The Varied Path (Akatsuki no Yona Fanfiction)

Chapter 68: Underground Initiation [Continued]

Calista met with the first opponent, sweeping him off his feet with ease despite him being three times her size and the steel pointed at his neck determined her first win of the night in under thirty seconds.

She was distracted though, unable to get his favor out of her mind. It made her slower, but she was as alert as ever, understanding what was at stake.

Rumor had it that Thorne had a secret, a big one. It was supposedly the sole reason why he joined the underground in the first place, but no one ever figured out what it was. He had been here for ten years, and no slip-ups.

He was directly under Reaper, and there was another that held the same level of authority that he did, but she had never seen him. He was supposed to be further south, around where the Awa port was at.

Through the noise of all the cheering and sounds of betting going on, she blocked it out and focused on Yona's breathing, honed in on the slightest of anomalies. She was about two feet away from her, a risky length. But she kept moving, taking out anyone who got too close.

Twisting his arm around his back, she jerked up and a shrill scream echoed throughout the arena as she dislocated another's shoulder.

She shoved him to the ground, ensuring that he didn't rise. Switching her tactics, she dropped down and hooked a foot around the incoming ankle. He crashed to the ground, disoriented.

Spinning so many times she lost count, Calista fought with a deadly look in her eye, but she wasn't fighting to kill. Blood dripped into her eye from a cut she wasn't aware of receiving, and her muscles were starting to get sore from wielding the dual steel blades.

She was only fighting to impair, but that was taking more finesse than she was used to at an initiation of this size.

The line between incapacitating and death was a fine one, and while she didn't want to take any lives, Yona's safety was her first priority. If they got up again after she took them down, she would make sure that they didn't have a chance to come back again.

Whipping around as she noticed movement out of the corner of her eye, she walked right into the trap. A foot collided with her chest, knocking the air out of her lungs.

Her eyes rolled in the back of her head as she took a few seconds to gather her bearings.

Delirious, she covered Yona, taking a heavy hit to her back. She bit back a groan, then shook her head as the world around her finally came back into focus.

Turning around with a speed that rivaled Hak's, she pushed him off of her and knocked him clean out. Rotating her wrist, she spun around to face the stragglers left, silently begging them with her eyes to just do it and fight her.

But they shrunk back at her display, mistaking it for intimidation and ran back to their masters, who glared at them in disappointment.

Calista quelled the smugness welling up in her chest, ashamed of the fleeting pride she felt.

This was nothing to be proud of.

As the initiation was called out and moved onto the next, she and Yona left the ring, shouldering their way through the crowd.

Those fighters who ran would get beaten tonight by their masters tonight, and there was nothing she could do about it.

Once they reached the edge, there were three misfits who stood out from everyone else. They didn't fall into the category of fighter or master, instead, they all held themselves with confidence.

That reminded Yona of Calista.

"Red, this is Yue, Nier and Opal." The raven-haired fighter introduced them one at a time. "They are triplets."