Enter the Arena

Bell was walking back home after work when it happened. A flash of light hit him from above. He instinctively closed his eyes, unable to bear the brightness. He felt a wave of invisible energy emanating from the sky.

When he finally opened his eyes, he was in a different place. He adjusted his glasses, but his bewilderment did not change. It was a grand place with so many bright things.

His eyes hurt from exposure to such light, especially since it was night time just a second ago. Even though it was difficult to look at, Bell felt that he must keep his eyes open, for if he didn't, something bad would happen.

After rotating around himself at least a dozen times, checking all the buildings, his eyes stopped at a large wall. He walked toward it with faltering steps. He was uncomfortable walking in such a large space.

'This is bigger than the school playground', he thought.

As he got closer to the wall, he noticed the intricate design of the walls. While everything here was all bright marble colored, they did not look plain.

He waited for about ten minutes before a large noise came from whatever resided inside the walls. He stepped back and watched as it slowly opened. There were no creaking noises. It seemed like the movements of a feather.

His instincts warned him not to approach any further. He could wait around and find a way back home. All sorts of thoughts swarmed his mind and left him unable to come to any conclusion. In the end, he gave up.

'It's no good thinking…' he then looked up at the blinding light seeping through the gates. His face was down but his eyes mindlessly searched for a good reason to run back. When it seemed like nothing was happening, he tightened his fists.

'I'll go. If anything happens, it's still better than working 12 hours a day just to eat 3 meals.'

He got up and stepped into the light.

…

There were 16 people standing in a large space. The marble floor reflected them like a mirror. The light coming from the sky was also reflected. It was like a fake sky right below their feet.

However, their attention was on the large figures that were sitting on even larger thrones. There were 12 of them.

Unlike the surroundings, the figures had colors to them. It was hard to measure their height from afar, but they were at least 20 meters tall.

"Welcome to heavens!" a deep voice resonated throughout the whole area. It was clear and overpowering.

It came from the one with the glistening, golden eyes. His smile grew into a grin before he continued.

"You are here for one reason." he then stopped and analyzed the people. "To kill one another."

"You'll each fight in duels," said the woman next to him, "and the victor will receive the gift of the loser."

"We will be watching you," another figure spoke with a massive grin, "So, do try to entertain us before you die."

"Of course," the figure with golden eyes spoke, "the winner will get to live."

"Let the heaven's arena begin!"

…

Bell watched his sweat drenched shirt, covered in dust and old stains that never faded away. He hated his suit, but he didn't have a choice. It was his work suit. He had tried to wash the stains, but it seemed pointless after many tries.

Right now, he was face to face with himself, staring back at him with wide eyes. It was the same suit he always hated. He wanted to tear it off his body, but he knew he had worse things to do.

He glanced at the people around him, some standing and some fallen to their knees. He knew soon, one of them was going to kill him. He could not let that happen. Then the thought of having to kill someone else, bombarded his mind.

Before he could finish the thought, he sensed himself sinking below. He put his palms on the floor, trying to pull himself, but his hands ended up sinking too. It wasn't long before he was completely swallowed.

At first, he thought he'd fall for hours, since the floor looked like the sky, but he landed on a solid ground within seconds. Other than his legs, arms and head, he was completely fine from falling. He thanked the gods.

He laid there, watching the sky with narrowed eyes. His body hurt so much, he didn't want to get up.

It was cloudy, but in a weird way. The clouds seemed closer than usual. In fact, they went right by Bell's face. He tried to smell them, but they were odorless.

'Man, I really wanted to know the smell of a cloud.'

"I guess you're my opponent."

Bell jolted upright with his eyes wide. A sharp pain reverberated around his back, but he couldn't help but react.

The person before him had a thin body. He was wearing a vest, chains and a large shabby trouser. After making a weird noise, he spat and walked toward Bell.

Bell stepped back and almost fell. He somehow managed to grab the floor and balanced himself back again.

"Careful," said the approaching man, "It's not a nice way to die."

It was then he saw the ground having an edge. It seemed like a circular plane. No matter how hard he pried, he could not see anything beyond. It was just moving clouds.

"I'm Mason, by the way." he said with a sly grin, "Hate to burst your bubble, pal, but this ain't personal. You heard the big guy, or… god or whatever that thing was."

Bell knew he had no choice but to fight. Besides, there was nowhere to run. Since being closer to the edge was dangerous, he decided to take the initiative. He ran toward Mason with a war cry that sounded more like a squeaking.

He pulled his arm back to punch Mason. His attack was easily dodged by Mason, who saw it coming and kicked him in the abdomen. Bell let out a groan and fell. Mason watched him with amusement.

"You fight like a child. Never punched a guy before?"

Bell got up and raised his arms. His teeth were clenched from the pain, but he knew he had to stand up.

"Ooh! I like that." Mason snickered, "You've got some guts."

Mason closed in with a quick step and punched him. Bell guarded himself with his arms, but the punch was strangely light. Before he had time to think, he felt a massive impact on his abdomen, right where Mason kicked before. He fell back again.

This time, Bell could not get up. He couldn't even breathe.

"Stay down. This'll be over… whenever you give up."

Mason sat on Bell and released a barrage of punches. He kept punching as his knuckles were bloodied and making noises of bones cracking.

Bell had never been this hurt before. He wanted it to end, but there was no end. He didn't want to give up.

'I held on for so long.' he thought, 'I'm not letting this… th-"

Mason looked at the face of his opponent. His smile was gone and replaced with a scowl. He put his hand under Bell's chin. He got up and sighed loudly.

"Alright! One down. Who's next?"

'And where's that gift I'm supposed to get after winning?'