The Grand Arena of Azurefall was not just a stadium; it was a monument to the terrified unity of a world on the brink.
Built in a single month by the combined efforts of Earth-Mages from the North and structural wizards from the East, it was a colossal bowl of white marble and shielding wards, carved directly into the coastal cliffs. It seated fifty thousand souls, and today, every single seat was filled. The roar of the crowd was a physical force, a tidal wave of sound that crashed against the shielding domes over the pit.
Squad 7 stood in the waiting tunnel, the darkness cool against the oppressive heat of the day. They could hear the crowd chanting, stomping, screaming for blood.
"Fifty thousand," Kaelan Brightblade whispered, gripping his staff with his single hand. He looked pale, the sweat on his forehead not entirely from the heat. "I think I liked it better when it was just us and the demons in the sewer. At least demons don't buy popcorn."
