Scarlett Inferno's Book of Utter Chaos

Tales from the Colosseum: Reaper

Here's another prompt response I wrote for the group I'm in. Just a heads up: This is probably a little more violent than other fight scenes I have posted.  

"Come out little one!" The man cackled as he moved down the street, looking through each nook and cranny of the dimly lit area. Scarlett made herself completely flat against the wall, her heart beating so quickly she felt like it could burst. That has to be him. I was told to eliminate him, but maybe there's still another option? Scarlett thought to herself.

Seeing no other option, she stepped out of the shadows with both hands raised, her palms had a slight glow. Reaper stopped in his tracks, and both hands reached down to his holster.

"You remind me of Mila. A young girl who was in way over her pretty little head. I wonder if your brain will splatter across the ground in the same pattern as hers." Reaper said, his mask muffling his voice. Scarlett felt her stomach turn at his threat.

"I've been authorized to use full force against you. If you surrender now maybe I can plead to the Empire to spare mercy." Scarlett stammered in reply.

"Lies! You are nothing in the eyes of the Empire. Your life is as expendable as mine." Scarlett's anger made her confidence grow.

"Hey asshole, I'm not the one that has a hit out on me from the Empire. So since you're not playing nice, then I guess I have to stick to the original plan." Scarlett's raised hands began to glow brighter before a large fireball was launched from her hands.

Reaper stumbled backward from the force of the fireball, but it appeared as if he barely noticed. Reaper pulled a gun from his left holster. He pointed it at Scarlett and squeezed the trigger. When the golden projectile left the barrel, Scarlett ducked down to avoid it. To her surprise, the bullet took a sharp downward turn to hit her in the forehead. She felt more tired than she had before. He pulled out his other gun and shot a crimson bullet towards the ground. It broke off into several smaller pellets and landed right in front of Scarlett. The pellets exploded on impact, and the force of the explosion sent pushed Scarlett up into the air. When she landed the force of her impact cracked the street leaving her in a small crater. Reaper approached Scarlett, and she found herself staring down the barrel of one of his guns.

"Your flashy powers mean nothing if you don't put them to good use." Reaper snarled. "I can smell your fear. You have never faced a threat like me before, have you?" Scarlett could feel her anger rise in the back of her mind.

"Usually I fight people who are still in the prime of their life, old man," Scarlett smirked in reply in a vain attempt to hide her nerves. Scarlett unsheathed her Blade and focused her energy on it. A large flame exploded from her blade and hit him in the center of the chest. The force of the fire knocked him back long enough for Scarlett to get up and run past him, creating some distance between the two fighters. When he regained balance he turned to face Scarlett. In the center of his chest was a large portion of blistering skin that he hadn't noticed was there. Scarlett placed her blade back in her scabbard and launched several small fireballs as he got closer to her. It slowed him down but otherwise didn't affect him. He began to fire several regular bullets towards Scarlett. She dodged some of them but cringed as others pierced her skin. She returned the favor with more fireballs.

"You know how I said earlier that we were the same? I was wrong. I have the guts to finish the job, and you don't." Reaper spat, his words filled with venom. He shot another crimson bullet towards her, and she ducked into the nearby alley before they could impact her. The explosion busted up more of the street. Scarlett walked out of the alley and picked up one of the stones and lobbed it towards his head. It hit him and he growled with anger.

While he was distracted, she stuck her hands in front of her and focused her energy. A large flame appeared from her palms and set his entire body on fire. He seemed unbothered by the flames and aimed the gun in his left hand towards Scarlett. He squeezed the trigger again and after a brief moment, the yellow beam left his gun. It hit Scarlett again and she felt herself grow weaker than before. It felt like she had ran two marathons back-to-back. She pushed through the exhaustion to charge another fireball and shot it from her hands. She cringed as she exerted enough energy to throw a ball of fire that was the same size as her. The fire consumed Reaper and blistered his already burnt skin. She heard a muffled groan from Reaper and smirked slightly. She closed her eyes and breathed deeply. She created a thick cloud of smoke that covered the area.

"Hiding behind your powers like a true coward! You don't have the guts to attack me so you choose to hide!" Reaper called out. Scarlett could hear him shuffle around to find her. Scarlett could hear her heartbeat as she continued to fight her exhaustion. This is the only chance I have, I need to take it. She thought to herself while getting into position. The smoke was beginning to thin out as Scarlett placed her hands towards the ground and began to run towards Reaper.

When she was about to reach him, two streams of fire shot from her hands and boosted her off the ground. She angled the stream of fire so she could spin midair. The smoke cleared as Reaper slowly pulled his gun up towards her, squeezing the trigger. Her flames had stopped, but the momentum of the spin propelled her until she landed behind him. He was slow to react as Scarlett jumped and swung her sword towards his neck. She summoned her energy to produce a flame from her blade that aided the cut. As blood began to spew from his neck, a majority of the dark liquid covered Scarlett's body. His finger released the trigger firing a crimson bullet towards the ground in front of him.

"Fucking hell!" Scarlett screamed as the blade completed the cut, completely decapitating him. Scarlett fell to the ground right as the pellets exploded, knocking her and the body back even farther until they slammed into the wall of a nearby tavern. Scarlett coughed and spat out blood-covered saliva, unsure if it was her blood or his. Scarlett eventually stumbled to her feet and saw the body next to her, and the head laying next to him. After one glance she immediately leaned over and vomited. She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and felt warm blood dripping from her nose. She looked at her mess and frowned.

"I guess I did have some guts."