A/N
The picture is close to what I imagine Aurora to look like.
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'Thud'
I fell to the grass, covered in sweat and drenched with water from my spar with Alex. Alex flopped down beside me, just as covered in sweat as I was. His shirt had a burn mark on his side, close to his ribs but his skin was untouched underneath. I wasn't much better with rips and tares through my clothing, it seems he got closer to hitting me than I did him this time. We were both panting from the training we just endured, even if it was lighter training than we usually did. We just layed there, catching our breath as we watched the clouds float by. The sky was tinged orange by now as the sun had started to set. After a few moments we had caught our breath enough to speak and Alex was the first to do so.
"So how is your sister? Your dad still not letting her go to the school?"
I released a sigh and I sat up with my legs crossed, "Yeah. He's even still trying to pull me from school, especially with the tournament. He just never got over what happened to our mom." My voice grew quiet as I spoke of my mother.
Alex sat up and gently placed his hand on my knee. I guess he was trying to make me feel better because he knew how I felt, both his parents had been killed defending the wall. Even with his comforting touch the ache in my heart didn't leave, it never did when my mother was on my mind.
A few moments passed before his voice broke the silence, "So where should we go to eat?"
I looked up at him as he stared at me, awaiting my answer. "Well, I already told my dad that I won't be home for supper so we can go anywhere," As I spoke I watched the grin on Alex's face grow wider.
"Perfect," Alex stood up and held out his hand for me to take. I looked at him curiously and took his hand. Even after I stood up he didn't let go of my hand but started leading me by it. We walked for a while and I eventually realized that we were heading towards his house. He lived alone with his twin older sisters who were both water elementals as well. If I recall correctly his sisters normally defended the wall at night so we would be alone in his house. He kept leading me by the hand all the way inside the house and to the kitchen, where he finally let go of it.
"You know what to do." I nodded as he spoke, ready to begin a familier routine. I went to the wood stove in the corner of the room and opened the door. I snapped my fingers and a flame came to life on the end of them. I threw that small flame into the stove and it bursted into a bigger flame, heating up the room quickly. As I was working on the fire, Alex was filling a pot full of water. Once it was full he brought it over and set it on the stove. This is what we often did after a long day of training together since his home was closer to the school than mine.
After the meal was cooked we sat across from each other at the small dinner table, just idly chatting about anything other than the looming tournament tomorrow. We sat there for a long time talking, just trying to relax. The tournament never left my mind though. Nobody wanted to do it, nobody wants to leave the safety of the walls but we had to do it or you would be a disgrace and risk banishment, getting locked out anyways. You can't cheat either by letting your opponent win, everyone is watching and they will notice so you risk disgrace and banishment there as well. But it is an honour to be one of the chosen ones, one of the saviors of the human race. There are plenty of us who wish to be the ones to be sent out in search of the place of no monsters. We want to be the ones to find the place where everyone can be safe. I'm one of them. I want to find that place so my sister can be safe. I'd rather risk death by thousands of monsters beyond the wall than let her face even one of them. I am going to be one of the winners this time, I have to be.
~~~~~~~~~
I woke up to someone shaking me. I could vaguely hear a female voice. I slowly opened my eyes to see Lily. She smiled at me and spoke softly, "Good morning Sarah. Daddy says you have to get up and get ready now."
I groaned and looked at one of the unboarded windows in my room. It was still dark out.
"Already?" If he was making me get up this early it must be something important.
"Alright, I'll be done in a few minutes." Lily smiled at me once more before she turned and ran out of my room. I smiled to myself as I watched my sweet sister leave, thinking to myself that I hope she stayed so sweet and innocent as I slowly crawled out of bed, but I know the corrupt world would take away her innocence soon enough. It did that with all of us.
I started making my way over to the chest at the foot of my bed. It feels like I only left Alex's house moments ago. He was acting kind of oddly, he wouldn't make eye contact with me as I was saying goodbye. He wished me luck in the tournament and I wished him luck as well but after we said goodbye he stood there for a bit like he wanted to say more but then he smiled at me and shut the door. I wonder why he was like that? I won't dwell on it, I have enough to worry about. The tournament starts a few hours after sun rise.
As I went to the worn down chest at the foot of my bed I noticed a small wooden box placed on top of it. Seeing the small fire symbol on top of it I already knew what it was. I rushed over to it with a big smile on my face, pulling the lid off the top to reveal the black clothing.
"It's your mother's old under armor," I turned to see my dad standing in my doorway, a sad smile on his face. "She would have wanted you to wear it."
I looked back at he black armor. Under armor is clothing made of some part of strong monsters, whether it be the hide, hair or scales, that is worn under normal clothing. My mother's armor was special, being passed down from generation to generation. It was made from scales of the strongest monster ever recorded, a terrifying beast resembling the mythical dragons. Luckily this beast has never been seen near us, otherwise we would have no chance even if we all fought together. How they managed to make under armor out of it's scales, I have no idea but I'm happy they did because it has been protecting our family for many generations. The armor is very flexible but very strong, able to withstand even the sharpest blade. It's fire proof, breathable and light. And now it's mine.
As I pulled the armor out I couldn't stop a tear from running down my face, "I miss her, dad." My mother died only five years ago, the wound it left on our hearts were still quite fresh. The worst part is, she wasn't killed by a monster defending the wall. No, she was murdered by her own kind. An elemental killed her. That elemental was banished, basically sentenced to death by the monsters beyond the wall.
I hugged the armor to my chest as more tears fell, my dad walking up behind me and wrapping his strong arms around me. "I know, we all do."
After crying for a while my dad left so I could change. I pulled off the clothes I slept in and slipped on the armor. The armor was long pants attached to a sleeveless shirt. It stretched to fit my body perfectly, hugging my body tightly but comfortably. Like a second skin. I looked at myself in the mirror for a while, thinking of my mother wearing this armor so many times before me. I shook my head, casting out thoughts of my mother so I can focus on the tournament. I quickly threw on a red shirt and a pair of stretchy black pants that fit slightly loose. After this I quickly slipped into a pair of sneakers and left, heading to the tournament.
~~~~~~~~~~~
Standing in a hallway I could hear the hum of hundreds of voices talking at once. This building I'm standing in was once a stadium used for a sport that I've been told was called football but since then it's been modified. It can hold about half the population but that's not saying much and a lot of it has been demolished to make room for more useful things. The stadium has been modified for the the tournament, the field a big arena for the competitors and the stands for elementals and humans to watch but there's also the cages. These hold various monsters for training and for the tournament.
Just as I walked into a room with a big window full of other competitors a buzzing voice came from a speaker on one side of the room, "Welcome ladies and gentlemen, the tournament will now commence. The first competitors are water elemental Alex and Ice elemental Rosa, please step into the arena for stage one of the tournament."
As I heard his name I rushed to the window. Unfortunately I wasn't in the same room as him. Once I got to the big window I looked out, searching for the familiar messy black hair of my best friend. The window is at ground level, having the rooms like this makes it faster for the participants to get out to the field. Everyone else sat in the stands above the field. The judges, or elders however sit in a room that towers over the field, giving a good view. There are two or three that stay at the edges of the field, giving a closer view as well as allowing them to be close just in case something happens.
It was easy to spot him. He was walking from the far side of the field towards the center, his green eyes scanning the crowd for familiar faces before they would land on the other competitor. It was a small girl, seeming too young to be fighting in the tournament. Her hair is pure white and her eyes a sparkling blue. She reminds me of an ice elemental I saw on the wall once, maybe they are related? She walked calmly to the starting spot, a white chalk circle drawn on the ground, as Alex does the same. Everyone goes quiet, anticipation grows as they wait for the starting signal.
A few more moments of silence that seem like they last for an eternity before the voice over the speaker would be heard again, speaking a single word. "Begin." Alex takes off, moisture from the ground draining into the air to follow behind him like liquid blue ribbons. The air around the small girl beginning to crystallize as several ice spears form in an arc above her head. The spears release as if shot by a spring, hurtling towards Alex at incredible speeds. My heart jumps as the ice nears him. Faintly I could see a smirk playing on his lips.
The next moment the water flowing behind him would shoot foward, spinning in a vortex and casting the ice aside like they were feathers in the wind. A small chuckle escaped my throat as I remember how much of a pain that move is. As soon as the ice was gone the water separated, forming tiny needles that made the air in front of him sparkle. In the next instant those water needles shot towards the girl who quickly raised an ice wall to block them. Incredibly Alex would hit the wall soon after, steam rising as the wall rapidly melts. It would only take a few seconds for it to melt and Alex to shoot through it, pinning the girl to the ground. Game over.
Everything was quiet, no one knew exactly what just happened. What Alex just did was something incredibly rare. Alex had increased the temperature of the water to melt the ice. Not only was this extremely difficult to do but it also takes massive amounts of energy and Alex hasn't even broken a sweat. A few more seconds passed as the announcer would be the first to recover, yelling over the speakers, "Rosa has been pinned, water elemental Alex is the victor!" The crowd goes nuts, cheering and screaming at the amazing beginning to the tournament.
I watched as Alex helped the girl up, making sure she was alright before going back to his starting room. I smile to myself, thinking Alex did wonderfully. He'll definitely make it to the finals. A few more fights go by. A fire elemental verses an earth elemental, a close match until the earth elemental shifted the earth to set the fire elemental off balance before pinning him. The fights go until one of the competitors can no longer fight. It usually ends in pins for the first rounds. With the later rounds going until faints or injuries. Another round, ice verses fire. The ice elemental controls her ice like flowing water, moving fluidly as she blocks and dodges balls of fire. Her ice is strong, I don't know if even my fire could melt it. Aurora, I'll remember that name.
The fight doesn't last long. Aurora obviously is much more powerful than the fire elemental. She pins the fire elemental with ice, covering everything except the head, legs and arms. Even with their entire body ablaze they can't melt the ice. Game over.
The next thing I know I hear my name being said through the speaker. My heart leaps, my turn. I take a deep breath, calming my nervous as I leave the room and enter the hallway once again but this time heading towards the field. This is it. I can't lose. For my sister, for my father. I have to win. I have to get past that wall. I take a deep breath as I hit the fresh air, striding confidently towards the circle.
As I'm about to reach it I notice my opponent and my heart stops. No, not him. Anyone but him. Before me stands the youngest and strongest protector of the wall, lightning elemental Aiden, son of an elder. I'm doomed.