18. Ohara

I'd seen many fights during my ten years, but I'd never set foot in the pit. I liked to bet on the winner and had pretty good success.

I was in the first round of the contest and paired with one of the easier opponents. He was a young sleejak from the outer rim. His arms and legs were tattooed with ancient symbols that no one but the sleejak could understand.

He pressed his fist into his palm and bowed his head respectfully. But that respect would end the moment we came to blows. The sleejak were known for their agility, moderate strength, and incredible speed.

After his motion of respect, he performed a short pattern by fighting an invisible opponent, designed to warm up his body and muscles while at the same time demoralizing his opponent.

But it wasn't going to work. I had too much to fight for.

I didn't look up at the Prize Pool. To see Lily there, watching from behind her prison bars, would have made me angry, and I needed to maintain my calm. Still, I thought I felt her eyes on me.

If I didn't win, the fate that awaited her would make the one from last night seem like playtime.

I filtered out the sounds from the audience and focused on my opponent. He wore light armor like me and no helmet. He didn't need anything to slow him down, so I assumed he would attack first, and attack fast.

I met him in the middle of the pit. I didn't want to reveal my ability — not yet — and maybe, if I was very lucky, I wouldn't need to reveal it at all… But I would have to play it by horn and see how things panned out.

The young sleejak looked me over and shrugged his shoulders. "You're the one everyone's talking about?" he said. "Who took down the Champ last night?"

I just looked at him and gave no response.

"You don't look so tough," he said. "This time, you won't get the jump on nobody. It's just you and me, fair and square."

Fair and square…

I hopped on the spot and warmed up my joints, rolled my neck, and made it pop.

The siren wailed for a second time — declaring the fight had begun.

The young sleejak, as expected, launched himself at me, his fists and feet a blur.

I danced back and maintained my distance.

He would slow down eventually, tire himself out… but by how well he was moving, I didn't think that would happen any time soon…

I blocked one blow, a second, a third… And got struck with his fourth, a pile driver of a punch into my chest that winded me and sent me stumbling back.

The young sleejak grinned and pressed his advantage. But as he swung his leg around to catch my head, I swept down low, avoiding his blow and took out the leg he was standing on.

I rolled to fall on top of him, but he had already kicked himself back and onto his feet. He nodded appreciatively and slowed his attack.

I went on the defense again.

His blows were fast but not strong. He intended to knock me off balance so he could hammer me with a flurry of blows… but that wasn't going to happen. I knew what to expect, and you were not surprised by things you knew were going to happen.

The crowd grew bored with my constant defense and booed. The young sleejak glanced at our audience, clearly affected by it.

He turned to me. "You have to fight me!" he snapped.

"I'm in the pit with you, aren't I?" I said.

"You have to throw a punch! Wrestle me! Do something!"

"Why would I do that?"

The young sleejak blinked as if seeing me for the first time. "You're not trying to please the crowd?"

"I'm here to win my Prize," I said. "I couldn't care less what the crowd, you, or anyone else thinks."

The young sleejak growled and tightened the muscles of his jaw. "Then if you won't play up to them. I'll do it for you!"

And he launched himself at me, hurling one flurry of blows after another. Some connected but they had little effect — he was too busy trying to look good in front of those watching.

I watched carefully — just as carefully as he listened to the cheers and boos — and waited for my time to strike.

He was fit and lasted a lot longer than I thought he would, but it took a lot more energy to throw a punch or a kick than it did to block one, and slowly, little by little, he grew tired and slow.

He lashed out with another kick — this one striking my elbow. He hissed in pain and set his foot down…

And that's when I struck.

I hurled one fist after another at him — not as fast as the young sleejak's had been — but fast enough. My blows packed a much larger punch — literally — and knocked the young sleejak back, making him stumble and lose his footing.

He looked up at me, shocked, that I had landed a successful blow. His brow curled into anger and he flew at me once again, using up what little reserves he had remaining.

And once again, I waited for my opening and attacked. First, with a fist, then a kick, taking out his knee, and then a roundhouse that knocked him back on his ass.

He struggled to get up as his arms were so sore from all the punching. I climbed on top of him, pinned him down, and bellowed:

"Yield!"

The crowd had grown silent and my voice was loud and powerful.

At the prospect of losing face, the young sleejak refused and instead attempted to fight back.

I pressed my full weight onto him and hammered him in the face. The first blow brought a fountain of blood from his nose.

"Yield!" I repeated.

He didn't. So, I slugged him in the face again.

"Yield!"

He hesitated, and I pummeled him again.

"Yield!"

"I yield!" he gasped through the river of blood. "I yield!"

It was loud enough for everyone to hear. The audience erupted into applause, stamped their feet, and roared with excitement. It had been a slow, unexceptional fight, but the fickle crowd always remembered how it ended.

I backed away from my opponent, my breaths snorting hard through my nostrils and my fist still clenched and bloody. I'd seen enough fights to know it didn't always end when an opponent yielded.

Sometimes, driven by rage or jealousy, they lashed out again — sometimes with disastrous consequences. And there was nothing more disastrous than me being unable to defend Lily.

But I needn't have worried.

The young sleejak got to his feet, bowed respectfully to me, and wiped an arm across his broken nose.

"Ignore the crowd, huh?" he said. "I'm going to have to bear that in mind next time."

He turned and left through his side of the pit while I left through mine.

The first round was over.

Just four more to go…