Chapter 283: Votum

 

  Heather Navis walked out of the coliseum’s tunnel to the cheers of Undergrowthers and her adoring fans. She smiled and dipped down in an extravagant bow. It was good to know whose side the crowd supported. The voices of thousands surrounding someone could greatly affect their performance in any duel. And today’s crowds cheered Navis over and over.

  Still, there were some who cheered for her opponent, albeit those peasants were clearly travelers from Frost Rim. Heather didn’t mind, it was nice to have some opposition, it would make winning that much sweeter.

  Though the tunnel across the arena was wide open, Nalla of Frost Rim had yet to make her appearance. Heather stared at the open gate and the dark tunnel with a small sense of wariness. 

  All she knew about the Frost Rim mage was that she was an orange mage and she had only learned that from the 2nd Challenge. House Thorn’s spies had given Heather’s team detailed reports on various opponents they would be facing in the tournament, and yet, very little had been found of the northern drow Nalla. It was unnerving, but it was nothing compared to how little they had known about the Ebon Aspirant, Stryg.

  Heather clenched her teeth in anger just remembering that day. The damn blue hybrid had taken her by surprise in the 2nd Challenge. Had she thought him capable of reaching her in the sky, she would have easily defended herself. Instead, she was knocked unconscious and fell down into the water like an idiot. All because she had underestimated her opponent.

  To make matters worse, Damian had failed spectacularly in his first duel. It had taken five white mages the entire day and night to reattach his arm and even then he was still struggling to move it at all.

  Undergrowth’s team couldn’t afford such an embarrassing loss once more, Calex wouldn’t allow it. He believed in his teammates and that was more than enough for Heather.

  The cheers of the Frost Rim commoners grew louder as a small figure slowly walked out from the opposing tunnel. Heather’s brow furrowed in confusion at the sight. Nalla shuffled her feet forward as she used both hands to drag an enormous greatsword behind her. The sword’s blade was glossy black, its edges curved to a fine point at the tip. A single sigil was etched onto the base of the blade. Its hilt was wrapped in silver string, and as long as Nalla’s arm. The pommel was capped with a smoothed round diamond. The entire sword itself was larger than the young woman carrying it.

  Heather couldn’t help but laugh at the ridiculous sight. “What the heck is that? Your giant friend’s broadsword?”

  Nalla said nothing and kept dragging the sword behind her, until she stood at the center of the arena, a dozen paces away from Heather. Nalla gritted her teeth and heaved the black sword up and stabbed it into the ground. She then exhaled deeply and straightened her posture.

  Heather was about to taunt her over the absurdly large weapon, but on a closer look, she noticed the strange glossy pattern of the black metal.

  “Is that…? Orichalcum?” Heather asked cautiously.

  Nalla stepped in front of the black sword and raised her balled-up fists in a fighting stance.

  Heather chuckled to herself and shook her head, “I’ve never seen that much orichalcum before. But whoever thought it was a good idea to make a weapon out of a non-enchantable metal was an idiot.”

  “Our contestants seem ready, folks!” Jane Stemme shouted from the Herald’s Tower.

  Her brother Mark Stemme yelled alongside her, “May the 3rd match of the Challenge of Spell & Steel… BEGIN!!”

  Nalla abruptly opened her palms wide and shot out a stream of orange flames. Heather raised her hands expectantly and conjured a wall of entwining wind. The flames splashed into the yellow spell and dissipated harmlessly to the sides.

  Heather clicked her tongue with a smirk, “You’re going to have to try harder than that.”

  Nalla narrowed her eyes and threw her hands to the side. Two searing orbs of flame spun into existence over her palms and barraged Heather from both sides. Heather slammed her foot into the ground, a powerful gale exploded all around her and tore the flames apart with ease.

  “Too easy,” Heather grinned. Her goal was simple; taunt her opponent and bait out Nalla’s exhausting flame spells. Soon enough her orange mana would be depleted.

  Nalla glared at her, but she lowered her hands and simply waited.

  “Fine, I don’t mind going first,” Heather, reached behind her, and pulled out a pair of twin chakrams hanging from her belt.

  “But I warn you, I don’t think you’ll like it,” Heather winked and poured yellow mana into the chakrams’ magestones. The circular blades began to spin as the wind curled around them. She summoned forth a powerful gale above her and threw the spinning chakrams up into the air. The whirling gale suddenly changed directions and crashed down on her opponent.

  Nalla slammed her palms together and blasted the wind away in a cone of flames. Heather winced from the searing heat, even from a dozen paces away.

  She’s stronger than I thought, Heather thought grimly. Still, flames won’t be enough.

  The chakrams emerged from the smoke and sliced down at Nalla in a flash of metal. Nalla jumped to the side and narrowly dodged the blades as they slashed into the ground. Before Nalla could stand up, Heather casted another wind spell and swept the chakrams back into her hands.

  “Let’s try again,” she grinned and tossed the spinning charkams out amidst a powerful whirlwind.

  Nalla quickly channeled orange mana into her legs. The agility spell took hold, her veins darkening over her blue-grey skin. She dashed over to her giant sword and hid behind the wide black blade as the chakrams spun by, slashing across the sword.

  You can’t hide there forever!

  Heather flicked her hands and summoned a funnel of wind around the sword. The chakrams fell down in a swirling storm of steel.

  Nalla cursed under her breath and flung a wave of fire outwards, disrupting the funnel long enough to sprint away.

  “Abandoning your sword already? You’re not even going to try and swing it!?” Heather yelled.

  Nalla briefly glanced at her sword in the distance and scowled. She yelled in anger and charged her enemy in a blur of speed. A howling wind swept forward and carried the spinning chakrams straight at Nalla. She didn’t change her direction and instead did her best to dodge the oncoming blades. The chakrams sliced into her white pants and loose black shirt, staining them bright red. Nalla winced but she didn’t retreat.

  “You stubborn idiot, you can’t hurt me!” Heather yelled and casted a durability spell. Yellow mana surged through her body and covered her skin in outlines of yellow scales.

  Nalla balled her hand into a fist and punched Heather in the sternum. She stumbled back from the blow, a small crack in one of her scales. 

  Heather looked up in surprise, “How did you just…?”

  Nalla answered with a punch to her face. The air shimmered around Nalla’s knuckles as they slammed into the yellow scales. Heather pulled her arms over her face and tried to minimize the strikes. But Nalla didn’t let up and kept pummeling her, the yellow scales cracking with each blow.

  “E-enough! Enough!” Heather tried shouting through the hits. “I said ENOUGH!” A cyclone of wind erupted out from Heather’s hands in a deafening explosion of magic.

  Nalla yelled in pain as her body was sent careening into the air. She slammed into the ground in a tumble of limbs, her body skipping over the dirt several times before slowing to a halt.

  “I really didn’t want to tip my hand just yet,” Heather lamented.

  Nalla clenched her jaw and tried pushing herself to her feet. She stumbled and fell to her knees.

  “Why are you still trying?” Heather asked, annoyance clear in her voice. “I wanted to exhaust your mana reserves to avoid this exact scenario. I wanted to avoid revealing my true capabilities, but you just don’t give up. Your people really need to learn when enough is enough.”

  Nalla barked with painful laughter and wiped the blood from her mouth.

  Heather sighed and looked up into the sky, “You don’t get it, do you? I’m not a manifold mage. I only have one chromatic color at my disposal and yet I’m here in the tournament for the most talented mages of our generation. Why do you think that is?”

  Nalla shook her head, steadied her legs, and stood up heavily.

  Heather smiled wryly, “It’s because I’m the most powerful Yellow in our generation. Not even Calex’s Yellow can compare. It’s why we deserve each other, we’re the two most powerful mages here. It’s why I can’t let you get up and for that I am sorry. I hold nothing against you personally.”

  Nalla spat out a mouthful of blood at Heather’s feet and raised her fists in a battle stance.

  Heather chuckled dryly and summoned forth a mighty whirlwind of magic above her. The chakrams were pulled into the sweeping gales and spun with blinding speed.

  “Any last words, Miss Silent?” Heather asked. “Or are you just gonna stare at me menacingly?”

  Nalla closed her ashen-grey eyes and exhaled deeply. Her muscles relaxed and her arms fell to her sides. A faint bronze sheen swirled over her arms.

  “Fair enough,” Heather shrugged and called the whirlwind down on the wounded drow.

  Nalla slowly opened her eyes and stared at Heather with a steely gaze, “Heed my call…” She raised her arm up high, “Votum.”

  The black blade ripped out from the ground and flew across the stage in the blink of an eye and landed in Nalla’s outstretched hand. Nalla roared and slashed the giant sword into the ground. The earth shattered into splintering shards and the air exploded in a wave of power, obliterating the wind spell in a flash of destruction. Heather cried out in pain as she was blown several paces away and landed in a sprawl.

  Nalla brandished Votum above her head, the black blade pulsing with power. The wind began to swirl around the sword in a terrifying maelstrom of destruction.

  Heather glared at her enemy and pushed herself to her feet. She poured yellow mana into her hands and called the wind to her, but the wind did not answer. Heather’s eyes widened in horror at the orichalcum sword, the wind answered its call alone.

  “W-what is that!?” Heather screamed.

  “A promise,” Nalla said solemnly and swung the sword down. 

  The blast tore the ground around Heather into smithereens, she screamed in terror and curled into a ball.

  Nalla pulled Votum back and narrowed her eyes, “This time I won’t aim at the ground.”

  “I surrender! I surrender!” Heather whimpered.

  Nalla glanced up at the Herald’s Tower for confirmation.

 

  “H-HEATHER…” Mark Stemme paused and licked his dry lips. “HEATHER NAVIS OF UNDERGROWTH IS UNABLE TO CONTINUE. NALA OF FROST RIM WINS…”

 

  The crowds broke out in cheering roars. They didn’t care which team Nalla fought for, they were simply in awe of her destructive power.

  Nalla exhaled deeply and let Votum’s blade fall to the ground. The brown vigor spell faded from her arms. She picked up Votum’s silver hilt and dragged the blade behind her and slowly made her way back into the tunnel.