Ep. 227 The Arena Part 2 (Patreon)

After about a half hour I start hearing noise from the other side of the iron door. It sounds like crowd noise so I guess they are filling the stands and it shouldn't be long now. That works for me, the more of an audience I have the easier it will be to keep everyone focused on me.

Keeping Lord Shendaw distracted is the main goal, if fighting in the arena doesn't work plan B will be setting whatever is in the other cells free to run amok. Although, from looking at him I am guessing Lord Shendaw is totally a slave to his vices, the arena should be one of them. Now I have to decide if I am going to try to keep it entertaining or if I want to annoy and anger him.

Either way should work to keep him distracted, but the question is which will make it easier to manipulate him. After seeing him I am leaning more towards anger, he doesn't look to have much self control. Anger makes people do stupid things, if I can make him angry enough he will make mistakes for sure.

As I wait for it to start I find myself thinking about the movie Gladiator. This may not be the colosseum in Rome but I think I can use a few tricks from that movie. The iron door rising into the ceiling tells me that my time for planning is up and it is time for action.

So I stand up and walk out into the arena once the door is high enough for me to pass under without ducking. I walk slowly and act like it is very hard for me to move, keeping up the illusion. As I make my way out onto the sands I get a chance to look around at the crowds seated above me.

The arena is a circular pit of sand with twenty foot walls all around, besides the one I came in there are around twenty doors. The door I came through closes as I look around at all the humans and demons seated above the walls of the pit. Opposite where I came in there is a box where Lord Shendaw is laid out on a dais, probably the same one as before.

I doubt he can get up and move around, they probably just carried the dais with him on it. On the side of the ring where I came in there is another box with a throne in it, and seated there I see another demon lord. One I have never seen before, meaning that must be Lord Dra, him being here complicates things.

Convincing Lord Shendaw that Lord Dra has betrayed him isn't going to work now, I will have to think of something else. Before I can think of anything I hear the sound of a door opening so I turn to face it. As the door rises I can hear growling coming from the other side and as soon as it is high enough two massive wolves come out.

As soon as they enter the arena the wolves split up and start circling in opposite directions. I move to the middle of the pit and let them circle me, I want to make it look like I am about to die. The first wolf darts at me from the front but I know that it is a feint and the other will be coming from behind.

Pretending to fall for the feint I dodge it and stumble just right to dodge the real attack from behind. I am in no danger at all but to the crowd it looks like I survived by pure luck which sets them to cheering. I keep up the act for a few minutes, making it look like I am surviving by the skin of my teeth.

Each time I barely escape an attack the cheering gets louder, after five or so dodges they are screaming their heads off. Once the crowd reaches a fever pitch I summon my mind blade and in one sudden move I cut down both wolves. As their bodies drop to the ground the crowd goes absolutely silent in shock.

"Are you not entertained?!?"

Lord Shendaw says "What was that just now?!"

Lord Dra says "I believe it was a mind blade!"

Lord Shendaw says "From a rank six? Impossible!"

Lord Dra raises his hand towards me and I feel his power sweep over me. After the power passes he looks a little confused and I feel the power sweep over me again. The power invades me as if trying to find my secrets, I can feel it crawling all through my body.

Lord Dra says "Well, he is definitely rank six, but there is something different about him."

Lord Shendaw says "It doesn't matter! Bring out the next beast!"

At the sound of another door opening I turn to face it and see what is next. What comes out looks like a cross between a rhino and a turtle with the teeth of a shark. It charges out and comes straight at me, I easily dodge its attack and counter with my mind blade.

To my surprise the mind blade bounces off the things shell leaving a decent scratch but nothing more. It extends its neck and whips its head around to try and gore me with its horn. I lean into the attack so that I am safely within the curve of its neck, then I bring my mind blade up hard aiming for the neck where it comes out of the shell.

This time the mind blade goes through it like a knife through butter and sends the head and neck flying. The crowd which has been cheering until now quickly switches to booing as the head flies through the air. I straighten up and throw a cocky smile at the crowd and the two demon lords.

"Is that all you've got? They told me this would be easy but I didn't think it would be this easy!"

Lord Shendaw says "I don't care who told you what, you will die in this arena!!"

Lord Dra says "I want to know how he can move like that under the suppression of the manacles!"

Lord Shendaw says "What does it matter? I can just throw beasts at him until he dies!"

Lord Dra says "Calm down and think! Even Lord Bibiq would struggle with those manacles on and he is the strongest of us physically."

Lord Shendaw says "Are you saying he has been altered somehow? But why? Unless he is an assassin!"

Lord Dra says "While I have no doubt Lady Xinun wants you dead, even as strong as he is, he is no threat to us."

Lord Shendaw says "What do you mean? Lady Xinun is my future wife!"

"Hah! Like Lady Xinun would want a tub of lard like you!"

Lord Shendaw says "I will kill you!!!"

Lord Dra says "Stop! He is egging you on!"

Lord Shendaw says "I don't care, no one insults me!!"

Lord Dra says "Enough! Calm down or I will suppress you!"

Lord Shendaw shuts up but he is visibly not happy, maybe I can egg him into attacking Lord Dra. Looking at Lord Shendaw struggle to keep his mouth shut I find myself wondering if demons can suffer from heart attacks. I turn and watch Lord Dra, he is obviously the more dangerous of the two, and not because he is more powerful.

"Are we doing this or not? I'm getting bored down here."

Lord Shendaw says "Kill him! Send in the next beast!"

Lord Dra says "Wait! I have questions for him!"

Lord Shendaw says "No! This is my arena! Now send in the beast!"