Left in Ruins

Toxic

Locked in hand to hand combat, Raden and Jax both tried to disable the other while trapped on top of a limestone platform floating over the boiling lake. One boy had a distinct advantage over the other. Jax, coming from his home in the caverns, had often had to fight to eat, to stay safe, and to keep himself out of the dark tunnels. Raden, on the other hand, had grown up in his home in the clouds. Never having the need to fight because of the safety and wealth his name gave him by right.
"Traitor!" Raden yelled, words slightly muffled by the mask he wore to protect him from the noxious air. The only response was a hardness darkening his opponent's eyes. Jax didn't think he was the traitor here.
Raden had to consider his options quickly as Jax beat him closer to the edge of the platform, time now running short as he got closer and closer to falling off into the dangerous water.
"Jax, I trusted you. I thought you could keep us safe." He gestured around them at the terrible predicament they were in. "But look where we've ended up because of you. Fighting just to give some lowlife entertainment."
"Lowlife?" Jax hissed and grabbed Raden's mask, pulling it off his face. "If she's a lowlife, what am I?"
Raden covered his mouth with his hand, but it was too late. He inhaled the toxic air and it tasted like an old battery. It slithered down his throat and chocked him from the inside, making him feel dizzy. Raden fell to the ground knees and hands getting scraped by the rough stone under him. He looked up at Jax, searching for any expression from the person he had thought he knew. Jax looked down at him as if he were dirt beneath his boots. His eyes, the only bit of his expression visible over his mask, were cold and unfeeling. Raden fought it as long as he could, but it was no use. His vision went black. His head hit the stone. It was over.