Two vampires rushed into the arena and started to gut the dead beasts and removed the beast crystals. A third one brought a cart to the center and dumped more weapons on the pile. The weapons included different types of swords, some axes and a few war hammers. The two crystal collectors couldn't take the bone devouring serpent's crystal as even its blood corroded the daggers they used to gut it. They had no choice but to leave as a horn was blown to signify the beginning of the second round.
Milas was nervous as he looked at the people that surrounded him. Most looked unfamiliar to the concept of killing as they had looked away whenever someone was killed in the previous round. Some looked like battle hardened veterans with multiple scars and a murderous glint hidden deep in their eyes.
Milas hoped that his plan would work, as it would at least ensure that he lives past the initial massacre. The gates were opened and the group of twenty four was forced into the arena. Some tried to resist going but a beating from the guards made them cooperate. Other vampires studied the arena while Milas and most of the veterans walked to the pile of weapons.
Multiple gates opened and beasts stormed into the arena. The beasts were mostly basic with two intermediate beasts among them. Milas ran to the pile and picked up a longsword with his left hand and a spear in his right. He then ran straight towards a boulder.
His speed had vastly improved and he reached the boulder in seconds. Milas wanted to climb a boulder so as to get a better view of the arena. He leapt on the side of the boulder and was surprised to have landed close to the top of the two and a half meter tall rock.
Milas stood on the boulder and saw different beasts were rushing to meet the group of vampires. Milas saw a boulder slowly move out of an open gate. He was about to focus on it when he heard an annoyingly familiar growl. He looked below the boulder and saw a graceful, black furred feline circling the boulder while eyeing him.
Milas stared back at the darklands leopard and a strange feeling of rage and excitement built up inside him. He couldn't wait to see how much he had improved by going against a familiar opponent. He studied its movements and jumped at it with the spear ready to strike.
The leopard jumped away but Milas was counting on it as he clearly remembered how agile it was. The spear left his hand and impaled the beast's back leg. Milas landed with roll and looked up to see a paw with claws outstretched heading for his face. The paw felt slow and Milas easily evaded it and thrust his sword into the beast's mouth.
The blade was stopped by the beast's spine and gurgling sounds were a sign of the leopard drowning in its own blood. Milas yanked the sword out and put the beast out of its misery by stabbing its brain through the forehead.
He then removed the sword and spear from the carcass and held them in front of him, ready to slice and dice anything that came close.
"Thud! Thud! Thud! MOOOO!!!"
The last thing Milas expected to see was a raging bull with two foot long, curved and serrated horns charging at him. He turned around and used the boulder as a support to launch himself into the air.
"BOOM!!"
The bull crashed into the boulder and chunks of it fell off while the bull stood there unharmed. Milas landed a few meters away and immediately ran towards the group of vampires. The bull was hot on his heels but his newfound speed ensured that the distance between them barely decreased. He saw a vampire battling a two headed dog but the beast was smaller and generally weaker than the first one.
Milas rammed the spear into its side sending both of them into a roll. He positioned the dog's body between himself and the bull before digging the free end of the spear into the ground. The bull indiscriminately rammed into the helpless dog. Its speed pushed the spear through the dog and partially through the crevice between its horns.
The bull was stuck with a spear in its head and a dead dog hanging from it. Another vampire left a shallow cut on its thick hide making the enraged bull turn savage. It thrashed about until a sharp ring made it freeze. Milas was standing in front of a boulder while his sword vibrated as an aftereffect of hitting its flat side on the hard surface.
The bull charged in the direction of the noise and Milas calmly leapt to the top of the boulder. He watched the rapidly approaching bull and felt the rock shake when the bull made contact with it. The bull was frozen stiff while the dog's bones turned to powder. Milas agilely landed on the dead bull's back with a blood covered sword in hand.
The crowd cheered fervently as they had found Milas' last accomplishment to be very satisfying. The cunning and adaptability he displayed accompanied with his daredevil attitude was the perfect entertainment for the psychotic crowd.
Milas heard the almost inaudible flapping of wings and alarm bells rang in his mind. He swung the sword in the direction of the sound while simultaneously leaping away. The sword was easily broken and a cut was left on his arm. He heard the flapping again as his attacker changed direction to strike again. Milas dived under the body of the bull and a deep claw mark was imprinted on the tough hide.
The flapping moved away and Milas heard the roar of a beast. The roar was cut short after Milas heard the flapping again. He came to the conclusion that the flying creature had to be an intermediate beast because it easily broke the sword and managed to kill a basic beast in two attacks.
The arena soon turned into a devilish symphony of flapping wings and the screams and roars of terror. The conductor of the orchestra remained a mystery as no one had the chance to see it before death took them.
It felt like a repeat of the previous round where one being massacred the whole arena. The most disturbing fact for Milas was the realization that there are two intermediate beasts in the arena but only one was attacking. This made Milas afraid of the unknown as thoughts of a phantom predator watching his every move flooded his brain.
The symphony of death slowed down as the numbers dwindled. Milas was trying to think of a way to survive till the end but the only thing coming to mind was to remain hidden. The plan was going well till a whistle pierced the air and an arrow embedded itself on the bull near his head. Several more whistles followed behind the first as three arrows came from the same direction and forced him out of his safe haven.
Milas only had enough time to gather his sense of direction before the flapping began closing in on him. He saw a dead vampire with a large axe near his position and he rushed to take the weapon. He bought himself some time by throwing the broken sword at the sound. This gave him the chance to pick up the weapon and swing it behind him at full force.
The heavy axe hit the target and Milas heard something ripping apart. He finally saw the beast that assaulted him. It was a large bat with a four meter wingspan. The edges of its wings were sharp and its dark glossy fur might have provided incredible camouflage at night. This wouldn't work in the arena as a large source of light was attached to the very top of the domed ceiling.
It had a gaping hole in its wing and it stared at Milas with its red eyes. It issued a screech as it landed on a boulder. It looked ready to pounce on Milas when long spikes shot out of the boulder and turned it into a pincushion.
It fell down and a large tortoise head came out of a hole in the boulder and proceeded to eat the bat.
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Dear readers, I'm an amateur writer and I was hoping to get your opinion on the book thus far. It will be deeply appreciated if you could leave an honest review.
Thanks, Chaoswalker_7.