There was a loud crack and the boy sprawled forward into the dust. His wooden sword clattered to the ground at the edge of the arena, and there was a round of applause from the spectator stands. His opponent raised her wooden scythe above her head and let out an excited cheer. Regan watched the fight with her arms folded. 

'He tripped,' said Forester. 'That was a lucky hit on her part.' 

'She's good though,' said Sarafina. 'She'll probably make it though.' 

In the arena, the girl was doing a small victory dance. The boy picked himself up slowly. He looked unsteady on his feet as he brushed the dirt off his clothes. 

Pohlman walked into the centre of the arena. He waited for the boy to retrieve his wooden sword before he extended his arm towards the girl. 

'Winner, Lain!' 

The girl with the scythe blew a kiss towards the bleachers as she walked out of the arena. Her opponent followed slightly slower and was met by a Silverwater medic who used a pen light to examine his pupils. 

Regan felt Forester's eyes on her and turned to look at him. 

'Shouldn't you be getting ready? Your fight is next.' 

'I am ready.' 

She heard an irritated snort behind her. 'Not ready enough.' 

Regan watched the porters dragging heavy hessian sacks across the arena to smooth out the scuffs and divots in the ground. 'Hello Ashcroft.' 

Sarafina threw a worried glance at the spectator stands. 'Is it safe for you to be seen talking to us at the moment?' 

'Officially, I'm here to inform you that your opponent has been changed to a current Silverwater member at the request of a squadron leader, as if you don't already know.' 

Regan looked over her shoulder at Ashcroft. 'I've met him. He came and introduced himself like a true gentleman.' 

'Whatever you said to Kai has got him worked up. He's out behind the bleachers punching anything that comes to hand.' 

Regan gave a nasty smile. 

'His frustration amuses you?' 

'Predictability is an exploitable weakness.' 

'Don't mix up the chess pieces with the player. Your real enemy is Bennet.' 

Regan frowned. 'Interesting.' 

'What?' 

'Nothing,' Regan looked away. 'You just sounded like someone I used to know.' 

She examined the spectator stands. She could see Bennet fussing over a small boy with a laptop. On the stage next to the stands, the name of the boy from the previous fight was being removed from the board. Pohlman watched as the names were rearranged then turned around. 

'Next fight. Regan versus Kai!' 

Regan started forward, but Ashcroft gripped her shoulder. She looked back at her and cocked her eyebrow. 

'Bennet is one of my best squadron leaders because she knows how to plan. Don't assume that a victory in this fight will translate as a victory against her.' 

Ashcroft released her grip. 

'Soon Bennet won't be able to fight by proxy,' said Regan. 'I think it's time I showed her what she can expect.' 

Regan stepped into the arena.

***

Bennet switched her attention between the laptop monitor and the arena where Regan and Kai stood facing one another. She watched the boy at the laptop fidget with his shoelaces. He flinched as she clamped a hand down on his head. 

'Don't screw this up.' 

In the arena, Kai looked like a bull preparing to charge. He was holding a pair of heavy cudgels and gave them an expert swing. Regan watched him and held her wooden sword negligently at her side. 

'She looks relaxed,' said Bennet. 'That's going to change.' 

Kai thumped the handle of one of his cudgels to his chest. 'I'm protector Kai of Silverwater. This is my challenge.' 

'I know who you are. It's written on the board behind you.' 

Kai's whole body tensed. 'Your smart mouth won't help you here. Words are meaningless.' 

He lifted himself onto his toes and began to bob up and down. 

Bennet grinned and gripped the boy's head beneath her until he squirmed in pain and pulled her hand away. 'He's doing it!' 

'Your words run across me like water,' said Kai. 'They're nothing in the face of this.' 

There was a sound like a car skidding across gravel and a spray of dust. Suddenly, Regan was sliding backwards with her sword locked against Kai's cudgels. She held him back as her boots scraped across the ground. Kai's expression was fierce. 

'This is my true power!' 

There was another spray of dust, and Kai slid to a halt at the edge of the arena furthest from Regan. He twirled his cudgels as he bounced on his toes. Regan brushed some dirt off her jacket. 

'That was seventy percent of my speed. Do I have your respect now?' 

'What a pointless waste,' said Regan. 'You've revealed your craft for no tactical gain.'  

Bennet rolled her eyes. 'She's right. He's such a show off. What was the point of that? If he'd gone at his full speed he might have caught her!' 

She looked at the screen and thoughtfully chewed on a lock of ash blonde hair. 

'I captured it though,' said the boy at the laptop. 'She was right in the shot.' 

Bennet smiled. 'Not all bad then.' 

There was a sheen of sweat on Kai's face as his expression twisted into a snarl. 'No one has ever been able to match my full speed. By the time you realise I've moved, you'll have already lost.' 

Regan lifted her sword and pointed it at him. 'The more things you say, the more I find you irritating. I seriously hope you're not the best this place has to offer.' 

Kai roared and knocked his cudgels together. 

Bennet hunched over the laptop screen with an intense expression. 'This is it!' 

The two fighters looked at each other across the arena. In the spectator stands, no one moved. 

Everything happened in an instant. Kai disappeared in a colossal cloud of dust, as if he'd suddenly teleported away. There was a sound like the ground being shredded followed by a loud impact.

Dust streamed over the arena and obscured Bennet's vision. She waited and listened. There was nothing but the sound of the wind. She looked at the boy with the laptop.

'Did you get it?' 

'I don't know.' 

Bennet swore and looked back at the arena. As the wind caught the dust and dragged it away, she saw a figure that slowly resolved into Regan. She stood at the centre of the arena with one foot forward with her sword extended in front of her. Behind her was a crumpled mass. It took Bennet a second to realise that it was Kai. He was rolling from side to side clutching his chest. As Bennet watched, he made a sound like a clogged drain and gripped the ground. The sound became a moan, and he turned over and vomited. Bennet looked away. There was a deep indent in Kai's chest where it had been forced inward. 

The boy with the laptop put a hand over his mouth. 'What just happened?' 

'She broke his sternum.' 

'What?' 

'The cartilage plate in his chest. She broke it. If that had been a real sword, it would have gone straight into his heart.' 

'I didn't even see him move. How is she that fast?' 

Bennet looked down at the screen. 'Why don't you tell me?' 

The boy clicked a button on the screen and restarted the recording. Bennet watched it closely. She was vaguely aware of teams of Silverwater medics rushing into the arena, and Kai starting to scream as they lifted him onto a stretcher. She was watching the video for a second time as Pohlman manoeuvred his girth off the stage and walked into the arena. 

'There,' said Bennet. 'Go back a couple of frames and play it as slow as you can.' 

'What is it?' said the boy. 

'Shut up and do it.'

Bennet's lips drew back into a smile. 

In the arena Pohlman held out his hand. 'Winner, Regan!' 

Suddenly, Bennet jumped up and punched the air. She ruffled the boy with the laptop's hair. 'You magnificent genius!' 

'What is it? What did you see?' 

'I was right! I knew it! I was right!' 

They boy looked at her with the worried expression of someone who isn't quite sure that the person they're talking to still has a grip on sanity. 

'I don't understand what you're happy about. Kai just lost.' 

'To hell with Kai. It doesn't matter that he lost. I have something far better. I have Regan's craft!'