words and watched how he acted during each syllable. From his subtle hand movements to how his tongue rolled around his words.
"Now, if you excuse me. We have 2 minutes left. Let me know what arena you wish. I shall be getting ready over there."
Beck strolled away and took Ren with him. The two of them sat far away, discussing their plan. Tempus and Tia sat at the opposite end, hoping they wouldn't be able to hear anything.
"He's lying," Tempus whispered to Tia.
"W-what?"
"The medics. There are none. He plans to kill us."
"H-how do you know?"
"I have a hunch…"
Tempus and Tia continued to discuss what arena they planned to battle on. At the last minute, Tia's face turned pale and her anxiety piled up on her. This was expected. The big moment was finally here. Her whole life was riding on this moment.
Tempus attempted to calm her down, aware of the limited time they had. Reinforcing her of their perfectly crafted plan.
# # #
The arena was filled with cheers that shook the seats no one used. Thousands of people gathered to watch the event as the arena reached max capacity, and people young and old of all different races cheered on for the people they wanted to win. With almost all of them cheering for Beck. The elites were placing bets from their high seats, eagerly awaiting the beat-down they expected Beck to deliver.
"Did you decide on the theme?" Beck shouted across the arena to Tempus. The glass wasn't just there to protect others, it also helped reduce the sounds from the crowds.
"Mountains!" Tempus shouted back.
The floor of the arena sank in various places, the ground morphed into rocky cliff faces of various sizes. Each team started in one of the many holes and had to climb out as soon as they heard the starting bell. Some of the mountains weren't easy to climb, there were large amounts of crumbling faces and only a few paths down at the bottom.
"Are you ready, Tia?" Tempus said. "Remember the plan. Everything will be ok. Trust me."
RIIIIIIIIINNNNNNNNG!
A large bell echoed throughout the stadium, and cheering from the sides became more energetic with food and drinks being thrown about.
The match began and within seconds, Tempus grabbed hold of Tia and jumped out of the hole they were in. They rested on the highest cliffside that was around them. Looking to see if they could find Beck and Ren. But he was yet to find them.
"Ok… here we go…" Tempus said as he stepped back. "I'll be over here if you need me. Trust me. In these three days, you have surpassed all of my expectations. Everything you have done has blown me away. I believe you can take them both on."
Tia jumped away from Tempus and prepared herself to take both of them on. She looked back to Tempus who began casting a spell, one similar to the one that caused her lots of issues during training.
Two Ice wolves rose from the ground and circled Tempus as he sat in the centre looking up to the sky.
The crowd was uneasy about Tempus's magic, shouting at him, calling him lazy to make others fight for him. The people on the side began hitting the glass that protected them. The noise was getting through enough to disturb Tempus who wanted to enjoy some relaxation after three days of endless training. He was an outsider in this situation, no one knew who he was. He was just someone who dared to shake up the academy.
He stood back up and looked at the crowd around him that painted the glass with their food. One stare was enough to shut them up. The pressure he admitted silenced the whole arena like a gust of wind had taken away their oxygen. The audience was silenced by Tempus but they quickly continued cheering once their hearts learnt they were safe.
Eva watched from her seat amongst the rowdy cheerers. Worried for her friend, praying that Tempus will do everything he can to keep Tia alive.
The match continued with Beck and Ren revealing themselves from the hole. They saw Tempus sitting across the rocky terrain and Tia who was approaching carefully. However, both teams had noticed each other.
They looked at their opponents and Ren charged ahead into Tia, knocking her away with a single punch before she could put up any defensive magic.
"GOT YA!" Ren screamed as Tia was knocked back towards Tempus, saved by one of the ice wolves that caught her with its soft fur coat.
The cheers never stopped, not even for a second. This was a sport to most and they would always enjoy it, even if it ended in death. They continued to cheer for Beck and Ren. all of them unaware that the true battle was yet to begin.
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