The gong rang three times, each strike shaking the bones of the five hundred candidates standing in the dust, the massive iron gates of the arena opened with a terrible screech that froze the blood, dust rose in a thick cloud and the smell of cold metal and fear filled the air, a metallic voice boomed through all the speakers “WELCOME TO THE SELECTION TRIAL!
SIMPLE AND UNIQUE RULE: STAY STANDING.
100 SURVIVORS, THE OTHER 400 ARE ELIMINATED.”
In the exact center of the arena, on a raised platform, one hundred golden flags shone under the sun, each one represented a spot, a life saved, a future, Raider clenched his fists, he looked at his brother and said “we stay together, no matter what”, Rambo nodded, his hands were trembling but his eyes were burning with determination.
There was no countdown, no warning, as soon as the last echo of the gong faded, hell exploded, a huge bald man with a spiked wooden club charged straight at Raider screaming, his eyes bloodshot, Raider dodged with a quick move and drove his knee into the man’s stomach, he crumpled spitting blood, another came from behind, Raider spun around and smashed his elbow into his face, all around him was chaos, men were screaming and hitting anything that moved, women fought with knives and stones, sand flew in thick clouds, blood splattered on faces and on the ground, in less than five minutes, the weakest were crushed, trampled, knocked out before they even understood what was happening to them, armored guards were already dragging unconscious bodies out of the arena.
Rambo was terrified, a guy with a knife charged at him screaming, Rambo dove to the side, the knife passed two centimeters from his neck, he rolled on the ground, got up and kicked his attacker’s legs, the man fell and another candidate jumped on him to finish him off, Rambo didn’t stop, he ran, he struck, he dodged, he was faster than the others, lighter, he used his fear as fuel, it made him quicker, more dangerous, more unpredictable.
Raider was a true storm, his fists struck without stopping, he didn’t need to shout, he breathed through his nose, every hit was precise, elbow to the throat, fist to the nose, knee to the ribs, he faced two men at once, put them down in seconds, three more came, he struck them relentlessly, he was bleeding from his eyebrow but he didn’t fall, “stay behind me!” he shouted to Rambo between hits, his brother followed him like a shadow, he struck those who tried to get around Raider, he kicked their knees, punched their kidneys, he bit their arms when they tried to grab him, it was dirty and desperate, but it worked.
Twenty minutes passed, the sand was no longer red, it was dark brown, soaked in blood and sweat, alliances had formed out of necessity, four muscular men held a corner of the platform and struck anyone who dared to approach, others fought alone, back to the wall, some cried while fighting, others screamed like hunted beasts, in the middle of this chaos, Mito, or rather “Lisko Tokyo”, was not running, not shouting, he walked slowly, calmly, as if he were strolling through a peaceful garden.
Three candidates saw him, they looked at each other and smiled, easy prey, they surrounded him, the first threw a punch, Mito moved his head two centimeters, the fist cut through empty air, the second pulled out a knife, Mito grabbed his wrist, CRACK, the knife fell, the third tried to flee but too late, an elbow to the temple, CRACK, CRACK, CRACK, the three men were on the ground, unconscious in less than four seconds, not a drop of sweat on Mito’s forehead, he calmly bent down, ripped a golden flag from the ground and sat cross-legged five meters from the fight, he took out a stone and began to sharpen a small knife, as if nothing was happening, as if he were alone in the world.
Raider saw him from afar, he had just K.O.’d a fourth opponent, he spat blood and his eyes met Mito’s for a fraction of a second, Raider gritted his teeth so hard it hurt “him…
he’s a monster” he muttered between his teeth.
The panic was total, about one hundred and fifty people remained for only ten flags, people were going crazy, they threw themselves at each other without thinking, some cried while fighting, others laughed like madmen, Rambo was in pain everywhere, his left arm was numb, he was seeing blurry from the sweat and blood running into his eyes, a two-meter giant spotted him and roared when he saw him, he charged like a bull, Rambo tried to move aside but he slipped in the blood-soaked sand, he fell on his back, the giant was above him, fist raised, ready to crush his skull, it was over, Rambo closed his eyes waiting for the fatal blow.
But his hand, as he fell, had touched something, the wooden pole of a golden flag abandoned there by a defeated candidate, he grabbed it with all his strength, with fear, with rage, with the desperate will to live, he pulled the flag toward him and the giant, off balance, fell heavily beside him, Rambo rolled to the side, clutched the flag against his chest, his whole body was trembling but he held the flag, he was alive, “I got it…
I got it…” he murmured, breathing hard.
The final gong rang, long and deep, silence suddenly fell, a heavy silence, broken only by the groans of the wounded and the sobs of the survivors, a voice through the speakers announced “TIME IS UP, STOP FIGHTING”, dozens of guards entered the arena, they separated the fighters still standing and dragged the unconscious bodies out of the area, out of five hundred candidates, one hundred remained standing, one hundred flags in hand.
Raider collapsed to his knees, exhausted, his face covered in blood, a deep cut on his cheek, but he was alive, he raised his head and searched for his little brother with his eyes, Rambo was sitting two meters away, holding his golden flag with both hands as if it were the greatest treasure in the world, his body was still trembling, not from fear but from adrenaline and relief, “we…
we did it little brother” Raider whispered, his voice broken, Rambo looked at him and nodded, he couldn’t speak, his lips moved but no sound came out.
A guard in golden armor climbed onto the platform, “CONGRATULATIONS TO THE 100 CHOSEN, YOU HAVE SURVIVED, REST, HEAL, THE SECOND TRIAL IS TOMORROW AT DAWN, THE BLADE LABYRINTH”, a murmur ran through the survivors, the labyrinth, an even more dangerous trial, Raider forced himself to stand up, every muscle in his body ached, he helped Rambo to his feet and out of the corner of his eye, he saw Mito, sitting alone to the side, he was finishing sharpening his knife, he looked up for a second, his gaze met Rambo’s, cold, empty, then he returned to his knife as if Rambo didn’t exist, a shiver ran down the young man’s spine.
Raider squeezed his shoulder, hard, “we don’t sleep tonight, we train, we drink water, we eat, the other 99 want our spot and him…”, he nodded toward Mito, “him, he wants the six thrones for himself”, they limped out of the arena, behind them four hundred broken dreams lay in the dust, the first trial was over, the real war started tomorrow.
End of chapter 4
“The first trial is over, 100 survivors out of 500, but tomorrow is the Blade Labyrinth, and Mito seems even more dangerous than Raider imagined, who is this boy with the empty eyes?
The answer in the next chapter!”
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