All-new action-packed chapter. Should be fun, eh?

"Well," Perseus drawled, leaning against the wall, "the Alpha Bracket was ridiculously easy."

"Don't get cocky," I rebuked him. "We have no idea who we have to fight next. The Omega Bracket is kept secret, remember?"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," he waved it off. I took in his appearance now that he was geared up for the arena. He wore a silver breastplate that was similar to mine, but he did not wear mail like I did. He wore simple black pants and gloves, with grey boots on his feet. His waist was adorned with a traditional gladiator's belt like the Romans of old, and his curved sword was belted to his side.

Just then, an armed guard came towards us. "Perseus, Kristofferson, you're up."

Perseus looked at me. "Looks like we're about to find out who we're fighting."

I adjusted my helm, but said nothing.

**RS**

As it had been for the final of the Aglaia Tournament, the Coliseum's stands were packed full of spectators. Once again, the announcer stood in the centre, egging them on.

"The Trojan Challenge is the pride of this Coliseum. Very often it forces two warriors with no prior experience of fighting together into a team, where they must fight together. Now we will see the best warriors in this Coliseum, from the Alpha and Omega Brackets, do battle to share in one hundred thousand gold pieces!"

The crowd roared.

"First, there comes an all-new team. One is a renowned warrior from Greece with an extremely unorthodox fighting style. The other is a relative unknown, and the champion of the Aglaia Tournament. They are… Perseus and Ranulph Kristofferson!"

Wild cheers greeted us as we entered the arena. With a grin, Perseus soaked up the adoration, holding his curved blade above his head, whirling it through the air. I myself only drew my katana and held it in front of my steel-clad face in a salute.

"Our next two combatants are mysterious characters indeed," the announcer continued the introductions. "These two women…" There were a few gasps of surprise, and more than a few growls of resentment from the crowd. "…have appeared from nowhere, and with their teamwork, have bested all opponents who dared to face them. I give you… Garda and the Masked Alexandra!"

This time the sound from the crowd was a mixture of jubilant cheers and sour jeers. I took in our opponents at a glance. One of the women was blonde, dressed flamboyantly in a mixture of blue and white. She carried a short sword and a pink shield. A white mask adorned her pretty face. That would be the Masked Alexandra, I thought wryly.

My gaze fell to the second woman, Garda. She wore full armour, with wolves adorning her helm and shoulder plates. Her weapons were a short sword and a lance that was adorned with a simple pennon. My eyes narrowed behind my helm. Why did she seem familiar to me?

Shaking off that feeling, I adopted a battle stance. "I'll take Garda. The 'Masked Alexandra' is yours," I said to Perseus.

"Gotcha." My partner was grinning. "Garda seems more your type to me."

Despite myself, I laughed slightly. "You're incorrigible."

"Of course I am," he replied, swinging his sword down to his side. "That's what makes me so much fun."

"Sorry that you handsome men hafta be injured by a couple of girls!" the Masked Alexandra taunted.

"And I hate to hurt such a pretty girl!" Perseus quipped back.

Garda did not taunt me. She simply hooked her lance into her hip, holding her sword at her side. Even her stance seemed familiar.

"Begin!" the announcer roared.

Garda made the first move, stabbing for my midriff. I knocked it away with my hip and raised my katana, anticipating the downward stroke of her sword. The blades clashed with the heavy sound of steel on steel. Garda pushed forward on her sword, growling. Clearly, she was planning to make me lose my footing, then to strike while I was down.

I smiled and took a step back.

Sensing victory, Garda lashed out with her lance, not noticing the plan I had in place. Still smiling, I pushed away her sword and grabbed her lance as I dodged it, placing it under my arm, effectively removing it from the fight. I wrenched the lance from her grip and threw it away. Snarling, Garda raised her sword. Again, I parried the blow.

The battle went on like that for quite a while. Garda attempting to strike me with her sword, while I parried every blow.

After about five minutes of this, Garda was getting tired. Her strikes were losing their momentum and power. I grinned internally and began my counter-attack.

I focused mainly on her upper body. Surprisingly, despite her waning strength, Garda parried all of my blows. I raised my sword as if to lash out with a heavy blow to her armoured head. Instinctively, Garda raised her sword to block it.

Instead of striking with my sword, however, I performed a sweeping kick to her legs, forcing her onto her back.

Growling in frustration, Garda prepared to stand up. Grimly, I pointed my katana towards her face, effectively pinning her down.

"Do you yield?" I asked in a cold tone.

She stared at me with eyes that seemed to radiate hatred. "I yield." She said it between clenched teeth.

"Good." I sheathed my katana and offered her my hand. She stared at it incredulously.

"Did you honestly believe that a gladiator like me had no honour?" I asked her, a smile in my voice.

Despite herself, she smiled and took my hand. With a surprising ease, I lifted her to her feet. It was then that I noticed that Perseus had defeated the Masked Alexandra at roughly the same time I had defeated Garda. He looked at me, grinning. Despite myself, I grinned back.

At the same time, the Masked Alexandra winked at Garda. I glanced quickly at her. She gave no indication that she'd seen the wink at all.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Perseus and Ranulph Kristofferson, victors of the Trojan Challenge!" the announcer exulted.

**RS**

"Where you headed now?" Perseus asked me as I packed my travel bag.

"I thought I'd make a quick trip to the Kingdom of I-Don't-Know."

My new friend laughed at that. "Well, I'm headed to No-Idea. Is it okay if I travel with you as far as that?"

I grinned at him. "I think I could stand that."

Just then, our opponents from the Trojan Challenge, Garda and the Masked Alexandra arrived at the gates.

"Ladies," Perseus said, giving them a courtly bow.

The Masked Alexandra giggled slightly. Garda elbowed her with one armoured arm. "Oww," the masked woman whined, rubbing her arm.

"Just get on with it," Garda told her.

The Masked Alexandra sighed. "Fine." She pulled off her white mask. "My name is Cassandra Alexandra, sister of Sophitia, destroyer of Soul Edge."

I whistled in surprise.

"Geez," Perseus said, his hands behind his head, "do ya have to be so formal?"

Cassandra rolled her eyes. "It was her idea," she replied, giving Garda a look. "Your turn."

"Fine," Garda replied, removing her helmet. She shook out her auburn hair and looked at the two of us. My heart rate doubled and I stopped breathing.

"I am Princess Hildegard of Wolfkrone," she proclaimed. She looked at me with a surprisingly impish smile. "But call me Hilde."

Could Ranulph be more obvious? :P

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