The Jacta warrior couldn’t understand Doron’s muttered words over the din of the crowd, but he did understand that that something had changed. In a moment the easygoing and almost lazy manner that the old soldier had displayed was gone. All that was left was a cold determination, a resolution so fierce that it sent a chill go down the warrior’s spine.

Afraid, but unsure why, the young man tried to back away, only for Doron to spring quickly forward… The sand crunching under his feet as he moved at a speed far beyond anything he had shown so far. He surged towards the warrior, his body taut as the sword in his hand came down in a vicious strike.

The Jacta warrior panicked held he held his axe up to block and cried out in pain as the blow struck. To the warrior, it felt as if the mountain itself had just landed on him. His arms shook and his knees gave way, the pressure driving him to the ground as he held the sword off. Before he could recover Doron’s sword was already swinging at him once again.

The warrior’s arms, still numb from the previous attack, were unable to move in time as the flat of Doron's blade came smashing towards his side. Thinking quickly, power surged through the warrior’s body as his shard thrummed. A thin stone pillar, no thicker than a wrist rose next to him.

Facing the sudden shield, Doron didn’t hesitate. Still using the flat of his blade, he smashed through the stone defense before slamming into the warrior's side. There was a sickening crunch as the young man’s ribs cracked, blood spurting from his mouth as his body skidded across the sandy lakebed before coming to a painful stop.

On the Krawl side of the basin, the audience let out a pained gasp before sighing in relief as he began to stand once again. A few let out some encouraging cheers, but most carried heavy expressions as they watched the contestant wipe the blood from his mouth, his body crooked as he heavily favored one side.

Doron frowned as he saw the Jacta warrior stand. He had meant to end everything with that attack, but between not trying to kill the man and the stone pillar rising just in time… His sword had been slowed enough to let the warrior continue, though not without damage.

He sighed, lamenting his lack of talent… He prepared to launch forward once again, wanting to finish quickly, but stopped, noticing the sand around him starting to swirl. As it spun, it reminded him of the dust devils that you could sometimes find in some of the drier months.

The sand and dust continued to rise and spin, faster and faster until a Doron could barely see his hand in front of his face. Eventually, the old soldier was forced to close his just to protect them from the stinging assault.

Looking down at the sudden dust cloud that had covered the lakebed, Dun clicked his tongue appreciatively, “Not bad for a lad from Jacta…”

Tirr frowned, knowing Doron this kind of thing shouldn’t be a problem, but for the others… “Is that common ability? You never used it…” He asked Dun accusingly.

“No... The large man answered, “Controlling the earth like that is difficult and consumes a lot of strength and concentration. I doubt there are many more that could do it at all, and none that could do it that well…”

Tirr nodded in relief, looking back towards the dust cloud below as he wondered what was happening…

On the lakebed, Doron was having similar thoughts… After the dust cloud had risen, he had expected the warrior to attack, either by the stone spears the Tribe seemed to favor, or the projectile rocks they loved to sling around. Yet so far nothing had come. Feeling it would be a waste of time to look for the man with the visibility as bad as it was, Doron decided to wait, standing still as the dust and Sand swirled around him angrily.

As Doron waited, the Warrior stood within the only spot free of dust and dirt. He coughed, blood covering his hand as he tried to feel where his opponent was within the torrent of sand. He wished he could just finish the other from there, a handful of ranged attacks might even do the trick, but it took all his attention just to keep the dust storm going. Just thinking about pushing the shard further made his head light…. His only choice was to try and close in and catch the old soldier by surprise.

Even as the warrior decided on a plan he stumbled. Letting out another cough, he felt his body growing weaker as the shard devoured his strength. Before he managed to take a step, he had collapsed… The Shard’s energy consumption catching him by surprise. The dust storm slowly dissipated as the sand and dirt settled, revealing the young warrior collapsed on the ground.

Doron blinked in surprise while cheers mixed with fearful muttering. None of the crowd could see what happened within the cloud, only the result. The Jacta warrior was on the ground while the old soldier stood completely unharmed.

Doron scratched his head in confusion before looking up towards Tirr. Seeing the young god’s signal of approval, the old soldier sighed, walking away as a few Jacta clansmen came down to check on the young warrior…