As the excitement from the last fight died down, the crowd hushed as master Thanes voice boomed through the arena. "Very well fought, soren.
Arlie, you're up again against Marcus, master thane said
The crowd parted to reveal a tall, muscular boy with dark hair and an arrogant smirk.
He walked into the arena and stood at the opposite side of it.
I walked into the arena too, a bit intimidated by his size. Immediately I walked in I saw him look at me with a mild look of amusement.
I won't hold back Just coz you're a girl, Marcus said to me, a smirk forming on his lips as he mocked me.
Then don't, I replied fiercely while rolling up my sleeves and trying to focus
The bell rang, signaling the start of the fight.
Marcus wasted no time in launching his attack. He dashed towards me with a blinding speed, unleashing a series of punches in the process.
I was caught off guard, and was forced to retreat as Marcus advanced towards me. I managed to dodge his blows, but he was relentless, his size gave him a huge advantage, he was almost 7ft tall
"Come on, new girl," Marcus taunted me, his smirk widening. "I thought you were supposed to be strong."
I glared at him, fire flickering in my eyes as I tried to gather my strength.
fueled by rage, i surged forward, summoning flames that dance across my skin like a living cloak. But Marcus was unfazed, he slipped through my defenses with a cat-like agility, landing a series of punishing blows to my stomach and ribs.
I gasped for breath and tried to release a torrent of power but Marcus dodged all my attacks with ease,
He grinned mockingly while circling me like a predator.
I began to get weak and loose hope in the match, as Marcus landed another blow to my cheek, Which caused me to stagger backwards.
Marcus kept enjoying the domination he currently had over me, he kept catching me off guard. He sent me sprawling to the ground with a vicious kick to the ribs.
I struggled to rise, I was determined to end this match with me on the victory side. I summoned every scrap of strength left in me, and unleashed a mighty firestorm from my chest that engulfed Marcus, at this point my eyes has turned completely white, I was no longer in control of my powers.
The crowd watched in stunned silence as the flames, consumed Marcus's body.
The firestorm died down after a while, leaving behind a big deep hole in the center of the arena. In the hole was dead Markus, his body had shrinked and been destroyed to the core, his bones were visible in different area's of his body, there was blood everywhere.
I stood motionless, panting heavily. My eyes wide with shock and tears at the destructive power i had just unleashed.
Master thane rushed forward, the other students parting to let him through, none of them wanted to come near the arena. The woman with white hair, called for the medical team and they were able to bring Marcus out of the deep hole, big bits of his skin kept falling into the hole as he was lifted, as the skin fell into the hole you could hear a ""shhhhhhhh"" sound, as though something was being fried in hot oil.
When Marcus was brought out he wasn't recognisable, I covered my mouth with my both hands as tears dropped uncontrollably from my eyes.
Master thane knelt beside Marcus, as he did, you could see a flicker of relief passing over his face as he feels a faint heartbeat.
"Marcus is alive," he says, his voice tinged with relief and concern. "But he's badly burned.
With careful movements, Marcus was carried out of the arena, a trail of students followed in his wake. My adrenaline faded, and I fell to the ground, my body ached with exhaustion.
I was overwhelmed with fear and guilt. "I didn't mean to hurt him," I whispered, tears stinging my eyes.
Master thane, hearing my words, turned to face me. "That was a remarkable display of power, Arlie," he said. "But you must learn to control it, before it controls you, Everyone I think that's enough training for today.
Back to your dorm rooms now! He said authoritatively
Master Thanes words echoed in my mind as i limped back to my dorm room, my thoughts swirled with questions. I had come to Eleftheria to learn, but now i was more confused than ever.
"Control," i murmured, my voice haunted. "How can I control something I don't even understand?"
I've been called different names all my life
A monster, the witch, bastard, Alien!
all of which broke me a thousand times over and over again.
I thought I had found a family here in eleftheria, turns out I'll be a monster here too, I wish I had a family or at least a mum I could cry to when all these happen, I will get vengeance on all those who destroyed my parents.
I was shaken by the power i unleashed in the arena. I knew that, even though I didn't mean to hurt Marcus, I had to learn to control my abilities if I am to become the warrior I was destined to be. But with the memory of the fight still fresh in my mind, I wasn't sure how I was gonna be able to face the other students, much less continue my training.
The bell rang signifying dinner time, I didn't want to go out because I was devoid of appetite, but I was so hungry, after the energy I unleashed in the arena I couldn't feel myself anymore, I decided to swallow my Shame and go have dinner.
I walked through the halls of eleftheria, my head down and my shoulders slumped, I didn't even know where Gift was. The students i passed by whispered amongst themselves, their hushed voices filled with a mixture of fear and awe.
"Did you see what she did to Marcus?"
"No one has ever survived an attack like that before."
"She's a monster."
I heared the whispers, their glances darted away as soon as they meet my eyes. But i kept walking, acting unbothered by their words
As i exited the dormitories, I noticed a single figure standing apart from the rest, an aura of confidence emanating from him.
It was Soren, he looked at me with a mixture of respect and curiosity.
"You showed real power out there," Soren said, his voice low and calm. "I've never seen anyone control the flames like that."
I was taken aback by soren's openness, i stuttered a response. "I didn't mean to hurt Marcus. I just...lost control."
Soren nodded, his expression was thoughtful. "But you're still learning, aren't you?" he said, his voice deep and calm. "Power like that, it's not something you can learn to control overnight. It takes time."
I was heartened by soren's understanding, I didn't know when a small smile escaped my lips. "I guess you're right."
He smiled back at me, a hint of consolation in his eyes. "Of course I'm right. After all, I've been here for almost a year.
He had dark hair and sparkling silver eyes, I'd heard people with silver eyes had some kind of connection to werewolves.
"Besides," he said, his voice dropping to a whisper, "everyone knows that the first fight is always the toughest. You're already stronger for it."
A sense of relief washed over me at his words. I hadn't thought about it like that. "You really think so?"
He nodded, smiling again, revealing his perfect sets of dentals. "You'll see. Before long, everyone's going to want to know how to fight like you.
My spirit was lifted by soren's encouragement.
The two of us continued talking, our conversation flowed easily as we made our way to the dining hall.
But as we entered the hall, the whispers started again, more insistent this time.i could feel the stares,
Soren took my hand and squeezed it, which comforted me.
"It's almost like they think I'm going to set the place on fire," I muttered, as my cheeks flushed with embarrassment.
Soren, scoffed. "Don't listen to them," he said, his voice dismissive. "They're just jealous. They're not used to seeing someone who actually knows how to use their powers."
I shook my head, trying to brush off the whispers, but they still sting. As I made my way to my seat, I looked out the dining room window and saw the scorched deep part of the ground as a result of fight with Markus, I sighed and wondered how he was doing, I guess I had made an enemy with him.
After eating Soren escorted me back to my dorm room.
Immediately I entered the room I fell into my bed, exhaustion claimed me and i drifted off to sleep, the embers of my power smoldered within me like a restless beast.