Chương 101: [Predictions]

Growlie had been on the bar for the better part of an hour. Victoria hadn't moved him and at this point probably wasn't going to. Bram looked across at Sara and Davan.

"How are you finding the other groups? We don't see much of them while we're with our own lot."

"Fast," Sara said.

"There's a woman called Beth, been at it three weeks and she's already a menace with a hammer. Callum on the spear is similar. Jade's the one to watch though; she picked up the footwork faster than anyone I've trained before. She's taken to knives like it's in her nature. She's about your height too, Nes. You think you can stop by and give her a few tips sometime?"

"Sure."

"There's also this one guy called Rhys; he was a little slower to catch on but he's driven," Davan said.

"Overtaken some of the people who got used to it early but didn't really take it as seriously. I know about the UI but honestly, I don't know how they do it. They should still be struggling with the basics. It's hard to believe." Bram nodded and went back to his drink. Ronan leaned back in his chair and looked at Kai.

"You still think Leo takes the tournament?" Kai didn't look up from his cup.

"Yes."

"Just yes."

"What else would I say?" Ronan smiled.

"You could make a case."

"The case is that I've been training him for weeks and I know what he's capable of," Kai said.

"That's the case."

"Other villages are sending people," Nessa said.

"Same as every year. There might be someone who surprises you."

"There might, but I don't see it. We both know the level of the trainees most years. Good, yes—they wouldn't be entered if they weren't—but against the four lads we have?" Kai said.

"Kael will be entering," Ronan said.

"Last I heard he's been training hard since we came here."

"Kael's good," Aldric agreed.

"He's driven and puts more hours in than most; always the last to put down the sword when it's time to finish. He'll have improved since we saw him."

"Klaus from the village is entering as well," Mars said.

"He's my pick for someone from home getting far into the tournament."

"Klaus is good," Nessa said.

"A little overconfident, but he gets away with it due to skill."

"Overconfident is definitely how I'd describe him. Being knocked out might do him some good," Ronan said.

"You're probably right. If someone does it, I'd prefer it to be someone else we trained, not someone from Oakridge or Pinehollow," Nessa said.

"He'll be Phil's problem in the quarters if the bracket holds," Ronan said, glancing around the table.

"Speaking of which, I sent a message to Yara; she's set it up so that if all four of them make the semis they fight each other there. Didn't want them meeting in the early rounds."

"Good thinking," Bram said.

"Having them meet in the first round would be a waste."

"The other villages usually have one or two fighters worth watching," Lucian said, from the end of the table. He'd been quiet through most of dinner, listening more than talking.

"They have that one fighter who uses those paired weapons, the ones with the handles on the side."

"Kolven," Ronan said.

"Yeah, those. Forgot the name; we don't have anyone who uses them. One of his students might show up. Trident and net often makes a showing as well." If you come across this story on Amazon, it's taken without permission from the author. Report it.

"The net fighter is a problem for anyone who likes to move," Ronan said.

"Sam especially."

"Sam will figure it out," Nessa said.

"I think Phil will end up winning the tournament," Mars said. Nessa looked at him.

"Why Phil?"

"They're all good, but I think with that competitive nature he has, he'll end up taking it. He'll want to win anyway, but the risk of losing to the other three—I wouldn't be surprised if he tried to play dirty."

"Nah, I don't see it. He'll want to win but won't want to give them a reason to blame for their loss. So he'll try and do it fair and square. Maximum bragging rights," Nessa said.

"I agree with Kai. Leo takes it," Aldric said, turning his cup.

"Him being the tallest with the longest weapon gives him impressive reach. With the speed he moves at on top of that, it's going to take a good feint to get inside his range. I don't think the others will get him to fall for that, not when he lasted ten minutes with Kai the other day." He looked at the older wolf-kin.

"I know you weren't going as fast or as hard as you would against one of us, but ten minutes is still impressive for how long they've been at it." Kai nodded.

"All of them should be proud of what they have accomplished so far. The tournament is going to be a big step for them."

"Luka would take it if magic was allowed," Aldric said.

"No one at their level is breaking that shield. If three spells at once couldn't break it, then he'd close the gap before they could do much. With it being as wide as it is, they'd quickly run out of options. It's a shame the rules are what they are."

"Well, if magic was allowed it would end up just being those four and one of them would probably blow an arm off or something," said Bram.

"Same goes for Sam. I don't know if many of us could get out of his fog if he got both spells working at the same time," Ronan said.

"You'd be trapped running in circles. Leo and Phil especially—they miss their first spell and the shield is up or they're in the fog. Might as well be the match over." Bram raised his cup slightly. A couple of the others did the same.

"On another note, Parmo sweeps the archery," Ronan said.

"That one isn't a conversation." Nobody argued. Mars reached for his drink and nodded.

"The range he's hitting at," Nessa said.

"Consistently. He couldn't do it in a battle—the awareness required and the need to sometimes move and shoot. Those are skills he doesn't have yet. Against standing targets though? Yeah, he'll be fine."

"No contest," Bram agreed. The talking slowed. Someone refilled a drink. Bram set his cup down and looked at Sara and Davan.

"How are you two finding it, sharing a house? You seem to be less at each others' throats constantly." Sara looked at the table.

"It's fine."

"Good," Bram said.

"I know you two have had your differences. Seems like it's working out then." Lucian picked up his drink without looking up.

"Heard you through the wall the other night actually. Didn't sound like arguing." He paused.

"Sounded like you were both having fun. Did you happen to get one of those game things Rika keeps going on about?" He glanced at them briefly. Just long enough. They went pale.

"We got one," Sara said.

"What game thing?" Davan said. They both stopped. The table looked at them. A couple of people opened their mouths and thought better of it. Pushing them on this would probably lead to them taking shots at each other, and no one wanted that. Aldric asked Mars something about the training schedule. The conversation moved on. Ronan caught Lucian's eye across the table and grinned. Lucian smirked back and went back to his drink. Across the bar Growlie had rolled onto his back.

Victoria was rubbing his belly with one hand while talking to him in a weird voice; the small dragon's legs were in the air, completely boneless. Mars hadn't looked away from the bar.

"She does that every time he gets up there," Nessa said, without turning to look.

"I know," Mars said.

"He gets more attention from her than you do."

"Very funny." Nessa smiled into her drink. Kai waited until the table had broken into smaller conversations before he looked at Ronan.

"So, what's the deal with Diane?" he asked.

"Is there something there?" Ronan considered this for a moment.

"My aim was to get to know her better," he said.

"She's interesting. The problem is she often has her head somewhere else entirely and misses the point of the conversation I'm trying to have."

"Must be a little frustrating."

"Not especially." Ronan turned his cup.

"She told me about Warhammer last week. Spent two hours on the history of one of the factions. I couldn't tell you where the time went. Some of what she comes out with is hard to believe someone invented. It's like a complete history with different people, empires, wars; none of it real, all of it detailed enough that I'd believe it if she told me it was." He paused.

"The stories we were told as children don't come close." Kai nodded.

"I remember her tale about that one warrior, the one in her tattoo. I can imagine a whole history of people like that must be interesting."

"Yeah, that's Sanguinius. He's one of her favorites. Mine too, actually. We need to learn their language, Kai. Their library has a whole section for tales like that one."

"But anyway, yes and no," Ronan said.

"I'll find a way to get her to notice. I'm not in any hurry." He nodded up the table, where Mars was still watching Victoria scratch Growlie's belly at the bar.

"I'm not like him over there." Kai followed his gaze then grinned.

"No," Kai said.

"That's more entertaining though."