Riza jumped to the side as one of the rock creatures threw its arm forward, punching the ground where she had been standing a moment before. She let loose several shots, squinting at the chips of rock that went flying with each bullet before the entire thing shattered around her. She, and the entire surrounding area, was now enveloped by a giant cloud of dust, making it not only difficult to see, but to breathe as well. The light breeze drifting through the area wasn't strong enough to dispel the cloud completely before more dirt was added to the mix. She struggled to control her coughing so that she could make a steady shot at the dog golem that began to advance on her.

She hadn't been paying much attention to the commentary of Lt. Kessler, though she was aware that she was behind. Not by much, however, she reminded herself as she let loose two bullets into the approaching rock dog. It slowed slightly, but still continued its mindless attack. That was when she realized that Kessler's yelling of her title wasn't the excited commentary she had begun to tune out, but a panicked warning.

Her head snapped to the left searching for the source of his worry, when he screamed at her even louder to look the other way. Aware that she was losing precious time to react to whatever was coming at her, she quickly pointed her gun to her right. She had expected to see one or more golems bearing down on her, so it came as something of a shock to see nothing but a wall of fire only a few feet away. With a strangled cry she flung herself out of the way, feeling the intense heat of the blaze scorch the back of her neck slightly as it passed mere inches above her. There was an explosion of rock behind her as the flames connected with the dog golem that had only moments before been about to lunge at her.

"Lieutenant! Are you alright?" Mustang's worried voice cut through the gloom.

"I'm fine, sir!" she called back as she picked herself up, "Watch your attacks, please!"

Kessler's sigh of relief was echoed throughout the audience, "That was a close one! Mustang seems to be a little too eager to win this! Are there any wind alchemists present to clear this dust cloud?"

Apparently there was, as the light breeze turned into a steady wind, swiftly carrying the dust away from the arena. Loud complaints issued from one side of the ring as the cloud drifted into the audience before being dispersed completely. Hawkeye now had her first good look around since the fight had begun half an hour ago. The area was a complete disaster; holes from which golems had risen from the ground pocketed the circle. Loose rubble from destroyed targets was scattered everywhere, making it difficult to move without tripping. Eight intact golems still remained, though all were stationary; Durnhoft had apparently stopped their movements while they had waited to see if she was unharmed.

She stole a quick glance towards the alchemist, who was only just now resuming his transmutations. He watched the fight eagerly, but she could see the fatigue setting into his features. It required continual transmuting to keep the golems moving, and the effort was beginning to take its toll on the Major. As the stone figures jerked back to life she realized that it wouldn't be much longer before he was unable to make new targets. That didn't leave her much time to catch up to Mustang's score.

Hawkeye brought her attention back to the fight at hand, and noticed a large golem advancing on the Colonel from behind. He was currently having a coughing fit from inhaling the debri from the last one he had just destroyed and didn't seem to notice the large rock fist about to connect with his back. She aimed her gun just as Mustang finally did realize the creature was there and fired. She must have hit a weak spot as the thing broke apart on the first shot. Mustang stared dumbly at the destroyed golem, his hand poised for a snap, then glared at her.

"Lieutenant! That one was mine!" he whined.

Noticing two other golems moving in on her she quickly dispatched of them before yelling back in annoyance, "I didn't see your name on it, sir!" Ungrateful...

"It's getting close! Hawkeye is only two targets behind! There doesn't seem to be as many targets left now. Looks like Living Stone is running out of juice!" Several people in the crowd jeered at this, apparently not wanting the contest to be over just yet.

Hawkeye took out three more golems, trying to keep an eye on how Mustang was doing while watching both her footing and the stone creatures around her. It was hard to do; Mustang was dodging this way and that as he threw out blast after blast of flame. She heard several small explosions nearby, though she couldn't tell how many hits that added to Mustang's score.

She was on her last round now; how Durnhoft had judged so closely how many bullet's she'd require baffled her. As she danced backwards from two more advancing golems her back came up against an obstacle she hadn't expected to be there. She quickly shot at the closer of the two hulking stone figures and spun around, her gun at the ready.

"Sir!" she exclaimed in surprise at seeing the Colonel there, pulling back her gun instantly as he fought to regain his balance from the unexpected collision.

"They're both tied now! And with only one target remaining! Who's going to hit it?!" Kessler's excited announcement ripped through the air, startling both of them. There was a brief pause as they exchanged startled glances before both their heads shot towards the remaining golem simultaneously.

She was slightly closer to the golem than Mustang, and had a clearer view of the target as she was standing directly between it and the Colonel. She smiled inwardly as she pointed her gun. Humiliating defeat, indeed. Her finger had just begun to tense around the trigger when she felt a hand grip her arm suddenly. She blinked in surprise to see Mustang pushing his way past her, a hungry gleam in his eyes.

"Sorry, Lieutenant, this one's mine!" he stated as he brought his gloved hand up.

She froze for a brief second, rather shocked that he would just shove her aside so. Well, it wasn't quite an all out shove...but still rude none the less. But if he was that bent on winning such a silly little contest, then she'd just let him have the win. Really the only thing at stake was an inflated ego, and that was hardly worth getting into a shoving match over.

Although...the last thing Mustang needed was an even bigger ego. Not to mention the constant gloating that she'd likely never hear the end of. Then, of course, there was the smirk. It was something she normally found somewhat charming, though she'd never tell him so, but the thought of having said smirk directed at her for days, even weeks afterwards, gave it an entirely new quality.

In that brief second pause, she decided that she really didn't want to put up with that after all.

"...One target remaining!" Kessler's words struck Mustang in the face as he finally regained his footing after being nearly bowled over by the Lieutenant. Their eyes met for a brief moment at the announcement, before they turned as one to face the last golem stalking towards them. He saw Hawkeye bring her gun up and realized that he didn't have a clear shot from behind her.

"Sorry, Lieutenant!" he said, holding her arm to steady himself as he scrambled over the scattered remains of defeated golems. He pushed her more than he intended, but he could apologize for that later. "This one's mine!" he brought his hand up, ready to attack. Just two more steps and he'd have a clear shot...

His foot connected with a rock he hadn't expected to be there and he fell onto his face with a startled shout. Several gunshots rang over his head and he heard the unmistakable sound of shattering rock followed by the cheers of the audience as Lt. Kessler declared Lt. Hawkeye the winner. He pounded the ground once with his fists in frustration at his clumsiness before turning his head to glare at the offending stone...only to find that there was nothing he could possibly have tripped over in that moment. His eyes narrowed as he contemplated this, then widened suddenly as he realized the implication.

"THAT'S CHEATING!!!" he shrieked as he scrambled to his feet to face his Lieutenant.

She gave him an innocent look before inspecting her guns and deciding that they were too hot to place in their holsters just yet, "Sorry, sir, my foot slipped," she stated simply.

Mustang sputtered for a moment, his whole form rigid, before finally articulating a reply, "Liar!!"

Hawkeye leveled him with an even stare. There was no malice, nor even challenge in her gaze, yet somehow he still found himself backing down in submission. "You should get cleaned up, sir," she finally responded. "You look a mess," Mustang blinked and looked down at himself. She was right; he was covered head to toe in dirt, his uniform more gray than blue. He ran a hand through his hair and grimaced at the shower of dust that fell about him. Looking back at the Lieutenant he noticed she was in similar condition, though he didn't think she'd appreciate him telling her that. Most likely she was aware of it anyway.

"Yeah," he agreed with a defeated sigh as they walked to the edge of the arena to meet with the waiting Generals. Some were already talking with Living Stone; judging by their expressions and tone of voice, Mustang surmised that they were very much interested in using his abilities as training sessions more often. They seemed oblivious to his current state as they discussed their plans for him. The poor man looked as if he might collapse from exhaustion at any moment, the fatigue evident on every inch of his face. Somehow he still managed a tall, proud stance before the Generals, but Mustang could tell it was taking every bit of will power for the Major to do so.

If he had only paid that much attention to the face of his Lieutenant as they neared the group, he would have seen the slight smirk tugging at the corner of her mouth. But he'd have plenty of opportunities within the next few days to catch it.