The air around them shimmered with heat.
Nara's knuckles were raw, scorched from the flames licking at her skin. The battle haze in her mind refused to fade. She needed to fight.
And Gorran—standing there, grinning like this was the greatest moment of his life—was more than willing to give her that fight.
The First Strike
Nara moved first.
She exploded forward, the ground cracking beneath her as she launched into a punch aimed straight for Gorran's gut.
Fast. Direct. Unrelenting.
The moment before impact, he twisted his body, his massive arm blocking the strike.
The force of the collision sent a deep tremor up her arm, but Nara barely noticed. Pain was a distant thing—irrelevant in the face of battle.
She gritted her teeth.
He's sturdy. More than I expected.
Instead of retreating, she pressed forward.
Gorran countered instantly. A brutal knee swung up, aiming for her ribs.
Nara saw it coming.
Her instincts kicked in, honed from years of battle. She twisted, deflecting the hit with her forearm, but the sheer power behind it still sent shockwaves through her bones.
Strong. Really strong.
But that only made her more excited.
The Exchange Begins
They clashed again.
Fists against forearms. Knuckles against armor. Every strike sent bursts of fire and raw force rippling through the battlefield.
Gorran was strong.
Nara was faster.
But raw speed wasn't enough to overcome someone like him.
She needed to be smarter.
Her gaze sharpened, taking in every detail of his movements. The way his stance adjusted when preparing for a swing.
The slight shift in his weight before a strike.
The hesitation in his left leg—an old injury? Or a weakness?
She filed it all away.
Every fight was a lesson, and she learned quickly.
Testing Limits
She feinted left—his war axe swung down to meet her.
A mistake.
He committed too hard.
In that split second, she twisted around his guard, her elbow smashing into his ribs.
A normal opponent would have staggered.
Gorran just laughed.
He enjoys this.
The realization sent a thrill through her veins.
He wasn't just strong—he was having as much fun as she was.
Her kind of fighter.
But that meant she had to be careful.
She ducked just in time as his forehead whistled past her skull in a vicious headbutt.
The air pressure alone made her ears pop.
That would've knocked me flat.
She countered with a blazing uppercut, flames exploding from her fist.
This time, he felt it.
Gorran's head snapped back, but before she could press her advantage, his massive hand clamped down on her arm.
Her stomach sank.
Damn it.
Before she could react—
BOOM!
A punch straight to her gut.
Her body jerked backward, her vision momentarily flickering.
Nara coughed, tasting iron in her mouth.
That was a good hit.
She grinned, wiping blood from her lip.
This was a real fight.
The battle escalated.
Nara's flames grew hotter. Gorran's strikes became heavier.
The environment around them suffered.
The rocky terrain cracked and split. Trees nearby caught fire. The molten rivers in the distance bubbled violently.
But Nara barely noticed.
Her world had narrowed to just the two of them.
The audience watching from above was enthralled.
"She's actually keeping up with him," one noble muttered in disbelief.
Another shook his head. "No. She's pushing him."
Gorran had fought dozens of warriors in his time.
He had seen wild, reckless strength. He had seen disciplined, measured combat.
Nara was neither.
She fought like fire itself.
Unpredictable. Explosive. Destructive.
And he loved it.
But there was something else—something that made him more excited than wary.
She was adapting.
Every time he landed a hit, she adjusted her stance. Every time she missed, she recalculated.
She was learning.
Fast.
And that made her even more dangerous.
Breaking the Stalemate
Their fight had lasted several minutes, but it felt like mere seconds.
Neither had backed down. Neither had slowed.
Then—Gorran did something unexpected.
He dropped his axe.
Nara's eyes narrowed.
What is he planning?
"Enough testing," he said, rolling his shoulders. "Let's see if you can handle me at full strength."
The ground rumbled beneath them.
Nara's grin widened.
Finally.
"Gladly."