"So... Am I the Chosen One?" Airys thought on the way to the training chamber. The atmosphere was tense among those present, so much that they prevented her from enjoying the walk through such a glorious place. The two who went to the front, Seng and Arkgas, were the source of that gloomy mood, although they appeared not to be uneasy, it did not work with that aura of emerging rancor.
"Here it will be."
"Uh?"
Airys stopped dead in what she believed was barely halfway. Zhugan'ko stopped at the clear main entrance of the temple, so she was able to see the rocky path, its bifurcations to the mountains and the simplistic architecture being only rocks of different colors placed on the ground without a particular reason.
"Here? At the entrance?" Zamur asked. Inside he complained with the strength of a lion, a decade ago he obtained his position as an Orchestrator and has not yet fully explored the temple. "Don't you have a better training area?"
"Kao'em is hurry" Zhugan'ko extended his hand towards the old man who nodded slowly. "The place doesn't matter, but they will have to hold back more than they need," He paused to visualize the two contestants. "Nothing to destroy the ground or knock down, go to the positions you want."
Seng was the first to advance just heard that order. Attheos smiled and let out a cheerful sigh and decided to imitate his practice partner. Arkgas, Kao'em and Zhuga'ko parted around in less than Airys opened her eyes after blinking, causing her to become paralyzed nervous that she had lost some signal or something and being too close to the battle. She stirred and was about to go with Kao'em but a hand on his shoulder surprised her and she escaped a high-pitched squeak like a three-week-old dog.
"Calm down, relax and enjoy the fight," said Zamur, "you´re lucky to see a fight between the supposed descendant of the strongest Dragons of the continent and the unique and undeniable Ring of the Sea."
"Ring of the Sea?"
Zamur looked disappointed and sighed for two seconds.
"In a few words, one of the thirty-one strongest people on the continent" he said.
"Eh?!" she shrieked "And can Seng beat him?!"
"Of course not."
Seng was placed two meters from Attheos, he was agitated as if he had woken up from sleeping awake, checked his clothes and surroundings before directing his attention to Seng.
"Excuse me, what are we doing standing here?" he asked innocently.
"It's a practice fight in the presence of the Archmages," he said annoyed, "you'd better show manners."
"Ah, yes... It is an honor to fight with you..." Attheos bowed in a reverent improvised greeting, he saw only Seng's feet due to the angle until his mind broke away from this world and his eyes went out of focus. "What do I do looking the ground?" He thought and straightened, which took too long.
Airys blinked twice in surprise, the young man named Seng in less than a second had run around Attheos until he reached his back and kicked his head. Attheos —who was unprepared— was exalted and let himself be move by the impact, staggered and that gave Sen thousands of openings.
"What happened? Who hit me? Am I under attack?" Attheos thought in a microsecond as Seng's kick connected to his right cheek. "Mr. Zamur is at risk!" It was the conclusion he had when he saw Zamur standing in the distance.
Attheos frowned and almost regained his balance but Seng after the kick took his left shoulder and stuck his knee in his spine. Attheos opened his mouth as if he were going to scream, which did not happen and instead spit drool. Seng was on him, followed with his instant beating and hit him in the jaw that closed his mouth and; at the same time, he repositioned himself to his forehead, put his left foot in the middle of Attheos's feet and got ready to lash out in a frenzy of blows. The cuckoo Airys, who was barely able to keep up with that show, didn't notice the speedy process, however, she was fascinated by the result. From the foot of Seng a clear fog dispersed through the drastic temperature drop and the ice covered Attheos to the ankles. Attheos concentrated his eyes on Seng and tried to move his arms to knock him down, however Seng's shadow suddenly rose from the ground in the form of a strange liquid —which also resembled several black strings— which caught his hands and Attheos arms to prevent it from interfering with what Seng wanted to achieve.
He smiled when he had met the requirements, clenched both fists, blushed and drew a grotesque resentment silhouette that exploded when he saw the reflection of Airys in Attheos' eyes. Immediately dozens of punches cut the air to go straight to Attheos's nose, making the most of the motionlessness so that the recoil was the minimum and thus continue to unleash his repressed fury, stress and bloodlust.
"What happens?! Why is he hitting my face?! When did this fight begin?! " Attheos's mind was gone and returned within half a second of starting the succession of blows.
The powerful attacks were such that if it were not because Seng also tied his feet to the ground with his shadow and reinforced the ice constantly, it would most likely be impossible to maintain that closeness by Newton's third law.
"Enough!" The vein on Attheos's forehead tensed and crossed his arms, shattering Seng's shadow like just wet paper.
"Damn monster," Seng murmured after seeing Attheos intact face and feeling the need to interrupt his glorious technique and create distance between them.
Attheos saw him take a great leap to the right, he didn't hesitate at all to chase him, ignoring the ice that covered him even his knees he broke without realizing the immeasurable energy he used to step on the ground —which broke the ground beneath him— and he approached Seng before he finished touching the ground with his feet. Seng was scared to glimpse Attheos's right arm back to make a curved blow that of course would knock him out. In a reflex Seng used his arms as a guard to try to resist such a meteor and before receiving that catastrophe, his eyes shone and his shadow pulled his feet, making that lethal fist fail.
The sad thing was the result of having saved the beauty of his face.
The power and speed of the failed blow caused a gust of wind that could be seen with the simple eyes of a child. And it sent Seng through the skies, straight to the cliff behind.
"Attheos lethal blows were prohibited!" Zughan'ko roared and Attheos cringed.
"S-sorry, I forgot/"
"Yes, we know that you forget, just content yourself," said Arkgas. "Is enough for you Zamur? If it isn't, give Seng a minute and they can continue the practice."
"One minute?!!! He has just fallen from the mountain!! We must go to attend him!" Airys squealed with her eyes wide open and about to cry for the teacher that didn't last her one day.
"They don't need to continue, he would never beat Attheos but he would be able to survive and run away from him" said Zamur, half deaf by the shouting machine beside him.
"Are you hearing me?!" squealed, as usual, Airys.
Attheos again went to the clouds and appreciated his surroundings to understand the situation; since, he found nothing strange besides the usual feeling of not knowing who the others are apart from Zamur and having no idea where in the world he was standing, he walked in the direction of Airys and Zamur who was waiting for him with a smile on face to help reassure him by ensuring everything was fine.
"Eh?" Attheos said and stopped dead to put his hand to his face. "Why am I bleeding from my nose?"
"Attheos is bleeding!" Zamur thought deeply astonished. "That boy may not be able to beat Attheos… but what if that is not his full strength? What other techniques will he hide? "
"After all those blows, did he just bleed a little from the nose??!!" was what Airys screamed in his mind.
"Zughan´ko!" Seng said after he climbed where he fell. "He broke the rules so I won the match!" He said irritated with torn and dirty clothes to the head of branches with thorns.
Then Zamur knew... Seng was definitely the best disciple that those four old men could have.
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"He certainly broke the rule I imposed."
"That´s right!"
"But it took you a long time to say it and threw you from the mountain, so the one who lost is you."
And with the trampled ego Seng murdered Attheos in the mind, who crossed his eyes with him and all he thought was...
"Who is that boy and why is he so dirty?"