"Begin!" Leegaain's voice roared throughout the entire colosseum without the need for any amplification spell.
The start signal activated a golden translucent dome that enclosed the arena, warping both Lith and his opponent on the opposite sides of the battlefield.
This time, the dome's ceiling was over one hundred meters (330 feet) high, to allow the fighters to fly freely and guarantee them the same maneuverability of an open space.
Not a single seat was empty. The Awakened community was equally eager to witness the true power of the mixed bloodline of Dragons and Phoenixes or to see the arrogant brat publicly humiliated.
Yet what they actually hoped for was an outcome that involved both.
Lith revealing his best cards and getting defeated would have been the best-case scenario for them, teaching the arrogant Guardians' bloodlines who treated the Council with contempt a lesson.
Qisal took off immediately, infusing himself with all elements and using a mix of Spirit and air magic to propel his wings like a jet turbine.
'F.u.c.k me sideways. How do I do that?' Lith thought while Qisal charged at him with the speed of a rocket whereas he flapped his wings like a mere bird.
The Wyvern reached the Wyrmling in a split second, combining the twisting strength of his long neck with the acceleration from the Second Wind spell to bite off a huge chunk of Lith's shoulder right off the bat.
Despite having drawn the first blood, Qisal snarled in annoyance.
Not only did the Wyrmling's meat taste like crap, but the Wyvern had actually aimed at the right wing. Without it, Lith would be grounded and doomed to defeat, but the runt had managed to twist his upper body at the last second, foiling Qisal's attack.
Lith didn't even have the time to curse that the Wyvern had already returned after performing a U-turn, striking at Lith with the long talons of his hind legs without ever slowing down.
The scene reminded Lith of his fight with Gadorf, but this time it was much worse. Without help nor equipment, the Wyvern might cut him in half the moment Qisal landed a clean hit.
Five darts of emerald green energy, each one as big as a dagger, came out of the fingers of his right hand. They moved too fast for Qisal to dodge and continue his attack, forcing him to steer to the right to avoid them.
Yet the darts steered as well, following the Wyvern's back like hounds after a wounded prey.
'What the heck are those?' Qisal thought as, despite his best efforts, the bullets kept gaining ground.
'Magic Missiles, baby.' Lith inwardly grinned while he exploited the brief respite to mimic the Wyvern's movement spell.
Even though Magic Missiles was just a tier two spell, Spirit Magic was akin to Gravity Magic. Dangerous at tier zero and deadly from tier one even for Awakened. The projectiles were the manifestation of air, light, and darkness magic.
Air magic gave it speed, light magic fast shapeshifting abilities, and darkness destructive power. It was a modified version of Poke that added willpower to the mix, making it a homing spell that could adapt to any enemy.
Thanks to the perfect synergy of the three elements that only Spirit Magic could achieve, Magic Missiles was the weaker version of a Tower spell. Its only downside was that being made of pure mana, it required a lot of magical energy.
Lith couldn't afford to use something too powerful right off the bat and need Invigoration so soon. Magic Missiles was the perfect compromise, allowing him to both keep the enemy at bay and test their wits.
Qisal used his long neck and Life Vision to study the threat at hand during his escape. The results were far from encouraging.
'I can't believe that runt has already received lessons about Spirit Magic Spells from Faluel. Father has only taught me how to infuse the elements with it since my mana core is still bright blue.
'Sure, he could have imparted me both the secret of the violet core and of Spirit Magic, but we both know that if he did that, the Wyvern's clan would have a new patriarch.' Qisal grinned at the idea.
He didn't accept to taunt Lith just to humor Xedros so much as to earn the recognition of the Dragon bloodline and take Xedros's place. Many of his kind considered the Father of all Wyverns to be a relic of the past.
His obsession for evolving into a "true Dragon", as if Wyverns were just a sick joke, brought shame on the bloodline and had caused their power to grow stale. Until recently, Xedros had refused to learn healing magic, forcing his children to ask other Emperor Beasts to teach them how to shapeshift.
By defeating the golden boy of two Guardians, Qisal would prove that Wyverns were the strongest of the lesser Dragons and gain the political momentum he needed to overthrow his father.
Many of his siblings had gained a violet core and learned Spirit Magic. With their support and teachings, taking Feela's seat in the Council would only be a matter of time.
Qisal cursed Xedros's incompetence and conjured a hard-light shield infused with Spirit Magic that appeared out of thin air, intercepting four out of five projectiles. The construct shattered while the last Missile struck at the Wyvern's back with such energy that it bent the scales that protected his spine.
Qisal coughed out a mouthful of blood but he didn't slow down. Lith wasn't the only one testing the waters before conjuring his best spells. The Wyvern had let the Missile hit him on purpose to understand how dangerous it was.
'One is painful but bearable. Light fusion is already healing the damage. Five, however, would have made a bowl out of my back. I need to be careful.' He thought.
By the time the Wyvern was upon Lith again, the Wyrmling had yet to figure out how to move quickly. Lith's eyes could follow Qisal's movements, but compared to the opponent, he moved through the air with the agility of a slug.
The Wyvern's teeth sank into Lith's flesh, biting his whole right wing off his shoulder blade and making him fall onto the ground like a brick. Qisal swallowed it whole, to not leave behind anything that the Wyrmling might reattach later.
Bursts of black flames erupted from Lith's back as the agony forced him to use darkness fusion to not lose his focus and with it all the spells that he had at the ready. Darkness fusion, however, was a double-edged sword.
It made him ins.e.n.s.i.t.i.v.e to pain, but it also kept Lith from noticing when one of his limbs had taken too much damage to still be useful. Usually, it was up to Solus to check on that and manage his injuries, but this time he was alone.
