The cheers and whispers of the crowd passed in one of Canopus’ ears and out the other. His entire focus was on the foxgirl eyeing him from the arena. He walked silently up the steps and crossed his arms, nearly glaring at her. His attitude didn’t seem to faze her in the least, as she neatly glared right back as he stopped on the other side of the arena.
He looked over her entire body, memorizing how she stood, what muscles she tensed, the movement allowed by her clothing, everything he could just from a rest stance. He nodded. “Are you planning on using that sword?”
“You’ll just have to wait and see won’t you?” she replied.
He shrugged. “Doesn’t matter for the result. I just wanted to give you an appropriate opponent.”
Her eyes narrowed even more, if that was even possible without them closing completely. “You’re right. Won’t change the results.”
Canopus slid one leg back and opened both arms, going into an actual stance. The announcer watched for combatants for a second, then raised his arm and hopped out of the ring.
“And fight!”
Rilean shot forward in a blur, aiming a kick at Canopus’ side. Canopus brought up his arm and deflected the flying boot, hopping a yard or so to the side. She didn’t give him any breathing time at all, closing the gap between them and throwing another blow. He dodged the second attack by hopping over Rilean, using her shoulder for an added boost, and landed on both feet, facing her back. Rilean spun around and tried to catch her heel on Canopus’ temple, but he saw the attack coming as soon as her foot left the ground, so it took little effort to duck the kick and deliver a shoulder bash to her unguarded torso.
Rilean rolled with the blow and braced herself for another attack from Canopus, but she almost lost her footing when she saw that he hadn’t moved to take advantage of his offense. She smiled. “What’s the matter?
Worried you’ve used all of your luck for the round?”
“You don’t know how to do this, do you?”
“I’ll show you exactly how much I know!” Rilean charged Canopus and jumped up for a flying kick. Canopus grabbed her heel, inched to the side, grabbed her thigh, and swung her face-first into the stone arena.
He stepped back a few feet. “You’re an assassin trained in your sword. I can tell. Despite your lack of power, you’re trying to make every attack a killing or crippling blow, something you won’t be able to do against me unless you’re in your element.”
“That’s fine with me!” Rilean pulled her sword from her sheath and swung it, using the momentum of her spin to give it power as she aimed for Canopus’ midsection. She was fully expecting to catch him off guard and end the match with a quick blow, so she was reasonably surprised when her attack hit metal. She looked up. Out of thin air, Canopus had pulled a white-bladed sword, as smooth and shiny as glass but powerful enough to block her katana.
She strained against his weapon, but he easily held hers where it was and leaned his face close to hers. “It’s fine with me too. I like my element.” He held his breath for a second, tensed his entire body, and formed a blue aura around his eyes. The moment he felt Rilean’s sword pull from his, he released a vicious blast of ice-cold energy. The force of the attack combined with Rilean’s total lack of readiness blew her through the air and right out of the ring.
David stepped back into the arena. “Arena out! Winner Canopus!”
Rilean hopped back on the stone, breathing heavily and making quite a spectacle, what with the lightly-frosted fur and the tiny icicles hanging from her muzzle. “I want a rematch!”
David grinned and pointed both index fingers at her. “And congratulations, you won’t get one!” He pointed to the seat she had occupied before the round.
“Instead, take a load off. On our tab.” Rilean grudgingly returned to her seat, and Canopus came back to his section of the stands, smiling softly to himself.
