Through Fire

Chapter 11 - A Stunning Display

Preferring Mazie’s company to Roman’s at the present moment, I stand with my arm strung in hers after we made our nudging way as close to the fighter’s ring as we could manage. Two tall guys are in front of us in the mass, but if I rise up on my toes I can spot Wim and Kaitlin on the opposite side of the ring. With every glance of my friends that I catch from over the shoulders of the visual barriers, I smile at the sight; Kaitlin clings to Wim to keep with him in the crowd, a giant smile covering her face. I can’t make out much of what his war paint looks like quite yet, but I’m sure I’ll be able to once the match starts.

“Can you see very well?” I shout to Mazie after drawing her in with a tug. She scrunches up her face.

“No, not really… First chance you see for a better spot, snatch it!” I smile and nod in agreement. The din of the crowd around us dies down considerably after some activity from the referee in the ring, which makes it easier to converse.

“Are you exited to watch Bennen tear it up in there?” I ask her with a pointed grin.

“You betcha,” she starts as she looks at me, “I’m pretty sure he’ll take home the trophy… as long as he beats Wim if the matches come down to that.”

“The winner gets a trophy?” She nods. “No way… What’s it look like?” Mazie goes up on her toes as she looks away from me, hiding a little smile.

“Eh, you’ll see. It’s quite magnificent, it’ll blow you away. The winner from last year brings it back and it gets passed down to the next champion.” I make an exaggerated face at the notion that I have to lie in suspense until the night is over to see this trophy. I know last years’ champion was an older kid who didn’t come to Alpine Mine this year.

“So is this famed trophy even here? I thought last years’ champion didn’t show.”

“It is. He didn’t take it with him,” she chuckles.

The crowd shifts as our conversation dies down, and a space opens up beside the taller dudes in front of us. Mazie tugs me to the opportune space, and we can finally see the whole ring. Wim and Kait are huddled together on the opposite side of the fighting ring, much like Mazie and I are. I look to my blonde companion and see her eyes are also on the pair.

The ref finally calls up the first two contenders of the night:  Two warriors who are actually brothers. Their pillars have them done up in pretty sweet-looking paint jobs. They look like they collaborated on the dual idea, with one brother’s jagged paint strokes all in shades of black and red, and the other’s similar designs in white and gold. I love the pillar aspect of these fights. Being one is so much fun, I’m really glad that Kait gets to experience it.

With minimal preparations, thankfully, the match begins with the blast of the designated referee’s whistle, and the two brother-warriors collide with little warning. Their pillars' shouts of encouragement are lost to my ears in the roaring, wild crowd. Mazie and I stay clinging together, raising our own exited cheers. I’m gunning for the brother in black, and for arguments sake Mazie is rooting for the one in white. The two competitors are close in age as well as build, and as the match continues through the rounds, the brothers seem more and more evenly matched.

It’s in the seventh round, though, that the dark-haired warrior in white shoots for a split-second opportunity bought from the feint he played his brother at. He takes the black-painted brother out by the legs, disabling his arms with a tight hold behind his back before flipping him over and securing the pin. The crowd goes crazy at the first victory of the night, and Mazie teases me once her chosen victor helps my loser up off the mat.

I peer around us for Roman and Sage under the gazebo, thinking they would’ve joined us by this point, but I can’t spot them in the crowd. Not extremely anxious to see my hard-headed honey, I’m also not disappointed by the boys’ absence. I’m enjoying Mazie’s one-on-one company, as well.