Suddenly, a hush fell over the crowd as three figures approached the center of the arena. Archbishop Feng, a venerable figure with a serene aura, led the way. Beside him walked Monk Gyatso, a man of imposing stature with a shaved head and piercing eyes. Bringing up the rear was a figure shrouded in a long, dark cloak, their face obscured by a wide-brimmed hat.
The arrival of these unexpected guests sent a ripple of excitement through the crowd. The Archbishop, with a gentle smile, addressed the assembled teams. "Greetings, champions. The Christmas Bowl this year will be unlike any other. For this event, we have invited special guests to witness your prowess and to offer their own unique challenges."
Monk Gyatso, his voice booming like thunder, stepped forward. "This year," he declared, "we will test not only your strength and skill, but also your courage and your compassion."
The cloaked figure remained silent, their presence shrouded in an air of mystery.
The crowd buzzed with anticipation. The arrival of these unexpected guests had added a new layer of intrigue to the competition. The Northern team, already aware of the growing darkness, felt a sense of unease. They knew that the challenges ahead would be greater than they had ever imagined.
The Christmas Bowl, once a simple competition, had now transformed into something much more, a test not only of their physical and mental strength, but also of their courage, their compassion, and their unwavering faith in the face of impending darkness.
As both teams prepared for the stage, a random selection was made. Capture the Flag or eliminate all enemies. This was an interesting challenge as you could win with either condition but the warriors of the West appear to specialize in Defense.
Before either team could discuss strategy, all players were teleported inside the arena. For this challenge both teams were teleported as a group. The western group was teleported to the flag and the northern group was about 1000 yards (0.5 miles) away from them. The clock has started as the western group held the flag and started running to the edge of the arena. This stage did not have any obstacles or buildings as was just a flat arena where everyone could watch. Both groups saw a 10 minute countdown to secure the flag. In a couple of seconds, the western group created a formation and started chanting a verse. This was unknown but the northern group did not have a good feeling about this as they continued to run to where the western group was holding the flag. In a couple of seconds, a triple multi barrier made out of light was cast.
The northern group halted and analyzed the barrier. Grandis gave a quick explanation that was a church of Damien formation. The triple light barrier also known as the gold shield was a tier 3 formation that was durable and would need significant firepower in order to break through. Once this formation was completed it would not run out until the users mana supply is drained which could take 1-2 hours based on the current consumption rate. Giant Axe asked what if we constantly attack the barrier, will that accelerate the mana consumption. Grandis shook her head and said no. Link wasn’t sure and threw a couple of mana spears at the gold shield. Jim activated super sight and confirmed that the mana drain was not accelerated when attacking. Jim deactivated super sight and discussed with the team. He asked Grandis, If the shield is keeps attacks out, is the opposite true, are they stuck in the shield as well. Grandis answered with a puzzled look “Yes, technically they are trapped inside”.
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Jim had an evil smile that nobody could see, not even Jake who was controlling the main body knew what he was thinking. Jim quickly reminded Jake what they did in the frozen thundra against the yetis in Ajax lair. Jake asked what does this have to do with our current situation. Well if we create mana bubbles to float in the air, we can substitute it with Boulders from our garden in the time ring. I can hollow out the center and fill them with compressed air and fire mana. Then we drop them from the sky. But you have to do something for me first.
Jake did not like where this was going but didn’t see the harm in this.
Jake discussed the plan for Link and Giant Axe to block the front with Grandis to start buffing everyone. Jake started chanting and performing a rain dance. Everyone was curious what he was doing and some spectators started laughing. After about 5 minutes, the bubble reached the highest point of the ceiling. Jake stopped dancing and took out the Golden Buddha he received from the Ajax raid. The golden buddha enhanced the mana around them with dense holy mana. Jim used this time to transfer the holy mana into the time ring where the boulders were. The mix of compressed air, fire and holy mana should detonate when the boulders are dropped from their height. Jim gave Jake the signal to start. Jake replace one bubble at the ceiling with a mana boulder.
The western team was panicking as a huge boulder was heading their way with no means to escape. The captain of the western team calmed them down reminding them of the power of the gold shield. It should be stronger than a tier 3 spell to break it. As the boulder initially descended slowly, Jake told everyone to assume a low stance as the blast recoil was coming. 3 . 2 . 1.
The mana boulder crashed into the gold shield activating the mana core filled with holy mana, air and fire mana causing a large explosion. After the dust settled the gold shield remained in effect but the western team looked visibly drained to about half of their mana supply.
Giant Axe exclaimed that they were so close that is a pity they would have to give up on the challenge. Jake reminded him by saying “If one boulder is not enough, then we just need to keep going. Jake substituted three mana bubbles with three more mana boulders slowly descending. Everyone’s jaw dropped. Even the Archbishop was impressed. As soon as the remaining three boulders exploded the challenge ended with the northern team winning the challenge.