The Wall

(For context; contenders have to climb a 10m climbing wall within 60 seconds. The contenders are given a head start on the gladiators; 7 seconds for men, 10 seconds for women. After the head start, the gladiators are unleashed, chasing the contenders up the wall.)

——————————————————————————————————————————

Diamond was waiting patiently backstage, psyching herself up for the next event of the night. An event she was all too good at. The Wall. Her height gave her an advantage on this event, allowing her to both scale the wall faster and better reach the contenders she had to prise away from the wall. She glanced over at her fellow blonde Gladiator, Sabre, who had also been chosen for this event. Sabre flashed Diamond a playful smile. “You ready Di?” Sabre asked, her Scottish tones almost drowned out by the roaring crowd. Diamond gave Sabre a determined nod. “Yep, ready” she replied as the two were called out to the arena.

They could sense the anxiety in the minds of their opponents. It was something they fed off. As the game was explained to the viewing audience at home, Diamond and Sabre were fastened into their harnesses. They pulled on their protective helmets and steeled themselves for the task ahead. The first whistle was blown, and the contenders scrambled as best they could up the wall. Diamond and Sabre gave each other a knowing nod before the second whistle was blown, allowing them to begin their climb on the wall.