Now.
Alexander crouched low and inched toward the goblin, its back turned at the center of the platform.
He needed to avoid the risk of pushing it off the edge, or the other way around.
It was pretty small, he shouldn't have such a hard time to overpower a goblin.
Crouched, he quickly closed the distance between them.
Once right behind it, he violently kicked the back of its knee.
It smashed against the ground.
The goblin fell forward while screaming in terror. Alexander quickly got on top of it, and tried to pin it down.
He used one arm to push against its back, while his other hand reached for the hand that held the sword.
What the fuck?!
The goblin was squirming, fighting for its life.
While it was as tall as a kid, trying to open its firm grip on the handle was impossible.
It felt like his fingers clawed at a rock.
The goblin jerked back, moving Alexander just enough to force him off.
With the monster's throw, he rolled on the ground a meter further, to create some distance between them.
It was already up, and while it had one smashed leg, it was still able to stand on both feet.
Did I not damage it enough?
He quietly moved in a wide arc around the goblin, but the goblin followed his movements.
How?!
In a short moment of panic, Alexander looked down.
On his right shoulder was a thin but noticeable cut.
He quickly wiped it off with his hand, then looked at the weapon the goblin was holding.
It must be smelling the blood…
He kept walking in circles, while the goblin slowly closed the distance.
It screamed.
Suddenly, it rushed forward while it flailed its sword around.
The air kept whistling, while Alexander quickly stepped back several times.
It closed so much distance, the sword came close to cutting him twice.
Alexander's legs worked overtime, stepping back while he kept furtively glancing to make sure he wouldn't step off the edge while dodging.
I can't keep going backward.
He tried moving sideways. The goblin, following his scent, matched his movement.
Fuck.
He looked behind once more, the edge was nearby.
I have to go on the offensive.
He looked for openings, but all it did was randomly wave its weapon forward.
Alexander took one short step forward and tried to kick the monster back.
The tip of its sword slashed through Alexander's thigh as he hit the goblin, pushing it a few steps back without doing nearly as much damage as he thought.
Alexander rapidly stepped sideways, trying to go toward the middle and create as much distance from the edge as possible.
The monster however was only down for a second, quickly regaining control of the middle.
Not only was it enraged, it now saw him almost perfectly, as more blood was dripping down Alexander's leg.
Its movements were sharper, and its steps were confident.
It smiled deviously, making guttural sounds with its throat that sounded like laughter.
It stepped forward in one quick motion, slashing Alexander's arm.
It laughed again, its grin sharpening.
Alexander quickly took two steps back; it simply took two steps forward.
It laughed again, slashing Alexander's leg with one wide sweep of its sword.
It then slashed again, then again, then again.
The cuts weren't deep, it was playing with him.
Fuck fuck fuck.
Gambling, he tried kicking the goblin.
He moved his leg back, preparing a wide angle kick. He stopped the kick mid-way through its motion.
The goblin slashed through the air, where Alexander's leg would have been.
As it slashed through the air, Alexander stepped forward with his other leg and landed a punch right in its face.
It landed on its temple, slightly over its eye.
It stumbled backward, shaking its head as it tried finding its balance.
Without waiting any longer, Alexander rushed forward.
He heard it before he saw it.
The air whistled.
It was pure instinct, he stopped mid-motion, as the sword swooshed right under his chin. He felt the air brushing against his neck, while cold sweat ran down his back.
He took a few steps back, while the goblin moved forward with its head down.
It wasn't laughing nor was it waving its sword around.
Each step it took felt confident, and each movement calculated.
What the fuck?!
Every time he feinted moving forward, it quickly got in a stance, ready to intercept him, forcing him to once again resort to moving back.
The goblin who was panicking at first, then careless, was now serious.
"You're a fucking goblin! What the hell is this?!" yelled Alexander.
He kept glancing back, there was no way to gain terrain anymore, no sidestepping would save him from the edge.
His eyes looked at every detail he could, the goblin's hand, its blank eyes, its nose that kept moving at every inhale.
Alexander's head was burning up.
The way it moved its foot forward. How it twitched at his movements.
The mark on Alexander's body was burning up, yet he barely felt it.
It suddenly raised its sword. It was going for his throat.
He would die.
His heart was pounding. He was unable to take his eyes off his own demise.
As the heat in his head kept increasing, the pressure building up, it felt as if time stopped.
As if death gave him a moment.
He looked around, in the corner of his eye he could see the girl standing at the entrance of the platform, watching the fight unfold with her usual neutral expression.
He could see the goblin's eyes, blind, yet stuck on him.
The black sun above, burning dark, stealing light away. He could see it too.
Alexander's eyes split, a heat-wave hitting his brain as they did.
His irises looked like crosses, with the horizontal line stretching longer.
It felt like time stopped.
Alexander locked gaze with the Goblin, whose irises slowly turned into a similar cross.
Its movements, for a split second, came to a stop.