by Aaron Oster
“What the hell would you know?” Sarah mumbled, folding her arms under her chest and turning her eyes back to Gold.
He gave her a bemused look.
“I don’t know why you’re so angry with me, Sarah. Have I ever done anything to hurt you or Morgan?”
“No, but you stabbed Katherine in the back!”
“And she’s still alive, so no harm done,” he replied with a shrug. “Besides, I was unaware that you harbored such deep feelings of affection towards the Princess. Does Morgan have anything to worry about?” he asked, waggling his eyebrows suggestively.
“Screw you, asshole!” Sarah yelled, turning her attention back to the screen, just as there was another loud boom and Arnold exited the portal.
“Looks like our old friend Arnold has gotten the two-hundred and fifty point bonus for second place,” Gold said, still ignoring Sarah’s hostile glare.
Sarah looked back to the screen, watching Morgan running through a scorching wasteland, weaving in between tall protrusions of stone and looking for a fork in the path.
“He could have made it back by now,” she grumbled. “He’s the fastest in that entire group and has covered more ground than any of them. If someone wasn’t cheating, he would have made it out before any of the others.”
“Why are you so sure someone is cheating?” Gold asked. “Cheating in this tournament would be damn near impossible, even for me. He could just be lost and running into strong golems at random.”
“Because he keeps running into golems that are way stronger than the others!” Sarah responded.
“Ah, but you’re forgetting that Morgan is the lowest ranked in the competition. It could be that the golems are all the same, but he’s just having a more difficult time, due to his being the weakest.”
“I thought the same at the beginning, but not a single competitor other than him has run into a pedestal guarded by multiple golems.”
“Just bad luck,” Gold replied with a shrug.
“Whose side are you on!?” Sarah exploded once more.
“I’m merely pointing out facts. If you bring this to the judges, they’ll tell you exactly what I’ve said. It doesn’t matter how much you complain, they’ll just dismiss it.”
“But you said it yourself. Someone is cheating!”
Gold shook his hand back and forth in a so-so gesture.
“I didn’t say it, so much as hinted at it, but I’m sure you can piece it together.”
He rose from the couch, stretching out his back and letting out a soft groan.
“Let’s just say that the one cheating is very good at not getting caught, even by the most perceptive of beings. In fact, one might even say that they’ve been cheating since the beginning of time.”
It struck Sarah like a bolt of lighting.
“Samuel! That bastard outright threatened Morgan when he refused to back out! Is he the one behind this?”
Gold shrugged in response.
“Can’t say either way,” he replied. “But, I can tell you an interesting tidbit. Something in the rules of the Skyflare Tournament. Did you know that any competitor can increase their rank between matches so long as it doesn’t exceed the limit?”
He gave Sarah a wink then and walked towards the exit, hands clasped behind his back and whistling to himself. He vanished right before hitting the wall, and robbed Sarah of the pleasure of seeing him smack into it.
Her mind was racing though as she processed the information Gold had given her. He hadn’t exactly said it in so many words, but he’d basically told her to have Morgan raise his rank once the challenge was over. The reason was obvious if she thought about it. Morgan would undoubtedly lose this challenge and she would have no way of proving that it had been tampered with.
If, however, his rank were the same as the others and he still had a harder time, then she would have a legitimate complaint. A third boom sounded, and she watched as Marsha came through the portal. Surprisingly enough, she’d racked up enough to bump Arnold out of second place, even without the bonus of finishing before the others.
She turned her attention back to the screen, where Morgan was still making his way through the maze. Half his time was gone now, and she really hoped that he would make it out before it ran out. Otherwise, he’d lose even the measly amount of points he’d managed to cobble together so far.
36
Morgan removed his finger from the rectangular piece of metal, and tucked it back into his bag. He’d already managed to rack up a total of 680 points, but his time was beginning to run out. He’d been in the maze for over six hours now, and there was still no end in sight.
He’d heard the same loud booming sound two more times, and had figured that it was a signal that one of the competitors had found the way out. That meant that he’d already lost to at least one person, and possibly two. The last boom had sounded over two hours ago however, meaning that he’d had a lot more time to gather points than the others.
He took a right down an intersecting path, grimacing at his sore left elbow. His reiki had stopped numbing his pains about an hour ago, and he was now having to deal with the accumulated cuts, bruises and pulled muscles, all while fighting extremely challenging opponents and trying to find his way out.
Once, he figured he’d be smart and just not fight. He tried going for the sphere before killing the golem, but his hand had been so violently repelled, that he’d needed to use his reiki to dull the pain from the backlash. All in all, it was one of the best days of his life. He’d become so used to fighting against beasts that the change in pace was refreshing. Fighting against the golems wasn’t any less challenging than fighting beasts, but the battles were much different and varied wildly from one to another.
Some golems were human-sized, and he got to fight them as though he were facing a regular opponent, while others were more like that plant golem he’d faced at the beginning. Now however, he was starting to become worried as his time ticked away. Each time he came to a new intersection, he fought a new golem and collected a sphere, but no path led him to the center.
He left another circular area, this one filled with sand, and was about to head down another marsh path, when he suddenly came up short. Backing into the open area, Morgan looked at the other paths, noting that there was indeed another sand-filled path leading off from it.
Could it be that simple?
Until now, he’d taken a different path just about every time he came to one of these places. He’d figured the paths just told him what type of golem he’d be fighting once he came to an open space. But maybe there was something more to them.
Quickly checking the time, Morgan saw that he had seventy-eight minutes left before his time ran out. Nodding to himself, he tucked it away and used his skill, rocketing down the path. When he came to another opening eight minutes later, Morgan didn’t even bother stopping. His eyes moved around the area, ignoring the glowing blue sphere and alighting on the next sand path.
He shot past the golem, moving his hand down to his belt and using Nature’s wrath. The lighting gave him a nice boost to speed, though nothing on par with his Explosive impact. Still, it gave him extra speed while the skill recharged. He was forced to release it early as the strain on his body became too much after only fifteen seconds.
He could no longer cure his aches with his reiki, so he was forced to either begin tiring himself, or let the skill go. He went on like this for the next forty minutes, each time ignoring the golem and running along the same path. He passed several blue and red spheres, but never once a purple, which he found to be quite odd. By sheer chance he should have come across one by now. There had been too many on the map for him to have missed every single one.
Morgan could feel his breath becoming ragged, proving that even he had his physical limitations. If he could fly, this would all have been much easier, but as it was, he was beginning to flag. Stumbling into another open area, Morgan cast about for another path, then froze as the purple light coming from the pedestal ca
ught his attention. He hesitated for just a moment when he saw that, and a golem the size of a small building tore itself from the ground.
It was made of swirling wind and sand, its body forming into a roughly humanoid shape and standing upright. Morgan did a quick time check and saw that he was down to less than twenty minutes, however, an opportunity to gain a lot of points was sitting within reach. Even if he used a powerful skill, it would eat up at least three to four minutes of his time. The attack would also wear him out even more than he already was.
He wavered for just a moment, before cursing under his breath and turning to face the golem. The golem pulled its hand back, then punched, sending a blast of wind and condensed sand right at him. Growling, Morgan dodged to the side, but due to his fatigue, mistimed his movement.
A bloody furrow was torn from his left side, shredding the uniform and opening a deep gash. Morgan bit down on his lip to stay focused, even as blood began pouring from the open wound. He dodged another few attacks, waiting for his RP to hit the point he needed.
“About time!” he yelled as it finally filled to the point where he could use the skill.
He used Starbreaker, floating up off the ground as the swirling ball of yellow and orange gas formed on his palm. He launched the attack, watching as the golem was engulfed in a configuration of superheated gas, and heavy gravity. Landing back on the ground, he stumbled, groaning in pain as he tore his shirt off and bound his side tightly in an attempt to staunch the bleeding.
Jogging over to the pedestal, which was miraculously untouched despite the glowing crater of melted sand around it, Morgan placed his hand on the sphere. It vanished a second later, but Morgan didn’t take the time to check his total. He turned, running flat out down the sand path. His lungs burned and his injuries throbbed. His entire world was pain, but he kept on going.
As he ran, Morgan could feel that the level ground he’d been running on until now had started to become an incline.
Did this mean he was close to the center of the maze?
Despite his aching muscles, Morgan pushed himself harder, pounding up an ever increasing incline. He wasn’t sure how much time he still had, but he guessed that it wasn’t a lot. Finally cresting the hill, Morgan came to a halt, breathing hard and looking around. The area before him was wide open, and in the center, stood… A portal!
Morgan let out a whoop of joy, making a dash for the opening just a hundred yards away. He heard a rumbling then, and knew that some golem or golems were tearing themselves from the ground to attack him. Morgan used Explosive impact, flashing past the areas of ground that were beginning bulge outward.
He stumbled once, as he felt something in his right leg tear, but he managed to catch himself and keep going. The portal was so close, just a few more yards…
Morgan dove through the portal, emerging only seconds later into the still packed arena. The sound that hit him as he emerged was so loud, that it felt as though he’d been struck by a physical force. He stumbled, finally coming to a halt in the center of the massive arena.
“And Morgan makes it back with only two minutes and thirty-eight seconds on the clock!”
Morgan winced, turning tiredly to see the announcer standing on a now much smaller stage. He could see a small awning had been placed over the area as well, along with a table and chair. Flopping to the ground in a heap, Morgan tore the canteen from his bag, unstopping it and taking huge gulps of water.
“What a spectacle, ladies and gentlemen! Have you ever seen someone go for so long in a single challenge? Morgan may have collected the least points, but he has set a new record!”
Morgan stopped what he was doing and shifted his eyes over to the gigantic leaderboard displaying the point totals. Sure enough, he was in last place with a total of 780 points. The next one up was Arnold with 1,255 points. His eyes widened as he saw that and they widened even further as they traveled up the board. Marsha had collected 1,395 points and Sing had managed to get double his amount at 1,560!
Eric came running over as Morgan stumbled to his feet.
“How the hell did I come in last?” he asked, even as the man began healing him.
Eric gave him a pitying look, but just shook his head.
“You were the lowest ranked champion, so I can’t say I’m exactly surprised,” he replied in a low voice.
Morgan simply nodded, feeling too worn out by the challenge to do much else. He would have to talk with Sarah when he got back to the room. She had watched the entire match and would be able to tell him what had happened. Sing must have gotten 1,000 points from completing the challenge first, but that meant that she’d gotten the other 560 in about 2 hours. It had taken him over five to get that many!
It took Eric a few minutes to heal him, by which point the other three had been brought back into the arena. Morgan watched as the large stage rose around the smaller one, and the other champions lined up in their previous spots.
“Alright, that should do it,” Eric said, stepping back and wiping his brow. “I’ll meet you once the closing ceremony is over and escort you back to your room. Percival will be joining us, and I think you can also expect a visit from the Queen.”
He winced at that last one, and Morgan had a feeling that that particular meeting would be less than pleasant. He’d come in dead last, and not by a small margin either. He was trailing behind Arnold by nearly 500 points. That meant that he would have to come in first tomorrow, and by a massive margin to boot!
Walking back to the stage, Morgan reveled in the fact that his every step no longer caused him unbearable agony. He was still exhausted, so his walk up the stairs was more of tired shuffle. Finally making it to the top, he took his spot at the end of the line, noting the disdainful glares from Arnold and Sing, and the same indifference from Marsha. It didn’t bother him in the slightest.
He’d never been good at making friends, and these people were the last group he’d consider. If he ran into Arnold during a challenge, he might actually try to kill him out of principle. He held no animosity toward Sing, other than she was Simon’s sister, but until she actually did something, he wouldn’t bother her. And the same went for Marsha.
David congratulated Sing and the North Kingdom for a marvelous showing, then closed out the day by announcing a feast in the city held in honor of Sing, and sponsored by the North Kingdom. The cheers in the arena at that proclamation were so loud, that no one could hear David say that the second challenge would be held the next day at nine sharp.
Morgan turned to walk off the stage, when a voice from behind made him stop.
“Hey there, supermage!”
Morgan turned back, looking at Sing who was approaching with a swagger in her step.
“Can I help you?” he asked, not even making an attempt to be courteous.
He had food and a bed waiting for him, and he didn’t want to be held up any longer than he had to.
“I hear you know my niece. Would you happen to know where she is?” Sing asked, taking a step forward and coming into his personal space.
Morgan was instantly on guard, and tensed in muscles in preparation for a fight. However, he did not step back.
“Yes, I do,” he replied, meeting the woman’s gaze.
“You gonna tell me where I can find her?” she asked, after a few seconds. “Because her father is very worried about her.”
“No,” he replied simply. Then turned to leave.
He sensed a hand reaching for him and shifted his shoulder forward, so Sing’s hand passed through thin air.
“Hey!”
He heard her call out to him, but ignored her, walking down the stairs and heading towards Eric, who was standing on the far side of the arena.
His calm was feigned, but it was important to give off the impression that he didn’t care what she did. He had to make her believe that picking a fight with him here and now, was not a good idea, or at the very least not worth the trouble.
He could feel her eyes on him as he
walked and he activated Aura sense just in case she decided to attack him while his back was turned. Just because he was taking a gamble, didn’t mean he shouldn’t at least take some precautions. Thankfully, he met up with Eric with no further issues, and the two of them headed into a door built on the far side of the arena.
Morgan took one last glance back before he entered the door, and met Sing’s eyes. Her aura burned a bright red, and anger marred her features.
Yup, Morgan thought as he closed the door behind him.
She was most definitely related to Sarah!
37
“I’m so glad you made it!” Sarah exclaimed, throwing her arms around him, and hugging him tight as soon as he walked back into the room.
“Yeah, same here,” he wheezed, feeling the breath being squeezed from his lungs.
She stepped back from him a moment later, wrinkling her nose.
“You stink!”
“I would be shocked if I didn’t, after the amount of exercise I did,” he replied with a grin.
The door banged open and Percival walked in, trailed closely by Eric. He gave Morgan a once over, before tilting his head in the direction of the bathroom.
“The Queen will be here in ten minutes. I would recommend bathing before she arrives. She’s in a foul enough mood as it is, and I’d rather not upset her any more than necessary.”
“Are you going to explain as to how I lost by such a large margin, despite being in there until the time nearly ran out?” he asked, untying the tattered uniform shirt from around his waist.
“You’re the weakest here, so I can’t say I’m surprised,” Percival answered.
Morgan noticed Sarah giving him a worried look, and decided to ask her about it once everyone had left. Maybe she’d noticed something strange during the challenge that the others had missed.
“I honestly expected more from you, though, but we’ll talk later,” Percival continued, waving a dismissive hand at him.
Shrugging, Morgan did as he was told. In truth, he was in desperate need of a good bath. Despite him finishing the challenge nearly fifteen minutes ago, his body was still way too hot, and a cold bath sounded amazing at the moment.
