from the
other side of the room. She crossed to where Senndra stood and looked at
Feddir. “He sure is cute,” she commented.
“I’ll be ready in a second,” Senndra said.
Her leather armor creaked as she crossed the room to her bunk . She grabbed her quiver from the top bunk and
strapped it on. Normally the quiver contained twenty
razor-sharp arrows and her unstrung bow as well as the sheath for her
short sword, but tonight it would only hold the sword. Though it was bulky to
use only as a sheath, Senndra had grown use to the feel of it on her back and
always wore it when she expected to fight.
Senndra grabbed her sword belt from the
bunk, slid the blade from its scabbard, and threw the sheath back onto the bed.
With a quick move, she slid the weapon into the scabbard on her back and then tightened the straps that held the
assemblage in place. She retrieved her cloak and helmet from a chair and headed
out the door, with Rita right behind her.
The two girls left their dorm and took the
path that led up the mountain to the mess hall. After only a few hundred yards,
they branched off the path onto a wider one. They were soon surrounded by cadets who were all heading in the same direction.
It took them ten minutes moving at a good clip to reach their destination, the
sword fighting ring. Already, the stands surrounding the ring were beginning to
fill, and Senndra knew that before the event started they would be full beyond
capacity. This was not only because the sword play competition was a mandatory
affair, but also because it was the most exciting academy event of the year.
Twenty of the best sword fighters would
face off. Each contestant had to get a recommendation from their instructor,
which Senndra had obtained easily. On competition night, they participated in a
tournament in which the twenty contestants fought each other in a series of
one-on-one matches. It was single elimination, meaning that when a contestant
lost, they were ejected from the tournament.
Senndra walked to her place in the
contestant box. Once in her seat, she slid her helmet under her chair and
scanned the crowd for Rita. She didn’t find her, but instead caught sight of
Vladimir. He had clearly gotten to the arena quite early since he had a seat
very near the front. Although there were people on all four sides of him, it
appeared as though they were ignoring him and he kept to himself.
Senndra again tried to spot Rita, but as
she looked, the contest officiator appeared. He walked with long, slow strides
to the middle of the arena where he mounted a platform. By the time he got there,
the whole stadium was silent.
“Welcome to the academy's twenty-third
annual sword fighting contest,” he began. “I will not spend too much time
talking since I know that you are all ready for the contest to begin; however,
I would like to recognize a few people before we start. First, I would like to
thank the entire group of sword fighting
instructors that recommended the contestants. I would also like to introduce
Jason Devlon and Marcus Arillion. They will act as the referees of today’s
contest to ensure that the rules are abided by and that no one gets hurt. So
without further ado, let the competition begin."
Cheers erupted as the man left the arena
and another came to take his place. This man was the grand admiral of the
academy, and his presence quickly quieted the arena down once again. Sen ndra barely noticed as he gave his speech . The butterflies in her stomach
wouldn’t go away no matter what she did, and the wait only made them worse. She
watched as the color guard brought various flags out and posted them at certain
intervals around the arena. Next, four dragons dropped out of the sky and took
their places at the four corners of the arena. Finally, the first man took the
platform again. The crowd applauded as he announced that the contest would begin,
starting with a fight between two cadets whose names Senndra couldn’t remember.
The
other side of the room. She crossed to where Senndra stood and looked at
Feddir. “He sure is cute,” she commented.
“I’ll be ready in a second,” Senndra said.
Her leather armor creaked as she crossed the room to her bunk . She grabbed her quiver from the top bunk and
strapped it on. Normally the quiver contained twenty
razor-sharp arrows and her unstrung bow as well as the sheath for her
short sword, but tonight it would only hold the sword. Though it was bulky to
use only as a sheath, Senndra had grown use to the feel of it on her back and
always wore it when she expected to fight.
Senndra grabbed her sword belt from the
bunk, slid the blade from its scabbard, and threw the sheath back onto the bed.
With a quick move, she slid the weapon into the scabbard on her back and then tightened the straps that held the
assemblage in place. She retrieved her cloak and helmet from a chair and headed
out the door, with Rita right behind her.
The two girls left their dorm and took the
path that led up the mountain to the mess hall. After only a few hundred yards,
they branched off the path onto a wider one. They were soon surrounded by cadets who were all heading in the same direction.
It took them ten minutes moving at a good clip to reach their destination, the
sword fighting ring. Already, the stands surrounding the ring were beginning to
fill, and Senndra knew that before the event started they would be full beyond
capacity. This was not only because the sword play competition was a mandatory
affair, but also because it was the most exciting academy event of the year.
Twenty of the best sword fighters would
face off. Each contestant had to get a recommendation from their instructor,
which Senndra had obtained easily. On competition night, they participated in a
tournament in which the twenty contestants fought each other in a series of
one-on-one matches. It was single elimination, meaning that when a contestant
lost, they were ejected from the tournament.
Senndra walked to her place in the
contestant box. Once in her seat, she slid her helmet under her chair and
scanned the crowd for Rita. She didn’t find her, but instead caught sight of
Vladimir. He had clearly gotten to the arena quite early since he had a seat
very near the front. Although there were people on all four sides of him, it
appeared as though they were ignoring him and he kept to himself.
Senndra again tried to spot Rita, but as
she looked, the contest officiator appeared. He walked with long, slow strides
to the middle of the arena where he mounted a platform. By the time he got there,
the whole stadium was silent.
“Welcome to the academy's twenty-third
annual sword fighting contest,” he began. “I will not spend too much time
talking since I know that you are all ready for the contest to begin; however,
I would like to recognize a few people before we start. First, I would like to
thank the entire group of sword fighting
instructors that recommended the contestants. I would also like to introduce
Jason Devlon and Marcus Arillion. They will act as the referees of today’s
contest to ensure that the rules are abided by and that no one gets hurt. So
without further ado, let the competition begin."
Cheers erupted as the man left the arena
and another came to take his place. This man was the grand admiral of the
academy, and his presence quickly quieted the arena down once again. Sen ndra barely noticed as he gave his speech . The butterflies in her stomach
wouldn’t go away no matter what she did, and the wait only made them worse. She
watched as the color guard brought various flags out and posted them at certain
intervals around the arena. Next, four dragons dropped out of the sky and took
their places at the four corners of the arena. Finally, the first man took the
platform again. The crowd applauded as he announced that the contest would begin,
starting with a fight between two cadets whose names Senndra couldn’t remember.
The
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