Powers Contest: An Arena Duelist's Fire

By Aflima

The lights flashed continuously from the hundreds of cameras and phones, creating a magnificent spectacle across the battle dome floor. Well above the floor, hovering just beneath the ceiling, floated Aflima. He surveyed the landscape as the Muscular Chrono Duel commenced.

It was his kind of event, the one he'd prepared for in that 'other' realm, a rare chance to showcase his potential in front of a crowd.

Another hero approached, his arm cocked back and ready to strike.

Aflima smirked, and allowed Controlled Rage - a nifty trick BADGE had enabled him to command - to envelop his body. His hair stood on end and appeared to catch fire, as he felt stronger. The other guy never stood a chance.

Blows rained down from all corners as multiple heroes tested their mettle in the arena. Aflima's confidence grew as he saw his points tally rise on the live scoreboard. While pleasantly surprised to see his success against more heralded opponents, he dared to harbour thoughts of an actual first-place trophy for his exploits. Even while Zen (how does a penguin-guy hit so dang hard?) was hammering people left and right, Aflima dared hope.

The emergence of Ultra Primus put paid to that notion quite fast. A powerful strike blasted Aflima into the partition, the materials in the translucent wall protecting the spectators from the mass of hurtled combatants.

"Okay... well a silver may be in reach, at least," sighed Aflima, still smiling. He launched himself at members of Colony's, Legacy of Spawn's and Seraphim Angels' leagues with equal fury, propelling himself across the arena with his Plasmic Propulsion ability. Alternating between bursts of energy to move about and flame-powered punches, the Flame Warrior's recovery was finding favour with the scorekeepers.

As the clock ticked towards the end of the bout, Aflima knew that a top-5 finish was within sight. Tapping his chest twice, he flew directly into a melee involving some of the top hitters thus far.

"Let's see how they handle this."

Flying in a rapid circle around the battlers, flame darted outwards from Aflima's body, enveloping all within in a cyclone of fire. Aflima's Flame Tornado ability battered all, while most of the counterattacks missed Aflima entirely. Knowing that a hit or two from the likes of Zen or Moonrider would send him reeling, he focused on speed, speed and more speed. He flew skyward once again, his strength lagging but his confidence not diminishing.

The horn sounded, the event over. Aflima floated downwards. He saw the hero Starmaster nearby, and offered a thumbs-up signal. Aflima had admired Starmaster's role in not just Bursa but in providing wise words to aspiring fighters. It seemed that he too, was in the ascendancy in this arena. Aflima went to exchange pleasantries as the final results displayed on the scoreboard... an encouraging finish for the Flame Warrior.