[fraze]

Parley Pete was observing the match from the magic carpet in the pic. He was using the event to calibrate his magic compass so he could make flawless picks when gambling in the arena. He's trying to make bread without the loan sharks coming after him.

Gambling addiction is a serious problem, even in other dimensions.

I can concede my match so the next round can start.

PS. I didn't dwell too much on the battle scene because it's supposed to be about the topic pic where the compass was the foreground focal element. I wanted my piece to have the same dynamic as the pic, where while there is all this action going on you're wondering what's up with the compass the whole time (or at least I was). I wanted to explain why the compass was the main character of the pic by also having it be the focal element of my story.

That's my surprise twist at the end. It was never about the the battles or the conflict. It was all just a vehicle for Parley Pete who wanted to conquer the arena in a different way.

I also get it if people couldn't follow all those threads, its hard to fit everything in 32 bars.