As Piros peered at the platform, the phoenix hybrid stood up and approached the railing. His saddened amber eyes were reminded of the image of his friend suffocating from the smoke and flickering embers of his indignation. Indignation that turned to remorse as he registered when Herring fell into the water.

The Velociraptor separated from her squad to follow her opponent to the opposing side of the railing. Piros had spotted Herring leaving with Haeji, and Ratu had also exited the area seconds later.

Phixa entered into the Redemption Round.

This is my chance to prove that I'm just as strong as a full-blooded Phoenix. Phixa thought to herself.

Then entered Blue, ready to unleash her fire. She sauntered in as if she owned the place, eyeing it all through slitted yellow eyes.

"Who are you? You're not one of the defeated combatants." Phixa mentioned, watching her opponent while Blue laid a foot, glancing at the phoenix hybrid condescendingly.

"I would never," she said in a tone that was like a book rich with information. 

This time it indicated overpowering disdain and a smidge of entertainment at her opponent's figure.

None of that helped Phixa's confidence at all.

In the stands, Shadow flaunted her filched binoculars. She knew it was a mere piece of plastic, which only cost ❦︎3. She wouldn't have wasted her money on it except that only Suzanne had heard of it.

Luckily nobody understood her lingo for it's just a normal thing.

"The item is plainly not motorized nor a particularly mesmerizing phenomena, in which case I would follow up with signs of increased interest," Suzanne informed.

"What is that?" Indy was curious. 

Shadow focused it on Blue. "It's a sort of advanced technology ˡⁱᵉ," she lied glibly. "It makes what you look at bigger. And it doesn't hurt your eyes like a phone ᵗʳᵘᵗʰ. And you can control the zoom ˡⁱᵉ." This cheap plastic could not be controlled much. It was blue with GO BLUE written in white. She’d paid with fake currency. I wonder how long it’ll take before they figure it out. Anyway, she’d assumed the form of Chris, having stolen a shapeshifting machine from Suzanne.

"Wow!" exclaimed Indy. Then, apprehensively, "How much?"

More lies. "It was ♥︎4. Really expensive."

"WHOA!" said Indy. Even Ripper had heard, awoken from his fixation on Blue's performance (and secretly the Squad's reputation if Blue lost). 

Actually in the entire time at the Colosseum Shadow had spent ♥︎3, less than the claimed price for the binoculars.

"How're you gonna earn it back?" wondered Bary, adjusting her green pie-sized glasses. 

"I mean," she shifted into Suzanne mode, "you may be able to sell motorized rotundae or perhaps, document cases which are more economical for the buyer -"

"Nah," Shadow said, "Imma have a Hand Stand. Selling hands. Ya know."

Now the two competitors were in the center. 

Brandon uttered the word Magma, the platform shifted as a lake of lava emerged from the deep and covered the pit of the platform. The ground that the competitors were standing on rose three levels. The levels girated up and down in a circular motion.

Blue grinned wolfishly. “Wow. I wonder how he knows I can control fire!”

She flicked her keen eyes over to Shadow and made a face, before yelling, “TELL RIPPER NOT TO EAT MY HANDS! THAT DEAF BOGGLEBRAIN!”

Verdauga chuckled. “Colorful insults you Raptors say.”

“What are you, not a raptor?” snapped Shadow, but she was giggling to herself (as she’d called him a doodlenose a few hours ago).

“Nah, I’m a banana,” snickered Verdauga, chucking a banana peel at Shadow. Without looking, she returned it.

“When did you steal that?”

“Didn’t. Copied your idea for a Hand Stand and earned it.”

He had to flee, as Shadow chased him around the arena twice, yelling, “YOU TRAITOR! I’LL SKIN YOU ALIVE!”

“We all know she won’t,” Suzanne said, picking up the binoculars from the arena and smacking Indy’s claw as she tried to filch it.

Indy flickered into an Indominus Rex and grabbed the binoculars with the tip of her thick tail, switching quickly as she couldn’t fit in her huge form.

“Not FAIR,” complained Suzanne, sucking on a bowl of blood. And glaring at Trevor sitting across from her. Truly a good multitasker.

In the arena, Blue waited for the signal, hungrily contemplating Phixa for dinner. Wings are too crunchy and will stick in my teeth, she thought, discouraged. Ugh. She shifted her claws and rustled her wings, thinking now about grooming herself.

Since both of them were at the top center of the platform the phoenix hybrid jumped into the air, but not before Blue threw an azure fireball when Phixa was about to descend, she shielded herself with her fiery wings. When she thought she was going to get burned into a crisp, her wings changed color. A fire that was hotter than she was accustomed to before landing on Blue upon impact. 

Blue hissed and raised fire from the arena and shot it at Phixa. It flamed straight at her.

The Raptor hybrid didn’t even wait. She conjured a green fireball that expanded into a huge flaming portal.

Phixa watched as Blue disappeared into it, but had to dodge quickly as Blue appeared behind her and shot a fireball at Phixa. She didn’t expect the phoenix hybrid to return so fast, and fell behind a little. That was all Phixa needed to recover. She was back in a flash.

Stella and Micah were watching the fight, though the Amoebian was focused on the magma, seeing the liquid lava reflected on her goggles. Then she mused at the idea of Blue falling off the platform and into the pit of lava. She smirked at the idea of a charred fossil akin to the ones found in excavations and displayed in an ancient museum. Amusing.

"I can't tell which one is going to win. They both have fire powers." Stella commented.

"Silly Stella," Micah scoffed, "it's obvious that the hybrid bird will win."

Phixa flew into the air while Blue conjured the balls of lava to strike down on her while the phoenix hybrid dodged, she flew in a zigzag then flew up. Then she got struck down…

Blue took the advantage. She drew magma from the lake and shot it at Phixa. Instead of striking the Phoenix hybrid, it circled around her, making a huge red halo. It trapped her within. Next Blue shot an azure freezing fireball. Phixa dodged it, nearly getting caught by the fire. 

That fireball hit Ripper, who toppled slowly to the floor. Indy cleared Suzanne and Trevor out of their seats and lay Ripper on them while he 

recovered.

Blue could hear Suzanne and Trevor arguing again. It was very distracting. Can’t they ever stop? I’m trying to fight here.

Phixa flew upwards, breaking free of the magma circle. Blue anticipated a fiery attack, and conjured a wall of fire around her. She could see through, but Phixa could not see Blue anymore. 

Then the Raptor hybrid saw a chance. She walked through the far end of the fire ring and stayed in the corner while Phixa, unknowingly, wasted her powers on the empty fire ring. 

Blue sneaked around to behind the phoenix hybrid and vanished the fire ring. 

Phixa was startled. Where is the dinosaur?

Blue hit her with a freezing flame from behind. Strangely, when it hit, it didn’t affect Phixa. Instead, it ricocheted off back towards Blue. 

Blue dodged just in time. Wait … what just happened?

The flame shot away towards Micah, who was busy examining the lake of magma and didn’t see it coming. 

Micah froze right where she was standing.

“Are you okay?” asked Stella, not realizing what had happened yet.

Within the block of ice, Micah thought to herself, seething: I. WILL. END. THAT. FOSSIL. Before her anger, Stella's sabre, and the heat of the lava thawed the Amoebian out of the melting block of ice.

Blue knew Micah would be after her. She sent a flame forcefield around Micah. Just in case.

She focused on Phixa, who was now on the offensive. Blue was hard put to defend herself.

Think, Riverstreak, THINK! 

Oh … I can’t fly, she can. But I can hover …

She had an idea!

She flapped her wings as if she was attempting to fly.

Oh, so she can’t fly. Yes! The phoenix hybrid thought mistakenly.

Just as Phixa came for an aerial attack, Blue boosted herself up with an energy flame, knocking Phixa out of the sky. The energy flame was short-lived and Blue tumbled down.

That hadn’t given the hybrid Velociraptor an advantage, though. She thought quickly, then dove into the lava lake.

Micah felt like cheering from where she was beside Stella. So she’s dead! Hah. I guess she will turn out to be a charred fossil after all. Love to see that fossil in a museum. That’ll show her.

The Raptor Squad kept squabbling. Shadow and Verdauga flopped down on their seats and panted out a truce. Everyone was sure that as soon as Shadow got her breath back, she would pursue Verdauga again. For now, it was peaceful.

Indy glared at Phixa through the binoculars.

Suzanne slurped her precious bowl of blood while glaring heatedly at Trevor. He narrowed his eyes at her, and she bared her teeth. 

Her vampire fangs slid down as she eyed his neck. She wasn’t really hungry, it was all a show. Vampires made extremely creepy scenes, and Suzanne wasn’t about to let that chance of intimidating him slide. She refilled her bowl without looking away from Trevor’s eyes.

Trevor hissed and sharpened his fingernails into claws on a stone. 

Rexy leaned back and snatched it. “That will damage your nail bed,” she began a lecture.

Then she began sharpening her fingernails with the stone while talking.

Both Trevor and Suzanne yawned hugely.

A few seconds passed. Phixa relaxed a little. Is she dead? The phoenix hybrid thought apprehensively.

The lava lake exploded and a geyser of magma shot out. Phixa leaped back, and only her reflexes saved her from Blue’s outstretched claws. 

Bluefen smirked and shook lava out of her feathers before throwing a few freezing fireballs at Phixa. She dodged them as quickly as she could. One caught her, but the block of ice Phixa became encased in melted in about a second.

Micah, for the second time, got frozen. In disbelief, she saw the idiotical stupid fossil emerge from the magma lake. WHAT?! she thought angrily. HOW CAN SHE DIE?!

Stella sighed and began chipping the ice away with her sabre. Again.

Well, at least it froze that dumb rug, Blue thought, remembering that alien skin made nice rugs. In fact, she had one in her room. I believe it is an Amoebian. That’s what the rug is, right?

Maybe Blue would ask Indy to fetch that rug back. OMV yes, that’ll show her! thought Blue, almost squealing happily as she dodged Phixa’s assault of fire.

Almost, as the fight wasn’t turning out to her advantage.

She dodged an assault from Phixa and shot back a green acid flame. That should work.

The phoenix hybrid barely escaped having a finger sizzled off.

Blue gave Phixa a smile and dodged nimbly. 

I haven’t hit her, what’s wrong? thought Phixa.

She looked behind her.

“Uuugh!”

Blue leapt onto the phoenix hybrid and crowed triumphantly. 

Phixa wriggled, thinking she’d lost and went limp. Blue stepped down harder, licking her teeth … and then something happened.

The Velociraptor hybrid was flung off Phixa with a force that propelled her across the arena.

The Raptor Squad saw that the Velociraptor came straight towards them. "Scatter!" Shadow shouted just as they scrambled away. Indy hovered away. Suzanne dropped her bowl of blood as it spilled to the floor and flattened herself with the bowl on her head like a helmet. 

Shadow turned into her Indoraptor form and sprinted down the rows.

Micah, in the melting block of ice, had her head stepped on by Bary, luckily, in her human form. 

Trevor turned into an Indominus Rex and stood on top of two rows. The flying 0.3 meter tall raptor posed no harm to the 44-foot-tall Indominus Rex. She simply bounced off him and landed on the seat.

I wish I’d thought of that, Indy thought, circling high above. Oh well, no room for me now, as Trevor in his Indominus Rex form was 50 feet long.

Ripper had jumped to the row below and ducked when Blue landed on impact, at least the seat cushioned her fall when she fell upside down. He heard her drag out a long groan before craning her head back as she spotted Ripper.

Blue spat sand out of her mouth and attempted to save face by growling, “I just wanted her to win, SO THERE!”

Shadow chuckled. “Oh you did, didn’t you.”

"We have a winner!" The host announced, the phoenix hybrid stood up as she looked around the arena. The crowd gave an applause, it was almost how Phixa dreamt that it would be.

Micah finally got out of the block of ice. "Just as I expected." She pointed in the air triumphantly, she knew the outcome but not how the match would play out. Then the Amoebian fell down on the ground feeling stiff and cold before Stella held her up.

Cowritten by Aquarisla and yours truly.