The Dragon and the Fox

After mess, it was a little less dreary in the cell. Sure, there was more whispers and secretive glances that she got, even from the guards, but she could live with those. She’d gotten plenty of them in the village.

What was the real highlight was the leopard, whose name was Rogue. They had discovered that they could communicate through the window to the arena. It was perfect—nobody could hear them over the noise of the crowd, and neither could the other prisoners.

One day, though, Rogue made a disturbing comment to Kira.

“If you’re going to fight,” he whispered, “which I think will happen soon…you need to be ready. Watch the contestants battle with one another. Take a look at their techniques. Some of these creatures have trained in armies before, and they know their stuff. You say you’ve never fought before? Well, now’s the time to learn.”

The thought of fighting another creature, in this arena, with her wings chained, scared Kira half to death. What could she do? Would her magic save her every time? Was that cheating?

So she resolved to watch, no matter how painful it was. Reluctantly, Kira got on her hind legs and peered through the window.

Right now, a rat and an antelope were fighting. At first, Kira thought this was really unfair—rodents’ full size was barely a paw’s length above Kira’s head—but quickly she realized that the fight was actually rather even. The rat fought viciously, using his claws and teeth constantly, and his tail often wrapped around the antelope’s long legs, making it fall over, where it was easy prey. The antelope could only buck and kick his hooves, which, while sharp, were much to slow for the rat. Soon, the antelope lay on its side on the sandy arena floor, bleeding profusely and not breathing at all. The rat paraded around the arena, waving its paws to the cheers of the crowd.

So the rat used his small size and sharp claws and teeth to his advantage, Kira observed. I think I could do that. But what if my opponent isn’t as slow as that antelope?

This thought worried her as the next challenger stepped onto the sand. It was a lizard, long and lean, scales gleaming in the sunlight. A forked tongue darted in and out of her mouth. The rat stopped his victory dance abruptly, facing his new opponent.

“And now, we have our leading champion, Ezmerelda of the iguanas!” a loud, booming voice announced cheerily. “She has won ten fights, which is ten more than most of us have seen.” He ended in a chuckle, and then continued, “Three…two…one…FIGHT!”

The rat lunged at the iguana, but that was a mistake. The iguana darted under the rat and sliced his underbelly, and he squealed in surprise. The crowd jeered and laughed at him, while cheering on the iguana.

The rat quickly recovered, and soon the two were circling each other, swiping their claws and snapping their teeth.

“And they’re at it!” the commentary cried. “And its tooth against claw, each slash taking a toll on both of them! But who will emerge victorious?”

He was right. With every collision, both creatures took many scratches to their bodies. Soon, they were both dripping in blood, and Kira was unsure which one would win. What happened if they both died?

The opponents seemed to realize the same thing. In one motion, they flung themselves at each other, claws reaching for the other. However, the iguana changed positions midair, and instead of meeting the rat in the air, she bit his underbelly. He screamed in pain as her body collided with his, and they both tumbled to the earth, the iguana on top.

“DEATH! DEATH! DEATH!” the crowd screamed. The iguana yanked her head back, and Kira looked away as the crowd shrieked in admiration. When she looked back, the remains of the rat were being dragged off by a few servants. The iguana held her head high, and the crowd began throwing gifts at her—flowers and laurels, and even a few jewels.

“Ezmerelda wins!” the announcer shouted. “And that’s it for today’s arena fights, folks! Don’t forget to book your next tickets early in advanced! Get the best seats right next to all the action!”

Kira turned away from the window and fell back on all fours.

“Did you learn anything?” Rogue’s voice whispered.

“I think so,” Kira responded. “But how am I supposed to get like that? I can barely move in here, let alone train to fight for my life against full grown creatures.”

“You have to try,” Rogue said insistently. “If you don’t, you’ll go against those creature without any experience. Try a few moves—like swiping with your paws or dodging an invisible enemy.”

Kira tried. And tried. The more attempts she made, the more she realized how clumsy she was. Her claws were almost dull. When she swiped her paw, it went twice as slow as she thought it would.

“I think I can improve a few things,” she told Rogue.

“Good.” His voice sounded pleased. “Now keep practicing. You never know when your next fight could be.”

Kira practiced. She practiced all day, and the next day, and into the next. Her movements got quicker, and she started filing her claws against the stone, creating claw marks in the cell. Anala watched her every move, chuckling occasionally and snickering. The other cell across Kira was empty now. Kira wondered if that was a blessing or curse to the poor animals who had been trapped in there.

Kira knew it wouldn’t be enough, but it was all she could do.

At the next mess, Kira stayed away from everyone except Rogue. She discussed and demonstrated quietly what she could do, facing away from the guards, and Rogue commented and made suggestions.

“Put a little more force into your forearm when you’re swiping it like that,” he recommended. “Like that, yeah. Also, try swiping in different directions, so you can get them from wherever they’re standing. Each opponent has a weakness: Lizards’ underbellies are soft. Rats’ tails are extremely sensitive. Any Equestrian will be slower than others, and they have deep blind spots. If you want to win as of right now, you might want to distract your enemy before you attack, so you have a higher chance of winning.”

“What about tigers?” Kira asked, her eyes straying over to where Anala sat with her fan club.

“Their nose is their weakest point, just like bears,” Rogue answered. “However, it’s very hard to get that spot, so be careful.”

Kira nodded, thinking of the trouble she would be in if her first fight was Anala.

“What happens if both of the opponents don’t want to fight?” Kira asked suddenly.

Rogue looked at her strangely. “They…they get killed. You’re not thinking of backing out, are you?”

“No,” Kira replied quickly, but she wouldn’t quite meet Rogue’s eyes. “I was just…I was just wondering.”

Kira looked down at her paws, examining the sharp claws, wondering if they would end up as bloodstained as Anala’s, or if she would turn as cold and tough as the alligators right next to her.

Don’t think like that, her mind chided itself. You’re doing this in self-defense. You have no other choice.

But do I? Kira thought. Do I have a choice?

It certainly didn’t seem so.

But Kira couldn’t shake the dread she had over the fact that she might have to kill another creature.

I do. I have to. I have no choice. I have to kill. I have to live.

I have to escape.