Starday, Sarenith 25 (afternoon)

I met with our team early this morning after the match-ups were posted. They are set to face Pitch Blade at noon.

Our team has two options for dealing with them. The first is to use magic to curtail their fury. There’s a spell for quelling rage and other strong emotional states, but violent acts like those found in, say, a gladiatorial battle, break the spell. That would make it a temporary solution at best, and one that’s not particularly reliable. This leaves the second option: run out the clock. The fighting style the dwarves use is based on working themselves up almost into a frenzy, but it’s not one they can sustain for long.

As we talked it out they were favoring the option two. Pitch Blade’s big disadvantage was that there were only two of them. In the first match, they won not just because their opponents were woefully outmatched, but also because they took advantage of the free-for-all nature of the fight to team up on individual combatants who had little to no support. This strategy wouldn’t work as well in a one-on-one bout, so a giant game of keep-away could very well wear them down, and rob them of their most effective tactic. And Ilthane’s Fury could also keep a couple of scrolls at the ready for opportunistic use.

With that out of the way, I headed back up to the manager’s section to watch the first match of the day: Auric’s Warband versus Final Phoenix. Unlike the Warband’s first bout, the battle wasn’t as lopsided and Final Phoenix even held their own for a while, but they, too, struggled against the flesh golems and it was just a matter of time before they went down. The last team member yielded and Auric’s Warband emerged victorious.

I saw Zhog talking to a couple of the elves from Arcane Auriga during the free time after the match (he had tried to chat them up during the dinner a couple of nights ago but was soundly rejected, but I guess his persistence paid off). An archery range was set up in the arena for the public to try their hand at it, and he and the team’s leader, Rennida, had an impromptu competition. Zhog is found family to me so I went over to watch, and he put in a rather impressive showing. Enough that Rennida agreed to a round of drinks in a show of respect. Good for you, little brother!

The next match was ours against Pitch Blade, and just as we had discussed, the team relied on their agility to counter the dwarves’ brute strength. They would get the dwarves worked up, dash just out of reach, then lure them back in so a teammate could land a strike from behind. This pattern repeated itself several times, with no one really landing any decisive blows, until fatigue finally hit. Then Ilthane’s Fury descended on them like a pack of wolves, landing precision strikes over and over. It was not the most exciting battle because it dragged out for so long, but a victory is a victory, and the crowd erupted at the upset.

Both Raknian and Okoral were furious. I rushed down to congratulate the team on their win, and overheard the latter speaking quietly (but not quietly enough) to the defeated dwarves on my way back to the stands. “This isn’t over yet,” he said ominously. “Meet me in my office later.”

Some people just can’t handle losing. Especially when those people are Raknian and his lackeys, and the people they lose to are us. I made a mental note to warn both the team and Celeste about possible reprisals outside the games.

After a quick lunch, I sat next to Draconic Brood’s manager for their bout at 2pm.

“Congratulations on your team’s victory,” he said to me as I took my seat.

“Thanks. And best of luck to you in your team’s match. My name is Bel, by the way,” I said, offering my hand.

He shook it and said, “I’m Meril. Pleased to meet you.”

Draconic Brood was up against Snow Leopards. It was a lengthy bout because they were evenly matched, and it ended up being a crowd favorite. In the end, Draconic Brood emerged as the winner.

“Congratulations!” I said to Meril.

“Thank you! Honestly, we’re just happy to be here, much less to have made it this far.”

I thought he’d been an awfully good sport throughout the whole games so far. Most of the other managers are either stand-offish or openly unfriendly. Meril was a refreshing change.

“Would you…be up for dinner this evening, to celebrate our victories?” I asked.

He seemed shocked that I’d even ask, but readily accepted the offer. I suggested an early evening time since we’re planning another visit to the arena underground late tonight.

I caught up with my friends and told them that I had dinner plans. Zhog gave me a hard time about it.

“Maybe you should get some sleep,” he said.

“I have a dinner date first.”

“Maybe you should not go to dinner with some stranger. Maybe you should just go get some sleep.”

Um. Excuse me?

“I’m going to take a nap, then I’m going to dinner, then I’m going to take another nap. And then we’ll meet,” I said angrily. “You just spent time with elves with bows, so don’t give me shit.”

He didn’t have a response to that.

OK. Maybe I deserved it after hassling him about Marzena and their age difference, especially since Meril is definitely several years older than me. That being said, Marzena is almost old enough to be Zhog’s grandmother, so…maybe not.

(evening)

Dinner with Meril was lovely. I think the answer to why he’s been so pleasant throughout the games is that he’s just a really good person who likes people.

Naturally, the conversation turned to the games, since that was ostensibly the reason for the evening out. He confirmed that two of the team members of Draconic Brood are brother and sister, and do, indeed have a draconic blood line. They’d been more or less in the sword-for-hire business taking care of…things that need taking care of. Having fallen into something tangential to that ourselves, I know how that goes and it’s hard to describe it without making it sound like you’re just mercenaries. There was certainly an element of that in their history—one does have to eat—but the difference lies in who you work for and what jobs you take on.

He said they were self-funded in the games. I’ve learned that this isn’t that unusual, though it is a lot harder to field and support a team without a sponsor. You’re basically putting all your own money on the line. Getting past the first round will ensure you break even on the entrance fees, but that won’t cover your time and material. It’s also their first year in the competition, so they’ve made a rather impressive showing making it to the final three.

We both knew that one of us was going to have to face Auric’s Warband. Given what my own team had “accidentally” overheard, it sounded like Ilthane’s Fury was being “randomly” chosen to fight this Madtooth creature. That meant the honor would go to Draconic Brood in the next match, and I realized then that…I didn’t want them to lose.

“Do you have access to adamantine weapons?” I asked.

“No. Why?”

“In case you end up facing those flesh golems.”

He didn’t understand the connection. It was obvious to me, of course, but then I remembered that not everyone’s team has a Viktor. When we saw those flesh golems at the dinner, the first thing Viktor did the next day was research flesh golems: their creation, their abilities, their weaknesses, and so on. According to him, any sufficiently skilled, dedicated, and wealthy spell caster could make one. His research into the process suggested that the big advantages of flesh golems are that they are difficult to injure with weapons, and all but immune to magic. The latter was a tough nut to crack, but the former was solved with lots of money. Something most of the entrants, including Draconic Brood, just didn’t have.

“You could try and get a sponsor, even if it’s just for loaner weapons.” I suggested. “I could help you with the contract.”

“I think it’s too late for that. There’s not enough time to get something in place.”

The other option was blanches. I’ve seen my friends use them. Because they don’t last, they are best used on arrows and other ammunition. He seemed to think this was a more realistic alternative.

The whole discussion was a bit of a downer, though. I guess this is why people don’t come to me for relationship advice.