Hungry.

Oh dear.

My head drained of rational thought. Only ravenous hunger remained. A predatory growl escaped my mouth as my jaws parted.
My teeth sank into the succulent flesh around me. Tearing off a chunk after chunk of the slime. I squashed them between my teeth. Over and over and over. The sweet juices swirled in my mouth. They mended together with my saliva, and I swallowed.
So good. But not enough.

I chomped down the jelly again. And again. The slime was unable to flee. It was not possible to escape what was inside.

The fruity flesh around my head came to be utterly devoured. No longer was my head encased in the slime.
But I wanted more.
My hands reached into the slime. Chunks of it were promptly shoveled in my mouth. Quickly, before it could slip through my fingers.

Any trace of inhibition was long gone.
I wanted more.
I kept plowing the slimy tissue into my maws, never stopping for a second. I could not spare a single bite of this delectable feast.
More.
I plunged into the pudding around my waist.
More.
I licked my arm.
More.
More.

More.
The Mastermind grimaced, unable to comprehend what he was seeing. No doubt he was as perplexed as he was disgusted.
I slurped up the final residue of the purple jelly like noodles. Only the stains on my clothes and the sand remained. At last my hunger had been sated.
I stared blankly into empty space. My chest heaving. My legs trembling.
Lucidity slowly returned, and it dawned on me what had happened.
...So I hadn't changed one bit. After all that time.

"What in the name of goodness was that?" The Mastermind barked at me.
I glared with him with the first modicum of contempt expressed in a long time, "...You made me do this. You were the one who turned me into a monster."
I marched towards him.
"Is that so?" Asked the mastermind, "Whatever I created then, it falls on me to destroy!"
He waved his arm dramatically. Reaching towards the sky.
Purple spikes extended from all over my body. Growing from he inside out. They flew out of me like arrows.
The pain was searing. Blood spilled at my feet. As if poured from a bucket. But I kept my pace up.
When I approached in defiance of his last attempt to subdue me, his smile faded. His eyes lit up in terror.
He frantically traced a sigil of power in the air with his finger. It glowed with a purple light.
A barrier of purple light appeared before me.

I slung my open palm at him.
The barrier shattered on impact. My hand reached right through and sent him flying with a well-placed slap on his pretty face.

"Uuuagh...! Aghhh...!"
The mastermind kicked off a cloud of sand each time he bounced away. His wild flailing did little to halt his inexorable rolling, until he came to an abrupt halt when he hit the barrier.
He scrambled to stand up. Almost as if he had to sling himself to his feet.

...He was still alive.
The fight up until now had indeed taken its toll on me. The fighting persisted, even as I was bleeding profusely. I had not even noticed my strength draining.
Still, he could barely stand on his feet. Yet I had only hit him once.
The next time he will not stand up.

He stared at me. The savage contempt of his deathly scowl glowed through his disheveled hair haphazardly tossed over his face.
I strode towards him with determination. Ready to end it.

He raised his arm. His fingers extended together, forming an arrow.
He stabbed himself without a moment's hesitation. His hand plunged into his ribcage like a knife. Blood seeped through his wound. Bright enough to dye candy. His terrified, pained eyes betrayed that it hurt as much as it looked.
And yet he was smiling.

Next thing I knew, a paroxysm of light hit me.
His body shone like the sun.
My eyes could no longer lock on to him. Still, looking through my peripheral vision, I could discern what was happening.
His shirt disintegrated in the brilliant radiance. Ethereal fissures extended from his self-inflicted wound, reaching all across his torso. Pulsating with a purple light.
His unblinking eyes were consumed with white light.
His body writhed uncontrollably. Not just from pain though. Almost as if wrestling with the inconceivable power he conjured inside himself.

He no longer stomped about. Standing still. Hunched over. Breathing with laboured gasps.
"AAAAAAAUHHHHHHHHH!!!"
He removed his hand from his tissue. His body dimmed, and the fissures faded away.
The blood kept pumping out from his chest-cavity. Yet his hand was completely spotless. It pulsated with a burning bright light. His forearm rippling with purple runes glowing faintly.

He stood upright. Looking up at me, in time for the glow in his eyes to vanish.
They looked dim now. Tired. Yet not defeated.
He raised his arm, aiming it towards me like a sword.

"You are finally ready to take me seriously?" Asked I.
"I cannot say it hasn't been entertaining, Strongest One." He scoffed through the pain, coughing up blood, "However, now it is time to end it."
"I agree. Come at me with full ****."

He began hovering. Flying towards me at full speed.
I leaped up to meet him in the air, winding my fist into my strongest punch.
We met in the middle. His fingers and my knuckles connecting.

What happened next was a devastating explosion.
A storm.

Never could I have imagined such power existing in this world.
I felt myself ripping apart. Every drop of my blood rushed to escape my body. Whatever **** fell under his dominion, it permeated my very being. Tore me asunder.
I was unable to even scream.

I have no idea how many times I faded in and out of consciousness. I could see only purple light filling my vision. Was I even on the ground? Or flying?
Whatever the case, when all was over, and silence settled over the Arena, I found myself on my knees. Head spinning. Ears ringing. I could not stop my trembling legs. My lungs did not invite air.
The dust around me settled. That mattered little. My vision was still a blur. However, in a moment when the blur shifted, I could see.
And I could see him.

He was still alive. Yet he lay prostrate on the ground. One of his legs bent in three different places. Twisting itself into a ribbon.
His skin was drained of all colour. Blood seeped from his mouth. His unfocused gaze was that of a blind man.

The injury he inflicted on himself had damaged him far more than I ever could. Even so, he went at me. No doubt hoping he could take me out.
Who would succumb to their injuries first?

I had no intention of waiting. I shuffled back to my feet. My legs trembled. They felt like they would collapse at any second. Yet I moved forward. One. Step. At. A. Time.
Time slowed down once more. But not at my discretion. Dire times like these are merely so relentless. Each single step forward was akin to climbing a high mountain. Each time, my foot fell to the ground with the weight of an elephant. The only reason I did not groan throughout all this was because my lungs now lacked that capacity.

He may not have been able to see me. But surely he heard my steps slowly getting closer. He attempted to crawl away, yet any strength he once possessed had long since left his body. I kept shifting forward. Slowly. Leaving a trail of blood behind me like a paint-roller.
Eventually I did come close enough to hear the few raspy short breaths still left in him. I looked down on him. My vision shifted between blurry and unblurry, then back to blurry again. I could see his terrified expression momentarily. My vision turned fuzzy, and then black. That did not matter. He was beneath me. He could not flee. I Raised my fist. Readied myself to let it fall. To crush his skull.
This.
Shall.
Be...
My...
....
Win...
...
...

My next memory was of me opening my eyes. Lying face first in the sand. I pushed myself to my knees, looking around. Confused and startled.
Did I do it?
Did I win?

"Grand-Vizier Zig-Zag is victorious!"
Oh.
I was not strong enough, in the end.
Somehow after all that, I was still smiling. Sighing in relief.
So there was still room for growth.

The audience roared in applause. The Mastermind looked around, more bewildered about what happened than me.
I rose to my feet. Walked up to him. I rested my hand on his shoulder. He looked back at me, initially as terrified as when he met me last.
I shot him a reassuring smile, "Good job. You earned this. Next time we fight, I will not go so easy on you."

Day 4 of The 129th Rasheul Great **** Tournament
07:54 AM

Cough!
Cough!

And there we go!
That was one hell of a match, wasn't it? See, that's what you can achieve when not holding back!
But yeah, that Valkyrie chick was one hell of a fighter! But her efforts ended up not landing her a victory. I suppose that's my fault, huh?
Did Valkyrie deserve to win? Well, yeah. Probably. And that sucks. But then again, it's not exactly a dance on roses to be disqualified for ugliness either! In fact... Ouch!

See, that's the thing about this kind of tournament. Someone's gonna end up disappointed either way. One guy can't win unless another one loses. That's not gonna change whether or not I interfere with these games.
What matters to me is making things more fun! Can my little trickery make the Tournament more fun? Turns out the question is a resounding: Absolutely!

Well, at least in that case. Turns out if the one you're helping wanna go and squeal on you for wanting to do things the fun way rather than the, ahem... 'Right way', then there's really not much you can do about it.
I'm much better by the way. Just got back from the bar, strolling down the second floor corridors. That ginger shot really hit the spot!
Didn't mean I was in any mood to be yelled at by some oversized goldfish though, just for swiping some Fancy Lance. Gah! What a bother!
Well, it's the thought that counts.

We gave that Bird Brain the chance she asked for. What she'd end up doing with it... Well, that'd depend on where that Bird Brain of her flew. Besides--

Hang on.
I heard exasperated breathing. Someone was hurtling down the corridor. Whoever it was, this person was in a hurry.
"Oh no! Oh, dear! Heavenly heavens! No! What have I done? I overslept! I refuse to be late! Watch out! Here I come!"
The Bird Brain!
I turned around to face the wall, covering my face with my hands.
"Watch out everyone! Step away please! Thank you, miss Allison! I am in your debt! Here I come!" She passed right by me. I peered over my shoulder, and saw her carrying that shiney spear over her shoulder.
And... She was in her undies.

Huh.
White with hearts on them, by the way
Sure, I get not wanting to be late, but take a moment to put on a bathrobe. Or something. Geez...
At any rate, it seemed she wasn't gonna be squealing on me after all. Well, ain't that a weight off my chest? I mean, he'll probably find out sooner rather than later, but I bet it helps her argument if she's confronted after kicking her opponent's sorry ass!

So hey, I guess I should hurry up to get seats of my own anyhow.
Cause I've got a feeling that one way or another, what'll happen in her match... That's gonna be epic!