Levi stood barefoot, the hot arena sand searing under his feet, hands trembling. He hadn't eaten in two days, though hunger was already an old friend.
At the other end of the arena stood a hideous creature.
It towered over Levi, arms hanging low, claws dragging across the ground. Thick legs pulsed with red veins. Its back hunched as it shifted, prancing lightly on its feet, ready to pounce.
The crowd roared in bloodthirsty glee, cheers echoing from every direction.
"These fuckers… they actually want to see me die.""This thing is gonna kill me."
Levi backed away, rage twisting with helplessness.
Without warning, the Krag lunged into a mad charge on all fours. Its head bent back, showcasing its sharp, curved horns. The intent was obvious: impale Levi like a rag doll.
The arena was large, so the Krag had to cover some distance, but the more it ran, the more terrifying momentum it gathered.
Sensing the danger, Levi tried to sprint away, but he only managed two steps before the Krag reached him. Those two steps were barely enough to avoid the horns, but the Krag, realizing it missed, shot upward from its crouched position, grabbed Levi with one hand, and slammed him into the arena wall using all the momentum it had built.
The impact made the world blink to black. Light returned with a flood of pain. His head throbbed violently. He spat a mouthful of blood. His left arm hung limp from his shoulder, dead weight. Before he could even breathe, a massive claw wrapped around his head and flung him across the arena.
Consciousness left him before he hit the ground, sparing him the impact.
Darkness. Cold.
When he opened his eyes, one was soaked in dried blood. Pain tore through him instantly. His stomach lurched. He forced himself to his feet despite his body's desperate protests. The Krag was already charging again, horns aimed straight at him.
"So this is how I die… A fitting end to a pathetic life like mine."
Levi tried to stand tall, but his body barely cooperated. His death rushed toward him, and his life flashed in broken pieces: scavenging garbage cans, freezing winter nights, running from monsters in the slums.
The Krag reached point-blank range. Levi had no chance. And he had no intention of trying to survive.
But when the Krag was a split-second from skewering him, Levi jumped to the left.
"No… I refuse to die."The thought ripped out of him like fire.
A burst of soot and ash exploded where the Krag crashed into the ground. The creature lay stunned, one of its horns broken off beside it.
Seeing a chance, Levi limped forward on a broken leg. He reached the horn and bent to pick it up. The Krag's eyes snappped open, glowing red with fury. It was rising.
Levi threw himself onto its back, trying to pin it down. With his one good arm, he rammed the horn into the side of its head. The horn shattered, but it left a thin crack in the Krag's temple.
The creature thrashed wildly, roaring. Levi clung on, biting into the hard nape of its neck just to stay attached. If he let go, he was dead.
He jammed his finger into the crack. The sharp edges sliced him, but he shoved deeper. The Krag went bersek, smashing itself into walls, clawing at Levi's back, shaking violently, making horrible sounds.
Then it stopped moving.
It fell face-first, dead.
Levi collapsed beside it, more exhausted than ever before, hatred burning in his eyes as he stared at the corpse.
The crowd erupted. Some were shocked he'd killed the Krag. Others screamed with gleeful bloodlust.
High above, the faceless man who had bought Levi the previous day stared down. He flicked his finger. A dak marble rose from his shadow, dropped into the arena, and landed on top of the unconscious Levi.
It wriggled… then attached itself to Levi's shadow.