280 The day of fate (2/2)

”...”

”You're probably the most boring enemy I ever faced... I keep thinking about all the people that tried to take me down in the past... Xadi, Boris, the demon-hunters, the dryad, Chuck, Mia... They all had some kind of bigger motivation, something driving them to do what they did... Be it money, glory, fame, recognition, resources, or even just trying to find peace... But you?

You're just a coward scared of a bunch of kids...”

Knucker finally dropped his smile and began to glare at Evlin, ”Am I really more pathetic than a guy called 'Chuck'??”

”Then let me ask you this...” Evlin began while returning a bit of her glare, ”Why did you kill Gustav?”

At that moment, all the glares of Evlin's team intensified. Dria looked at them and began to think about her final words from when she finished off their friend, 'Let's see how many will remember you...' she asked.

”Guess everyone remembered him...” she whispered in a low voice.

Knucker looked up and crossed his arms before replying, ”I have my reasons...”

”Yeah... And I bet they are all as lame as you are...” Evlin continued, ”I came here today to face what could possibly my biggest enemy... But when I look at you... All my energy starts to vanish, and I just get this desire to get this done with so I can go home...

You're not my enemy... You're just some pain in the ass that I need to deal with...”

Knucker began to rub his chest, ”Ouch! I might be a dragon but I still have feelings, you know?”

”...”

”Mmm... Seems like conversation time is over... Very well then... Let's just get this started already!” Knucker stated as he snapped his fingers.

All the dragons behind him opened their wings and began to fly away and took a seat on top of the walls of the stadium.

”Here are the rules of the game... I'll send my dragons, one by one, gonna make this fair and all, you pick one of your buddies over there and the two of them fight until one of them dies... You kill all seven, and you get to face me, my real me, all by yourself... Sounds cool?”

”... Sure...” Evlin mumbled. She wasn't sure why Knucker didn't just send all his beasts to attack at once but she didn't want to push her luck. Still, if this was his suggestion, there must be some kind of hidden meaning underneath it.

”Let's get started then!!” Kucker claimed while clapping his hands.

He then gazed at one of the dragons, one with red scales, and asked him to return to the field.

The dragon did as he was told and suddenly began to shrink until he took the shape of an old bald muscular man with a thick grey beard and eyebrows.

”Wrath! I choose you!!” Knucker yelled while he and Dria moved away from the spot and took their seats next to the kings and queens as if they were judges from American Idol.

Evlin turned around and gazed at the woman with long blond hair behind her, ”Detra, you ready?”

The woman stretched her arms and legs and placed three metal rings on her fingers, ”Sure, why not...”

The rest of Evlin's group stepped away as well, all with the exception of a girl with black hair tied up with ponytails.

Knucker stared at her and he began to feel a boiling rage building inside of him. That girl was one of the three kids he had seen killing him in the future.

”The rules said one on one...” he shouted.

”The rules also said that I could use any weapon I wanted...” Detra replied while grabbing Dia's hand, ”This... Is my weapon...”

The girl suddenly began to glow and change into the shape of a metal mage staff.

”I see... Fair enough, carry on...”

Detra began to spin her staff around a little to get a taste of its weight. It was perfectly balanced as if it was made for her.

[Little miss, are you ready?] Detra whispered in her mind as she felt a burst of power crawling over her being.

[Yes! You can count on me!] Dia replied.

Wrath took this time to stretch his arms and legs as well and the loud noise of his bones cracking could be heard.

”Excuse me, little lady...” Wrath said as he moved closer to Detra, ”Would you happen to know where the temple of the west is?”

Detra at that moment just aimed her staff at him and blasted the old man away with the biggest icicle she could summon, ”No... I don't...”

The old man observed the giant crystal coming at him and lifted his arm to smack it with its fist, shattering into pieces.

”That's a shame... Guess I'll have to kill you then...” he responded.

”Be my guest... You're not the first loser who tries to come after my head...” Detra replied while waving her staff again and commanding the shattered pieces of ice to fly around Wrath and stab him.

”Ugh!!!” the man cried as he could feel the woman's magic actually hurting him and stabbing his skin, ”How is this possible??”

Wrath then gazed at the shards and noticed that there were engulfed in a weak flame of terminal energy.

Knucker realized what was going on and couldn't help but smile, ”Oho... This is gonna be fun...”