Hare of Misfortune

Passively keeping the whole stadium in view, Rachel maintained her composure in the face of the rumble that shook the stadium. The skies rippled with their change in location, a deep cavern emerging from the lesser god’s manipulations, taking them to the location she’d set for Conner’s next contest.

Conner’s bronze skin glistened with sweat as the environment changed; a grand statue of the Titan of the Earth broke through the hard stadium stone, plant life blooming to fill the world in vibrant colors, yet green soon became the dominant shade.

The man worked around his neck, sober eyes following the rise of the lovely, alien-like entity the statue represented: a glowing, rotating planet held near her abdomen.

Rachel’s gaze drifted from Dionysus’ silent observation to the stadium as it ripped out of the ground and broke apart, carrying them into the air. The segmented stands spun in a slow circle around the developing combat zone, whipping her straightened and unbound hair to the left.

The cavern continued to rise in elevation, widening into a vast valley tribute to the Mother Titan, and not soon after, more statues broke free from the walls, displaying a powerful man holding a trident. Jets of bright aquamarine water burst through the overhead cavern ceiling, walls, and floor, filling the rich, underground biosphere with life-giving liquid that sparkled in pristine, magical glory.

Parts of the mossy ceiling and walls broke away, revealing a deep-ocean view, spotted with alien, giant sea creatures hunting in their brutal habitat. It was surprising to see how many places could exist and that could be called upon within these Legend Quests, not that Rachel believed Anthony’s would be the same as this.

Conner rose into the air with the stone platform he stood on before the eyes of Gaia’s statue, empowered waterfalls with Neptune’s blessing falling from the ceiling to crash against the arena, creating white rapids in the canals that were formed to gush off its edges.

Gasps, laughter, and clapping came from the lesser deities as the ground far below and to Rachel’s left began to glow a bright orange. Magma geysers erupted in fountains of flame, flaring fissures cutting their way across the landscape below the floating platform and broken stadium of gawkers.

Pyroclastic flows soon joined the blessed geysers of liquid, sending steam hissing toward the ceiling. An explosion of sound and black clouds of fumarole erupted from the fractured jungle floor, trees ripped from the soil and set ablaze as a thunderous roar vibrated through the air. Sulfuric gases and vapor followed a streak of flying molten elements. Only the winged draconic visage of Conner’s challenge was seen in the plume of a nuclear detonation.

Rachel sat straighter against her pillar as the 65-meter-long magma dragon passed underneath them, wingspan likely as much as 70 meters, bringing scalding winds that lit the vibrant temple to Gaia in a sea of flames.

The blessed water mixed with the fire. Yet it seemed Gaia’s power over the earth also empowered the magma, because the liquid struggled to combat the inferno the dragon brought. Meteors followed the flying stream of death as it dove under the arena Conner stood on, then twirled around to swoop up and land on the stony field. It let out a terrifying roar that triggered more eruptions, devastating the temple.

Shit. It is a creature of Gaia, which means she blessed it as well, she snarled internally, trying not to show her anxiety at the intimidating display of dominance. Don’t die, Conner!

The legend jumped onto his floating dolphin as the stone beneath his feet began to bubble, and the magma dragon lurched for him, the creature’s mere presence igniting the atmosphere near it. 4:59 clicked down on the holographic clock between the broken and rotating coliseum—the fight had begun.

”Is he going to die?” Nia hissed, leg bouncing nervously as she followed Conner’s rise to the ocean above, soon cut off by dense pyroclastic currents that the dragon created to block his escape to the more favorable battlefield. ”I know we’re supposed to kill him after our own fight, but I’m kind of rooting for him right now, for obvious reasons...”

That’s one of the points of this competition, Rachel mused, seeing the appeal in such a contest where both contestants wanted the other to win their challenges; after all, she wanted a good fight. It’s going to be tough, but all he has to do is make it past the goalkeeper dragon and enter the ocean half of the temple.

”I see.” Nia frowned, scanning the apocalyptic scene as Conner fought for his life. He was currently on the back foot, only having 4 minutes and 30 seconds left until his aquatic supernatural mount was yanked away from him. ”Gaia’s domain may not be entirely related to water, but it does include it. If it were me, I’d break the ceiling and dump the whole ocean on the dragon’s spicy ass.”

Rachel’s ears tilted with her head as she waved, her focus returning to the frighteningly quiet lesser god and Arbiter of this competition; the insane man of entertainment still had his gaze on her in the face of such an epic showdown that should captivate him.

I’d do the same... Conner isn’t stupid. He knew the moment Dionysus had it out for me that things would get real. Dionysus selected the magma dragon because it would have Gaia’s blessing; it was something I hadn’t considered.

Nia’s balled hands pressed against her skirt, legs knotting as the dolphin dipped low with Conner on his back, collecting a cyclone of holy water into a spiral drill; they cut through the flames and magma streams, looping to dodge the dragon’s volcanic breath as they attempted to get close enough to pierce the lizard’s wings.

”Conner did, though,” the rabbit mumbled. ”He chose Delphinus in order to counter it, but it was then put on a clock. Going first really isn’t the best, is it?”

Yes and no.