CHAPTER 13.5_TOURNMENT ARC? (TOURNAMENT ARC!)

Shinji had never been so confused in his short life. He wasn't sure if he should be aroused, intimidated, or both, by the warriors from Cullena who were arrayed in front of him. They were all, men and women alike, dressed in not very much. Each held their weapons – spears, swords, halberds, bows - proudly and resolutely. The women admittedly wore more than the men, just enough to cover their chests, which left everything else pretty much exposed and little to the imagination.

Of course, Shinji was always baffled by the behaviour of a certain redhead, who swanned about a Tokyo-3 apartment also not wearing very much, yelling at him for things she perceived to be wrong, but also gave him his first kiss. And, before his otherworldly adventure, gave him his most recent compliment. On second thought, maybe she was much more confusing than some scantily clad people with big weapons and big muscles.

"On behalf of Queen Annabella Laurel Greendrake," announced Marcus in front of both the assembled soldiers. "I declare that the tournament between Cullena and Summerise shall begin!"

In front of Cullena's army stood three young women; the Hollows sisters. Renee had told Shinji that the sisters ruled Cullena as a council of three. Faith was the eldest, and had come clad in gilded leather armour that wrapped around her burgeoning chest, complemented with short shorts that emphasised how her legs went all the way down. She brandished a huge claymore proudly. In fact, the claymore seemed cartoonishly large for someone of such a slim stature. Shinji wasn't quite sure exactly how she managed to swing it around like it weighed nothing. He made a mental note not to ever get within reach of her, in case she decided to swing him around in the air.

Sunny was the middle sister, and she had lightly freckled cheeks and wore her hair in twin pigtails. She was a dressed a little more modestly, though her skirt still ended quite far above her knees. She held a simple scythe made of a dark matte metal, with a long, sharp and dangerous chine that seemed to glow red with excitement to do battle. If she was ever cast in a movie, Shinji was sure she would play the Angel of Death.

The youngest sister Hope was young. She couldn't have been much older than ten. But she carried herself like she was at least twice that age. Maybe it had to do with the feeling of invincibility afforded by wielding her dark metal compound bow. She seemed to be the tomboy of the three, with a wild mess of short hair which implied that her hairdresser was some sort of large cat who just licked it in random directions. And then ruffled it up for good measure.

The three sisters began to speak in unison. "We the Council of Three of the Nation of Cullena thanks the warriors of Summerise for this opportunity to fight, to learn, and to build a new relationship between our two nations. Too long has Cullena remained in the shadows. We are warriors, proud and true. We have always seen others through that lens, but we forget that strength is not just for war, but for doing what is right. And that is what we have missed; doing right. We, through this meeting between our two nations, will pledge our strength to our eventual victory over Gerard the Unhinged!"

A rousing roar of approval flooded the air between and around the two armies. The soldiers of Summerise shouted in lockstep like the well-oiled professional army they were, and the warriors of Cullena whooped and cheered like the intense and carefree mob they seemed to be. In short, there were smiles all around, and anticipation in the air about just who would come out on top in the wargaming.

/

The tournament started as Shinji expected a mediaeval tournament would. The assembled ranks stood on each side of a thoroughly prepared flat field. There were competitions showcasing the prowess of each army at whatever it was they thought was important in war. The Summerisians showed off their marching skills with nearly arranged rows of archers and lancers and swordsman saluting the audience. The Cullena's, not to be outdone, showed off their horseback archery skills. It was amazing to watch a troupe of big, bronzed riders on warhorses charging towards targets and nailing every single one of them.

An intrusive thought came to Shinji. He wondered if there were Evangelion sized horses he could have Unit One ride on to charge into battle with while wearing a suitably large cowboy hat. He shook the image away at the ridiculousness of it all. It would be only more ridiculous if Ayanami were the one doing it, screaming obscenities at the target Angel.

Even more demonstrations came and went during the day. It was like an armed forces Olympic Games. There were running races, throwing competitions, quickest to get dressed in armour (or lack thereof for the Cullenans), and direct battles between warriors of either army to see who was stronger and faster and better at fighting.

All-in-all, it was an even matchup at the end of the first day's events and festivities. Everyone was happy to enjoy the night's food, drink and company as the sun settled below the horizon for its own rest. The two armies mingled with each other, shouts of joy and groans of laments as games of chance were won or lost. Shinji, having now being used to the barracks and the noise involved, was comforted that the two armies had no compunction mingling with each other, making the evening the most lively of affairs.

Not to mention, the entirely new aromas of Cullenan food wafted around the place, which made him very, very hungry.

Shinji wandered over to the commanders' tent, only to find it empty of said commanders. Their stewards were still there, getting ready for the next day's work and preparing mundane things like paperwork. It seemed the role of a commander was as much fighting tangible enemies in the field as battling the spectre of paperwork. After asking around, Shinji was told by one bustling steward that Renee and Marcus were off in the Cullanan camp.

So, Shinji went in that direction to find the erstwhile commanders.

He found them in the Cullenan's central tent, which Shinji assumed was to house the three Hollows sisters. The heavily armed guards took one look at him and nodded for him to pass through. Shinji could almost feel the big guy with the axe scoff as he walked past. For a nation which prided itself on the strength of its people, seeing Shinji's scrawny body was probably a joke to them, even though his current level of strength and fitness was much improved from Tokyo-3.

Still, he was nothing compared to the regular soldiers in the Cullenan army.

The interior of the tent was spartan to say the least. It seemed like it was all done in the name of efficiency. The three sisters sat along a long wooden table with Marcus and Renee sitting opposite them, while a few Cullenan stewards busied themselves serving food and drink. The conversation was bubbling quietly across the table, Shinji managing to catch words here and there, mainly to do with weapons and battles.

He had no doubt that the warrior queens of Cullena were trying their level best to one-up their Summerisian compatriots.

Faith was the one who noticed Shinji standing in the doorway. She gave him a wide smile and pointed at an empty chair next to Marcus. Shinji bowed in his polite Japanese way and walked as quickly as he could to the chair before sitting down opposite the youngest of the three sisters. Hope was systematically demolishing a leg of something, pausing only to drink out of her mug (and Shinji very much hoped it was water or juice) and burp her satisfaction at a particularly lovely mouthful. She looked at him funny and said: "you look a little weak for a soldier! Want some?"

Shinji had no retort. He wasn't exactly a hunk of man like Mr Kaji. Hope either didn't care he was silent or thought to make amends by offering Shinji another of whatever it was she was having. It was a leg of a large fowl which seemed to have been roasted into a state of golden crispy brown. How she was planning on fitting the meat of a second one of those inside her tiny frame was no doubt a mystery of the multiverse. She was munching and crunching her way through the first one with a level of enthusiasm previously unknown to man.

"Uh…thanks," said Shinji reflexively. He gently took the proffered roasted leg before realising that he didn't have a plate to put it on. Hope had been watching him and waved in the air for stewards to quickly attend to Shinji's needs. He had barely any time to react before a whole set of wooden crockery appeared in front of him, along with a wide empty plate and a bowl filled with some kind of light-yellow broth.

"Don't mind the little one, Sir Ikari, she's still very young and speaks her mind," said Sunny, looking at him intently as she carved up the food on her own plate methodically. "She doesn't mean to be rude."

"O-oh, that's alright," replied Shinji, wilting under her intense stare. "I-I'm not offended."

Sunny nodded and nodded curtly. Meanwhile, Faith had been chatting quietly with Renee. Shinji started to listen into their conversation whilst carefully eating his dinner, not really wanting to be interrogated by the middle sister. Or the youngest sister's unintentional barbs. Of course, Shinji didn't quite understand what the two women were talking about, but he assumed it had something to do with magic. Or whatever.

His ears drifted to Marcus and Sunny's conversation, which he did understand a little more of. It having to do with the less esoteric art of using swords large and small in battle.

Marcus was saying that: "...I maintain that having a smaller sword is much better, since you get flexibility and manoeuvrability."

"No, no! Claymores are much better! You have reach and devastating power!" replied an increasingly excited Sunny.

"I guess we'll find out tomorrow then," said a relaxed Marcus confidently. "It will be your oldest sister against me, Renee will test her magic against Hope's bow. And finally, you'll be up against Shinji here."

Shinji put his hand up as if he was an attentive student in school. "Um, I...do I really need to?"

Marcus shrugged. "According to Cullena's customs, they wanted to fight our best warriors as part of this tourney. You happen to be the one to defeat the greatest monsters that Gerald The Unhinged has thrown at Summerise, Sapphirica and Boldhold. We wouldn't be having this conversation if not for you."

Sunny raised her right eyebrow sceptically at Marcus. "No offence, but you don't look like someone who can really combust slimes, tame wolves. Or fight, really. You're more likely to get eaten by any of the aforementioned creatures."

"I-I…well, I don't fight in the traditional sense, I guess," admitted Shinji. He wasn't a real warrior like the girls sitting in front of him, or like Marcus and Renee seated beside him. He was, first and foremost, a shy and modest boy of moderate ability. He'd be nothing and nowhere without Unit One.

"He might not be a traditional kind of warrior to you, Your Highnesses," Marcus said firmly. "But he has defended us and our allies against orcs, slimes, giant wolves, zombies, and giant skeletons."

"Not to mention a dragon, twice," added Renee.

"Yes, that too," acknowledged Marcus. "You shouldn't underestimate him based on his looks."

"Hmph, I guess we'll see tomorrow. I still think Sunny will wipe the floor with him in within one minute," said Faith. Shinji looked at Sunny, who licked her lips at him with a gleam in her eye. If Shinji was old enough to have hairs on the back of his neck, they'd all be standing up in unanimous alarm at that moment.

Though dinner proceeded without further incident, Shinji was starting to think that he was in some kind of danger. And he didn't have the protection of Evangelion Unit One's copious layers of composite armour, AT Field and Lightning Engulfed.

As Shinji walked back to his tent after dinner, he wondered what Asuka would do, and then imagined that she'd just call him an idiot, and walk on to the battlefield without fear or hesitation in her usual haughty way. Misato would probably drink a beer and come up with some nonsensical plan for him to win, and Rei would blink at him blankly and softly mumble about some cryptically sage sentence.

He settled down inside his sleeping sack, assured that tomorrow was going to be embarrassing and painful. He just wasn't sure in which order it would be.

/

Morning brought with it a herd of fluffy white puffs migrating aimlessly across the blue sky. The sounds of both camps rising and preparing for the second day of the tournament rang out clearly in the fresh cool air. The makeshift arena had been cleaned up and the ground that had held so many parades of horses, men, women and displays of their prowess had been expertly flattened in preparation for the day's events.

It seemed like everyone was anticipating something spectacular. Shinji thought his defeat would be spectacular and might make him the laughing stock of both camps. Unfortunately, this was considered an inevitability. Still, it wasn't as if he hadn't ever been humiliated before by other people, or his own lack of ability. His cheek throbbed faintly in the memory of being punched by Touji. It felt like a lifetime ago that had happened.

Shinji sauntered meekly over to the chair reserved for him, next to Marcus' own chair. Across the arena from them sat the Hollows sisters. They were the ones who had requested they fight the Summerisian warriors who had performed the greatest deeds. This left Shinji with the surprise inclusion in the tournament. Before he sat down, he looked around him. The Summerisians were arrayed in neat rows and columns behind them, silent and staring ahead with the discipline of well trained soldiers. They were judging him already. He could feel it. Judging him like the Hollows sisters judged how he didn't have the look of a great warrior last night.

Of course, he wasn't a great warrior. He just happened to be able to control a monster powerful enough to defeat other monsters. Marcus, Renee, and all the soldiers who had faced actual monsters with just their armour and wits and bravery were infinitely better warriors than he.

The first bout was between Marcus and his longsword against Faith and her ridiculously oversized claymore. He wasn't even sure how she could lift the thing, let alone swing and fight with it effectively. But she must be able to if she was going to fight Marcus. Shinji had seen him fight before, and there was a definite finesse to each and every action he took on the field.

Cheers and hooting went up around the arena as the two combatants walked onto the field. Because this was a formal training and tournament bout, the two wore the same level of protection; toughened leather armour from top to bottom and a metal helmet. Marcus carried a wooden training sword instead of his usual ornate gleaming longsword. Faith Hollows' weapon was also exchanged for something less lethal, her dark steel claymore replaced with a similarly insanely large wooden equivalent.

There cheers and jeers and japes rang out across the field, both sides doing their best to sledge the other in good fun. After a short while of good natured ribbing, the adjudicator raised their hand and brought the crowds to good order. There was still a pockets of noise rising from the crowd here and there, which was finally settled when some well endowed henchmen of the adjudicator patrolling the crowd gave the evil eye to the various sections of the crowd, which silenced them completely.

"For the city-state of Summerise, representing his Queen, is Sir Marcus Bastion, Knight Commander!" shouted the adjudicator imperiously.

Shinji had the urge to clap, but remembered he didn't want to catch the attention of the mean looking lackeys operating crowd control. Nobody in the Summerisian contingent broke discipline and also remained silent.

"And, Her Grace, Faith Hollows representing Cullena!"

The Cullenans had no compunctions against supporting one of their leaders though. Waves of whoops and cheers courses through the crowd, though that was quickly put to a stop.

There was tension as Marcus and Fair eyed each other now, two combatants waiting for the clear signal to start.

"...BEGIN!"

Immediately, Faith Hollows sprang to life, dragging her training weapon along the ground, bounding towards Marcus. In the meantime, he stood his ground, ever watchful. Faith took this as a sign of weakness though, and a bloodthirsty scream rang out as she brought the claymore over her head to slash, only to hit literal dirt as he darted out of the way quicker than Shinji could imagine.

Marcus could fight, but he also seemed to be wily. Faith had the longer range, and she tried to use it to her advantage. Except Marcus had impeccable timing and either dodged or parried the heavy blows away with what looked like the tiniest of efforts.

Nonetheless, the attacks continued, Faith not the least concerned she hadn't been able to hit anything apart from air and ground. Her attacks were bestial in nature, swinging or lunging to the fullest extent possible. Each time, Marcus looked like he was about to be hit until the very last moment of time when he simply wasn't there anymore.

Shinji could feel the tension and frustration from each of Faith's misses. He wondered if this was playing into Marcus' game plan. Then again, he only had to make one mistake, one small miscalculation, and the match would be over. He wondered when the other shoe would drop.

Shinji, and the crowd watching with bated breath, didn't have to wait long. After a particularly loud, spectacular, but ineffectual series of slashes, Marcus leapt to the attack while Faith was still recovering her sword. It was clear that Marcus had been waiting for her to get tired, thereby giving himself the extra few tenths of a second to press home his own advantage.

Shinji watched in awe as Marcus showed his skills. Each attack was aimed at a specific point, like a series of well written chapters that he weaved into a swashbuckling tale of adventures with villains and heroes and otherworldly beings. The tension amongst the crowd rose as the duel continued.

Though she was in the defensive, Faith was still looking for angles where she could interrupt her opponent's fluid motions and get back in control of the fight. She blocked and feinted, dodged and lunged, slashed and parried, but to no avail. Marcus was simply too quick and eventually, he found a gap through her defences and tapped her armour, signalling a hard-fought victory.

Immediately, the captivated audience celebrated the prowess of the combatants. Both smiled and bowed to each other before doing the same to the crowds. Shinji could only gawk at the way both could move in the heat of battle and wondered if he could ever reach that kind of skill in the arena.

He remembered that he was also to fight one of the Hollows sisters and immediately regretted that in his previous 14 years of life, he had made no efforts to learn martial arts or pick up any physical activity for that matter.

And the cello was hardly going to prepare him to face a ferocious battle.

/

After a long and restful lunch, it was the turn of the younger Hollows sister, Hope to test her skills against Renee. The two were their respective side's experts at ranged combat; Renee with her sorcery and Hope with her archery.

Shinji had admittedly never seen a what a master archer could do. He had, of course, watched the Lord of the Rings trilogy, though it was with his old level of indifference. It was, for all intents and purposes, some background noise that conveniently filled his empty life at the time. He vaguely remembered seeing a pretty robed woman (or was it a man) skateboarding down some stairs while using a bow.

Shinji didn't remember much else about the movies.

In any event he was supposed to be paying attention to the prelude to the next battle. Which meant that it was getting to ever closer to his own battle, which would be the ultimate humiliation.

He just knew it.

Hope sauntered on to the field of combat, which had been quickly refreshed during lunch. It was absolutely necessary given how many pockmarks and craters had been hammered into the ground by Faith's claymore. The younger Hollows carried a compound bow taller than her own growing body. It was made of intricately assembled pieces of wood and string, accompanied by a quiver full of arrows of various lengths. Shinji wondered if the whole Hollows family was obsessed with weapons bigger than themselves.

He wasn't looking forward to seeing how big of a weapon Sunny Hollows would use on him.

Renee stride calmly to the field like Marcus did, her face serene and every part the professional soldier. She herself carried no weapon, but everyone know that she was assumed with great power and ability. The only thing she had on was her usual battle armour which had been polished until it gleamed in the sunlight.

The adjudicator signalled the match was about to begin. He cried out: "And in today's second bout, is the Templar-Commander of Summerise, Renee Redwood! Testing her archery skills against Knight-Commander Redwood is Hope Hollows of Cullena!"

The two bowed to each other, the traditional sigh of respect between two warriors about to fight.

"Now, both combatants will be using non-lethal force. Templar-Commander Redwood normally uses the fire element, but today she will be using water. Similarly, Hope Hollows uses high explosive incendiary arrows. Today, her arrows will we water tipped, ensuring no injuries upon contact."

Once again, the crowd fell silent in quiet anticipation of what was to come. Shinji noticed Marcus out of the corner of his eye, and they nodded to each other. Shinji, now that he wasn't a total emotional recluse, had picked up subtle hints about the body language of both Marcus and Renee. He looked quietly confident, but very focused, like he was willing Renee not to underestimate her much younger opponent.

From his vantage point, Renee stood serenely still, but her eyes were searching for a plan against Hope Hollows. Renee always said to Shinji that assessing someone's abilities could not be done on first impressions alone.

After an interminable length of time, which was probably only really a few seconds, the shout of "BEGIN" rang out once more from the adjudicator's box.

It was evident that both Hope and Renee had their own battle plans in mind because they both immediately succeed into action. Hope fired several arrows in quick succession at where Renee had been, her hands and arms were blurs as they worked the bow and quiver. Renee fucked and weaved, returning the favour with her own fire magic. Everything missed, at least for the moment.

Renee had to keep up the evasive action as arrows kept seeking her out. It left Renee with little time to plan out any attacks apart from a quick retaliatory strike here and there. But there were only so many arrows in Hope's quiver. At the rate she was firing them, the quiver was going to be empty in a matter of minutes.

Was that what Renee was waiting for? Certainly, Renee and Marcus were experienced enough to know the benefits of biding their time. Marcus already showed how to do that successfully against the eldest Hollows sister.

As Hope depleted her quiver, the pace of her attacks slowed, resulting in her picking out better opportunities to attack. Renee was able to retaliate now that there were gaps between attacks. There seemed to be nothing between the two warriors, but Shinji figured that if Renee could hang on until all of Hope's arrows were used up, then she would win. Then again, it would only take one hit to hit Renee to knock her out of the fight.

Not that Renee was unaware of that reality. She kept dodging, as did Hope, attacks flying around the arena non-stop. It was a spectacular sight. Right up until Hope ran out of arrows. Renee saw her chance to launch her first real attack and charged a huge ball of water which she summarily slammed into the ground where Hope was standing.

Was, being the operative word. Hope managed to somehow dodge the fireball and then flourished…something, which resulted all of the previously fired arrows scattered around the arena to blow up, sending waves of water in all directions. There was too much of it to dodge, and Renee was drenched from head to toe.

It took a few seconds for anybody, let alone the Adjudicator to react to the outcome of Hope's surprising trap attack. Shinji could scarcely believe it. Hope's attacks had appeared wild and unplanned, looking like she was there to strike first and strike hard. But there was apparently method behind her madness. Renee had taken the brunt of the water arrows while Hope seemed to have taken some collateral dampness. It was enough for the younger fighter to be declared the winner.

The crowd cheered and clapped. No matter the outcome, it was a spectacular tactical battle and even Renee smiled at Hope. The two shook hands and curtailed before returning to their respective camps to recuperate, and likely change into fresh clothes in Renee's case.

As the crowds dispersed to wait enjoy their afternoon tea, Shinji walked with Marcus back to the Summerisian command tent.

"So Shinji, enjoying the gladiatorial battles today?"

The young boy nodded. "Yes, you and Rene fought really well. I didn't expect the sisters to be so... ferocious."

"It was my first time meeting them too," Marcus said thoughtfully. "I had heard of their reputation, but didn't believe it. If anything, those rumours undersold their abilities."

Shinji gulped. "Uh, i-is it too late to find someone else to fight Sunny? I d-don't think I'm going to last very long against her. And...and...I don't want to be the reason we lose the tournament..."

Marcus laughed heartily. "Don't worry about it Shinji. This is just a friendly formality. For Cullena to sign any treaty, this is their way, to show their worth as warriors. They like people of their word, courage and tenacity. And what better time to be courageous when you know you're probably going to lose against a superior opponent?"

Shinji's brain shifted through several emotions, fear, guilt, anxiousness, acceptance and resignation, all within milliseconds. "Marcus, that... doesn't make me feel any better."

"The three sisters demanded they get to test their skills against the three with the greatest battlefield achievements," Marcus said firmly. "In truth, you have the greatest out of the three of us. We wouldn't even be here talking about it without you. So what if you lose a friendly bout? Just try to enjoy it and last as long as you can for your first time."

"U-uh, alright. Is...is there any good protection I can have?" asked the nervous boy. "Sunny gave me a look last night that makes me think she'll eat me alive."

"We can only give you the usual leather training armour," answered Marcus. "It's in the rules. It'll absorb most of the impacts, but you might end up being a bit bruised tomorrow."

Shinji sighed. At least if he was going to be humiliated, he could get it out of the way quickly. "Alright. I...I'll do my best."

"Atta boy," said Marcus, slapping Shinji on the back. "There's no shame in losing to Sunny Hollows. No matter what, we're proud of you."

Unseen, Shinji's cheeks took on a slight shade of pink. He'd only heard those words once before.

/

"Aaand now, for our final bout," shouted the Adjudicator. "Sunny Hollows of Cullena will be against Sir Shinji Ikari of Summerise, Combustor of Slimes, Tamer of Wolves, Shatterer of Skeletons and Silencer of Tritons!"

Shinji was sweating buckets underneath the leather armour. Partly it was because the afternoon sun shone down upon the land with nary a cloud in the sky. Partly it was because Sunny Hollows was standing across from him looking at him, and wearing no armour at all, such was her confidence. Her plain fighting clothes clung and emphasised her frame, just some plain black leather pants and a buttoned up white shirt. Her long brown hair was tied in two tails, framing her pretty, freckled face.

He figured he looked ridiculous, a skinny little boy dressed in armour, trying to play soldier. He would probably have laughed at himself if there was a mirror. He had in his shaky hands the standard training polearm that he used in the Summerise barracks nearly every day. In contrast, she was wielding an enormous training scythe. The weapon made her look like she was death incarnate. Plus, the hungry eyes, and slightly scary licks of her lips wasn't helping to dispel the image.

At least if Death was coming for him, she looked damned good.

Shinji realised he also needed to come up with a plan. If he was in any way able to beat Sunny Hollows, he needed to think. Fast.

She's a little shorter than me, but her scythe is longer than my polearm. Which means I have to find some way to get in close. I have to be quick. I have to be decisive. I have to...

PAY ATTENTION!

He realised the Adjudicator had already started the match when Sunny's smile turned into a toothy, ravenous grin as she charged at him. And in an instant, she was upon him, swinging the scythe at his torso. He barely got his own polearm in the right places to block the strikes. His blocks came from instinct. There was a little bit of muscle memory from the basic training he'd been receiving, but there was no way he could keep up the momentum. Sunny's attacks were quick and precise. Quicker than his own defensive actions. Quicker than he imagined. Quicker than his legs, which were already slower than usual from the armour we wore.

When Shinji would look back on his adventures in another world, he wouldn't be able to replay the whole battle in his mind, only certain moments. Oh it would remember the fear, and anxiety and the noise as scythe smashed into polearm with, and this was no exaggeration, megaton force. It felt like the battle probably went on for a few minutes, but Marcus would tell him that only about thirty seconds elapsed in total in his estimation. He would certainly vividly recall the details of the fight's last acts. After a few of Sunny's strikes, and Shinji continuing to offer his polearm in defence, shards of wood flying off it with every hit, Sunny used the chine of her scythe to hook on to his polearm and ever so smoothly yanked it, snapping the thing in two with a thunderclap of finality. The two ends clattered on to the ground uselessly, as did Shinji himself, surprised at the ferocity of the fight's conclusion.

Sunny walked slowly over to him with the leisurely confidence of a predator that had successfully hunted its prey, planting her right boot on his heaving chest. She had a Cheshire cat grin on her face. Embarrassed at his own lack of fortitude, he looked away from her eyes, only to catch two eyefuls of her long, long legs. He averted his eyes, trying to concentrate on the minute details of her scythe, or something, anything else.

He gulped. Maybe Death really had come for him. Either that, or he was discovering something about himself as his pants started to feel tighter than he remembered.

"First time?" she asked, bending down to examine Shinji's face.

He nodded slowly, not wanting to make a sudden move and unleash the monster who could crush his rib cage for fun standing above and on him.

"Hmph, just as I expected," shaking her head. "I hope you last longer with other ladies, Sir Ikari. It's unbecoming of a knighted warrior to fall so easily. At least your technique shows promise. You just need to build up more strength and stamina. Then you'll be able to impress."

"Uh, uh, I will, Your Majesty Miss Hollows…" Shinji managed to croak out.

She leaned closer and whispered into his left ear. He could smell her sweat and some kind of sweet perfume. Whatever it was, it couldn't be compared to strawberries and red. "I think we can drop the formalities. We've fought, one person emerged the victor. There's nothing so intimate as fighting as a first date, right? Especially in front of all these people. They've seen me win and claim my prize."

Shinji wasn't sure what she meant, or he was supposed to do. So, he nodded with all the certainty he could muster.

All Sunny did was give him a predatory smirk.

/

Shinji awoke in the guest quarters of Castle Summerise. Two days had passed since he and the rest of the Summerisians returned home. Though they'd lost the tournament, Anna had only cared that the alliance between Summerise and Cullena had been secured. And in that, Shinji, Marcus and Renee had been successful.

After quickly cleaning his face and donning fresh clothes, he wandered over to have breakfast in the common dining room. Marcus and Renee were there too, already in quiet discussion about how to proceed next. Now that the major nations had pledged cooperation with each to get rid of the threat of Gerard the Unhinged, it seemed inevitable that they would start planning an attack of some sort.

He sat down, and as was customary for the guest quarters, servants appeared out of nowhere and gently set down plates of delicious smelling (and tasting) food and drink for him. Marcus and Renee greeted him too, in their usual happy manner.

Shinji started eating, but before he could swallow his first mouthful, a very angry and underdressed Anna burst into the room.

"Shinji! Did you really get stepped on by that crazy girl?!"

"Which one?" he asked dumbly.

"Which one?! Sunny Hollows, the middle sister!"

"W-w-well, I…fell over and…I was a bit scared of her. She's scary."

Anna's face became incandescent. With quiet venom, she said: "You submitted to her. Did any of you know that when a Cullenan woman defeats a man in battle and steps on him that is a how they get ENGAGED?!"

Marcus dropped his fork into his oats with a wet splodge, while Renee looked away trying to make herself very small.

Oh. Shit. I'm in danger.

A/N - Hey folks, author here. Apologies for the delay on updates. Things got busy and it was hard to find the time to get this chapter out. We are definitely nearing the end of the story though, so I appreciate y'all's patience and understanding!

Anyway, on the next chapter with our mopey protagonist:

Shinji eats in a jungle, Shinji kowtows in a jungle, and Shinji uses body language...in a jungle.