Flames of Rivalry

"Vagnis—" Belk muttered, his voice laced with irritation at the interference, turning fully to meet the gaze of Vagnis, who steadied another arrow on the bow. "What are you doing…"

Without another word,, Vagnis arrow lanced towards him, belk barely managing to get out of the way, his hands diving to grab his gun, his fingers spinning the gun by the trigger, grasping it perfectly within his palm before he fired.

The beam shot straight past Vagnis, the energy beam condensing for a heartbeat before it exploded on a tree, the force sending debris shooting in all directions, a tree branch knocking the bow out of Vagnis's grasp.

They both watched as the bow fell on the floor, without wasting a second they both blitzed for it, Vagnis jumping out of the tree with efficient grace, landing on his feet before he leapt forward.

Belk pushed off the ground as hard as he could, but he was a second too late. Vagnis dropped to his knees, sliding across the battlefield. His hands moved in a blur, knocking an arrow and releasing it before his momentum slowed.

The arrow whizzed past Belk's face, his eyes following its trajectory, a mistake he had come to realize as Vagnis drove his fist into his face, the force enough to send the young scientist staggering.

"Keep your eyes on your opponent! Didn't the chief at least teach you that much–" Vagnis spat, his bow now on his back as he hopped from foot to foot in one place, as if warming up his muscles.

Belk tried to aim at his opponent, but with a swift push of his coiled leg, Vagnis closed the distance in the blink of an eye. He twisted his arm, wrenching the gun from his grasp and pulled him close.

Belk eyes snapped downward, seeing Vagnis's arm coiled back, ready to strike into his stomach, the scientist reacted quickly, driving his knee upward toward Vagnis's chin, but it was swiftly deflected by Vagnis's free hand, as if the change in plans were nothing more than a passing thought.

Caught off guard, Belk panicked as Vagnis sweeped his leg from under him , his eyes closing as he braced for impact, falling flat on his back with a loud thud. 

The shiver of dread ran up the young scientist's spine, his eyes snapped open, rolling to the side as fast as he could, narrowly dodging Vagnis's descending heel.

"How—" He panted with heavy breaths, rubbing the sweat from his chin with the back of his hand.

"While you were out in the forest doing that Science thing of yours," He explained, cracking his neck loud enough to startle somehow, a sigh of relief escaping his lips. "I've been honing my skills with your father as my master!"

Belk gritted his teeth at his claim. His fists tightening as he panted for breath.

"Now I'm gonna drive a lesson in that thick skull of yours! A lesson you won't ever forget! Your science tricks can't help you here!" he declared, his fist punching into his palm as he yelled loud enough for Belk to hear him. "and when i'm done, you're going to come back to the village as the heir!"

"I'll have to apologize to your father later, he won't be recognizing his son for a while–" He watches as Belk gets back into position, his legs slightly parted and his hands up just enough to block his gut and face, his gaze holding the same focus he always has. 

'There it is…that stubbornness—' Vagnis thought, his gaze watching as he stood there waiting for a move, anything that he could read. 'Something that I've always admired and despised…'

Belk charged forward, his fist recoiling and moving with efficient speed, but his hits never landed, not standing a chance against Vagnis's footwork. 

'Even back when we were kids…' his thoughts trailed off, eyes watching Belk as he tried over and over to land a blow, the young scientist's gaze on him with unwavering focus, bringing back memories between the heat of battle that quickens his heart, memories of when they were sparring as kids, all those years ago.

"And, begin!" A hunter announced, their lance pointed to the sky to call the end of a match, the entire village gathered to witness it, a young Belk; the chief's son, face off against Vagnis.

The moment the announcer started the fight the both charged into each other, Vagnis throwing an uncoordinated. punch only hitting air as Belk ducked slightly below, his tiny arms reaching out to grab at his cloth.

'Back then you had those same eyes, staring back at me with such focus…' He mentioned to himself, remembering how cold and calculated his gaze remained, eyes laced with talent and promise. 

 Fingers tightening his grip as his right leg swept his, pulling the young Aelavarian in an unsuspecting toss that sent him to the ground in a loud thud.

"This battle is over! The winner is Belk!" The announcer declared, watching as Belk let go of Vagnis's clothing, and stepped over him like another lifeless corpse, not even bothering to look back.

'At our evaluation matches, you qualified enough to be both a hunter, priest and a scout, yet you chose neither…' He thought, his mind reeling on that memory over and over in his mind, staring at the back of the prince of his village.

'I always wanted to know why, I wanted to improve, I wanted to catch up to you!' 

'I looked up to you, but now…' 

His gaze snapped back to the present, his eyes catching Belk's clothing in his hands, fingers tightening against the fabric before sweeping his legs. 

Belks world spun as he lost his balance, his eyes not knowing where to focus or what was going on, he kept his jaw clenched, not daring to speak or grunt, 

'Now i'm not sure…' His eyes sombered a bit, pulling the young scientist in an unsuspecting toss that sent him to the ground in a loud thud.