The Broken Scale (The Dragon Riders of Arvain) (36 page)

             
He almost walked right into Shane as he entered the tent. Hayden hadn’t had a chance to really talk to him since the day they went to the blacksmith together. Shane was wearing his new armor also, which matched Hayden’s expect for the copper color his metal had and the copper scales that covered his chest plate. The handle to his large broad sword stuck out over his right shoulder and he wore his kite shield slung over his back. Like most of the fighters he carried his helmet in his hands, it was too much trouble to wear it all the time.

             
Most of the fighters in the events weren’t riders, the riders saving their strength to participate in events that allow them to have their dragons with them; there were foot soldiers from within the city and from some of the surrounding towns. This was their chance to make names for themselves.

             
That was part of the reason that almost everyone had different styled armor on, and the biggest difference between their armor and everyone else’s was their helmets. All the riders had the same design for their helmets; their helmet covered their heads and the back of their necks, the length of the helmet going almost to their shoulders. They are very plain, with a T-shaped section cut out for the person wearing it to see out of and breathe easily. The bottom part of the helmet fanned out so that if a sword did glance off them it would be forced out and away from the body. No decorations or anything unneeded was placed on the helmets.

             
Shane and Hayden both had all their gear on, making it obvious that they were both riders, and they stepped out of the tent to allow them to talk freely without everyone listening to them.

             
“There are some strong opponents in there.” Shane nodded as Hayden spoke.

             
“There are some strong opponents out here too.” Shane added.

             
“You realize that we can’t both win right, we might have to face each other.” Shane spoke somberly. Hayden had thought of that and he did not want to have to face his friend in a fight.

             
“If I am going to lose to anybody, I would be ok with it being to you.” Hayden did truly feel that way, but he would much rather not lose. Hayden wanted to talk to him more before the events started, but before he could a runner came sprinting around the tents and ran straight into the tent they had just left.

             
“I wonder what that is all about,” Hayden said. Shane shrugged his shoulders and together they made their way back into the tent to catch what the runner was saying.

             
“Everyone has to come now.” They had walked in while he was in the middle of a sentence. The man was hunched over and holding on to his knees as he spoke. He tried to catch his breath in between words.

             
“What is going on?” Shane asked bluntly to the crowd. “Where do we have to go?”

             
“He tells us that Elizabeth the gold wants us all out on the field to fight at the same time.” A woman spoke up from the front row of people who had formed a circle around the still panting man. She had on leather pants and a black chest plate that was shaped to cover a woman’s chest. She had two short swords on her back that Hayden was sure she knew how to use.

             
“How could we fight at the same time, the event is supposed to be one-on-one.” A different person in the crowd asked this time.

             
“Come and you will find out. If you want to compete then you must follow me, otherwise if you stay here you forfeit this event.” The runner turned around and walked back the way he had came, but this time at a much slower pace. Hayden looked at the others in the tent, and when no one made a move to leave he turned and walked after the man.

             
He quickly heard the clinking of armor as the others fell in behind him. They walked in between the tents until they came up to the main road that led into the arena. The arena looked to Hayden like a giant bowl that was made out of stands, with only one large entrance that they were heading for. As they got closer Hayden lifted his silver helmet up and lightly placed it on his head. Once he was sure it was on right he hooked the leather strap underneath his chin and tightened it till it was snug.

             
Good luck,
Draek’s voice spoke in his mind. Draek was off hunting with the other dragons since they would soon be competing and they needed all the strength they could get before their events started. Hayden was amazed at how smoothly he was walking when he felt like his legs were water about come out from underneath him at any moment. For the fifth time since he had made it into the tent, which was less than an hour ago, he had the sudden urge to use a washroom to relieve himself.

             
Hayden took a deep breath and tried to push his nerves and other feelings out of his mind and focus on the event that he was about to have to perform in. He wanted to do good, he wanted to win, he needed to win.

             
The walked into the center of the arena to the roar and thunder of the crowd; the audience jumped to their feet as soon as they saw them. The arena had once been a grassy field but now, from all the workers walking over it constantly, the ground had become hard packed dirt.

             
They stood together in the center of the field, looking up at the platform where Elizabeth sat with the other two rulers. She was the only one of the three standing to great them. They still wore the same decorative armor and they had servants around them with drinks and foods in case they needed anything.

             
Elizabeth smiled down on them like an owner would smile at their fighting dog, not out of love for them but for what they could do for her. The more Hayden learnt about her the more he disliked her.

             
“Brave fighters, you have come here today to prove who is the best among you, and you will do so in front of us and the citizens of this great city. I know you will each fight hard and bravely in the upcoming event.” She took her eyes off the fighters in the center of the arena as she spoke; she was making it clear that this speech was for the crowd and not them. She paused dramatically, allowing the people to cheer and clap for her; when the noise died down she continued.

             
“I know you were expecting to fight one at a time, but I have decided that the people need more than that.” More cheering followed. “You will all still fight one on one, but at the same time. You will be broken up into your pairs and once all the fights are over we will pair you up again with one of the remaining fighters.

             
“As soon as you have bested your opponent you must step back and end the fight. There will be a judge to tell you when the fight is over and help escort the looser out of the arena if necessary.” She sat down on her throne when she finished speaking.

             
Her sitting signaled for the judges to make their way to the center of the arena and address everyone.

             
“You heard what she said, now are there any questions?” No one had any because they had all been addressed on what the rules to this event were before they had left the tent. They each would fight with one opponent until they were hurt, fell down, submitted, or the judges intervened with the fight and deemed that it is over. The rules were simple, and easy to go by.

             
The judges started to pull numbers out of a golden helmet; each fighter had been given a number when he or she had signed up to fight. Luckily, as they called out the numbers that would be fighting, Hayden and Shane were not paired together in the first round. Hayden was paired to fight a man that was probably close to his age and carried a giant two handed sword that was too big for him to carry. The young man’s armor did not fit right on him and gave off the impression that it was not his but that he had borrowed it to fight in.

             
Shane was given a ground soldier from Celestial City that had just finished his training. He wore simple militia armor and carried a standard one handed blade, but he was strong and the training was still fresh in his mind.

             
Once they had each been paired off they were led to random spots in the arena floor; they appeared random to Hayden, but once everyone was in place he realized that they were all spread an equal distance away from each other.

             
There were thirty groups all together and, after the first round, the one who finished their fight the fastest got to rest the next round and would come back in during the third round. The winners moved on and the losers did not, no exceptions. They would keep going until only one winner remained, and they would be the overall champion.

             
The judge that was watching over Hayden’s fight stepped in between the fighters and asked if they were both ready. Both fighters nodded and Hayden noticed that all around him the other judges were doing the same thing. Almost at the same time every fighter had nodded their head, signaling that they were ready to begin. The crowd grew as quiet as they could; large numbers people gathered together and forced to be side by side are never silent, they just get less loud.

             
Hayden took a deep breath and held it in his chest, awaiting the signal to start. The fighter in front of him was crouched and tense, every muscle tightened in anticipation. He kept licking his lips and opening and closing his jaw. It reminded Hayden of a dog about to devour a meal.

             
“Let the fight begin!” Elizabeth’s voice rang out over the murmur of the crowd.

             
Hayden’s nervousness had grown so much he was shaking, but as soon as he heard Elizabeth and took his first step he left his nerves in the dirt behind him. He stayed loose and balanced on the balls of his feet, his hands held his sword comfortably and shield comfortably; his body knowing what to do without his brain telling it what to do.

             
The man saw Hayden advancing and anticipated an attack so he hid behind his shield, protecting him but also blinding him to what Hayden was doing. Hayden knew that an attack with his sword would be useless so he sprinted the last few feet and smashed into him, shield to shield.

             
The other fighter was expecting a hit from Hayden’s blade so he had braced himself, but not enough. Hayden slammed into him and sent him sprawling back, trying to keep his balance. Hayden took the opening and slashed his sword in a downward arc; the other fighter had enough time to throw up his shield in a last second block.

             
His feet weren’t set and he still hadn’t gotten back his balance so when Hayden’s blade crashed down on him he barely remained standing. Hayden followed up with a back swing that finally sent the young man sprawling on his back side. Hayden wanted to finish this fight now so he jumped at his opponent, eating up the short distance between them, and thrust his sword at his opponent’s exposed chest, but his blade never made contact.

             
The judge had intervened once the fighter had hit the ground, and he had used his own blade to block Hayden’s last attack. There was no anger in the judge’s eyes as Hayden realized that the fight was over and that he had almost taken it too far.

             
“This fight is over; Hayden The Silver is the victor!” the judge turned and yelled up at Elizabeth. She nodded approvingly at the judge.

             
Hayden walked over to the benches that lined the side of the arena floor,
and
as soon as he sat down a servant brought him some water to drink. He realized that he was still carrying both his sword and his shield and he had not even taken off his helmet yet. He removed them and placed them on the ground around him and sat in silence to watch the others fight.

             
There were a few that appeared to have relative skill with weapons and one on one combat, but his eyes soon fell on the Shane’s fight, and he could not look away even if he had wanted to.

             
The ground soldier was slashing out with his blade and then quickly getting behind his shield to block Shane’s attack. Shane was trying to land any kind of hit, but he couldn’t get past the man’s shield. They both stood there trading blows until the soldier started to lower his shield slightly and his swings became slower and with less force behind them.

             
Shane noticed it too, and it was the moment he had been waiting for. He had planned to allow his opponent to tire himself out and then he would overwhelm him with sheer power. As soon as the soldier’s shield dropped just slightly Hayden saw Shane put more of his body behind his swings, his hits no longer just glancing off the man’s shield but now starting to push him back.

             
After just a few swings from Shane the soldier quit trying to strike and tried to just withstand the onslaught that was hammering him into the ground. This allowed Shane to strike faster and harder now that he knew there was no return attack.
Shane threw his own shield to the ground and picked his sword up with both hands and, lifting it high over his head, he brought it down with all his might.