“We’ve got an exciting match for you today folks! Norman Benson, a bard from Xalir, versus, Advocate Despoina of the Lawmaker’s Assembly. Why don’t you let us know a bit about our competitors, Isabelle.”

  “Sure, Tom! Despoina is an up-and-comer in the Lawmaker’s Assembly, having only joined the church a year ago. In fact, she only reached the esteemed rank of Advocate two months ago!”

  Tom gasped. “Two months? I thought it took years to become an Advocate.”

  “Rumors say that she was promoted by Adherent Valna herself,” replied Isabelle.

  “Crazy! Now, why don’t you tell us a bit about Norman. What’s a bard from a small town like Xalir doing here?”

  Underneath the arena, Trafford set up rooms for the competitors to relax in before they had to fight. I sat on a small bench staring at a table full of weapons. The voices of the announcers could be clearly heard underground. Whatever magic they were using to achieve such an effect must have been powerful.

  A dwarvish woman poked her head inside the room. “Five minutes, Mr. Benson. When they call your name, step on the star.”

  Engraved into the floor was a small five-pointed star. Sighing, I stood up and walked over to the weapon’s table. Swords, bows, axes, and all other kinds of exotic weapons were stacked on top of the wooden table. The center of the table bowed from the weight. I grabbed a short sword hanging off the edge.

  The sword felt heavy in my hands. Though I could lift it and swing it easily, I could feel the weight of my past slowing down. Memories of the countless days I worked for Gunner wormed their way into my mind. It slowed my movements, making me frustrated. My neck itched.

  Placing the sword back down onto the table didn’t feel right either. It was like it was calling out to me, begging me to use it. When I was a child, Ma read me stories of great heroes defeating evil with a mighty blade. I wanted to be that hero, until that dream transformed into wanting to create songs about such heroes. Still, that original fantasy dwelled in my mind.

  I wasn’t fighting evil this time. Despoina wasn’t like Gunner, nor Damian or Mayor Korpi. Maybe she’d done some bad in her life, but as far as I knew not as bad as I’d done. I had torn apart families, hurt innocent people for my own selfish reasons. All in Gunner’s name. In my head, I could see Despoina’s face. Could I really kill her?

  Attaching the scabbard to my belt, I sheathed the sword and waited to be called. Kingmaker was strung across my back, ready to be played. Cheers from the crowd shook the floor, telling me it was almost time. Was Despoina as nervous as I was? Or was she waiting to kill me?

  “Introducing, Norman Benson!”

  Taking a deep breath, I stepped onto the star.

  It was like a thousand needles pricked my skin. I wanted to scream, but before my body understood what was happening, the pain was gone. My body was gone. All of my senses were blinded as I was hurled through space. Before a second passed, I landed in the arena.

  The crowd cheered, a hundred colorful lights instantly focusing on me. My stomach turned as my body regained its senses. Teleportation magic was powerful, but extremely dangerous. Only the most advanced magicians ever attempted it. Using teleportation runes and sigils reduced some of the strain, but only by a small amount. I was so disorientated that I missed Despoina’s introduction.

  Beth’s voice cut through the crowd. “Norman! You can do it!”

  Across from me, Advocate Despoina of the Lawmaker’s Assembly blipped into existence. She was a human, like me. Her umber skin with silver undertones shined in the bright lights of the arena. Quickly tying her dark hair into a tight bun, she watched me with a worried expression on her face.

  She wore red robes with a silver trim, emblazoned with a golden symbol of a scale with a sword on one side and coins on the other. The Lawmaker’s Assembly insignia. Despoina carried no weapons, but that did little to ease my fears. Magicians were more of a threat than any swordsman.

  “Let’s go, Norman!” yelled Nia.

  I glanced up at the announcers, glaring at Trafford’s smiling face. He didn’t seem to look at Despoina, his whole body focused on me. That was fine. If I could show him how strong I really was, then maybe I could convince him to let me leave. Chuckling to myself, I shook my head. No, he would make me fight more.

  Swinging my mandolin off my back and over my shoulders, I readied my fingers on the strings. Despoina winced, immediately folding her hands above her waist. To someone unfamiliar with magic, neither of us looked ready to fight. That couldn’t be farther from the truth. As fast as I could play a song, she could cast a spell.

  “I believe in you, Norman!” roared Greenspring, his voice losing any pretense of his presumed age.

  “Let the first match begin!” announced Trafford, clapping his hands together.

  Despoina ran toward me. Her hands glowed with a bright yellow light. It didn’t create light, instead seeming to suck in light from around them, as evident by the growing shadows on her body. She mouthed a strange array of words in a language I didn’t understand. Her eyes were closed, but I knew that wouldn’t last for long. As soon as the match started, I knew I would win.

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  I strummed a few chords on my mandolin. The sound reached no one but myself, as the crowd was too loud. That was fine. My desire to perform was outmatched by my desire to survive. All those training sessions hammered into me two thoughts: win and don’t make mistakes.

  As I played, I walked carefully toward the edge of the arena. Despoina followed my path for a moment, before she stopped and began following where I had been. A double of myself walked a few steps behind me. The distance grew as my song came to a close. Once I felt safe that her first attack against me would miss, I began another song.

  Despoina ran to my double, her hands now blinding to look at. With practiced movements honed over years, she slammed her palm into my double’s chest. The illusion wavered as her hand went straight through, then it exploded into a rainbow.

  The crowd gasped.

  Two more doubles ran out of the explosion toward Despoina. She stepped back, then kicked one in the head. Before the other could reach her, she tried to grab it’s throat. My own began to tighten. As she made contact, the two doubles also exploded. Four more burst out of the explosion.

  ‘Matthew’s Hydra Duplicated Doubles’ was the name of the spell. Located at the very back of the illusion book Gunner gave me. It was a spell that took a great amount of focus and stamina. Each time one of the doubles was touched, they would disappear and two more would appear nearby. Of course, there was a cost to such an effect.

  Everytime a double disappeared, my heart rate increased. Four disappearing would double it, eight would triple it, sixteen would quadruple it, and so on. Already I could feel my heart straining from the added pressure. Why was I wasting so much time on distracting Despoina?

  Because my next song would take a minute to properly perform. Under the Sapphire Mountains, I used a special song to increase Gunner’s speed so that his body would give out. I had no intention of using this song on Despoina. Instead, I planned on increasing my own speed, but only on a small section of my body.

  Nia was the inspiration for my idea. Once she saw how pathetic I was with a sword, she began teaching me how to throw a knife. Using a projectile weapon meant I didn’t have to worry about getting close and risking death. All I had to do was aim and throw. I saw the power of a throwing knife first hand when Nia used it to kill a harpy during my adventure to save Henry and Arienne.

  I didn’t have a throwing knife. Sure, I could have grabbed a few off the weapons table, but I had a much better idea. By increasing the speed of my shoulder and arm, I could turn my body into a mini catapult. What would I be throwing? My sword.

  Were there better choices? Yeah, but I wanted it to be a surprise. If I entered the arena with a javelin, then Despoina would have been more cautious. I only had one shot, if I missed, then I would lose. I had to lull her into a false sense of security.

  Why not speed up my entire body? No, if I did that, my heart would give out before I could swing my sword once. I had to only speed up a part of my body.

  As I finished the last few notes in my song, I stopped focusing on creating new doubles. Despoina had defeated more than I had expected, causing my heart to nearly burst. Struggling to breath, I threw my mandolin behind me and unsheathed my sword. I would only have one chance.

  A sudden flash of light from the crowd distracted me. In the highest part of the arena stands, I saw Gunner. He was illuminated by the colorful arena lights, his teeth reflecting them back at me. His tail whipped back and forth behind him. So many sleepless nights serving under him, so many wasted days I could have spent with my children.

  Despoina charged through my remaining illusions, sweat dripping down her face. She bolted toward me. I only had a few seconds before she would make contact. A few more seconds before I would lose the battle, and my life. Yet, I was thinking about Gunner. My life was in danger, and I was still thinking about Gunner.

  “Norman!” screamed Beth from the crowd.

  The announcers said something, but I didn’t hear them. Only Beth’s voice was able to break Gunner’s spell. With a renewed sense of purpose, I pulled back my arm and aimed toward Despoina. I held no ill will toward Despoina, she tried her best. I was just better. My sword flew through the air. The tip pointed at Despoina’s heart.

  The crowd held their breath.

  It was a split-second decision from Despoina. After seeing me aim my sword, she jumped. Maybe she intended to jump over the sword, or she was trying to jump out of the way. If so, she failed. The sword sliced through her stomach. All those days training with Nia paid off. With one single move, I had won.

  My sword pierced the arena wall after it flew through Despoina. The increased speed of my arm had turned my throw into a cannon shot. Her tattered robes barely covered the hole in her stomach. Blood drenched the entire blade. Despoina took three more steps then fell to the ground. Before more blood could drain from her body, and before my heart gave out, I ran to her side.

  I had never been that good at healing magic. Sure, I knew some, enough to heal a broken bone or two, but Despoina needed more. There was a clean hole straight through her chest. Her internal organs pooled around her. Still, I had to try. My neck burned as I pumped all my remaining energy into healing her.

  “We have a winner!” announced Trafford to the cheering crowds. “Give it up for Norman Benson, the Bard of Xalir!”

  They were cheering my name. Fame. All I ever wanted was to be a famous bard. Just like Piopus. If my former master could see me, would he be proud? Was killing someone the price of fame? I tried to ignore the crowd. Despoina needed my help. How could I ever face my family again if I didn’t try?

  The light was fading from her eyes. Her hand grabbed my arm, her lips mouthing words that never reached my ears. Tears clouded my vision. Everything hurt, oh why did everything hurt so much? So far my healing magic had slowed the bleeding. It didn’t look like it was going to be enough, but I had to try.

  “What sportsmanship! Norman is trying to save his opponent’s life,” said Trafford, his voice booming through the arena. “As the host of this tournament, I commend him on his mercy. However…”

  Two hands clamped onto my shoulders. I tried to push them off, but they dragged me away. Tears streamed down my face as Despoina’s body got further and further away. “No!” I cried, still trying to reach out to her.

  “Advocate Despoina’s injuries are too great. Friends, let us celebrate her life, as we mourn her death.”

  “I can save her!” I yelled, kicking my feet. Two heavily armored dwarves hauled me back toward the teleportation sigil. No matter how hard I tried to claw my way out of their grip, they held me tightly. “Please! Let me save her!”

  If the crowd heard me, they didn’t care. Loud cheers rang throughout the arena. I tried to find Beth, but all I could see was Despoina’s lifeless body. My body began to fade. No matter how hard I cried out for someone to save her, no one listened. The last person I saw before I fell unconscious was Trafford. He smiled at me.

  His blood red lips mouthed the words I’d never forget: Piopus would be proud.