Chapter Thirty: To The Races

"We only have fourteen people still in the match. That means we each have to take on, what, like ten people?" Cyrus inquired.

"Something like that," Tim answered. "But it's not as though it's just us that people will be trying to beat. We can let them take each other out."

The smell of sausages and baked bread wafted in the area. It was crowded, but those who had made it past the second round of the tournament were huddled together for a strategy meeting.
It would have been better to do it before breakfast, just a few hours before the final round, but many people were out until late the night before.

Breakfast provided to be a distraction from the meeting, but it was also the only thing keeping everyone in one place. Some distractions had to be tolerated.

Because of the circumstances, Samari was sitting with Lorilie and Cyrus as they talked. She was feeling much better than she had felt the day before, to the point where she wanted the meeting to end quickly so she could chat with her friends.

"Hey, so, Baden and I checked out to see what the final round would look like," someone informed them. "It seems to be an obstacle course with five paths, but we couldn't figure out where it finishes. We did find some kind of clearing with pedestals, a big, open place."

Putting her hand on his chin, Tim folded his arm across his chest and rested his other elbow on it. After a few moments, he said, "So-so, that would, uh, that would be three people per path, and the last path would just have two. Let's do--"

He stopped abruptly when Dillian jogged over to him. While they spoke back and forth, the people who were listening lost interest and began chatting with each other.

"I can't tell if it would be better if we were on a team together or not," Cy said to Samari.

She chewed and swallowed her bit of melon before replying, "Uh, true. Cause we-we know each other's fighting styles, and it would be cool if we could...do the round together, but we a-are both weaker than everyone else."

"I don't know about that," Lorilie said. "You may still need a lot of work, but I think Cyrus is ready for the mage test."

Eyes widening, he choked on his breath. "Really? I've failed a lot."

"Yeah, so? If you aren't ready now, you'll be ready when this thing is over."

"--guys, shut up and listen!" Tim's voice called above the noise.

Cyrus covered his mouth, looking around to see if anyone was glaring at them for talking.

"Thank you! Now, Dillian here is gonna take one of the minas--uh, Sam, I think--and go down the middle path. Then we're gonna have some team captains to make their own teams for the other paths. Those'll be me, Zoran, Caryn, and Lyme. Sound good?" the battlemage announced.

A chorus of confirmations called out. "Alright, we're done then. Figure the rest out with your captains."

Once he was finished, Cyrus teased, "Wow, aren't you special? You had someone specifically choose you."

"Although not as nice as being a team captain," Lorilie chuckled.

Samari raised her eyebrows. "Are you just jealous that Zoran was picked and y-you weren't?"

The feline's tail flicked back and forth rapidly, her eyes unblinking as she stared at the brunette. Samari clenched her first, looking down at her food. She didn't know exactly what her movements meant, but she knew enough to see that Lorilie was upset.

Before she could say anything, Zoran popped up behind them. Leaning down to their eye level, he asked, "Do you two wanna go with me?"

Lorilie gazed at him, her tail slowing its motion. "I've a feeling I don't exactly have a choice in the matter," she remarked.

A thought popped into Samari's head, one that demanded attention. Not wanting to back out of it, she decided to follow the idea immediately. Stuffing the rest of her sausage in her mouth, she set down her plate. "I'll be back, " she mumbled with a hand covering her mouth.

Stepping over the benches, her eyes scanned people carefully as she walked. Spotting who she was looking for, she made a beeline through the area. Luckily for her, the man was getting his food and was not talking with anyone, so it was easy for her to approach him.

"Hey, you-you said that you, uh, saw the obstacle course, right?" she asked. "I was...wondering about what the ob-obstacles are, if you know?"

Surprised, he blinked at her. "Uh, yeah. I don't remember which ones were in which paths, but there was a pit with ropes across it, a minefield, a maze, and a thick forest. I can't remember the last one, but I hope this helps you!"

"It does. Thank you, " she bowed and left, letting out a deep sigh of relief. Now to find Dillian, she thought as she searched for him.

"Sam! There you are. I've been looking for you, " he called out.

She turned to the sound of his voice, confused as to how she had missed seeing him. Spying the Volcanic, she closed the gap between them with a few steps.

"Funny, I could say the same t-to you, " she mentioned. "Anyway, I want to discuss the strategy for later--"

"We should go over the plan together, " Dillian said at the same time.

Stunned by the coincidence, they both stuttered and looked away. When she glanced back, Samari saw him blushing as he fixed his glasses.

"Ah, you--" they started, stopping to let the other talk.

Wanting to break the cycle, Samari waved a hand in from of her face. "You talk. I was j-just coming over to see what your plan was, anyway."

He smiled sheepishly, waiting a few seconds in case she wanted to say something else. When she started at him silently, he began, "Alright, here's the plan..."

_Π_Π_Π_

A hundred finalists stood before the announcer, the obstacle course behind him. They stood uncomfortably close to each in order to hear him better, despite how he was being projected by scry lacrimas.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I hope you all are ready for the year's Dark Moon Tournament finale!"

The crowd behind them erupted into cheers, somewhat to the announcer's disappointment. He waited for them to quiet down before continuing.

"As by tradition, the final is a race, but we spruced things up this year. For one thing, there are twenty prizes, although some are more valuable than others. The race itself will be in the form of an obstacle course. As you can see, there are five main pathways, each with a different set of obstacles.

" The paths will eventually join together, some sooner than others, to all lead to a clearing." He pointed to the scry screen which now showed the field. It was a hilly area with a pedestal on top of each hill. "As you can see, each pedestal has a prize. Only one prize per person! Whatever prize you choose, bring it back here to earn it as your keep. Keep in mind that anyone is allowed to steal it from you on the way back.

"This round has no limit on the ticon you use, within reason. We don't want things getting too crazy! As for the paths, anyone can go down any path, but once you choose your path, you cannot switch paths until you reach the clearing, so choose carefully."

Some murmuring stirred in the crowds as he explained. Samari looked at Dillian, unsure whether the rules would affect their plan or not. His eyes were fixed on the scry projection, scanning the pedestals for signs of the spirit gem.

She opened her mouth to speak, but was interrupted by the announcer saying, "Contestants to the starting line!"

As they took their place in the middle, Dillian turned to Samari. "Are you ready for this?"

"As I-I'll ever be, " she sighed.

"I can buy you some time, if you need it."

The gesture warmed her heart, but she brushed it away. If she just let him give her a handicap, he would use most of the strength he needed in case they got into a fight. She had seen the Flames when the finalists gathered. There were too many for her to relax, not to mention everyone else who was competing.

She rolled the offer away with a sharp, "Hey, pay attention! We're about to start."

Tisking his tongue, he leaned over into a starting position. Samari copied him, placing one foot in front of the other with her fingers resting lightly on the ground. She tried not to notice his smiling at her from the side, her eyes trained on the path before them.

BLUNNNMP!

They took off like arrows, darting a bead of those around them. The rush was strange at first, but since they had practiced running with the enhancement spell, they adjusted quickly to it.

Once they were on the path, Samari set fire to a cloth sack and dripped it behind her. Smoking like pine needles burning, the burning sack made it both difficult to see and to breathe.

The duo didn't skip a beat, sprinting away from the confusion. The announcer's voice faded as he commented on their spectacle. Samari held in a smile at the inadvertent praise.

It wasn't long before they were panting heavily, the spell has worn off. Other contestants who emerged from the smoke were pursuing them, but they were trailing behind the leaders of the path.

Samari scanned her surroundings. "Now?" she huffed.

Dillian shook his head, panting, "Not...yet."

As they ran, she adjusted a stone in her hands, shifting it between her forefinger and her thumb. Repeatedly, she glanced at him as her legs burned from the effort of running.

"Now!" he suddenly cried.

Cracking the stone open like a peanut, she tossed it behind her. When it touched the ground, all around it became a thick mud. Some unfortunate runners who had gotten close became stuck in it, causing hesitation from the others approaching.

As if one were not enough, Samari cracked three more and dropped them carefully as to not get herself stuck. She left the path as a long stretch of mud with one mud pit right after the other.

"That's the...last...of them, " she huffed, dramatically slowing her pace.

Just as tired, Dillian slowed to a walk with her. Now panting heavily, they coughed every so often from the stress the exert had done in their body. The heat of the beating sunlight did not help their exhaustion.

Curious, Dillian glanced back at the other contestants, but he could not see them because they were lost behind the pathway's curves.

"It worked!" he cheered.

"For now, " Sam stated. "Let's set up the..net."

He nodded in agreement. They stopped walking altogether. Reaching into one of her pouches, the brunette pulled out a handful of almond-sized seeds. Giving some to her partner, the went to work of planting them in a line from one side of the path to the other.

Once finished, they back away. Dillian touched his hand to the ground, chanting, "Reace, Plant Surge." His ticon shifted the dirt as it streamed from his hand to the seeds. They immediately started sprouting and growing into stalks of wheat.

We are making our own obstacles here on this obstacle course. I wonder what the rule makers think of that! She watched the grain grow, the stalks becoming thicker and taller with more ticon fueling them.

When they were a suitable height for a wall, he stopped the spell. Standing, he walked backward in rotation with Samari stepping forward. She opened her fist and blew ticon dust off her palm, carefully to get some on every plant.

As the dust settled into on the leaves, the yellow plants absorbed the powder. They turned dark grey, taking on a metallic shine as well.

"That should stop anyone for a-awhile, " she said, admiring her work. She quickly brushed the last hits of metal dust from her palm. Already, there were metal flecks molded into her skin. She picked at it a bit, stopping when her skin turned red.

"Are you good to go?" Dillian asked when she looked up from her hands.

She nodded, resisting the urge to scrape away at her skin again. Turning to the path, they jogged away, pressing on to the next part of the course.

A/N: next update July 2nd.