Gersham considered. He knew what the others were thinking, what they were saying behind his back. Refering to him as Ger-shame. Yes, he was a little too cocky with Yolia and got caught off guard though he had avenged that very loss and showed everyone that it was a fluke, that when he desired to be serious then meager students had no hope but still …

He was still use to the arena, not to make any excuses. He had lost his debute match and while he had won several in a row now they were only against students so the talk continued which annoyed him to no end.

Now, however, he had to step up his competition to erase that blemish. 9-1 that 1 erked him, he should have been flawless though it was a fluke. He considered, picked up the file again and looked through it. He shook his head, this opponent would certain do him no good, he needed to face someone that had some measure of success in the arena to give the audience pause. He set the file down.

No … she will not do. Former ADD but she hasn't won a match yet. I need someone who has.

The blue skinned alien considered then thought as he cupped his scaly chin.

Iria.

Iria?

Iria. I've seen her fight a few times before, she's won her fair share. That might be more of what you're looking for.

Make it so.

And the alien headed off to make the arrangements with her masters. No doubt she would be informed of it in short order.

Soft moans sound from Iria's throat as she pleasured one of the Midrozi guards watching over her. Everyone in the arena knew who this gladiatrix belonged to and while her Mistress was tending to other matters, the guards were more than willing to hold her leash. The amazon woman continued to suck the guard's dick as another Midrozi entered with new orders. The slave swallowed the alien's seed before cleaning him off and sitting on her knees. It was only then was she ordered to clean up and get ready.

The Midrozi Mistress who owned the human agreed to the challenge. For her, if her pet won or lost, she still made profit and Iria's fame will grow. The ridiculously strong warrior woman winning a few matches certainly caused a few ripples through the arena. It was not often that a match against a human was not entirely one sided right when the gates open.

By the time the crowds had filled the seats, the busty amazon was already walking the long tunnel towards the arena gate. Her hips swayed side to side with each step of her black boots. Her mountainous globes were kept in check by the tight and revealing black latex suit she wore. The attire provided little protection from anyone or anything but, the giant warhammer resting over her shoulders provided her all the protection she needed.

The familiar roar of the arena welcomed Iria in as she was announced through the comms. She stepped proudly towards the middle of the battlefield. The slave knew her purpose was to entertain and to win and knew they all enjoyed seeing her body going to work one way or another. Iria posed for her many fans as she waited for her opponent. This was perhaps the first alien monster that specifically asked for her, challenging her, and Iria was more than willing to stand up to that challenge.

Gersham had little information regarding Iria. He had found out that she was a slave of some sort, was a favorite in the arena though in his haste he had not found out all those things about her to train for, to scout and exploit. No he had been annoyed enough that he wanted the best opponent he could find on short notice and he wanted her now,

So he had acted in haste but it was out of confidence that he had acted.

He could hear the roar of the crowd and even here he could feel the vibrations in the stone beneath his feet, He considered this, indeed Iria was a fan favorite and with a few wins under her belt he had reconsidered for a second if he were biting off more than he could chew - no, he wasn't and he shrugged those thoughts out of his mind as they took hold on him.

It was time and much too late to back out now, least he never live that one down. To loose was one thing but to forfeit was repugnant to him. Thus he began down the long corridor, his hands being surrounded in black miasma as he strengthened them prior to entering into the arena.

Yes, the cheers were there but his ego took a blow when he realized that they were louder for his opponent. He looked across at her, fuming about this as he was announced. Then he was left to wonder if they were cheering because they wanted to see those mammoth breasts unveiled.

But the massive hammer she wielded with ease told him that she had some skill with her weapon. No matter his confidence was returning now as he began scheming on how best to continue as he circled her at a distance, his trio of burgundy eyes searching over her as he did, bidding his time as he searched for weakness or perhaps he was waiting for her to make the first move. Unlike his mistake with Yolia he was not about to jump straight into things just yet.

The human woman gazed at her opponent as he stepped out of the gates on the opposite side of the arena. Hmph! Compared to other alien creatures she has fought, this one did not look like much. He was humanoid though he had claws and a third eye. He was also a bit taller than her but not by much. The only thing of note was the strange black miasma surrounding his hands. That caused another huff to escape the amazon. Magic, she had no care for such things though completely unaware that her unnatural strength was due to heavy saturations of mana in her muscles and body.

Iria was not afraid though as she shrugged the heavy weapon off her shoulders. Much like all her battles, the slave was given no information about her opponent. So unless she fought the same opponent twice, she had no real means of gaining an edge prior to the match. Magic or no magic, the gladiatrix was determined to smash through this creature just like the others she had defeated.

The match having started already, the warrior woman rushed straight for her circling foe. The large head of her hammer trailed behind her as she held the weapon on both hands. Once in range, she would swing her hammer around in a powerful horizontal swing aimed at the alien being's body. She would use the heavy weapon to help build momentum as she followed through, spinning her body and swinging a kick out should the thing try and close in after her first attack. Despite the giant hammer and large breasts, the former agent seemed fine with moving her body around with ease.

Gersham watched about ready to deliver a snide remark when Iria, no stranger to the arena rushed him to the roar of the crowd. Her weapon dragged along the arena sands behind her as she used momentum to slam it against him. She was strong no doubt considering her weapon but he had been unuse to non student opponets.

All his foes but Yolia had backed away from him, froze up or panicked so this was something new. Stoll he crossed his arms in an X to block the hammer bare handed. Needless to say if not for the black miasma that expanded to encompass his forearms he would not have been able to block it unarmed without his arms breaking under the weight of the weapon.

As it was the force of the blow drove him back a few feet, a spray of sand erupting from the ground as he was pushed back. Damn she was strong! He could hear the announcer speaking somewhere at the back of his brain though he was too focused to actually hear the words. The crowd erupted in a cheer and Gersham smirked, yes, he was going to have to work here, yes he was going to enjoy it.

She did not have to kick out then though his third eye traced those movements, seeing more than most, perceiving other events beneath the surface.

He had to be sure though and so he moved in, prompting an attack from her, not intending to launch one of his own just yet but prepared to block her next blow.

Stronger than I anticipated. I am going to enjoy this, Iria.

It was certainly rare for a monster to just stand there and meet one of Iria's attacks head on. But this one did just that, using magic to shield himself from most of the impact. Of course, it was going to take more than wisps and shadows to stop this woman's assault as the force of the blow sent the alien being sliding backwards. Having felt the impact and her opponent give ground, the amazon had no target to kick and instead simply spinned back into her stance.

"Hmph.." she huffed, not impressed with any form of hocus pocus. Her opponent gave small praise but it fell upon deaf ears as the crowds roared their approval. The gladiatrix once again rushed forward. There was that annoying black miasma over her opponent's hands again. As tempting as knocking this mage around the arena until the barrier broke, Iria wanted to stay in range of the demon.

The busty amazon swung her hammer but did so before reaching her target. The swing would come up short and instead help speed up her spin as the hammerhead swung back around. With a loud cry, Iria brought the mighty hammer up and over her head, bringing downwards towards Gersham's head. Using an overhead swing would ensure all that force would be going into the ground rather than away from her should this creature decide to block again. Blocking this would show just how strong Iria and how heavy her weapon really was.

Gersham moved forth thinking that she was going to make a similar swing and feel out her opponent first but he should have known better given her initial attack against him that she was not the cautious type. She brought the hammer up allowing momentum and gravity to bring in down at him.

He would either have to be strong indeed to stand up to the blow or foolish to try to block something with that much momentum. He believed that he was neither. Yes, he had made some assumptions that his oppent didn't think so highly of magic and while he was skilled with a blade he found little reason to use one these days as the miasma was a substiute making his hands as hard as steel, allowing to block or turn aside blows that had meant to harm him.

Now he had other transmutations that would increase his speed or strength, stamina too but he doubted she was going to give him the time to recite those spells. He could always take to the air but he wanted to leave no room for doubt in the minds of fellow aliens and monsters. They might look down on the ploy, he used it once or twice before but against students that really couldn't hope to do much.

Rather he dodge to his left as she was swinging the weapon down and changing that momentum was impossible. He moved then kicked up sand into her face, though the action was a feint, he didn't expect it to work though he had only wanted her to flinch, to look away or blink as he confirmed what his third eye saw.

Despite her greater strength it was tough for her to change her mind in mid swing and redirect her attack to counter or defend. The weapon made resetting afterwards slower than a sword ... or a claw as he darted in then swiping at her with his left hand, keeping his right ready to defend since it was closer to the right side of her body so would be closer to her should she have seen through the rouse.

Iria's bringing the pressure, a block, now a dodge from the challenger though I don;t - what's this?

Her opponent did not chance blocking this time but casually sidestepped the incoming attack. The hammer came crashing past the demon and into the ground, kicking up dirt and dust as the head sank into the arena floor. The heavy blow sounded through the arena producing more cheers and roars from the audience.

The alien being stayed close though, lashing out with an attack of his own. Iria's swing left her open as her back was mostly to her opponent now. She could have released her weapon and tried to avoid the counter but instead she met the attack head on. As the claw swiped across her back, the gladiatrix kicked her leg towards the alien monster's gut. The claws would leave their mark, leaving small tears in the back of her suit and small bleeding scratching upon her skin. But hopefully the trade off will be in her favor as all her strength would be sinking past the demon's guard and into his stomach.

The gladiatrix would continue to twist her body around, ripping the hammer out of the ground as she brought it once more over her head. Should the alien remain close either through dodging or enduring the blow, Iria would have another try at smashing this hammer down on her opponent's head. The fight seemed to be anyone's though Gersham was the first to draw blood in this tradeoff.

It indeed was a trade off, his claws found an opening in her back and while his reach had been a bit greater than hers there was a huge difference in the reach of her arms and that of her legs, he erred in his calculations so wrapped up in not looking like a fool this time around he had not made all the neccessary calculations.

Thus he was struck, hard, her foot finding solid purchase. He had not been driven back by the force of the blow though he probably wished he had as she spun around and recovered quickly.

He had spat out some bile with that hit, a rib had been cracked or bruised though he had little time to worry about that as she raised the powerful hammer again. The kick had not driven him back as the hammer had but hurt, damn had it hurt! But rather than try to evade the hammer again or try to block it as he had before he showed her something different hoping to catch her by surprise he lowered his shoulder and tried to drive into her body head on rather than attempting to dodge or evade he realized at close range that she would be unable to use that hammer, perhaps even forced to discard it though it was a dangerous game.

She was strong, stronger than most humans so he was unsure of their strength differences thus far. He still had a trick though if this proved to be to much for him if all went well that was. If not, well, he would simply have to improvise if things didn't work out so smoothly.

Iria felt her foot hit home and feel the monster's body give some though he held his ground for better or for worse. The amazon tried to follow through to finish this but the demon decided to rush right into her in desperation. The hammer head managed to tear out of the ground but her opponent was already on her. The shoulder slammed right into her body, sending both of them toppling over with the demon on top. The hammer hit the ground with a thud as she released it, still remaining close to her person but was otherwise useless in this situation.

The amazon immediately began to struggle to get the creature off of her. Not wishing to give him any opportunity to take advantage of his position, the gladiatrix immediately threw hard jabs right for where her foot connected before. Being on her back, she could not use much of her strength but the alien creature would realize hitting a sore spot would do what is intended. After each punch, Iria would try to kick the monster off her. If she failed, she would send another punch.

Should he try to sit up to get out of her range, she would kick up her legs and try and wrap them around his head from behind. Iria knew she would need to get back on her feet and fast if she wanted to keep up the advantage.

Gersham hissed at the contact of her hand against his injured ribs, a fire burning through him as she struck him. She hit him once as he attempted to grapple with her, trying to pin her arms down but finding that he had only managed to slow her.

She was not to far off from his strength, though without her strength being inhibited she would have been vastly stronger. But still she struggled beneath him and managed to kick beneath him, trying to toss him from her body. She certainly wasn't going to make this easy on him and he felt her fist slam into him again. He grunted, remained atop her for a second longer and she nearly squirmed out from under him as he jockeyed for a mounted position high up on her chest where he could have hoped to rain punches down at her.

He cocked back his arm to throw a punch but before it came crashing down he could feel her legs reach up in a head scissors, wrapping about his neck pulling and squeezing as he was forced to bend back, the only thing keeping him atop her was his hand pressing to the ground behind him, the clawed hand of the other trying to provide enough space for him to breath at first so he would not be choked out or loose the mount but it was after a brief moment when he realized that the results would do him little good that he allowed himself to be drawn back so he was now off her but able to use his other hand now which came up to grip her thigh, squeezing, cutting with his claws and hoping that he could apply enough pain to loosen the hold enough for him to escape. Of course he had no intention of letting her get to her feet again either, he was more than willing to latch onto her, to keep her grounded for the time being.

What a turn around! It looks as if the Prince's gambit has gotten him into a bit of trouble despite the fact of drawing first blood. This one can be on the verge of being over if Iria can just remove that hand, the way he has it between her thigh and neck still allows the flow of blood so he isn't in danger of passing out just yet.

Gersham's tongue ran over Iria's inner thigh as she squeeze and he did at well, it was a slow lick and them, well then she would realize that he had a mouth of needle-like fangs, she could feel the teeth grazing against her skin though he had yet to bite down, delayind for reasons that only he had been aware of.

The gladiatrix had shown her experience in battle both in the arena and in her forgotten past of being an ADD agent. She knew that if she relaxed, relented for a moment, it would be the end of her when up against an alien monster. Iria's immediate struggles proved enough to get Gersham off of her but now the vile creature was clinging to her leg while both her legs remained tight around his head and neck. Most of the audience would have loved to be caught between the sexy amazon's thighs but it was doubtful the alien in the arena right now was having such pleasant thoughts.

"Nngh!" Claws sank into the warrior woman's thigh. It was certainly painful as the claws began to rake across her skin, leaving red scratches. The wounds were deep enough to bleed but not enough to be lift threatening just yet. Neither fighter were really getting anywhere in this current position. Iria released her leg hold but only to pull back her still free leg. The slow lick along her inner thigh sent shivers down her spine, disgusting creature. Teeth threatened to bite but the gladiatrix was not going to let this demon have his way.

With loud cries, Iria slammed the heel of her boot into the demon's shoulder. She growled in pain and annoyance as she pushed harder to force the head further down her leg. Her leg would pull back again only to slam that heel right into the monster's head. If he was going to keep clawing and biting her, she would continue to cave his skull with her boot until he ceased.

They struggle there one the ground, her first blow trying to shake him loose. He grunted then though he held on tenaciously. His blood thundering though his veins as he tenaciously held on as she tried to pry him away.

The gash on her leg painful but he had not lacerated any veins, use to hunting on the island pulling back on his attacks had been automatic as they were here to make them nonlethal, painful yes, lethal no. Without even thinking he did this, though it only took her the second blow to get him to release. He realized how futile this hold had been and rather than injure himself unnecceassrily he released her, rolled to his right towards that hammer.

It wasn't what she thought. They were not in a mad dash towards the weapon for right now it would have been useless but he realized that this tactic wasn't working out in his favor and played to her strength.

He had cursed the fact that he had to do this though. He was incapable of using his own shadow and the middle of the arena was devoid of them. The only shadow he had seen so far had been theirs and those near the walls and that from the hammer itself.

Gersham had gotten close to the weapon and used the shadow it cast to "Sadow Step" from it to a location near the wall into a shadowy area. He, like her, quickly scrambled to his feet but now he had some seperation between them.

His shoulder ached almost as bad as his ribs though there was nothing bruised or broken there. The back of his head throbbed and this was not looking good at all. He launched one of the globes of black miama at her from his hand, then the other his hands beginning to gather more of the stuff as he launched them. There was a window of opportunity that came up as the miasma spread across his hands but she was too distant right now to take advantage.

Gersham would slow the pace a little, get some space, try to tire her as he gauged her stamina as he quicly calculated his next move, firing more shadow darts at her as he launched a steady stream of them at her now seeing that he knew she had to close. It then occurred to him that he did not really know that, she might possess magic of her own, he didn't know but doubted that was the case as he fired at her steadily now.

She's free! The crowd roared. But she's not entirely out of the woods yet. Still she managed to turn around a bad situation and now is faced with another. Can Iria close? Will that leg bother her? Will she manage to simple pummel the Prince with that hammer? It seems that we'lll learn those answers quick given the pace of this match.

Finally free, the amazon got back onto her feet while her opponent fled. Within a moment, he disappeared only to reappear near the far wall. Iria quickly grabbed her hammer. Dust irritated her scratches on her thigh and back. Blood dripped lightly but the pain was nothing serious. It was not like a bruise or broken bone. It was good thing the monster stuck to causing pain rather than fatal wounds as such things would be frowned upon on the arena, gladiatrixes did cost money afterall.

Once again, more magical tricks were used in hopes to keep the warrior woman at bay. These being large bolts of darkness in a brightly lit arena, they were easy to see coming from so far away. At this distance, Iria could easily avoid the stream of bolts as she casualy half circled closer towards her opponent. With there being no real cover, Iria had to close the distance one way or another. As she got closer, she had to put more effort towards avoiding the attacks but the short break coming did help her regain her bearings.

She could have kept her distance and wait for the demon to tire but that was not her style in most cases. Though a stream of dark bolts, there were still several ways to avoid a bolt coming at her in a straight line. She dashed to the side, ducked under others, leapt, rolled, and slid past more while getting closer each time. Gripping her hammer tightly, she suddenly spinned and slammed the head of her large hammer into the stream of bolts in an attempt to deflect the attack away or back at the creature. Even if the monster was immune to his own attacks, the bolts would create chaos as they crashed into the wall and ground nearby him.

The bolt did not reflect but dissolved as the hammer slammed into it. But Gersham had wanted to tire her some, to make her use up energy as she tried to close that distance. At first it was easy for her though the closer she got, the harder it became.

He held his ground for a bit letting her dodge and close then before he risked allowing her to close she found out why he was holding his ground. He could Shadow Step more freely here then in the center of the arena moving instaneously though the shadows to appear near the arena wall opposite of where he was.

But he did not reign bolts of black energy at her just yet, rather he tapped into the essence of Shadow, he conjured a simple illusion to that images of himself split from the original, all identical, though only one real. Each imaged mimicked what he was doing so it was impossible to discern which one had been the real one.

He then began hurling more Shadow Darts at her, the illusions doing the same so now there were a lot more bolts. Of course the majority of them weren't real and could not harm her but the real ones were mixed in with the false ones and discerning which were which had been impossible.

It looks as if the Prince has decided to keep his distance and some breathing room for the time being. I have been told he has powers over the shadow and illusions primarily, and I'm assuming that he is doing so now, drawing upon such power and making it difficult for Iria but she's no stranger to this and she may guess right and put an end to this shell game.