Cyber Mortality

Chapter 34:

DeNyle circles his opponent with his shoulders squared and his legs ready to spring.

The man utters curse words and berates DeNyle with fowl comments.

"What a jerk," I hiss under my breath.

Jez grunts in agreement but says nothing.

DeNyle's face is stony, showing no emotion as the man taunts him.

"Why don't you let your sword speak instead of flapping your gums," DeNyle snorts and takes a small step toward the man.

The man leaps forward, blade slinging in a right cross.

DeNyle glances the blade off with his own and slams his fist into the man's face.

The man stumbles back but brings his sword up in time to block DeNyle's sweep at his legs.

DeNyle feigns right and the man moves to block, but before he can fix his error, DeNyle slashes into the man's left thigh. 

The man growls in pain but bears his ground, even with the slash obviously hurting him. He puts more of his weight on his right leg, but this only gives DeNyle an advantage. 

With a solid slash, which the man blocks, DeNyle throws him off his feet due to the man's lack of balance. 

The man stumbles back and falls onto his shoulder.

"I give up!" he shouts and drops his blade, not wanting to die.

"DeNyle from Team Ultra is the winner! Bargadin from Team PlexiDragons gives up. Team PlexiDragon takes a five-point penalty!" the crowd roars and the man's teammates help him from the stadium.

"Up next, from the Red Team, we have Vyra!" the announcer shouts and the crowd erupts with cheers and chants.

Rocky sucks in a deep breath and leans forward in his seat.

A woman, around the same stature as me, steps out of the shadows of the entrance tunnel and parades into the arena with a wooden bow staff twirling between her fingers. Her shoulder-length brown hair is sheered to her scalp on one side and blows in the wind on the other. Her eyes, nearly a bright red, glitter with anticipation as she faces her opponent.

The man she faces is clearly startled that his opponent should be the prior champion. His face pales and his grip on his katana falters.

"Begin!"

Vyra stands her ground, waiting for the man to attack her. Her lips turn up in a smirk.

Gaining some confidence, the man leaps forward, katana swinging fast as a flash of lightning.

Vyra's lips part in a grin and she glances the blade away with her bow staff. She twirls it in her left hand waiting for him to make his next move.

"Is that all you've got?" Vyra teases and cocks her head to the side. "You've got speed, but you didn't follow up on your attack."

The man clenches his jaw and leaps in for another attack.

Vyra blocks it with ease and taps his back with her staff.

"That could have been a fatal blow," she taunts and switches her staff back and forth between her two hands. "What if I close my eyes? Would that help you?" She does so and waits for the man to make a move.

He takes a hesitant swing, but she brings up her bow to stop him once again. Their weapons meet again and again, but even with her eyes shut he can't hit her.

"She's just toying with him," Jez groans and leans back in her seat. "Next she will offer to use just one hand."

Just as Jez said, Vyra switches to only using her left hand. Then something changes. Vyra changes her stance, leaning more on her back leg.

"He's finished," Rocky sighs and watches Vyra intently.

My eyes can hardly track her movement as she flips forward, body twisting in the air, and then there is a small flash of light.

Vyra stands with her left leg bent at a ninety-degree angle and right leg angled behind her. In her hand is no longer a bow staff, but a staff with a curved blade on each end.

The man tumbles over, his head lying beside him on the ground before turning into dust.

"What the heck just happened?" my mouth gapes in amazement.

"Vyra's staff can change shape," Rocky grinds his teeth together. "Beyond her skill and speed, her staff makes her very dangerous."

Jez shakes her head slowly.

"I've never seen anyone beat her," she mutters. "Rocky came close, but she somehow knew his ultimate move before he made it. After him, it was smooth sailing to the win."

"I don't even know what to say," I mutter. "Is that even legal? To have a weapon that changes?"

"It is," Rocky sighs. "The only rule for the duels is that you have to use a weapon from the class you're in, and you can only use the weapon you bring into the arena. It's still the same staff and its a two-handed weapon."

"It still feels like cheating,"

"Did you guys see that move Vyra pulled at the end?" DeNyle lumbers over with a grin plastered on his face. "She was like whoosh, and then flash, and then bam!"

"We saw," we mutter and watch as Vyra leaves the stadium.

"Glad I didn't have to fight her," DeNyle chuckles uneasily.

"Aren't we all,"