Entered for fic challenge #8 from the Mostly Lucky Star Forum. Loosely dealing with the theme of Wrestling/Arena sport/combat
Now this is in tandum with my AU crossover Standing Between Luck and Oblivion with the Elder Scrolls series and saw this a nice opportunity to give a sneak peek preview of what will be included later on. So some of you reading might not really get this and I am aware of that, but do enjoy however you wish and I did try to make this feel independant with its own opening/closing as if it were an episode of sorts. For now this shall be a short excerpt for the challenge and will be moved to the crossover section after completion of the fic challenge round, then later deleted when included as part of the story proper.
T - mild violence, mention of gore, and tad bit of language.
None For All, All For Nothing
'…why am I doing this again?'
"Come on Kagamin, not a time to have cold feet now!"
That's right, because this little blue haired elf pushing her toward the sign up station was insistent that she had to.
"You must avenge me!" Konata punctuated her shove with a mock cry.
This was so stupid to start with that neither one of them should have bothered showing up. A little bump into the blonde on the streets, next thing Kagami knew she was outright assaulted in retaliation all the while insulted how weak she had been and for not being prepared at all times. Then challenged to a duel to top it off. What the hell kind of person does that?
Kagami growled as she kept loosing ground despite how hard she tried to plant her feet. "You're not dead! In fact you're just the opposite of that."
"But she called me a kid! I mean do you know just how insulting that is?" Konata pouted. "As my lover, don't you have to protect my honor?"
"We, are not, lovers!"
A surprised look overcame the other girl's face. Was… was she about to cry? No! She'd seen this look before, the wobbly lips and overly sad eyes; another one of her over-played acts. It didn't help that Kagami knew this, for her shout had garnered the attention of plenty of the crowd that would believe that the elf's expression was genuine.
"W-we're not?" Konata continued with the act, adding even a whimpering sniffle.
"Oh don't start. If you want revenge so bad, go fight her yourself!"
"Noo! She won't take me seriously! And she kicked you around so easily so you must have some need for a second showdown too!"
"…please don't remind me of that…" Kagami actually grimaced at the memory of it. "You know what…fine. Let's get this over with."
"Yay! I'll go order you a pine wood box, no need to tell me your measurements."
"Yeah… See, this is the reason I hold off on going so far as to call you a friend."
-o-o-o-
"Okay. Really, what is it with all these youngsters who want to throw their life away!"
The dark skinned Redguard more grumbled to himself the moment the young lavender haired woman stepped in the door, as if he knew at that precise moment she would be walking through. In the bloodworks it might as well be part of his sixth sense, the place was so rotten of spilt blood that any fresh meat descending those stairs was like a waft of spring air.
For Kagami, the same could be said of the old stone stadium underworks, but to the opposite effect. "Don't worry, I'm not an applicant for the competitions. I'm actually here on appointment for a duel."
"…duel? Ah, now that's a laugh." Though the deeper chuckle he let off sounded a touch sarcastic. "Against Patricia right? We don't do duels anymore like we used to, not that you'd remember you snot nosed brat. Patricia happens to be the Yellow Team's Champion!"
"Champion?"
"Yeah, ya know, their best!" He boasted yet clearly upset. "What I wouldn't give to get some talent like that on Blue Team once in awhile, or at least someone with enough guts to put on a show… The crowd loved it when she threw my last guy up on the second tier spikes, just to see just how much was stuffed inside him… mmm guts."
Kagami decided right then and there to turn right back around and forget this nonsense, as she should have from the start. "…I think I'll be on my way now, clearly this has been a misunderstanding…"
She had barely turned around when the older man's hand landed on her shoulder in firm vice grip. "Oh nonono, no. Patricia is scheduled today with a gladiator challenge today, and oddly enough, for some reason when I have absolutely no one to throw to the wolves, low and behold in walks someone looking to fight her. She's called you out for a reason and I'm damn sure she can spot some talent."
"…so she didn't challenge me to settle a grudge but to help put on a show…"
"Could be. I bet you feel like ripping out her innards now and let me tell you…" He leaned in a bit uncomfortably "-that's a great feeling to have."
Incensed or not, this was all completely off-putting. "You people have problems."
"So is the life of a Gladiator." The pressure on her shoulder was let up and he led her over towards the equipment racks.
"Like I said, I'm not-"
"Face it kid, you're fighting one so you'll be fighting as one." A bundle of leather straps and blue cloth was forced into her hands.
"By the way, the name's Owen and welcome to Blue Team. Now… please tell me you can wield a bigger sword than that stick you're carrying." He gestured to her katana.
Kagami tightened her grip around the sheath not about to give up her favored weapon. "Like how big?"
The dark skinned man simply swept his hand grandly to present the rack of his toys; long steel claymores, broad battle axes, and solid iron hammers. "These would do better for what you'll be going up against."
"Wh-What the heck is that supposed to mean?"
"Ah don't fret, die with head held high and give 'em a show is what matters. We'll show 'em a thing or two about the honor Blue Team has yet!" Owen guffawed without holding back.
'I think I understand why Blue Team doesn't exist anymore…'
-o-o-o-
Out in the stadium, Konata had just found a proper spot among the seats circling the round battle arena below. She had wanted a view from front row but the crowd was pretty heavy today, there must have been some good fights lined up and hopefully Kagami's little match wasn't booed out.
Looking out at the throngs of people of mixed races, from the bland looking Imperial humans to Orcs and the feline Khajiit, out from them she spotted a familiar head of lavender hair.
"Hey Tsukasa! Over here!" She began waving to get the girl's attention. Even among hundreds, the blue haired elf wasn't hard to miss.
Squeezing through several others along the row, Tsukasa managed to make it over. "Oh this is exciting, but I hope sis will be okay!"
"I'm sure she will, that oaf just caught us off guard last time. I mean seriously who just attacks you in the middle of the street over nothing?"
"Is that her?"
Tsukasa pointed to the tall blonde strolling out from one of the gates below. Smug and boastfully saluting up at her fans with a cute wink, what felt like the majority of the stadium's patrons roaring in approval.
"That's her all right…" Konata let out with a little unease, something felt off about this.
"Greetings and welcome!"
The general noise of the crowd subsided as the speaker for the matches began calling forth the next in the lineup.
"Do we have a treat for you folks today! A new Pit Dog of Blue Team dares to take on a challenge from the Champion of the Yellow Team. Is this a desperate proof of merit? – Or a delectable slice up of a lamb!"
That couldn't be right, the Patricia girl was there on the end. She had to be part of the next match as she certainly looked ready to do battle, a large axe with a copper shine in hand and wearing armor of… Yellow Team...
"Ooooohhhhh no." Konata let off as warning, spotting what had been so wrong with this picture.
On the other end of the area, another set of picketed iron gates lowered, unveiling a young lavender haired woman adorned in skimpy armour of the Blue Team fashion. Kagami did not look pleased. "This. Reeks."
"Fighters to the center! Meet your death with honor."
The two strolled toward each other, Kagami hefting the iron war hammer she had chosen across her shoulder, while Patricia showed off twirling her mighty axe with one hand. About ten paces apart they halted, just on the edge of the central metal grate in the otherwise hard dirt floor. A bad memory involving a Daedroth flickered across Kagami's mind seeing it.
Looking back up she then noticed the way the other was eyeing her up, the blonde letting loose an odd smile that crept over her lips.
"I make a request!" She suddenly called, turning to the stands where the announcer presided. "As champion, I call for the monster challenge! All three!"
"MY! Folks, today truly is special! Though a one on one match, Patricia wants to add in a dash of chaos and mayhem! Dare – We – Give it to her!"
A eruption of noise that couldn't even be called cheers was the answer.
"Wh-what's going on Kona-chan?" Tsukasa squeaked, correctly sensing that the situation had just gone from bad to worse.
"The monster challenge. Usually it's a champion-only game of them versus whatever beast that's been brought in. Got to see a guy go up against a Land Dreugh once… not pretty."
"We need to stop this! This isn't what sis came here for!"
"…I don't think there is anything we can do." Konatareplied, genuinely as nervous . "We just have to believe Kagami can do this.
To the side, a set of solid gates clanked and screeched as gears and latches were unlocked. Groans of some beast on the other side alerting that it knew something was up, that it was being let out.
"~I hope you don't get taken out in the first hit!" Patricia laughed as she liesurely got into a stance for whatever charged out at them.
Similarly Kagami did the same, but much more on her guard. "What are you up to? Why do all this?"
"Three of them, two of us. Kill the second one before I do and you win… I kill all three and I'll kill you too. Weak women playing warrior shouldn't exist."
"I am not weak, you just attacked me out of no wh-"
"-I barbarian and no understand you words~!"
Oh, now that riled up the lavender haired girl. Not at all listened to and subjected to this Nord's game. Alright, if she wanted to play, she would see just how weak Hiiragi Kagami was when pushed to play along. "…bring it on…"
"At least make it entertaining."
The gates finally began to lower, dark chambers beyond highlighting the large forms emerging into the sunlight. Bullish heads crowned with wide horns and fur manes that ran down their muscled form, standing erect on two large hoofed feet as their hands were free to wield a weapon of their own, thankfully which only one was given. Even so, that war hammer looked like a mere club within its mighty fist.
"Oohh~ Minotaurs!" Patricia practically cooed. "Come play with me!" Or more so she dashed right at them. The woman had to be completely nuts, but the crowd was shouting their approval and roared as she rolled under a swing and cut up into the beast's arm, drawing first blood of the battle.
Other shouts made themselves known. Cat calls and obscenities at the lavender haired girl that had yet to make a move.
"Come on Kagami, don't stay on the sideline!" Konata felt like she was the only one cheering for her, Tsukasa beside her having frozen up in shock upon seeing the minotaurs. Despite how impossible it was that her friend heard her, maybe she had.
Kagami's stance shifted as one the beasts looked her way, shifting her weight forward to bring momentum as she charged forward for a swing. Instead of doing any fancy rolling and ducking as her opponent was, she smashed the ball point of the hammer into the fist meant for her, an audible crack of bone accompanied the meaty thwack.
Emboldened, Kagami raised the hammer to hit it in the ribs but no longer had the appropriate momentum for the heavy weapon, the blow practically bouncing off. To such a large animal it was just enough probably to leave some bruising, in fact most of what she could do with the hammer would only accomplish that. She tried to remember the way Menien back at Kvatch had handled the weapon but that served no pointers as he had used it on the smaller daedra, simply bashing in their head.
Stepping back as the bull tried grasping for her, swinging thick arms her own body size, she realized that with a minotaur she couldn't do that. It was much to too tall for her…
But…
Out of the corner of her eye she saw Patricia, saw how she used the axe to render a muscle here and there useless as she one by one sliced them away to weaken an arm or leg. By doing this the blonde was able go on the defensive while taking on two of the minotaur, counter attacking with a neatly placed slice for every strike the beasts threw at her.
'I just got to bring this bad boy down to my level'
And there it was, Kagami knew what to aim for. The hammer couldn't slice, but it sure made short work of the more delicate parts of the body. Dodging another swipe, she sidestepped to wind up her body for another swing, and letting it loose into the minotaur's knee.
It bellowed in pain, backing up with a hobble trying to support itself on its remaining leg, not quite enough to bring it to the ground but tempered to give Kagami some space.
"All right! See Tsukasa, she's doing fine!" Konata shook the twin sister, who had resorted to instead keep both hands up covering her face.
"I-I can't watch!" she adamantly shook her head.
Patricia meanwhile was continuing to play around with her pair of beasts, as well as wisely staying out of range of the one with a hammer by keeping the unarmed one between. A tactic that worked rather well considering the one with the hammer had no qualms of unintentionally beating the other over the head with it in order to get at her.
If that counted Kagami was soon going to be very far behind since the blonde had also already wounded her second, as well as putting on a much better show for the crowd. She was tempted to take out one of the two to steal a kill, then again that would just make things easier of the Nord at the moment.
Either way she should finish this one off first. A good thing she had returned her attention to it, as is charged forward despite its broken knee and about caught her off guard. The horns were all about Kagami could see as the minotaur leapt full out to head butt, one that would likely crush her from impact just as it would when it would land on her shortly after. Taking a gamble all she could think to do in that moment was to dive towards it and a little to the side.
A collective gasp could be heard from the crowd, almost drowning out the heavy thud of the beast landing over the ground. However the lavender haired girl stood up, emerging from beside the crook of its armpit, driving a nice little sledge into the ribs as it tried to get back up using its arms. Kagami was shaking from the close call and was ending this troublesome beast now, but first needed to keep it from thrashing to get a clear shot. A overhead heft and drive into its vertebrae stunning it some, she then quickly climbed up and delivered the last merciful blow into the skull.
Cheer rose from the stands at the surprise turnaround and Kagami could feel a touch of elation coming from it, not to get caught up in the praise.
That wasn't the end of it though. She had to take one of the others if she wanted to win.
A guttural bellow announced that Patricia had finished one of the other minotaur as well, its throat swept clean through with a bucket's worth of blood spilling forth. The crowd's jubilation doubled and for a brief second Kagami had to really wonder just how sick people truly were deep down to enjoy watching this.
This left one minotaur, to split between them yet to decide the winner by who scored the death blow. However this bull was the one with the hammer, very menacing and wild looking, the few wounds done by Patricia but shallow cuts having only served to stoke the fire of its frenzied fury.
"Wow~ you're still alive?"
"Shut it you!" Kagami edged away, hoping the bull would go for the blond and leave a perfect opening to finish it off. Unfortunately that little motion seemed to be enough reason for it to come after her instead.
"Shouldn't have moved~" chimed the Nord as she calmly followed, taking her sweet time deciding where to cut.
Up front Kagami didn't trust her abilities to be anywhere near the charging beast and its hammer, leading it to chase her around the edge of the arena. There was no way she could block against its strength and actually considered tossing her weapon at one point but it was the only thing she had. In these conditions where she essentially was fighting on her own she even doubted she could get a chance to try a spell on the damn thing. No Miyuki and no Konata to play distraction and if anything was playing the part for Patricia who wouldn't do a single thing to help.
Heck, there were even a few laughs coming from the spectators as they watched the spectacle. This was amusing to them!
'Great, the one thing I can do to entertain people is a comedy with my life on the line running in circles!'
She dug her feet in to stop and at least do something, turning around to die as they said with at least some honor. Only to duck what would've been an alarmingly accurate shot at her head, the hammer slamming into the wall of the arena with enough might to crack the solid stone and send chips of it flying.
Taking the chance at the opening, Kagami sprung up and aimed for the elbow joint to go along with her momentum, hoping to make the minotaur drop the weapon. Again however the aim was higher than her shoulder and wasn't quite able to get enough force behind the strike. The minotaur replied in kind with a square head butt, one of its horns grazing the side of Kagami's head with a rough tip that left a bleeding gash through her hair. If not for the bit of daze from the hit, she likely would have shrieked.
That apparently had been enough for Patricia as well to finally step in, giving a nasty chop to the back side of the leg. Rearing up in pain and further fury the beast quickly changed its mind which of his targets was priority. The overhead strike came so fast that even the Nord hadn't been prepared, only able to try and raise her broad axe as a partial shield before it was ripped from her hands and the handle driven into the ground like a nail, the top half of the axe head left to remain unburied.
"Well now…shit."
Before the beast could try to take her head off as well with a lateral swing, Patricia instead dived between the legs, aiming to reach Kagami and more importantly the hammer she had. "Give me!"
"Not my problem!" the lavender haired grimaced, drawing a hand away from the tender scrape.
"Then use it, I'll try someth'in!"
Kagami struggled to get to her feet for a bit but quickly took her stance as the minotaur turned back around to face the two of them. Again Patricia dived down between the legs but not through and reached up and…
The bull seemingly convulsed and bent over in a surprised cough, if it could be called that. The crowd was curious as to what had happened, but in no way was Kagami going to describe…what exactly the blonde had done. Her vantage point though did reveal the glint of Patricia's axe just beyond, sticking up from the ground begging for the opportunity.
Smiling almost cruelly, Kagami wound her arms back with the hammer. Not for an overhead smash like the other she had dealt with, but swept the weapon hard and low for it to flow into a grand uppercut right into the beast's jaw. It reeled back and stumbled, tripping over backwards.
A thing of poetic beauty when it landed dead center on Patricia's axe, the sickly pop of the spine signaling the end of the fight.
The crowd took no more than a breath's hesitance before letting loose and deafening possibly the entire city with their thunderous ovation to the conclusion.
"Huh, so it works on animals too like it does guys…" Patricia mulled as she stood up, rigorously wiping her hand off on her battle gear as afterthought.
However Kagami hadn't changed her stance, still regarding the blonde Nord with trepidation. Threateningly hefting the hammer just in case until she knew for sure this was the end. "Are we finished?"
"Ara~Ara. I never said it was a fight to the death." Patricia waved off the girl's demeanor. "Even if it was my axe, real battle decides the winner and it was your blow."
"…so you're actually admitting I won?"
"Humph, I'm saying I'm surprised you survived. You might not be a real warrior but least you're not a coward and stand you're ground."
"You have no idea what I… never mind, I'm out of here."
Kagami didn't take a single glance back all the while stalking back to the gate for the under works. Pointless, all of this had been completely pointless…
"Is, is it over now?" Tsukasa weakly asked, terrified what the cheers really meant. She really didn't like this place, or these people who celebrated blood and death.
"Tsukasa! You can relax, Kagami is just fine! See, look!" Konata yelled with the rest. "Heck, I think she won! …Azura blind me, I should have put money down on this… nooo!"
-o-o-o-
Bandaged up and changed back into her usual clothes, Kagami left the stadium quite possibly even more irritated than she had in coming to this cursed place. That and practically having to threaten Owen with death to let her go, the one bit of talent to pass through his hall, hadn't helped.
Through the dispersing throngs of people one bit of relief came as her sister came running up to her in worry, tears in her eyes and a hug ready for some comfort. Though a little embarrassing, she could relate how all that was probably witnessed from their side. Aside from being so fed up with this trouble, the whole thing had been a rather scary experience.
"Kagamiii!"
"There, there, I'm alright see?"
"B-But your head!" Tsukasa gasped seeing for the first time the wound her sister had received.
"It's not at all as bad as it looks."
"It better not be or I'll hunt that damn oaf down!" Konata grumbled following.
"Let's just get out of here and forget it like a bad dream, I'll certainly try to."
"Hmm, well you did look rather hot in that outfit they gave you~"
"Yeah, I'll try forgetting that too…"
Before they could make it a full block down the street however, a shadow fell across their path as Patricia Martin stood before them.
"Hello~ every~one!"
"What the hell do you want now." Konata's glare was just as heated as Kagami's.
"Ohh, don't be so mad, I'm here to back you up wherever your travels take you!"
"…huh?" The three of them blinked, clearly confused why this person that had so adamantly sought a fight would now want to accompany them. "Er Patricia, we're not exactly on the best of terms with each other."
"That's oky~doky! You can just call me Patty, all my friends do!" Boasted the blond, as if this patched up everything.
Kagami's jaw was left hanging, at a loss for words to proper convey that in no way was this going to happen.
'…the nightmare won't end, will it…'
A/N: Hmm, well the MLSF challenge needed another entry at the very least, but all the same I hope this provided some entertainment on its own. If not, well then I get to see some reaction to what will later be a chapter for my main story and polish it up some more.
This was in no way intended as blatent advertisment for my own story...right? n_n?