Zilo is dragged outside by his bride to be, as Maldrek and the rest of the crew finally let the shock wear off and begin springing to action. The Chief's daughter hoists Zilo up and presents him to the curious orcs watching. Zilo the entire time is struggling to release himself.
Aria walks up to the half-orc barbarian translator and asks, "Hey big guy, Zilo kinda can't get married to her, he's sorta taken by someone."
"Who?"
"Me." In an instant the half-orc grabs Aria by the wrist and hoists her up to hang next to Zilo. The translator shouts in orcish about something, which makes the daughter stare daggers at the smaller woman and growl. She turns back to the translator and asks, "What are you doing!?"
"Telling tribe you challenge Artka's stake to her groom, and that the dispute will be settled in the old way."
Aria looks back at the woman and gulps before asking, "What's the old way?"
"Barehanded combat to the death."Remarks Maldrek looking through a book on orc culture he grabbed the other day.
"HOLD ON A S-," before Aria can finish she and Zilo are jerked along toward a small ring made with a shoddy looking, but sturdy wooden fence. Zilo is tied to a post by the wayside from both his hands and Aria and Artka take up spots on both sides of the ring.
"Is there any way I can not do this!?" Asks Aria to the translator. The barbarian stops to think for a bit before responding, "you can have a champion fight in your pl-" Faster than a cheetah Aria spins around and throws Sparky into the ring in her place, as she hops back over the fence.
Sparky lands on his face before slowly raising his eyes to meet with his opponent. Artka is at least 3 times taller than him and looks to have 10 times more muscles. Sparky stands up and puts up his tiny little fists.
Sparky looks back to his cheering section to see Aria sighing in relief, May giving him a thumbs up and a weak smile, and Maldrek, who looks to have made a hat using Silent Image, is placed it over his heart, and is uttering a short prayer to Morta.
Sparky faces down his hulking opponent as the chief approaches opposite the hanging Zilo. The cheif raises his hand, and after a short moment of waiting for the crowd to calm he swings down his hand, and the fight begins.
Sparky raises his hand and shouts, "Boiling Blood!" And the female orc falls to the ground with her arms shaking. On the ground a small smokey vapor rises from her pores. Maldrek smiles from the side lines and says, "Brilliant, the orcs failed to realize Sparky doesn't need a book for spells."
As Sparky turns to give a thumbs up to his team he is suddenly grabbed from behind and hurled headlong at the fence. Sparky scrambles to his feet to look at his opponent. Artka's face doesn't look to have the pain the goblin imagined, rather she looks to be currently in a state of sheer unbridled rage. Artka Shouts,
"RRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWWWHHHHH!"
Sparky rubs his head and says, "Boiling Blood normally make people still."
"That spell makes orcs stronger Sparky!" Yells Maldrek from the sidelines, remembering. Sparky undoes the spell, making Artka's body stop steaming, and her face relaxes a bit. Artka leaps forward and pounds the ground at the goblin's feet. Sparky leaps up over the punch and lets loose two of his Fire Rays from the tips of his fingers. The shots impact on the Orc's face and chest leaving burns on her body.
As Sparky begins to scurry away again the Orc snatches him by the leg and flings him up and down into the fence. Sparky is continuously bashed into the fence another 3 times before he becomes somewhat coherent and shouts, "Elemental Body!"
Sparky's dirty goblin skin is suddenly covered in fire and the Orc throws him away in pain. Her hand is covered in burns now as the flame covered goblin flips and lands on his legs with a bounce. Leaping off of his bounce he winds back his hand and hurls a small ball of fire at the orc. The ball lists along before hitting the woman in the chest and it explodes into a blast of fire out 20 ft.
Sparky breaths heavy and releases his fire elemental form, but just as he does Artka rushes out of the flames and punches Sparky solid in the face as her skin and hair still flickers with the remnants of flame.
Sparky is once again flung into the fence, as he wobbles back to his feet he says, "Tiny Sparky not liking big lady."
Aria and May wince over and over as Sparky is battered around the ring. May turns to Aria and asks, "Look, far be it from me to tell you how to defend what's yours, but is Zilo really worth this?"
Aria winces, and says, "I mean, Sparky didn't really complain about fighting. Maldrek, do you think the little guy will be alright?"
Maldrek looks to be sweating as he watches the fight. He doesn't seem to be listening.
"Maldrek?"
Maldrek's eyes turn back to May and Aria. His face looks hollow, and full of dread as he speaks to them in a timid voice and says, "Who wishes to shoulder the burden?"
Time coalesces back to Maldrek and an unconscious Sparky laying down in his office. The past version of Maldrek chants as he controls a ritual spell with his spellbook.
"Your power may be impressive, but in a city you might not have enough self control. Dema be damned you might even kill us in the field, and so I'm using this Geas on you to hold your power in check. You will only use your full power when you hear the following phrase..."
Back at the orc camp May leans over the fence and shouts.
"Hello barkeep, I'm Alaroc! I'll take a water please!"
Sparky was under the boot of Artka when his eyes spring open and a fire in his eyes ignites he stares down the orc and with what little leverage he can find, he punches the bottom of her boot and shouts,
"Burning Hands!"
The goblin's punch explodes out into a cone of fire, blasting the Orc up off the goblin. with a spin and a leap the goblin is up in the Orc's face and unleashes another Burning Hands. The goblin's timing is flawless, his punches impacting seamlessly with the power of the cones of fire that come with them, forming more of a burning punch rather than a burning hands.
This time the Orc is blasted back into the fence and as she looks back to the goblin he look to be charging another ball of fire, only this one is much more destructive. As the goblin lands he steps forward and hurls the ball like a baseball.
"Fireball!"
In an instant Arkta, and a fair number of the observing orcs are lost in a giant sea of fire and smoke. everyone's eyes are on the crater that was formed, but Sparky looks to the sky. In the Sky, Artka is falling toward the goblin, with her fist ready for one more try at squashing him. The Goblin just smiles and yells one last spell, wiping his arm across the horizon, making 3 more balls of fire.
"Scorching Rays!"
Sparky points his hand right at Artka, sending off one of the rays to hit her square in the face, sending her spinning toward the ground. He then brings his index finger down and curls his arm around his other arm in an upper cut motion. The second ray mimics his motion and slithers along the ground and blasts into Artka, blasting her into the air again slightly.
With a giant horse stance stomp forward Sparky points his last finger up around and down. The ray mimics this, flying up and like a jet stream angles down into the floating up orc and slams her into the ground with a heavy blast in the chest.
The crowd falls silent as the Orc woman lays there motionless and the little goblin stands firm staring at her with a grimace. The goblin looks to the audience and raises his fist into the air and shouts, "SPARKY STRONG!"
The crowd erupts into a frenzy of cheers and rush forward to lift the little goblin into the air cheering. Maldrek and the girls smile as they waltz over and untie Zilo. Maldrek chuckles and says, "Shame, I was hoping to be your best man."
Zilo falls onto Aria's shoulder as he gets the feeling back into his limbs, he smiles playfully at Maldrek and says, "Maybe next marriage, thank the gods for Sparky."
Sparky wanders over to the group, he now looks to be in even worse shape than after the fight. He scrambles up onto Zilo''s back and says, "We go now please!"
"What's your rush little guy!?" asks May.
"Now Zilo not single. Now want me!" The little pyromaniac points back to a group of about a dozen orc and half-orc women all winking and blowing kisses at the goblin. Maldrek stifles a laugh as he turns to the translator and asks for the location of the hobgoblin lair. After watching such an incredible fight, he is more than happy to tell the wizard everything he wants.
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