14. Lizard Man

The buffet wasn’t crowded at all. I guess the other teams had partied a lot harder than we had and they still weren’t up yet. Gold Trim was there, and I was starting to wonder if he ever slept. He treated us like royalty, as always, and grandly led us over to an open cabana. We had two servers dedicated to us, which was two more than we needed, but Gold Trim insisted we should be pampered as much as possible.

Tami wasn’t one of the servers, so I didn’t get a special drink, and instead, went with regular coffee and orange juice. We hit the buffet, and I decided to go with my sweet course first. I loaded up on blueberry pancakes, added lots of sliced fruit to keep it fresh, and then drowned everything in maple syrup. It was just a classic breakfast. But classics are classics for a reason, and I chowed into it like a sugar junkie coming off a keto diet.

I got some protein for Bermuda, but he only ate a few bites. Instead, he settled onto the table beside me and started taking a bath. Our servers were surprised, but they took it all in stride. Gold Trim stopped by again, as he liked to do, and mentioned that he had a favor to ask.

“Of course!” Sandy said earnestly. “You have been so generous and kind. Please let us know how we can help you.”

“Your team still needs to do their interview, correct?” he asked. Sandy nodded.

“My partner, Darius, has been trying to break into the talk show scene, and I was hoping that you would be open to doing your interview with him.”

I think he was a little nervous, as he hurried to explain.

“Most people think that being interviewed is just answering some questions and that’s it. But there is a lot more to it than that. The editing, the interviewer, and the questions themselves create a story. Even the music laid over the interview helps to set the tone. The stories can be supportive like ‘small town genius tries to be successful in a big tournament’ or ‘tired tournament veteran wants to finish in a blaze of glory.’ They can also tear teams down, like ‘entitled team gets what they deserve’ or ‘unworthy mages cheat their way to victory.’

“Darius has worked hard at his skills, and he’s already done over two hundred interviews. Unfortunately, the teams he’s interviewed haven’t gone very far in previous tournaments, so the number of views he’s been able to sell have been relatively small. We were hoping that since you are the House team, there would be some interest in your journey. In exchange, we could present your time here in the best light possible.”

That sounded great to me. I’d watched a lot of reality TV, and I knew all about creating storylines. Some contestants came onto the shows thinking they were going to be the top dog, and instead, ended up with the villain edit. No matter how well they did, the world cheered when they finally fell. Some contestants embraced being villains and went on to other shows with that role in mind. Most of them, however, were shocked, and it took them years to recover their self-esteem again.

“This was something I wanted to bring up as well,” Tock interjected before Sandy could speak. I’d gotten so used to him being on my shoulder, I’d almost forgotten he was there. He flew to the center of the table so everyone could see him.

“I’ve been talking with the other apparitions, and having a sympathetic interviewer is one of the biggest advantages you can gain for your team. I’d already created a short list of candidates that would do a good job, and Darius is on the list.” Tock bowed to Gold Trim, and he bowed back.

“I would like to suggest you go one step further and make him your exclusive storyteller. If he is the only one you will interview with, it will then be much easier for you to say no to all the other hosts that will come sniffing around. From what I’ve seen, a few of them will present a balanced viewpoint, but a lot of them will make you out to be stupid baby killers, or even worse. You don’t want to open yourself up to that.”

Sandy looked at Annabeth and me, and we both nodded in agreement. Gold Trim was a nice guy, so I was sure we’d get along well with his partner.

“I like the idea,” Sandy said, “but let’s do the first interview before we make a final decision. I’m sure Darius is lovely, but I want to make sure we all work well together before we make it exclusive.”

“That sounds like a good idea,” Gold Trim replied. “There shouldn’t be any problems, as he already likes your group and says you all had a wonderful time last night.”

“Oh? We’ve already met?” Sandy asked.

“Yes, indeed,” Gold Trim nodded. “Darius’ main job is master of ceremonies at karaoke.”

“He’s your partner?” Annabeth asked, surprised.

“Yes again,” Gold Trim said proudly. “We’ve been together for five years now. He’s made such a positive difference in my life.”

“That’s wonderful!” Annabeth beamed at him. “He’s cute, too. I bet you both look adorable together.”

“I like to think so,” Gold Trim laughed.

“I have a feeling this is going to work out well,” I spoke up. “Darius was a fun host at karaoke and made us feel welcome. I can’t imagine it would be any different when we have our interview.”

“Excellent,” Gold Trim bowed. “We have an interview stage set up in one of our side rooms. When you are finished eating, I’ll let him know you are available.”

“That sounds very convenient. Thank you,” Sandy said. “So, how did you two meet?”

Gold Trim’s smile faded, and he paused for so long I didn’t think he was going to answer.

“When my contract was bought out and I first came here, I was really struggling.” His eyes misted over, like he was looking through time and it wasn’t a happy sight. “I lost my wife of many years in my Waker Moment, and I was so devastated by her loss, I never joined a school or did any of the things I should have done to protect myself. The life of an unaffiliated mage is not a good one, and I became swept up in events I had no control over.

“Eventually, my contract was bought out by the Palace, and I came to work in the first stable environment I’d had in many years. Life for the lowest of us here is hard, but Darius befriended me and propped me back up again. Good friends turned into best friends as we rose up through the ranks together. I had no idea he had feelings for me until one night when he kissed me. I was so shocked, I ran away. Once I had time to process it, I was even more shocked to discover I felt the same way about him.

“When I grew up, we were not allowed to feel that way about other boys, so I never explored that part of myself.”

Gold Trim paused again, lost in the feelings of his younger days.

“I loved my wife, and I would never disrespect her memory by being with another woman. Being with Darius, though, it’s a whole different world. Our love is deep and real, and just distinct enough that it”s okay.”

He paused again and gave us a bittersweet smile.

“Darius has given me something to look forward to. He’s much more of a planner than I am, and he”s mapped out a wonderful future for us to live into. In ten years and three months, if all goes well, we will both have our freedom. We are planning on picking out a school together and working our way up the ranks there as well. Once we do that, we should be safe. Nobody can separate us, and we can live happily ever after.”

He laughed lightly, and suddenly looked embarrassed.

“I’m so sorry for taking up your time. I rarely share that story. It’s just that seeing the two of you together, as happy and free as you are, gives me hope.” He gestured at Tyler and me. He was going to say more, but I was already on my feet, running around the table.

I swept him up in a hug, letting my embrace say all the feelings flowing through me. He hadn’t said that many words, but the loss he’d suffered and the bravery he’d exhibited shone through.

Tyler was right behind me and hugged us both. Then Annabeth joined in, adding her own brand of magic.

“Oh my goodness! I had no idea!” Sandy exclaimed, and then she and John were in on the hug too. John was a little too enthusiastic as always, and when we broke apart, we were all half-crushed, but flushed and laughing. It was a cathartic moment, and it was a while before we all got seated again.

Gold Trim adjusted his coat and tried to regain his air of dignity, but I could tell he was happy and touched by our support. Sandy and Annabeth gushed over his relationship and got him talking about his time together with Darius. Nobody asked what I considered to be the most important question, though, so I finally interrupted.

“Pardon me, but I have to ask. What did you mean when you talked about buying your freedom?”

“I’m an indentured servant,” Gold Trim shrugged, like it was something everyone knew. “I cannot leave here until my debt is paid.”

My jaw dropped in shock.

“We all are,” Gold Trim added, noticing my surprise. He gestured at all the waitstaff around us. “It’s not like this is a regular paying job in the mundane world. We live here, work here, and are bound here until we can buy our freedom. Which isn’t as easy as it would seem, as we also have to pay for our food, lodging, and other living expenses before we can begin to pay back what is owed.”

I sat back, stunned.

“It’s not as bad as it might sound,” Gold Trim continued. “The Palace affords some protection against free agents. Not as much as we’d like, and we get hurt sometimes, but none of the guests are allowed to inflict permanent damage. I have food and shelter, so I’m already better off than I was on my own. This isn’t a perfect life, but if you’re willing to work, it’s not bad either.”

I must have looked really shocked, as Tyler took my hand and gave it a supportive squeeze. No wonder Gold Trim was working so many hours. He was buying his freedom. It also made sense why the waitstaff was so attentive and willing to do anything for the guests. They needed those tips.

I looked around at my Housemates and felt so grateful. My supernatural life hadn”t been easy. But, without the House and their support, it could have been a whole lot worse. A work-for-freedom setup like this could be beneficial for all parties if the Palace played fair and let them actually earn their freedom. If the Palace charged too much for necessities, though, then the help were basically slaves.

I wanted to ask more, but diving into the details felt too personal. Gold Trim said he and Darius had it all worked out, so I just needed to trust that they were alright. Besides, we were fighting for two million pearls of our own, or we’d end up in a nearly identical situation.

Tyler and John didn’t seem surprised by Gold Trim’s revelation, but I could see that it was news to Sandy and Annabeth. We all exchanged looks that said we were going to talk about this later, but now wasn’t the time.

Gold Trim got called away, and we were just starting to get back to eating again, when we had another visitor. He was a wide man, with powerful hands and a neatly trimmed beard. He would have been very attractive except he’d decided to get fancy with his magic and created lizard tattoos that crawled all over his skin. I didn’t have anything against lizards, but the thought of being close to him made me feel like one of them would try and jump on me. It wasn’t a rational feeling, but it was very much a no-thank-you.

“Greetings,” Lizard Man said in a smooth voice. “I represent School Iguanas, based in Yankton, South Dakota. We aren’t a large school, but we train hard, and we feel we are one of the most advanced schools in the region, if not the whole state. In the last quest, my team was ambushed by a band of those monster creatures. My team fought hard, but they had been surprised, and the fight wasn’t going well until your team showed up. Thanks to you, they were able to defeat the monsters, and all of our team members made it out intact.”

“That sounds wonderful,” Sandy replied. “I’m glad we could help.”

Lizard Man had been including all of us, but he’d mainly been speaking to John. When Sandy spoke up, he looked surprised.

“Are you the leader?” he asked as his eyebrows went up.

“I am,” Sandy said simply. He looked at all of us, and then back at Sandy again.

“But you”re a woman. And you aren’t even the oldest.” Lizard Man sounded genuinely confused.

Oh boy. How old was this guy? I checked out his stats: two hundred and eleven years old. Someone needed to tell him that women could vote and own property now.

“The House does a wonderful job allowing those with talent and motivation to find the role that fits them best,” Sandy said. “In this case, that means I’m the leader.”

She didn’t sound ruffled in the slightest.

“She’s a wonderful leader too,” John rumbled. “She’s got talent and motivation oozing out her pores. I wouldn’t want to be behind anyone else. Her leadership has certainly kept me satisfied.” He kept a straight face, but his eyes twinkled as he looked at Sandy adoringly. I heard a faint thump as she kicked him under the table.

Lizard Man still looked confused, but then he shrugged and seemed to put it behind him.

“Very well, then. I’ve talked it over with our team, as well as our support officers, and we would like to offer you a place at our school.” He said that grandly and even waved his hand in the air to give an extra flourish.

“Of course, you would need to start out at the bottom and prove yourself, but with the talent you have,” he nodded at Sandy, “I’m sure you will rise up rapidly and find your place.”

He hurried on quickly, like his offer was too good to be true and he wanted to get all his terms in before we jumped out of our chairs in gratitude and acceptance.

“We have housing for first-level initiates, which includes a morning and evening meal. I know this is a question that is always on everyone’s mind. Living space is small and limited to one room per mage, but it is clean and dry. Food is adequate, and sometimes even good, depending on who”s cooking. Everyone is expected to take their turn with kitchen and cleaning duties.

“The entry tithe of magic is fifty percent, which is the current standard for most schools. Depending on how much magic you generate and your ranking in the school, this can fall to as low as thirty percent. That’s also in line with most school requirements.

“You will be tested and trained at your level. I don’t know how ranking in the House works, but I would assume my students would be able to see to your needs and provide more than enough challenge to allow you to grow. We follow the Path of the Basilisk, and once you’re powerful enough to handle it, you can start training in that as well.

“I know this is very unusual, taking on members of the House, and I’m sure you must feel overwhelmed by everything you’ve seen here. However, we will do everything we can to make you feel welcome and get you started on our Path.”

He smiled at us benevolently, and Sandy smiled right back. She was a great leader, as she let very few things rattle her. This guy had just insulted her for being a woman and implied our team and our House were weak. I didn’t think he was being malicious—but still. If I’d been in her shoes, my Anna Lykit would have spread her wings and read him like a bitter old drag queen. It’s a good thing I didn’t have a speaking part in all this.

“I’m trying to place which team is yours,” Annabeth spoke up. “We helped so many, and they all kind of blended together after a while.”

Oh—that was shady! Though it seemed to go right over Lizard Man’s head.

“Were they facing off against two orcs? Two guys, three women, and one of the women had a broken arm?”

“That sounds like it could be our team,” Lizard Man nodded.

“How are they doing?” Annabeth asked kindly. “We had to leave them, but I’d hoped they would make it out okay.”

“They all made it back safely,” Lizard Man said, “and they are all still in the tournament. Today is a rest day, of course, and it’s much needed. We are healing them as much as possible, and I have high hopes that at least four of them will be ready by tomorrow.”

“That sounds wonderful,” Sandy took back the conversation. “We all wish them a speedy recovery and hope they will do well in tomorrow’s event. Meanwhile, do you have a business card? I’ll be happy to reach out and send you a reply in a few weeks.”

“A few weeks?” Lizard Man sounded confused. “But I’m offering you a place in our school.”

“I got that,” Sandy replied, “and that is very sweet of you. We certainly appreciate your consideration.”

The table got quiet as we all looked at him and he looked at us. There really wasn’t anything more to say, and I wanted to get back to my breakfast. The silence was getting awkward, but Lizard Man wasn’t getting the hint.

“Ahhh!” he seemed to have an idea. “We have just met, of course, and you saw my team when they weren’t at their best. Perhaps a display of force would be helpful? I meant what I said about being the best school in the state.”

“I think we would rather continue our breakfast,” Sandy said as tactfully as possible. “While a duel would be fun and educational, there is always the possibility that someone would get hurt. Our focus is this tournament, and we won’t let anything sidetrack us from that.”

Lizard Man nodded vigorously in agreement. “Of course, of course! The tournament must come first for both our teams. I wasn’t suggesting a duel, for the reason that you mentioned. I was merely suggesting the standard tests of strength and glow.”

Now it was Sandy’s turn to look confused, and Tyler spoke up.

“I assume you mean arm wrestling for strength and the glow stick for presence? We don’t have those traditions in the House, but I’m sure we can still accommodate you.”

“Yes, of course,” Lizard Man agreed. “Some mages lack physical training, but our school excels at it. Naturally, I’m better at magic, but I’m proud to say that I haven’t had a real challenge of strength in many years.”

He flexed his thick hands and powerful looking arms, and I could see why. The guy looked like he was used to tossing bales of hay around all day. He looked at John, sizing him up. John made Lizard Man look small, but Lizard Man seemed excited by the challenge.

“Let”s see how you do then,” John said. “Tyler, since you know how this works, would you want to have the honor of competing?”

“I don’t mind if I do,” Tyler said. “A little exercise helps the digestion, after all.”

“This isn’t the gym, son.” Lizard Man sounded disappointed and a bit miffed. “This needs real strength, not pretty muscles. Why don’t you leave the strength challenge to those more suited to it?”

I just shook my head in disbelief. This guy had no filter between his brain and his mouth.

“You think I’m pretty?” Tyler said, batting his eyelashes sweetly. I could tell he was being sarcastic, but Lizard Man took him seriously.

“I’m sure you’ve worked hard to get your cute muscles and attract the ladies. Some of them like pretty men. Real muscles look different.” He flexed his own thick arms. “They look like hard work. They look like a man’s arms.” He flexed again. “I’m almost afraid to arm wrestle you. If you try too hard, you might get hurt.”

“You are just the sweetest thing.” Tyler flashed him a wicked smile. “But I’m sure I’ll be okay. Now, let”s talk about the rules. Both feet must be on the ground at the start of the match, and the opposing hand must be on the table. The elbow must also stay on the table. At no point can both hands be used to force the win. Agreed?”

Lizard Man grunted and looked a little irritated that he was facing off against Tyler.

“Agreed,” he said.

Tyler flashed me a confident smile as we cleared off a corner of the table and both of them got set up.

“Since you’re half my age and smaller than me, I won’t smash your arm at the beginning,” Lizard Man said. “I’ll give you a moment to prove yourself. Then I’ll take you to the table. Don’t resist too hard at the end of the slide, or you’ll hurt yourself. That’s where most injuries occur.”

“Thank you,” Tyler replied. “That’s very thoughtful of you. Sandy, you want to count us down? Maybe use three, two, one, go?”

“I can do that,” Sandy said confidently. “Are both of you ready to begin?”

They both nodded.

“Three. Two. One.” Lizard Man tensed slightly in anticipation.

“Go!”

And the match was on!

True to his word, Lizard Man flexed hard, keeping his arm in the same position. Tyler’s beautiful muscles flexed too, but he looked a lot more relaxed. I almost got worried he wasn’t taking this seriously.

Both men eyed each other, but neither one of them shifted from vertical.

“Ready to make this more interesting?” Tyler grinned.

“Do your best,” Lizard Man grunted.

Tyler easily moved his arm about ten degrees in his direction. Lizard Man’s eyes popped as he grunted again and strained hard. He wasn’t playing anymore.

It seemed to work, as their arms slowly returned back to vertical. Tyler still didn’t look like he was trying that hard, though. He grinned at Lizard Man, and this time his arm moved fifteen degrees in his direction.

This time, Lizard Man did more than grunt—he growled. The veins in his head popped as he threw his whole body into moving Tyler’s arm back again. Tyler’s arm didn’t go anywhere.

Lizard man gave up any pretext at looking good, and instead, howled in frustration as he bent every iota of his power to moving Tyler’s arm. Slowly but surely, their arms became vertical again.

Sweat poured off Lizard Man as he set his feet and tried to summon even more strength to move Tyler’s arm further. But Tyler was in control of this match, and he wasn’t going anywhere.

“And now, for the slide,” Tyler said grandly. “Watch out for the end. I hear that’s where most of the injuries happen.”

Tyler slowly, steadily, took Lizard Man’s hand to the table. Lizard Man looked like he couldn’t believe it was happening, and he didn’t take his own advice. Instead, he struggled until the very last. Tyler held his hand to the table for a long moment, just so there wasn’t any ambiguity about who had won. Then he released Lizard Man’s hand and stepped back.

I was going to run into Tyler’s arms and give him a congratulatory hug, but he still was alert and keeping an eye on his opponent. That was smart, as we didn’t know how he was going to take losing the match. Instead, I put my hand around Tyler’s waist and gave him a big smile. I got a smile and a wink back.

“That was an impressive display of strength,” Lizard Man grunted, shaking out his arm and rubbing his bicep. “I must admit, I wasn’t expecting that. Congratulations.”

It seemed like he was taking his loss well. That was surprising, as I’d pegged him as someone who seemed self-absorbed. Perhaps he deserved more credit.

“I have to warn you that I’m much more powerful with magic than I am with physical strength. I expect you will be impressed with the next demonstration. So, who am I facing with glow?”

Once again, he looked at John expectantly.

“I think I would like to try,” Sandy spoke up. “By glow, you mean presence, right?” Lizard Man nodded. “I just learned how to generate presence two days ago, and I’m excited to see all the different ways it can be used.”

“Two days ago? Really?” Lizard Man sounded shocked.

“That’s right,” Sandy nodded. “We rarely use presence—or glow as you call it—in the House. So it’s not something I’ve needed up to this point.”

“I’m not sure you’re the right person to fully demonstrate the power of my glow,” Lizard Man said, sounding doubtful. “I normally challenge the mage with the strongest presence. After all, a demonstration of power is only as good as the participants. A mage that steps on an ant shows overwhelming power, but that doesn”t really show what he’s capable of.”

“I understand,” Sandy smiled, “but I’m excited to try this out. So humor me.”

Lizard Man sighed and seemed to resign himself to an easy match. He pulled a glow stick out of his magical Pocket and proceeded to show Sandy how it worked. Once again, I was surprised, as he seemed to be a patient teacher.

The glow stick was as long as John’s arm and about as thick as his finger. It seemed to fit somewhere between a wand and a staff. The stick was pure white, but when anyone touched it, the glow changed to the color of their magic. When two people touched it, half of the glow stick changed to each of their colors, and that’s where the contest happened.

Lizard Man would hold one end; Sandy would hold the other. Both of them would push their magic presence into the stick and attempt to change it to their color. It was a simple concept, but apparently much harder to execute, as the first test didn’t go well at all.

Both of them held the stick, John counted them down, and Lizard Man’s color, a deep red, shot immediately to Sandy’s side. It kind of looked like it shocked her, as she yelped and jumped back.

“My apologies,” Lizard Man said, and he seemed to be sincere. “I felt your presence, but you need to focus it into the stick. Feel the rod, like you’re holding a sword, and imagine you’re thrusting with your magic. I’ve found that mental space works well for most mages.”

Lizard Man and Sandy lined up again. John counted them down, and this time Sandy did a bit better. Her color surged up the rod, then immediately collapsed, and Lizard Man’s dark red took over. Once again, she yelped and jumped back.

“That was very good for a second attempt,” Lizard Man said. “Now you need to control the flow of the glow. What you want to do is apply continuous pressure until you overwhelm your opponent. If you go too fast, you’ll weaken yourself, and the resulting backwash often knocks you out of the match. Let’s try again.”

This time it went much better. Lizard Man’s dark red glow moved towards Sandy’s end, but this time she caught it before she was knocked out. Lizard Man didn’t look like he was trying too hard, so Sandy had a minute to get a good feeling for the process.

“You’re doing great,” Lizard Man said encouragingly. “Now I’m going to increase the pressure a bit. Just hold on as long as you can.”

Sandy was concentrating too much to reply, so she just nodded. Lizard Man’s red glow got a little brighter, but Sandy’s orange glow increased to match it. There was a white glow where the two sides met, and it didn’t shift at all.

So far, so good.

Lizard Man waited for a moment, then increased it again. Sandy matched him.

Lizard Man increased it again. Sandy bit her lip hard, but she continued to match him.

Lizard Man grinned and pushed even more. The white point started sliding towards Sandy. She grimaced and pushed back, but she couldn’t stop the slide.

Sandy had been standing normally, but then she shifted. She bent her knees and settled into her battle stance, like she was fighting in the arena on the beach. The white glow continued to creep towards her hand.

Then her eyes opened wide, and I felt my Mark of the Lagerel wake up. It thrummed in time with what she was doing, and I felt her completely own her side of the glow stick. The white glow stopped.

Lizard Man seemed surprised, but he settled into a battle stance too and pushed even harder. The white glow between them didn’t move, and for the first time, I saw Sandy relax. Lizard Man ramped up the pressure, while Sandy closed her eyes and looked inward.

It seemed like they stayed that way for a long time. It was long enough that we started feeling restless, while Lizard Man got more and more frustrated. No matter what he did or how hard he tried, he couldn’t gain any more ground against Sandy.

Finally, Sandy opened her eyes and gave him a beatific smile. She stayed relaxed and poised as I felt her magic blossom and start to grow up the stick. It felt like a shoot of new life growing out of the ground and reaching for the sky.

Lizard Man looked at the white glow sliding his way, and it seemed like he couldn’t believe it. He set his stance even lower and grunted like a bear as he pushed with all his magical might. Sandy’s magic had life, though, and that life would not be denied. It developed, expanded, flourished, and pushed back the dark red glow.

I’d seen Sandy use the Deep Earth before—she was an Ambassador after all—but this was the first time I’d seen her tap into the power of the trees. I didn’t know how it was occurring to everyone else, but to me, it felt beautiful.

I’m sure Lizard Man was powerful, and if it was just magic against magic, he would have won against Sandy. She had the power of nature on her side, though, and like Jeff Goldblum said—life finds a way.

The white glow didn’t move quickly, but its slide was steady. Sandy’s fire-orange magic filled up the glow stick and pushed the red glow back. Finally, she owned the glow stick, and this time it was Lizard Man who yelped and jumped back.

He shook his hand in the air as if he’d received an electric shock. I thought he’d be angry, but instead, he seemed thoughtful. Finally, he faced Sandy and gave her a deep bow.

“I’m beginning to see why your team was able to be of such assistance to my own. I have been led to believe the House is weak. I can now see that is not so.”

He took a moment to look at all of us.

“I have a question for you, however. Were you ever going to consider joining my school?”

“No, sorry,” Sandy shook her head. “I appreciate your offer of room and board, but I already have my own place, which has all the normal amenities plus a massive workshop for me to tinker in. John has a space that is suited to his height and temperament, as well as his own brewery. Annabeth has a Tuscan villa, and Jason and Tyler have a theater and a gameroom. I don’t think any of us would be happy going back to just a small bedroom again.

“In addition, our magic tithe is capped at twenty percent, with most older mages at fifteen percent. Giving up fifty percent of my magic each month would stunt my growth, and that’s not something I’m willing to do right now. I’m sure you understand.”

“I do understand.” Lizard Man bowed. “Thank you for your time. This has been eye-opening, and I leave here a wiser man.” He bowed again, and we all bowed back. Then he turned and left.

“That was certainly entertaining,” John rumbled. “I’m glad it’s over, though. I’m ready to eat!” We all laughed, sat down, and finished the little bit of food we had left.

We went up for another round, and this time I got chicken and waffles as well as biscuits and gravy. I was feeling like a southern belle on a lazy Saturday morning. As we ate, we had two more schools show up and invite us to join them. They had the same basic theme where we started out at the bottom of the school, stayed in a tiny room, and gave up half our magic. They weren’t as clueless as Lizard Man, though, and only one of them offered to demonstrate their power with a glow stick. Sandy was eager to try out her new skill again, and it went just as well as the first time. She wasn’t fast, but she pushed the leader of the school off the glow stick and sent him on his way.

It wasn’t until the second school left that I felt sated enough to ask Tock a question.

“Tock, I’m afraid to ask this, but I have to know.” Tock flew off my shoulder and gave me a serious look as he hovered in the air in front of me. “How many mages died in yesterday’s quest?”

“You mean real deaths?” he asked. I nodded. For some reason he seemed amused by my question. “I’ve been wanting to go over the results of the first quest round with you. I thought it would be best to wait until you had lots of food and coffee first. To answer your question, no mages died a real death yesterday or last night.”

“What?” I blurted.

“That can’t be right,” Annabeth spoke up. “I saw a mage get ripped apart in front of me. I’ll never forget seeing his guts fly out and the way his backbone stayed with his lower half. That isn’t something you can fake.” She shuddered.

“I saw an orc using a dead body like a club,” I chimed in. “If nobody died, then who was the orc swinging around?”

“I don’t know exactly how it’s done,” Tock replied. “I just know that nobody died yesterday. Lots of mages were injured, some of them seriously, and several teams were knocked out of the tournament. However, nobody was torn in half or actually bludgeoned to death.”

Annabeth and I both stared at him in disbelief. He just grinned and flew around in a little circle.

“Tock, I’m so happy you’re with us, and I have to believe you, but it just doesn’t seem possible,” I said. “It wasn’t only that I saw mages die. I heard them too. They screamed as their life was ripped from them. That’s not something that mages could fake to that degree. It was even more than that. I smelled their blood and all the other gory bits I never thought I’d smell.

“Tock, it was real. Annabeth and I both felt that way. That’s why we reacted the way we did. It wasn’t just a tournament anymore. It was life and death, and we chose to save as many mages as we could.”

Annabeth nodded vigorously in support.

“I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve had this conversation,” Tock said. “I told you before you went in just how real it was going to seem. But I think this is something you just have to experience for yourself. Now, would you like to hear the results for the first round?”

I sat back stunned. Annabeth reached over and took my hand, although she looked just as stunned as I was.

“Am I going crazy?” I asked her.

“Not at all,” she said firmly. “I was there too. The fight with the giant orcs last night was one of the most intense things I’ve ever experienced. And considering what we’ve been through with the House, that’s saying something.”

I squeezed her hand in agreement before turning back to Tock.

“Okay, let’s hear how the teams did.”

“Just to clarify, I only have the overall team results,” Tock said. “The actual team scores haven’t come out yet, so I don’t know where you placed. Anyway, the tournament started with nine hundred sixty-two teams. More mages and teams are realizing they can’t continue and are dropping out all the time, but at this moment, there are eight hundred forty-seven teams still in the tournament.”

I started doing the math in my head, but Tock did it for me.

“That means that so far one hundred fifteen teams have dropped out, or about twelve percent. That is a record low for a tournament like this. Usually, Central Command plans on thirty to fifty percent of the teams exiting in the first round.”

He flew another circle around the table, and now he seemed agitated.

“Rumor has it that Central Command is upset with these results and is looking at modifying the next round so they can get down to the usual number of teams. Rumor also has it that lighting up the Adventurers’ Hall and providing a beacon towards the exit was the main reason for this. It also didn’t help that many of the teams got organized and made it to the portals in time.”

Uh-oh. Annabeth gave my hand a worried squeeze.

“Does this mean we’re in trouble?” she asked.

“I talked to the other apparitions, and they feel like Central Command will spin this in a positive direction. They’ll probably say this is proof that this is one of the greatest years for trained and talented mages. If you weren’t a House team, they would probably praise your initiative and quick thinking and turn you both into heroes. Since you are a House team, the best we can hope for is for them to ignore you and give the credit to someone else.”

“That’s not necessarily a bad thing,” Tyler spoke up. “We want the pearls, not the credit. If we stay out of the spotlight a little longer that will probably help us in the long run.”

We probably would have talked about this some more, but we were joined by another mage. I wanted to go back for a third course, so I was hoping that Sandy would get rid of him quickly. There was no way we were going to join a school, and these invitations seemed more out of pity than the thought that we would actually be a good fit for their school.

The table got quiet, and that’s when I started paying attention. This guy was different.

For starters, he didn’t stand politely and address us as a group. Instead, he sat down at the table with us, like we’d invited him. No, it was more like he was a high-ranking mage and he could sit wherever he damn well wanted.

I scanned him with my sight and got back almost nothing. This guy seemed powerful. Very powerful. But he had it all tightly contained. He wasn’t leaking magic or glowing at all.

I checked out his info, but the only thing it contained was his name: Nebuchadnezzar. There was no age or path listed. Physically, he wasn’t much to look at either. His clothes were business casual and fairly bland. He was about the same size as Tyler, but he didn’t seem particularly sexy or muscular. He was neither cute nor ugly, and he didn’t have horns or tattoos or any of the showy things the other mages here were using to stand out. This guy was an enigma.

The only thing about him that wasn’t average and bland were his eyes. They seemed black, but as he looked around, I realized they were actually a dark red.

“Can we help you?” Sandy asked tartly. At this point, I think she’d had her fill of rude mages.

“No,” the man shook his head. “At least, not directly. I just came here to entertain myself.”

I noticed his lips didn’t match the words he was speaking. That didn’t seem like a good sign. Maybe this guy came from a different country and he was using the Bank to interpret for him. Or maybe he was really old. If so, that wasn’t good at all.

The guy didn’t seem hostile, but he didn’t seem friendly either.

I glanced at Tyler. He had his game face on.

“This is our table currently, and we would like to continue our breakfast,” Sandy continued. “Once we are finished, I’m sure you can sit here and entertain yourself as much as you’d like.”

“It will be too late then,” Nebuchadnezzar replied, shaking his head. “You’ll know what your score is and where you rank. I’ve just come from deliberations and decided I wanted to be here when you find out.”

“You’re part of Central Command?” I asked, surprised.

“Oh, no.” He waved his hand in the air like that was beneath him. “I have no desire to directly organize this tournament, or sponsor it in any way. I just happened to be in the room where the final decisions were made and offered an opinion or two. After all,” he grinned, “it’s much more fun to bend the results towards a desired outcome than it is to force them directly. Plus, it’s a lot less effort on my part.”

“And what result are you bending towards?” Sandy asked. She didn’t sound like she was going to like the answer.

“All in good time,” the man said. He leaned back in his chair and crossed his legs. I felt like the move was designed to look casual, but instead, it looked very precise—like a praying mantis folding its arms.

“First, I will speak to the team members. How do you think you did?”

I traded looks with Annabeth. She seemed ready to answer, so I was happy to let her take the lead.

“I think we did pretty well,” Annabeth replied. “We don’t know what counted for points, but we completed two major quests, took out at least fifty orcs, and closed the portal they were coming through. Surely we should get a good score from all that.”

“Those are good things,” he said calmly, “and you certainly deserve congratulations for all your hard work. There were other teams that completed more quests, of course. One team finished off four story lines, so it wasn’t like you were the leader in that area, but only two percent of the teams completed a story line at all.

“As for killing the orcs, your numbers were in the top ten. That’s very impressive when you consider there were only two of you. Closing a portal was also a major accomplishment. Only two other portals were closed, and that involved multiple teams working together to pull that off.

“So based on all of that, you should have been one of the top-ranked teams.”

He fell silent and just looked at us with a slight smile on his face.

I wasn’t sure how to read this guy. He wasn’t being friendly, but he wasn’t mean or nasty either. In fact, he was even being complimentary. There was just something about him that felt off.

“I take it that we aren’t highly ranked?” Annabeth finally asked.

Nebuchadnezzar closed his eyes and inhaled through his nose, like he was savoring a fine wine and he was sniffing out notes of vanilla, apple, and other spices. Then he opened his eyes wide, like he was trying to see all of us at once.

“You came in dead last,” he said bluntly.