Rion had been brought to a particular council room with various other captains. Volain, Chester, and Milo were the only people he could recognize.

This was odd, given that he’d met all the captains and their co-captains during the briefings before the tournament. Irritation mixed with anger flowed through him as someone attempted to force emotions that weren’t his into him.

Kyrion would have taken a seat next to Volain if they hadn’t been set to fight each other in the next round. Instead, he took a position near the end that had yet to be filled.

An elven man with two long blades entered the room alone. His expression was resolute. “Captains of various teams! It has come to our awareness that a series of kidnappings have plagued the various academies participating in the tournament. As well as a few murders. The rules regarding alternates have changed, anyone under the tier of expert and capable of using magic, can participate.”

Silence shook the room.

“Second, due to an action against the academy of Dorhave, an entire team of practitioners have been discovered dead, right after their match, while another has been missing. Turning the remaining 16 teams into 14, two of those remaining teams have pulled out of the upcoming matches, due to members missing and fear. This is unprecedented in our time here, never have so many participants gone missing this late in. It appears that there are forces with ill intent at play. Due this the following changes have been made. A block will consist of in the division of matchups into large scale battles. Teams made up of three other teams will compete against another team of three. The winning teams will later compete against each other in a three way bout.”

A few gasps were let loose as the information was absorbed.

“I know. It’s different, now then, the splitting off will soon begin. Volain, Rion, Marduk, you will compete as team one. Marshal, Eriya, Song, you will make up team two. Chester, Milo, Sheeva, you are team three. Hawk, Zetrea, Wald, you three round out team four. Any questions? If not, I suggest making a battle plan.”

The elf soundly turned and left; he was not answering any questions.

Rion sighed and stood up to leave before a woman a few years older approached him.

“Rion sir, I am second in command under Marduk, our captain was one of the people kidnapped…So…”

“Good for you?” Kyrion asked.

“Not good for me! I don’t know what to do! We need a plan!” Not Marduk tried to shake Rion in her panicked state. It failed.

“Who are you?”

“Uriel. I’m my team’s healer and tactician. But I’m bad at fighting alone.”

Rion’s face looked disgusted. “Did you not train your body with healing magic? Can’t you heal yourself?”

“Why would I train my body? All I do is heal. I’m not really a combatant.”

“Who lied to you?” Kyrion raised an eyebrow.

“No one lied! Healers don’t fight! Even with the affinities getting past the mental block that makes my magic heal my opponent is near impossible.”

“That’s why you train your body!” Kyrion was getting so exasperated he forgot to act like Rion.

In one of those few instances, Violin could pick up that Kyrion and Rion were the same person and that this secret should stay a bit longer.

“Rion! We need go hunting for meat animals.”

“Meat animals?” Kyrion took a second to catch up.

“Words. Animals to eat, lots of meat. Sausages too. Enough two tribe.”

Krion realized that Volain was hinting at something.

“Meat Fire?”

“Meat fire.”

“Meat fire!” Kyrion and Volain yelled in unison before running out of the room.

Meat fire was an orcish custom where one or more tribes hunted as much meat as possible, butchered it all, and then cooked it over a large open fire. There were also vegetables, but they weren’t necessary unless humans participated. Because humans need their vegetables or something. Talking in the ancient orc dialect was also customary when referring to the Meat Fire. The meat fire was a two-day cooking event. First, the hunting, then the cooking. Finally, there was the eating.

“Who Meat Fire chef?” Rion asked after they

“Meat master?”

“I know Meat Master.” Kyrion nodded, remembering something about Bella’s background.

“Good.” The two continued to run as a distressed Uriel failed to keep up.

“Bella, Meat Fire!” Kyrion slid to a stop, landing between Cecil and Bella.

Bella slowly blinked. “What’s that?”

“Meat. Fire.” Volain said slowly.

“Not adding up.”

Kyrion grimaced as he uttered the longest-syllable word to describe this ancient orcish tradition: “Barbeque.”

Volain had never heard that word in his life. How could someone describe the Meat Fire in such a way? “Maku,” an orcish derogatory term for someone who used anything with more than two syllables when speaking of the meat fire.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

“How much meat will you be bringing?”

“All meat. Big lots. Meats.” Kyrion stretched his arms out.

“Rion, you’re interrupting something.”

Kyrion broke character as he was no longer talking about Meat Fire. “Listen, the fight tomorrow will be three teams against another three teams. The winners will fight each other two days later. Someone up top decided to put Volain and I on the same team.”

“Fire and water don’t mix, so…” Cecil raised an eyebrow.

“I’m more than aware of his current limitations.” Volain sighed as well.

“Ok good. Who’s the third team?”

“Hey.” Cough. “Wait up.” Wheeze. Uriel, despite being a practitioner, was heavily winded by that short three-mile parkour-filled sprint. She hadn’t even been chanting Meat Fire the whole time.

Rion’s eyes practically oozed the word pathetic.

“Is she?”

“As ignorant as an enemy.”

“Got it.” Cecil nodded as he put on his work face.

“What brings you here, Uriel? Did something happen to your captain?”

“Went missing last night, along with quite a few others.”

“Ah… Do you have a suspect?”

“No. Our captain isn’t that well known due to holding back his power. But he is a storm user.”

“Is that so? What’s with wind uses, lying about their abilities?” Kyrion sighed

“Not lying. Just not going all out when he doesn’t need to.”

“It's the Same thing in the end. If you die because you are holding back, then you are just a fool,” Volain said.

“Anyways. I’ll let you finish your date. Meat Fire!” Kyrion began to run away.

“What was that about? Your in a tournament why are you letting him date?” Uriel asked.

“Because it’s been a long time coming and it took her getting kidnapped for them to finally get it together. Also, I do love some wedding cake. Since there will hopefully be three weddings in the near future I can’t wait to get tired of it.”

“Who else?”

“Ander’s will probably be right after the tournament. His eighteenth birthday is technically in a week. He’ll also begin his graduation exam right before. Can’t seem to recall who it is. Something something thousand blades. Or something.”

“Technically?”

“He has a special case where he was raised in a remote area and has lived with his brothers since birth. Eighteen from the day his brothers started counting, they all share a birthday. So it’s likely he’s older.”

“Who’s in the third wedding then?”

“Who knows. I just want a third cake.” Rion noticed a shock of snowy white hair.

“Was all that talk back then just for a cake? I’m disappointed.”

“H-hey, I didn’t find out about wedding cakes until recently. Although…”

“We would also need to get blessings from both our parents.” Lin squinted as though she was looking for something.

“Hmmm? I doubt my parents will put up much of a fight in this matter. But I don’t recall meeting yours.”

Lin gave Kyrion a piercing look. “Interesting choice of words.”

“I have a few gaps in some of my memories. We’ll need to talk soon. But today isn’t that day.”

“Understandable. Trauma can easily be suppressed.”

“Is that so?”

“Meat. Fire.” Volain seethed.

“I must go hunt.” Rion bowed to Lin before turning and sprinting as fast as he could. He’d be sure to season Volain’s portion with a salty laxative Kyrion had long gained an immunity to. If Volain kept up his training, it would do little to him, aside from causing a minor inconvenience.

----------------------------------------

Cecil was walking back to the bedroom when a crab claw larger than two human heads attempted to decapitate him. Cecil managed to roll under the attack, drawing one of his guns.

“That’s a shame. I was looking forward to fast food.” A short, pink, pink-haired girl with yellow-slitted irises. She appeared maybe two or three years older than Eden, yet that power didn’t belong to any regular human.

Cecil scowled. “What are you?”

“Doesn’t matter. You won’t live enough to findout.” The creature charged at Ander, her form fading from sight.

Cecil spread some caltrops around before activating an animation spell. But it wasn’t enough.

The crablike claw took hold of Cecil’s and began to squeeze.

At that moment, a creature in black armor appeared and backhanded the pink beast.

The claw removed a layer of skin and flesh but left the rest intact.

The suit of black armor raised a lance made of the same material and stared.

White Fox appeared from the shadows and approached. “Apotrix, don’t go running off. Unless you want to end up in my legion. I don’t care who your parents are. You screw this up and the boss will be the one who punishes us.”

“You’re supposed to be younger, killjoy.”

“Besides, killing someone like him would be a waste and a detriment. I’d rather not be hunted to the ends of the universe.”

“I just wanted to taste his brain. I’d learn so much from it.”

“Humans need their brains.”

“And you wouldn’t have gotten enough time to use is. Look up.”

Apotrix looked up and, for the first time, noticed a series of experts looking down from above,

“You’re situational awareness is crap.”

“Coming from the toddler.”

“Fine. GO on, let’s pretend I didn’t interfere.” White Fox moved a bit away.

Apotrix raised her clawed arm and charged.

Cecil drew his mana gun. “Do you really not get the situation you’re in?”

White Fox received a plate of freshly baked cookies from somewhere and watched Apotrix freeze in confusion. The smell was intoxicating and new. Cecil then withdrew some blood and tested it before a curse was placed on the back of Apotrix’s neck.

“Half dragon, similar blood to Volain, slightly different fathers it sees. Shit!”

“And she isn’t the only one.”

“What?”

“The Bastards of Gios, a new unit that you’ll need to deal with.”

“As in Kyrgios?”

“Yup. I don’t care much for them as they aren’t anything like me. Mindless hunger and bloodlust. I know what I want.” White raised a cookie and left. “Do me a favor, don’t enter the next match, get your stuff ready for things like that! There will be more.”

Cecil looked up to the experts and scowled as they’d left.

Cecil then restrained the creature and called for the headmaster. He’d leave the integration to the professionals. He had work to do.

----------------------------------------

“Hey kid, come here. I have candy.” Said a pink-haired man with sunshades.

“Ok.” Bastion looked up curiously and decided that going to the stranger was a good idea.

Eden looked at Bastion as they shook her head. “Bad idea.”

Bastion ignored the suggestion. Strangers had good candy, in his experience—the kind that helped people find unicorns. At least those were the thoughts a telepath would pick up on with a surface reading. Any deeper, and one would wonder who the predator was in this situation.

“Excuse me, sir. What candies do you have? I have two copper.” Bastion was within grabbing distance when his gloves covered his left hand, which had been hidden in a pocket as he was digging for two copper.

“This is free candy.”

“My dad said not to take free candy. There must be trade.”

“You’re father may be wise. Or he may be a fool. Hey I won’t tell him if you don’t.”

“I’m in.” Bastion held out his left hand for the candy.

“Too easy!” The pink-haired man grabbed the outstretched limb.

“Oww! Why?” Bastion yelled in surprise.

“A man’s gotta eat. And you just happened to be dumb enough to approach.”

“Eat? You’re trying to eat me?” Bastion’s tone went from terrified to stupefied, but he ruined the act with an uncontrolled snort.

The pink-haired man’s arm grew scales as he brought Bastion closer to its mouth.

Bastion looked the man in the eye and sighed as he tightened his grip on the creature’s soul. “Devour.”

The pink-haired man fell limp as something vital to his survival had been ripped out. He was neither alive nor dead as his heart was still beating, and his brain was still active. Yet he would never walk again and expire soon enough, for the man had no soul or core. Even its draconic potential had been torn from it. No magic that could heal a soul would work as it required a sliver.

Bastion turned and began walking back to a confused Eden, only to trip over a pebble and fall flat on his face, cutting up one of his legs.

“Bastion!” Eden ran over.

“Can I go one day without tripping!” Bastion uselessly brought his hand to the ground.

“It looked like that pebble rolled into your path. You really have bad luck.”

“Let’s find Mr.Rion.”

“Before you do that, I have questions.” Drisil’s headmaster appeared from nothing.

“Ah so you were watching us.”

“I was not the pebble. But I must know, how old are you really?”

Bastion held out five fingers. “Around this many I think.”

“That…How did you do that to a man like that. I thought you just stole abilities.”

“My core is small due to my natural ability. My hand consumes all, the longer I hold the more I take. The smaller the creature’s current size the faster.”

“And that hair on top of your head? Some of it just changed colors.”

Bastion touched the strip of hair, and it faded from red to black. “Side effects from using this ability I think.”

Bastion did not maintain eye contact as he said that.

“I see. Who are these creatures working for?”

“I think they’re part of the other side’s incursion force, that or someone is sending people across the gap. They didn’t have a mana core.”

The headmaster passed Bastion a potion. “Quit looking for trouble.”

“Trouble has a habit of finding me.” Bastion sighed.

“Maybe it’s in your blood.” The headmaster smiled softly.