My left hand glowed slightly in orange colour as it moved by itself to cover my face. The metal arm hit my left arm instead of my jaw. I heard my hands crumble from that metal punch.

  My glowing left arm was able to stop the blow from connecting it to my face, but it was unable to stop me from being blown away.

  I flew a few metres back. Then rolled twice on the floor before sliding to a stop. I lay on the floor for a second. My breath got stuck in my throat. And I felt my arms broken. But I knew I wasn't dead–yet.

  The crowd’s shouts and cheer hit me like waves. Some cheered the half lip man for that punch and some…

  “Get up, you shite!”

  “I bet on you! Give me back my money!”

  “Fuck you!”

  …Cheered for me too.

  Raising my head slowly, I first saw the steam released by the armour, dissolve into the air. And the man who was wearing it smiled at me with his half lips.

  ‘Oh, good lord ... .I hope it's a smile.’

  And on the right of the man, Margaret, Lali and Jug?r looked at me with concern and worry. I couldn't tell if that worry was for me or just for themselves.

  I coughed as I breathed again as I stood up a little by little. Gasping for breath, I took a step forward, then another. Then another again and again as I started running towards my enemy.

  “Aaarghhhh!” I roared as I ran with my hands clenched and aimed it at his head. But the moment I got close, I saw the man stretching his half lips to the side.

  Before I got to him, he spun on his right foot and kicked me right on the chest, “ ugh..” I didn't fly back a metre or long like before. But a kick on the chest from metal armour definitely hurts.

  I once again fell down to the floor. This time the crowd erupted with laughter. I coughed up blood as I tried to stand up.

  “Ish thish da man who shaid he can defeat shcarlet-sheww? Hahahahaa!” The man with half lips and wearing the steam-armour who was also my opponent, laughed at my sorry state.

  The crowd also laughed with him as they cursed and cussed at me.

  “Kill him, Dan! Show us what else your armour can do!” somebody shouted.

  ‘Shit! I'm gonna die at this rate!’ I hated this fight as much as I hated that armour.

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  “What are you doing? Don’t run straight to him!” I heard Margaret shouting at me. But I didn't bother to look at her. Lali was also shouting but her voice wasn't strong enough for it to get me.

  I gasped for air again and charged at the armour wearing man, Dan. I ran with my arms clenched and in less than five seconds, I was in range.

  Dan just kept his metal armour arms close to him, leaving his head unguarded. I was about to hit his face when suddenly, the orange and red started to blink rapidly from my right side.

  In a split second, a huge metal arm swung at my face, but I knew it was coming. I stopped dead in my tracks for a second before charging again. There were no more obstacles for me to knock his head really hard.

  I was just inches away from swinging my fist, when I heard the sound of steam sizzling from behind me. It didn't take even a second for the colours to warn me, but it was already too late.

  The metal arm I dodged earlier came back and hit me on my back. A sudden feeling of being struck by lightning spread all over my body as I fell down at his feet.

  Before I could even react to the hit I just took, Dan grabbed me by my coat with his metal arm and raised me high into the air from everyone to see.

  Blood gushed out my nose and mouth. My left arm didn't flow this time, instead it kept bulging as if announcing my bones have broken.

  Dan grinned at me as he shook me a few times in the air. The crowd all giggled and snorted at his cat and mouse play.

  After a few times of shaking me, I slipped off of the coat and fell to the floor. Dan tore my black trench coat and threw it somewhere.

  I lay on the floor wearing only my blood stained white shirt and my pants and shoes. I looked at my black trench coat’s two halves gliding in the air and landing somewhere away from each other.

  Suddenly, my heart felt heavy. My throat was dry. I couldn't say anything, or listen to anything. A single droplet of water slowly trickled down my cheeks.

  Dan and the crowds once again made the room reverberate in laughter, “Are you sherioushly crying?” Dan asked.

  I raised my head to look at the armour spewed out steam every second. And a big glob like thing on the back of Dan's armour kept shrinking and expanding.

  Behind him, I saw the Rat Boss sitting on his chair with the girl. He watched everything by resting his head on his hand and yawned.

  Suddenly, the orange and red blinked rapidly but I didn't care enough to move or dodge as the metal arm grabbed my leg.

  Dan laughed loudly as he swung me by my legs, but I no longer screamed. I no longer tried to escape. I just simply let myself close my eyes.

  A distant voice played in my head, ‘Alifaan..look at me!’ It belonged to a man.

  ‘Woaahh! You look so good in that new coat.’ a child said. ‘why did you buy it?’

  ‘Because a coat is a man’s identity. Hahaha…’ the voices went distant and grew old as I was hurled through the air.

  “Dad…” I said before I crashed into the concrete wall of the room. Cold liquid dripped from my head as my vision gradually turned blurry.

  “Uncle!” I heard Lali's voice before my vision went blank.

  I slowly opened my eyes and saw a red sky stretching from there to there. I rubbed the floor slightly and felt the cold soil and something soft.

  I forced myself to sit up. As I looked, all I could see was a vast land of marigold flowers.

  ‘Here again?’ I thought as I found myself in this strange marigold field. But something was different. I took a glance at myself and found, this time I had a transparent body.

  “Strange.” I whispered.

  “Came back here very quickly, haven't you?” A woman's voice asked.

  I instinctively sat back and searched for the owner of that voice. At the far end of the hill, a blurry figure stood, she wore a white gown. And in her eyes two gray flames burned.

  “Who are you?” That's when I finally realised that this was the first time I am having a conversation here.

  “You can call me Omegana, I'm the first guardian.” She said, “ Although what I was protecting has already been destroyed.”

  I didn't understand anything she was saying but still I nodded my head at everything she said. I stood up and walked towards the end of the hill and stood beside her.

  Even the rocks here were covered by marigold flowers and down the hill its enchanting view spread across the horizon.

  Down the hill, the same picture-like scene was there. People with pointy ears, dwarfs riding boar. And a big shadow of something which resembled a huge bird.

  And opposite them, stood a lady with her black scythe and behind her a huge army of beings with red and black armour.

  “What is this?” I finally asked.

  “A war that happened a long time ago.” Omegana said.

  “That girl…is that you?” I asked again.

  “No. She was the one who came here before you.” She said, I could slightly hear the sadness in her voice. Or maybe longing.

  “What happened to her?” I got more and more curious as I kept getting answers.

  However this time Omegana just sighed, “She failed.” She said, “What do you feel now compared to before?”

  I was dumbfounded when she asked me out of nowhere, “I feel…conscious.” I said

  She nodded at me and scrutinized me up and down like studying me.

  “Why is it that I can speak and move now, but not before?” I asked asI was unable to hold it back.

  ‘I know you are the one who is living inside that ‘stain’ in my arm.’

  “It only means one thing and it's good news.” She said

  “Congratulations. You have died.”