There was no announcement that the first trial had been concluded. No commentator explaining events as they transpired to those spectators that surrounded the water globe. But for those of us gathered, the transformative nature and changes to fluidity, the actual make-up of the globe was obvious. Where before it had been a test of water in motion, a fluidity that challenged an individual’s ability to maintain position, now that motion was stilled. The calming nature of a serene body of water replaced the torrential cascade of waterfalls.

“What is happening?” I asked Una.

“As the water stills, the space between molecules began to compact. No one is sure how the transition is stimulated. The changes are outside the laws of nature,” she replied.

‘Instead of water in motion, it becomes hardened, more compact. This isn't ice, the natural form of water as it hardens, this is different.

“As the molecules condense, the atoms tighten and hydrostatic forces increase. The very density of the water compact and bring great pressure to bear on Blayney and Lord Haygan. And as it hardens, it transforms increasing the very density and hydrostatic pressure contained within the arena. The area within the globe grows smaller and smaller.

“Normally, water expands when it crystallizes and solidifies into ice. But in this case, gravity or an equivalent force has compacted the expanding water, encasing Blayney and Herd Lord Haygan in a gravity tomb.

“Lake waters can reach tremendous depths, not nearly as deep as ocean waters, but deep enough that hydrostatic pressures became relevant, and can become insurmountable. Kelpies have had to be able to not only withstand those pressures, but they have also had to adapt in order to be able to ignore them. In order to function and flourish, to really claim the waters as our home, we have to be able to claim and harvest from all areas and depths.

“Belisama would test our ability to survive despite the environment and pressures we may encounter,” she concluded.

The compact ball of water mirror the pressures that those deep waters produced, without the need to actually visit those waters. Strangely, as the water continued to compact, the uniform shape of the globe and sphere began to take on a new dimension. No longer perfectly spherical, the arena had deformed, slowly changing until a face took shape.

“The face of Belisama,” Una informed me, once the process was complete.

“Although She Sleeps, Her constructs have been imbued with a spark of her divinity. In her Sleep She dreams, and these events are made known to Her.

“She never interferes.

“She remains steadfastly neutral.

“But She observes.

“She never dispenses judgment or vengeance.

“She is different. Not a creature of the Wild Hunt or a manifestation of Wild Magic.

“This arena is her bane. Her great failure.

"Proof that those creatures She created to become Peace-makers have failed Her vision.

“She has tasked herself to monitor every challenge. She chooses to bear witness to that failure,” Una said solemnly.

“Does She control the effect of the pressure?” I asked.

“No,” Irvin replied, “She set the enchantment in motion when these arenas were first created.

"But now?

“These waters are alive. Those microscopic particles that make up the impurities and give life have been enhanced to interact with the combatants. Somehow they monitor the electrical impulses of brain waves and muscle contraction. The computation the water uses to determine what max pressure to set for this test, limits and adjusts, based on the strength of those that enter.

“The pressure for two Commoners would be significantly less than that for two Lords,” he explained.

“What happens when people aren’t equal in rank or level?” I wondered.

“Although it may look one uniform stage to meet in challenge, this isn't the case. They are each encased in a field unique to their abilities, levels, and rank. The domains and environments for each person are separate, so each is tested to the fullness of their abilities.

“Each tested is based, generated, and suited to demonstrate their abilities and limits. The individual is tested against the globe not each other. This allows level and rank to be factored into the test. A Lord ranked Kelpie would have to withstand substantially more force than a Knight rank,” Una explained.

“Do people die during these tests?” I asked.

“Rarely,” Irvin replied.

“The magic that imbues the water tests limits. They may be tested and stretched to the breaking point, but very seldom is a person not able to withstand. In those few instances where death has resulted, it has almost always been found that an individual was attempting to use an item or enchantment to enhance their abilities.

“Belisama does not forgive, easily, those who would cheat.”

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Cedric and Uron had ignored our conversation, more worried about the crowd than the spectacle of competition. Their ability to focus and filter out events they felt superfluous was impressive. I envied that ability.

The rest of my vassals had spread out, attempting to stake out strategic locations in the event of an attack. We hadn’t discussed this, this was action based on a deeply intrinsic understanding of what it means to be Sidhe. That duplicitous actions and motives were the driving forces that defined how individuals treated each other. They acted in concert, determined to place themselves in locations that would be advantageous to our group if trouble started and they needed to act.

The current trial was boring and tedious for most of the onlookers. It was similar to watching paint dry. Unquestionably we could tell that something was transpiring. But from our perspective, it was more like watching and waiting for water to boil. You knew it was happening, but the more you watched, the slower the process seemed to take.

The sounds of cracking finally signaled the end of this phase of testing. Millions of gallons of water exploding in tandem, free to once more churn and eddy. It was like the sound of automatic gunfire, each water particle releasing the stored energy at once. The reversal of function the restoration to natural water was exponentially more rapid than the reverse. As each particle released the stored energy, a progression of tidal forces resonated outwards from both Blayney and Lord Haygan until each force met in a titanic clash that restored fluidity and liquidity to the globule.

“Trial two is complete. Now begins the really dangerous part of the challenge,” Una informed me.

“Water is a poor conductor of electricity, but it can still conduct. It is the impurities that actually form the bridge that allows ions to pass.

"Kelpies, for the most part, make their homes near or in freshwater. So while electrical storms can be deadly to those that are caught in discharges or strikes that hit the water, we have learned to compensate. Kelpie can generate a field that purifies and filters out those impurities. This field allows us to negate the conductive properties of water, and ignore lightning strikes.

“Belisama has changed the water for this challenge. Infusing salts and minerals in vast quantities to make electrical conduction and ionization not only possible but more efficient. The ion trails that will be generated will allow for a savage lightning storm. Electrical arcs that will be generated within the globe itself.

“To survive. Kelpie must be able to extend an energy field that filters out those impurities and salts, surrounding themselves in a bubble of non-conductive pure water. Even the slightest deviation in filtration or lapse in mental energies will allow billions of joules of energy to target their flesh.

"They would probably survive these strikes. Sidhe have always been adept at healing damage done by nature. But they would be in no condition to enter combat after this phase of the trial was concluded.”

The effect Una described was beautiful. It was almost as if Belisama had fashioned a giant-sized snowglobe. But instead of snowflakes cascading as a globe was shaken, bolts of lightning were released in dizzying displays of static sparks and electrical discharge. Better still, she had created a giant plasma ball. Blayney the negative, Lord Haygan the positive. And the arcs of energy released between the two a fireworks display of motion and energy.

The sparks and electrical strikes were contained completely within the globe. A Faraday cage on an epic scale. The smell of ozone permeated the area, but the light show was non-threating, soothing somehow in its display of destructive might. Those gathered to watch had complete faith that Belisama’s arena would contain the storm that raged, and safeguard any, even the most daring that actually reached out to touch the waters, from being harmed.

A few of the Kelpie colts played games of dare as they dashed quickly back and forth to prove their bravery. Reaching out to quickly touch the waters that harnessed such power. The adults ignored their childish displays of daring, knowing full well, that the energies were contained within.

I reached out with my perception, curious how the enchantment was powered and to see if I could decipher any runes that may have been used in construction. My mental ‘eyes’ slammed shut reflexively, not quite fast enough to protect me from the glaring profusion of magic that was blasting and emanating from the water construct.

The magics were like nothing I’d ever seen. Even when dealing with the Wild Hunt or Wild Magics, the intensity hadn’t been as pronounced. Those magics had been more like background noise. Part of the cycle of the world. Currents and eddies of motion that fit seamlessly into the natural whole.

This was different. A will so immense that the laws of nature were suspended. Instead of working within the framework of the laws that weaved together the patterns of creation and reality, this construct overwrote those laws. It broke what should be, and inserted patterns and weaves of what would be.

Divine will.

The ability of Gods to suspend the rules and transform what was possible to what is.

“We should have warned you about that,” Una informed me, the smile evident in her voice.

“Belisama can be prideful. Of courses, all the Gods can be. But she also jealously guards her creations.

“She doesn’t mind people taking a peek at the wonders She can produce, but Her secrets are Hers to share. A quick glance is all anyone has been able to gather when trying to understand how the arena functions,” Una said.

“Someone from every generation makes it their lives work to try to unravel the secrets of the arena, no one has ever succeeded,” Irvin responded proudly.

The mental blindness cleared quickly. Still, I was hesitant to extend my perception again while Blayney and Lord Haygan were being tested. At least, I decided not to extend my awareness towards the arena, where the challenge was being conducted.

Perception was an interesting skill. It could be exercised like a muscle, extending and flexing as I directed, but it also had a passive effect. A subtle awareness of events and environment around me. It had to be tied to intellect in some manner. A way to nudge and direct my actions so that I was capable of identifying the ‘wrongness’ for events. Like when I noticed the patterns of Kelpies weaving in and out as to monitor our progress, and spy on us. These subtle hints to hidden clues or sense of wrongness were disruptions that focused attention. They weren’t exactly acts of clairvoyance, but they certainly increased insight.

I didn’t suddenly see or know something was going to happen, to know if something was about to go wrong. My perception wasn’t capable of predicting what would happen or how to respond. Often, I wasn’t even sure exactly what my perception was responding to. But my senses began to scream at me to notice, that something had changed, something that may impact me and those I would protect. Some event had triggered my awareness and heightened my instincts to prepare.

As I tried to decipher the triggers that my perception had identified, I noticed that some of the surrounding Kelpie seemed to be less focused on the challenge taking place in the arena and more on those Kelpie that stood near me. Especially those Kelpie that were members of Blayney’s family.

This scrutiny, this intensity and magnitude of attention on these few individuals made no sense. They had not acted in any way different than others in the crowd. And except for Una and Irvin when they had answered my questions, they had remained silent. Observing and only engaging in conversation with me.

So, why were they suddenly the object of such fierce attention?