Chapter Twenty-Six: Trick of The Water

Samari gazed wearily at her card, plaguing herself with anxiety. After the ball game, each contestant had drawn a card to decide their matching for the next rounds.

One hundred matches, seven people per match, and only one victor. I could maybe take out one or two people, but six? No way.

The memory of that scene returned to her, pushing a new layer of dread over her mind. She still didn't understand it very well, why she had felt like she was dying, despite Dillian's best attempt to explain it to her. He had insisted on her leaving the tournament, but she brushed away his offer.

"If you are in match B1, B2, or B3, please report to your rings. Matches B1, B2, and B3, report to your rings now," the announcer paged.

"Cy is in B2. I guess...I'll go watch his match," she said to herself.

The announcement of the matches coached people to herd towards the arenas. From the density of the crowds, it seemed the entire festival had come to watch the matches.

Is watching mages battle truly so entertaining, or do they come for the tradition of it? she wondered.

Walking anywhere took a while because of the packed pathways, but she made it to the ring before the match started. While the crowd made it difficult to see the ring directly, there was lacrima poised above that projected an image if the ring.

Despite the crowd, the contestants must have had an easier time getting through though, for they were all present when Samari arrived. A referee was talking to them, most likely telling them the rules.

She played with the key on her belt to keep her busy, tracing it with her thumb.

When the referee finished, the fighters divided to separate sides of the ring. Once he was off the ring, they bowed and thrust their right hands into the sky.

BU-LUH! The match began at the sound of the horn. Three of them activated their ticon, included Cyrus, and two more drew their weapons.

A man who appeared to have bark on his skin charged at a woman near him. She noticed him and reacted defensively. They sparred well against each other.

A spell activated, diverting Samari's attention from the pair. She looked to the caster who was engaged in a fight between a firearmed and a battlemage. She was curious about the group, but forced herself to keep scanning the ring until she found her friend.

He stood attentively, unsure whether to join in a fight or challenge the other idle contestant. Already, he had what looked to be a water lasso wrapped around his arm.

Suddenly, he threw his lasso. It latched onto the battlemage, holding him in place. The man pulled against it, but the timing was just right to stall him as a spell headed his way. His body went limp at the shock spell, dropping.

The castor responded, abruptly levitating his hammer to smack him in the face. The lasso released, and the man stumbled backward, falling unconscious.

Whoops filled the air at the first defeat. A strange dome activated, lifting the man out of the danger zone.

The battle continued amongst the skilled fighters. Watching closely, Samari suspected that the firearmed and the idle girl did not have much combat experience. They were jumpy and tried to keep out of conflict.

After taking out the battlemage, the caster focused her attention on Cyrus. She attacked, using some spells that Samari did not recognize. Skillfully, the water boy either dodged or blocked, morphing the water into different shapes.

His head turned, attention away from the woman for just a moment. Samari followed his gaze to see the firearmed fiddling with something. Shockingly, the idle girl ran past him, a ghostly dog chasing after her.

When the dog saw the firearmed, it leaped onto him. Caught off guard by the creature, he stumbled over, landing on the thing he had been holding.

BANG-POP!

Out of the broken item came a stream of smoke. It clouded the area, but a figure could be faintly seen coughing in the middle.

The smoke spread until it covered almost the entire area. There was a flash of movement as the bark man took advantage of his opponent's distraction. At the same time as he threw her out of the ring, the dog rammed into him, and he stumbled.

Disinterested, Samari refocused on Cy's fight, yet there was something peculiar she noticed. She clutched her key as she studied his actions.

With nearly every movement, he's flicking droplets of water into the air. There are a lot just hanging there. Could this be why he's not attacking much?

Still watching him, she realized that he was using as little ticon as he had to for defense. The caster was slowed down, but Cyrus had taken sustainable damage.

The caster stopped abruptly. She stepped closer to him, her pose suggesting that they were conversing. He shook his head, raising the water trident he had morphed.

Samari froze at the next spell. A rune on the ground activated, the dirt near it rising into the air in a right ball. From other spots, more runes activated, the balls barricading him from multiple positions.

More than on rune! She must've placed them down as she moved in an arc around him. She's using the dirt as weapons to pound her tired opponent with, she deduced.

When the spell ran its course, Cyrus remained standing, panting and trembling. Hope flickered in Sam's chest, glad to see her friend still standing.

"You've made two mistakes, " she smiled as she spoke to the caster who could not hear her. "The first was you-your...trying to outlast Cyrus. The second--the second was your not paying attention t-to your surrounding."

Raising his head, Cyrus clenched his fist. He yelled, but the noise of the crowd drowned out his words.

With a roar, the water came crashing down. It targeted not only the spellcaster, but the other remaining fighters as well. They tried to defend, but they could not raise their arms to protect against the barrage.

The attack was only half a minute, yet it did the damage of a storm. Two fighters collapsed, leaving only Cyrus and the caster awake.

She was barely still standing. Her arm stretched out to cast another spell, but she fell forwards. She knelt on her hands in knees for a few moments before rolling onto her back, defeated.

Bowing, Cy thrust his hand into the air as the referee declared him the victor. The crowd cheered, and Samari clapped quietly with them.

After the celebration died away, the attendants moved to prepare for the next match. Samari made her way over to the ring, catching Cyrus before he left.

"Ah, good j-job out...there, " she said, finding it difficult to motivate herself to speak.

"Oh thanks--Sam!" he recognized her when he turned. "You were watching? I thought you would want to rest."

She shook her head, placing her hand on her chest. "I'm...fine. I wanted...to see you w-win."

"Hey, I'm this close to beating Shadow Knight," he showed her a small space between his finger and his thumb.

Recalling his previous gestures, she was beginning to wonder if he was actually serious about dueling the Decipher. She had heard rumors about the Aquian challenging him, but never thought they were true.

"Mmh, Lori will beat you...herself if sh-she hears...that," she warned him. "But, that spellcaster...was very good. Sh-she used some...some hard spells."

"Yeah, she's pretty tough. I think she might be an armsman."

What's an armsman doing in a fighting tournament? I suppose it's not too weird, but it still seems strange.

Leaning over, Cyrus clutched his stomach. "Ahh, all that fighting as made me hungry. I'm gonna go get an early lunch."

He started to move, then stopped, shifting back towards her. His smile dropped as he gazed upon her. She looked away, rubbing her arm with her hand.

"Come with me. You need food, too, and I lost track of the guild."

Reaching for her hand, he turned away. He dropped it when he was sure that she was walking behind him. Looking back at her, a sweet smile blossomed on his lips.

With gratitude, she smiled a little, too.