The Game

Aaron

Look at these idiots. They had no idea what they were in for. Did they seriously think they could beat me? Me!? I was the king of this game. Everyone knew why I’d been crowned the champion 6 times in a row. I was fucking unstoppable.

Who the hell did they think they were challenging me? They should have died in the early rounds like the rest of the trash, but no, they wanted to be special and make it to the final round with me. As if they were worthy enough. These bottom-feeding street rats weren’t even worthy enough to kiss my feet, much less stand in a ring with me. The thought alone made me want to vomit.

To think that I had to waste my time with people who’d likely die in the first 10 seconds. It was insulting. These two were just a bunch of nobodies looking for a few seconds of spotlight. Too bad they ended up with me as their final opponent, because I held pity for no one. If they wanted to rumble with the beast then I was going to crush them like the insects they were.

Mikey

Aaron must’ve thought he had this in the bag. That cocky look on his face said all I needed to know. He thought he was going to win again-No, he was certain he was going to win. He probably thought that two no-name competitors were nothing compared to his fancy renown title. He must have thought he was too high in the clouds to be knocked down by some low-level filth from the slums. I hope he kept that mentality. It’d be better for me anyway.

Underestimate me. That’s all everyone ever did. It made the victories all the more sweeter when my opponent realized he was about to be defeated. I lived for that moment. Just the thought of wiping that smug grin off his face when I drug it across the asphalt was enough to fill me with adrenaline. I was ready. I would be the new reigning champion, and when that happened, I’d bring about change to this twisted social infrastructure.

Robin

Oh my God. I can’t believe I’m here, like actually here. I didn’t expect to make it through the preliminary rounds much less make it to the final three with Aaron ‘The Soul Crusher’. It was a dream come true. Wait. I might actually be dreaming. I pinched my left arm to make sure and the tingling pain made the grin on my face spread wider. This was real. All of it. Me, a mere wind user, was going to be able to fight for the chance to be named The Number one Spirit Master.

 I honestly didn’t even care if I won. Just being here was enough to bring honor to my family. Especially my little brother, whose dreams of becoming a spirit master were shattered when he lost his legs. With the money I’d won so far, I should’ve been able to pay for his recovery, but even still, I knew he’d want me to win. And so, I guess I had to try. But the competition was really stacked against me. So, for now, my only goal was to survive.

The guy to my right, Mikey Harrington, I remembered him from the earlier rounds. He seemed reserved and his abilities were average at best being a simple sword user, but I’d already peeped that he’d been holding back the entire game. He definitely had something up his sleeve so I had to watch out for him. Aaron Buffis on the other hand was one of the few upper-class citizens in our society.

Since he was already so popular, we all knew his abilities, with hardening skin, his defense levels were almost maxed so it was difficult to cause much damage and he was nothing short of powerful. I remember in last year’s came he squeezed a guy’s neck so hard shattered his trachea and killed him instantly. According to him, he hadn’t even been using his full strength and the guy was just too weak to survive. Scary. Meanwhile, all I could do was blow little gusts of wind here and there so, you know, the odds weren’t exactly in my favor.

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The announcer steps forward on the platform above the competitors and prepares a recap for the audience on camera. She gives her hair a quick fluff, plasters a smile on her face, and motions for the cameraman to go live.

               “Hello all my lovelies and welcome back to ‘The Number One Spirit Master’. I’m your host Wennifret Carlson and here beneath me are the final three competitors for this year’s competition. Here we have our reigning champion, Aaron Buffis, whose brute strength and grit earned him 6 back-to-back victories. Look at the conviction in his eyes, he doesn’t appear to be at all fazed by his fellow competitors. And did I mention he was royalty? No wonder he’s continued to surpass his opponents in all of the events thus far. With the bloodline of magical superiority at his side, you’d need a magical to stand a chance against that.” The crowd erupts in an uproar of applause.

“Next, we have Robin Mackavoy, the first-ever woman to make it to the final round. Though her wind abilities are limited she was able to finagle her way through the preliminary rounds without so much as a scratch. I imagine a lot of folks are rooting for you sweetheart.” Another round of applause. “And lastly, we have our swordmaster, Mikey Harrington. Born in the lower end of the slums, he’s quickly turned into this year’s underdog. Will he be able to snatch the victory from the reigning champion? Will Robin be able to last more than a few mere seconds? And will I ever allow anyone to touch my luxurious hair? Stay tuned for the final round of ‘The Number One Spirit Mater’ to find out.”

               “Beneath me, you will see that the competitors are standing on a circular platform hanging approximately 150ft above a nice pool of molten lava. Careful now, one false move and, oops. Into the lava you go. The lava is very hot, with a scorching temperature of 2,000 degrees Celsius in fact. That’s enough to burn the skin right off your bones within 30 seconds, but luckily for them, it takes medical around 45 to respond so you’ll likely die before they arrive.” She sings cheerfully. “Now we all know the rules, the last person on the platform in the allotted time is the winner. Rufis,” she says pointing at her assistant. “Show the time.”

               A large digital clock displays the time over the platform. 5 minutes.

               “Good luck contestants. May the best spirit master win. Alrighty boys.” She says pointing at the camera. “Start.That.Clock!”

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Robin

               A loud horn sounds, signaling the start of the match. Not even one second in and I see Mikey fly straight over to Aaron. His sword was already out, slashing at the thick skin of the Spirit Master. But Aaron was just as quick, swiftly moving side to side, dodging each attack Mikey threw his way. It was almost too fast to keep up with. Knowing that my skills aren’t in hand-to-hand combat, I decided to hang back for a bit until I see a good opening.

Aaron

               As expected. The one with a sword comes at me the first chance he gets. He probably figured the sudden attack would surprise me, catch me off guard so he could find an opening. What did he take me for, a fool? I’d won this game too many times to fall for something so pathetic. How many people before him had tried and failed the same stupid trick, 100, no 200? I’d lost count.

Not because it was so repetitive, but because of the simple fact that they were all just too pitiful to remember. None of them, not a single person I’d ever faced had been interesting enough to leave the slightest impression. It wasn’t their fault. I was simply superior. A raging sun in comparison to a flickering candle. They were all destined to lose just as I was meant to surpass them in every way.

This one was no different. No matter how agile he swung and slashed his sword, I was an endless barricade, and he was a pesky ant whose attacks could knock me down. Even the girl stood opposite of us, watching in fear. She knew what I was, what they were up against. She could see the difference in our power levels and knew that fighting me wasn’t an option. So why then? Why did he rush me with such confidence? Did he not think he could die? Or was it that he just didn’t know what level I was truly on. No worries, I’d show him.

Robin

I winced at the sight of Aaron slamming his hand down towards Mikey’s skull. That’s it, with the amount of force generated behind that attack it was certain that Mikey was going to die. There was no way that-what? He was gone. In the instant it took me to blink, I went from seeing what I thought was his head about to get crushed, to two of him standing on either side of Aaron. I was in shock, clearly, so was Aaron. The look on his face was that of pure confusion. How had one singular man suddenly split into two men, and both with swords?

Was this a part of his ability? I hadn’t seen him use it at all beforehand. Maybe he was saving it for this final round specifically. The efforts Mikey must have gone through just to catch the beast by surprise. It was impeccable, genius even, but it would be for nothing if he couldn’t even deal enough damage to Aaron. He wasn’t strong enough, neither of us was on our own. He needed some help, but I couldn’t do much to assist him right now. I needed an opening.

Mikey

It was perfect. The look on his face when he seen my ability was priceless, but it didn’t last long. He may have been surprised, but the was quick. The second he realized the change, he adjusted accordingly, sending a second bone-cracking punch to my clone that made it fizzle and disappear within seconds. If that had been me, I would’ve died instantly. I ducked just before his hand shot out to grab me. The sound of the air clapping at the aftershock of his thunderous movement. I jumped back, putting as much distance between he and I as I could without getting too close to the edge.

The clock read 2 minutes now. I’d probably lasted a lot longer than the audience was expecting, given Aaron’s reputation. But still, 2 minutes was a long time to be left up here with him and that wasn’t much time to figure out how to defeat him either. But I had to make do with what I had. I could still do this. I could still win. I crouched down and leaned forward and with as much strength I could muster, I kicked off into a dead sprint. Then I willed my powers to create as many clones of myself as I could.

Four. That’s the best I could do in this current situation. I was already so tired from fighting continuously for as long as I had been. I was almost at my limit. The first two were gone in a second. Myself and the other two threw consecutive blows, each targeting the same spot as the last. His upper body. While they were not as powerful as his thick skin, they were enough to push him back little by little. Aaron crushed one of the clones and the last one jumped in front of me when it noticed a powerful kick coming my way. They were all dead now and I had no power left.

But it was okay because I had him right where I wanted him. I turned and called out. “Robin now!”

Mikey (Before the final round)

“So, you’re saying you don’t really intend to win?” Robin asked in confusion.

“No,” I said shaking my head. “I’m saying as long as Aaron doesn’t win. We both do. So, if you stay out of the way while I do all the heavy lifting, I’ll only need you to deliver the last blow and we can split the prizes. All I want is the position to bring change in the structure of this society. You can have everything else.” I said extending my hand. “Do we have a deal?”

“How do I know you won’t betray me?” She asked suspiciously.

“I have nothing to gain from that. Bedside’s, there’s no way either one of us can win against him on our own.”

“Hmm.” She said bringing her hand to her mouth. “You’ve got a point. Fine.” She finally said taking my hand. “But we have to act like we don’t know each other until the time is right.”

Aaron

My eyes flashed to behind the swordsman and it was then that I noticed the girl holding her hands out towards me. It became evident the heels of my feet were on the edge of the platform. What!? How had I not noticed it before? This had been their plan all along. Of course, that weak swordsman didn’t think he could defeat me. He was just a distraction; simply buying time for her to use her wind attack. From what I remembered; she was only able to throw out weak 15mph gusts of wind that were enough to temporarily distract her opponents. But she hadn’t been trying to attack me the entire time. In fact, she had been doing her best to stay as far away from me as possible. At first, I thought it was because she was afraid and maybe waiting for me to kill off the swordsman so she could beg for her life but now...now I think I might have underestimated her the most. If they had secretly been working as a team this whole time, and she was somehow able to charge up her wind powers to then release a devastating attack then-

“Release!” She screamed, and then the most powerful gust of wind shot out from her palms send me flying back and of the edge. But not before I could make my last move.

Robin

After my wind projection sent Aaron back, I figured that would be the end of it, but I was caught off guard when I saw him reach out and latch onto Mikey. An effort that sent them both falling off the edge. With the little energy I had left, I leaped forward and grabbed his hand at the edge of the platform.

I looked down and noticed Aaron clinging onto his ankle with a grip so tight I could tell his bone was broken. “Kick him off!” I shouted. I didn’t have enough strength to use my wind powers anymore and Mikey’s sword had fallen in the lava. We had to be quick if Mikey was going to survive, but the time was steadily ticking. Mikey shook his leg savagely, straining and crying out as his stretched flesh ripped from the enormous weight. But no matter how much he kicked; the beast wouldn’t let go.

“I can’t shake him off!” Mikey cried in pain. He pulled his other leg up and stomped on Aaron’s face. “Bastard! Let go!”

“You’ll have to come with me because there’s no way I’m letting you win. And there’s no way your little friend will let you go.” Aaron chuckled between missing teeth. “I will not lose. I can’t lose”

I looked from Mikey to Aaron. He was right, there was no way anyone would win at this point. “Sorry,” I said yanking my hand from Mikey’s. “But I want to win.” The look on his face as he slipped from my fingers was just as shocked as Aaron’s to realize that I’d let them both fall into the molten lava.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, I can’t believe what I’m seeing.” The announcer called. “It appears that Robin Makavoy let go of her friend Mikey Harrington in order to keep the former champion from winning.” The audience stood in shock at the results. “I must say this is quite unexpected, but a win is a win and the show must go on. So, without further ado, the new champion of ‘The Number One Spirit Mater’ is Robin Makvoy!” An eruption of applause sounds throughout the stadium.

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“This is the first new champion we’ve had in the last 6 years, everyone. Isn’t this exciting!” Wenifret chimes, making her way down to the platform. “I think it’s about time we give our new champion her rewards.” More applause. Wenifret santers over to Robin with a beaming smile. “Congratulations. You will now have upper-class privileges, including 500,000$, your own studio in one of the luxurious buildings in Midnight city, and,” she pauses leaning uncomfortably close to Robin. “A lifetime of servitude to the games, isn’t that fun?”

“What?” Robin snaps taking a step back. “A Lifetime of servitude? I only wanted to play the game this once.”

“Oh no sweetheart, that’s not how this works. Once you become the champion, you remain the champion until you die.”

“No,” Robin says shaking her head. “I don’t want this.”

“Oh dearie, it’s not your choice. The show must go on.”

“What is this!?” Robin screams shaking her head in denial.

“The Preliminary round Robin.”

“What?”

Wenifret smiles mischievously. “All of the competitions before were just the preliminary rounds. The real game is seeing how long you can survive after you’re crowned champion.” She reaches out and places her hand on Robin's shoulder. “Welcome to the game Robin.”