I see a Pugio blade lying on the ground, dropped by one of the men, so I pick it up, causing my arm to tingle. Grabbing the hilt tightly, I swing the weapon back and then forward as I come upon Munera, who is practically on top of Terrance.
Our blades meet, sending shock waves through both of us. The crowd goes silent. Munera looks at me, bewildered by my unexpected appearance. Her stunned look doesn’t last long as her face grows red with rage. She raises the Dimachaerus again, this time trying to attack me. I jump back, push Terrance down, and come up with my blade, striking hers again.
I need to get him and the others out of the arena, but I’m not sure how. She strikes again and I counter, knocking her hard on her ass. The platform begins to vibrate slightly, then rises. I push Terrance off of it and I follow suit, both of us landing on the arena floor, only this time I can see the fighters’ holding area. Aidan is running over to us, shouting at me.
“Meg, what are you doing?”
“We need to get them out of here, Aidan.”
His face contorts as if he doesn’t understand what I’m saying.
I look at Terrance who is clinging to me. “He’s my friend, Aidan, I can’t let him die. Please, you have to help me.”
Aidan looks at me, his face softens. He nods his head, then disappears.
A group of fighters gather where Aidan had been standing and gesture for Terrance to jump, saying they will catch him. He looks up at me, tears in his eyes. I pat him on the shoulder, telling him it’s okay.
Munera is back on her feet, her focus moving to the others that have scattered around the arena. I help Terrance ease his way down into the holding area. Once he is safe, I take off after Munera. As I run towards her, the floor begins to vibrate and I spot Aidan opening one of the floor tiles with another fighter at the opposite end. If I can distract Munera, he and the other fighter can get the rest out.
I run as fast as I can, the blade slung behind me. My best chance at the moment is to take out her feet. The floor has a nice sheen to it, so I kick off my boots as I run, slide on the metal in my socks, and ram into her legs. We both go down in a pile, legs entangled. Munera kicks my knee, sending waves of pain up my leg. I scream and she grins, as the crowd begins to get into the fight in front of them.
I keep an eye on Aidan as he is slowly getting the others down below.
Munera stands up, her blade high above her head, which she begins to thrust down into my direction, so I swing my legs wide and knock her down again. She hits the floor, splitting open her lip. I roll away, trying to get out of her reach. She grabs my ponytail, dragging me in closer. She pulls a small knife from inside her boot and plunges it into my chest, missing my heart by inches.
The crowd roars louder as I scream again in agony.
Munera gets up again, blood dripping from her lip onto the floor. She steps on my stomach to keep me from moving. I remove the blade and begin to heal. She raises the Dimachaerus up again, ready to finish me off, but I take her knife and thrust it into her upper thigh. This time she screams. I shove her off of me and stand up.
“You should be dead,” she screams at me.
“I’m full of surprises,” I respond as I pick up the Dimachaerus.
The weapon feels powerful in my hand. I imagine myself dissecting her, cutting her to pieces. My right arm radiates heat as it too is enjoying the power.
I raise the blade, but pause as I hear a voice in my ears.
An Antaean must kill the enemy. A soldier built for death leaves no one alive.
I shake myself and drop the blade.
Where did that come from?
Munera is crouched on the ground, blood pouring from her wound.
“Coward,” she screams.
I turn my back and begin to walk away. Then the pain starts again, this time radiating from the old wound in my back. Falling forward, I extend my arms out to brace myself. As I hit the ground Munera comes at me again. I raise my right arm to shield her blow with the small knife, which causes her to slit my forearm, the blade slicing all the way down to my palm. I crawl around and reach for the Dimachaerus. She continues her assault on me as I pick up the weapon.
My arm is red hot, glowing brightly. The Dimachaerus becomes electrified the moment it’s in my hand and I swing, not looking at my target. I hear the crowd gasp as I make contact with Munera, feeling the shudder in the blade, the electricity in the air. I open my eyes as they had been closed and look down at the mess in front of me.
Her torso is only hanging on to the rest of her by her spinal cord. The flesh is blistered and burned. She gasps several times, body involuntarily twitching, and then she stops moving. I look down at the blade still clutched in my hand. A thick band of blue encircles the blade, swimming around and coming to a point at the tip. I drop it to the ground and the light disappears. That’s when I notice the protective sleeve is gone, the Quantum Stream pulsing brightly. Looking up into the crowd, they sit silently, watching me. Artemis is standing at the edge of the arena floor, beaming from ear to ear. I close my eyes and collapse to the floor, landing on my knees.
My life is over.
My secret exposed.
Meg is dead…Trea has been reborn.
