Interlude - "THE CHAMPION"
"And now, the amazing, the ever-blazing, the indescribable, the incomparable, the unimaginable… Toa Vosala!"
The crowd screamed. Puffs of decorative flame shot out from the audience, pumping the arena full of smoke as a glistening crimson figure stepped out of a dark gate, sword and shield in hand. He was tall, supple, and strong, his eyes coloring the smoke with a noble blue glow. Toa Vosala, hero of the Flickering Wastes, had arrived.
Vosala squinted through the smoke, unable to make out specifics of his awaiting audience. Their cries and cheers were like the roar of a singular, omnipresent beast, surrounding him with the immense force of glorious praise. His hand tightened around the leather hilt of his simple blade, the same model he was trained to use in the corps. The shield was new, though. He admired its deep red paints embellished with yellow flames. It matched his armor.
As the smoke began to clear, Vosala set the shield upon his back and sheathed the blade with it. He raised his hands into the air, directing the crowd to crescendo their praises. Here he was, on the edge of magnificence, about to commit some great act of bravery that the arena managers had planned for him. His joints still creaked a little from getting thrown around by last week’s match. They had thrown an entire bear at him. How would they top that this week?
“The foe of the unconquerable Toa Vosala for tonight’s match,” the announcer said in a low voice, “shall now emerge…”
At the other side of the arena, a haunting gate creaked open, revealing its shadowy interior.
Vosala drew his blade again, but left the shield. He wanted to make this look impressive.
Inside the chamber, a pair of twin eyes blazed to life, followed by a booming mechanical screech.
Oh no, Vosala thought. A Rahi?
From the tunnel shot a many-legged beast of metal and flame. It boomed as it slithered out, its long, snake-like body nearly the entire length of the arena itself. It was propelled by a series of numerous scuttling legs that stabbed furiously into the red sand of the ground, and its mouth, a wide tunnel of teeth and saws, spewed out flames that scorched the dust beneath it. Its segmented body spurted out fire that shot into the air, coercing a series of gasps and awe from the audience.
“A Singe Serpent!” the announcer cried. “The great centipede of the Wastes! How will he do it? How will the fantabulous, unequaled Toa Vosala defeat this foe?”
“With sword and fire!” shouted Vosala. From his empty hand, he summoned a sphere of fire. Around him, the crowd echoed their gasps.
The Singe Serpent, which was inappropriately named due to its centipede-like nature, narrowed its eyes. Another being that commanded flame such as it? Surely, this must be a rival to the throne! It peeled its body from the ground, its many bladed legs flashing in the ashen starlight. It sacrificed a third of its standing to rise all the way to the height of the chain link cage which protected the crowd from the dangerous beasts inside. Its many saws grinded and hissed to add to its intimidation play.
But the impeccable Vosala would not be dissuaded. He took the ball of flame and forced it into a beam, the tips of it licking the armor of the centipede with hungry power.
“Come on,” Vosala egged. “Let’s give them something to watch!”
The Serpent darted forwards, thrusting its saw-filled mouth towards him.
Vosala leapt to the side, which caused his feet to slide through the dust. Clouds of red powder streamed up as he moved, tracking his movement.
The maw of the beast roared with fury as it clamped down on nothing. It turned to face its opponent and sprayed a wave of flame at Vosala, which he ducked underneath, feeling the heat mount over his head.
“You’re nasty,” he growled at the Singe Serpent.
The monster snarled in return.
Vosala jumped forwards, racing underneath its lengthy body. He swung the sword at its underside, only to scrape its metal skin without effect. The crowd, however, shouted in enthusiasm, thinking he was doing something brilliant underneath the beast. At least the maneuver wasn’t a total failure.
With surprising agility, the Serpent raised itself from the ground and plunged his head under itself, charging after Vosala.
The Toa examined his blade. Alone, it was helpless against this beast, but perhaps with a little bit of heat… He began running his hand up and down the blade, summoning the power of his mask to coerce the metal into a harsh fiery glow.
Then the crowd watched in horror as the beast swallowed Vosala whole. Several haunting moments passed as the Singe Serpent triumphantly began circling the center of its cage, beginning to ponder the riddance of its only source of entertainment.
“No… That’s impossible!” the announcer shouted over the arena. “Has Toa Vosala…? Did he…?”
And suddenly there was a blaze of light, and the beast was sent sprawling back as a ball of fire shot from its mouth. As the fire hit the ground, it dispersed with a spiral of smoke, revealing a laughing Toa Vosala, his armor lined with glowing runes and patterns.
“Was that a little hard to swallow?” Vosala jeered before he noticed the melted wad of steel and charred leather in his hand that used to be his sword.
Laughter rose from the amused crowd as the Serpent regained its standing. As soon as it was up, its throat began to charge with energy, sending an intimidating glow out its mouth.
Vosala dropped the sword and drew out his shield and began to sprint towards the edge, hoping the distance would help protect him from the upcoming fire breath.
The Serpent released its flame, a straight beam of power that chased after the Toa. Vosala spun around right as it was about to hit him, kneeling and ducking behind his shield as the fire slammed into the barrier. He was pushed back slightly through the dust, but held fast as the blazing strength continued to strike against his shield. As soon as it relented, he began to scan around the arena.
I need something sharp, he thought to himself. All I’ve got is sand, and wall, and shield, and… His eyes fell upon the series of torches spread out amongst the ring-shaped arena. There.
The monster began to charge, all of its legs kicking up chunks of sand and dust as it moved. Its saws roared and scraped and snarled with energy, and its eyes glowered with a furious light.
Vosala sprinted straight for the wall, turning at the last moment. The Serpent slammed into the stony construction, shaking its head clear before facing the Toa once more and following after him.
Feeling the Rahi gaining, Vosala quickened his pace as fast as he could, trying to reach the nearest torch. He jumped forwards, turned back, and threw a ball of fire behind him. It hit the Serpent, only disorienting it a little, but its force also propelled the Toa ahead by a few steps. He landed right next to the torch and snatched it from its mount.
The Matoran-designed torch was a simple contraption, consisting only of a red metal shaft with a thin piece of red fire glass at the end. The fire glass took the glow of the Lightstone placed within it and magnified it into heat and flame. By replacing the stone with his own flame, Vosala could, hypothetically, use the torch to create a thin beam of constant fire, a sword, of some sorts. At least, that was how Grinner would explain it at the saloon. Did Vosala even pay attention to the old man’s stories?
Here goes nothing, Vosala decided, dropping the shield on the ground. The flame had burnt away much of the paint, revealing its rusty iron metal beneath.
Vosala launched another blast of fire, this time against the wall of the arena, and he went soaring towards the center of the arena. If he was going to pull this off, he would need to make a show out of it. The stage was set, he was the player, and he would give this crowd the Toa they were asking for. That Toa was him .
He ran into the dead center of the arena, pumping a burst of flame into the sky. He let the resulting cheers of the crowd fuel his strength as he prepared for what would come next.
The Singe Serpent screeched as it dashed towards Vosala, raising its body as it prepared another blast of fire. This time, Vosala had no shield to hide behind. Surely, it would have him now.
The audience fell to the edge of their seats as they watched the flames leap from the dreadful beast’s mouth and towards the Toa, and Vosala seemed to do nothing to protect himself. He simply held up a hand towards the fire, and…
Every single tongue of flame was suddenly turned from its course and streamed into his hand. The inferno seeped into the Toa’s hand, adding to the brightening glow of his armor’s decals. He smiled as his body absorbed it all, feeling its strength now contained within him. He lifted the torch and pointed its tip towards the beast’s gaping maw. As the serpent pounced upon him, he coursed the flame into the torch and watched as a steady blade of energy shot through its point.
“I said I’d slay you with sword and fire,” Vosala said with a smirk. “But I guess I meant a sword made of fire…”
The Serpent hissed as it lunged towards him.
Fire sword, fire sword, fire sword! Vosala screamed inside. He jumped up to meet the robotic beast. Fire sword! Fire sword! FIRE SWORD! He soared over the mouth of his foe, the sword of fire in his hand dragging along the metal. A fierce gash of melted steel traced by the tip of his sword appeared behind it.
Oh, I am awesome, he smiled. I’m Toa Vosala. And Toa Vosala’s legend would begin here.