The door slammed shut behind me, plunging me into darkness. A small flame unfolded on the other side of the room. Its owner moved it higher, revealing his face. "You're late."
Long, jagged scars ran from his temple to his mouth, pulling his upper lip in a permanent, cruel smile. He was missing several teeth on the same side of his mouth.
"What happened?" The question was out of my mouth before I could stop it. I still wasn't thinking straight.
He raised his eyebrows. "I was a contender."
I gasped. My hand shot up to cover my mouth – so far I was having a hard time being very contender-like.
The other side of his mouth curled up, completing the smile. "I was the winner."
My hand dropped, and the blood drained from my face.
He turned, motioning for me to follow down a long corridor. His body obscured the ball of fire he held above his palm, and for once I was thankful to be in the dark. The corners where wall met floor were blurry, no matter how hard I stared at them. My feet didn't feel like they were moving, but I kept up with the Fire just the same. My dreamlike reality didn't bode well for the fight.
We passed a dilapidated bar. Behind it on the wall was a faded spray painted word, "Sigi."
"Named after the building's founder," the Fire said. He pushed open a door. Deep, rhythmic chanting floated up the stairwell – getting louder as we descended.
"We are going to the catacombs of the Tivoli Center. Used to be where the beer was stored, then it was used as storage for the university."
"Now a convenient place for dog fights," I mumbled. My tongue felt thick and sticky.
He shook his head. "No. The fights are in a new place each time. Otherwise the Elementals would find some way to cheat."
I snorted. I’d still found a way to cheat. I wondered if my opponent had, too.
Our feet hit cement, and the chanting was loud enough to drown out any other thoughts. Even the walls seemed to reverberate in rhythm. My heartbeat picked up speed, matching the pace of the chanting.
The Fire stopped just outside of a double door. I peered through the foggy glass on my tiptoes. It was a sea of faces, all shouting.
"What's happening?" I tried jumping for a better view.
The Fire put his hand on my shoulder, leaning in so I could hear him better. "They just introduced your opponent. He is the title holder, for five fights now."
"Just five?" A small flower of hope bloomed in my chest.
He looked at me, eyebrows furrowed, then leaned in again. "There have only been six. It didn't take long for people to stop volunteering as contenders."
The flower went up in flame; their ashes leaving a sour taste in my mouth.
"Listen," he continued. "No one is allowed to interfere, magically. There are refs posted throughout and they will stop the fight and declare a winner. There are three rounds; each two minutes long. If you last the length of the fight, the refs will declare a winner. There are no tapouts…" The Fire’s voice droned on about the rules; most of which I didn't understand.
I stared at the glass windows. The fog seemed to be spreading out, leaving a white film over the doors, across the walls and down to the floor. I watched the ghostly lines reach for me.
"Ok," the Fire's voice came back to me. "They’re introducing you now," he smirked, looking at me sideways. "As Artemis, Goddess of the Hunt." He paused for two moments, then pushed on both doors. Our small cove was flooded with even more noise.
I floated forward.
"Welcome to the dog fights, Artemis," the Fire said, smiling as I moved past him.
The sea of people parted, revealing a tight, crooked path to a ring of overturned filing cabinets. I rubbed shoulders with people as I passed. Some leaned away, but all kept shouting. No matter how hard I squinted, none of their faces would come into focus.
Up and over the filing cabinets, and into the ring I went. The man in the ring with me bounced around on the opposite side, just as faceless as the rest. I tried to remember what Erika had told me about him.
I wonder if Erika is here now. I looked around at the screaming audience. I wonder where Clay is.
My questions barely had time to form in my head, when I heard a muffled dong of a bell. My eyes floated back to the other person in the ring, now walking toward me.
Has it begun?
I saw a flash of a fist, dull and huge, in front of me, then my nose exploded with pain.
When I opened my eyes, the arena was sideways. Someone was counting down.
"9…8…7…"
What happened to 10, I thought. Did I get knocked out, already?
"6…5…"
I sucked in the slobber protruding from my mouth, and tasted blood and dust. I propped myself up on one elbow. Anger lit through my body, overtaking even the pain in my throbbing face. Micah had given me everything he had, and now he was in the hands of multiple other women, trying to save him. And here I was, a few seconds into it, on the floor and losing.