“Damn it! Claire use your shield…Uggghh…”

I sent a few vines towards a group of three kids. We’d been fighting for what seemed a lifetime. Only four were left, but they were making it a little difficult, especially the girl running behind me. I looked at her through the corner of my eye, watching as she ran around the edge of the arena looking for an opening.

She had light brown skin, almost like Mr Kin’s. Her short, curly black hair bounced slightly as she ran. As for her costume, it seemed to made from a carbon fiber fabric, great for runners like her. The only thing that was a little weird was her mask. It looked like there was a computer screen in it…

Thinking about it now, normally a runner like her would be easy to take down, but there was definitely something different about her power. It had to do with that mask. Almost as if…

A steel whip sped past the side of my face, the barbed wires missing me, almost cutting my cheek. Crap! I was losing focus. I turned to face the trio and saw that they had gotten cocky again.

Grinning, the boy who’d sent the whip yelled, “Looks like you’re not focusing on us Grim Reaper.”

The last words came out with lots of sarcasm. But I wasn’t surprised. As the youngest member of the Harley family, Loy had a lot to prove. The Ministry of Defense ran a tight ship and would look down on him if he lost this match.

Fighting me was an honor for them and something that his two older siblings had been wanting to for some time. I smirked. They must be gripping their seats with so much anger boiling in them.

Loy pulled back his whip before suddenly swinging it towards me. But I was waiting for it. I deflected it with my staff, the whip wrapping around it. The barbed wires dug into the whip, burying deep into the wood.

I felt slightly impressed and shocked. A millimeter closer earlier on and that would have been my face. But it was still impressive to see this power. There had been obviously a lot of work and effort put into perfecting the barbs.

However, it wasn’t going to be enough. I pulled the staff back, turning to the side and catching Loy by surprise.  He stumbled forward into the kick waiting for him. My boot connected with the side of his face just below his right hazel eye.  

His eyes widen in shock before becoming glazed. I must have kicked him harder than I thought, probably breaking his cheek bone. The pain was probably kicking in too, the adrenaline from the fight slowing down. 

“Don’t ever be cocky with me again. You’re lucky you’re getting a minute of my time.”

As much as I didn’t want to do this it was necessary. His family and all the other members of the Underworld were looking at us. His comment would have been seen by many as disrespectful and they would have demanded blood.

Especially if I didn’t cut the bud now.

I turned away from the dazed boy and looked at his two comrades. A blue-eyed girl with a shield stood before me. Claire from the looks of things. As for the boy, it was the same one from earlier. The one who had asked me the question about the fight.

He had his hand on her back, sending waves of energy to Claire. I felt myself smiling. As much as I didn’t like Loy or his family, I had to admit they were geniuses when it came to strategy.

The boy had gotten himself both a healer and great defense. The only problem was the offense was by my feet and the defense looked a little out of it. I suspected it had to do with the gash running across her forehead.

The blood had forced her to close one eye shut. She looked tired as did the healer boy. They weren’t going to be able to keep this up for long. The shield began to flicker. Now was my chance…

Suddenly, a blur caught the corner of my eye. My eyes widen. Damn it! This was not happening right now. How could I forget…