A young woman clad in white robes woven with intricate designs in metallic golden thread occupied the chair to her right. Her almond-shaped eyes were ringed by thick bands of black kohl drawn out to sharp tips at her temples. A circle of jinsei sprites, every color of the rainbow, danced around her head in a glowing halo of prismatic lights. She was the team leader of the Dojo of Opal Radiance. As an initiate, she was far below my power level. Despite that, there was a wisdom in her eyes and a strangeness to her aura that warned me not to underestimate her.
To the left of the Heron Blade Academy’s leader sat a shirtless man. He was the second biggest person in the room, and his chiseled muscles rippled when he turned his head to look at Clem and me. He stared at us with openly hostile eyes, and the golden headband that held back his long white hair gleamed with threads of jinsei. His hands were clenched into fists on the table in front of him, and I noted the heavy calluses across his knuckles. He was a brawler from the Battle Hall of Atlantis, stronger and more powerful than most, but still only an adept.
I made a mental note to keep an eye on him. If things got out of hand, he’d be the first to attack.
And the first one I’d take down if things got ugly.
A tall, thin man sat on the far-right end of the table. His silver robes flowed like water when he shifted his position to get a better look at me. He seemed amused by the whole situation and gave me a conspiratorial wink rather than a hostile glare. His enormous ax rested on the table in front of him, and I recognized him as the leader of the Jinsei Institute of the Jade Kingdom. His weapon could have been threatening, but something about the way he rested his hand lazily on its hilt made it seem more like a prop joke than something to be feared.
A man wearing a horned helmet that hid his face was hunkered over the other end of the table. Trickles of black smoke leaked from the helm’s curved metal horns, and it trailed down onto the floor next to his chair. Thick white furs cloaked him from shoulders to feet, and though he had no weapons, he looked like a man to be feared. His hands were relaxed on the table before him, scars crisscrossing their knuckles. He was the biggest person in the room, and his aura was filled with strange and feral aspects.
I instinctively knew that he and I had more in common with each other than with the rest of these people. We’d survived things, seen things, the others couldn’t understand. Whatever else the Bright Lodge of Frostmir’s leader might be, he was a survivor.
“Welcome, Jace Warin, leader of the School of Swords and Serpents team,” the woman in the center of the table finally greeted us. “And welcome, Clem Hark, his second. Please, have a seat. We wish to hear what you have to say.”
My feet sank into the carpet with every step I took toward the table. My eyes scanned the room for any threats. If they wanted to kill us, this room, warded against spying, was the perfect place to do just that.
“Don’t be so paranoid,” I muttered to myself. Clem and I took our seats, and I gave each of the other team leaders a short nod of my head instead of a bow. We were all of the same station. Bowing would only show weakness, while the nod indicated respect. I waited for all of them to nod to us in return, then jumped right into my pitch.
“You can’t beat the dragons,” I said confidently. “I’ve seen them training, and they’ll wipe the floor with any of our teams.”
“We’ll see,” the Bright Lodge’s team leader said. “My people have a long history of slaying dragons.”
“And you are?” I asked. “I’m sorry, you have me at a disadvantage. I’m afraid while you all know my name, I’m not familiar with any of you.”
That not-so-subtle jab told them we weren’t on even footing. I’d toured the world as the School’s champion. I’d taken on the best new students every major city in the world had to offer, and I’d beaten them all, in front of farcaster audiences that numbered in the millions. And, of course, I’d thwarted a major terrorist attack in Kyoto just last year. None of the people who sat across from me were known outside their schools.
“I am Aesgir Lundy, team leader of the Bright Lodge,” the man in the horned helmet said.
“And I am Aoyama Tochi,” the man on the opposite end of the table said. “They teach us many things in the Jinsei Institute. One of those is to know our limits. I would agree with Jace. The dragons cannot be bested by any of us in this room. Not even the famous Eclipse Warrior.”
“I am Marissa Vasquez of the Heron Blade Academy,” the young woman at the center of the table said, nodding to me again, “and I do not wish to speak of loss. My team has trained hard, and our techniques grant us insight few share. I believe we have a fair chance against the dragons.”
“With all due respect,” Clem said quietly, “I don’t believe you do. Jace has told me about the dragons’ training methods. Their team is stronger and faster than we are, and they have advantages none of us shares.”
“I am Tsu Jang from the Dojo of Opal Radiance,” the young woman to Marissa’s right said. “If we can’t beat them, then there is no point in continuing this challenge. Let’s save our teams and hold our honor intact by admitting what is already a
