There were three deaths in the arena. They were two selkie and one human. There ended up being over sixty challengers. Challenge day stretched into Challenge days, since it took three days to work through everyone. The rate was about one death a day, although there were actually two deaths the first day, one the second and none the third. The selkie let the arena take the body. The selkie companions retrieved only the warrior's weapon to be returned to their family. The body vanished under the reset wave.
The human warrior’s body was retrieved and carried back to Home Square with full ceremony. There was a little cemetery in the green to the side of the square’s entrance. All of Home Square’s dead were buried there the same day they died. Everyone knew the structure still absorbed the bodies, but the idea that they rested nearby was a comforting one to many.
The selkie won mail armor made out of rings of glass. Grandmother wondered if Harry would try to get a set of it for display too. Ellen and Kai were both trying to get a selkie winner to let them at least hold the pieces for a minute in hopes that it would open the pattern for them.
Enchanter showed up the morning of the Challenge with the Seagrass Elder keeping watch on her. Enchanter handed out selkie dolls to every human child who approached her. The children quickly figured out they were enchanted with a float spell that made them travel large distances when tossed. Enchanter described the dolls as swimming in the air.
Todd’s food cart business did incredible sales. He stocked the built-in shelves on the cart with food and added a portable stove. The table was his preparation surface. He sold the food rolled in giant leaves. Grandmother asked where he got the leaves. He told her he bought them from Muriel in OpenSky. He handed the cart off to one of Innkeeper's daughters in the afternoons before going back to Home Square to prepare dinner for the Inn. He admitted they were getting dangerously low on beer at the end of the second day.
Alex talked Grandmother into packing six selkie beds into bags small enough to be carried through the transportation system. He paid her most of the packing fee for the service. These bags were just large gathering bags with no enchants on them, although they were equipped with leather straps to hold them shut during transport. Alex bought the bags from Ellen and included the cost in his packing fee.
The butcher ran out of meat and came looking for Grandmother. Grandmother transferred another six days worth. Enchanter and Ray-Do-So both loved Grandmother’s dishes. They were shocked to learn they were made by the potter in their own square.
Harry updated his list on the wall with notes on if the challenger won, lost or was killed. Selkie in the audience started putting their names in for the next Challenge day, at the end of the first day. They were impressed with the guards ability to keep anyone not killed outright alive. Arnie told each challenger who lost a limb his group’s charge for regrowing it. Several selkie planned to stay in the square for the service.
The entire event was a huge learning experience. Grandmother remembered herself saying she didn’t want the flavor of the square to change not that long ago. She suspected the square had just been reforged. She decided if she didn’t like what came out the other side, she would talk Joe into switching squares with her.
Grandmother, Todd, Enchanter and Ray-Do-So took the night portal shift on the last day of challenges in the arena. The crowd of selkie heading out was impressive, there were a couple hundred waiting minimum. Ray-Do-So was sending all the residents of Seagrass back for free, because she owned the crystal there. Selkie going to other destinations had to pay their own way. Ray-Do-So didn’t want to send everyone back to Seagrass, even though the jump from there to their final destinations would be much cheaper, because she didn’t think her portal keeper could handle the load alone. Grandmother made a note to remember that in case the situation was ever reversed. She thought the goodwill generated would pay for any short term hardships. If she planned ahead the hardships might be minimized.
A second transportation room across from the first opened up after they pushed twelve selkie through, back to back. They split into two teams, Todd and Ray-Do-So manned one room, while Grandmother and Enchanter manned the other. After another twenty four travelers were sent, twelve in each room, another room opened. Thirty six later and a fourth room appeared. They didn’t add any more rooms after that. Grandmother wondered if it was because there were no more operators available. Maybe she should have called every tier four up for service. It took them nearly six hours to pass everyone through.
Grandmother wasn’t certain how all the selkie got here, although she knew from Harry that they started turning up six days before Challenge day. Grandmother’s pockets were full of physical coins. All the crafters were so happy when Grandmother said she’d take the shift, they were going to think twice about it when they started calculating the tips.
She would make sure Todd counted his earnings in front of Innkeeper. When the news of how much he made got around, the shopkeeper’s would be fighting over the shift next Challenge day.
“That was the last one,” Ray-Do-So said as she came out of her assigned transportation room.
“Do you think all these new rooms will disappear?” Todd asked. Enchanter translated the words into selkie for Ray-Do-So.
“No,” Ray-Do-So replied. “There are twenty four transportation rooms at Whitewater.”
“Twenty four!” Grandmother exclaimed.
“She can’t believe there are twenty four,” Enchanter translated.
“Yes, twelve on two floors. Whitewater has a double layer of shops, there is an exit on each level,” Ray-Do-So responded. “There is a reason it is our capital. Come, Enchanter, let's go home. I didn’t expect to be away for so long.”
“Do you want the fees?” Enchanter said, offering a handful of coins she pulled from a pocket.
“No,” Grandmother replied. “The two of you earned them.” Enchanter dropped the coins back into her pocket.
“I enjoyed it,” Enchanter said to Grandmother. “I don’t think I’ll come next time, but I will come again.”
“I hope there will be less interest next time around,” Grandmother confessed. “Now that all the curious have already given it a try and everyone knows you can die in the arena.”
“Don’t count on that,” Enchanter replied. Enchanter picked up her possessions from where she stored them in the first transportation room. Grandmother noted the old selkie carried one of Alex’s packed selkie bed bags.
After the two selkies were gone, Grandmother sat down on the floor of the hall. Todd leaned against a wall.
“Do you still want to go to the Speedwell next?” Todd asked.
“Yes,” Grandmother confirmed. “Let's stay in the square tomorrow, today,” Grandmother said, changing her day reference when she considered how late it was, “and head out tomorrow at first light. That should give everyone a chance to recover. I feel like I lost track of what everyone is doing.”
“Companion rented himself out as a translator for business deals. He has made more coins than any of us I think. Ellen and Sarah were both frantically making vellum in the back room while Kai sold books in the front. They came and bought all the prize skins I had in my inventory yesterday. I thought they would come and find you today.” Todd commented.
“Alex’s shop is about empty. Everything that could be broken down into pieces small enough to transport sold. He drew little stick figure instruction manuals on how to put them together again, and taught each buyer how the pieces connected. He wanted to get Sarah to draw them up for him, but she just didn’t have the time.
Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
“Muriel was selling potted plants in the market square, until she ran out of pots. She was already bugging me about buying more from the potter in Seagrass on our next trip. I told her she should go make a deal with him herself.
“Harry has ordered a huge blank book. He wants to make a permanent record of the challengers and their results. He was by yesterday quizzing me about what I remembered from the first Challenge. I promised to review the tapes and write it down for him when we get to the Speedwell,” Todd told her.
“What about the beer?” Grandmother asked. “I sort of remember you saying we were running low.”
“We’re out,” Todd announced. “And we made a lot of beer. I’ve been working on trying to get up to six types in an attempt to get a brewing room. I think the lack of beer is why all the selkie headed out tonight.”
“That reminds me I never asked Innkeeper when the inn grew or how it did,” Grandmother commented.
“She said it grew in the night right before we returned. A lot of the selkie were already staying in the inn, and had been for a couple nights. They paid through Challenge day upfront. I think we passed some kind of threshold,” Todd responded.
“Well the inn is never full,” Grandmother commented.
A group of three selkie came around the corner into the back hallway. They all had large packs strapped to their back. Grandmother wondered why she hadn’t noticed the large loads before.
“Portal keeper?” the leader asked.
“Yes,” Todd called back in his best selkie. Grandmother dragged herself off the floor. Next time she would bring her folding stool with her.
They sent all three through the same transportation door. It was easier to work together. Selkie continued to turn up in small groups spaced apart until first light. The butcher arrived to take over. She was surprised to find four rooms. Grandmother sent Todd to go fetch Harry so he could help out, not wanting to leave the woman manning the transportation rooms alone, in case there was a second morning rush.
Grandmother went straight to her table and ordered a hot tea. Before the tea was even delivered, Jeweler sat down on Companion’s bench. The not-selkie cast muffle. Grandmother dismissed it. Jeweler winced.
“I don’t hide things from my people,” Grandmother told him. “Did you enjoy Challenge day?”
“Yes,” Jeweler said in selkie. “It reminded me of the big events at the capital.” Grandmother wondered if he meant Whitewater or his own people's capital city.
“It was a bit of a fiasco this time around,” Grandmother admitted. “I hope we do better next time.”
The server came and delivered Grandmother’s tea. He took one look at Jeweler and said in very good selkie, “No beer.”
“I will take whatever she is drinking,” the not-selkie ordered. The server looked alarmed.
“Please tell him it is hot,” the server said to Grandmother.
“He likes to pretend otherwise, but he understands us just fine,” Grandmother said.
“I like hot,” Jeweler commented. “I will take whatever she is eating too.”
“Tea it is,” the server said. Retreating back in the direction of the kitchen.
“Your fighters performed very well,” Jeweler commented. “Two out of every three wins went to human contestants, and the selkie far outnumbered human challengers.”
“I didn’t realize how popular it was going to be among the selkie. Todd was spreading the word in the squares we visited, but I thought it would be some time before they were organized enough to attend,” Grandmother admitted. Jeweler looked a little uncomfortable at the mention of Todd.
“I am curious where you are heading to now,” Jeweler said. “Todd told me next time I was curious I should ask.”
“We’re going to the Speedwell,” Grandmother said. The server returned with the fancy tea pot from the Seagrass dish set. He sat it and two of the tiny cups on the table. He filled the cups from the pot before promising to return with their meals.
Jeweler picked up his cup and took a delicate sip from it. The action looked decidedly strange on a selkie. Grandmother gulped the rest of her tea in her glass mug. With regret she set the empty mug aside and moved her tiny cup within easier reach.
“This is very nice,” Jeweler said of the cup. “Almost civilized.”
“The potter in Seagrass made them for me,” Grandmother announced.
“Really?” Jeweler responded, clearly disbelieving her.
“Yep,” she confirmed.
The server brought their food on plates that matched the teapot. He also set a spoon and fork on the table by each of their plates. Everyone always used the knife at their belt to cut their food. The spoon was obviously part of the haul Todd purchased from a specialized vendor they found in tier three space below them. The fork was really a vent pin, used in wildspace to secure the vents in a room so you weren’t disturbed by wild animals in the night. Forks might be Grandmother's next priority.
“What is this speed well?” Jeweler asked. He’d used the selkie words that meant fast and health to say the ship’s name.
“It is the vessel that brought humans here,” Grandmother explained. “Alex calls it the wizard’s tower in the east. It is located outside the structure.” Jeweler ate his food as he thought about this.
“If it brought you here, why do you not use it to leave?” Jeweler asked.
“Perhaps we don’t want to leave,” Grandmother commented.
“You keep going to this tower. If you don’t wish to leave, why travel to it?”
“I don’t go to the Speedwell because I want to leave,” Grandmother said. “The vessel was never designed to leave again. It is incapable of doing that. It has other capabilities that must be maintained to remain functional. There are more humans living there that depend on it.”
“I would like to see this vessel,” Jeweler announced. “May I travel with you?”
“It is located outside the structure,” Grandmother said. “How can I say this more clearly? The wizard’s tower in the east is located beyond the reach of the true god. Do you really want to go?”
“Yes,” Jeweler said. “This sounds more and more intriguing.”
Todd appeared shortly after that. His wet hair indicated that he must have washed up before coming over to the inn. Todd kept an apartment on the floors above the square. He gave the jeweler an astonished look before sitting down in his usual spot. Jeweler was sipping from his tiny teacup again, so Grandmother wasn’t completely certain what caused the astonishment. The server arrived on Todd’s heels with a meal and a tiny cup. They must have made up the plate when Grandmother was served.
“Jeweler tells me you instructed him to ask next time he was curious. He has asked to come with us to the Speedwell,” Grandmother explained.
“I did tell him that,” Todd confessed. He looked at the not-selkie like he was measuring up the player’s capabilities and finding them wanting. “We will run the whole way. You will need to keep up.”
“That won’t be a problem,” Jeweler countered. “Isn’t there a portal nearby?”
“No,” Grandmother said bluntly. “The closest one is Londontown and we are avoiding them for now.” They usually did use the fast transportation system to the north gallery before beginning their run. On their last trip they ran from Home Square because they were hauling the bag and plant carts with materials for the rest upgrade. It really didn’t take much longer. Grandmother wasn’t certain she wanted the Jeweler to know about the north gallery. She remembered telling Todd that they needed to treat the not-selkie the same as anyone else in order to get information out of him. She decided they would take the transit to the north gallery first, just as they usually did. “Do you know of a way to spawn a transportation room?” Grandmother asked.
“No,” Jeweler responded, “not beyond the generalities. A path well traveled and all that.” Which was an interesting hint in itself, Grandmother thought. She finished her meal and pushed the plate to the side. She poured herself another tiny cup of tea.
“You can come if you like. We are leaving at first light. We will take the transportation system to a gallery not far from here but in the right direction and run from there,” Grandmother explained. “You can meet us at the back hall.”
“Excellent,” Jeweler responded. He set his vent pin down on the table and finished his tea. “And an excellent meal. Not as good as boar, but perfectly acceptable.”
“You like boar?” Todd quizzed.
“Yes,” Jeweler replied. “It has a bold flavor. Humans never seem to serve it anymore.”
“I’ll see that there is some available for dinner,” Todd offered.
“I’ll look forward to it,” Jeweler responded. “If you’ll excuse me, I need to make a few purchases before I make a trip into wildspace.”
“He really isn’t selkie or human is he?” Todd asked as he watched Jeweler leave the common room.
“Nope,” Grandmother replied quietly. She hadn’t told anyone about that glimpse she got of the jeweler's true form in the Stoneshelf central pond. “We need to warn Companion, Alex and Sarah. I figured it was Jeweler’s secret and it really wouldn’t matter in the structure. When we step past the boundary his disguise will fail. I don’t want anyone reacting badly.”
“I am pretty sure Alex will want to go on a scavenging run to try and replace some of his stock. I will get Sarah and Companion to come along and tell them then,” Todd offered.
“I’ll come along too,” Grandmother said, setting her teacup down. “A little scavenging sounds like a good way to relax. We can go down into tier three space and look for specialized vendors. I’d like to find one that sells forks.”