The air was cool and crisp and the audience of the very basic Sandblast Arena were awfully silent as the two competitors entered from opposite sides. Neither fighter today was an official gladiator. Instead, they were political leaders, the rulers of two powerful races, appearing in this arena to prove that one side was more powerful than the other. However, the audience was well aware that both leaders represented truly different types of power. Panos, the Prime Minister of the Torr and their long-ago barely elected leader, was cruel, harsh and the initiator of this gladiator challenge. He believed in power over the weak, in clawing your way to the top and then staying there, that the meek existed to be used and ruled over. Rethais, the High General of the Rethavok, but a more fairly elected leader, believed the opposite, that it was the duty of the strong to protect those who are more vulnerable, to make sure all were equal. And while the audience, mostly made up of other races to provide some sense of balance, knew who both leaders were, there was definitely a sense of bias. Other races’ leaders may not have liked Panos or Rethais, but they did know who was safer, more trustworthy.
Today’s battle was being announced by the Raptor himself. Tromos was on the commentary deck, explaining everything that was going on, namely how Panos had challenged Rethais to battle. However, while Panos got muted applause, entering the arena in a melee-only mech suit belonging to Telumeus, one of the best Torr gladiators alive, there was genuine shock, surprise and confusion as Rethais entered, wearing the glistening white and gold armour of the Lightbearer, the third ever Triumphant Champion and the first non-Banikan to win over 300 matches in a row, undefeated. It seemed that most had forgotten that Retvik Rethianos was the (ever so slightly) older sibling of Rethais, and the Lightbearer’s armour fit perfectly. Really, the whole battle felt like a very weird parallel to the fight between Retvik and Telumeus, just over a year ago, a month or so before the Sudden Darkness.
Both gladiators though were armed with just two long daggers, and those with keener eyes noticed that one of Rethais’s daggers had a blue hilt, but no one was sure why.
With everything explained and the temporary gladiators ready, a gong echoed across the arena, signalling the start of battle.
“You still have a chance to apologise. You can say sorry now, throw in the towel and walk out of here without receiving a black eye!” Rethais loudly proclaimed. “You have a choice.”
Panos snarled as he lunged forward, his movements amplified by the exo-suit he was wearing. The Prime Minister was wearing more armour and was far more reliant on technology, mostly to cover up that he was rather old. The armour also gave Panos a lot more height, in fact, it actually made Panos nearly as tall as Rethais was. That lunge didn’t do much, and Rethais calmly sighed, then side-stepped the attack.
“I made my choice!” Panos hissed as he awkwardly turned around. “And my choice is that I am going to stab you in the fucking face. You’re so weak you’re wearing your brother’s armour.”
Rethais shrugged as they dodged several more weak lunges. “I wanted to pay my respects to my death-honoured sibling. And I will be honest, Retvik was probably a far better person than I am. They were a noble soul who cared for everyone, regardless of race. Meanwhile, you barely look after your own, unless they have something they can offer you.”
“An eye for an eye, little Rethan! An eye for-”
Panos attempted to be a smart-ass as he went for Rethais once more, but Panos found himself sprawling backwards. He had completely underestimated Rethais’s speed and range, and the High General had cleanly roundhouse kicked Panos across the face. Rethais then proceeded to stomp over and kick Panos again, keeping him on the ground but not doing much else.
“Admittedly, I did say I wanted to punch you in the face, but I saw an opportunity to kick you in the face and I had to take it.”
Despite wearing a mouth guard, Panos was certain that Rethais had dislodged several teeth.
“You motherfucker!”
“My, ugh, mother, is not someone who deserves to be, as you said, fucked…” Rethais tutted. “I do not know why you are getting angry at me. You consented to this. You started this. I have given you multiple opportunities to save face.”
Panos rubbed his face, then snarled. He grabbed one of his daggers, then inserted them into an extra sheath, one that didn’t make much sense. He withdrew the blade once more and raised it, ready to strike Rethais.
“I won’t ever apologise to you. I won’t ever go back on my opinions of you. You’re a weak little socialist. I have all the real power, and you will one day bend to the will of the Torr, the same way your predecessors did. I’ll win, no matter what.”
The Torr leader hissed once more, then yet again charged at Rethais, his dagger raised. However, just like every other time, Panos failed to hit anything. But rather than dodging the strike, Rethais blocked the strike, by simply grabbing Panos’s arm and ripping the dagger from his hands. A swift twist and a kick to the back of the leg made Panos unable to fight back while Rethais inspected the blade. After a moment, Rethais rolled their eyes and threw the blade away, out of reach. They then drew one of their own daggers, dragged it across the back of Panos’s hand then put it away again.
“You cannot even cheat very well. You put some sort of toxin or poison on this blade, and did so in an obvious way. I do not want to know what sort of toxin you wanted to use, I do not even care. All you have done is repeatedly proven my points. However, there is one thing I have not yet done, and I want to make sure I do so before I kick the piss out of you until the teleporters take you away.”
Panos shuddered, then began to flail, trying to break out of Rethais’s grip. The Rethan General didn’t like that at all, so they threw Panos to the ground, stamped on their stomach then did exactly as they said they would. Rethais repeatedly punched Panos in the face, until his skin was heavily bruised and his eye was bleeding.
Once Rethais was satisfied, they stepped back and stood up straight. Knowing he was battered beyond belief, had been well and truly beaten, and was unwilling to suffer any more, Panos immediately hit the emergency forfeit button on his health meter, then hit the emergency teleport button next to it. In a flash of light, the Prime Minister disappeared.
Rethais stared at where Panos had been lying, then sighed to themselves. The crowds were cheering, they seemed to be on Rethais’s side, and Rethais had managed to prove their point without even really using their daggers. Something felt off. But Rethais pushed that feeling to one side and allowed themselves a small smile.
With a shrug, a proper smile and a wave, Rethais made their way out of the arena, then made their way to the booths at the top of the arena, the fancy seats set aside for important beings. They had someone they needed to talk to.