Titanosseum

Luati smiled as she looked upon the acres of wild rice before her. She rolled her red and brown skirt up to her knees and waded into the marshes of untouched grain. As she examined a fresh stalk, her son called to her.

“Mama! Is it cold?”

“It is Inak, but come! It’s high noon child, you’ll be red as a beet if you don’t cool off!”

Inak’s black hair was flung to and fro as he shook his head. The boy’s skin was a deeper shade of brown than his mother’s, but he shared her amber eyes. He batted them at Luati as she waved for him to step into the fields. She sighed when he didn’t budge, but froze when an unfamiliar voice shouted at Inak.

“What are you doing here, little boy?”

Luati dashed out of the fields and quivered as she noticed a group of men in green cloaks.

“He’s my son, don’t worry - he’s not lost!” She shouted.

The tallest of the men pointed his stone-tipped spear at Luati.

“You’re Islanders, right? These fields belong to us Foresters! Leave!”

Luati squinted at the curly-haired spearman.

“You’re part of Jaso’s tribe, yes? Hasn’t he mentioned that my husband Pitay came to ask him about the land two weeks ago?”

“I care not; this land belongs to my clan. Jaso has no right to give it away, even if he’s chief!”

Luati crossed her arms.

“Let us go to Jaso then, and figure this out.”

“No! You’re trespassing, and that’s that, Islander. Leave, or we will force you out!”

The spearmen marched forwards, and Luati gasped. Inak put up his little fists, but his mother pulled him against her hip. She lifted her head to the sky and cried out.

“Tabakiro!”

The Foresters quivered at the mentioned name, but their leader gathered himself and shouted to the sky just as Luati had.

“Sanachoa!”

Within minutes, two thunderous sounds began to echo from afar. From the west booms shook the ground, and Luati, Inak, and the Foresters had to brace themselves each time the earth rumbled. From the east a quieter sliding came, and the cracks of snapping branches accompanied it. Forester and Islander alike were awestruck when the sources of the cacophony came into view. A gigantic man stood behind Luati and Inak, his bronze skin and yards-long hair an idealized reflection of the Islanders’ features. A wide sword hung at his belt, and the enormous man rested his hand upon its orange pommel. Behind the Foresters a colossal woman slithered out of the jungle, and Luati had to keep Inak from screaming at the sight of her serpentine lower body. The giantess hissed as she spoke.

“A pity that you arrived at the sssssame time as I did, Tabakiro! I was hoping to harasssss these little tressssspassers!” The woman flicked her forked tongue at Luati and Inak, and the mother froze after covering her son’s eyes. The giant behind them unsheathed his sword in a flash, and the giantess’ gray lips curved into a smile as he used it to guide her head away from the Islanders.

“Keep that blade at my neck, ssssswordsman, and Magmodeon himssssself will have your head!”

The giant steadily sheathed his blade before responding.

“I am not one to overstep my authority, Sanachoa – but you will not threaten my people again! Their conflict is now mine, and your people’s troubles yours! Involve them no further!”

Sanachoa set her hands to her scaled hips and cackled.

“Certainly Tabakiro. Men of the Jade Jungle, what are these Islanders doing on our land?

The leader of the spearmen stammered as he replied.

“L-lady Sanachoa, this woman and her child d-dare to claim that my chieftain promised these rice fields to her family!”

“Surely a lie, I presume!”

“Y-yes, my lady!”

Tabakiro glared at Sanachoa as he knelt down by Luati. Even on his knee, he was more than four times her size.

“Could you tell me what happened before I arrived? Oh, and what is your name? I cannot reach the eastern isles as much as I wish, so we likely have not met.”

“I…I am Luati, my lord! Ah…three weeks ago, my husband Pitay brought an oath-arrow from the local chief of these parts, Jaso, home. He had paid the chieftain ten hens and a bull for the land – I came here with my son to see it for myself, and then these men showed up, claiming we had trespassed!”

“It is good you called for me, then…and please, address me by name - being so much larger than Humans brings enough attention already.”

Tabakiro rose and crossed his arms before addressing Sanachoa.

“All that need happen is a discussion between your Foresters and their chieftain, Sanachoa. If another dispute arises, only then will our involvement be needed again.”

“You sssssaid that this is now between usssss alone, Tabakiro – and I sssssay that this land belongs to the Jade Jungle.”

Tabakiro scrunched his eyes, and took a deep breath.

“It does not need to be this way, Kealura.”

Sanachoa frowned for the first time since her arrival and her tone slipped from playful to icy.

“She is long gone, ssssswordsman. Do not attempt to avoid me by appealing to sssssomeone who is not here.”

“If that is the only option you give me…then so be it. If you wish to challenge me, do so. I will not be the one to pick a fight when it is unneeded!”

Sanachoa smiled again and slithered up to her full height.

“Tabakiro of the Dawn Isles, I challenge you to a titanosseum match! At stake are the rice fields before us – if you do not accept, they will belong to the Jade Jungle by default!”

“I accept! Name your terms, and I will name mine!”

“Yesssss…we will fight in the Jade Jungle titanosseum. Alssssso, the match will be an unarmed one – so you cannot use your sssssword!”

Tabakiro’s shoulders sunk as he looked to his blade.

“I… agree to your terms. Mine are as follows; the titanosseum’s first twenty feet will be flooded! Next, you may not use your venom in any form – by fang or otherwise! Thirdly-”

Sanachoa hissed.

“Your terms are unjussssst already! I need my venom as much as you need your sword – and giving yourssssself the advantage of a sssssunken arena is too great!”

“Are they truly? I heard of how you crushed Milimo’s left leg when you fought him in Stone Coast’s titanosseum – if you did that to a pugilist such as he, I will fare far worse. No, meet my terms, or you will meet me in the titanosseum with sword in hand!”

Sanachoa slithered back and forth behind the Foresters and stared at Tabakiro from the corner of her eye after deliberating his words.

“I have…a proposal, ssssswordsman. The titanosseum will stay dry, but each of usssss must bring a single ally to the match…and they mussssst also abandon any weapons or toxins that they would otherwise employ!”

Tabakiro flung his hands in the air.

“And how does that balance the odds?”

“Come Tabakiro, you know I have few friends – surely you can find a more willing partner than I!”

“I will not dispute that point…” Tabakiro looked across the rice fields, then to Luati. The Islander woman gave him a hesitant nod. He took a deep breath as he locked eyes with Sanachoa.

“So be it. I agree to the re-negotiated terms. But one more, for the sake of both our peoples-”

Tabakiro gestured to Luati and her son with one hand and to the Foresters with the other.

“Both sides will need time to plan and make their way to the titanosseum…we should allow them thirty days to do so.”

“Preposssssterous! Your people can sail just fine with their petty little boatsssss, and mine are not some sssssoft urbanites who cannot walk many miles in a day - they can have ten!”

“Do not forget that you are the one hosting – or that our allies will surely want their own people present as well! It is not easy for the young and old to move either - my people may need a whole week just to ready themselves for sailing!”

“Fine. Twenty-sssssix days, and not an hour more. I will inform Magmodeon’s lap-hound Kirixia of the date. Now are we finished, or do you wish to whine more about the needs of mortals?”

Tabakiro’s hand shot to his sword. Sanachoa grinned, and Luati put her palm to his calf. His arm slowly fell to his side.

“Twenty-six days…it shall be, then.”

Sanachoa spat on the ground, and retreated back through the demolished path of trees she had made. When the sound of her slithering faded, the Foresters departed into the shade of the jungle. Tabakiro shook his head, then knelt down to speak to Luati once more.

“Forgive me. If I could have made her wait for your husband and Jaso to arrive, I would have. She is…an impatient one.”

“Nothing could be done, my lor- - I mean, Tabakiro. It is more than enough that you fought to give my people time to travel…from the depths of my heart I thank you. I will spread word immediately.”

Luati turned to walk with Inak in tow, but Tabakiro didn’t budge.

“It will go much faster if I carry the two of you - come.”

The Titan placed his left hand against the ground, but Luati’s jaw went slack in response.

“I-I-I couldn’t sully the flesh of a Titan with my feet, much less if it's the sacred protector of the Dawn Isles! My son and I will be fine, Tabakiro!”

Inak raced past his mother to Tabakiro’s palm.

“C’mon mama! I wanna be on top of the world!”

The swordsman shook his head with a smile, and Luati slowly stepped after Inak. The boy screamed in excitement as Tabakiro lifted the Islanders level with his chest.

“Look at all the rice mama! Wow! I can see our boat from here!”

Luati’s voice was full of awe as she replied. “So this is what a Titan sees…and I am definitely looking at the fields, Inak. Even up here, there is so much!”

Tabakiro stepped over a row of trees and kept his left hand steady while lifting the small boat of the Islanders with his right. He tucked the wooden vessel into the crook of his arm and began wading into the ocean.

“What island do you reside on, Luati?” The Titan asked.

“Liwa, it’s southwest of here…there’s a shipwreck close to the island, I’ll let you know if I see it.”

“My thanks, it has been…almost two decades since I have set foot there. Sanachoa and I butt heads often, but usually further north by Hilaga.”

After half an hour of sight-seeing, Inak was sound asleep, his head in Luati’s lap. Seagulls squawked as they flew around Tabakiro, and Luati waved away a couple that landed in the Titan’s palm.

“Shoo! Shoo!” She cried. Tabakiro chuckled as the two birds flew to his shoulder.

“No need to mind them, they just need some rest.”

“As long as they aren’t a problem for you, Tabakiro. Please pardon my…lack of respect for one of your fellow Titans, but I never imagined the Jade Jungle’s guardian would be so…”

“Petty? I do not mind your thoughts, but I am glad that you held them in Sanachoa’s presence. She tried to kill one of our people when he raised his voice to her – and that was only four years ago.”

Luati gasped, and a dozen of Tabakiro’s footsteps passed before she spoke again.

“Why did you call her Kealura?”

Tabakiro stumbled, and the Islanders screamed as the ocean’s water almost rose to his palm. The Titan straightened himself right before tipping into the depths, and the waves that were made by his blunder soon calmed around his hips.

“I am sorry, though most of the paths I take between the islands are shallow, if I am not careful along some…”

“It’s my fault, I should not have pressed you about Sanachoa! I will trouble you about her no more.”

“Worry not, I just…am not always eager to think of how much she has changed. Know that before any ancestor you can remember, she was a better woman in a worse time…a time myself and many other Titans are not proud of.”

“You’re…speaking of the Age of Shame, aren’t you?”

“What’s that, mama?” Inak piped up.

“You are too young to know.” Luati replied. Inak puffed his cheeks and stared at her, but looked away when Tabakiro pointed towards a moss-covered shipwreck.

“Is that the landmark you spoke of?” he asked.

“It is! The island is almost straight southward now.”

“I remember now…does Kalinga still live there?”

“Our wise woman? You know her?”

“Has she become so high in the village? I truly have been gone too long, she was a young mother like yourself last I saw her…”

“You should stay to greet her then! We will see you off with a great feast!”

“I wish I had the time, Luati, but I…must use the coming days wisely.”


The Cimaka Tandira was bustling yet quiet as its monks rose at dawn. While the yellow-robed figures began to stretch and join one another for their modest breakfasts, a red-robed elder strode to the center of the temple. Seated there was an elephantine-headed Titan who was painting upon a massive canvas with three of his four hands.

“Noble Ruush Hat’hi, another Titan has arrived and asked for an audience.” The wrinkled elder announced. Ruush ponderously looked down at the aging Human, and rubbed his chin with the end of one of his brushes.

“What was his name?” Ruush asked, his voice unusually melodic for a Titan.

“Tabakiro of the Dawn Isles, your grace.”

“I see – monitor the acolytes in my stead, Pradeep. If I have not returned within the hour, lead the morning meditations.”

Ruush plopped his brushes into the massive pot of water at his side, and planted his round feet on the floor. The monks before him cleared a path for their mentor, and Ruush swung open the colossal wooden gates of the Cimaka Tandira. He covered his eyes with his trunk as more of dawn’s light shined into the temple, and squinted as he made out an unarmed figure pacing along a riverbank.

“Good morning, Tabakiro! I welcome you to the Shining Plains.” Ruush called out. Tabakiro looked to the other Titan and took on a solemn expression.

“And a fine morn to you as well, Ruush Hat’hi - is now a good time to speak?”

“Since you did not disturb my acolytes with your arrival, it is. Come.” Tabakiro followed Ruush through an aromatic garden. At its end stood an enormous marble bench, and Ruush gestured for Tabakiro to sit. He raised a brow as a he rubbed a scar in the marble.

“Am I the first to sit here since Dao Zhanshi?” Tabakiro asked.

Ruush slowly nodded. “You are a much better guest than he…but like all guests, I know you came here for more than my company.”

“I am loathe to admit it, but you are right. Sanachoa has challenged me to a partner match and I could think of none better than you to stand by my side.”

“Oh? If you think so highly of me, then why have you always gone to Tetsuboni or Numegei for aid?”

“For one, the three of us share many foes, and have had many chances to return favors. But this time is different; Sanachoa’s second term for the match was that it be an unarmed one. Like me…Tetsuboni relies upon his war-club, and Numegei would rather die than part with her bow. I need a master of fist to join me for this battle!

“I see. Though I am pleased you give me the praise I deserve, you have a pressing point; how can you return my aid? After all, Sanachoa is no concern of mine.”

“Then…name your price. The Dawn Isles cannot offer much in the way of wealth, but my people make the finest feasts – they would be more than happy to throw one in your honor.”

Ruush waved both of his left hands dismissively and took on a haughty tone.

“I am above such worldly pleasures! My apologies, Tabakiro, but if you require nothing else, I must take my leave.”

Ruush rose from the bench, and started walking back through the garden. Tabakiro sprang up and put a hand to his host’s shoulder.

“If you will not be my partner, then I beg of you; train me as you trained Milimo long ago!”

Ruush raised a leathery eyebrow as he looked back at his guest.

“You would ask for training?”

“Ruush, if you can do this for me, I will be more than content in finding another partner.”

Ruush crossed his lower arms behind his back as he turned around.

“No - mortals flock to hear my words, but it has been ages since one of our kind has sought my tutelage. For that, I will do much more than train you Tabakiro – Sanachoa will slink away in shame when we stand victorious against her!”

A smile widened across Tabakiro’s lips.

“So you will aid me?”

“Your lack of pride amuses me…and though it is a feeling born of pettiness, I savor the thought of defeating one of such unharmonious action as Sanachoa. How many days do I have to mentor you?”

“Twenty-two…master.”

Ruush chuckled. “You truly are an anomaly amongst us, Tabakiro.”


On the day of the match, thousands of Humans packed into the Jade Jungle titanosseum. Shaped from the remains of a volcano, venom-green banners with serpentine symbols hung all around the colossal arena. It took the four groups that had come almost three hours to climb the titanosseum’s towering staircases, and not a single one could look away from the numerous leaf and snake-shaped plates of jade that lined the walls. After noon had passed and all were seated, a chair far too large for any Human still stood empty. The sky darkened. Thunder roared deep into the jungle. Finally, a brilliant bolt of lightning struck the throne, and the audience shut their eyes in time to avoid going blind. When they opened them again, a Titan in an exquisite dress of gold and white had filled the enormous seat. A slight radiance shone across her skin, and her alluring face was graced by an energetic smile. She spoke with a voice that was loud as the thunder that heralded her coming yet harmonious as a band of bards.

“I, Kirixia, Judge of the Matches, welcome all to the Jade Jungle titanosseum!”

The crowd cheered, and Kirixia’s smile grew into a vanity-laden grin.

“On this day, not two, but four Titans compete! The reason for their dispute? Rice fields - rich, expansive, and mere miles south of here! Now, raise the gates that our contestants may come forth!”

The eastern and western gates of the titanosseum groaned as they were heaved from the ground. From the west Tabakiro and Ruush Hat’hi strode into the arena, faces calm. From the eastern gate came Sanachoa and a deeply-tanned Titan with an equine lower body. He took on a murderous frown when he caught sight of Tabakiro, and the guardian of the Dawn Isles stopped in his tracks before continuing to the arena’s center with Ruush.

“Defending this match is our hostess, Sanachoa! With her is Hechiil, sacred protector of the Crimson Canyon!”

Foresters and Canyonites alike shouted encouragements that bordered on prayer to their champions. As Kirixia announced Tabakiro and Ruush’s names, his partner leaned in to whisper.

“Why does Sanachoa’s ally glare at you with such malice? I have never met this Hechiil.”

“I…killed his brothers during the Age of Shame. That and more, Ruush.” Tabakiro whispered back.

“What happened is past and done – but we will use it to our advantage. Be as bait on a fishhook, and allow me to tear him from water as the reel.”

The two snapped to attention as Kirixia disappeared from her throne with a flash of lightning. She re-appeared between the two teams as a second bolt struck mere yards from the four other Titans.

“Our dear defenders; is there anything you wish to say before the match?” Kirixia asked.

Sanachoa opened her mouth to speak, but Hechiil nudged past her.

“I have waited too long for this, Tabakiro! It has been decades upon centuries, but even though I had to ally with Sanachoa, it is worth the dishonor!”

Sanachoa hissed at her partner, and Hechiil spat near her tail before continuing.

“Magmodeon may have forbidden us all from killing one another, but I assure you; Shash and Atiil will smile from the great beyond when I am done with you!”

The Islanders in the crowd booed at Hechiil just as hard as the Canyonites cheered for him. Sanachoa slithered past him and addressed their opponents.

“You certainly find the besssst partners, Tabakiro! I thought you would bring Milimo, but inssssstead here stands his massssster! I wonder, Ruush Hat’hi; will your legs break as easily as your ssssstudent’s?”

The Foresters laughed at their champion’s taunt, but Ruush and his monks gave it no heed. Kirixia widened her eyes and whistled as she approached the Shining Plain’s champion.

“Those are some fearsome boasts from your opponents, men of the away team! Do you care to comment?”

Ruush smiled at Sanachoa and Hechiil as he stepped forward.

“The words of the immature are not worth acknowledgement.”

Hechiil grimaced at the remark just as hard as Sanachoa smiled. Ruush continued after boos from the home team’s supporters died down.

“Tabakiro and I came here for battle, not words - so let us begin, Kirixia.”

The two assumed combat stances; Ruush held his lower forearms as shields and put his upper fists past his face. Tabakiro slid his right foot forward, and held his hands open and rigid as if they were knives. Sanachoa laughed.

“Do you intend to cut us with your palms, Tabakiro?!”

The other Titan didn’t acknowledge her taunt, and the snake-woman frowned. Kirixia held her grin back from becoming even greater before addressing the crowd.

“That seems to be all, dear spectators!” she teleported back to her throne, and held her hand to the sky. The titanosseum’s gates let out dull booms as they were lowered. Thunder roared three times, and upon the third strike, Kirixia cried out.

“Begin!”

Sanachoa immediately began to circle her opponents, but Hechiil shot straight towards Tabakiro and Ruush. The two held firm in the face of the centaur’s charge right until he reared up to kick Tabakiro. The swordsman ducked, and Hechiil’s chest pitched forward into a perfectly-timed uppercut from Ruush. The centaur gasped and madly spun about, kicking backwards with his hind legs. As his opponents sought another opening, Tabakiro felt a tightening pressure against his leg. With a frantic glance, he turned in time to see Sanachoa’s tail wrapping around him. He swung his hand in a chopping motion, but the snake-woman uncoiled and slipped out of his reach. Hechiil used the distraction to retreat, and Ruush stopped short of chasing the swifter Titan.

“Devastating teamwork by Ruush Hat’hi and Tabakiro, but Sanachoa is not one to keep your eye off of, as ever!” Kirixia announced.

Hechiil held his chin high as he shot a furious glance at his opponents. Sanachoa slithered to his side and spoke.

“Help me flank them, you fool!”

“I need no advice from you, snake!” Hechiil spouted back. The centaur let out a wordless roar as he charged again. Tabakiro whispered to Ruush, who took hold of the swordsman with all four of his hands. Ruush tossed the defender of the Dawn Isles at Hechiil, and the centaur’s hooves left skid marks in the dirt as he paused to throw a fist. All he could do was cough as Tabakiro’s palm crashed into his neck. The swordsman rolled to his feet after hitting the ground, and Ruush followed up his teammate’s attack by shoulder-charging Hechiil into a teetering tumble. Ruush pinned down the centaur’s upper body with his legs, held down his arms with his own lower ones, and then pummeled Hechiil’s face with his two free fists. Sanachoa slithered towards the two at a frantic pace, but Tabakiro intercepted her. He launched a kick, but the snake-woman lowered her upper body to crocodile-crawl right past him. She resumed her rapid slither towards Ruush, and Tabakiro yelled to his partner.

“Sanachoa is almost upon you, Ruush Hat’hi!” The massive grappler shifted position to take stock of his second opponent, and pounded Hechiil’s head twice more before standing. Sanachoa lashed out with one clawed hand, but rolled to the side when a counter-punch by Ruush almost broke her elbow. Tabakiro raced over as Sanachoa continued to avoid the worst of his partner’s blows, and grimaced when Hechiil finally flipped to his hooves. With a glance to her teammate, Sanachoa disengaged from Ruush, and urged Hechiil into a shambling retreat. The crowd roared into cheering and jeering.

“Sanachoa rescues Hechiil again! How much longer can she keep this up?!” Kirixia announced.

As their foes reunited, Sanachoa scolded her bloodied teammate.

“Now do you underssssstand what we’re up against? Or does your face need to become more purple?!”

Hechiil cast his head down and nodded.

“Then swallow your pride, and go to the eastern gate. When I wave my hand, strike them as you move past, and do not let yourself be caught again!”

Hechiil spat out a tooth, and did as ordered. Tabakiro and Ruush went back-to-back as the centaur completed his trot, and Sanachoa gave her signal. She and Hechiil simultaneously charged towards their foes from both sides of the titanosseum. Hechiil kicked his hind legs to the side as he ran past Tabakiro, and the swordsman narrowly dodged the blow. Ruush failed to snatch Sanachoa as she clawed a small gash into his thigh, and trumpeted through his snout in agony.


In the Islander’s section of the titanosseum, Luati held back a gasp as Sanachoa and Hechiil repeated their tactic, leaving Tabakiro with a clawed bicep and Ruush with a sprained wrist from Hechiil’s hoof. Luati felt a wrinkled hand against her shoulder, and turned to see an old woman in a modest orange and gray dress looking at her.

“All will be well. Tabakiro has fought Sanachoa many times, child.” The woman said.

“My thanks, Kalinga. I have never seen him fight, so I can’t help but worry!” Luati responded. Kalinga nodded and looked back to the match. Tabakiro managed to smack Sanachoa’s hand aside, and the snake-woman grimaced as she failed to roll out of the way of his counter-kick.

“He keeps changing. Grandmother would be proud.” Kalinga said in a reverential tone. Luati looked at her in confusion.

“What was Tabakiro like during her time?”

“Distant. She often wondered what was on his mind – and whether or not he cared for us when he defended the Isles.”

Luati glanced between the swordsman and the wise-woman.

“And when you first met him? What was he like then?”

Kalinga closed her eyes and smiled.

“Shy. He was finally attending the celebrations we threw after his victories - but few of us could get a word out of him.”

Luati looked away to watch as Tabakiro switched places with Ruush at the last moment when Sanachoa and Hechiil rushed by them. Caught off-guard, Sanachoa almost collapsed after taking Tabakiro’s palm to her neck, and Hechiil frantically stumbled away after Ruush punched him in the gut. Luati and Kalinga shared a chuckle, but clamped their ears as Kirixia made another announcement.

“Even I was not expecting that! What a cruel counterattack by the away team!”

As Luati shook her head Kirixia’s way, Kalinga pointed towards Sanachoa.

“Look, child! Look to her mouth!”

Luati glanced at the snake-woman, who was coughing into her hands. Her eyes widened when she spotted traces of a green substance drip from Sanachoa’s palm. Kalinga shot from her seat, and shouted at the top of her lungs.

“Venom! Sanachoa is about to use her venom! Stop the match, lady Kirixia!”

The immaculate Titan didn’t look away from the arena floor. Luati and other Islanders stood and took up the wise woman’s outcry. When Sanachoa and Hechiil closed in on their opponents again, Kirixia finally looked Luati’s way with a stare of disbelief.


Hechiil launched a sideways kick at Ruush, but the lord of the Shining Plains snatched him by the legs and dragged the centaur between himself and Tabakiro. As Hechiil kept the two at bay by continually spinning and kicking, Sanachoa closed towards Tabakiro. After narrowly dodging a swipe of her claws, he raised a brow as she kept attacking with the same hand. He chopped at her neck, and the snake-woman ducked as much as her tail would allow. She swayed out of the way of a downward stroke, then slashed her claws across Tabakiro’s lips. The swordsman stifled a scream as his mouth began to feel like fire, and he knocked Sanachoa down with a frenzied flurry of his hands.

“Duck, Tabakiro!” Ruush called out.

Tabakiro tried to heed his ally’s warning, but Hechiil’s hooves plowed into his shoulder blades. The swordsman pitched into the ground, and Ruush trumpeted as he picked up Hechiil by his front legs and fell backwards. An ear-shattering boom shook the titanosseum as Hechiil’s shoulders struck the arena floor. Teary-eyed, the centaur wheezed on the ground, and Ruush ponderously got back to his feet. Sanachoa slithered behind him, and coiled herself around one of his legs. Tabakiro tried to rise, but instead the cries of his people finally reached him.

“Sanachoa poisoned Tabakiro! She’s a cheater! Stop the match, lady Kirixia! Stop the match!”

Ruush trumpeted in agony as Sanachoa crushed his right leg with her tail. She slipped away as he teetered forward, and the titanosseum shook a second time as he crashed into the ground like a small meteor. After Ruush failed to stand, Sanachoa pumped her fists into the air to the applause of the Canyonites and her own Foresters. All sensation faded from Tabakiro soon after.


Sanachoa’s hands fell to her sides, and she slithered next to Hechiil. He alternated between deep breaths from his nostrils and sudden bursts of hacking coughs as she bent towards him.

“As I promisssssed, our foes lay broken! Was thisssss not worth your while?” She asked.

“His…people…say you…cheated.” The centaur said between gasps for air.

“Lies! Our victory is fair! Think not of the thoughtsssss of mortals!”

Hechiil shakily raised a finger to Kirixia’s throne.

“She…must…”

Sanachoa’s eyes shifted just in time to see Kirixia vanish from her throne.
With a roar of thunder, she appeared next to Sanachoa with a smile that held no sincerity.

“My dear Sanachoa…show me your hands.” She said.

“What is thisssss?! Name Hechiil and I the victors already!” Sanachoa replied.

Kirixia raised then closed her fist, and thunder roared outside of the titanosseum. Sanachoa shrank as the taller woman stepped forward.

“I never make requests. Obey.”

“I h-have done nothing wrong! How dare you challenge me in m-my own arena!”

Kirixia gripped Sanachoa by the wrists, and twisted them upwards, forcing the snake-woman to her own form of a kneel. Kirixia’s eyes narrowed as she saw venom dripping from the other Titan’s right palm.

“Then what is this?! Venom upon your hand?! Your victory is now forfeit, your already-dirty honor stained filthier! Now, answer me: why?! What madness grips you?!”

“I-I could not lose! Not when Tabakiro came without his blade!”

A bolt of lightning struck mere feet from the two women as Kirixia squeezed Sanachoa’s wrist. She looked down as Islanders raced out to the titanosseum’s field.

“Lady Kirixia! Please, Tabakiro needs help! He is not waking!” Luati yelled.

“Sanachoa, how much venom did you slip into his veins?” Kirixia asked.

The snake-woman cast her eyes down, but responded when Kirixia dug her thumbs into Sanachoa’s palms.

“Enough that he may not wake for monthsssss!”

Multiple strikes of thunder roared perilously close to the titanosseum’s walls.

“You have gone too far this time – there is only one solution!”

Kirixia shoved Sanachoa to the ground, and shouted to the heavens.

“Magmodeon!”

A rising tremor shook the stadium, and Humans from each land cried out in terror. The ground next to Sanachoa and Kirixia took on a molten glow. A massive block of lava shot from the, and a jagged visage formed across the molten monolith. Fire rushed from its eyes and mouth as a volcanic voice rattled the jungle.

“Why Have I been woken?!”

Sanachoa cringed. All the Humans within the Titanosseum kneeled. Even through their injuries, Hechiil and Ruush Hat’hi did the same, and Kirixia bowed to the molten head before addressing it.

“Lord Magmodeon, Sanachoa has broken one of the terms of today’s match by poisoning Tabakiro! He cannot wake anytime soon to defend his lands!”

White-hot flame rushed out of Magmodeon as he let out a wordless roar

“An abominable act! Have you words in your defense, Sanachoa?”

“My lord, please forgive me! I will never go ssssso far to protect my lands again!” she cried out.

“You are guilty all the same!”

“I-I will atone with utmost sssssincerity, my lord-”

“Silence! You will indeed atone, but not as the vile woman you have become!”

Magmodeon let out another great roar, and pillars of magma shot up and embraced Sanachoa. She screamed as hard as she writhed, but the obsidian pillars did not give.

“Become as you once were, healer instead of poisoner! Shed the foul scales you wear in exchange for a skin more welcome! Now I beckon thee forth: Kealura!”

The pillars glowed red, and Sanachoa cried out as her skin was burned to dried ash. Minutes later the stones cooled, and as Sanachoa’s scales fell to the earth in patches, a new skin of copper was revealed.


Tabakiro woke to the feeling of soft lips against his own. His pain and weariness began to slip away, and his eyes opened to see a teal-eyed Titan cradling his head in her serpentine lap.

“Kea…Kealura? Is that you?” He asked

Tears rolled down the other Titan’s face as she smiled. A soft hiss accompanied her otherwise-delicate voice.

“Yesss, Tabakiro. I am here – as are your people.”

The swordsman looked to his side, and Luati, Kalinga and hundreds of other Islanders cried as he took notice of them.

“Welcome back, Tabakiro.” Luati said before wiping her face. The swordsman smiled, then brushed Kealura’s shoulder as he locked eyes with her again.

“My pearl of the jungle…it has been too many centuries…but how have you returned? Please…tell me that this is not some delusion!”

Kealura shook her head, then pointed towards Magmodeon. Tabakiro shakily slid forward and bowed to his volcanic benefactor.

“I would thank you a million times if you wished it, my lord.” Tabakiro said.

“That is much more appropriate than your spiteful words for me seven centuries ago, defender of the Dawn Isles. Revel in my boon…you have come to deserve it.” Magmodeon replied.

The flames in his eyes faded, and Magmodeon’s avatar crumbled into a massive pile of charred stone. Kirixia raised her hand, and reappeared in her throne after a flash of lightning.

“I declare Tabakiro and Ruush Hat’hi the winners! The rice fields that were disputed are now the property of the Dawn Isles!”

Luati and her family looked to Tabakiro with grateful smiles, and bowed to Kirixia before the judge continued.

“People of the Isles, Plains, Canyon, and Jungle – return to your homes! I wish all a good eve.”

With a second roar of thunder, Kirixia vanished, and the spectators reluctantly obeyed her order. Kealura wrapped up Ruush and Hechiil’s wounds with thousands of leaves and branches, and when all the Humans had left, she and Tabakiro sat outside the arena’s walls together.

“My pearl…does the world seem any brighter now that you have returned?” Tabakiro asked.

Kealura looked out across the Jade Jungle as she responded.

“Much has changed sssince I…left. Even after Magmodeon arose to quell the Age of Shame, the world was ssso turbulent. I was…disssgusted that even though we were not allowed to kill one another anymore, ssso many wanted to…I was disssgusted when other Titans challenged me to matches not for the people they became protectors of, but because they wanted to feel powerful…but I am grateful that Magmodeon’s vision of peace is finally coming to passss.”

Tabakiro hung his head between his shoulders.

“I am sorry. I have wanted to say that for four-hundred years…and am ashamed I have only been remorseful for that long.”

Kealura ran her fingers through his dark hair.

“I admit…when I sssaw how much the Age of Shame’s end angered you, it was the greatessst thing that steered me to darkness. But my Tabakiro, you have grown so much. It was…refreshing to see you interacting with Humans.”

Tabakiro set his chin in his hands as he smiled.

“The people of the Isles have become so precious to me. There is a simplicity and humbleness to Humanity that…you cannot find amongst most Titans. If I had learned that when I was younger…maybe then I would not have wasted time and lives over proving my strength.”

A heavy breeze whooshed through the jungle, and hundreds of animal calls echoed at the disturbance. A snake, jaguar, and a blue-beaked family of birds all took cover behind Kealura. She giggled, and Tabakiro stretched as he got to his feet.

“Ruush Hat’hi will surely need my aid to return home. Will…will you be here when I return? Will you still be my Kealura?” Tabakiro asked.

She took on a sad smile as she locked eyes with him.

“I will and I will not – I can ssstill feel Sanachoa somewhere in me, and if I have made as many enemies as I believe…then she will be needed to defend the Jade Jungle. I promise you, though, Tabakiro – I will be your Kealura as much as I can.”

He bent down to kiss her. When Kealura patted his shoulder, Tabakiro hesitantly pulled away.

“I will do my best to make peace with that, my pearl.”