The Arena
 

        Radiance from her smile casted a stir in the young boy’s heart.  She danced in the flower fields that would brighten fields further to Spring’s face. A beautiful flower she would make, he thought. Laughter and giggles came from her like the blooming of flowers enlighten with joy. Colorful and pleasant flowers began to grow as the two began to grow as well.  Days came to days as season came to season, but to him it came to fast. A bitter-sweet memory sits in his mind like the ones fade away, he remembers the friends he had, friends he didn’t, and friends he forgotten.  Sitting at his domain waiting for his match, he once again he remembers that
one-day:

     Rays from the sun glistens through her shimmering brown hair as the three rolled in the wavering grass till the sun came to its slumber.  All the villagers nearby recognized her laughter as the complete happiness reigned her heart.  The other two sat there dreaming and staring into the clouds
wondering what each other is going to do.  The smell of fresh flowers mixed with the mist of the afternoon rain trickled their noses as she giggles in the flower fields next to the village.  Happy the town rests into the day as the hard farming workers collect their crops for the festival that is happening tonight.  It was the Festival of Harvest to celebrate in Keir.  Keir is the most successful farm towns in the area that even the President of Fordaka would visit there to celebrate their harvest of the year.
 
        The two girls and the boy rolled on and on compared to the vast hills it covers.  They must have traveled distances of colorful, evergreen with the touch of tall wild grass fields.  Calia laughed away as the youth within her sparkle a magnificent radiance seems to bless the fields.  She ran and jumped through the flower fields landing on daisies, marigolds, and brilliant rainbows of flowers that took it’s foothold in the fields. After rolling around she bumped into the other two; Yulik gazes off though the other two as N’alo ripens the freshen flowers of the lands.  Voices from the flower sung to the three as the sun conducted the symphony in their royal presence.  It was so beautiful that the boy, Yulik, began to tear up, his internal happiness and heaven was there. Lights simmer against the hills as the three started home. Tired and dreary the sun felt, as his hand touches the moon to wake it up for majestic presence of the three. Soft chirps of birds started the Moon’s Euphony while they walked home.

        Nearer home they came as the brighter it seems.  Flutes, bells, and even the horns from the near mountaineers came to play.  Louder it became to them it was time to celebrate.  Running into the town, Calia immediately started her dance that she practiced in the flowers. Decorated in many colors with only a white dress, making her the flower princess of the town. Yulik was trance by her as his undying love for her still remains in his heart.  It stained his heart like the blood it flows through. He knew he wouldn’t forget her. More and more he concentrated his thought on her face and beauty. The flower crown she wore…

        “Yulik, Shake it off!” his trainer said as his realization came to a full effect.

        Images and Voices disappeared as the smell change from growing-lushes gardens of Keir to a dust-cultivated locker room that knick his head a little.  Instantly the voice snapped his back that straighten into attention and almost forgot what he was there. The real harsh realization of the real world came to effect.

        “What!?” Yulik looked at him.

        He looked in disgust and returned the look at Yulik and responded.

        “I haven’t been training you just for you to talk to me like that.” 
        He glared.

        “Sorry, just had a past-time memory.”

        “Well, forget the past, you’re here. *Sighs* The guy you going to 
        challenging has just ripped off the squire from Keir,”

        “My home town, Jay or Sarina?”

        “Sarina, I think, well get ready, you will be on a few,”

        Nodding his head in obeying his order, he commences his warm-up. Minutes later he leaves the waiting room. Nearer and nearer he went, the brighter and louder it got.  Finally, walking a long distance, he meets the ring of death. Around the ring, there were the corpses of the fallen opponents and the mourning families of the fallen warriors. Yulik looked and felt sorry for those lost ones, but at another thought, he didn’t kill any of his opponents instead. He beat them into
submission. 

        The arena was huge in size as the battle grounds nearly took enough space for farming land. Blood runs like water in the arena as the blood from the fallen victims denched the dirt. At first, Yulik covers his nose at charred flesh from the third match, and the gushing wounds of another as he passes by each victim. One of them was missing all of it’s body parts which left the guy or girl with the torso. It was an atrocity, for training for this?, he wondered. Everything was dirty, the ground
was dirty, the people here were dirty, and his own hands are dirty from the stained blood that opponents was inflicted. He thought he must of thrown-up at least two or three times before getting into the actually ring. Arriving at the center, the announcer speaks: 

        “THE FINNNNAAAALLL MATCH OF THE DAY. This will determine who will be 
        accepted into the elite Brotherhood of Fordaka. Kerns Detera, weighing 
        in 310 lbs at a height of 7’ 2”. He comes from the lands of Hixon and 
        served as a Marine in the Hixon Marine Corps. With a Record of 11 wins 
        and 0 losses. His opponent, Yulik Raeth. Weighing in 210 lbs at a 
        height of 6’ 5”. He comes from the Fordakan Province called Keir. He’s 
        an Advanced Soldier and a small time wizard. With a record of 11 wins 
        and 0 losses.”

        Down at the ring, the referee stands there and announces the weapons and head choice of the fighters. While Kerns gets ready, Yulik stares into the crowd and wonders who will recognize him. The referee speaks:

        “Two Weapons allowed in this match, Kerns choose your two,”
        “I’ll take the two handed sword for mêlée attacks, and the pulse rifle 
        for the ranged”
        “Armor?”
        “Standard Combat Armor”

        “Two weapons, Yulik”
        “Hmm.. I’ll take a gunblade, some bombs, and wear metal armor”

        “The two fighters agreed in weapons and armor phase. Fighter Kerns 
        chose a TH sword and a pulse rifle while wearing Standard Combat Armor. 
        Fighter Yulik chose a gunblade and 5 bombs 5 bullet bombs while wearing 
        metal armor. On your marks, FIGHT!!”

        Immediately the fight commences and Yulik took off in hiding in one of the obstacles built in the arena. While Kerns commences in finding Yulik. Again, the arena was big so the fight will usually last a good 30 minutes or shorter. It was said that no match was longer than an hour. The spectators watch from above on their view screens. Yulik runs and runs until he finds his favorite spot which is usually the corner top. Climbing and hanging on his hook, he waits for Kerns. Silent and
quiet, he hears the grunt coming toward him. Loading his gun-blade with two shots, he prepares himself for a drop and roll technique he learned from his trainer.

       Three shots from Kern’s rifle came towards the corner, a routine technique used to scare enemies. Yulik drops and fires and rolls over the ground while he continues to fire on Kerns. While some of the fire hit Kerns, he doesn’t seem to fall back, but he continues to fire upon Yulik. Yulik, in the corner, begins to reload his gunblade with some bomb bullets. Two minutes of intense crossfire, it stops. The firefights were pointless for the time, wasting ammo and acting like idiots. You can
expect that, because it was a fight to the death. Both probably out of ammo, they began to think of each others’ moves. Yulik wasting enough time reload his two last bullets and charges forward. Kerns doing the same, except he draws his sword and starts to attack Yulik. Yulik knowing that he could use his bullets anytime, continues to sword fight. Kerns slashes and stabs forward while Yulik lures him into his trap of left over bombs. Closer you grunt, he continued to think. A spring-load grenade was timing to release as soon as he sees that Kerns steps over the trap.

        Closer he lured him like the little seals wondering off of its hole until is it killed by a bear. The finger of Yulik urge to let go as they scream in fear and pain. More and more swordplay between a gunblade and sword continued.  He though it would be over by now by the yelling of his trainer from above. Still closer they are fighting towards the trap.
 
        “I won’t kill you if you submitted,” Kerns proposed which look like he 
        wasn’t winning.

        “On my grave, sir, I rather die by honorable fighting than a disgraced 
        submission.” He yelled back in angry.

        “So much honor and pride, it is a shame, They don’t need it, meet you 
        in Hell, by the way, Thanks for luring yourself into your own trap,”

        “DIE!”

        Yulik uses his last bullets shooting Kerns in the head piercing his skull from his distance.  The heat of battle suddenly died out.  Kerns slumps over and hits the ground as the referee in the arena immediately rushes to decide a victor.  While the ref takes his time getting there, Yulik goes and investigate the expired Kerns.  Walking closer, he felt more relaxed. Finally he gets to the body to look for blood.  Shocked, he finds no blood and finds the barrel of Kern's gun pointed at his
stomach.
 
        “Honorable Solder you are indeed, heheh” Kerns laughs.

        “I though I killed you with a headshot,”

        “I’m a marine, I don’t get down that easy, Hixon Marines have metal 
        plated heads to protect us during gunfire and shrapnel pieces. Too bad, 
        I thought you knew.”

        “I didn’t know that, even in the heat of battle, everything is usually 
        forgotten,”

        “Ready to die?”

        Realizing that this is for real, he doesn’t move and steeds fast. Still the long sleek barrel of his pulse rifle tenses his mind. He could knock the barrel and stab him with the gunblade. Kerns laid there in the ground until the referee came there to witness the final blow.

        “Aren’t you going to pull the trigger?”

        “Second thought, maybe, I was wondering if we get a stalemate would we 
        both be admitted,”

        “Maybe, but they only allow one,”

        “My first thought was to kill, thanks for supporting my violent self.”

        *Fzzzz….!, PHZZZ!!*

        The gun goes off creating a bright flash of light that triggered the grenades behind Yulik. Yulik knew he was beat and took the price of death. Pain ripped though his stomach as the acids was forced outward covering his body. Taking his time, Kerns slowly gets up and inspects the damage. Yulik still standing up, with his hands covering his stomach wound. Slowly as the day it was for him, he kneels down.

        “A tip for the next life, you be honorable in every battle, some 
        battles are meant to be dishonorable. Never let your pride overcome  y
        your performance and your safety. It was sheer luck that I won. I’m 
        sorry, but I can’t let you live. Only one must survive.

        Kerns secretly pulls out his last power cell for his pulse rifle, lastly he points it to Yulik’s head.