Lightning flashed in an instant as a familiar voice echoed out shouting in a loud and welcoming voice.
"Good Evening Once more Everybody!"
"It's time for the second match everyone, please welcome Alex Coppertone, A tier 1 shadow blade." said the mysterious announcer.
A clap of lightning echoed through the stadium and within a moment a man in green speckled copper armor appeared before the audience. His hair shone a brilliant copper color and his shield and sword both gleamed with shadow.
It seemed like he knew what he was doing as he did a little flurry for the crowd as the blade cut a few dozen times into the air leaving a scar of black fire in its place.
The black flames left their impression on the audience as a round of applause was received by them.
"Next on the list facing against the prestigious Alex Coppertone is Ridge Lumf a wandering barbarian of the drunken path." The voice echoed once more.
Another clap of lightning and Ridge Lumf appeared in place swaying heavily. Though not once did he fall he at almost all moments looked like he was on the brink of losing his balance.
Ridge released a drunken burp before promptly collapsing on the field unconscious.
"The match will now---- wait what?! You literally passed out before the match even began?! Are you insane?!" The announcer's voice spoke from what would remind Rick of a megaphone or com system.
A slight moan of protest came from the seemingly unconscious man as the sound of the booing of the crowd awoke him from his sleep.
"What is this man doing at a thieves guild tournament? I mean seriously?!"
The man stumbled up and got into a fighting position as he quickly turned around at all the noise. He was incredibly.... large with a porthole of a belly and hair absolutely everywhere. It was absolutely terrifying.
"Well without another interruption, let the match begin!"
Alex Coppertone moved at a lightning pace as he struck out at the lumbering giant. But to everyone's surprise, the giant didn't take it front on. He simply stumbled to the left avoiding most of the blows while his skin seemed to redirect the rest.
There was a gasp of surprise among the crowd before Ridge stumbled forward making a strike against Alex.
The strike went wide as Alex expertly dodged to the side riposting and striking back with the side of his blade.
The strike made the connection to the giant's brow as a sickening thud echoed through the arena.
Ridge stumbled once more but caught himself this time before twisting in a strange manner and appearing upright once more. The audience went wild as they saw a simple brand had appeared on Ridge's forehead. It was a simple brand resembling a snake but it was there non the less.
Rick looked over at Lucas with a questioning look.
"It's a shadow brand. The signature ability of a Shadow Blade. It allows them to depuff the target significantly at the cost of a short period of time in which it buffs them like crazy."
"It's a neat ability right?" Lucas asked rick.
"It seems highly situational and it would mean you could never fight someone above your strength level."
"That's not true. Look at his shield and his footwork. It's fast isn't it?"
The speed at which Alex was dodging the giant was amazing. The giant was swinging at a speed that was truly crazy for his size.
Alex would sidestep one second just in the nick of time as a huge towering blow struck the stone directly next to him. He then began to twist in turn as the lumbering giant started to slow down at a quick pace.
It seemed like Ridge was losing his stamina at an amazing rate.
"And that's the trick. Being quick and sturdy enough to dodge your superpowered enemy until they fade from the curse's effect."
"That is pretty neat," Rick said quickly as Ridge had just fallen.
The announcer appeared in the center of the field once more before snapping his fingers and healing everyone once more.
"It seems like that was the end of this battle. Alex Coppertone being the winner of course. "
"And the foolish oaf is the loser." The announcer said with a particular amount of disgust. It seemed as if Ridge had left a bad impression on the Announcer.
After some light conversation between Rick and Lucas as they waited two new people had appeared upon the stage almost as quickly as they left.
"Everyone welcome Thomas Newford, Tier 1 Thief!"
The tidy man that appeared on stage wore many leather straps that ranged all across his body. They had many strange blades holstered within them. It was the man Rick saw right after the battle royal.
He bowed graciously before calmly waiting for his opponent to appear.
A few seconds later the announcer's voice echoed out once more.
"And Niko... Electrine A tier 1 lightning mage with power and style. "
After a moment of time elapsed a beautiful woman appeared in the flashes of lightning stead wearing an incredibly long and stylish black gown with short blonde hair. Her eyes were a strange yellow that accented her outfit nicely.
She curtsied gently before becoming focused on the man in front of her.
"Now everyone let a Real fight begin." The announcer spoke.
Before anyone knew it the woman had begun chanting loudly as lightning poured around her dress gathering for an attack.
But the man with holstered daggers threw five in quick succession striking multiple non-lethal spots on Niko as she fell to the ground sputtering.
"And that's why we thieves say that mages are easy to fight," Lucas said with admiration of the man on stage who was currently getting boos for his insensitive acts.
"I.... didn't expect the fight to end so quickly. It was over in the blink of an eye." Rick said in amazement.
"That's how it should be. We are burst fighters us and assassins. We are the fastest and should act first and often the first strike in a battle is the deciding one."
"It's just. It was over so fast. I could barely see what the woman was doing as she was struck by 5 daggers square in her arms and legs."
"It is how it is. You need to be brutal to win. It is the way of the world." Lucas said with a solemn tone before turning his attention to the battle field.
"Now that's no way to treat a lady mister Newford. But nonetheless congratulations on your victory." The announcer's voice echoed out once more before he appeared on stage once more to tend to the woman's wounds.
"There will be a short intermission before the next two matches please use the restroom and relax while you wait. There is plenty of food and drink to be had." He continued.