The coliseum and the cheers that came along with it; I forgot all of those sounds as soon as I entered for the first time. Just me and my opponent, that’s all I needed to think about. The large, extremely tall man, who would make a giant flee in fear. He came charging at me like a bull charging at red. As soon as he swung; I clumsily dodged to the left and swung my sword to the right of his neck.

Crimson red came out of his neck at such a fast pace so I was all covered in mere seconds. I watched and smiled steadily as he slowly died, and the crowd screamed in complete awe. Victory after victory, I don’t remember why I fought anymore. Was it because of the vast mountain of gold? Was it to show off my swordsmanship? No. It was the sparks. That was the only reason I kept doing it.

As I got more skilled, my sword seemed to shrink in comparison. I went to the local blacksmith every now and then but he said it looked fine every time. It got to the point where it looked no different from a dagger, but no one seemed to take notice. Another battle I have to slug through, I try to stall the battle as long as I possibly can so I can see the sparks for the longest, to the crowds dismay. During the stretched out battle, my sword seemed to completely vanish! I did a swift elbow jab to his neck, ending the battle, and hurried to the blacksmith.

He still said it was fine. I thought to myself; ‘is fighting the thing I’m supposed to do? Is it the thing I want to do?’ I exchanged some gold for a new sword and fought in the coliseum once again. During the battle, the sword completely disappeared! I could not fight any longer. In shame, I shouted ‘I surrender’ and I never showed my face at the coliseum again.

I worked as a blacksmith, so I could see the sparks all the time; the sparks, with the flashing, vibrant red and yellow, seem to give life to new hope and ambition. I glanced over my old sword and it had grown back to its former, battle-torn, state. As I bang the hammer onto the hot, fire lit steel rod, I know I made the right decision to quit fighting in the coliseum