The colosseum was alive with tension as the duel between Vegia Nightshade and Alya Luminari raged on.
Alya vanished again in a blinding flash of white light, reappearing behind Vegia with a devastating point-blank light blast fired from her open palm. The radiant energy screamed forward like a miniature sun, aimed straight at the hobgoblin mage's back.
Vegia turned just in time. Her staff spun in a fluid arc, summoning a layered emerald barrier that absorbed the blast with a thunderous *boom*. The impact cracked the ground beneath her feet and sent a wave of heat rippling outward, but the barrier held. Sweat glistened on Vegia's skin, her uniform clinging to her curvaceous figure as she breathed steadily.
