Vel rubbed their eyes, trying to work out what had just happened. Everything had been going swimmingly. They had been fighting this weird team of beings, one of which Vel was sure was the Lightbearer, except there were only three of them and the other two were definitely not Rethans. A Temthan and a Skyavok. Weird choices. Nonsensical choices.
It had started off pretty easy. Vel had commanded Vullis and Valkir to take down the Rethan, after they personally took out the Temthan. The Skyavok had been particularly troublesome, far too mobile for Vazin to deal with, despite Vazin being the most agile of the group. The Skyavok was fighting similarly to the Happy Cold, except with lighter and more numerous strikes. Probably for the best, since Vazin took too much damage from the little thing.
The Lightbearer on the other hand (they HAD to be the Lightbearer) had been putting up far too much of a fight for Vel’s liking. Vullis and Valkir had barely made a dent in the opposing Rethan’s armour. For some reason, the Lightbearer wasn’t in their standard gear, instead they were wearing standard House Fighter armour, with a multitude of additions to obscure their more identifying features. They were not using their Lightedge shield either. Still, they WERE using a shield and gunstaff and to great effect. Valkir had taken multiple shots and a stab wound to the side, forcing them to back away. Vullis on the other hand had at least kept them preoccupied, and was doing so long enough that Vel had managed to keep the Temthan down. That being said, the Temthan did manage to claw off some of their armour, but that was not too much of an issue. With a thrust of their gunstaff, Vel stabbed the Temthan through a gap in their armour plating, reducing their health meter to zero, removing them from the battle.
Eventually though, they had managed to beat the Lightbearer down. The Skyavok was not skilled enough to take on two at once, meaning Vel could assist Valkir and Vullis in keeping the exile down. Well, not down. But definitely rendering them unable to launch a proper offence. All they needed to do was wear down the health meters of both the Lightbearer and the skittering Skyavok and they would have been the first standard beings to defeat the Lightbearer in combat for over a decade.
But then the Thraki appeared. The colossal monster had exploded out of nowhere, setting the entire arena on fire. It had instantly taken Vazin out of the equation, the burst of flames having caught them off guard and emptied their health meter. The battle had gone from a 2v4 to a 3v3. Or a 2v3v1, Vel wasn’t quite sure. Unfortunately, without Vazin keeping the Skyavok occupied, said Skyavok was now on the offence, and had targeted Vel himself. Luckily, the Skyavok had only average aim and had only managed to land one blow on Vel’s left arm, but Vel did not need their left arm to fight.
The Thraki however, it quickly proved to be on the side of the Skyavok and the Lightbearer. It had turned its attention to Vel as well. That would not have been a problem, even as Vel threw the Skyavok into a nearby pillar instantly taking a large chunk of its health meter with it. However, the flames were worrying.
Again, though, not a problem. All Vel had to do was move. Which they did. As they did so, they fired their gunstaff up at the Thraki, hitting it in both wings.
This… turned out to be a bad move. The Thraki started falling. But it also… seemed to get bigger. To the point that it landed directly on Vel, taking both Vel and itself out. Utterly depleting both their health meters.
Now Vel was in the recovery bay, as was the majority of their team. Vazin was barely conscious, the automated bots repairing scorch marks in their armour while they watched the match going on without them on a large screen. On the other side of the room, separated by a wall of glass, was the opposing team’s Temthan, who was up and watching the screen with great intent. The Thraki however was nowhere to be seen. Instead, there was a… Banikan… in the bed next to the Temthan. That made no sense.
Vel rubbed their eyes again. Their stomach was in a lot of pain. Clearly a lot of weight had been dropped on him. However, that physical weight suddenly seemed meaningless as Vullis teleported into the bed next to Vel. Without Vel guiding their team, they were now easy pickings for the Lightbearer and that Light-damned Skyavok, who was somehow still standing. In fact, it was the Skyavok who dealt the final blow, filling the final bed in Retha Squad Three’s recovery room.
“How did we just lose?” Vel couldn’t help but exclaim as the weight of defeat crushed them more than the Thraki-turned Banikan had. After checking on their team, Vel peered over through the glass wall, where the broken half of Xeno Dessaron One were both resting. The Banikan was gone, and in its place was a small, furry creature that Vel did not recognize at first.
“We were just beaten by the first Spast to ever take part in the Great Arena…” Vazin muttered under their breath, answering Vel’s confusion.
Outside, the crowd was going wild, to the point that the live audience was drowning out the announcers. They had not seen a fight that chaotic and unexpected in a long time.
“By the Darkness… did we win?” Kayel asked, barely able to even use his telepathic link over the cheers.
“By the Light, yes, yes we did…” Retvik smiled beneath his battered helmet.
“How?”
“I am… not quite sure. But we should take a moment to enjoy this. It is…” Retvik couldn’t help but smile some more. “It is quite the achievement…”