The Kax Arena

Xiao looked around with a big smile on her face. This was her first time stepping into the Kax Arena and she couldn’t wait to explore every bit of it. Watching on the television simply couldn’t match the actual thing. The sights and sounds were exhilarating as she ran from statue to statue. Each of the statues showcased past pilots and their mechs that won significant tournaments. As she walked past each statue, Xiao muttered the pilot and mech names by heart.

I hope I get to meet them in person one day! It will be so cool!

Once the little girl got past the statues, she stopped before a large screen showing the matches of the day. The ticket she had gave her access to an arena seat for the entire day so she could watch all twelve matches happening that day. The matches were broken into six different categories with each category referring to a mech weight class. Standard matches usually began with the lower weight classes and worked their way up. However, Xiao was at a tournament match where the importance of the match dictated the order with the most important one left for last.

“Don’t get lost, Xiao.”

“Okay, papa!”

Xiao reached out to take her father’s hands. As much as she wanted to explore everything, she could see the large crowds that were normal for these tournaments. It didn’t help that her father told her scary stories about what happened to lost kids in the arena.

Lost kids aren’t turned into fuel for mechs….right?

A large crowd suddenly surged forward right into Xiao and her father. The two got separated as the little girl was swept up by the crowd. After much struggling, she got free from the crowd to find herself in a different part of the arena. The excitement she felt earlier had disappeared. It was now replaced by fear of the unknown and the uncertainty of where her father was. As she looked around, she felt a presence behind her.

“Ah, there you are! I was looking for you!”

Xiao turned around to see an old woman walk up to her. The woman took her hand and led her down one of the gray hallways that were normally reserved for staff only. She was surprised that the woman, despite being barely taller than her, had a strong grip. She wanted to call out but her voice stopped working. Her body also refused to obey her so she had no choice but to follow the stranger. The two of them went down the winding hallways with their path becoming darker and darker. Finally, they arrived before a dark room where the woman released Xian’s hand.

“Now, it’s time for you to get inside and be useful!”