It was exactly one month before the tournament, and anyone could tell that the competitors were getting anxious. Many more men had been complaining of sore muscles or a sprain due to over exertion, and the clinic located inside the coliseum was usually very busy tending to their wounds.
'Team Blue' as they were now called were waiting in line to receive their new blue tunics that they would wear during their first match. Complaints went out that they would look like ordinary missionary's instead of galant knights with their shining armour, but Ghada was glad of wearing a light fabric rather then a heavy metal which would grow hot and irritating under the warm sun.
The first time Ghada put on her full armour, Landis was right, it was very heavy for someone like her who was unaccustomed to it to walk around, nevertheless train with it on. Many poked fun at her when she walked outside with it attempting to get used to its weight.
As the blue tunic was handed down to her the color reminded her of the pendent around her neck that Amory had given her. She wore it but made sure her clothes covered the pendent not wanting to cause any notice to it. Her height and weight were made fun of enough already, and she didn't want to call any attention to the fact she wore a lucky necklace.
She remembered the day they were called on the scales and the average weight turned out to be almost two hundred pounds (as muscle weighs more than fat), and Ghada had come out at a mere 125, causing another chuckle to be heard from her team mates. Even Cecil managed to scrape 160 pounds, although he reminded Ghada of just skin and bone.
Ghada decided to try on her new tunic and was glad that it turned out to be a shapeless piece of fabric, as she wanted no attention to her not very masculine body. Ghada always had to be careful where she changed as she didn't want anyone to see the wrappings around her chest, and was known to be a "shy one".
Having nothing to do Ghada decided to go to target practise since there was never many people there. Surprisingly hardly anyone used the bow and arrow. Only seven other knights besides herself , had she seen even attempt. As she trodded along the dirt path towards the archery set up, she saw two people already there. One a contestant and one of them looked like Slade. Ghada narrowed her eyes and decided to climb a tree nearby and eavesdrop on their conversation.
Calix shot his arrow and hit a bullseye, which Ghada thought impressive as six other arrows already remained there. He hadn't missed once.
"Good boy," said Slade as if rewarding a dog with a compliment.
"This is too easy," replied Calix looking bored.
"It's because you're better than all the other fools who think they can aim well," replied Slade with obvious disdain when he thought of the other knights.
Ghada gritted her teeth together knowing that judges weren't allowed to have favourites, especially if they had trained one of the knights themselves. Even Appleby, Ghada noticed, didn't pay much attention to his own son and treated him like the rest during the training sessions so far.
Calix cockily walked to one of the targets picked it up and walked 100 metres farther, placed it down then came back. He shot an arrow and as it flew through the air Ghada gasped at how close to a full bullseye it was. The arrow had landed on a circular line marking the bullseye and the next level. He had almost done it on his first try. Calix scoweled and pulled back another arrow, clearly finding the first one not good enough. It landed square in the middle and Slade looked at Calix with greedy looking eyes.
"You my boy, are going to win this competition, and make me a very rich man," he said, having placed many bets; although judges , Ghada also recalled, were'nt allowed to place bets either.
"Next I want to see your swordsmanship," said Slade, " I have a special surprise coming up in the competition and the better you are with a sword is the better chance of surviving."
Ghada narrowed her eyes at the word surviving. The competition had almost somewhat changed when Slade had been appointed fourth judge in replacement of Mr.Wellignton. Knox and Slade had pretty much overpowered the other two judges and were always talking animatedly about the battles. Ghada wondered what the changes were, that had made both men so happy. She did'n't like it, she didn't like it at all.
As Slade past under her tree first Ghada sat extra still not wanting to be caught that she had overheard their entire conversation. Calix stopped suddenly directly underneath and told Slade to go on to the stadium where everyone practised swordsmanship and Slade looking confused but accepting walked on ahead.
Bending down as if to examine his sandle Ghada heard Calix mutter, "I know you're up there," and gasped when she saw him suddenly staring right at her.
Ghada dropped from the tree half from shock and halfly because she might as well make herself known now.
"How did you know I was in there?" she asked incredulously.
"Like I said, I'm good at everything. Including detecting unwanted eavesdroppers such as yourself. Mention to anyone what you heard and you won't have it easy," said Calix staring down at her.
"Slade shouldn't even be a judge! He favours you obviously, and makes bribes, that's against protocall, and no one is allowed to make changes to the 'games' last minute, although I don't know why they are called 'games' since its not that fun at all," stated Ghada as if reading from an invisible handbook of how to be a judge.
"You talk too much," said Calix shaking his head, "If you spent half the time training as you do talking, I might take you as a serious opponent."
Ghada walked forward stood about a metre behind where Calix stood to shoot, got and arrow out and aimed at the target Calix had moved.
"Going to upshow me are we?" asked Calix unimpressed at her motion.
"Just you watch," said Ghada concentrating on the target.
She let her arrow fly and watch it cut into the back of the staff of the arrow that Calix himself had shot.
Calix raised an eyebrow and nodded his head, " I was expecting you to get a bullseye, but to actually cut into my arrow…..not bad twerp."
"Why do you still call me twerp?"asked Ghada annoyed that she still held onto that name.
Calix looked at her with fake surprise and bent down so he was her height to whisper, "I don't know if you've noticed, but, uh, you're not exactly very tall and you weigh as much as a girl."
Ghada stood at her full height, "Good knights do not have to be musclebound and tall."
"Well prove that to me in the games," said Calix walking away.
Ghada looked at his back again and decided that, that was the part of him she saw the most. Stepping forward Ghada practised shooting for the rest of the afternoon, and never missed once.
As dinnertime approached Ghada felt her stomach growl and decided to head down early. She was the first one in there besides the judges and took her usual seat waiting. A couple more knights filtered in when Slades voice was heard apparently addressing herself.
"You there."
Ghada turned in his direction slowly, wanting very much to rip him apart right there and then.
"Yes?" She couldn't force herself to address him as sir.
Slade noticed the lack of formality also, "You must call me sir, boy."
"Yes……sir,"she struggled out hoping to not have to talk to him ever again this way.
"I feel as if you are not worthy of this competiton and I now ask of you to take up your possessions and leave this coliseum at once."
Ghada gaped at the obviously prejudiced man.
"I can keep up as well as the other knights, sir,"she said, not wanting to come all this way for nothing.
Slade snorted at the comment, "I for one know you won't get past the first round." He looked down at a piece of parchment he was holding, "I see that you depend on running, and a bow and arrow," he said with a humorless laugh, "If those are your strengths, and you still want to do this competition I suppose you deserve to die."
Calix had walked in during the last part of his speech followed not far by behind by Cecil. Cecil looked outraged that a judge would speak to his friend like that, and wondered why the other judges weren't stopping him. Calix apparently found this a little harsh too.
" He's on my team and has been training well. Emlyn is not completely worthless, and his bow and arrow skills would be a fine addition towards our teams first victory."
Through saying this Calix didn't look once at Ghada, and Ghada sat still in a small shock of being addressed as "Emlyn" instead of twerp or anything else insulting.
Slade looked at his own knight and looked like he was thinking it over. "Very well but since I am funding this whole thing, I want it to be as interesting as possible, no knight who looks like that boy is going to be taken seriously by the crowd so he better be as good as you say he is." With that Slade turned to talk to Knox completely ignoring the prescence of anyone else.
Cecil sighed in relief, "Thanks Calix."
Calix glared at Cecil and after a 'Don't talk to me' moved away from him towards the dinner table. Cecil followed and sat next to Ghada.
"I don't see why Slade gets to control everything just because he is paying," he muttered, "Besides I've heard all the changes are dangerous that he's made, but he doesn't seem to care as long as it appeals to the crowd. You'd think we're at the real coliseum in Rome, as long as we don't have to face lions," he ended trying to make it into a joke but failed.
"What changes has he made?" asked Ghada.
Cecil bunched his brow together in thought.
"Well the rumors are getting more and more ridiculous, such as we have to fight mythical beasts that he's captured, or perform amazing feats or he'll kill us himself, But I heard one strong one that everyones been saying. That Slade has changed the rules from no deaths, but to killing is now an option. They even say he's arranged a few 'Lotta alla Morte' to amuse the crowds."
Ghada looked confused, "Whats a 'Lotta alla morte'?"
Cecil looked at her gravely, "Fight to the death."
As the last knights wandered in and seated themselves the dinner began and Slade rose once again, but this time addressing everyone.
"I have to inform you of my first change of many since they have arrived."
"Arrived? What's arrived?" said Errol loud enough for their table to hear.
The side doors were thrown open and men suited in black crude looking metal entered the room. There were a lot of them.
"Who are these people?" asked Ghada bewhildered.
Cecil shook his head clearly not knowing either.
As the men took off their helmets to face the knights Ghada noted there was probably as many black suited knights as there were amateur ones. They looked battle worn and not very pleasant. Some had scars on their faces and a particular knight who looked like he was in charge because he stepped forward and announced something to Slade.
"My men are your men."
Slade smirked and his eyes darted at all the men which in Ghadas opinion looked like killers, and she started to feel almost scared.
Slade turned back towards the tables.
"These, are the mercenaries I have hired either to kill you or for you to kill them. I'm sorry to say(Ghada noticed he didn't look sorry at all) that you won't be fighting amongst yourselves, but I've hired my own personal little army to make things a little more,ah, interesting. You will be facing off against 25 of these men in your first battle so train hard."
Many of the other knights looked intimidated too at such a hard first challenge. It almost seemed unfair that they'd be fighting obviously experienced men while they themselves had been knighted for at least a few months(like in Ghadas case) or a maximum of 3 years for other cases.
Appleby and Redolpho, were now standing up and leaving the table and Redolpho decided to speak.
"Appleby and myself have resigned to be any part of this tournament,"he looked very angered when he and Appleby left the room almost by force when they were guided out by some of the new comers.
This time Knox stood up to say something.
"Anyone who has registered will remain here unless Slade finds them unworthy of keeping around, If you know what I mean. Any knights found to be sneaking about or trying to escape will be severely punished, if not killed. This year we've added on many exciting twists which will most likely end up killing the weaker ones, and perhaps the stronger ones but we will see neh?" and with that he sat down.
Cecil had turned white and turned towards Ghada who also was looking rather sick.
"We've become prisoners in our own tournament," he said.