The hall was enormous, to say the least. And bright. And…beautiful. Well, I wasn’t quite sure about the beauty part, but it was marvelous – and ominous.
It was hard to imagine such a massive place was buried beneath the main sector, but there it was: a vast, circular pit carved into ether-infused stone, its slick walls marked with what appeared to be the sweat, smoke, and blood of…decades? Centuries? Outside the circular pit, rows of stone seating rose steeply toward the shadowed ceiling, where chains hung like the skeletons of an old era. Everything looked like it had been carved from a single stone, as if it were all of one piece. Intricate carvings spread far and reached the ceiling hanging high above us. Flickering braziers burned brightly around the pit, casting shimmering rays of light over the sand spread across the arena.
The air was thick with heat and the metallic tang of blood. The surroundings were relatively quiet, but every stomp and shout seemed to rattle through the stone itself, as if the arena were alive and hungry. Somehow, I couldn’t quite grasp the sensation. It felt like, down here, far from the surface, combat meant everything. It was almost like I was back outside in the wild where victory meant survival, and defeat was a one-way trip to eternal darkness.
To some extent, the arena resembled the coliseum I had seen in the picture books Mom showed me, yet it wasn’t the same. This was nothing for children.
“This place is even better than I remember,” Scott marveled, rubbing Destiny behind her ears.
My mind froze a moment at the insinuation, and my head flicked to the odd Blessed. “You’ve been here before?”
Destiny let out a few quick squeaks that sounded oddly similar to human laughter, and Scott joined his Soulkin.
“Nope. That’s the first time I’ve stepped foot into this place.”
I raised an eyebrow at him, hoping he’d explain what he was talking about, but Scott just smiled at me once he and Destiny were finished laughing.
“You’re an oddball, you know that, right?”
“I think ‘Unique’ is far more suitable.” He snickered and patted my back. Scott turned back to the arena, his eyes lingering on the other retinues. “You will have a hard time here.”
“And you won’t?”
I knew the combat exam was going to be anything but easy for me, but I was curious how Scott would fare. He was calm and confident, although that could be said about most retinues. They may not have been invited into the Camp; however, they all had something special about them—something unique enough to get sponsored by one of the renowned families. Or the army…or anyone really. Anyone with enough influence to put their best candidate into the retinue selection.
“I won’t be first, but that’s not necessary. There will be multiple people vying for the first place, and they’ll have to share it.” Scott shrugged, a knowing smile tugging at his lips. “Four fights is simply not enough. Not that the Camp cares.”
Four times? Is that how often we have to fight? How does he know that?
I wasn’t quite sure if Scott was straight out talking nonsense, or if he had gotten his hands on proper information—somehow. If it was the former, he was doing a great job. I wholeheartedly believed him. After all, who would talk with such confidence about the combat exam knowing deep down that they were bullshitting and that the truth would come out in a few minutes? Even though Scott was weird, he did not look like someone who was prone to lying. That meant his information network was even better than Peter Zerog’s. That…was interesting, to say the least.
When there were still ten minutes to ten o’clock, almost everyone was in the arena. The voices around me grew louder, and my chat with Scott died down a little, but neither of us seemed to mind. Scott was busy with his Soulkin, while my focus switched to the World and Aureus. I inserted as much soul energy into Aureus as possible, silently begging the evolution would end in a few minutes. To my misfortune, it didn’t seem like the little glutton was quite done yet.
That was bad, to say the least, but Scott encouraged me. His presence, light chatter, and odd nature were weirdly calming. It was also quite nice that he exuded immense confidence even though his Soulkin didn’t enhance him physically. Despite the non-existent physical empowerment, Scott’s presence was powerful.
Was that the true value of body tempering? My physique was great, but clearly, I was nowhere near his level.
Or he lied, and Destiny is a shapeshifting beast of some sort. I don’t think I’d be mad at him for lying to me if that was the case. If anything, it’d be interesting. My eyes lingered on Destiny for a while, which the squirrel seemed to notice and enjoy. She turned to me and…posed.
“You are so alike,” I murmured. ‘So weird.’
Scott snickered but turned back to the podium in the center of the circular pit. The podium was most definitely not there a moment ago, but now it was, alongside a regal man, middle-aged with a shaved head, wearing military attire. The man, his chest pushed out and his expression blank and impossible to read, stepped forward. His footsteps swept through the arena in shockwaves of ether that silenced all sound.
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Several men and women wearing similar attire with a different color scheme followed the regal man and stopped several steps behind him.
“I am Commander Spencer, and I will be responsible for you today,” he said emotionlessly, his eyes directed at a single point on the other side of the arena. It didn’t even feel like he was talking to us, but that he was bantering with the arena walls. “I won’t see most of you after today, and I do not particularly care about you. What I care about is the Camp and mankind’s survival. Incident–XO358BPS should have shown everyone enough about mankind’s situation—our standing in the hierarchy of Razarn.”
He cleared his throat and finally turned his head to look at the retinues. “You will fight each other. Everyone will fight a total of four times. Fight like your life depends on it. Hesitation will kill you; if not today, it will be the nemesis of your life in the future.” His gaze landed on Scott, and I was certain his eyes lingered on him a moment longer than on the others. Then again, I was too stiff to count how many heartbeats he’d looked at anyone. “Healers are present to tend to your wounds.”
The people behind Commander Spencer, wearing brighter clothes, saluted when he mentioned the healers. Close to a dozen people, all of them being healers, had been prepared for the combat exam. What exactly did he think was going to happen today?!
I expected the Commander to talk about the rules, maybe to tell us that everything would be fine as long as we gave our best, but that last part was no more than wishful thinking. The Commander didn’t look like he’d accept weak people, and it did not appear like he had anything else to say. He walked off the podium, those following him striding behind. Commander Spencer leaped onto the walls and sat on the thick railing beside the nearest seat carved from stone, while his subordinates spread evenly throughout the circular pit.
Bright light sparked to life overhead, and I looked up to see azure particles materialize near the shadowy ceiling. The particles gathered and formed four screens: lists that displayed the upcoming fights of each round and when they were supposed to be held. Beneath the list was only one "warning."
Soulkins are not to be used in today’s exam.
That was... it? One rule, really?
“This is insane,” I muttered, shaking my head.
“Be careful,” Scott warned me from the right, and the ground around us began to shake.
The arena rumbled, and I tensed. Several people shouted something, but I focused on Scott and followed his gaze to weapon racks emerging from the ground. Then, dim glowing lines pierced through the sand-strewn arena, forming six large rings. My head flicked back to the lists hanging from the ceiling, and I understood when it was clear that the first six fights were due at 10:05.
A middle-aged woman, built like a bodybuilder in military attire, cleared her throat. She was either naturally loud or probably used ether to enhance her vocal cords as she silenced the Blessed around her. It was not as impressive as Commander Spencer’s footsteps had been, yet it was more than enough.
“Commander Spencer did not mind the risk and voted for giving all combatants proper weapons, if you didn’t bring yours.” She looked at several people as she spoke, including myself — her eyes lingering on my refined silvernit sword momentarily. “But you will have to use dulled weaponry. The weapons have been prepared, marked with non-lethal engravings as well as everglow, which will leave behind faint glows on your enemy on a successful hit. The intensity of the glow is determined by the severity of the wound the hit would inflict if your weapon had been sharp and deadly, meaning a faint glow on your chest is no more than a scratch, whereas a bright glow on your neck means your opponent successfully beheaded you.”
She clasped her hands. “Pick your weapon of choice, test it out, and prepare for battle. Do not hesitate to crush your enemies with your traits and weapons. My colleagues will ensure you will survive as long as your opponent does not kill you instantaneously, which I will make sure to prevent.”
It was strangely difficult to digest everything the woman said, and I stood there for a good moment. Scott slapped me on the shoulder, and my head flicked to him.
“I don’t know how many weapons you can wield proficiently, but if you want something resembling your sword, you should hurry,” Scott said, all while Destiny squeaked at me. The squirrel irritated me more and more; however, Scott was right. I was only used to the silvernit sword, which was probably a mistake now that I thought about it. However, it was not like I had the luxury to gain proficiency with dozens of weapons.
“Good point,” I muttered and rushed to the weapon racks.
Fortune graced me with its blessing as it didn’t take long to find a sword that was as light and balanced, and of the same length as the silvernit sword. Well, almost. It was not a perfect replica, as it was a few centimeters longer, but I’d get used to the extra range in a few minutes.
Scott walked up beside me, picked up a set of shortswords, and walked to the stone seating to sit down before the referees and healers could say anything. They ushered everyone but the twelve combatants who’d fight first to leave.
I took one last glance at the lists and burned the names of my opponents into my head. Fighting the first opponent blind was a nuisance, but I could watch the fights of my other opponents. Knowing my enemies would surely help me.
“Or not?” I shuddered as the first fight commenced. Well, calling it a fight might be a little over the top. It was a massacre, and it ended within seconds.
One guy, a little thin around the edges, charged a tall, slender guy with blinding speed... wielding a massive warhammer. He swung the warhammer as fast as he was running, his every motion calm and deliberate. His enemy didn’t have the slightest chance as the warhammer transformed into a flash. It connected with the poor guy’s chest, resulting in a cacophony of sickening crunches, and yanked him through the air.
Screams of pain filled the air, and they did not cease even as the referee caught the poor soul mid-air. He was still screaming as the healers reached him with their Soulkins, using their healing traits simultaneously.
“Good thing I’m used to pain,” I mused to myself, not quite sure if the combat exam was going to hurt more than Selene’s daily thrashing.
I sure didn’t hope so, but even if it did, it would be fine — as long as I won two fights. Or one? Maybe half a fight or a tie?