Chapter 3: Coliseum.

The roar of the crowd was deafening, reverberating throughout the spacious underground chamber as the announcer continued to hype them up. Flames flickered within the glass lamps scattered across the walls and ceiling, casting shifting shadows around the perimeter of the stands. In contrast, torchers illuminated the centre ring, shining a spotlight on the main attraction of the night.

On the raised wooden platform, its edges defined by a pair of ropes pulled taunt, two men were trading furious blows against one another.

One was short and lanky, with large crystals growing out of his fists. In contrast, the other towered over him, the man's fat filled frame rippling every time he made a move. Yet, whenever he would go in for an attack, his muscles would bulge out unnaturally, replacing aft for a brief moment of time.

Every time they clashed, there was a sickening crack as the crystals were destroyed by the impact. Yet, within seconds, the crystals would be regrown and ready for another round of exchanges. The audience ate the action up, cheering and shouting every time they clashed.

Eventually, the tall one found an opening to break the stalemate. He sent out a swift left jab, followed by a right hook, shattering both crystals on his opponents hands. Defenceless, unable to grow his crystals back in time, it left him open to a powerful drop kick that sent him flying, body tumbling close to the edge of the ring.

"And Titus lands a huge hit onto Zachary! Will he be able to recover after such a devastating blow?" The booming voice of the announcer filled the room from wall to wall, whipping the crowd into a frenzy.

Zachary struggled to get back up, laying flat on his back as he tried to push himself up. Titus stood over him, huge body casting a dark shadow over his downed opponent. A sneer broke out across his face.

"Get the fuck up! You're not done, not with all that talk before the fight." Titus spat on the ground in front of Zachary, right by his face. "A 5 like you should know your place. Y'all Lowers need to remember who's on top."

"You're still in the bottom half, shitstain. You're no better." Zachary chuckled out through gritted teeth.

"Shut up! At least I'm a Middle and not a worthless Lower like you!" Titus' face twisted in anger. "I have more power than you ever will have!"

Raising his foot in the air, Titus brought it down hard and fast, aiming for Zachary's face.

Rolling out of the way just in time, Zachary scrambled to get to his feet. But he was slow to rise, and in a flash, Titus was on him.

Zachary hastily brought up a crystal covered hand to block, which was shattered easily. The second punch sailed by Zachary's head, with him barely dodging to the side in time. Though with his body low and unbalanced, Zachary was exposed once again.

Even while his arm was still extending outwards, Titus swung his leg out, catching Zachary again in the stomach. However, this time his kick was much weaker than before, allowing Zachary to recover much quicker and create some distance.

"I am your superior! I will have the respect I deserve!" Titus was literally shaking with rage, and ugly snarl plastered on his face. He continued to hurl insults at his opponent. "You little shit! I'll beat you to a bloody pulp!""

Zachary chose not to respond, merely narrowing his eyes, face filled with concentration. He let crystals grow on his right hand, dropping into his stance, ready to move at any time. Titus soon responded.

He rushed forward at full speed, closing the distance between the two with his right fist raised for a deadly punch. At the same time, Zachary charged forward as well, meeting Titus head on.

At the last second, Zachary shifted right, Titus' fist brushing past his cheek. Concurrently, he sent his right fist sailing upwards, aiming for a clean uppercut.

Not expecting this, Titus had to bring his left arm in for a clumsy block, not even able to muster enough strength to shatter the crystal.

In one swift move, Zachary used his free left arm to grab onto Titus' still extended arm. Immediately, crystals began to grow, covering not only Zachary's hand, but his opponent's arm as well. Titus scrunched his face in pain as the crystals started to crush the limb under them.

"One limb at a time, huh? That's your weakness." This time it was Zachary's turn to smirk, an expression that only grew by the second.

Titus' eyes darted back and forth between his two arms, teeth gritted and mouth stuck in a scowl. His silence only confirmed what Zachary was saying.

"Looks like you have a choice to make," Zachary taunted. "Your arm? Or your face?"

With a roar, Titus pulled his right arm back, breaking the crystal cage around it. Immediately, his left arm folded against the uppercut, the fist racing towards his face. He tried to bring his right arm across in a desperate bid to do something, anything, but it was not enough.

The impact knocked Titus off his feet and onto the ground, blood staining his face where sharp crystal fragments dug into his skin. His mouth was open as if to scream, but no sound came out, the wind having been knocked out of his lungs.

Barely a moment later, Zachary was on him, legs on either side of Titus' body, locking him in. Titus attempted to throw Zachary off, shifting his weight in order to unbalance his opponent. But another sharp punch stopped him in his tracks, face even more bloody now than before.

"Now then, what did you say you were going to do to me?" The almost crazed eyes Zachary had looked downright dangerous at this point. "Oh yeah! I remember. I'll beat you to a bloody pulp, right?"

Slowly , the crystals on Zachary's hands started to splinter and fall apart, landing on the floor in small shards that began to dissolve almost immediately. Cracking his neck and hands, Zachary stared down at Titus.

"I'm going to enjoy this..."

Blow after blow started to rain down on Titus, Zachary's fists connecting with his face over, and over, and over again. With each punch, the snarl on Zachary's face grew larger.

"I am sick and tired of people like you. You think you're better than me? HUH?! I AM NOT A NUMBER!" Zachary screamed into the face of his nearly unconscious opponent. "I didn't ask to be born in this class! I didn't ask to be shat on daily by little fuckers like you because of what I am!"

The shrill tolling of a bell cut suddenly through the arena, ringing twice to signal the end of this round. Yet, either because Zachary did not hear it, or chose not to hear it, his beatdown continued onto Titus' limp body.

That was my cue.

Immediately, I leaped into action. Rushing out from a cleared out area underneath the stands, my action was followed closely by several others. Swiftly vaulting onto the platform, together we approached the pair from various different angles.

I drew one of my short spears as I ran in, the metal easily sliding free from the quiver on my back. As I got closer, I shifted my weapon, holding it horizontally in front of me. I waited for Zachary to pull his fist back so his arms were near his body, then I made my move.

In a flash, I darted forward, throwing the shaft of my spear over Zachary's head and pulling back, jerking him back and pinning his elbows to his chest. At the same time, another man with ash blonde hair tackled Zachary, skinny arms wrapping around Zachary's stomach as the man's lithe body forced Zachary back.

Two more, a muscular girl and a rather small man, grabbed onto Titus' shoulders and dragged him back, hauling him off the platform and dumping him unceremoniously onto the ground below.

With the two now separated, I started to relax my hold on Zachary. But before I could fully release him, he turned to face me, meeting me eye to eye. The split second where our sights matched let me see that his pupils were dilated, gaze unfocused.

At that moment, Zachary lashed out, instantly smaller crystals appearing as he flailed around in my hold. It was like he was a feral animal, so lost in his bloodlust and anger that he would attack anyone within arms reach.

My eyes widened as I moved to avoid his wild swings, my grip loosening as he connected with my left arm, ripping through the bandages that were wrapped around it. My accomplice acted quickly though, striping one of his gloves off and worming his hand under Zachary's exposed undershirt.

Seconds passed of Zachary's uncontrolled flailing, where I debated just cutting him loose to go attack anyone he wanted. It was not like anyone could blame me if he broke free of my grip, and it would save me the trouble.

Suddenly, Zachary froze, his body locking into place. Small twitches could be seen as he tried his best to move, and I quickly let go of him, pulling back my spear and retreating a short distance away just in case.

However, just as soon as the paralysis came, it was gone, leaving Zachary to stumble forward and gasp for breath. His eyes darted around, stance tense, preparing for an opponent that was no longer there.

"Relax." I held my hands out in front of me, having slid my spear back into its quiver, hoping to placate him. "The fight is over, you got him."

Slowly, as if he was finally coming to his senses, Zachary relaxed himself. However, his face twisted into a scowl of annoyance as he stared at me.

"You shouldn't have stopped me," Zachary spat out, coming close to me and getting in my face. "That bastard deserved more than that."

"You know the rule," I stared back at him, unmoving, "the bell is the beginning and the end. Nothing beyond it."

"Whatever." Zachary broke his glare first, shoving me away as he started walking off. "You know what we face. Those middles aren't anything special either, just above us lowers. I'm just trying to stand up for people like us. "

I sighed as I watched him jump off the platform, glaring daggers into the unconscious form of Titus when he passed before rounding a corner and disappearing from my sight. I perfectly understood what he meant, in fact, there were probably times when I had it even worse.

Pinching the bridge of my nose, I shook my head. I really wasn't getting paid enough for this.

Glancing down, it looked like there was no damage to the actual limb itself. However, the bandages that were around my left arm were in tatters, the wisps of white cloth remaining threatening to fall off completely. Hints of scarred skin could be seen underneath, peeking out through the gaps of the shredded wrappings.

Looking back up, I caught my blond haired associate staring, a curious look on his face that slowly turned into a smirk. Hastily, I covered what I could with my right hand and swiftly made my own leave from the platform, through the pair of doors that led to the backstage.

It was an area under the stands, cleared out to make a large room hidden from prying eyes. It ran continuously from the east stands, through the south stands, and around to the west stands. The area under the north stands was cut off on both sides, serving as a private area for the Boss alone.

The east wing was where I retreated to, standing off to the side where it was less crowded. At least it wasn't so bad down here, many would assume it was from a previous fight and be unlikely to disturb me about it.

Taking hold of the extra roll of bandages I grabbed on the way here, I got busy reapplying the coverings.

My work was interrupted by an unexpected tap on the shoulder. Startled, I spun around, only to have the flags perched on the base of the spears shaft smack me in the face. The rest of the spears stored on his back chinked audibly as they moved around in their holder.

Quickly removing the offending fabric after a short struggle, a close up face filled my vision.

"Shit!" I sputtered as I jumped back, all to the amusement of the girl whose face morphed into a friendly grin. She looked quite similar to me in her current attire, the same letters floating above her head, and a comparable leather tunic and long pants adorned her figure. Yet the differences were present, her chestnut brown hair was pulled into a ponytail while a long sword rested on her hip.

"Hi Max!" Emily said, hand on her hip while a two fingered salute accompanied her greeting. "Haven't been around in a little bit, huh?"

Her eyes roved downwards, scanning my form. It was a normal thing for her, something she always did. But this would be the first time she did so while my bandages were off, and she winced when she saw my arm, but quickly recovered, hiding it well.

"You need help with that?" She instantly offered before I could get my reply in, seeing my struggles working one-handed. I gave a small but hesitant nod, not wanting to burden her but knowing that she wouldn't give up on her own. She was stubborn like that, especially when it came to aiding others.

Emily hummed idly as she worked, hand deftly removing and rewinding the cloth around my arm.

"Y'know, this is the first time I've seen what's under your bandages. You always keep them on, even when we're outside." I knew she was just trying to make conversation, and that she didn't mean anything from it, but I still subconsciously tried to hide my arm, if only for a second. She must have still noticed though, for she continued, "Uhh... you don't have to talk about it if you don't want to..."

"No, it… it's fine, I guess." I brushed off her concern, answering more to avoid the awkward silence that would have inevitably followed than anything else. "I got them two years ago, just before I left my village for the city. There was a Beast attack and I got injured from it."

"Then why hide it? I think it looks cool!" Emily smiled as she stepped away, hands behind her back as she admired her handiwork. I had to admit, she did well. It was neither too tight or to lose, and spoke of her experience.

"You're in the minority then. To many others in the city, it's taboo to try and fight a Beast if you're not a hunter. They see it as giving it an unnecessary chance to evolve." I chuckled dryly to myself.

"That's stupid. What did they expect you to do, not defend yourself? So many people holding stupid beliefs." Emily frowned, eyebrows furrowed. "Like that class superiority shit I see people spouting all the time. Its dumb."

I chuckled again, but more in amusement this time. Of course she would say something like that, that's just the kind of person she was. Sometimes I still wondered how we remained friends despite our differences.

"But there still is some truth to it..." A lazy voice drawled out, its tone flat and emotionless, almost cold as he said it. "To be just born with more power, to be just born with a better environment, life is unfair like that sometimes huh."

Both Emily and I whipped our heads around, searching for the interrupter. Both of our gazes landed on the tall, lanky man just a few steps away, a familiar tuff of blond hair growing underneath the words Class 6. I idly noted that the thick gloves he discarded previously were back on his hands, and looking closer, multiple daggers were now visible, hanging loosely along the sides of his belt.

"It's you..." I stepped forward, putting myself between this guy and Emily. He knew, and if he was about to start something, I didn't want to involve Emily in this.

But of course, she would go and get involved anyway.

"Hey, thanks for helping this guy back there." Slapping me on the back and moving up. "I don't know what he would have done without you there, but it probably won't have been as nice.

"Tsk, whatever." Though his face remained blank, I caught a glimpse of his eyes widening slightly before falling back to a neutral expression. "Your one Max Caslight right?""

"You know me?" I raised an eyebrow upon asking. There were many, many other lowers who lurked down here compared to the smaller number of middles. It was almost impossible to stand out when the higher Classes always became the center of attention for the night.

"I was just now given a description of who to look out for. Imagine my surprise when it was the idiot I had just saved not moments ago." I felt Emily bristle next to me on my behalf at the insult, her friendly smile immediately turning into a deep frown. I merely shook my head ever so slightly, asking her to calm down. I had been called much worse before.

"Given your distinctive set of weapons, it wasn't really hard to find you. Bright red flags, really?" He continued, not noticing or perhaps not caring about Emily's reaction.

"Given a description? By who?" Emily blurted it out before I could. Although, I had to admit, I was curious about who would be looking for me of all people.

"The big boss man himself." His smirk grew wide across his face at our shocked reactions. "I've got a message all the way from the top."

"A message from… Wait, you're… you're a messenger?" Emily stuttered in disbelief after a short pause. Messengers were the Bosses most trusted men, the only ones who were allowed in the north room to meet with him regularly. They disseminated any instructions he wanted passed on, and delivered any updates back to him.

"So what if I am? Bastard only keeps me around because he knows I'm not a threat..." His face morphed into an ugly scowl, a bitter undertone in his voice.

"Damn hypocrite, spouting that equality shit when you dismiss me with one look." I heard him mutter under his breath, and Emily caught it too if her sudden tensing up said anything.

Yet, he eventually pulled out a metal card, a complex circular pattern printed onto it, that seemed to give off an almost ethereal glow. It was proof enough, unreproducible due to the skill used to create it.

"Look, you want to hear the message or not?" He snapped at us. Seeing us both give a sharp nod, he continued.

"There's been a change of schedule. A last minute drop in has appeared, and the Boss man wants you to fight him."

"The big boss has also decided to place a bounty on your opponent. A pouch of bronze, at least 400 or so coins, is being offered if you win your next bout..." I had to control myself to not let my jaw drop when the words came out of his mouth. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw that Emily didn't even bother to try to hide her similar reaction.

"I know. I reacted the same when he told me. Don't know what's so special about you, but he told me it was… motivation, for you to fight seriously." It took me a while to process the whole message. 'Over 40 silver coins? For one fight? That was almost as much as I earned in a whole month at the warehouse!'

But there was a catch here. There had to be.

"And if I refuse?" The words tumbled out of my mouth before I could stop them. But maybe there was a way to use this to my advantage.

'What, are you crazy? This is a deal the boss doesn't make lightly."

"Try me." I met his gaze and stared right into his eyes, refusing to budge.

"Oh, I know I can't do anything to you." He laughed as he said that, a low chuckle that I did not like the sound of at all. "But my other associates, however, those that the boss actually keeps around for their strength, I'm sure they could do a much better job at convincing you."

In a flash, Emily moved.

I could barely track it, probably couldn't if I hadn't seen it before. The guy barely had time to move his arms in reaction before a sword was to his neck.

"You can insult me all you want." Pushing her sword was pushed ever so slightly closer, Emily continued, "But insulting my friends, threatening them? That's where I draw the line."

"Lucky you, having a speed skill." He growled, not daring to move.

"It's called a dash. And it means that I can close the distance between us in the blink of an eye. So... Do. Not. Test. Me."

Suddenly, Emily tensed up, body twitching. I had seen this before, on the stage. It was then I noticed he had removed one of his gloves, the hand having snuck under Emily's tunic.

Taking the opportunity, the man shoved Emily back, pushing her away.

"Momentary delayed paralysis." He said, running his hand over his neck to check for blood. It came away empty of course, Emily was protective, but not in the business of hurting people unprovoked. "Not the strongest skill. Very limited in fact. But it has it's uses."

Emily glared back, tightening her grip on her sword handle.

"Tsk. I wasn't going to do anything." He scowled. "I know I'm not strong enough to even try."

"Ok, let's calm down here." I had to step in before things got out of hand. I didn't trust him, but I wasn't willing to start anything over it. "Just... Why don't you take me to see him."

"Well then, you're even more of an idiot than I first thought." He started waking off, expecting us to keep up. "Fine, follow me then."

"You lied to him." As we lagged behind, I leaned down to whisper into her ear, just soft enough that the guy couldn't hear it. "You're limited to a single dash per person. You can't do anything for the next fifteen minutes."

"But he doesn't know that, does he?" She replied with a cheeky smile. I could not help but give a light chuckle in reply.

We approached a large metal door, one that was built into the wall and didn't seem to have any handles. The man stopped right in front of it, raising his fist and tapping a series of rapid knocks against the metal surface.

After a long pause, a muffled voice called out from inside. "Come in. Come in."

With a loud creak, the metal started to slide open, seemingly vanishing into the walls. It revealed a large room, amenities such as bookshelves and cabinets surrounding a lone desk in the middle. Behind it, a figure sat feet propped on the desk, looking uninterestedly at the comings and goings of the arena below him. I spotted 4 others surrounding him, standing guard at various points in the room, all either Class 4 or Class 3.

"Ah, Owen. good to have you back." Mr Vesz turned his head, a smile plastered on his face as he paused his work in greeting.

"Yes boss. But there's a slight problem…" Owen actually paled when Mr Vesz raised an eyebrow. "I think it's better if Max here explains it."

"I see…" A cigarette was pulled out and lit. A hand raised when Owen turned to leave, stopping him in his tracks and forcing him to stay by my side.. "No, Owen you stay. Let's hear what our guest has to say, shall we?"

"Max Caslight. Now what do I owe the pleasure of seeing you in here after 2 years?" A short puff of smoke was exhaled. "You've done well avoiding a meeting with me after all."

"It's about the change in my opponent." This was a gamble, and I knew it. But one that when weighed against the risks, I was willing to take.

"And I assume Owen told you about the bounty."

"Yes, yes he did."

"Good. So what seems to be the problem then?"

"No."

"No?" His eyebrow raised further, taking another pull of his cigarette. He hasn't acknowledged our presence, his feet still propped up, as his gaze turned back towards the arena.

"Max..." Emily's voice was low, a quiet warning. "Whatever you're doing... Stop."

"No." I continued, ignoring her. "I want the bounty up-front."

"And, if you would so indulge me, why should I listen you." Mr Vesz removed his feet from the desk, posturing his body towards me as he straightened out the creases in his suit. "I brought you in here, I could very easily throw you out. Hell, I could make it so you can never set foot within these walls again."

"Eh, I have a home I can go back to." I shrugged. "I'm not like the other people here, I don't have any attachment to this place. I could easily leave whenever I wanted."

"Besides, you need me." I paused, trying to find the right words. "For whatever reason, out of all the people you have down here, you want me to fight this person. There has to be something about me that you need."

The silence that followed was deafening, and I saw out of the corner of my eye that even Owen was starting to sweat. Vesz leaned forward in his chair, hands steepled in front of him, deeply considering my request.

"You are… something else, aren't you?" Vesz chuckled, grinning widely at me.

"I knew I liked you Max. The moment I laid eyes on you I could tell you had something different." he straightened himself up, reaching under his desk.

"Fine, you want the bounty up-front. You can have it." He pulled out a leather pouch from underneath the table, dropping it and letting it produce an audible chink. "Perform well, and after the fight I can guarantee you these coins."

"And you know what, I'll even sweeten the deal." He held up two fingers, each adorned with expensive rings. "Win, and I'll double the payment."

"Deal. I don't know if I'll be able to win, but you have me interested now."

"Good, that's all I want." Mr Vesz finally leaned back in his chair, waving us off. "Now, get out of my sight."

One of the guards growled at us, and I took that as my cue to leave, Emily and Owen both following me. Once we were out, the same guard made some motions with his hands, and the metal doors closed once again. For a while, no one said anything.

"Well, that went rather well." I decided to break the silence.

"Max! That was beyond dangerous." Emily was on my case immediately, pulling me close and giving me disapproving glare. Or at least she tried to, considering she was a head shorter than me.

"No, it really wasn't." I tried to explain myself. "I held all the cards there, both he and I knew that. Whoever my opponent is, he is desperate for me to face him."

"I can't believe I'm agreeing with the hypocrite, but you really need to be crazy to do something like that. You may think you had the advantage there, but Mr Vesz is still as dangerous as they come." Owen walked up behind her, a ghost of a smile on his lips. "But you fought for what you wanted, I can respect that."

"You're both hopeless." Emily sighed, raising her arms in defeat. "Absolutely hopeless."

"Well, at least your opponent should be interesting. I got to face this guy called Owen, and I don't even know... who... he... is..." The realization only just dawned on her. Emily quickly spun around to face the person in question, pointing at him and shouting, "It's you!"

"Oh you have got to be kidding me." He moaned, suddenly realizing it as well. "Of all the people, I got this annoying girl. Why me? I would take literally anyone else. Does fate hate me or something?"

The shocked look on Emily's face was priceless, although it soon morphed into a mischievous smile that I knew meant she was scheming. It was an unusual sight, Emily was rarely a spiteful person, although she really could be petty when she wanted to be.

"So you're who I'm up against?" Emily sauntered over to Owen. I expected him to recoil away when Emily reached out to him, but the change of tone caught him off guard. Before he could react, Emily pulled him into a headlock, pushing him down.

"It's time for a rematch then! We need to plan our fight then! The audience will be amazed by our show! What's your skill? We need to showcase ourselves, so I need to know what to expect from you! If we impress the boss, maybe we can even get extra pay like Max! You know, maybe..." Just as soon as Emily put up her facade, it was gone. Back was the grin on her face, although I was pretty sure she was putting a bit too much force gripping Owen's neck, and the smile was just a bit too forced..

Winking at me, Emily started to drag Owen away, still babbling on about things I could not be bothered to pay attention to. Although, I did catch a glimpse of Owen taking one last look back at me as he was taken away, a pleading look in his eyes.

All I decided to do was respond with a shrug, leaving him to his demise.

The cheers of the audience grew louder in my ears again, though I could just make out the chorus of groans that were mixed in. 'That should be the end of the round. My fight should be next up...' The repeated tollings of the bell confirmed my suspicions, three rings to signal the end of the third fight. Although the audience didn't know that it was also the signal for the fourth round fighters to get ready.

The fighter entrance to the main arena was nothing special, just an opening in between stands for people to walk in and out, decorated with a few torches placed along the walkway. Approaching, I had to duck to the side, out of the way of a pair dragging a limp body along the corridor. The man was covered in bruises and cuts littered his body, as blood dripped onto the floor, leaving a trail behind him.

'Hopefully they can get him to Tanner in time before he bleeds out.' I recalled his own experiences with the boy. The healing process was a painful one but most people were just happy to have something to stop bleeding and fix up deep wounds. Bruises and scars were plentiful, but at least they were still alive.

The shadows in the corridor made the perfect cover to wait until I was called up, leaning against the wall in wait as I unconsciously rubbed my thumb over the smooth metal of the spear I drew. It was comforting in a way, memories of happier times coming back to help me.

'Realistically, I should be satisfied with what I got. It was a risk that paid off, but this unknown is even more of a risk for me, especially someone who has the attention of Mr Vesz himself. But the money though…?' The dilemma continued to play in my mind, yet I knew a decision had to be made soon as the audience once again grew louder at the encouragement of the announcer.

"In the red corner! Some of you may recognise our next fighter, a regular face in the ring! Win or lose, his matches are always an exciting spectacle to behold! Please welcome our little trickster, Max Caslight!" The booming voice echoed around the entire chamber, the crowd only becoming more excited at the introduction.

I groaned loudly. The announcer hyping me up only served to exasperate my worries, as it meant the odds of my win were so low that they were trying to get as many people as possible to bet on me.

'Well, there's no point in delaying the inevitable...' With my head held high, betraying the conflicting swirl of emotions within me, I stepped forward into the light.