Open Chronicles The Schools of Magic[Elbion & Vel Anir]

[Phillipa Ebonheart]

The healer's opinion helped her gauge just what had happened. The small note of turning her head was not lost upon Phillipa as she examined the woman for a moment, a question forming in her mind as she figured out how to work her way there.

"I very much appreciate your efforts, and am glad that Miss Altas is such good hands. I am Phillipa Ebonheart, professor of the college. Has Professor Sigfrith been to see you yet?" Phillipa spoke in a softer tone but never lowered her voice, jumping between addressing the women by moving her head.

"As for your match I could not say explicitly what happened as Miss Orin had my attention while yours was going. However, I can speak with my associates that watched and give you feedback from not only my perspective, but also from other professionals. Now then-" She cut herself off and turned back to the other woman.

"I must ask, you are being compensated properly for your work, yes? Miss?" Phillipa asked the healer with a blank expression. The concern in her voice was genuine, but the undercurrent of her words set towards strangling event coordinators for this possible slight under Phillipa's nose.

 

[Isabeau]

Issy listened to Selina from behind and then her concentration was back on the woman who spoke. She began to study each way she pronounced her words and how they twisted in the air. She’d use all other senses to give an understanding of Lady Ebonheart character.

“You are far to kind, as the rightful appreciation is to the healers you have on the field, I am no more than a humble Herbalist that make items that help the healing process, no more, but it is a pleasure Lady Ebonheart, I’m Isabeau.”

She curtsied rather gracefully for someone who wasn’t born of noble blood, she’d rise keeping her expression of a smile.

“In a way, one of your gifted healers whom is a friend of mine, asked for some help keeping supplies and so I agreed, that was my payment, I know its odd, but I am fine at the moment and do not need coin, thank you Lady Ebonheart for making sure I am well cared for.” She replied.

Another cool breeze moved about the back of her neck as a voice whispered again as it swirled about her, Issy would gently turn and gently grab the plate of food and once more move toward the girl.

As the woman spoke, having already counted the steps from where she was to the girls bed side table, she was able to navigate without tripping and set the tray down beside Miss Atlas, giving her the option when she was hungry she access the food easily.

 

[Nicodemus]

While Nicodemus agreed with Sigfrith that the whole festival was a farce, he was happy they hadn’t decided to pitt measters against whatever the dreadlord equivalent was. Besides the potential for massive destruction and damage to people and property he had more personal worries. With his luck a maester would be sick and before he knew it he’d by happenstance be stuck defending the honor of the Elbion College in the circle. Risking his body and brain for the entertainment of the common man. It was hard to imagine a more humiliating and meaningless way to die.

“It is a waste of time and resources that could have been better spent elsewhere.” Nicodemus agreed. “Not to mention the risk to the students, so no. I’m not going to watch.” Declining to go into the fact that he mostly just couldn’t stomach the smell of food or the crowd of people. It might seem petty, better to give a favorable impression to a maester. He never knew when he’d be working with him or a project would depend on his agreement.

As maester Sigfrith carried on Nicodemus couldn’t help but nod along. He had never seen a hill giant, but he was very much aware of the ego youth brought with it. After all it took one to know one. It could certainly had the potential to lead to actions that would later bring regrets. Most likely it’d be the students regretting testing the maesters tent, but knowing him it wouldn’t be fatal. Just a lesson in bruised bones and a bruised pride. A favour mostly, considering they were unlikely to get a nicer teacher out in the real world.

They seemed like quite the bloodthirsty and battle ready lot to Nicodemus. So a lesson in picking your fights and not going out of your way to make the entire world your enemy seemed valuable. Without it, they’d turn into the kind that would pick fights just for the hell of it. People like the once Nicodemus prefered to avoid, regardless if they were friends or allies. Either they’d create trouble or trouble would find them. While he himself had little contact with either students or teachers belonging to the dreadlord academy he could sympathize with taking precautions.

Even more so if you happened to have the audacity to be born something else than human, while they styled themselves as defenders of humanity and what not he suspected they were much more on the attacking side than the defense. Zealots the lot of them, they had their uses sure, but like a guard dog you didn’t pet them. You only allowed them off their leash when shit was going down. All in all he was more in the live and let live, as long as they don’t bother me camp.

“Do you have any students participating” Nicodemus asked as he bent down to look closer at the runes.

 

[Harry]

HELP
Talus​

Henry, who was always quite aware of his surroundings, did not even see the Archon arrive. He, like Talus, had only been made aware of his presence when he addressed the two of them.

Hal choked up when Crane said his name. Even if the older Apprentice wanted to speak, no sound would be able to leave this throat. A cold sweat struck Hal, and he had to clamp a hand down on his left thigh to stop it from violently shaking.

He would occasionally hear some of the words Crane spoke, but most of the Archon’s words fell on scared, deaf ears. When he asked for an explanation, Hal was in no state to give one. However, he knew silence was worse than whatever meaningless excuse his mind could formulate. Regardless of his answer, valid or not, Hal thought nothing would change whatever punishment the Archon would administer.

He opened his mouth so speak, but his teeth grit together as his mouth snapped close. A sharp pain spread through his body. He hunched over slightly where he sat, fingers digging into his left leg as he bore with whatever the Archon was doing to him.

“Apologies, sir,” He strained, and looked up to meet the Archon’s gaze. He had managed to scrape together what little courage he could just to speak to Crane. As he resumed, he looked back down to the dirt. He just couldn’t speak while looking into those soulless eyes, “Due to the nature of the competition not being a straightforward duel, I underestimated my opponent’s ability to quickly take down the beast.”

He grimaced as the pain intensified. Whatever the Archon was thinking was a mystery to Hal. He was simply trying to keep his senses through the pain.

 

[Talus]

HALP
Henry Bauer

The Archon chuckled.

"My son did say that you were a pathetic bunch."​

Idrig Crane stared at the two students for a moment, his gaze piercing them with needles. Talus could barely see straight, his vision starting to swim as he tried to pull himself together and breath. His voice failed him as he attempted to speak, the agony too much.

How the hell had Hal managed it? Was he receiving less torture? Why? It didn't make sense. He breathed, forcing himself to at least catch a bit of air in his lungs as the Archon continued to berate them.

"Well, I suppose one of you at least technically did as you were told."​

Idrig chuckled.

Was Crane referring to him? He had fought to a draw...not victory. A groan of pain escaped him, and then just as suddenly as the pain came it washed away. The needles disappeared from his flesh, all the hurt vanishing at once.

It was the most relief Talus had ever felt. "Krasseth."

The name of the ancient god left him involuntarily, the only slur that he could think of as he managed to finally pull in a full breath.

"I'll give both of you another chance."​

The Archon said, Talus glancing up at him to see an expression of grim amusement. His fingers curled in the first and he looked at the other man expectantly.

"These victories will certainly have gone to their heads. We can't have them walking away from this competition with smiles on their faces."​

Talus stared at the man.

"Tomorrow you will be fighting alongside one another in a maze. The First group through wins. I think it best if one of their students not make it out."​

Lips thinned as he spoke the words, the Apprentices eyes fixed on the Archon. It was a clear message, and he couldn't help but look over towards Hal to see his reaction.

 

[Selina Della Altas]

Selina reached out and took some food. She was feeling better and better by the minute so she tested herself and sat up, swinging her legs over the side of the bed as she bit into a chunk of bread. She was thoughtful still, her mind working to correct her various mistakes.

She had come ill prepared for a combat based tournament. She had a few evocation spells memorized but they were not very effective, so she made due with spells that did other things, protecting her opponent and enhancing his abilities to give him more of an edge in his fight. The challenge of that tournament was who would finish first... But also in who would BE finished first. If either he or she had fallen to their respective manticore, it left the remaining contestant to face two Manticores at once, which would surely have ended either of them.

But still, using a shatter spell? That was overkill and it might have killed her in the process, it was a reckless move. But it was still effective. The parameters of the shatter spell only specified that it be cast on a chosen point, choosing a point inside the creatures body was certainly the best option. Even so, any one of her other spells would have been just as effective fired into the mouth and out the brain of the Manticore.

As she ate the bread she found her spellbook and began leafing through it, examining her spells. Flame Thrower would have been a good choice to cast again, or even Lightening Bolt. At east she could have escaped without being knocked unconscious and sent to the medical tent.
Perhaps it was time to learn a new spell. She could only do so much with the way things are now, she had to improve herself.

 

[Ryan of Tel Idris]

Fuming that he had been sidelined for the first of the bouts, Luther jeered from the tents as he watched Sierra’s competition unfold.

“Kick his green arse!”

 

[Phillipa Ebonheart]

Phillipa initially nodded to the blind woman, and mentally cursed herself for the force of habit. "As it pleases you then." The professor allowed the subject to drop for the time being and left the tent, intent on finding her colleagues to speak with about Selina's match.

 

[Harry]

SCARY ARCHON SCARES TWO KIDS
Talus​

Hal could only stare down as Crane spoke to the pair. However, when the Archon mentioned the maze, the Apprentice couldn’t help but look up. His demeanor was stoic, but waves of confused emotions swirled about.

They’ve killed before, sure. But, he’s only killed convicted men. Criminals set to be executed. He’s beaten on fellow Apprentices to administer punishment, but every time he’s killed, they’ve been deserving.

What Crane proposed was...

Hal believed that they were being harshly trained to be effective soldiers, not some bandits. He had been able to persevere by convincing himself of this. Even though their training was hard, cruel, and even unfair, he thought that there was some honorable reasoning for it.

He realized that his optimism was pure naiveté. With the order of this man that stood at the summit of their kind, the fragile shield that protected Henry’s strong will cracked.

With balled fists and through gritted teeth, Hal looked back down and answered.

“Of course, Archon.”

He fought the urge to shed tears. It wasn’t grief, nor was it sadness that assailed the young man. It was anger and frustration regarding his own weakness. His helplessness to protect himself, and especially to protect his friend that knelt next to him.

The man before him had freedom. His mere presence forced others to pay him mind,
to respect him. He had power, not only of the martial kind. He had power over people. To control them on words alone.

Then, for the first time, Hal wished for such power for himself.

 

[Ukrit Nahr]

Forward, back, left and right, Ukrit was surrounded. The growls of what were supposed to be his targets audible. Goosebumps rose up on the half-orcs skin out of sheer nervousness. He couldn’t even tell how many had surrounded him due to whatever was cloaking them. Looking down to the snow the only prints Ukrit could see were his own. Mouth growing dry, his right-hand twitching as he reached the second level of costs for his magic. The cost racking up far more quickly than usual due to the energy bow. He had to either end the competition soon or risk the consequences growing worse.

There was a quick growl and a snap coming from his right causing the hybrid to pull back a half step. Where his leg had been he could hear the jaw of one of the wolves snapping shut. Who had decided on a challenge like this? Was it Vel Anir? Was it the college? Either way, Ukrit was finding himself quickly despising whoever had thought it was a good idea. Limiting it to archery as well?! They truly wanted someone to die.

That step back Ukrit took landed him in hot water, having thought he’d avoided an attack he felt his calf buckle from a sudden stabbing sensation. Mouth opening, Ukrit howled in a way only an orc could. Attempting to jerk his leg away he found himself pinned in place by his assailant. Another quickly pouncing upon him. The hound’s teeth sank into Ukrit’s left forearm this time, the one that held and channeled the bow.

In all his years at the academy, through his attempted training from his adoptive father Ukrit had never felt such agony. Charcoal eyes looking to the sky the hybrid felt his blood leaving his body. Not enough to cause him to go directly into shock but still more than he’d like. The hybrid was tiring of the games, and his life being on the line. The competition meant little if he died.

Having dropped his concentration on the bow, Ukrit focused on his heart. The beating of it within his chest. How labored it was, and from there he began to focus the blood flow. His heart taking on more stress bolstered by the orcish blood magic. The blood flow throughout Ukrit’s body increasing significantly, a majority of it to his limbs. On the outside, the half-orcs skin flushed to a deep blue. The capillaries in his eyes popping leaving bloodshot orbs behind. The blood vessels across his body stood out, his muscles increasing slightly in size.

Right hand darting to the wolf clinging to his left Ukrit seized the beast around the neck and squeezed. There was an audible series of cracks that pierced the air. The sound of bones being shattered, and upon glancing it was obvious it wasn’t Ukrit’s. The wolf’s body suddenly went lip, its jaw coming free tongue lolling. Using it as a club Ukrit spun bringing it up.

A third wolf that had been coming in for the kill was unfortunately batted away with its companion. Ukrit released the corpse from his grasp and sent them careening into the snow a yelp escaping the living one.

 

[Sigfrith Runecarver]

Nicodemus

"Hrmm," Sigfrith agreed, putting the final touches on the rune wards around the tent. It created a full circle around and despite the usage of simple runes, they were linked in such a way as to create quite a complex result for those who would intrude upon it or attempt other mischiefs. A bit of a shockwave to throw people back and runes of marking to identify the culprit by turning their skin a sickly green. "Never expect mages to spend resources wisely," the Dwarf said at a moment.

He paused and stretched, cracking his back from the work along the ground. "Aye, one. Selina Altas, I think is the only I taught in some form now competing." He frowned for a moment. "Hopefully she survived. So what are you filling your time with here in that case?"

 

[Talus]

ARCHON GO NOW, KIDS JUST MURDERERS ITS FINE
Henry Bauer

The Archon smiled at the both of them, glancing between Hal and Talus for a few seconds before he finally nodded his head as if satisfied.

"Good. Perhaps you'll prove my son wrong."

With that, Idrig Crane turned around and began to walk away as though nothing at all had happened. The man even had the gall to begin whistling. Talus stared after him, fingers still clutching the side of his abdomen as he considered what he'd just heard.

The Archon wanted an Elbion student dead, or at the very least no longer walking. An 'accident' as it were. Talus and Hal both knew he didn't want outright murder, at least not anything that could be linked back to Vel Anir.

When Crane had finally gone far enough to be out of earshot Talus spoke. "Holy shit."

It was all he could think to say.

"Shit." He said again. "Shit shit shit."

In truth Talus wasn't as upset about the prospect of murder as Hal, in fact he had always assumed that it would happen sometime on this trip. What upset him was the method, or rather the fact that they did not have one.

How the hell were they supposed to kill someone without starting an international incident? Without getting blamed for it?

 

[Sierra]

Head snapped up at the howl from the half orc. Teeth grit as her arrow bit into another wolf. Her position on the tree was precarious but it was working for now.

Sierra was surprised the teachers of Elbion hadn’t called that match yet with the injuries to Ukrit. They must be confident in their healers’ abilities to keep any long term damage from settling in. Sierra didn’t have time. And perhaps the half orc didn’t either.

If she lost this match, she knew Igot Crane would come visiting. The son to one of the most feared and powerful archons at the academy. And she hadn’t liked the way he’d been looking at her lately. The things he’d whispered to her under his breath. Feeling his predatory gaze at the back of her neck. And she hadn’t had the courage to tell Luther, Hal, or Talus about it yet.

Stomach flopped.

There were wolf prints surrounding her opponent. Shifting her arrow, she pulled her arm back. She’d have one chance to get away with this. One chance to end this match. Exhaling, arrow loosened.

It might look like she was trying to help him out. Help kill one of the wolves around him. But in reality, she was shooting at him.

Specifically, his butt.

 

[Selina Della Altas]

Selina turned to a note filled page of her spellbook. It was a spell that she was trying to make but certain things didn't make sense to her about it... Until now.
It seemed to her that learning and experiencing the dangers of magic provided the insight she needed to complete the spell.

Grabbing another piece of bread and a chunk of cheese she tested her legs to see if she could stand. Finding her legs sturdy enough she stood up, closing her spellbook with her finger in it to save the spot.

She bowed her head to the herbalist, "Thank you so much for your help. I think I am fine now. I have a lot to think on a to study. Your hospitality has been a great help!"

 

[Harry]

ARCHON, ARCHGONE
Talus​

"Where's your appreciation for a visit from The Calamity himself?" Henry hissed at his friend. His attempt to quell the rising frustration was futile, and he did not intend to lash out at Talus. It was unlike him.

He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his thighs and resting his chin on his interlocked fingers. Henry knew that there was no escaping Crane's order. After a moment of staring at the dirt, he looked up at Talus.

"We have no method. The blame will surely fall to us. We won't even know the details of the maze until we're in it," His leg bounced as his mind was deep in thought. His expression suddenly lit up, and his eyes met Talus', "How about we assist each other and slit both of our throats now?"

After the sardonic jest, he slumped back down, expression darkening again. The situation was far from ideal. They would eventually have to inform Sierra and Luther.

 

[Talus]

Apprehensive Apprentice Assassins
Henry Bauer

One might have thought the two apprentices were being dramatic, but the truth of it was they were well and truly screwed. His fingers flexed slightly, running through a dozen different scenarios of how they could actually so this.

Talus had always been decent enough of at strategy. On the war games they played at the Academy be typically scored one of the three top spots, but right now every single move they could make seemed like a bad one. His stomach churned slightly and he glanced towards Hal. He saw the hopelessness in that gaze, his teeth sinking into the Inside of his lips in thought.

"How much of your magic did you show during your bout?" Talus asked quietly.

He'd not had the time to watch Hal fight, but knew that in his own match he'd only used his abilities once while shrouded in a cloud of dust. No one could have seen what he'd done, and if they did it would leave them questioning anyway.

The Proctors had never had a name for what Talus could do, and he doubted that Elbion had much of an idea either.

Before they launched into anything, he and Hal would have to figure out what their actual position was. It would form how the rest of all of this would go down if it even could go down in the first place. They needed a plan. They needed to do something.

Otherwise Crane really would put them on a cross.

 

[Harry]

Skeptical Soldierly Students
Talus​

He straightened up when Talus asked the question. His outward appearance gave the impression that whatever wave of anger or frustration washed over him had passed. Hal appeared to be normal. He looked up at his friend, and sighed.

"They know that I use ice, though I only used my magic once- at the very end. It was nothing large, so I believe I am safe there." He couldn't mask the usage of his magic like his friend. Henry was confident that the bout could have been over with one wave of his hand, but the result would have been contrary to what the Proctors wanted.

He wrung his hands and again looked down, deep in thought. He did not think of their situation. He did not think of the tournament. His thoughts were set on himself and his future. He was pleased with his progress as an Apprentice. He was becoming stronger as each day passed.

Hal realized it wasn't enough.

 

[Alistair Wren]

Alistair watched from the sidelines.

Sierra took aim, her arrow pointed at the wolf. Hand curled into a fist, Alistair recoiled, turning away as the arrow pointed towards Ukrit. He only hoped it hit its' intended target. The crowd cheered and booed, and all Alistair could do was watch as his colleagues were put up against these brutes. Opening one eye, he looked at the arena and winced at every hit Ukrit took.

"Come on, Ukrit, you can do it!" He said, breath strained and brow creased.

Withdrawing his hands from the railing, he turned around sighed, regretting the day that was to come. He couldn't just stand around and do nothing. He was antsy, and his empathetic sense were going mad with the emotions seeping from the contestants.

Tomorrow all the students would be going into a maze. Picking up his case, Alistair walked to a corner of the spectator stands where he set it, and went about practicing his skills before the big day ahead.

Ukrit's round was nearly over and he was ready to heal him, but opted to practice in the meantime. Splaying out a palm, he whispered an incantation, bringing a tiny figure to life.

 

[Talus]

Concerned Concentrating Conspirators
Henry Bauer

Lips thinned for a moment. His thoughts were of course much the same. Had he been allowed full use of his magic the bout would have been over in just a few seconds, but he'd instead used simply College Magic Tricks.

It bothered him, but in that moment he tried not to think about it.

Instead he considered their options. Killing one of the Elbion Students wasn't hard, it was making sure no one suspected them at the end of it that proved to be the real difficulty. A hand ran through his hair as he thought. "We need to know what kind of maze it is."

Talus said quietly.

"If it's made of stone...perhaps a wall topples." He glanced at Hal. "Hedge maze? Perhaps there's a fire..."

That was the path.

They had to make it look like an accident, circumstances that could not be addressed. That was the only way they would make it out of this.

 

[Ukrit Nahr]

The sounds that had once surrounded Ukrit began to grow mute as his sense of hearing was leaving him. The costs of his blood magic taking their toll on the half-orcs large body. Wincing at the bits of pain, and the knowledge that he was still losing blood the hybrid retreated two steps. Prompting one of the wolves to leap at him, Ukrit spun on his heels catching the wolf in his open arms and closing them. Much like what would happen to a human caught in the grasp of a stronger foe Ukrit wrapped his arms around the beast and squeezed. His chest muscles flexed as his forearms, biceps and even triceps flexed pulling in fully intending on snapping the dogs ribs and spine. At least that was the goal.

Sprouting from Ukrit’s left cheek was an arrow that dug deep enough to penetrate through muscle, fat and even managed to reach bone before breaking. The front half of the arrow protruding through the left side of Ukrit’s thigh the end still firmly planted in his butt. There were many pains in the world, this was a new one to Ukrit. Worse than any wolf bite. His grip loosened as his legs instinctively gave out the limbs that had once kept him upright giving out.

THE MATCH IS OVER! UKRIT NAHR SEEMS TO HAVE TAKEN AN ARROW FROM HIS OPPONENT! The announcer shouted over the crowd. Some shocked gasps, others chuckling, and some outright laughing at the half-orcs misfortune. Around Ukrit’s body and even Sierra’s translucent barriers were created protecting them from further assaults from the wolves.

Laying flat on the ground Ukrit leaned his head back looking at Sierra from where he lay. Had that been a purposeful shot? Biting his lower lip Ukrit didn’t fight as the proctors came and lifted the half-orc onto a stretcher and carrying him off. Each time the stretched jostled even a little was torture to the hybrid. It was at this moment Ukrit swore he’d get answers or vengeance. Whichever came first.

Now that the fighting was over Ukrit could finally relax, the blood vessels retreating back to their natural state and his skin turning to the myriad of greens it once was. Though the wounds Ukrit had stopped bleeding as he controlled the blood to clot around those areas till he got a healer.

 

[Nicodemus]

Nicodemus couldn’t do much more than sadly agree with the statement about resources and the poor use of it at times. While the College’s coffers were quite deep he had still gotten a large amount of travel and material requests denied in the past. It was almost enough to make him apply for a higher position so he'd get a larger budget, almost. Which made him even more resentful about the whole festival when he chewed it over. Who were they to decide that an observatory made out of silver and beskar metal was too large an expense for the annual budget? All his carefully crafted arguments about the benefits to both astronomy and barrier research had fallen on deaf ears. Truly a sad day for science everywhere.

“So far the time has been filled with cheap beer and meat. I’d urge you to stay away from the meat though.” Nicodemus said in response as he leaned closer to look at the runes Sigfrith had just finished sculpting, his stomach giving a small growl. Clearly the meat was still performing its curse on his innards.

The runes promised a punishment less severe than he had expected, even given the supposed friendly nature of the event. Might very well have been better to break a few bones to make a point of strength as well as injuring their pride. At least then they’d be more worried about coming back for seconds, while an injured pride alone would make them come back twice as heavy he suspected.

Youth and pride would see to that, hopefully Sigfrith realized that as well. It was better to knock an opponent out than to taunt them in Nicodemus’ opinion. Either way it wasn’t really his fight and he figured it wasn’t really his place to comment about how others choose to guard themselves. Especially not somebody who was his senior and could stir up trouble for his research. Better to remain civil and wait for the event to pass.

 

[Alistair Wren]

The announcer cried out that Ukrit had taken an arrow.

Just as he was controlling the tiny figure in his palm, Alistair sprung up. His heart leaped into throat when he saw Ukrit stumbling out of the area with an arrow sticking through his thigh and out his backside. Eyes wide, Alistair inhaled a deep breath, shook a little, then grabbed his case. He clutched his robes as he darted through the crowd. He made his way to entrance of the tournament grounds, where Ukrit was stumbling towards him.

"Shit! Shit! Shit!" He cursed, sputtering everywhere as he set down his case. He ushered over a few servants from the college, who lay Ukrit on a stretcher on his side.

"It's okay, it's okay, I'm here," Alistair cooed, chest heaving up and down as he stroked Ukrit's side, "oh fuck, she got you right in the arse," he sputtered. He rarely cursed, not unless the situation was particularly dire, which it was.

The attendants lifted Ukrit up and carried him to the healing bay. Grabbing his case, Alistair followed them to a small tent on the edge of the tournament grounds. Once Ukrit was laid onto a bed, Alistair began the delicate process of removing the arrow. He didn't flinch once as he peeled off Ukrit's trousers. He was more concerned with treating him before an infection took hold. Gently, he gripped the arrow and held his breath, then pulled it out.

"Ugh, that bitch," he cursed, throwing it down. It hadn't looked like an accident. Sierra had been aiming at the wolf, but Ukrit had conveniently been in the way.

Opening his case, Alistair grabbed a clean rag, soaked it in disinfectant and gently dabbed the wound in his colleague's rear end.

"Hold still, I'll get you fixed up in no time," he cooed, preparing a potion with his other hand as he dabbed the wound.

Ukrit Nahr

 

[Talus]

(This post will feature a minor timeskip to the next morning, if your characters are still involved in other stories feel free to continue them in your posts. This is just so the competition can keep going.)

Henry Bauer | Sierra | Luther Urahil

Talus stood quietly on a small platform with his fellow Dreadlord Apprentices. There were six of them in all, himself, Hal, Sierra, Luther, and two others who were in their class. Nickolas and Alloi were their names, neither were particularly close with the rest of the group.

The former had a problem with Luther, and the latter had always wanted to shank Talus in the back while he wasn't looking. It was something acutely aware of as Alloy stared daggers at him across the platform, her bright blonde hair half covering her face.

He glanced at her, then turned to Sierra and the rest of his...friends. "We clear on everything?"

Talus had not given the details of his and Hal's previous conversation with Idrig Crane with the two either Nickolas or Alloi. He could not trust them to do something foolish, and if he was going to risk his life with this, there was no way he was going to make this even harder.

Already, just off to the left of him, he could see the maze.

It was a massive thing, sprawling a few square miles and constructed of stone. The Maestars and Dreadlords had likely worked together on building it, summoning it over night and casting some sort of web over it so that flight over the structure itself was impossible.

The rules were simple; first group to reach the cup at the center would win. No directly harming the other contestants, but everything else went.

Simple enough, but Talus had an inkling that things would be a bit harder than just finding the end of this maze.

Especially for him and the others.

 

[Sierra]

If Sierra felt bad about what she’d done to the half-orc, she didn’t show it. I’d anyone sniffed out remorse from Vel Anir, she’d be lashed at least thirty times. It was Crane senior who met her outside of the arena as she caught a glimpse of Ukrit being stretchered off.

Sierra clenched her jaw to keep the fear from showing.

He wore a pleased expression on his face and quickly guided her back to the Academy tents.

That was even scarier.

“You did well, Sierra. I can see why my son speaks so highly of you.”

The girl wanted to throw up a little but held it in and maintained her gaze with the feared Archon.

“There’s talk of disqualification but we will sort this out. They can’t prove an accident.”

His smile slivered into something sinister before he offered her a subtle nod and left the tent. Sierra found that her hands wouldn't stop removing.

 

[Sigfrith Runecarver]

Nicodemus

Sigfrith turned and raised an eyebrow at the youth's comment about the foods. "Avoid meats?" His eyes wrinkled in concern as he inspected the lad. "Did something ye eat disagree with you? There are Dwarven arts for such things, though they are far more mundane than most care to study at Elbion."


A bit of mischief gleamed in his eyes. "Or... perhaps such meats as you ate could be deployed strategically. Tell me, which ones did you eat? And perhaps we could have them delivered by a messenger." An ancient finger tapped his temples. "Nearly two centuries have taught me that the best victories are the ones your enemies never realize were a battle."

He stroked his beard for a few seconds as he considered. "Reckless, certainly. But it can undermine Vel Anir without anyone realizing they were undermimed."