by Andrew Rowe
“I don’t know about any of the other current wielders. Just...Raizo. And the Phantom Thief Ravenshade, I guess. Oh, and obviously the Emperor of Edria has Diamantine.”
“For now.”
Reika rolled her eyes. “Don’t get too far ahead of yourself.”
“Never. I just keep ahead of everyone else.” I gave her what I hoped was a dashing smile. “Anyway, I need to learn about the capabilities of the other swords, too. But for now, let’s get back to Grandmother Iron. We’ve been gone a while, and I know she wants to introduce us to people.”
With that, we started to head back to Grandmother Iron’s place.
I tried not to think too much about the awful things the Dominion Breaker was capable of...or how likely I was to make use of those terrible powers eventually.
***
When we got back, Grandmother Iron pulled us into the main hall.
“Allow me to introduce you to my students that you will be working with in this competition.”
There were five other people in the main hall, standing in a circle and talking with each other. Four of them looked younger than we were. The last was a man with a neatly trimmed beard that I evaluated to be about forty or so. I’d seen him earlier.
I also recognized Lia Shay in the circle, the woman who had introduced us to Grandmother Iron in the first place.
“Working with?” Reika asked.
“Indeed. Some within the tournament itself, and some in terms of other logistics.”
Reika tilted her head to the side. “What do you mean?”
“Lia works for the tournament committee. She will gather relevant information and provide it to us. The other four are all students of mine who will be participating. Some tests are designed for teams of six, much like a climbing expedition. Since there are two of you, you will need four additional team members for those tests.”
I noted that these weren’t all the students I’d seen earlier — perhaps some of them hadn’t made it through the preliminaries, or maybe Grandmother Iron was simply entering multiple groups of contestants.
“Couldn’t we choose our own team members?” I asked.
“Certainly, and you may need to acquire others if anyone — including one of you — is eliminated before the end of the contest. But this gives you a potential team that is ready-to-go if the next test ends up being team based.”
I nodded. It would be good to have some people we knew we could work with if necessary. “And we won’t know that until it’s about to start?”
“That’s correct. It’s also possible you will be assigned to a team, rather than being able to pick one. The tests vary every year. It’s even possible there will be no team tests at all, but I doubt it. There’s usually at least one.”
Grandmother Iron approached the group. “Make room, everyone.”
The circle widened, allowing us to step into it.
“Now please, introduce yourselves. You may begin.” She waved at the oldest-looking student first.
He turned and nodded to me and Rieka. He was a few inches taller than I was, with a wide, athletic build and short, light brown hair. When he reached out to offer Reika a handshake, I noted that he had two different marks on his right arm — one on the top of his hand and one further up toward the middle of his upper arm.
I didn’t realize at the time how unusual it was to have two attunements near each other like that, but I did find it interesting that he had two marks in general.
He was also wearing several bracelets around his wrists — three or four on each arm. I wasn’t sure what they represented at the time.
“Walter Crown.” He shook Reika’s hand first, then mine. “I’m one of the assistant instructors here, and one of Grandma’s oldest students. I’ve participated in two prior tournaments and made it a good way in each time. If we do any group activities, I’ll be in charge.”
From the sound of his tone, I got the impression he was inviting any possible challenge, but neither Reika or I had any good reason to object.
“Okay!” Reika offered. “Nice to meet you!”
“Yeah,” I added, “it’ll be good to have someone with some prior experience working with us. What’s your skill set, if you don’t mind me asking?”
“I’m a dual-attuned. Commander and Soulblade, both high Citrine-level. I specialize in weapon and armor augmentation.”
I gave him an appreciative nod. I didn’t know much about either of those attunements, but the general concept made sense to me. Having two attunements, especially of that level, sounded pretty formidable. “Sounds great. Maybe we can do a bit of sparring later?”
He gave me a nod. “Eventually.” Then he turned to the next student. “You’re up, Lia.”
Lia gave us a wave. “We already met, but I’ll introduce myself again. I’m Lia. I’m not actually participating in the tournament. Instead, it’s my job to assist you from the outside with information.”
“Is that really, uh, fair?” Reika asked.
Lia gave her a smile. “It’s understood that competitors will have ways of gathering information on each test. Strategy is considered an important value in Edrian culture, and equal in importance to direct marshal prowess. Finding enough knowledge to gain an advantage is considered a part of the competition. Sabotaging other contestants, however, is considered unfair and can result in disqualification.”
Reika and I nodded at that.
I understood the reasoning behind the style they were going for. Multiple of the visages were geared toward problem solving over combat, and any tests dedicated to them would likely have intellectual components. Apparently, that also bled into the style of the competition as a whole.
Truthfully, Lydia or Jonan would have been more skilled at that sort of challenge, but I still found the idea interesting. Just fighting directly was fun, but having some additional elements to the competition might make it more memorable.
And I didn’t mind being at a disadvantage if someone came in with more information than I did.
My opponents need all the advantages they can get, after all.
“What’s your attunement?” Reika asked.
Lia winced. “I don’t actually have one. Always been too afraid to take the tests. My skills are purely mundane.”
“Nothing to be ashamed of.” Grandmother Iron gave Lia a pat. “Judgments are not for everyone. You are wise to know yourself enough to avoid taking a test you may not be suited for.”
“Thank you, Grandmother.” Lia turned to the next student. “You’re up, Ari.”
Ari was about a head shorter than me, with dark brown skin and black hair. He wore a single short sword on his right hip, which indicated that he was probably either left-handed or preferred to use his right hand for something else.
He had no visible attunement marks, but he did have a long, nasty scar on his neck that trailed down under the line of his shirt. Just below that, I could see a hint of a crimson glow. I assumed he was wearing an enchanted necklace under his shirt or that he had an attunement mark over his heart.
Ari grinned. “I’m Ari, and I’m gonna win this tournament!”
Grandmother Iron gave him a flick with a single finger. “Restrain the boasting, Ari.”
He laughed. “Just telling them the truth so they won’t be disappointed later. Diamantine’s going to be mine. But hey, if you stick with me, you’ll probably make it pretty far.”
That kind of brashness might have rubbed some people the wrong way, but I honestly appreciated it. He reminded me of a lot of the people who played kovasi — a sport I’d briefly played in professionally back in my homeland. The sport involved a good deal of acting, so a high degree of confidence was effective.
Reika seemed to approve, too. “You’ll have to beat me first, buddy. But I’ll let you get to the finals. Wouldn’t be fun to eliminate you too early.”
Ari brightened and offered her a slight bow. “I’ll look forward to our match.”
“What’s your
skill set?” I asked. I didn’t mean to detract from the mood, but when I’m meeting people I might end up fighting with or against, I like to know what I’m dealing with.
“Only the best attunement possible. Just wait and see.”
Grandmother Iron gave him a hard look. “Ari.”
He withered under her gaze, raising both hands in a defensive gesture. “Fine, fine. Prepare yourselves...for I am...a Juggernaut!”
Ari flexed, probably to emphasize the strength of the word. That was particularly amusing, because he was short, young, and light. I would have guessed him at about nineteen years old and maybe just over a hundred pounds. Not exactly what I pictured when I heard the word Juggernaut, but I knew looks could be deceiving.
Reika was much better at being supportive. “Wow! That sounds incredible. I’ll look forward to seeing what you can do!”
He gave her something that must have been an affirmative gesture I wasn’t familiar with.
The woman next to him covered her face, looking embarrassed on his behalf. Ari didn’t seem to notice.
“Meilin, you’re next.” Walter gestured toward the woman near Ari.
She pulled her hand away from her face, sighed, and turned toward us.
Meilin had dyed blue-and-white hair and the distinctive eyes that indicated she was an Edrian native. She also had an elaborate tattoo on her left arm that reminded me of a bird’s wing, but I didn’t know if it meant anything or if it was purely decorative.
“Good day.” She folded her hands together in front of her. “I am Wu Meilin. I have the honor of being one of Grandmother’s most proficient students.”
While that might have sounded like another boast, she was completely matter-of-fact with her statement. It didn’t come across as bragging in the same way that Ari’s claims did.
She turned to me. “I am a Citrine-level Assassin. You will find that I am also proficient at several forms of combat, including archery, spears, and unarmed.”
“A—assassin?” Reika stammered.
Meilin smiled at her. “An Assassin attunement does not necessarily mean I am a professional killer. A name is simply a name.”
I noted that she didn’t explicitly say she wasn’t a professional killer, but I didn’t want to press the issue. “Sounds like an interesting attunement. Maybe you can show us some of your abilities later?”
She gave me a nod. “Of course.” Meilin gave no further replies, she simply turned and nudged the last of the students.
He had a similar complexion and eyes to Ari’s, which at the time I associated with Edria. I didn’t realize until much later that he was actually probably from East Edria or Dalenos. He was tall and wiry, with the kind of athletic body that I might have associated with a dancer or a swimmer. Unfortunately, I couldn’t understand his introduction.
He didn’t speak Valian, and I still didn’t understand Edrian.
Afterward, Grandmother Iron provided a brief translation. “Fai is a Sunstone-level Acolyte. He is adept at healing and neutralizing poisons.”
I immediately decided Fai was the most important person there and that I needed to get to know him better. Healers are a cornerstone of any effective team, and I’d been injured badly enough in recent days that working together effectively with him was a high priority.
I was regretting my lack of knowledge of the local language more by the moment.
After that, Reika and I each gave brief introductions of our own. Grandmother Iron had apparently already explained a bit about us to them, including that I was the wielder of Dawnbringer, but she didn’t know all the details about us yet.
We explained our skills in general terms, rather than giving the names of any attunements, since we didn’t have any. I considered just telling them I was a foreigner with a different type of magic, but it seemed too soon. And telling them Reika was a dragon was out of the question.
After introductions concluded, we got to the fun part.
“So,” I asked. “Who wants to fight first?
***
I tossed Ari down onto the mat for something like the tenth time. “That was better, but you need to work on avoiding a grapple with someone with my strength. You’ve got great speed, use it.”
Ari rolled up from the floor, grinning. “You got it! Next round is mine!”
“The next round is Meilin’s, Ari. You two have taken quite enough time.” Grandmother Iron was softer in her tone with Ari than she seemed to be with others. The tips of her lips were turned up in a smile, too. I suspect she appreciated his antics a little more than she let on.
“Aww. Fine, fine. But you owe me a rematch later, Keras!”
I chuckled. “Of course.”
He extended a fist, which I’d learned he wanted me to “bump” my own fist against after a match. It was a tradition I wasn’t familiar with, but it felt appropriate for a post-match gesture, so I complied. That seemed to please him.
Then we got out of the way for a battle that looked to be much more interesting.
Reika and Meilin moved to opposite sides of the mat.
“I will look forward to seeing your skills.” Meilin bowed deeply.
Reika hastily and messily returned the bow. “Same!”
“As with the previous fight, weapons will not be permitted for sparring today. You will be allowed to train with weapons later, of course, but only after you have a feel for each other’s abilities. You may use magic, but limit offensive magic to half-power or lower. Fighters, bow to me.”
Meilin and Reika bowed to Grandmother Iron.
“Bow to each other.”
They turned and bowed to each other again.
“Begin!”
Reika surged forward, throwing a punch without reservation. I almost couldn’t watch — if she didn’t check her strength, she’d mash an ordinary human into paste.
Meilin side-stepped the blow easily, smacking Reika on the side of the arm with her open palm. I thought I saw the briefest flash of green on contact.
Reika spun into a kick, which Meilin hopped over. While Meilin was still airborne, Reika pushed out with her palms. She didn’t make contact, but she didn’t need to. A burst of force hurled Meilin backward, a demonstration of a technique that was all too familiar to me.
Motion sorcery.
I’d seen Reika use motion to push herself around before, and I knew she had to be using it any time she moved her full-sized dragon form. I did not, however, generally see her using it offensively. Apparently, our talk about motion sorcery on the way to Edria must have given her the idea to practice with it. That was probably wise, but that way of using motion sorcery was something I associated with Velas, and a part of me was discomforted by the similarity.
Meilin flew backward a few feet before falling to land in a steady position on the mat.
Then she vanished.
Reika frowned, glancing around. It was only at that point that I noticed the growing glow of green on her right arm, where Meilin had touched her before.
Wait, is that poison?
It...might not be. Iron said no weapons, but if it’s a magical poison, not an item...
Meilin is in a fist fight with a dragon, Dawn. It was never going to be fair.
Reika swapped her stance, gritting her teeth as she concentrated. Then something smacked right into her chest, hard enough to knock her back a step. She let out a low growl as a green glow spread across the point of impact on her chest.
A moment later, she lashed out, but seemed to catch only empty air. Presumably, she was trying to follow the sound of Meilin’s footsteps, but they were quiet enough that I couldn’t hear them.
Reika recoiled again, this time to what must have been a blow to the shoulder. She swung immediately in response, not with a hand, but with a newly-formed tail.
Her tail had exceptional reach, and I hadn’t even seen it until t
he counter attack occurred. She’d manifested it faster than I’d seen her do it in the past, and with great subtlety. She’d clearly benefitted from practicing her partial transformations.
Still, if she hit anything at all, there was no visible sign. No audible sign, as far as I could tell, either.
And Reika was noticeably slowing down.
I didn’t know what kind of poison Meilin was using, but it worked fast.
Another impact, this time against Reika’s stomach. She doubled over for just a moment, growling again. Rather than responding with another attack, this time, she took a step back and closed her eyes.
One heartbeat passed, then another.
Crack. Something hit Reika right in the jaw.
Her head snapped backward, then her eyes fluttered open, trailing white mist.
Reika’s arm shot out, faster than I’d ever seen her move. And when her hand closed, it found purchase on something.
With a single yank, I heard a body smack into the mat, followed by a yelp.
Then Reika reached out with her other hand, closing it on an invisible limb, and launched herself forward.
In a moment, she was on the ground, straddling a still-invisible foe. Her arms trembled with effort as she moved, and green energy was flowing from her chin up her face. Sweat beaded on her forehead.
“You’re...mine.” She barely managed.
Meilin appeared beneath her, her arms pinned above her head. “I am in agreement. The match is yours.”
“...G...good.”
Reika collapsed unceremoniously on top of her opponent, and I felt a pang of nostalgia for how we’d finished our own first fight.
***
Moments later, Fai approached, shaking his head. He placed a hand on Reika’s back, a blue aura manifesting, and the green that coated her body began to fade away.
That’s a very useful skill set, I considered.
Pfft, that barely ever happens.
Meilin and Reika slowly disentangled themselves. Fai helped Reika up, so I offered Meilin a hand. She accepted it.
“You fought very well,” I told her.