Ghedi market is teeming with people and not because they have brought fresh goods to the market. It is because of the fight.
There is shouting and I know people are placing bets. The odds are against me because I've never been in a fight in front of everyone. Although the people in the Monite colony know who I am. I'm a stranger to the rest of the colonies' residents. And there are quite a few of them.
I lurk in the shadows because I want to catch a glimpse of my opponent. But with everyone elbow to elbow is hard to tell who is who. I slip through the crowd, head into the underground and perch myself on a beam over the ring. It is not a ring per se, it is hardened ground stained with blood from countless fights. There are no rules. The last one standing wins.
I spot Taethi close to the edge as she looks around for me. Still no sign of my opponent. The gong strikes the hour and I know I should be making my way to the ring.
The crowd is getting restless shouting the name of my opponent. The man knows how to make an entry if he would just show up so I can see who he is. No such luck. Minutes tick by and the crowd is growing louder and louder by the minute, restless.
I'm done waiting.
Letting go of the beam, I land in the middle of the ring, and the crowd cheers but somehow I know it's not for me.
People move aside as a head of muddy brown hair appears towering over the rest. It's easy to spot because the majority of the people in Helej Norun are dark-haired.
From the crouching position, I rise to my feet and I already have an idea who is this demon.
For once my instincts don't fail me and Eagan appears through the parted crowd wearing nothing but a pair of loose fabric trousers. He is well built, something that wasn't visible through his manky clothes during our previous encounters. Eagan is all muscle gleaming with sweat. That makes him slippery, in more ways than one.
Doing my best to keep my surprise to a minimum, I watch him step in front of me a few paces away to take his stance.
" Ready to go home to daddy, butterfly," He smirks, and I take my stance. I have never fought him before, but I know that only one of us will leave that ring tonight.
" Why? Does he miss me so badly?" I taunt back and Eagan chuckles.
" I see that you are still a bitch," He smirks and I know he is trying to rattle me. Something he hasn't been successful in so far, because I don't care about what he thinks of me. He is zero absolute.
" Some things never change, Eagan. Better get used to it," I smirk at him and he begins to circle me. He is barefoot, but there is no guarantee that he doesn't have a blade stuck up his ass.
" Did you know that you were going to fight me tonight?" I need to know if this place is going to be crawling with V'asay in less than ten minutes.
He doesn't answer. I'm hoping that he didn't.
His first strike is a high kick followed by a sweep at my feet. I step aside and jump to avoid it. He is testing me. Measuring to find weak points. I like to think that I have none, but I know I do. We all have blind spots.
The crowd is getting rowdy, cheers and shouts. It's a distraction and I try to focus all my attention onto Eagan who is circling me like I'm his next meal.
The second strike is a short burst of punches and low kicks aimed at my legs. I'm tall, so he is hoping to knock me to the ground. I fend and land a few punches and a kick to his stomach. Eagan staggers and falls onto the crowd. I don't find him as terrifying as the first time I met him.
He jumps back in and puts everything he has into his next attack. I see his fist approaching my face at a dizzying speed, I duck and slam into him at full force, driving him to the ground. We both grunt at the force of the impact, but he is fast and rolls me onto my back. And this is my blind spot.
Taethi is shouting from the side of the human ring, and he wraps his hands around my neck. As soon as the fight is over he will take me to Micah.
Knocking his hands off my neck, I punch him in the ribs and he grunts but doesn't budge. The angle is wrong to make any real damage. He lowers his head to say something and I punch him in the nose, his head flies back, and I follow with another punch to the ribs and one last one to his groin.
He falls on his back and groans and I stand. He sweeps my feet from under me, and I hit the ground with a loud thud.
Eagan is on his feet giving me a bloodied smile. He has found my weakness and he will hound me until he catches me. I'm toast.
He is on me before I get a chance to properly push myself up, landing furious punch after furious punch. My bones crack with each punch he lands, and I manage to strike him a few times with little effect.
I can feel blood gushing from my nose, and my lips are split in more than one place. I'm lightheaded and I can barely see.
Taethi shouts some more, Eagan is panting, and I push myself on a weak elbow, spit the blood pooling in my mouth and give him my best-bloodied smile. My turn now.
Jumping to my feet, I go high to kick his head, he catches my leg and twists it sending me spiralling through the air. It is one of my favourite moves that I have perfected in the past year. I land safely on my feet.
" This was fun, but I'm done playing," It was my turn to get my pound of flesh, and I had no intention of showing mercy.
He lunges towards me, I step out of the way and kick him in the ribs. He goes sprawling on the ground grunting.
I'm beaten, but I'm not defeated. I'm still breathing.
Eagan pushes himself up, steadying on his feet with a grimace. I've done some real damage.
I feign to strike and he recoils. He has gone into the defensive. He won't attack.
This might take a while. The crowd is calling his name in every single dialect. Or at least I think they do because the only one I recognise is the Monite dialect.