As we entered, a few eyes inside turned towards us. The room was an auditorium with seats divided into two sections, and most of them weren’t taken just yet. On the stage stood a stern woman in military clothing and very short hair. She briefly nodded to Nico in acknowledgement before continuing to stare at the wall impassively. A low hum of whispers covered the place as most attendees chatted with their acquaintances and friends to pass the time. Following Nico’s lead, we took three of the front row seats.
“We’ve arrived. Now what?” I asked.
“Now we wait. It shouldn’t take more than fifteen minutes for everyone to arrive.”
I took the chance to look around at the present participants to see if anyone interesting was there.
“Where’s Amon-Re’s champion that you talked about? I’d love to ask him for a spar. They have an arena nearby, don’t they?”
“Can you try to settle down and stop looking for a fight for five minutes?! Asten isn’t even here yet.” Nico whispered furiously.
Durreg snickered as I rolled my eyes.
***
The three of us made small talk as time passed by quickly, and the auditorium slowly became packed. When the seats were all taken, the woman on stage clapped her hand twice, and everyone quickly went quiet.
“Good morning, candidates. My name is Akila Amset, though you will address me as either ‘Major Amset’ or simply ‘Major.’” She said in a loud and commanding voice.
“Whether you were scouted or made it here through your connections, you will be tested from this point onwards purely on your abilities and fitness to the teams representing our country in the coming tournament, with two notable exceptions.”
A few eyebrows were raised at that, but the major carried on regardless.
“In the coming tournament, each of the four guest nations are allowed two teams of six members each to compete. That is to compensate for the host nations’ provinces each having a team of their own, which all other nations consented to. The combat tournament will hold a group stage to eliminate half the participating teams before moving on to a more traditional knock-out stage. Furthermore, there will be a tournament for individual contestants running afterwards, and we expect all of the team’s contestants to participate.”
She stopped speaking for effect, then continued a breath later.
“Make no mistake, while this contest is an event aimed at mending ties with the other nations, it is also a display of the talent we have to offer. A poor display would be a sign of weakness to the other nations, and that is unacceptable. The Pharaoh herself has her eye on this event, and both her pleasure and displeasure at each of us will depend on how you perform. For these reasons, we must win this tournament, and we must win with an overwhelming display of power. If you are aiming for anything less than that, show yourself out of the building immediately.”
Everyone held their breaths as a thick tension held the room in a vice. The leader of the Tameryian teams is already demanding nothing less than total victory with the threat of the pharaoh’s displeasure at the risk of failure. And yet, not a single soul moved an inch.
If anything, it looks like the woman lit a fire underneath the attendees. Major Amset gave a thin smile that did not reach her eyes.
“Good; I like confidence in my subordinates, but I despise arrogance. We will shortly find out which of you falls under which category. On that note,” she said as her eyes turned towards me and Durreg, “I mentioned a pair of exceptions to the selection contest. As you recall, the official purpose of this tournament is to mend the damaged ties between the five nations, and a critical breakthrough in our diplomatic efforts has occurred, courtesy of House Sept.”
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The woman made a crisp turn to face us directly.
“Word of the tournament reached the Draconic Isles, and the dragons wanted to participate in the events. It is not my place to comment on the particulars, but the nation’s authorities have decided to place two young dragons on our nobles’ team. Their official reasoning is for their inclusion to serve both as a way of demonstrating the ties between Tamery and the Dragons as well as to show the willingness of the Isles to enter the diplomatic field. Thus, the nobles will be competing for four slots rather than the original six.”
While the major didn’t voice her own opinions on the matter, her tone showed that she was less than thrilled about having two unknown outsiders appointed directly on her team.
Immediately after the major finished her piece, the nobles began whispering amongst themselves.
“What the hell? If the dragons want to participate, let them make their own team!”
“Abyss take me, Lord Asten is virtually guaranteed a seat, and Lady Sept is rumored to have become an elemental. Why do we have to compete for two seats while the commoners get six?!”
“We have dragons on our team? If the stories about the celestial war are to be believed, we’re going to win this tournament for sure!”
I felt hostile glares on my back from some of the attendees, and it was beginning to piss me off.
Nico noticed my expression and alarm bells immediately began ringing in her head.
“Kiara, don’t do anything ra-”
Ignoring Nico’s warning, I stood up and glared at the Major.
“Greetings, Major Amset. My name is Kiara Azoth, and I am one of the two dragons sent to participate in your team.”
The woman didn’t bat an eye as she stared me down.
“I am well aware of who you are, Lady Azoth.”
The two of us stared at each other for a moment before I continued.
“I don’t like the way you spoke while explaining our purpose here. You seem to be under the impression that we are only here for exceptionally good connections rather than our skills. You couldn’t be more wrong.”
The major kept an impassive face as she responded.
“Pardon me, Lady Azoth, but I’ve made no such suggestions myself. I believe these worries may be your own instead. But worry not, even with a two-member handicap, our team is capable enough of accomplishing our targets regardless.”
My brow twitched.
“In that case, I have a proposal for you. Since the purpose of our participation is diplomatic in nature, I suggest that I compete for a seat on the table rather than have one assigned to me. It’ll prevent any ill feelings or resentment over some misguided notion that we didn’t deserve our place on the team. And while I am at it, I’ll also be giving a demonstration on why dragons deserve their reputation for combat prowess for all of you to see.”
Major Amset’s stone face finally gave way to another thin smile.
“That isn’t necessary, as it would be foolish for me or anyone present to go against our superiors’ judgement. Still, if you insist on doing so of your own accord, than I have no reason to object. Does the Lord Durreg intend to do the same?”
Durreg stood up next to me and looked at the woman.
“Naturally. Everything my cousin said applies to me as well.”
The major nodded at him then turned to the rest of the audience.
“Now that this is settled, let me make one thing perfectly clear. This team will be treated as a military unit, and I am its commanding officer. Since this was merely the welcoming ceremony, I will overlook your gossip and your interruption of my speech, but I will not tolerate insubordination from this point onwards, no exceptions. I will not hesitate to throw you out of the team myself if you show insolence or insubordination.” she said, sparing me a glance.
“Now, you have five minutes to prepare yourselves before we move to the testing grounds. Anyone who isn’t back on time will be left behind. Dismissed!”
With that, everyone stood up and went their separate ways, whether to use the washroom or to talk to a friend.
Nico, Durreg and I found a corner in the room to talk.
“Kiara, what were you thinking? You fell right into her hands! And you, Durreg, why did you just follow along with her?!” Nico scolded.
I shrugged.
“I am not stupid, Nico. Anyone with a brain could figure out the game the Major was playing at, but I went with it anyway. I didn’t lie when I said what I did. It’s best to squash these doubts now rather than let them fester later on, and there is no doubt in my mind that I can beat the gaggle of morons that were staring at us.”
Durreg nodded.
“It’s also a good opportunity to put them in their place. Dragons reign supreme in individual power, and it’s a good time to remind them why it was their gods that fought us in their stead.”
Nico sighed.
“Fine, at least you're thinking things through. While it’s still a risk that you might lose your seats, it should be a manageable one.”