Carlos stood frozen, his mouth hanging open as he watched Travis rise, blood-red energy swirling around him like a living entity. The crowd roared in disbelief and awe, their voices blending into a chaotic cacophony that echoed throughout the coliseum. Snapping out of his stupor, Carlos gripped the microphone tightly, knowing he had to say something.
“Travis is up! The fight is far from over!” he bellowed, his voice trembling with excitement.
Damian, who had been halfway up the stairs leading out of the arena, stopped in his tracks. A grin spread across his face as he turned, his boots crunching against the sand. Without hesitation, he leaped from the stairs back into the arena. His landing sent shockwaves through the ground, cracks spiderwebbing across the stone floor beneath him.
“Well, kid,” Damian said, his tone amused but laced with menace. “Didn’t think you had that in you. Aura? Didn’t expect a kid like you to pull that off.” His smirk widened as arcs of lightning began to dance across his body, their sharp cracks filling the air. “But whatever. If you want round two, let’s begin.”
Travis stood firm, his newfound power radiating from him in waves. The blood-red energy covering his body shimmered like molten lava, its intensity increasing with every breath he took. The blood on his lips evaporated into the air as his injuries healed in an instant. His body no longer ached; instead, it thrummed with raw, unrelenting energy.
'' Plot armor? '' he thought with a wry grin. '' I’ll take it.''
Dropping back into his stance, Travis met Damian’s gaze, his determination blazing like fire. The two combatants locked eyes, the air between them charged with a tension so palpable that even the rowdiest of the crowd fell silent.
---
High above, in the private viewing area reserved for the coliseum’s elite, the board members watched with rapt attention.
One man leaned forward, his sharp, hawkish features illuminated by the glow of the arena lights. “So this is the boy you mentioned, Svelte,” he said, his voice calm but tinged with intrigue. “A true gift from the heavens, indeed.”
Svelte, a refined man in a crisp suit, smirked as he swirled the wine in his glass. His eyes never left Travis. “I told you,” he replied, his tone filled with quiet confidence. “He’s special. More than you realize.”
The hawkish man stroked his chin thoughtfully. “I see it now. The way he rose from the brink, the way his aura flared to life... That’s not something you see every day.”
Svelte chuckled. “No, it’s not. But keep watching. The real show has only just begun.”
---
Back in the arena, the tension reached a breaking point as Damian’s lightning-covered form and Travis’s blood-red energy clashed in an unspoken promise of destruction. The crowd erupted into a frenzy, their cheers shaking the coliseum to its core.
“Ready, kid?” Damian growled, his muscles tensing as the lightning around him surged.Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.
Travis smirked, his aura flaring brighter. “Bring it.”
The crowd held its breath as Damian and Travis stood motionless, their energies crackling like opposing storms. Damian’s lightning bolts snapped and sizzled around him, illuminating his towering form in bursts of white-blue light. Travis’s blood-red aura writhed like living fire, distorting the air around him.
Then, they moved.
In a blink, Damian vanished, the ground where he had been standing erupting into a crater. Travis countered just as quickly, his instincts guiding him as he sidestepped. Damian’s fist whistled past his head, the sheer force of the missed punch splitting the air with a deafening crack.
Travis retaliated immediately, his own fist striking out toward Damian’s chest. But Damian twisted his body with impossible agility, letting the blow glance off his side as he grinned.
“You’ve got speed, kid,” Damian said, his voice a low growl, “but not enough.”
Before Travis could respond, Damian’s leg shot out in a blur. The kick connected with Travis’s side, sending him skidding across the arena floor. Sand and stone sprayed into the air as Travis flipped mid-slide, landing on his feet with a grimace.
Damian didn’t let up. He reappeared in front of Travis in an instant, his hands crackling with electricity. Travis barely managed to cross his arms in defense before Damian’s palms slammed into him.
BOOM!
The shockwave rippled outward, shaking the coliseum to its foundation. Travis was hurled backward, his body carving a trench into the ground as he slid to a halt. He coughed, steam rising from his arms as his aura flared brighter, compensating for the blow.
“I’m not done yet,” Travis muttered, wiping blood from his mouth.
He vanished.
This time, Damian’s grin faltered as Travis appeared behind him. A brutal punch drove into Damian’s back, the force of it reverberating through his body. Damian stumbled forward, his feet digging into the ground to regain balance.
“Not bad, kid,” Damian admitted, turning around. His hand shot out, catching Travis mid-attack by the wrist. “But I’ve seen better.”
With a roar, Damian swung Travis over his head and slammed him into the ground. The impact cratered the arena floor, sending debris flying. But Travis’s aura surged, and with a burst of speed, he escaped Damian’s grip, flipping back onto his feet.
The two fighters clashed again, their movements a blur of light and sound. Each punch and kick was faster than the crowd could follow, their strikes sending shockwaves rippling through the air.
Damian had the edge.
Every exchange, every move, he was just a fraction faster, a hair stronger. Travis’s blows landed, but they lacked the weight Damian’s carried. When Damian struck, it felt like a mountain collapsing; when Travis struck, it was a storm trying to tear down a fortress.
“You’re strong, kid,” Damian said as their fists collided, the impact sending sparks flying. “But strength isn’t enough.”
Travis growled, his aura flaring wildly. He spun into a low kick aimed at Damian’s legs, but Damian leaped over it effortlessly, bringing his knee down toward Travis’s head. Travis raised his arms in a desperate block, and the ground beneath him cracked from the force.
Damian’s lightning surged, covering the entire arena in a blinding flash. When it cleared, Travis was on one knee, panting heavily. Damian stood over him, his grin wide and triumphant.
“Keep up, kid,” Damian taunted.
What Damian didn’t know was that every blow he landed on Travis fueled a transformation. Each strike that should have left Travis broken only strengthened him. Travis could feel it now—his body adapting, his power surging. The pain, once a burden, now felt like a catalyst. He smirked, his blood-red aura flaring even brighter, crackling against Damian’s own electric storm.
Damian narrowed his eyes, sensing the shift but dismissing it with a scoff. “You’re like a cockroach,” he growled. “But this ends now.”
He stretched out his arm, lightning coalescing into a dense sphere in his palm. The energy hissed and crackled violently, the air around it distorting with sheer power.
“This is it, kid,” Damian said, his voice echoing with an unnatural resonance as he infused the spell with Mana. “Volt Sphere.”
With a thunderous roar, Damian launched the ball of lightning. It tore through the air, leaving a blinding streak of light in its wake. The crowd gasped, unable to follow its trajectory.
But just as the spell was about to connect, Travis disappeared.
The Volt Sphere slammed into the arena floor, detonating with an ear-shattering explosion.
BOOM!
The ground shook violently, a massive crater forming where Travis had once stood. Dust and debris filled the air, obscuring everything in a smoky haze. The crowd screamed in awe and terror, the sheer force of the attack leaving many breathless.
Damian stood still, his chest heaving as he lowered his arm. The static in the air began to settle, and the dust started to clear. His smirk returned as he stared at the destruction he’d wrought.
But then, his grin faltered.
Through the haze, a figure emerged, standing tall and unyielding. Damian’s eyes widened as Travis appeared to his side, untouched, his blood-red aura pulsing stronger than ever.
Travis’s eyes burned with determination as he locked his gaze on Damian. His voice was low and unwavering, cutting through the fading echoes of the explosion.
“It’s not over until I win.”
TO BE CONTINUED