Chapter 18: The Tournament Pt 1
I couldn't sleep all night, I tried for an hour or two but I couldn't with the rush of emotions from the evening. I figured I might as well spend what time I had before the tournament training with my new gift, the sword from the king. I threw on my training uniform and made my way to the training yard. This new sword was impeccably well-balanced, light, but durable. I tested it on some dummies in the training yard and cut clean through their wooden frames without so much as a scratch on the blade. I decided I'd keep the Master Sword on my back for the tournament, but I wouldn't let it leave the sheath. Like the king said, the blade would give me an unfair advantage in any fight and probably damage any sword swung against me. That being said, it would give me plenty of time to train my versatility with other weapons other than my go-to. It would be morning soon and all of the contestants would gather outside the castle gates, let's try this thing against metal.
Soon enough, the sun rose above the horizon. I saw several trainees and knights follow my example and begin training in the yard before the tournament. I participated in a few sparring matches, some of the guys wanted to test their skill against mine before the fights began. After about ten matches I called off my training, with the sore, sweaty bodies all around the training ring. I just started sweating myself, I guess I'll go get checked in for the tournament. I might be needed to assist with final preparations. Leaving my brothers behind, I gave a small wave followed by a chorus of goodbyes.
On the way to the check in station by the gates, Johnny caught up with me, "Hey, man! You ready for this thing?" I nodded, my hand resting on the hilt of the blade on my hip, "Wow! That sword looks amazing! Where'd you get that? Did the king give you that yesterday?" I nodded again, unsheathing it and spinning the blade away from him so he could grab the handle. Taking it from my hand, Johnny looked the blade up and down, "Incredible, this might be the best sword in Hyrule! Other than the Master Sword, obviously." We smiled and talked on the way to the gates. I tried to hold back the thought of inevitably having to fight my long-time friend in the tournament. Up until now, it had always been playful sparring or purely training. This was going to be everything we had, 100% all-out. I felt bad because I already knew how our fight would end, but I wanted to give him a good fight and I knew he wouldn't take anything less than everything I had.
Getting closer to the gate I started to notice fighters from across Hyrule, humans alongside Gorons, Ritos, and Zoras. Fighting against these different fighters with different styles and strengths would be incredibly beneficial and even further hone my combat skills. I switched from concern for my friend to getting all fired up for the fights. At the check-in station me and Johnny both gave our names and we were given pins to identify us as participants in the tournament. Before we walked off I asked the attendant, "Can you check the list for a particular person? I was wondering if the Goron, Daruk, would be fighting today." The attending gestured for a moment and scanned the stack of papers. A short moment later, "Unfortunately, Daruk will not be participating in the tournament. I don't see their name anywhere." I couldn't act like I wasn't a little upset, but I was comforted by the fact I'd be seeing him for a proper fight soon.
The tournament rules were revised since the king moved the tournament day back for me. Instead of tryouts beforehand, there would instead be fifteen rings, each about forty feet across, running at once to quickly narrow the pool. There wouldn't be single elimination for this portion, participants would instead be required to win three matches before losing two. Each fighter was given plenty of time between each of their fights, and the times and fighters for each standoff would be updated every twenty minutes. Those that passed this round would move on to an actual tournament bracket, single elimination. With several rings running at once, this portion would move rather quickly. This set up wasn't quite as efficient as before, but rescheduling already messed up visiting fighters from the other races. This would allow the tournament to only take up the day, but it would be a long ass day.
Everyone was checked in a ready to fight by breakfast time. Johnny went his own way, since he had a first round fight, to get close to his ring. Fighters were given portions to eat, to save time while the king welcomed the participants and visitors. There were thousands of people of all races present, and well over 150 participants. The King was seated on a raised-up set of bleachers with the princess and other officials surrounded by guards. From his seat I figured he could see every ring laid out, but there were other sets of bleachers at each ring if he wanted to focus on a particular fight. He stood from his seat and the crowd grew silent in anticipation, "Welcome, visitors, to this great tournament. I'm grateful you could all make it and I thank you for being patient with the delay. I wish you all good luck and may the goddesses watch over you all. Let the tournament begin!" With that there was thunderous applause and everyone took of to their respective ring. I didn't have a fight for about an hour, depending on how quickly each battle went, so I approached decided to watch a battle with a Goron participant.
I wandered around until I found one and saw one of the rock men squaring off against a burly Hylian. The Goron had a large sledgehammer and wore nothing but a smile. The Hylian was brandishing a broadsword and shield. I asked around until I got an answer, "What's the name of that Goron? Do you know anything about him?" I was overheard by another nearby Goron, "His name's Gorko. Our strongest brother besides our chief, Daruk. Second to only the chief in his combat prowess, that Gorko is an incredible fighter." I was super-pumped now; my chest was on fire with excitement. I couldn't wait to watch this battle.
The official entered the ring to state the battle's rules, "No killing, avoid debilitating injuries, knock out of the ring, yield, or knockout your opponent." The contestants nodded, the official backed off, "Ready? Fight!" With that a clash of metal on metal rung out. The Goron's hammer slammed into the Hylian's shield. A huge dent caused the Hylian to widen his eyes if fear. emOh goddesses, he's so strong! This is incredible! /emWith another swing of the hammer, the Goron swept out the Hylian's feet. Gorko dropped his hammer and grabbed the man's legs in one hand and his neck in another. Easily lifting the Hylian, Gorko held him over his head. With a battlecry, and screams of fear from the man, Gorko tossed the Hylian right out of the ring. "Our winner is, Gorko of Death Mountain!" Gorko raised his hand high, and picked up his hammer in his other hand. The whoops and cheers from every Goron nearby were heard while a medical team ran up to help the Hylian contestant. Oh, I need to fight that guy.
After wandering for a while, I noticed this Gorko was the only Goron contestant. I wasn't really interested in watching the Zoran fighters since I'd spent so much time when I was younger sparring with Mipha and their other great warriors. The Rito intrigued me, however, since I'd never personally sparred with any before. I'd heard stories of fights against them, but that was all the information I had on them. I was curious to watch a fight with a Rito but I had to make it to my first fight before that. Of course, as if I was being punished by the goddesses, my first fight was against a Rito named Fyson. I hadn't heard anything about him yet, so I had to size him up on sight alone. He was rather small, thin, brown and white feathered, with a small dagger and a bow. I'd never had trouble countering projectiles with my sword, especially now with the power of the Master Sword. But with a small frame on a warrior came speed, which I needed to keep an eye on. "Contestants, to the center!" The official called out and Fyson and I met in the middle. He had a sharp, calculating gaze. He was sizing me up just like I had done to him. The official restated the rules, "Ready? Fight!