6 Arc 1: Part 5

Gem Mechanica: Gems have been implanted in humans successfully, but once the patient falls asleep, they never wake up. Scientists believe only inanimate objects can be successfully enchanted, while philosophers believe a humanoid soul can't sleep with another.

Her hair was longer than it's ever been. It flowed from the back of her head to her lower back. It hung on the sides over her ears, on level with her nose. A beast wasn't allowed to cut their hair. The men in the center circles of the complex wore light beards with long hair. They had perfected the art of hair pulling– the men liked to pull hair in their exchanges. It stung, but it was an advantage to take. They were older adults. Just under eighteen. She was twelve by now. And more fierce than ever.

She fought a girl two years older than her. At this stage of her life, She was still weaker than most men and the average woman. Her savage desire to win compensated for her weakness. The match started to the older girl trying to push her out of bounds, but the Girl retaliated with a fury of slaps and strikes. She swung wildly. Most missed, but some landed. One which hit the jaw and knocked her back. Her opponent lost her balance, and before she could regain it, the Girl rushed. The young Girl shoved hard, pushing her off her feet, and sending her out of bounds. A faint look of satisfaction showed on Her face.

She was the top ranked female in the program, but still near the bottom of the chain. Her male beast counterparts for the most part got the better of her. She could only ever beat the ones who weren't trying as hard as she did. She fought a boy after her last. The outcome was predictable. She got overpowered. The boy had punched her in the stomach, and kneed her in the chest, launching her backwards out of bounds. She was on her back, exhausted. Unable to stand up, she rested, panting from the wind being knocked out of her. Her fist clenched, her feet repetitively lifted a little off the ground to kick back down the mat below. I lost again, her face said. Her green eyes were no different than the boy who had just beat her. She accepted her role as a beast, but why were some beasts stronger than her? Her effort is nearly unmatched, yet she loses to her male counterparts all the time. On the ground, she is approached by a beast tamer. Unlike Corter, this one had always been kind to her.

"From above, I don't know if the boy beat you, or if you beat yourself." the tamer lauged. He stood over her, in front of her feet.

"I am too weak, master," the girl said. Her eyes didn't make contact with his. Instead, she looked at the hanging ceiling lights above. There were many of them. Some were dead, and needed a change. Others were flickering wildly. "I hope age can make me stronger."

"You'll grow up to be as weak as you are now," he said. Though his words sounded harsh, his tone felt more sympathetic. "The Gem God gives everyone a path, even beasts like yourself."

"I don't want to be weak," she said. "I want to win. I want to be the best."

"Being weak does not mean you can't win. The path the Gem God gave you specifically is a hard one. If you want to make it to the top, you must follow the path perfectly and not make any deviations," he started to lecture. "I think even you, can stand in that center circle and be worthy."

"But how?" she asked.

"By reinventing what it means to be a beast. Do you know what a beast is? What you are?"

"It means I'm worthless to human kind. I destroy every environment I'm in."

"No, not that. Physically. What does it mean to be physically a beast."

"I desire to destroy my opponents with wild strength," she sat up. "That's what they taught me. My desire is strong, but my strength is weak."

The tamer finally got her eyes to match his. "Your strength is not in your strength, but your heart, your desire," he said. The tamer used his hands to express his point through hand motions. He would move them excitingly in the air as he spoke. "You do not have the arms to beat most, but you have the wits somewhere deep inside, I've seen enough of your fights to know that much."

"A beast has no wits," she said. "I rely only on my brain to obey my masters. During fights, I only use my natural instincts."

"Tell yourself that girl, but for you, in order to be the best, you must risk thinking for yourself. If you want my help you will listen, and if not, I'll find someone who will."

She was stunned. She always followed the teachings she always knew as a kid. The same teachings Corter reinforced time and time again. Always remember who you are, she kept reminding herself. But now she was caught in a crossroads. On one side, her teachings from early youth, alongside Corters scolding. On the other, another tamer she is forced to obey, had told her to think for herself, to go outside of the norm. She relented to her personal desire to win. "Teach me, master."

"Call me Hekon," he said. Hekon smiled. "What do they call you girl?"

"They don't call me anything," she said, then paused. "They often called me the beast the belches."

"Is that so?" he asked. "So I declare you the name, Belch."

"Belch?" she asked.

"Wear their insults like honor, and they will wear your victories like shame." He offered his hand to the girl sitting below her. After a second she agreed to be lifted up. He didn't let go of the arm. Instead, he turned her around, and bound her arms together using a rope. "In order to learn how to think, you are gonna have to learn not to count on your strength. You will fight the next couple of matches without the use of your arms. You will have to rely on your brain to win."

"How can I win without my arms?" the now named Belch was still confused. Now she had regretted taking Hekon's crazy advice. "This doesn't make any sense."

"Remember, think for yourself, and you will surely be surprised," Hekon said. He pushed her into a circle and signalled a girl over to face her in combat.

The match started fast, before Belch could even strategize. Her opponent tried to take advantage and charged. With no use of her arms, she panicked. How do I win this fight? It's impossible, I can't do this, she thought to herself. The opponent was still rushing, so Belch did what felt natural and charged at her shoulder first. They collided. The charging girl was knocked off her feet and sent backwards tumbling, but she was still in bounds. As that girl fell, Belch went to the ground as well. Her shoulder in pain, but nothing to comfort it. She wanted to get up, but she couldn't focus. Her attempts failed. The other girl recovered. She stood over the downed Belch, before launching her legs into her side. One kick after another made her body flinch and roll over. After four kicks she was out of bounds. Defeated again, she did not see the point. Belch would have her if she had use of her arms, but instead she lost. This time, she felt she was not in control of her defeat. She had a disadvantage her opponent did not.

"You didn't think properly once during that match," Hekon said. "A few more matches tonight. That means a few more opportunities. Prepare."

She wanted to scream at Hekon. Fury filled her soul. But she knew better than to disrespect her master. Even if he isn't as harsh as Corter, he still had authority over her. Belch kneeled down. "I'll continue, if you see it best, master."

The next match was almost underway. Before she entered the circle, Hekon gave her a word of advice. "Here's a little hint for you, use your legs. You'll be surprised how well you can dance an opponent off their feet."

She nodded. Her opponent was another girl. Stronger than most women in the program, but slower than most. The match began. Dance off their feet, she echoed Hekon's words to herself. The other girl rushed, and now, unlike in the past where she would counter rushes with her own, she would have to avoid the rush, to dance around it. The opponent went to grab her, but she side stepped out of the way. Walking backwards now, the other girl went to grab her again, only to repeat what happened before. This was the last time she would fall for that though.

The bounded Belch was now cornered, as her opponent would match her movement. She inched closer and closer. The tied girl decided it was time to act. Belch pretended to move right, and in the right moment the girl fell for it, she juked left. Fast, she lost control of her balance and ended up tripping on her own feet, landing out of bounds. She defeated herself. Embarrassment ran across her face. Her long hair would look like a blanket that covered her arms and part of her stomach.

"That was much better," Hekon said, to the surprise of the girl.

Belch had never been congratulated for losing before. Out of every time she lost, it was the one where she defeated herself. "But, I lost."

"But you learned how to move, even if it's not perfect," he said. "You are now thinking in two dimensions instead of one. After you get accustomed to the 2nd dimension, we'll be able to move on to the third."

She didn't know what these dimensions were, but she didn't worry about them. Her loss didn't feel as bad after his words. Hekon would ease her tension almost every time they interacted. She was eager to continue fighting this way, but she still had her doubts. Maybe this method is a dead end.

Her next opponent was a boy of fourteen. He was her height, but twice as wide. The boy had always done the bare minimum to make it. He did his labor to feed himself, but never tried too hard to win the fights. To him, it was fine to be in the lower tier of fighters. It was too much work for him to put an immense amount of effort. When the match started, that was obvious.

He waddled slowly trying to approach her. His arms spread out covering a big distance. He lunged to the girl with sudden speed, but she dodged. His body fell to the floor, just by the edge of the circle. He got up and went after her again. This time, by the middle, the girl went on the offensive. She would kick him in the shins a few times while jumping backwards after every kick to keep him from catching her. His calves were as red as his flushed cheeks. He got angry and started to dash his way toward the girl. Her speed, still much faster, tripped the boy with her right leg as she dodged left. He came tumbling down, almost reaching out of bounds. Once more, he tried to regain his stance, but this time he was much slower than the first time. His legs stood straight, but his body bent with his hands on the floor. Belch took her moment and used her foot to strike the boy in the bum, knocking him out of bounds.

She won. Without her arms, She won. Her legs felt like rising fire. The angry boy got up, pouting over his defeat, but his tone quickly turned back into carelessness. He was just glad the fight was over. Hekon clapped from her side. She took a moment to breath it in. The girl's fist clenched from behind her back. A grin came off of her face. Her look was menacing.

"I'm gonna untie your arms," Hekon said. He reached for his knotted rope from before. "But I trust you to continue working on other skills. Your legs can get you just as far as your arms individually. But together, they combine to create true strength."

Now freed, she says nothing, but a nod said all Hekon wanted to hear.

***

Over the next several weeks, she fought hard. Her counter attacks improved, her speed improved, and even the arms that held her back were now growing stronger. She lost plenty during the time, but she learned from each one. It was unheard of. A twelve year old girl entered the middle point row of circles with other twelve year old boys. In between the weak outer row of forty rings, to the single ring in the center that only the best fighters stood, that's why the words worthy were written in the center of the ring. That was her goal. To be the best. In her way, fifty men– and one Corter. Hekon advised the outer rings, but Corter had control of the midpoint and on. And Belch had not gone unnoticed by Corter.

Belch won the first two fights of the morning. The third and last one before the end of the set was about to get underway. Corter decided to advise this one. Her opponent was almost no different the the first two men she fought before. He was thirteen years old and half a foot taller than her. When corter started the match, the fight was short lived. The boy sprinted fast, but was tripped out of bounds with a swift kick to the lower leg. Corter wasn't pleased.

"Restart the match," Corter said. They got back to opposite ends of the same circle, and fought after his signal.

The boy wouldn't make the same mistake again, so he approached slower. She looked at his feet, his arms, and his eyes to get an understanding of what he was trying to do. When he came closer, she figured it out. He went for a right hook to her face, but she ducked under, and grabbed his arm to utilize his momentum to throw him over her body and out of bounds. She looked at Corter and bowed. Her bow seemed almost cocky. Corter couldn't see her small grin as her face pointed straight down. Furious, Corter lifted up the boy opponent and pushed him back into the ring.

"Again!" he shouted, drawing attention from the surrounding rings. "But this time, you will take initiative. You will do what you beasts do. Fight like savages."

Belch had not took initiative since before her arms were tied before. Her natural fighting instincts have changed. By the time the match started, she could not flip the switch in her brain. She tried to throw the first punch but she missed. The boy struck her with a blow to her left shoulder with his left fist. That hurt, enough to make her back step away from the boy. It was almost like she was running away, and the boy believed he got the edge. He dashed over to her and went for another punch, but the girls instincts ducked again. She countered with a jab to the stomach. Three more jabs struck the torso before a left kick to his shin and an uppercut to his jaw. The fast strikes caused him to lose his footing. He tumbled to the ground, center of the circle.. Corter was invested. He wanted the girl to pounce. The boy was prey to the girl, the predator. But that wasn't how it played out. He rolled over to his stomach. The girl kicked him on the side. His body flinched and rolled over twice in pain. She repeated this until he rolled out of bounds.

"Why you…" Corter walked slowly to the girl. His pace suddenly ramped up. The girl stood still looking at him, his small figure would expand in her sight as he began to reach ever so closer, faster and faster after every step. He used the cane he walked on to whip her on the head. Blood flew out from her cheek, she lost control of her body, but gravity did not. She fell to her back. She knew better than to strike her tamer, so she just looked at him. She sat up to be struck again. The wooden cane went from left to right, and when it stopped, a drip of her blood rained down to the floor below. She grabbed her cheek. When she lifted her own hand off of her face, she saw it had painted the hand in red. It hurt bad. Corter, more angry than she had ever seen shouted again. "DID YOU DISOBEY ME AGAIN GIRL?" He struck her again. And again. "ARE YOU PRETENDING TO BE SOMETHING OTHER THAN A BEAST?" Now blood was everywhere across her face. Belchseyes bruised purple. Her black hair stuck together from the blood. More stikes came. She lost consciousness from the beating shortly after. Corter walked away from the scene, steaming. The crowd whispered like buzzing flies. Eventually they carried on with their own matches. She was alone. In the distance, Hekon was there. He had a slight smile.