Trees slowly began to become less popular over time, giving way to stone walls and steep cliffs, the bright sun reflected off the sandy stones, giving the area a sense of divine.
"Where are we?" Sam muttered, turning round slowly, taking in the forest of stone with a sense of awe flooding through his system.
"Nearing the Hall of Champions" Thomas replied, calling over his shoulder as Sam was slowly starting to lag behind.
"You couldn't slow down could you?" Sam panted, trying to push his tired legs even further to keep up with the others.
"No how about you speed up?" Thomas chuckled, also gaining a chuckle from Ethan while Ceri stayed quiet easily keeping up with Thomas's pace without complaint.
They slowly began to decend into a ravine, carefully concealed stairs leading down one of the walls, a thick metal bar being the only barrier between the group and a long and painful fall.
"You Champions really know how to conceal the entrance of this hall" Sam muttered, peering over the edge into the gloom.
"If we did not, people who want to be Champions would not leave us alone" Ethan chuckled, the sheath of his katana lightly tapping against the stones as he descended the steps.
They continued on in silence until they reached a large gate, it's dark steel reflected no light as torches burned steadily onwards creating a dark shadows that danced backwards and forwards in the torchlight.
"Your reception will be loud" Thomas chuckled as he hammered on the gate with a closed fist "So you may want to brace yourself"
Slowly the gates were pulled apart and more torches extinguished the shadows as a large man rushed forward from the gates and grabbed Sam, picking him up in a colossal bear hug.
"Can't….breath…" Sam managed to say, his legs flailing about as he tried to find something to stand on.
"Hey big man let him go he can't breathe" Ethan patted the giant's shoulder causing him to drop Sam back onto his feet as more people filled out.
Cheers puncturing the air as other patted him on the back, there were not many of them but from what Sam had learnt they were all masters of their trade and deserved a great deal of respect.
"Where is he? Let me see him!" A voice cried out as people parted, letting Sam have a clear line of sight with the speaker. A warden in golden armour shuffled forward, an ornate but strong sword hung from his belt as he limped forward, his left leg dragging lightly across the floor as he came up to Sam.
"So you are my replacement eh?" He punched Sam's right shoulder, it felt like a boulder had hit him yet he did not complain.
"It seems so sir" Sam replied respectfully, a slight incline from his head as a gesture of respect to the older man.
"He calls me 'sir'!" The old Warden roared with laughter and turned to Thomas. "You do know how to pick 'em!"
"Looks like I owe you a few coins" A voice rose up from the crowd, the speaker was a raider, metal horns, which look like an expert craftsman made, rested on his head.
"Let us leave introductions till later" Thomas cut in before everyone began shouting and speaking again "We have a feast to attend and I need to get changed for the occasion!"
There were roars of approval as the group all moved inside, almost carrying Samuel inside. He was able to catch a glance of Thomas as he slipped away from the crowd and into a passage leading away from the group, Ceri and Ethan following closely behind him.
An hour later
"A toast to the new Warden!" Someone called out and everyone roared their approval before they drank more mead.
At this point Sam still had no idea how to react, here he was sitting in a hall with people he thought he would ever thought he would talk to in his life, well not in a way that did not involve swords clashing and blood spattering the ground. They were also sharing a drink and cheering his name because he simply accepted the proposal to become a champion.
"Look who has finally arrived!" A gruff female voice shouted out as a door on the side of the hall was pushed out and three figures pushed their way through them.
Ethan looked like he was wearing the normal Orochi armour but it was more ornate and flashy, a mix of golds and reds painting fire and a dragon across his armour. Ceri wore her normal armour, her helmet had been replaced with a half mask, its bright white contrasted perfectly compared to her hair, which was a charcoal black her eyes were an electric blue, flashing with intelligence and cunning. But the one who really caught everyone's eyes was Thomas.
Sam had only up till now seen him with what could only be assumed as the standard armour for Lawbringers but now he wore armour that would make kings jealous. A lion seems to be the theme as his chest piece was that of a roaring lion, golden teeth glinting in the torch light while his shoulder plates were two snarling lions, their eyes shone with anger and aggression; a dark green cape hung from his back as he toward over his companions, he gently held Ceri's hand while slamming his palm on Ethan's back with a roar of joy at the attention. Reaching up he pulled his helmet up revealing his dark skin, he had little hair on his head, almost like a stubble of a beard but in turn, his beard was thick and strong. His eyes were filled with mirth and joy at the festivities.
"It seems like you lot have started without me!" He shouted which caused everyone to laugh.
"We had to or there would not be any mead left!" Another gruff but happy voice responded as a figure stood up, gold and white seemed to be the colours reserved for Champions as this man also wore those colours but Sam recognised the trade he followed instantly. He was a Conqueror.
Thomas walked down the steps, letting go of Ceri's hand as he walked toward the Conqueror who had spoken up. The Conqueror matched him stride for stride as they met in the middle.
The tension rose as everyone stayed silent as the two men stared directly at each other, no one spoke or moved. Suddenly Thomas grabbed a cup on a nearby table and down it quickly.
"Even with a head start Scott I will always drink myself into unconsciousness faster than you will!" He laughed patting the Conqueror on the shoulder while the other man did the same, a similar laugh coming from him.
"We shall see about that old friend!" He laughed, "We need more mead! A drinking contest has begun!"