Sometimes you can sense emotion. You hear someone’s heavy breaths, trying to relax. You can almost smell the cold sweat trickling from their forehead, trickling down their neck. Saif could tell right now that BenZ, an accomplished fighter with an immaculate record, was now scared beyond measure.

“Wh-what are you here for?” BenZ stammered, though he already knew the answer.

“You fight for money, don’t you?” asked Saif. He fished in his pocket for a pouch of money. Taking out a few notes so that he could pay for his trip home, he then threw it towards BenZ, who fumbled the pouch and dropped it.

“Uh, can’t we discuss this over a few beers?” asked BenZ nervously, “I’ll pay you to leave if you want.”

“You don’t understand,” answered Saif. “It’s not the money I want; otherwise I’d have mugged a few rich looking assassins. It’s the fight I want- I heard you were good. Anyway, what are you scared of? This isn’t even a battle to the death.”

BenZ seemed to relax a little, but was still shaky as he picked the pouch off the ground.

“Alright,” he said, taking a deep breath. He grabbed his spears and held them tight, trying to manage a nervous smile. Meanwhile, Saif drew his two blood red swords out of their scabbards. Unlike BenZ well polished spears, the sword blades were darkened by blood stains and smoke.

The two began to circle one another slowly; each ready to act immediately should the other attack. It was Saif who made the first move. Leaping forward, he swung his sword with such ferocity and speed that BenZ barely had time to lift his spear and defend himself. Surprisingly, his stout Fairfrozen stood against the impact, whereas a normal spear would split immediately. Pushing forward, he managed to counter the attack with enough force to knock Saif to the ground.

Saif couldn’t believe himself as he jumped off the ground. This was the first time he had fallen and the fight hadn’t even started properly yet. However, as he stood alert again, the sight that greeted him surprised him even more. In fact, being blind, the idea of seeing anything was already totally surprising for him.

Anyone who had fought BenZ knew why he was so powerful. In some point of his life, he had captured a dragon into his body and could utilise its powers at will. Pointing his spear at Saif, he scrunched his face and a burst of light erupted from his spear tip. The light appeared to clump together and formed a dragon’s head.

Saif could somehow see the head. It was as if it was a ball of light cutting through the darkness. Managing to overcome his shock, he dived to the right, dodging the dragon head, which was now forming a large body. Never had Saif fought a fight this strange. This was saying a lot, considering that he once beat a snail to death using a frozen chicken while brushing his teeth.

BenZ immediately went for an attack after Saif had dived. He threw his Holy Spear, attempting to knock Saif unconscious. Getting to his feet again, Saif managed to dodge the spear and slice it in mid-air. He immediately ran toward his opponent. Before he reached him however, he leaped into the air soaring unnaturally high. Focusing his mind on his swords, he felt a surge of power rush down his arms and into the blades. He then came down viciously, though he slashed only the ground- BenZ was nowhere to be heard, smelt or sensed in any way. Utterly confused, Saif did all he could and readied himself, preparing for the inevitable attack.

Taking in the salty air, BenZ rode on the dragon he had formed with his spear-tip. He knew Saif would be completely confused as to how he had suddenly disappeared. Taking advantage of his opponent’s blindness, BenZ had jumped onto the dragon before Saif could bring the sword down. The dragon was a strange creature, it was made completely out of what seemed to be light, though it had visible form and was solid. The dragon was now the size of a small ship, large enough to park a taxi onto.

BenZ circled above the rather small island, waiting for a good time to strike. It didn’t take him long to realise that Saif was not a person to let his guard down. He gave directions to the dragon telepathically, communicating to it with his thoughts. Giving a loud roar, the dragon circled the island once more. This time it did so with such speed that BenZ, who had ridden on the dragon for many years, had difficulty staying on. He struggled and finally got into a more comfortable position as the dragon took a deep dive. Scrunching his eyes, BenZ tried to keep his eyes on the small dot as he cut through the clouds. He couldn’t help but feel a rush of adrenaline as the wind whipped his face.

Saif barely had any time to think. He saw the now gigantic dragon approaching him from the sky. It performed an impossibly steep curve and flew directly towards him. BenZ was holding out his spear like a lance, ready to knock Saif unconscious. Saif ducked instinctively and grabbed onto BenZ’s spear as he rushed pass. The dragon flew into the air again, carrying on its back BenZ and Saif, who had jumped onto the dragon’s spacious back. They were both off-balance, Saif more so, digging his nails into the dragon’s scales to attempt to get a good grip.

Eventually, the dragon flew slower, whether under BenZ’s command or out of fatigue Saif did not know, though he hoped it was the latter. The two adversaries managed to stand on their feet. They were on neutral ground again. Several hundred metres above the sky, any small mistake meant instant defeat. Saif wasted no time in lunging forward, attempting to surprise his opponent and knock him over. BenZ pushed forward with his spear in retaliation and Saif was once again surprised by the BenZ’s brute strength. He stumbled backwards but managed to quickly get back to his feet, in time to jump over a low swing. He then slashed with his sword, though it was immediately blocked by the spear, which BenZ was now using as a sort of staff. Taking out his second sword, Saif slashed with both, attempting to find a spot of weakness, though the spear was long enough to block both swords at once.

The fight in the sky continued, with Saif usually on the offence, continually attacking with his sword, waiting for BenZ to make a mistake in his defence. He showed no signs of relenting. Pretending to take a stab, Saif feinted to the right. BenZ fell for the classic trick and stumbled when he defended against thin air. Saif stepped to the left again and attempted to knock BenZ over with the sword in his left hand. To his dismay, however, BenZ unexpectedly lashed out his leg and kicked Saif in the stomach, winding him. Saif bent over and dropped both his swords, while BenZ took the opportunity to hit him hard with the spear. Falling backwards for the third time, Saif barely managed to grip the dragon’s neck before he fell. He was now dangling off the dragon’s neck, with BenZ looking down at him.

“Looks like I won,” said BenZ.

In one fluid movement, Saif launched his self upward into the air with his arms, somersaulted in the air and snatched BenZ’s spear from his hand, taking him totally by surprise. Saif was about to swing the spear and hit BenZ on the legs when the spear flew out of his hands and knocked him off the dragon’s back.

The deeper parts of Aqua Road were no place for any man. It was dark, yet there was enough light enough to make out the shape of the rocky walls. There was a sort of deathly stillness; the only movement was from the occasional bubble caused by the breathing of two people swimming deeper into the darkness.

Jimmy held onto a rope that Zeratul had tied to himself to ensure they didn’t lose each other. They had both been equipped for this journey. Ea, the ruler of Aqua City had enchanted them with a sort of long-lasting spell. It allowed them to breathe, talk, move with the same and agility they could on land, and regulated the water pressure around them. Though enchantment kept them warm, Jimmy shivered, and not of the cold.

Though Aqua City was a welcoming and hospitable place, Jimmy and Zeratul had decided to leave early. They were told that they were found near the Aqua Dungeons, a deep, unmapped trench. The pair decided that the best way to find out how they had come into this new world was to explore the trench, trying to find another entrance to the Warp Gate that had taken them there. They had swum several hours now, stopping only to eat. During their journey, they found out why noone ever ventured down these places. It seemed like a never-ending pit of darkness, nothing had happened to them during the long hours spent swimming downwards. They rarely spoke- there was nothing to talk about.

Something stirred in the darkness and Zeratul immediately took out his warp blades, turning invisible. Jimmy activated something in his marine power suit, flooding the trench with a white light. However, the troublemaker was simply a large and rather ugly fish, which swum past them as though nothing had happened.

Jimmy turned off his light, cursing, and Zeratul became visible again. Jimmy could make out a sort of brightness in the distance. At first, he thought it was from the glare of the light he had activated, but he realised it wasn’t when it became larger as he approached it.

Zeratul saw it too and began to swim quicker, dragging Jimmy behind him. More fish like the one they had encountered swum past them. As they approached the light, they realised it was some sort of entrance. They swam through the entrance and gasped almost in unison at the sight they saw.

They had entered a large cavern and within it they saw the source of the light. Behind a cover of rocks forming a kind of cage, there was an enormous glowing light, which seemed to beat like a heart. It was almost hypnotising, its gentle beat instilled a sort of peacefulness.

“Sorta like those drugs I took at Mar Sara, ain’t it?” commented Jimmy. He turned around to look at Zeratul, but he wasn’t there. He felt something tap him on the back and was about to take out his rifle when he heard a familiar whisper.

“Don’t worry, it’s me,” whispered Zeratul,”I don’t wanna alarm you or anything, but very slowly, look to the right.”
Very carefully, Jimmy turned his head, expecting the worst- and that was what he got. At first, he thought he saw another school of grotesque deep sea fish, but on closer inspection, they were much worse. Sharks.

Ea had warned them about the sharks in Aqua Road. They were not the normal ones they had seen at home, easy prey to a rifle- these sharks were magical. They called them Cold Sharks and they had the ability to create and manipulate ice. They were sleeping, though they still moved, swimming in circles with their eyes shut. There were at least ten of them, maybe more of which were unseen. Suddenly, one of them opened their eyes.

“We’re screwed,” muttered Jimmy, as he whipped out his rifle, this time for real.

I actually thought that didn’t turn out too bad.

And if you’re annoyed with my tradition of a fight scene almost every chapter, there will be none next chapter.

I was gonna say something else too but I forgot it now.