Ara looked at the two of them like she wanted to finish them off before the bidders had a chance to roll. Dorin didn't hesitate to give her a similar look back. She seemed surprised, as if she thought they would both surrender at the first sign of trouble.
The sound of dice interrupted their staring contest, and Dorin was now able to see the kind of ego Ranell had. It was light blue, and he could see white etchings of waves between the faces of her four-sided die. She had rolled a three this time.
Tordi surprisingly had two five-sided dice, one for each of them. This was the first time that Dorin had seen someone use multiple ego's at the same time. He had rolled a four and a three. "I'll give the higher roll to Dorin, maybe he'll actually be able to use it."
The strands of earth and water from the egos seemed to clash, twisting between each other. The earth strands were whipped back by the water, which went straight into Ara's hands as a long rapier. On its hand guard was the image of waves crashing together.
A hammer and an axe dropped to the floor as they manifested respectively in Dorin and Rae's hands. They both had the image of an anvil, and instead of a sharp edge on the other side of the blunt hammer there was now a menacing spike. The metal of Dorin's hammer was darker and had detailed engravings that Rae's axe didn't.
"I will have to ask that you surrender after being struck, as your chance of becoming a spark will be over with a simple touch from your opponent's weapon." The Spire grinned, still standing over them. "Begin."
Dorin looked at Rae, who nodded back to him. It was obvious that they would only have a chance if they worked against Ara together. The problem was neither of them could easily wield their weapons. They stood side by side as Ara walked towards them with her rapier outstretched.
"Surrender." Ara said. "You both know how this is going to end and I would rather not scar you for life."
"I think you're just scared of getting hit." Dorin finally lifted his hammer, heaving it behind his shoulder.
Dorin saw the same vein pop out of Ara's forehead. She rushed at Dorin, thrusting her rapier straight into his face. Dorin swung his hammer, hoping to shatter her thin weapon. The two egos clashed, and the rapier seemed to bend along his hammer without caring that it was struck. The point was closing in on his right eye, but Rae managed to add his axe to the mix, and all three weapons hit the floor.
Ara immediately tackled Rae, abandoning her weapon. Dorin tried to pick up his hammer, but with the added weight of Rae's on top, he had to choose the axe instead. The balance of the weapon was much different, but there wasn't any time to get used to it.
Rae was underneath Ara, in a similar chokehold to Dorin in the past, and he seemed like he was close to passing out. Dorin brought his axe above his head, ready to cut into Ara's back. Just as he swung Ara jumped off and Dorin barely missed his friend, digging the axe into the ground.
"Get up, Rae." Dorin lightly kicked his friend, but he was out cold.
"What a joke." Ara laughed as she pulled her rapier out from underneath Dorin's hammer. "The fact that either of you even have a chance to be a spark is upsetting."
"I would rather have all of us die than let you be the spark." Dorin grit his teeth.
"You have no idea what duty actually means."
"I know what truly lies underneath what you believe to be your duty." Dorin held the axe with both hands. "It's merely your own selfish desire for power."
Ara wildly swung her rapier towards him, quickly enough that Dorin could no longer see the thin blade. 'All or nothing.' Dorin raised the axe above his head as she neared him, and threw it with all his might.
Dorin heard a clang, followed by a scream from Ara. She had tried to deflect it, but the weight of the weapon was too much. The axe was stuck in her shoulder, but she kept running after him. Dorin saw the image of an anvil manifest just above where she was struck.
"Stand down, Ara." The Spire spoke with authority. "You have lost."
Ara had no intention of stopping, and struck out with her rapier. Before it could hit him, Dorin saw something fly towards the two of them with an incredible speed. It hit Ara in the head, knocking her to the floor as the rapier clattered to the ground next to her. Dorin stood over her for a second before checking if she was breathing.
"Leave her. We have no use for a beast who won't listen to orders." The Spire opened his hand, and the coin traveled back to his hand just as quickly as it came. "Finish the job Dorin, there is only one person left in your path."
Ara wasn't breathing. 'That blow to the head must've killed her.' Dorin felt chills run through his entire body. He couldn't believe that one coin could end someone's life so easily.
Dorin took the axe from Ara's shoulder. He felt the same way now as when he was told to leave Rae in the river. 'Never again.' Dorin turned the sharp edge of the axe as it glimmered under the light of the colosseum. Making up his mind, he brought it to his arm and cut deep enough to draw blood.
"You fool." The Spire clenched the wall with his hands, and it crumbled in his grip. "That boy is not worthy of becoming a spark."
"Then you'll have to choose the cripple." Dorin stared back at the Spire, feeling blood drip down his arm. Dorin turned back to check on Rae.
"So be it." The Spire flicked his wrist again, and Dorin felt a jolt of pain in the back of his neck before everything went black.