Chapter 24: Flames of Rivalry
"Vagnis—" Belk muttered, his voice laced with irritation at the interference, turning fully to meet the gaze of Vagnis, who steadied another arrow on the bow. "What are you doing..."
Without another word,, Vagnis arrow lanced towards him, belk barely managing to get out of the way, his hands diving to grab his gun, his fingers spinning the gun by the trigger, grasping it perfectly within his palm before he fired.
The beam shot straight past Vagnis, the energy beam condensing for a heartbeat before it exploded on a tree, the force sending debris shooting in all directions, a tree branch knocking the bow out of Vagnis’s grasp.
They both watched as the bow fell on the floor, without wasting a second they both blitzed for it, Vagnis jumping out of the tree with efficient grace, landing on his feet before he leapt forward.
Belk pushed off the ground as hard as he could, but he was a second too late. Vagnis dropped to his knees, sliding across the battlefield. His hands moved in a blur, knocking an arrow and releasing it before his momentum slowed.
The arrow whizzed past Belk’s face, his eyes following its trajectory, a mistake he had come to realize as Vagnis drove his fist into his face, the force enough to send the young scientist staggering.
"Keep your eyes on your opponent! Didn’t the chief at least teach you that much–" Vagnis spat, his bow now on his back as he hopped from foot to foot in one place, as if warming up his muscles.
Belk tried to aim at his opponent, but with a swift push of his coiled leg, Vagnis closed the distance in the blink of an eye. He twisted his arm, wrenching the gun from his grasp and pulled him close.
Belk eyes snapped downward, seeing Vagnis’s arm coiled back, ready to strike into his stomach, the scientist reacted quickly, driving his knee upward toward Vagnis’s chin, but it was swiftly deflected by Vagnis’s free hand, as if the change in plans were nothing more than a passing thought.