The Leash and the Saw

BlackSand Warrior Gauntlet

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She hated the sound her chain made when it dragged. That soft, scraping whisper. It always reminded her of footsteps behind her, like someone holding the other end.

But she let it drag anyway.

The gate rose slow. Heat rolled in. Not the fire of the crowd, that would come later. This was the sun. Hot, bright, and unwanted. The same way it had burned across the decks of the Pearl while she was still chained to the mast.

Bernadette Leveler of the Rune Raiders stepped into the BlackSand arena with her chin high and her spine straight. She didn’t blink at the noise. Let them scream. Let them chant. None of them were going to bleed today.

The chain coiled around her hip like a belt. The flail, spiked iron, dull from old kills, swung low, brushing the sand with each step. Her boots left no hesitation in the dust.

Across the ring, he stood still as stone. Justice Hacker.

She knew the name. They all did. The one who never spoke. The one with the blue chainsaw and ruin-cut armor. Every part of him looked like it was built to end things. Good.

She hadn’t come to be pitied. Or spared. She came to finish something.

The boulder sat between them like a memory too heavy to move. She eyed it. Measured it. Not cover. Not for her. Leverage.

She rolled her neck once, cracked her knuckles, and let the chain slide into her grip.

She moved first. She always did.

The flail sang through the air in a tight arc toward his ribs. He didn’t flinch. Didn’t dodge. He stepped into it.

The chain rang against his armor like a warning bell, but he kept coming. No hesitation. No shift in pace. That thing on his shoulder roared. Blue fire. Teeth.

The chainsaw came in fast. Faster than she expected from a man that size.

It bit her shoulder. Shallow, but angry. Sparks jumped. Pain flared. She twisted away with a grunt, jaw locked, breath sharp.

She’d fought brutes. But this wasn’t brute force. It was timed. Measured. He didn’t just swing hard. He knew when to hit.

She backed off. Let her arm breathe. It stung. Not deep. But he was still watching her. Like she was a question he’d already answered.

The flail whispered across the ground as she circled the boulder, eyes locked on him.

He matched her step for step. One loop. Then another.

He was calm. Controlled. She hated it. Hated how he didn’t lunge. Didn’t breathe heavy. Like he already saw where this was going.

She climbed the boulder in one practiced leap and let the flail spin tight overhead. The sun hit her back, casting a long shadow across him. She dropped.

The flail cracked the stone and threw sand in every direction. He was gone.

She barely saw the blur of him rising from a roll. Then he was there, and her chain was caught.

He yanked. Her balance slipped. She stumbled forward, boots sliding.

She let the weapon go and drove a punch straight into his helmet.

The impact sent a jolt up her arm. Her knuckles split. Blood warmed her palm.

He didn’t blink. He drove his shoulder into her chest and slammed her back into the boulder. Hard. Her spine lit up with pain.

She grinned through her teeth and rammed her knee into his thigh. The second hit found a gap. He stiffened.

She dove for the flail, rolled, and spun it back into her hand. Breath sharp. Legs sore. Still alive.

She struck low this time, aiming for the joint behind his knee. He pivoted. Dodged. Close. Too close.

She snapped the chain again, higher this time. It hit shoulder plate and bounced. The saw came up. Sparks. Leather tore.

She moved back, but not fast enough. The teeth kissed her ribs. A short gash. Not deep. But hot.

She cursed and swung again. A wild, overhead arc.

He met it halfway, slipping under and closing the distance. Too close.

She dropped the chain and lunged. Fists. Elbows. Anything.

A shot to his ribs. One to his helmet. He grunted once. That was new.

She thought maybe… maybe, she had him off balance.

Then his hand closed on her arm. She was airborne for half a heartbeat before slamming into the stone again.

The impact blurred her vision. Her knees gave. She dropped. But she reached for the flail.

He stepped between her and it. Of course he did.

She rose. Blood in her teeth now. In her eyes. Her left knee trembled.

The flail was behind her. He wouldn't let her near it. So she didn’t try. She came with fists.

One hit the side of his faceplate with a metallic crack. Another hit shoulder. Another missed.

He stepped in. Caught her.

She saw the headbutt coming, and still couldn’t stop it.

Bone against bone. Her vision went white. Then red. Then static.

Her body dropped before her mind caught up. Knees in sand. One hand on stone.

She looked up. Couldn’t feel her mouth. Just tasted blood. He was raising the chainsaw.

She heard it growl. Not loud. Not angry. Just inevitable. And that pissed her off more than anything.

Her voice cracked through her broken teeth. “You going to wait all day?”

He didn’t. The blade came down. The first bite was fire. Then pressure. Then nothing.

Her body spasmed once. The stone at her back felt cold. The flail was too far away.

She slumped. Didn’t fall. She refused to fall. She just rested there. Like a cracked pillar leaning on a shrine no one visited anymore.

Her eyes didn’t close right away.

She saw him step over the flail. Walk toward the gate. Still silent.

The crowd roared behind her. She didn’t hear the words. But she knew what they wanted.

Blood. Always blood. They’d gotten it.

And at least this time, it wasn’t hers without a fight.

Entered by: 0xB9D1…4eA5