*IGNITE!*
*CLOUDY FLAME BALL!*
BOOM!
An explosion erupted as the little flame ball collided with the rock. The explosion was relatively small, but the thick black smoke that billowed out was massive and consumed the entire platform, blocking Thomas's vision.
*FLAME BALL*
John's cold voice called out, and...
BOOM!
The impact followed, causing another explosion, and then the arena went quiet as John victoriously stood, allowing the smoke to settle.
"This fight is over," he proclaimed loudly and boldly, but was interrupted by a chuckle from the side.
"Huh!" John exclaimed in shock at the sight of Thomas still conscious.
"This battle is far from over," Thomas said as he got to his feet. "Because you underestimated me."
Clicking his fingers, he allowed the partially crumbled earth wall in front of him to collapse. It was the earth wall that had absorbed the damage from the flame ball.
Taking his stance again, he braced himself.
"Oh, you blocked my attack despite being shrouded in smoke. Then you are one lucky boy," John readied his hand and...
Boom!
They both blasted themselves forward, leaving a trail of their own auras behind.
With an arm full of flame, John collided with the giant rock that Thomas was approaching, making them both shatter each other, but that didn't slow down the duo.
Sending a punch with his other hand toward Thomas was John's next action.
Quickly jumping backward, Thomas added a little spice of earth-bending to his motion, which pulled him further backward, allowing him to dodge John's attack swiftly. They both blasted forward again, colliding with each other and causing small explosions here and there.
Everyone was watching the duo fight, jaws dropped. The amount of power they were producing wasn't overly impressive, but their tactics and unique way of fighting sure stood out.
Raising his hands again, John stretched out his palm wide, facing Thomas.
*FURY FLAME BALL!*
John chanted in a scream, and just like the name implies, a fury of flame balls summoned into the air and continuously blasted at Thomas.
Thomas, with his control over earth magic, summoned a tall wall of solid rock to shield himself from John's flames. However, his lack of strength and experience showed as the wall crumbled under the intense heat after taking only a few hits, leaving Thomas with the option to dodge the remaining attacks, which he luckily avoided without suffering a hit.
"No matter how much Thomas tries to mask it, it still shows that he is a step below John."
Both Thomas and John could be seen huffing and panting, their gazes fixed on each other.
"I'm running out of energy; I am running out of core energy," Thomas panicked inwardly as he readjusted his stance. He was ready to go in again, but John seemed to have noticed his plan for the next move and charged in first.
*FLAME BALL!*
The attack traveled through the air and collided with Thomas too quickly for him to react.
It was a solid hit!
Gritting his teeth, Thomas retaliated by creating sharp spikes of earth to skewer John. However, his aim was off, and the spikes missed their target entirely. John, with a swift move, effortlessly redirected the spikes away with a wave of his hand.
"I will not lose this fight. I will not lose, no matter what. I will not lose to John."
*EARTH BOULDER!*
A giant rock was raised from the platform, hovering in the air above Thomas before descending downwards.
"Look at how predictable your attacks are! How do you intend to win this fight?" John taunted as he leaped sideways, giving himself an extra boost with his flame, even though it was not necessary at the moment, as the attack could still be easily dodged without the intervention of magic.
Realizing that his earth magic wasn't enough to defeat John, Thomas was left with only one option: to strategize better.
"Seriously, I think I am going to lose this fight; my attack is too slow." Thinking back to all he knew about fire, he racked his brain to come up with an idea until one actually came to him.
"Oxygen! I can use oxygen to my advantage," Thomas's eyes lit up.
Flame, in general, is made of partially oxygen, which John's flames required to burn and thrive. So, he could use his earth magic to create a dense cloud of dust and debris, obscuring John's vision and limiting the airflow.
Raising his hands upward, he hadn't even begun the plan when a flame-infused punch struck him in the gut.
Thomas stumbled backward in a daze, and his head went blank for a few seconds.
John capitalized on the opportunity and unleashed another torrent of fireballs toward Thomas. With quick reflexes, Thomas managed to evade most of the projectiles, but a few grazed his arm and torso, leaving behind a painful burn. The impact sent Thomas rolling on the floor, and so far since the fight started, John has landed another hit, and a critical one at that.
The attack raised a cloud of smoke and with that, the whole crowd tilted their heads forward to see the outcome of the attack as soon as possible.
"Oh now it's over," John screamed with craze in his eyes. "It is truly over."
*Cough! Cough! Cough!*
The smoke finally settled, and Thomas could be seen nearly rendered completely immobile and lying on the floor.
The air smelt like roasted chicken wings with a sprinkle of chilling, spring onion compliment by the side and... nevermind.
*Cheers!*
As the crowd erupted in cheers and applause, John Chris proved that even with his limitations of still being a low-level mage, he had the resilience and resourcefulness to overcome his weaknesses. This duel had not only revealed his inner strength but had also shown his potential to grow and improve.
The wind blew through his hair, activating his neverending pride. Thomas looked ahead to his future as a mage who starts up in a good light, ready to face any challenges that came his way.
By this time, Eagle Man already knew the next thing to do as he declared.
"Well I'll say this duel is over and we got a winner..." Eagle Man's declaration was cut short by Thomas who was weakly lying on the platform floor.
"No... No... It's not... It's not over yet," Thomas grunted weakly on the ground, causing the entire crowd to go dead silent. "It's not over."
*RUMBLE! RUMBLE!*
The victory was short-lived as the ground shook violently and caught John by surprise. He lost his footing on the unstable terrain and fell to the ground just like John only difference is that he fell on his butt. Both mages lay on the ground, and John was momentarily stunned from the impact.
"Goodbye John Chris, I hope I'll see you at the top one day."
With that said, Thomas did his final strike still on the floor
*EARTH SWEEP!*
Thomas' attack unleashed a wave of earthy energy, swiping the ground beneath John with incredible force.
John's eyes widened as he felt himself being pushed toward the platform's edge.
"No...this can't be!" John shouted, his voice fading into the distance trying to release himself from the ground movement.
Desperately, John tried to grab onto something, anything, but Thomas' attack was too powerful.
John's body teetered on the edge, and then, in an instant, he descended into the depths below in a rough fall, out of the platform.
The crowd gasped, stunned by the sudden turn of events.
Thomas allowed his body to rest with relief on the ground, exhausted, his vision blurring.
But he knew he'd won.
With a triumphant smile, Thomas whispered, "It's over."
The Eagleman hesitated, then declared Thomas the winner.
"The fight is over!" Eagle Man declared, and for real this time it was over.
"Well done, Thomas,"