Lann was proud of his six-person team, even though occasionally they could get on each other's nerves. The idea of his teammates griping at each other unnerved him, but even he had to admit that not even his team was the best role-model for the new rookies teams. Then again, some of the other elite mercenary teams weren't either, but he had to admit that his team was one of the more unusual one.

There were times where he and Vella would bicker about whose job it was to use twin swords in order to breeze through the small fry. Lann couldn't help but plot his revenge against Evie after her incredibly complex pranks. Even Karok would sometimes get into a small argument with him if they both wanted a certain item. And Kai's silence and brooding demeanor would provoke Lann to try to get him to relax; this would only annoy the archer and Lann would, in return, become exasperated and frustrated over the lack of progress.

Of all his teammates, Lann thought Fiona would at least be the most cooperative one, seeing that she knew him longer. However, the more Lann thought about it, he acknowledged with defeat that even he and Fiona would sometimes irritate each other.

"And this is why we're doing this," Lann declared, raising his mug of ale to his lips. He was well aware of the bewildered expressions of his teammates as he drank. He knew that there would be some objections but the damage was done. He, as one of the founding leaders of the team, had challenged several other elite mercenary teams to many recreational challenges in order to boost his team's spirit and teamwork.

Of course, he had failed to check in with the other founding team leader, but he was certain that Fiona would agree to the challenges. What harm could be done, really?

"I actually think that's a great idea," Karok said casually. Lann shot him a grin. He knew he could count on Karok.

"It sounds fun," Evie said slowly, "but what are the challenges?"

Lann slammed his mug down on the table, the remaining ale slopping against the glass. "Lots of things," he said. "There's a relay race-I'm obviously taking part in that one, and so is Vella; we'll be needing two more people-, javelin throw, egg race, tug-of-war, archery- Kai, don't disappoint me on this one-, pie-eating contests- Karok, how's your appetite?-, rope-climbing, boulder-stopping-"

"Wait, boulder-stopping?" Vella interrupted, frowning. "What's that?"

Lann flourished his arms as if it was obvious. "Uh, stopping boulders, what else could it be?" He nodded at Fiona and said, "She's got this down, don't you, Fiona?"

Though Fiona didn't answer back, Lann continued as if she did. "That's the spirit. Now, I've already drew out some of the playoff diagrams with the other team leaders. We're starting out with Capture the Flag. We're playing first-"

"What teams are playing?" Evie asked curiously.

"Eight of the elite mercenary teams will play, including us," Lann grinned. "I couldn't get the others to join because they've got things to do but the other seven are free. This sporting event will go on for a while, since each day will be dedicated to one event."

"If we're playing Capture the Flag tomorrow, then who are we playing?" asked Vella.

The team watched as Lann fumbled with his pockets, finally pulling out a folded up sheet of parchment. They all leaned in, examining the playoff diagram Lann drew out. "It's based on the 'winner plays winner' concept," Lann explained. "If we win, we move on to the next round and play the other winning team. We're playing Tarlach's team-"

"What? His team?" Karok exclaimed.

Evie's lips twitched up into a grin. "Well," she said as she took a sip of her water, "this will be interesting."

Lann nodded. "I know, which is why I picked his team to go against us first. Now, is everyone familiar with the rules?"

Kai and Vella gave Lann a slightly uncomfortable look and Lann knew immediately that he had explaining to do. "The rules are simple. Two teams have their own territory in which they are safe in. The goal of the game is to get your opponent's flags while defending your own. However, if you're in the opponent's territory, you're vulnerable to be out of play until someone brings you back in. Er, I'll give you the details later but that's the basic game play."

While Kai and Vella exchanged uncertain looks, Fiona cocked her head and said, "Where will we play then?"

Evie straightened up, staring at Fiona in surprise. "Fiona!" Evie exclaimed. At the sight of Fiona's raised eyebrows, Evie continued, "I thought you'd sit out but you're participating too?"

Fiona averted her eyes and stared down at her own drink, swishing the contents around casually. "It's for the sake of teamwork, like Lann said, and this event will brighten people's spirit up since we're fighting all the time," Fiona explained, "and besides..." She gave Evie a small smile. "Tarlach owes me from last week's battle."

Lann cleared his throat and addressed Fiona's earlier question. "I went scouting the other day and there's this forest close to here. It's near the pathway from Colhen to Rocheste, so I'll say it's pretty safe. If there are any emergencies, we can just deal with it. We aren't elite for nothing, you know."

He ignored the snickers from Evie, Karok, and Vella.

After dinner at the inn, Lann bade his team good night before he took a walk towards the general store. Though it was getting late, the women in the store were still chatting pleasantly with the few people present. Aislinn was busy with another customer but Fenella and Clodagh greeted Lann warmly.

"How are you?" Fenella asked as Lann approached.

"I'm good, thanks. You?"

"Just fine."

Lann directed his attention towards Clodagh, leaning against the table, watching her drive the end of a piece of thread through the eye of a needle. "So, is my order ready yet?" Lann asked.

Clodagh glanced up and smiled cheerfully, wiping the sweat from her forehead. "It was a lot of work, but I'm glad you gave me a few months to finish. Forty-eight uniforms, huh? What are you guys doing that requires all of this gear?"

Lann had planned the sporting event months ago and told Clodagh in advance that he needed uniforms for his team and the other seven teams participating. He didn't tell her what they were doing exactly, other than the fact that they needed clothing that wasn't necessarily armor, but something that they could easily move in and represent their respective team.

"We're just doing stuff," he said, trying his best to sound innocent.

There were packages and packages of gear, all of them fitted so that the person wearing their own uniform would feel comfortable. Though Lann never liked to make different trips, he had to cave in to his pride and take four. The first trip was towards the Mercenary Outpost where he found two of the teams; oblivious to the curious looks the other mercenaries gave them, Lann and the others sorted through their new gear and marveled at how much Clodagh improved her tailoring skills.

The second trip was to the inn, where Lann managed to find half of one team and a few of another. He left them their team's uniforms, not wanting to hunt down the missing members. He trusted them to give the uniforms to the others.

The third trip was lengthy, mainly because Lann didn't think to check the docks until the very last minute before he gave up.

"Seriously you guys, stick close to Colhen so it makes it easier to find you guys," Lann retorted, watching the mercenaries examine their gear. The other team that Lann had to hunt down on the third trip was just coming back from a quick battle. At first, Lann was unsure if they were healthy enough to take part in the games but when he realized they came back from a scouting trip, he figured that it was nothing serious and that they could suck it up.

"Just get plenty of rest, okay?" Lann told them. "I'll move your match down to mid-afternoon so you can get a little more rest."

The last trip was simpler. He found the seventh team lounging around the Forge and when they were taken care of, he returned to the inn in order to supply his own team with their uniforms.

It was amusing to Lann, really, how all the other teams knew about the event months before. After he had placed an order with Clodagh, he had rushed off to plan it with the other leaders, including the co-leaders. They were entirely up for it at first, but then Lann was reminded of their paling faces when he told them that the event was entirely his idea and that they shouldn't tell Fiona about it.

Apparently, everyone knew about Lann's infamous ability of getting into reckless and stupid ideas. The other leaders didn't see the harm in participating, but the second they saw how frantic Lann was about not telling Fiona, who they had all trusted to keep Lann in check, they soon wondered if it was such a good idea after all.

The reason why Lann pleaded them not to tell Fiona was because he wanted to watch all of his teammates' reactions towards the idea. Of course, this would mean that he might have put them in a disadvantage since he told them the night before; the other teams probably trained and prepared themselves to win.

However, he was sure that his team's performance would be amazing, even without prior preparations.

"Ooh, Clodagh made these?" Evie asked, tracing her name in bold letters on the back of her jacket.

"She worked hard on it," Lann mused, perched on top of his bed. He had called his team to gather in his bedroom and though they were bemused at the man's cluttered and disorganized room, their expressions soon changed when Lann told them of their uniforms.

"How much were these?" Karok asked. "I thought you were low on money."

Lann's face contorted distastefully at the memory of tedious tasks in order to afford the gear. Never again would he journey into the depths of a suspicious-looking cave and gather dried up feces. Who would even buy such a thing? But of course, Shayla never disclosed her client's reasons and even she made a face when Lann returned with a whole bag of them.

"Who would have thought a bag of dried feces would bring in a couple million. Not even magic powder brings in that much..." Lann muttered bitterly.

It was then that Fiona gave Karok a 'let's drop the subject' look and Karok merely nodded in agreement.

"You want me to referee?" Marrec asked incredulously. "Since when did we have a sporting event around here?"

Lann rolled his eyes. "Marrec, all the mercenaries are counting on you. If you don't do it then...what will we do? There are several people who will be crestfallen and crushed because you wouldn't..."

Lann did his best to imitate Evie's puppy-dog eyes and he even stuck out his bottom lip for extra effects.

Marrec grimaced and barked, "Oaky, okay, just stop making that ridiculous face! You'll give me nightmares."

Normally, Lann would find this offensive but at the time, he was just glad his face worked. It may not be cute and endearing like how Evie could make it, but it didn't matter. It had the same outcome.

As Marrec shuffled away, Lann turned to find Gallagher and asked if he would like to commentate on the event.

"How come I wasn't invited to play, ha?"

Lann frowned. He failed to realize that Gallagher might take it offensive he wasn't participating in the games with the other elite mercenaries. Luckily for Lann, he was a self-proclaimed master of evasion. "Well, if you were to play, then everyone will be at a disadvantage because you're too strong for them," he said. "If I put you in, you'd automatically win everything, and that's not fair. That's why I'm asking you to commentate the games. It'll be an honor...really..."

This pleased Gallagher, much to Lann's relief, and immediately took up the offer.

Reilly, on the other hand, demanded sweets and candy upon Lann's request.

While Brynn watched the two with annoyance, for they were interrupting his latest experiment, Lann dug his hands into his pockets and grabbed whatever his frantic fingers could find.

"I have some lint and uh, a few pebbles," he said sheepishly.

Reilly's face hardened and Lann had a feeling he needed more in order to impress the old man.

Lann coughed and stuck his fist back into his pockets. "I'll see what I can do."

After a quick stop back at the general store, Lann returned to the laboratory to satisfy the old man's wants. The second he stepped through the door, he was pounced on by Reilly, whose agility was shocking for a man f his age.

"Candy!" he exclaimed. "Gimme! Gimme!"

Lann surrendered the candy and sweets and took several steps backwards towards Brynn, regarding Reilly as if he was a wild beast.

"So you'll do it?" he asked slowly, pulling Brynn in front of him to act as a shield, much to Brynn's chagrin.

Reilly ceased his crazed excitement and glanced up at Lann and blinked. "Oh yes, I'll be happy to do it," he said. And with that, he returned to his sweets and Brynn finally kicked the two out of his lab.

Okay, so this idea randomly popped up in my head and I started to write about it. I liked it so much that I decided to post it on fanfiction! Yay! I know I have other projects to do, but I couldn't help it! Anyway, since Lann's invited other "elite mercenary teams", I'll have to make up their names so I stole-erm, borrowed- them from the Mabinogi characters, the sequel to Vindictus.

Anyway, please enjoy! And if there are other events you'd like to see, please let me know. Thank you for reading!