The Spire surged with exhilaration. They praised and lauded each of Wona’s movements, each flicker of magic. The Bedrock were equally enthralled, though their reactions were somewhat stifled in support of Vischuno. Some from both disciplines had broken away from their formations and returned with smuggled drinks of various potency. Fights were always better with drink.
Jularra was enjoying herself more than she allowed herself to show. Her facade of indifference was part of the exhibition. She allowed Vischuno, and now Wona, to have a bit of fun with the crowd, but the time to begin was drawing near. She allowed the frenzy in the yard to grow. The volume swelled, and the hype clung to the air’s moderate humidity. Jularra’s skin throbbed with the suppressed desire to shout out, join in with the crowd, and applaud her comrades. Her vision pulsed with adrenaline and her heart pounded.
In a flash, Jularra launched herself at a full sprint towards Wona. By training yard rules, any match could begin once the combatants stepped inside the sparring area; now that she had given her fellow combatants enough time to show off, she seized the advantage of surprise and initiated the fight.
Wona didn’t see the queen at first. She faced her fellow Spire with flamboyant gestures, inviting their input as to the type of shield she should choose. But once Jularra struck out in her direction, many of the front row of Spire began pointing and shouting.
Wona turned just in time.
Jularra leaped into the air and slammed down at Wona with one slice and then another, making an "X". Wona had to abandon her cast to focus on defending; the shield evaporated into nothingness.
With not a second to spare, Wona swung her sword up and caught the first strike on the flat of her blade, then turned to the side as she deflected the crossing slice with a downward stroke.
Jularra flew by Wona, tucking into a perfectly executed tumble before jumping to her feet and spinning around. The moment she caught her footing, she noticed Vischuno approaching, leaning in as he strode with vicious enthusiasm. Jularra brought her arms together at the wrists and held her sword up to the sky. She spun the sword’s tip in a small circle before pointing it at Vischuno, unleashing a ribbon of concentrated wind.
It struck Vischuno. His skin rippled and his hair whipped as if walking into the headwind of a hurricane, but Jularra didn’t have the time to commit to the spell. Vischuno would soon be free of its restraint; she only needed to slow him down as she developed a strategy and found an advantageous cadence.
Jularra turned her eyes back to Wona. In the few seconds she'd taken to slow Vischuno down, Wona had regrouped and now prepared to attack.
The two women vaulted at each other, meeting again in a clash of swords. As each blow was met and blocked, their next movement was already underway.
Blades slid and bashed against each other, propelled through the air by each wielder’s able technique. Their bodies ducked and swayed as their arms swung and their legs swept. The surrounding Spire and Bedrock grew quiet with awe as the absolute best examples of the Spire danced their perfect fight.
Jularra and Wona were in their own world. Both kept an occasional eye on Vischuno in their peripheral vision, but otherwise they focused entirely on each other. They moved smoothly in a swift yet calm rhythm, silent but for the occasional gasp or pant in response to an especially forceful attack.
But the crowd stirred again, and the movement in Jularra’s periphery shifted. The spell over Vischuno was beginning to wear off. His face flexed with the frustration of being restrained, and he slowly swung his massive blades, trying to speed up the magic’s dissipation. Within moments, the magic had completely worn off. The Bedrock detonated with joy as their champion was freed.
Jularra and Wona had been fighting to a stalemate to that point, and there wasn’t enough time to develop an edge before Vischuno joined the mix. Wona was the first to change tactics. She spun under one of Jularra’s attacks and headed for Vischuno.
Whatever Wona’s motivation for peeling off to attack Vischuno, Jularra didn’t care. Having the other two focus on each other, if only for a second, was a second Jularra could use to think. And very rarely would any foe benefit from Jularra having time to think.
Vischuno and Wona were each focused on the other, and Jularra sought to take advantage. It would take Vischuno just one blow to knock Jularra out and make her a loser, or worse, so she decided to make the most of the opportunity and focus on him. She moved, low to the ground in anticipation of any quick moves she might need to make.
As Jularra approached, Wona came within striking distance of Vischuno. He held his shield in front of him as she approached, but at the last moment he swung it out of the way. In a surprisingly swift move, he kicked at Wona, extending his leg fully through the attack. His foot came up to the level of her face, but she brought her forearms up in time to protect herself from most of the initial violence of the blow. The force of the kick was still such that she flew back several feet. She landed and slid a few feet further until her head smacked against the
