Mercury didn’t bother suppressing the yawn he felt coming as he watched the pre-fight theatrics people on Drakkaris seemed to think were necessary before the real competition began.

Watching the announcer go on and on about Lead’s exploits in battle in the mistaken belief that it would impress someone, Mercury wondered how these people ever got anything done.

There was another round of applause, and Lead and his opponent, Cadmium, moved to the middle of a huge earthen ring that lay at the base of a fairly large stadium-like arena that was filled to the brim with spectators. Next to him on the bench were the other participants. Cobalt and Chromium, who would fight at some point. And Arsenic, whose eyes seemed to keep darting at Mercury when he thought he wasn’t looking. But he always noticed.

He made it his business to know when people were watching him.

Behind them, raised on a large, ornately adorned platform, were the king and queen, and beside them, Zinc and then Marina, along with several other noble-looking bigwigs who apparently constituted the upper-crustiest crust of Drakkaris.

Mercury just hated that he couldn’t sit next to Marina.

Apparently, these challenges were to be more of an exhibition, a test of wills, in order to display strength and honor and so on and so forth.

In other words, it would be unsporting for Mercury to kill his opponents. A pity.

Then again, Marina would be watching. Marina, whom he’d practically ravished the night before.

He didn’t know what had come over him. He had to have her, had to wipe away any trace of Lead’s scent. Had to forget the sight of her talking to any of the other dragons.

Thinking about last night, all of the things he did, made his skin crawl for a second but in a good way. The recollection of something good pulsing in his nerves. He tried to shake it off, but it stuck with him a moment longer as Lead and Cadmium bowed, then drew their weapons, ready to fight.

Actual fighting. That was a good distraction.

Lead took a broad stance, both hands on his sword. Though sword seemed to be a generous term for the oversized, blockish blade he wielded. It seemed to more resemble a huge metal plank that had been sharpened on its front edge with a blunted point facing forward at the top. It was unlike any real sword Mercury had witnessed before.

And based on its thickness, unbelievably heavy.

Dense. Like Lead’s brain.

Cadmium didn’t even raise his sword, though, a long, thin blade with the slightest curve to it and one razor-sharp edge and the slightest, unearthly yellow tint to it. Instead, he just stood there looking cool as a cucumber.

Cocky.

Mercury wanted to punch him. But not as badly as he wanted to punch Lead.

The list went on and on.

He glanced over his shoulder, up at Marina, and her eyes darted down to him, then quickly went back to the fight, trying to not show any reaction.

It made him grin, though he wasn’t even sure why.

Lead charged at Cadmium, shockingly fast for someone so large, and brought his blade down onto the ground with a powerful swing. The ground shook from the impact, a shockwave of dust and air blasting outward from the epicenter. But Cadmium just dodged backward, a blur of motion almost too fast to see, before rushing at Lead.

Lead saw it, too, and with a swing of his arm, huge blocks of dark metal came up from the ground like Mercury had seen before.

But to his surprise, there was a glint of light and the sound of metal cutting through metal. The huge blocks fell away, sliced down the center.

Lead backed away a step, raising his blade as Cadmium emerged from the dust, grinning widely, a teasing quirk in his eyes.

What ensued was a lightning-quick melee between the both of them, Lead swinging his huge blade in crushingly powerful strikes, Cadmium countering with attacks so quick that Mercury wasn’t sure how Lead could even block in time.

And even though they seemed to be going all out, Mercury could still tell they were sparring. Fighting hard, but not really wanting to hurt.

But as the fight dragged on, Mercury could see Cadmium’s blade starting to turn from a light yellow to a reddish, crimson color. And maybe it was just the light playing with his eyes, but his blade looked more jagged, serrated almost, the thin, smooth line of the sword’s edge interrupted by hundreds of saw-like teeth.

And there was something in Cadmium’s bearing, too. His carefree, cocky, fluid motions were becoming more direct, more intense. On the edge, like the chain on a dog ready to break at any second.

Yet despite that, nobody else seemed to notice. Or if they did, they weren’t saying anything. And Mercury could see in Cadmium’s eyes that it wasn’t a good kind of losing control. It was the kind of loss of control you fight because you don’t know what’s going to happen when it breaks.

Mercury knew the feeling.

Both men stood facing each other, breathing heavily, and Lead’s long hair had broken free from its ponytail. Then, without warning, Cadmium charged again, striking at Lead.

Lead blocked, then swung at Cadmium in retaliation. But Mercury watched as Cadmium raised his blade as expected but a millisecond slower than he normally would have, just a fraction too late to deflect the wide, heavy blade baring down on him.

It was the kind of thing Mercury would have normally missed had he not been watching so intently.

Cadmium’s sword absorbed some of the impact, but the rest of it went right into his chest, throwing him backward thirty or so feet. He rolled over and over until he came to a stop, kicking up dust as he went.

There was silence, then a roar of cheering as Lead raised his arms victoriously. As Cadmium pushed himself up to his feet, Lead came over and offered his hand, and Cadmium took it as both men clapped each other on the back.

But Mercury didn’t even applaud, too intrigued by what he’d just seen, something that only his acute senses could have possibly picked up.

Throwing the match, are we, Cadmium? Mercury thought to himself quietly, just in case anyone was listening in who shouldn’t be.

There was definitely a story there.

But Mercury had bigger fish to fry right now.

Lead was announced the winner, coming to the stand where Marina sat and taking a bow, and then both men left. A few minutes later, his own match was announced, with his opponent being Arsenic.

There was an echoing lack of cheering as Mercury’s name was said aloud, a contrast to the uproarious applause for Arsenic as both men headed into the ring.

Apparently, Arsenic had come from a common family like Lead, simple people that the masses related to. Incidentally, the people at large seemed to look at them and the others in the castle guard as men of the people, unlike the nobility of the upper class.

Status. Class. Power. Such human concepts to Mercury, yet the people on Drakkaris took it even further than anyone he’d known on Earth.

Not that Mercury cared.

He looked up at Marina and gave her a quick wink, and he saw the slightest blush on her cheeks before he went back to walking toward the center of the ring.

He’d keep his promise from last night, for all of the incredible pleasure she’d given him.

He still didn’t know what was happening between them. He was still keenly aware that he didn’t deserve her and that even if he saved her, there was no place they could land together. But he’d be damned if he let any of these other dragons get their hands on her.

When he glanced down at his hand as he strolled casually, he noticed that for some reason, his skin was looking a little less pale. Granted, maybe he was just getting more sun than he’d ever had in a very, very long time. But it seemed there was more to it than that. Like the sunlight was inside him, warming him from the inside out.

But that was probably just crazy talk. He was apparently full of madness-inducing poison, after all.

He reached the center and turned to face Arsenic, who was pacing back and forth, eyeing him mockingly.

“I told them to skip the part where they talk about our accomplishments, since I know you have none,” Arsenic said, his brilliant green eyes reminding him of Emerald’s but much more feral. “Now I can get straight to kicking your ass.”

“Oh, goody,” Mercury replied, unimpressed.

“I’ve always hated people like you. People who have everything given to them, regardless of whether they deserve it or not.”

“Funny, because last time I checked, you and the other pricks back at the castle had me on the chopping block, ready to give me exactly what you thought I deserved,” Mercury said, feeling his blood getting colder.

“That’s on you. You chose that by your actions. I didn’t choose my upbringing, but I forged my honor with my own two hands. Something you could never understand since you have none.”

Mercury was just about to impale the guy, exhibition be damned, when he felt that odd warmth in him again, familiar blue eyes in his memory calming him, soft lips on his thawing the centuries-old ice within.

He clenched his fists, then released them, taking a deep breath.

He’d just have to clobber this punk, and then he could see Marina again.

“Speechless? Such an unattractive look on you,” Arsenic chided.

“I’ll let my sword do the talking,” Mercury said, materializing his blade from thin air, its twisted, jagged appearance a reflection of himself. It was more familiar to him than his own feelings, his only friend for so long, his only ally when the world seemed broken and hell bent on crushing him.

But even planets could be made to move given the right conditions. Maybe his world could change, too.

“Bold words. Let’s really see what you’ve got,” Arsenic said disdainfully, drawing his blade from its sheath.

It was entirely different from anything he’d ever seen, a huge sword that was neither stone nor metal, but something in between. It glowed with rusted, burnt-looking edges, and its shape resembled more a giant, rough knife’s blade than anything else.

But despite its metalloid texture, it looked very sharp. And probably poisonous. Which would be unsurprising given the owner’s name.

Mercury would never be stupid enough to test that theory, though.

The sound of a horn blew somewhere, and Arsenic crossed the distance between them instantly, swinging his blade in a wide arc at Mercury.

Mercury’s instincts kicked in reflexively, and he ducked under the sword in the blink of an eye. Arsenic didn’t back off, but slashed again and again, forcing Mercury back as he raised his sword to deflect the blows.

The crowd cheered as Arsenic pressed the assault, and Mercury wished he had enough time to say something back. But Arsenic was relentless.

Something gave Mercury the feeling this wasn’t really an exhibition for this guy. And if Arsenic happened to go too far, nobody would fault him for the accident.

Which just meant Mercury had to fight that much harder.

He spun around, slashing at Arsenic with a powerful backswing. Arsenic defended but was knocked back a step from the force of it.

Mercury sensed the opening and charged, hoping to finish this quickly.

But to his surprise, Arsenic recovered, regaining his footing and swinging at Mercury, nearly catching him across the shoulder. It took all his focus just to move out of the way in time to miss the blow.

“You idiot. Like I’d ever be caught off guard like that,” Arsenic said, his gray and black hair waving slightly in the wind. “Unlike you, I’ve been training, honing my skills my entire life, so when bastards like you go rogue, I can put them back in their place.”

Mercury wouldn’t deny that he’d done bad things. A lot of them. But that was a different time, a different person.

And this punk needed to know what he was dealing with.

“Fine, give me your best shot,” Mercury said, raising his arms, walking toward Arsenic and dropping his own sword to the ground. Arsenic just looked up, appalled. But as Mercury got closer, confusion became brash confidence, and before he knew it, Arsenic raised his sword and swung it horizontally across Mercury’s chest.

There were a thousand gasps as the sword passed through Mercury, cutting nothing but air. Arsenic looked up in shock just as Mercury pulled his hand back, punching him square in the jaw and sending him flying backward into the dirt.

Granted, Mercury knew if he didn’t see the attack coming, or if he was doing something else, then this trick didn’t work. But if he anticipated it, focused his energy to rearrange himself, no blade could cut him.

Silver had just gotten lucky that one time.

That was never going to happen again.

Arsenic stood, wiping blood from his lip. “How did…? There’s no record of any mercury dragon being that quick,” he said angrily, “That should have…”

“What? Killed me?” Mercury said, glaring, somewhat glad the muffled sounds from the audience drowned out his words.

He didn’t want Marina worrying.

Arsenic winced, then stepped back a few more steps.

“Fine, then. Try dodging this,” Arsenic said.

His grip tightened on the blade, and suddenly, it began to chip away, small pieces flying off into pieces of dust and sharp flecks the size of arrowheads. After a second, there was nothing left but the hilt, the air around him full of fragments that had once been his sword.

And then the chips were flying at him, a flock of razor-sharp stones attacking at their master’s whim.

Holy shit.

Mercury rolled to the ground, dodging with all his might as he narrowly escaped. The crowd began to cheer, seemingly pleased at seeing him on the run.

He’d be annoyed if he actually cared what they thought about him.

But he didn’t.

Mercury stood just as the horde of tiny murder pieces flew toward him, and he summoned his sword back into his hands in a flash, raising it to deflect them. As he did, he tried to kick as much dust up with his feet as possible, hoping to obscure Arsenic’s vision.

But it didn’t help much as the shards whizzed around him, narrowly cutting him from a hundred directions. Realizing it was futile, he leapt from the dust cloud and into the clearing, and he saw Arsenic grinning widely, both hands on the hilt of his blade.

Mercury didn’t want to use all his powers just yet if he didn’t have to. But he would if it meant losing to that.

He picked himself up and began to run, trying to buy time as he felt the fragments at his back, when he noticed Arsenic’s hands moving the handle of his sword toward him. As if he were motioning what direction the shards should go.

Commanding them.

That was it. He used the sword’s hilt to control his power. Just maybe, if Mercury could loosen his grip…

Knowing he was inches from getting sliced into next week, Mercury flicked his hand to the side, pulling a grey and silver spike from the ground next to Arsenic’s feet. Arsenic, too focused on Mercury, didn’t notice until the spike shot up rapidly, knocking the handle from his hands and onto the ground several feet from him.

Just as the sword chips were about to make impact, they fell from the sky before him and clattered to the ground, just inanimate pieces of metallic rock.

Arsenic’s eyes widened, and he dove for his fallen sword, trying to pick it back up. But Mercury was there in an instant, blade at Arsenic’s neck before he could move another inch.

“Submit. Or I’ll finish this fight the way you were hoping to end it for me,” Mercury said darkly. Even if he didn’t feel the urge to kill as he had once before, he sure as hell would give as good as he got if the situation necessitated.

There was stunned silence as Arsenic’s bright-green eyes burned furiously, beaten but clearly unhappy with the outcome of the fight. But he had no other option, and with an indignant nod, he raised his hands and stood.

Mercury was announced the winner, but aside from a few scattered boos, the arena was utterly silent.

Except for one person clapping.

Mercury lowered his sword and looked up to the stand and saw Marina smiling and clapping in spite of the brutal quiet from everyone else.

Then a second later, Zinc began to clap, followed by the queen and king. The rest of the crowd eventually joined in, but the awkward lateness and dull energy of it was more offensive than complimentary,

But Mercury didn’t care. Like a ship drawn to a lighthouse on a foggy night, he approached the stand, letting his sword disappear at his side and standing before the only person that mattered in the entire universe. Then, cursing himself, he bowed slightly before Marina. It made her smile, and despite his utter regret at doing anything these clowns would ever do, it was worth it.

The frowns he noticed on the faces of the king’s counselor and others on the stage also helped, in a spiteful way.

Then Mercury took his seat back on the bench, and out of the corner of his eye, he saw Lead give a begrudging nod of respect.

You’re next, Mercury thought to himself, just loud enough that maybe Lead would hear. But if he did, he showed no response.

And as the next match began, all he could think of was last night.

He couldn’t wait another second to see her.