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Squaring up, Mars settled into an athletic stance as he pointed his fist at Silas, waiting for the announcer to begin the fight.
"On your marks, ready, go!"
Immediately Mars dashed forward, his limbs igniting with flames as he threw his fist out like a monster, a wave of heat taking the area in front of him and cascading across the battlefield, burning a large cone of air where he struck. Silas, like a snake, maneuvered his body around it, dodging as he slipped in close to Mars, a thin knife made of wood sprouting from his side as he lunged in to stab him.
Mars deflected it, knocking his hand back as the two engaged in hand to hand combat, Silas on the defensive, trying to create space between himself and Mars. But Mars was a relentless fury, pushing him back and attacking with all the power he could muster, his flaming limbs singeing Silas's clothes.
Bam!
The sound of their bodies smacking into each other echoed out through the battlefield as a barrage of blows flurried between them, making the crowd go wild.
"Yeah! Woo! Get 'em, flame kid!" someone yelled from the stands.
"Ay, snake boy, cut his throat!" one unhinged fan yelled back from across the other side.
The battle between Mars and Silas was a highly anticipated spectacle, as Mars was somebody ranked in the top twenty while Silas ranked thirty third, both of them highly anticipated contestants, and having them face off against each other in the very first round made for an exhilarating fight.
Stomping on the ground, Mars spread his flames far and wide, knocking back Silas as they both repositioned and gathered their thoughts.
"I see your skills are the same as always, Mars. Such ruthlessness and power, but where's the finesse? Where's the dexterity needed to finish your enemy?" Silas taunted Mars as he slow walked the edge of the battlefield, tiptoeing his way around the outskirts.
"Who needs finesse when you can just burn your whole enemy away in a matter of seconds? True overwhelming might is all a true warrior needs to stand on the battlefield, not the underhanded tactics of a pointy stick."
"But a pointy stick has its uses, doesn't it, Mars? If only you had figured that out earlier, maybe you wouldn't have been forced into…"
Before Silas could finish his words, Mars jutted forward, his flaming fist coming in hot and burning the area where Silas once stood as Silas slipped underneath Mars's arm, his thin wooden dagger shooting up to attack Mars's neck. And just as it was about to hit, Mars kicked Silas in the chest, pushing him back as he then spun around and jumped up high.
"Flame Axe!"
Mars yelled out as he propelled himself with his flaming foot, rocketing down hard as his heel smacked into the arm of Silas, which creaked under the pressure. Silas grunted as his arm guards started to glow blue, enchanted as if just to face Mars, quelching the flames that flickered over them and giving Silas an opportune chance to grapple Mars's leg, rotating it as he slammed Mars onto the ground.
Saliva jutted out of Mars's mouth as the air was knocked out of him, and before he had time to recuperate, Silas was on him again. Like a snake he slithered up and grappled against Mars, putting him into a chokehold as he tried to stab the knife into his throat once again.
"Supernova!"
Mars screamed out as his body turned flaming red hot and an explosion of flames burst off of him, engulfing the whole area around him and kicking up a cloud of dust, making it impossible to see what had happened, except for the body of Silas, which rolled and tumbled out of the cloud. His clothes singed and burned as they glowed blue, the water enchantments of the gear he was wearing fighting to quench the flames.
And from the dust, the silhouette of a man with light cascading around him passed through, Mars walking out like a flaming warrior.
Strong, tall and composed, unlike the edgy teenager battered and bruised on the floor, Mars looked like a gallant warrior standing victorious, having put a beat down on the shameful snake.
But that was far from the truth. This whole time, Mars had been close to losing. Had that knife reached his neck even once, the protective runes on the battlefield would have stopped the fight instantly, handing him the loss right then and there. But there were no guarantees on the battlefield, and for now Mars was the one still standing while Silas was on the ground recuperating.
"It seems finesse is only useful if you can actually hit someone. But that's fine, Silas, I respect the power of your finesse. The question is, what's stronger? Your finesse or my might? Because let me let you in on a little secret. My might will always be stronger than your finesse."
"Third Form, Flaming Dash. Raging Bull!"
Dropping into a sprinter's stance, Mars's body became wreathed in flames, and atop his head flaming horns sprouted out like a bull's. His feet grew heavy with flames that shaped themselves into powerful legs, strong as a workhorse, and mimicking a raging bull, Mars lowered his head, aiming directly at Silas.
Dash!
His body skipped across the battlefield, each step propelling him tens of feet at a time, his speed unnaturally fast as he closed the distance instantly, giving Silas no time to prepare. The horns smacked into Silas's chest and drove him backward, flinging him clean outside of the battlefield, his body rolling and tumbling until it smacked into the Coliseum wall, cratering into it as he limply fell over.
"And our first winner, we have Mars!"
RAAAH!
The crowd screamed with excitement, as the first match to finish had been an amazing spectacle, with Mars absolutely destroying Silas.
"A unique use of his bloodline, mimicking a raging bull! He propelled himself dead ahead and destroyed his enemy!" Jonathan the announcer yelled out over the crowd, igniting the fans' ferocity.
"Truly an amazing fighter! And what a way to conclude our first fight! But there are many more spectacles waiting to happen, so don't worry, viewers. Turn your attention to the other fifteen fights happening right now, and watch as these students fight for the chance to prove themselves. Let the tournament commence!"