The Games for Gaiathal (Part 3 of 'A Tale of People and Apples Trilogy')

Chapter 15: Man and Orca

"For with no darkness there is no light," Solan said.

Calysa only clenched her fists and squinted her eyes.

"On our mark, you may leave your starting circle and into the surrounding stadium. No other rules apply."

Calysa

"Go."

Calysa quickly dropped to her knee and grasped her weapons, swinging the shield to her back and sheathing her sword to her waist, bringing her bow forth and aiming upon Solan.

To Calysa's shock, the arrogant Scientist was already charging, having scooped up all his supplies and was already on his way to hunt her.

She sucked in her chest, strung back her first arrow, aimed it at where Solan's chest would be in the next second, exhaled, and let the sharp metal fly along the lit path which connected their starting circles.

Solan's slightly diagonal trajectory suddenly changed as if he was expecting the path of her arrow, whistling narrowly by him as he quickened his sprint and dodged her first shot, running into the checkered and flickering darkness to his left.

A quarter of the way to the Orca.

Calysa, remaining determined and exhaling again, released her second sizzling arrow this time into Solan's second projected sprint into the seeming strobing of his body.

Again, Solan anticipated Calysa's second arrow, juking back to his original trajectory.

Half way to the Orca.

Calysa closed her eyes and calmed herself, raising her bow again and this time aiming squarely at the rapidly approaching man who was losing his opportunity to dodge as he got ever closer to her, and his direct path to her out of the patchy lights and into the dim but constant flood of gold. She let loose her third arrow.

Sparks of orange exploded as Calysa's arrow skidded and sputtered off of Solan's outstretched hammer which he used to guard his heart, the metal skipping and sparkling harmlessly beyond into the stadium.

Three quarters of the way to the Orca.

Calysa hadn't the luxury to calm herself for her last arrow, Solan now within the constant light to reach her. She brought the last of her ammo speedily taut, squinted her eyes, and in an effort to avoid Solan's range of his hammer's protection, loosed her arrow upon his lower limbs.

Instead of orange spark as she saw before, and her ultimate enemy close enough to her to see the whites of his eyes, she watched as the arrow plunged into his shin and the pointed metal out the other side, blood which appeared black, or was truly black, spattering upon the steel dimly lit floor.

Calysa exhaled in excitement, bewilderment, not able to comprehend the advantage the bloodied arrow now presented yet.

Solan shouted in pain. But he was atop the Orca despite his limp with ferocity.

Calysa admired her shot for too long, even realizing she was the first person to draw blood from Solan probably ever, as his hammer swiped her bow to the side and his sword began to swipe down upon her.

Using the momentum which his blow to her bow provided, she spun and turned her back to Solan, crouching within her shield which resembled a shell and absorbed the swipe of Solan's sword which thumped and scraped upon her steel and vibrated her bones.

She unsheathed her sword and spun back to face him with a horizontal swipe of her own and a roar, Solan blocking it with his hammer and kicking her backwards with his good leg, falling to his knee, unable to transfer weight upon his terribly wounded limb which the Orca had toothed.