Fight Against Fate: Chapter 13

With Alec’s match ending there was one more and then they rolled into the next round. Those that had lost were mostly sitting down on the benches under the tents drinking from water skins and being looked over by on sight doctors. Thankfully no one had been seriously hurt in the fighting.

Lee and Alec both had managed to get away with only a few bruises and nothing worse. Felix stayed at Alec’s side because he had noted the weirdness since his fight. Despite Alec trying to deflect it all he wasn’t getting blown off easily. But he didn’t press it because they had bigger things to focus on.

Lee was sitting with them, cross legged and hands folded. Alec had been watching him and wanted to poke at him but Felix swatted his hand down many times to stop him from being an idiot. But he opened his eyes finally and got up, picking his staff off the ground. The next match was beginning and the announcer was coming forward.

“Let’s begin the first round of our quarter finals. And I know you all have been waiting for this one. The tournament favorite, Dio!” Dio approached the arena to the cheers of the crowd. He brushed his shoulders off slowly and rested his hand on his sword.

Alec stared at him sharply but looked toward Lee and held his arm out to him, “Good luck. You’ve got this.”

Lee took his arm and smiled in appreciation and then twirled his staff behind his back and stepped into the arena, “And next we have the fateless that has stirred the interest of everyone here and potentially to upset the entire tournament. Lee!”

Lee stood across from Dio and smiled pleasantly. He bowed his head slowly in his direction, “I’ve heard much about you Dio. From rumors to the pair that know you personally. You are already a legend amongst many.”

Dio shook his head drawing his sword and then his dagger getting into his stance, “I only concern myself with things that I can see. And I’ve seen your skill first hand.”

“I’m honored to have gotten your attention,” he said and then readied his staff. “Let us have a good match.”

“Begin!”

Dio took the initiative and closed the distance between them quickly. Lee had predicted this after watching Dio fight but he could confirm it now. Dio was not as fast as Alec was. It was close but Alec had the edge. And he knew from their sparring that he was faster than Alec still. Which meant Lee was faster than Dio. He blocked Dio’s strike with a solid thunk from his staff and rotated it around to deflect the attack with the dagger next.

What Lee didn’t see coming was Dio swinging both weapons back together, crossing them against his staff. He stepped back and almost yanked the staff from Lee’s hands. But he still stumbled forward and off balance. Shoving the staff into the ground he vaulted forward, flipping over Dio and landed behind him.

Turning around he pointed the staff and started attacking, with quick thrust aimed at Dio’s head and body. Already on the move Dio stepped around them anticipating each attack. He parried one blow with the dagger, twisting it around the blade and jerking Lee’s arm to the side. Lunging forward with his sword he went for Lee’s shoulder like a needle.

Lee ducked low avoiding the blow narrowly and winced as the sword sliced his cheek. From this low position he swept with staff at Dio’s legs aiming at his shins. Dio hopped over that and stepped backwards out of retaliation range. Lee got back to his feet breathing harder and readied himself again.

Dio stood up slowly and cracked his neck lowering his sword. “You’re fast. From your reaction to Alec earlier, I’d say you’re about as fast as he was. Definitely faster than me,” he said simply. “But you’re predictable. Easy to read and stop.”

Lee wiped the cut on his cheek and saw the blood and then looked at Dio, lowering his staffs front end and raising the back, “Then I will have to take a page from Alec’s book.”

He darted forward, the staff scraping against the ground. Pushing it against the ground he vaulted forward as Dio readied himself. He looked up at him and watched as Lee thrust the staff forward. Dio turned his dagger around stepping forward ready to deflect it again. Lee smirked and twisted it and suddenly the staff broke into links.

Pulling at the end of the staff, he spun in the air and swung the chain linked staff, smacking it into Dio’s head. Reconnecting the links Lee landed and thrust the staff into Dio’s shoulder hard almost knocking him over. Dio grunted through gritted teeth and turned around to face him. Despite the bruise on his face and pain in his shoulder he was smiling.

Wiping his forehead he smiled, “That was good. It won’t work again.”

“That so?”

“Yes,” Dio crouched crossing his sword over his arm again eyes narrowed but his smile didn’t fade. “Come on then.”

 Lee smirked but he hesitated because he felt like there was more to this than just the challenge. He approached him slowly and lunged forward with the staff. Dio went back to dodging as Lee swung and thrust with the staff. Dio raised his sword and blocked the staff and Lee twisted the staff.

The staff broke apart into the pieces and Lee swung down ready to benefit from another range attack. But Dio thrust his sword forward, spinning it quickly and watched as the segments of the staff started to twist and tighten around the blade. Yanking his arm back he pulled Lee almost off his feet.

Lee tried to right himself but not before Dio closed the distance between them and punched him in the face hard with the edge of the dagger. Kicking him in the knee he knocked him down entirely and slid his sword free of the staff. Lee scrambled backwards quickly but Dio pounced on him holding his sword to his throat.

Lee’s face stung but he looked at him, his eyes widening slightly. He looked at his staff discarded in a pile across the arena ground. He looked at Dio and despite the bright red bruise on his face he wore a savage grin.

“Yield,” Dio told him.

“I can still fight.”

Lee glared up at him and tried to stand, ready to continue. Dio stepped forward and stomped on his chest keep him down. He narrowed his eyes and Lee glared but despite every fiber of his body protesting, he knew the truth.

Gritting his teeth together he finally mumbled, “I yield.”