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“Sorry about all this,” Anton said.

Soraya looked over at him. She was sitting on one of four thrones on the royal dais, looking over Kelsey’s arena. Anton’s throne was the largest, of course, and Elara and Suliel had smaller thrones on each side of him. As the guest of honour, Soraya had a middle-sized throne set a little apart from the others.

Guest of honour might not be entirely accurate, but Anton greatly preferred it to ‘prize’.

“Please don’t apologise for risking your life for me,” Soraya said, her ears drooping. “You’ve already done more than I could ask.”

“I just feel that this could have been avoided somehow,” Anton said. Kelsey’s words were haunting him. We’ve lost, and this fight is double or nothing. Anton didn’t like the idea that he’d lost before he even started fighting. That there was something too large for him to fight because he could only be in one place at one time. It took him back to the wall… There had to be a way for him to strive harder, something like—

Something like fighting a duel to save Soraya and the rest of the town.

That had been what convinced him, in the end. How Kelsey had convinced everyone else to stake everything on him winning a fight and get half the town inside her to watch, Anton had no idea. And he’d been there when it happened.

He had to admit, though, Kelsey had delivered a spectacle, just as she had promised.

She had repurposed the Skeleton City floor, demolishing the buildings and turning the cave into an arena. It was a little smaller than the one Anton had seen in Elitra, but only because it was sized to fit the audience of its first performance. Two hundred richly dressed Elitrans from the fleet would attend, balanced by two hundred townsfolk, nobles and soldiers of Kirido.

Five hundred skeletons filled the upper levels.

“Where did you get so many skeletons?” Anton asked Kelsey.

“I gave all my regular workers the day off. Can you imagine! They’d better not get any ideas and form a union. These guys aren’t good for much fighting, but they can make some noise when I tell them to.”

Kelsey looked out over the arena with satisfaction. While the main structure of the building was simple stone, cushions had been provided for the seats and the floors were covered in polished wooden planks. Banners hung everywhere, adding a splash of colour. Kelsey had made banners with the insignias of Elara and Suliel’s families to serve as signifiers of both Zamarra and Kirido. She hadn’t skimped on the Elitran banners either, reproducing them from the flags the ships were flying. Any noble house that had displayed their colours in front of Kelsey—or asked for one—had been supplied with something to hang or wave.

Magical lightstones were installed just above the floorboards on each level, lighting the crowd from below and giving it an eerie feel. The sands of the arena were unlit. For suspense, Kelsey had told him.

Kelsey had chosen to use the Skeleton level for a few reasons, but the main reason was that it connected directly to what she called her freight entrance. That passage had been revamped as well, removing machines and skeletons to make it more human-friendly. The gate to the next floor was under where Anton was standing, accessible from the arena, but blocked off by a huge portcullis gate.

Kelsey had wanted to put a huge undead abomination behind it, threatening to release it at a critical juncture, but she couldn’t make it work without compromises. Apparently the smell from it would have damaged the concession sales.

Since Kelsey could literally make money, Anton didn’t understand why she cared. Apparently it was important to support small local businesses. She tried to explain why, but it all went over his head. He wondered if the food-sellers wandering the floor were as confused as he was.

A low rumbling announced the opening of the inner mana lock, heralding the arrival of the Elitran party. Kelsey had used her motors to move the massive slabs of stone, far larger than what could be moved with magic at this level. Most people would assume it was just magic, but Anton imagined it would impress the Elitran wizards at least.

The entrance opened directly onto the lowest gallery, and the Elitrans quickly found their seats. Al-Kadir wasn’t with them; he had been directed to the floor level to await his entrance.

Kelsey waited until they were all seated before beginning. She didn’t need to give a signal. By her will, a dozen spotlights high on the ceiling turned on. They pointed at the walls of the arena, leaving the centre dark.

There was a massive crash as five hundred skeletons brought the butt of their spears down on the floor.

THUD, THUD, CRASH!

The crash was a different sound, caused by them hitting their spears against each other.

“Buddy, you’re a young man, hard man,” Kelsey said cryptically. Then she stepped forward, and another spotlight shone directly on her.

She was dressed entirely in silver. Or… a shiny silver cloth that looked metallic. It was an unconventional costume, even by her standards. It was a combination of a tunic and loose pants, featuring shoulder extensions and a narrow waist that made her upper body look triangular. Glittery stones were sewn into it, catching the light and sending back intense sparkles as she moved.

The spotlight followed her as she walked slowly forward. In front of her, stones moved smoothly into place. A stairway unfolded, leading down to the arena sands. Kelsey walked unhurriedly down, waving languidly at the audience. She wasn’t getting the applause she wanted, but every eye was on her, and the arena was anything but silent.

THUD, THUD, CRASH!

THUD, THUD, CRASH!

Eventually, she reached the centre of the arena, standing in a pool of light surrounded by darkness. This time, she gave a signal. A swipe of her hand, and the skeletons stopped. A line descended from the very top of the ceiling, supporting a small bulbous object. Kelsey caught it and brought it near her face.

“In the red corner!” she called, and her voice boomed out all over the arena. “Fighting for the Elitran Empire! It’s Salim al-Kadir!”

All the lights pointed at the arena walls went out, except for one. Salim al-Kadir stepped out of the doorway and started walking towards the centre.

“The Black-Eyed Bridegroom! The Man Who Crossed an Ocean for a Woman Who Said No! The Champion of Denasti, and Apparently of Not Taking a Hint!”

A few skeletons were released from gates in the arena walls and rushed at the courl. This had been arranged in advance—al-Kadir had welcomed the chance for a warm-up. They dashed into the pool of light that surrounded him and were swiftly dispatched. Half the crowd cheered, half booed.

“And in the blue corner!” Kelsey called, then had to wait for the tumult of boos and cheers to subside. Arena duels might be new to Zamarra, but the townsfolk had quickly worked out how they worked.

Anton rose from his throne and stepped forward. He raised his arms to the crowd. A spotlight of his own shone down.

“The Hometown Hero!” Kelsey yelled. “The Harem Lord! Fighting for the lives of every one of you, give it up for the Liberator King, King Anton Nos!

THUD, THUD, CRASH!

The skeletons started up again, but they were drowned out by the cheering. Naturally, Anton was in the middle of the Kirido crowd, so he couldn’t hear the boos of the other side.

Kelsey stopped the skeletons and let the cheers die down. Now it was time for some planned theatre. Soraya had explained that part of Arena culture was for ladies who favoured one of the duellists to give him a token for good luck. Now, Elara and Suliel came forward with their tokens for Anton.

Naturally, Kelsey had to narrate for the crowd.

“It’s a touching moment, gentlefolk. Two of King Anton’s wives are presenting your King with tokens of their devotion and affection!”

The tokens were just intricately shaped silver pendants. Kelsey had provided them along with the plan to discomfit al-Kadir. Anton lowered his head so they could place the necklaces around his neck.

“And is that… Yes! Queen Elara is coming in for a kiss! He’s kissing her, ladies and gentlefolk, so cover your eyes if this is too much for you. And now he’s kissing Lady Suliel! This is one lucky man, folks.”

His wives stepped back, and Soraya came forward. Kelsey let out a shriek so shrill that even Anton believed she was surprised.

“What! Is the Harem King adding to his bevy of beauties? They say it takes a special man to satisfy a courl woman, but let me tell you: King Anton is no ordinary man!”

Anton didn’t kiss Soraya. And she was tall enough to lift the necklace into place without him bowing his head.

“Make him choke on it, My Lord,” she muttered. “And my fervent wishes for good luck in this fight.”

“How shameless! Showing such affection to another man in front of her would-be fiancé! That’s gotta sting!” Kelsey crowed.

Al-Kadir didn’t react to the taunting in any obvious way. He looked angry, but he was still in control.

It was time. Anton started his own trek to the centre of the arena floor. Just as it had for al-Kadir, a spotlight lit up and tracked him on his way down the stairs. As soon as his feet hit the sands, the stairs folded up behind him.

He walked up to the lit centre of the ring. Al-Kadir’s glare followed him the entire way as he walked, taking up position so that Kelsey was standing between them, a glittering silver fairy of malice.

“So here we are, folks,” Kelsey’s voice boomed out. “Two men face each other to decide the fate of nations. This isn’t a duel to the death, but there are no holds barred and plenty of grudges in play. Don’t expect both fighters to walk out of this ring.

“You can fight with whatever you brought with you. You can use magic, Traits and weapons. The only thing you can’t do is get help. Nobody can enter the fight except the two of you. Do you understand?”

“I do,” Anton said, mirrored by the man in front of him.

“You know the stakes.”

“I do,” Anton repeated.

“Then may the gods look down on this fight with favour, and may they keep their betting strictly to penny-ante.” Kelsey grinned at their confused looks. “The fight starts when the lights come on. Get ready.”

Anton drew his sword and widened his stance. Al-Kadir already had his sword drawn, but moved it back behind his body and took a fighting stance of his own.

Kelsey reached up and grabbed a loop attached to the wire still dangling from the ceiling. As soon as she got a firm grip, it started withdrawing, dragging her up into the air.

Her other hand still held the part she spoke into.

“Slaves, Commoners, Soldiers and Nobles!” she yelled. “Do not look away. Do not even blink! You are all here to witness history!”

She took a deep breath.

“Let’s get ready to RUUUUMMBLE!”

The arena blazed with light.