As Garth was escorted back to his waiting room, chants of his number echoed through the colosseum; the spectators loved the display from him and 13. Garth began to feel a sense of responsibility for the man he fought, knowing he would not get the answer to his question if he did not see him again. Refusing to just let 13 be held captive, Garth decided he would save him no matter what.
"If I lose my life in the process, Cassius never needed me anyway," he thought to himself.
"16 AND 20, MAKE YOUR WAY TO THE STAGE!"
It had then clicked with Cassius why they referred to the participants as numbers and not their names; they didn't care what their names were. To these people, they were probably nothing more than toys meant to be broken.
"BEGIN!"
Cassius still had it in his mind that he would not watch any matches that were not Garth's, that was the case until 16 and 20 had started to go all out.
Participant 16 was attacking with such speed that each strike sent shockwaves through Cassius' body. He immediately ran to the viewing hole and started watching the match. He saw the two participants, 16 being a bulky man with shaggy black hair, muscles bigger than Cassius' head, and number 20 was a tall and fat man with no hair.
"The force behind his attacks are crazy! How is number 20 withstanding all of that?"
Number 20 had not moved an inch since 16 started attacking him. His arms were by his side as 16 pummeled him. It seemed like 20 had taken no damage, not even a single cut was made during the barrage of attacks. 16 then fell to the ground, blood spilling out of his mouth and pouring down his body; his face had also instantly looked like it had taken multiple hits.
"Number 20 didn't even move, what happened," Cassius had started to panic, not being able to see how or when 16 was attacked.
Number 16 then got back up and began another onslaught. Number 20, again, did not move. It seemed like every attack was connecting, but it did not phase 20 in the slightest. As 16 went to land another blow they collapsed onto the stage. 20 walked up to 16 and then kicked them in the head multiple times; number 16 did not move anymore.
"WE HAVE A WINNER! What just happened!? 16 died without 20 doing anything!? This must be the work of an artifact, folks!"
Cheers were not as loud and ecstatic as with other fights. The cheers that did manage to come out seemed to be hesitantly.
"Are they afraid," Garth had caught on to the tone of the cheers.
"Artifact? Is it some kind of weapon? Will they kill number 20 as well for breaking the rules," Cassius' mind began to wander as he tried to process the information presented to him.
"This concludes the first round of the tournament," the noble began to explain the next steps of the tournament.
"We will continue in order of those that are still with us, one-on-one, until we get to the final 2! We have an exciting next fight. Numbers 1 and 23, come to the stage!"
Cassius then recalled the tremendous speed from number 1, striking number 9 faster than even Garth could manage.
"As long as I can see it, I can fight it. My main issue now is number 20. Just what is this artifact?"
The two fighters were escorted to the stage, and Cassius analyzed number 1 as soon as he was able to see them. He was right about the height and build, and their hands looked as if they were used to extreme strain.
"How skilled are they? What else do they have besides speed," starting to think deeply about how to handle the situation, Cassius was trying to process the facts he had with the person before him.
"BEGIN!"
Cassius immediately entered into his stance and just as soon as he did number 1 dashed at him, getting to him before another thought could run through his head. Number 1 barraged Cassius with attacks, aiming for his throat, liver, and eyes. Cassius dodged most of the attacks, but number 1 feinted an attack on his body and then shifted to the side of Cassius and attacked his spine; making Cassius feel a surge of pain travel up his back into his brain. Cassius jumped away 20 feet from his opponent, trying to give himself time to react.
"They're incredibly skilled! Did they aim to paralyze me with that hit," Cassius was both amazed with and fearful of the speed and skill that number 1 possessed.
Cassius knew that running around and dodging would only keep him at a disadvantage. He then rushed number 1, making both of them need to attack and defend simultaneously. Number 1 was attacking much faster than Cassius, but his skill gained from Nero put him at a slight advantage. Blocking and parrying all of number 1's attacks allowed Cassius to reduce damage to himself while maximizing the damage dealt to number 1. He was able to predict many attacks, counter them and attack with his own, and block those that he couldn't predict.
Number 1 backed off and started to speak to Cassius.
"You've already adapted to my speed? Are you a captain or something?"
Cassius became confused. Why would they try to talk with him?
"No, I have no affiliation with any national powers. I'm just journeying around trying to find something."
"I bet you're looking to get stronger, aren't you? Which one do you have?"
"Which one? One of what?"
"Your artifact. Clearly you have one, and it's similar to mine."
"Yours? I don't understand."
"Don't try to play it off, it's cool. It's not like hiding it matters once someone finds out about it. You seem young so I'll let you in on something before you die. Letting people know your power seems like a gamble, but it can help to throw them off as well. When they know what to expect, it can be harder to expect other things. See what I mean?"
"Sure, that makes sense. So what's your power then," Cassius assumed they would not believe that he does not have an artifact. Instead of trying to convince them, he thought it would be better to learn about theirs in this opportunity.
"I have the pace artifact. It allows me to increase or decrease my speed. I'm able to shoot it up many times past my base speed. What's yours?"
"I don't have one."
"Don't give me that! If you aren't gonna tell me then fine, but don't try to lie! I see right through it!"
"I'm telling you the truth. My power comes from a technique passed down from my home."
"Your home? Where are you from?"
"Siladar."
Number 1's face began to go pale. They did not know much about Siladar and the people there, but they have heard stories and rumors from other humans that experienced troubles during the Eris and Siladar war.
"Y-you're Siladarian?"
"Well, no. I was just raised there."
"What human would ever live there!? Siladarians are-"
"Watch what you say about my family. They're Siladarians."
Number 1 then smiled
"Like you can stop me from doing anythi-"
Cassius sprinted to number 1, closing all distance between them, and dug his fist into their face. Number 1 flew back, smashing into the wall where Garth's waiting room was. Garth began to cheer on Cassius, happy that he was taking up for Siladar.
"SILADAR IS A BEAUTIFUL NATION WITH SOME AMAZING PEOPLE!"
Cassius' shout rang through the whole colosseum. Cheers from the spectators stopped as his words boomed into their ears. The whole arena was silent for a few seconds.
Number 1 got back up, trembling at the legs over what had just happened.
"How did he figure it out already? There's no way just knowing my artifact would give away my weakness. How does he know I'm not always fast," number 1 began to panic. The lucky hit from Cassius made him assume Cassius knew the trick to beating his artifact.
Number 1's artifact works by amplifying his speed. This includes the speed of his entire body, tongue, brain processing, heart, etc. To always leave it on is possible, but he could never hold a conversation if he did so. He would speak too fast for anyone to understand if he always kept it on, as well as causing issues with his metabolism. It is a power that has many qualities, but none were useful in this tournament besides fighting.
"I'm already starving. My metabolism shoots way up when I increase my body's pace. Even just a minute of using it burns 10,000 calories," Number 1 continued to think about his disadvantage against Cassius.
Dashing at number 1 again, Cassius aimed to end the fight quickly. He started to attack rapidly, trying to either kill or knock out number 1; however, number 1 had assumed Cassius would target his vital spots as to kill him quickly in hopes of preventing the activation of the artifact. This caused number 1 to make poor calls with his attacks and dodges.
While number 1 managed to evade half of Cassius' attacks, 100 blows still landed in the almost 6 seconds that Cassius was attacking. Cassius wanted to kill his opponent as quickly as possible, as painlessly as possible, because he knew the guards would if he didn't. What was an act of mercy was instead perceived as an act of wrath.
"DON'T TALK ABOUT SILADAR AROUND THIS KID, HE'LL KILL YOU IN AN INSTANT! WHAT A FIGHT," the noble belted out.
It was clear the colosseum had decided on a favorite, one they were sure would win the tournament. Chants and cheers echoed out as a new name for Cassius was given.
"CRIMSON DEATH! CRIMSON DEATH! CRIMSON DEATH!"
"GIVE IT UP FOR NUMBER 23, CRIMSON DEATH!"
Cassius looked around, terrified at what the name meant. If the competitors were just toys, gaining a name meant he was now a pet to these humans. A pet meant for constant entertainment. He then looked at number 1's body, and saw that the stage around him had been covered in blood. There was surely not a single drop of blood left inside of number 1.
"I bet that's why his hair is that color! How many victims have you claimed, Crimson Death," the noble continued to speak about Cassius as if he were an emotionless vessel.
"Guards, take him back to his waiting quarters!"
Cassius was sent back to wait for his next fight, stuck with the image of number 1's corpse and the chanting of 'Crimson Death' both stuck in his mind.
"This city..," he paused
"Has stained my hands."