Chapter 5 A Challenge

This is bad; the thought runs through her mind. She strikes out with her foot almost on impulse, it was a feeble attempt to separate them. But all she hits is air and with her amazement at that fact she gave him an opening. As the next thing she knows is his strong fingers wrapping around her ankle. Oh this is really bad; the thought echoed louder.
She felt herself become weightless, thrown through the air like a stick for a dog by its master. With no way of softening the blow, she skips like a blunt stone across the surface of the arena dirt. After a couple of good bounces she manages to roll to a stop clear across the stadium floor.
It is a moment or two till she‘s able to move, it takes everything in her to ignore all the aches and pains as she slowly lifts herself up.
“Why so quiet,” Silex asked proudly, strolling back to the center of the arena. “Cat got your tongue.”
“Cute,” she replies, spitting a small mixture of sand and blood. “Real cute,” wiping her mouth with the back of her hand, she wonders.
I may have made a mistake; she eyes him from across the way. He’s faster than before, it’s harder for me to predict his next move. Maybe, just maybe I was too hasty in getting rid of that heavy sword, now he has nothing slowing him down.
No, she thinks, straightening her gauntlet. Just because he’s faster doesn’t make him unstoppable, she smiles and whispers in to the air, “I just have to be sharper.”
Maybe noticing her change in resolved he calls out from the center of the ring. “You know, we can stop right here…. Just say the word, I won’t think any less of you.” He smiles a sickening grin, something about it irritates her immensely….
“don’t take this personally,” she yelled back, deepening her already intense stare. “But I couldn’t give a damn what you think of me.”
“Well then, you can’t say I didn’t give you a fair chance to back out,” Silex added, flexing his shoulders.
“We need to dance this ballet till its conclusion,” Siamera declares, planning her feet firmly in the ground. “Are neither one of us will be satisfied.”
Silex chuckles a throaty laugh, “I was right, I do like you.”
“Just keep telling yourself that,” she asserted charging at him, this catches him off guard. It is something she hasn’t done yet, he has been the one to attack first. Though she is too far to make a complete surprise attack, as he counters her approach with a swift kick.
She abruptly ducks it, spinning under and quickly sweep kicks his remaining leg.
He buckles, like a tower he crumbles to the ground. Or so it would appear for at the last instant he rebounds with the grace that Siamera had only seen from the Masters of Diu Exitus.
It is then she realizes what Monrey was trying to tell her, unlike the rest of the beasts here he has had training. He’s not some glory hound or hired thug searching for easy money. He’s here for a purpose, quite possibly the same reason she is.
A challenge….
She doesn’t let her new realization slow her so as she hastily ups her attack. The two are locked in battle again, luckily for Siamera the hits she isn‘t able to dodge she blocks.
Knowing this too wouldn’t last, all he needs is one good blow and she wouldn’t be getting up again.
I have to end it now, before I become too tired to keep up this pace.
There is only one possible move in her bag of tricks that will end it once and for all. But she knows it comes with complications.
Even if she does it right it will cost a price but at this rate she doesn’t have much option.
She breaks away retreating to a good distance. Silex is first shocked at this sudden change, he relaxes his guard. “Have you changed your mind about giving up,” he asks in a slight wheeze.
She stands silent several feet away from him, her long legs staggered, toes spread gripping the dirt and her arms angled strangely. Taking in the odd site he seems puzzled as does the crowd, all except for one.
Monrey instantly sits up in her seat, “is she out of her mind!?”
She jumps to her feet. “She is going to get herself killed……or worse,” she proclaims, startling the man sitting in front of her. She yells her objections from her seat far up in the nosebleeds but they are lost among the crowd. In an attempt to get better range she clamps her hands down on the poor man’s shoulders startling him even more. “You fool,….what on third earth do you think you’re doing!!!!” she bellows, proceeding to practically client on top of the baffled man’s shoulders.
Down in the ring Silex is at a complete loss on how to approach Siamera.
With the large amount of openings in her stance he could take her down easily but something about it alarms him. He has fought many others but never seen anything like it before, the fact that her eyes are closed as if in meditation hits him the oddest. “Just what are you trying at,” he hollers.
Again she doesn’t respond, his hair stands on end with anger but he quickly brushes it off and calms himself . “I see,” he laughs “you’re out of ideas and you’re trying to confuse me…..it won’t work.” her silence continues,  he’s obviously talking to himself, his anger returns worse than before.
“Fuck it,” he grumbles and tears after her throwing his caution away.
She feels his approach but continues to meditate, the only movement is from her chest as she breathes in and out. Time now seems to slow as the blood pumps to her limbs. He’s even closer now she could just about feel his breath but she remains motionless. Not until he is upon her, his fist speeding towards her face does she move. Dodging the hit she forces her way inside his massive arms. Lifting her hand slowly to her core than striking in a almost unseen speed, hitting his chest dead center.
His body is thrown back in an nearly unnatural sight. For something so big to be thrown so far the eyes strain to conceive it. Where he lands a cloud of dust envelopes him.
Silence fills the arena as both Siamera and the crowd weights anxiously for any sign of movement from the haze….
As the dust veil settles a shadow emerges and her heart drops. They’re still on his feet stood Silex, in her disbelief Siamera ignores the dull pain radiating from her wrist. Her body grows cold with the realization that her only hope has failed. Silex takes one step towards his dumbfounded opponent, a cool smile on his face. But by the second step his smile has melted away replaced by a dull look. By the third step he had lost all sense of poise as he wobbles greatly then sinks to his knees, with one more dim look at Siamera he flops face first back into the dirt that has just settled. It took a few minutes for the audience and Siamera to fully grasp what has just occurred.
She has just won the fight….