Into the Black

I shifted back and forth on the balls of my feet. I’d reviewed the rules of the arena. Participants could use their own gear, and trophy taking was prohibited, so I wouldn’t lose any of it due to an angry amazon, though anything damaged would have to be repaired. I could live with the repair costs. Besides, I was supposed to be putting on a show, so I might as well put on a show!

The waiting area was a simple affair, basically the same as any locker room you’d find in any stadium anywhere in the real world. It wasn’t supposed to be luxurious, just utilitarian, as people would be moving through pretty regularly. Right now, I was focusing on loosening up, so I could get ready for the fighting.

Then it was time. The door opened, and I stepped out onto the sands of the arena floor. The arena was, for the most part, open sand, but there were blocks, broken columns, and even pieces of walls littering the sands in different areas, to provide more than just a simple flat surface for those who could properly wield the environment.