Holy War: Two Worlds and an In- Between

Chapter 24: Fighting the Odds

"Don't worry," the girl who helped me in the capital whispered to me, "I'm not gonna let him hurt you."

We sat in a glass cube at the edge of a large field. The whole set up looked exactly like a fighting arena from one of those medieval shows I'd watch with grandma. The large circular field, tiers of seats overlooking it, and the excited crowd chanting for the fighting to commence made all of it seem unreal.

However, being forced to stand beside a girl who was seated on literal gold, because her father demanded I pay for disrupting his stroll was enough to take me out of my fantasy. There's something about kidnapping someone that really darkens the mood. Not to mention, the man gave me sideways stares as I stood there.

His perfect posture, long beard, and short hair perfectly groomed, and his visibly expensive clothing set him apart from the other members of the audience. Well, that and his front-row seat to the action. They all seemed to be less than wealthy people, placing bets on who would win the fight. The man, however, seemed to be solely focused on the game.

"Girl," the man called.

"Yes?" I answered. He turned his head to me, knitting his thick eyebrows together.

"Young lady, you may address me by Sir Itachi until I receive my knighting when you will call me Lord Itachi, or you shall lose your tongue!" He fumed.

I was more concerned about him grabbing his sword than what I addressed him by. I still didn't want to chance the nasty gash on my face after a slice from it, so I corrected myself.

"Yes, Sir Itachi?" I asked in concern.

"Where are you from? You don't seem to be from around here," he snarled a bit. His daughter gave him a sharp look.

"Oh, you wouldn't know it," I said trying to stay casual.

"I asked you a question, and I intend on getting answers," he said in a more strict than aggressive tone.

"America?" I answered. They all looked at me as though I was crazy, but didn't press any further.

A few moments later, there was a gust of wind sweeping the field in a circular movement. The air was thick and swept up all of the loose leaves scattered on the floor creating a tornado effect. As the tornado died down, a man with grey skin appeared in its place with a huge smile. His massive hands were wrapped around a thick microphone.

"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen! Are we ready for the chaos?" The man announced to the crowd who roared in response.

"On the left, we have the powerful, Jule," the man announced as a woman ran from inside a room that seemed to be underground, "and on the left, we have Yuri, the returning champ, the king of the cyclops!"

The room boomed with anger and dismay as a large muscular man stormed out shaking the earth with every step. I wasn't that concerned about his large muscular stature versus the one of the thin, short, pink haired woman standing barefoot. I was more concerned about the fact that the man had a thumb-shaped head with one large eye in the middle, and the loud roar he directed at the crowd. The second that the loud voice howled at them, they cheered in approval.

"Remember, these two are fighting to win ten pounds of gold coins. To win, someone has to step out of the ring, or leave without air in their lungs!" The man announced to the crowd who screamed in approval, "Let's begin!" He screamed throwing his hands into the air.

Suddenly, about thirty men in whicker hats surrounded the circle, and twenty more filed on the top tier of the stands. I looked around as the men in the circle jumped up, landing left foot then right foot, while simultaneously raising their hands to the sky. The men on the stands through their hands and their bodies in a full circle, while maintaining their feet staying perfectly planted on the floor.

All at once, the earth began to rumble, and the piece of earth the arena was on began to levitate in the air. The crowd cheered, but my mouth hung open as we ascended further and further above the ground. The section with grass shrunk and separated to itself. The men all moved to the top tier and stood as still as soldiers. I didn't bother looking at my captors as we were completely in mid-air. The sky felt so close to my reach that I was tempted to touch it.

"Fight!" The man instructed before the earth opened up and swallowed him whole.

The two began. First, Jule pulled a sword out of her holder as the cyclops charged at her. In one swift dainty move, she drove the sword through the cyclops's chest and twisted it with a smile. The crowd gasped at the seemingly easy attack, but the Cyclops just smirked.

She pulled out the knife, pointing it down so quickly that the dark blood wiped off of the blade. Yuri looked at her with a giant smile, completely unphased by her attack. Quickly and all together, Yurie slammed his giant fists against the floor, causing it to shake dangerously. While Jule was off balance, Yurie grabbed her by her small shoulders, picked her up, and slammed her into the earth, pummeling her with endless punched to her body.

"Oh, no!" I screamed to Sir Itachi, "Make him stop!"

"Be quiet, girl!" Sir Itachi warned as the cyclops clasped both his hands, raised them into the air preparing to annihilate her.

"Don't worry Margaret," the girl who saved me whispered.

The crowd chaired loudly as he lowered his hands to her face. I was expecting to hear a crunch pow, but instead, I heard a loud pow. Jule had managed to blast him away, making him land on the field with his singular eye closed. I was confused as she stood back up seemingly fine, and slowly walked back over to him.

"Men are so simple," she spoke in a strong voice you wouldn't expect from someone who looked as dainty as her, "even when they aren't even men, just monsters."

"Unbelievable!" The other sister smiled looking at her father, "Father, she has Defense! The magical ability to counter-attack any blow she receives. It's amazing, after all of that, I'm sure the next blow will knock his head off his shoulders!"

Jule approached him, pointing her sword at his face and smiling. The blade began to glow pink as it made a soft hum. The crowd sat quietly on the edge of their seats as we knew what would happen next. We were expecting the Cyclops to be blown away using his own force.

In a shocking turn of events, the cyclops widened his giant eye just in time to turn the blade around and point it at her face. Her eyes widened as the light shot from the blade, and back at her, causing her to fly back out of the field.

"No!" the girl who was swooning over the woman's power screamed standing to her feet, "You dirty monster!"

"Simmer down Summer, she can still be used," Sir Itachi said to his daughter, "and calm down Winter. This is family time," to his other. I began to wonder about the location of Spring and Autumn.

The announcer reappeared from the ground to address the crowd who was screaming in praise, "Now, isn't that something? Jule has been annihilated by the king of the cyclopes, Yuri! Give it up for our undefeated champion!" He announced.

The crowd continued to laugh, and scream in joy. I had never seen so much happiness from a large group of people. Yuri himself was looking at the woman he had just pummeled on the floor. Jule, on the other hand, was being escorted back the way she came by the magic guards.

"Now, is there anyone else prepared to fight our champion?" The man asked. The crowd suddenly grew eerily quiet.

"Oh, come on! Can nobody challenge our fighter?" The man asked.

There was silence from the crowd. There wasn't a single soul who wanted to challenge Yuri. I was starting to lose hope until there was a swift turning tornado beginning to form on the field.

It seemed to only get thicker as people squinted to see what it contained. Soon enough, the tornado subdued, and a hooded figure stood in its place. The person didn't say anything. They just stood there, staring downwards.

The crowd was completely silent, sitting in anticipation for the hooded figure to speak. He never did, but the announcer made it so he didn't have to.

"Ladies and gentlemen," he announced, "I believe we have a challenger!"