Shadows of Voryn

Chapter Twenty-Four

T'ara

Walking onto the arena, T'ara blocked out the people screaming the name Lord Thad had given her. The mongrel was meant to belittle her and T'ara would not let his insult cause her any grief. She had bigger things to be concerned with.

Their chants fell into background as she looked to the other entrances where her opponent would come from. T'ara held a shield and sword, moving to the center of the arena. She rotated her shoulders to loosen tight muscles and distract her from the anticipation of a fight.

She looked up to the balcony to find King Virion staring down with a furtive glint in his eye. Her jaw clenched and she gripped her sword tighter, accepting that she'd have to play his game a while longer.

T'ara nearly turned back to face the door that was now opening to reveal her opponent when she noticed Saerena sitting beside her father and a woman she did not recognize. She thought of Livei's kiss and dropped her eyes only to turn and face the iron door she'd come through and the one across from it that she normally walked out from. When she focused in she could see Livei standing right in front of it, her fingers gripping the bars of the door. T'ara smiled and sighed, relieved to see Livei able to watch.

The crowds feet were like loud drums stumping the ground, signaling their approval for who she'd be fighting. Swirling her sword around once, T'ara readied for her challenger, bending her knees as she held the sword up to the side, shield protecting the center of her body.

Seeing the opponent, T'ara straightened, disgruntled by who walked into the arena. The other woman, flipped her sword in the air, catching it back at the hem, showing off her handling skills. She wore a mischievous smirk, ambling casually toward the center of arena. Her arrogance was loud and unavoidable, one long braid stretching down to her mid back. That was the only thing that made her look different from T'ara and it was uncomfortable to see her face on the woman.

The woman didn't address her, too busy waving to the spectators. The crowd chanted the name, 'Shifter,' and she seemed to relish in their praise. That explained why she looked identical to T'ara. The woman had shifted into T'ara like a doppelgänger.

Grimacing, T'ara held a firm grip. She would not detour from her belief of winning the fight. The woman pointed her sword at T'ara, grinning as if she'd already won. "You will die by your own hand," She taunted.

T'ara ignored her words. The woman stepped forward and positioned herself as they waited for the drums to sound.

The woman leaped in the air, several feet, coming down hard and swift the second the first drum echoed through the arena. The shifters sword was angled towards T'ara's head and she pivoted several feet back. The shifter came again, in a cross body slash and didn't slow as she continued to her assault. T'ara was grateful for her own skill of speed, finding her elf half to be a helpful skill to master. Many did not know how fast she could be, assuming she'd be.

From left to right, T'ara escaped the shifters sword. The shifter was not slowing, never giving T'ara the chance to return an offensive blow. T'ara decided to use that to her advantage, leaning on the chance that the shifter would tire out first. The shifter swung her sword in another cross body motion, aiming to decapitate T'ara's head. As to avoid the sword cutting into her flesh, T'ara bent backwards, using her sword to deflect as she rotated it over her head as it collided with the shifters sword. T'ara followed through with the blow, stretching her arm long and using her other hand gripping the shield to flip into a sideway's backflip, bouncing off off the shield and back to her feet. The crowd roared, many leaning over the edges of the rail waiting to be as close to the fight as they could. T'ara didn't have much time to take a breath as the shifter rushed forward, aiming her sword for T'ara's chest, only to miss.