Grimm and his companions arrived in plenty of time for the bouts, which were held in a large rotunda behind the main building. There was already a long queue for the Pit, the impatient customers pushing and jostling despite the sturdy double doors that barred access to the edifice.
All of the people waiting in line seemed to be well-dressed, sophisticated men-about-town, although their raucous behaviour was far from decorous. Tordun was at the back of the group, and he used his elbows, his forearms, and even his meaty fists to hold back the growing horde behind them.
The young Questor heard snatches of conversation from the crowd, all of which seemed to be concerned with the upcoming bouts:
'Shugar's the man to bet on; fists like sledgehammers…'
'Rempur's at eight-to one against…'
'A fool's bet, my man…'
At last, the mage heard a howl of approval as the doors swung open, and the crowd surged forward. Grimm felt a smile spreading across his face as the Pit grew nearer, nearer…
Grimm had plenty of money with him, but the entrance fee of fifteen gold coins, posted on a board outside the door, caused him to blanch.
'I've only got twelve golds on me,' he confessed to his companions. 'I could go back to my room and get some more cash, but I don't want to lose my place.'
Guy sneered, but he seemed to be in excellent humour. 'Cheapskate,' he said, holding out a bulging purse. 'Don't worry, Dragonblaster: I have more than enough for all of us. I'll pay the entrance fees, although you'll have to cover your own bets. It's my treat.'
Grimm might not know the Great Flame well, but he had never imagined that such good cheer and generosity were part of the older Questor's make-up. Before he had time to consider Guy's odd behaviour in greater detail, the open doors were right in front of him, and he felt a pulse of testosterone surging through him, speeding his heart and drying his mouth.
Guy moved to the front of the queue, holding out a double handful of coins and his room key to a burly, rotund man who stood by the open doors. Another man, who could have been the guard's identical twin, moved in to inspect the golden mound of bounty.
Biting and twisting one of the coins, while his companion counted the hoard of money, the doorkeeper nodded. 'Good as gold,' he said, chuckling at his own joke. 'Welcome to the Pit, gentlemen. Enjoy your evening.'
As the muscular attendants stepped aside, Grimm and his friends walked into a bizarre spectacle. The interior of the rotunda was in the form of a giant bowl, lit by a dazzling, white light that emanated from some invisible source, high above. At the centre of this was an empty, pale yellow circle of what appeared to be sand, maybe twenty feet below the segmented, banked, circular rows of seats, and protected by a tall wire barrier.
'Betting cards, sirs?' a voice said, and Grimm swung round to see a smartly-dressed functionary, holding out a handful of slips. 'You'll be sitting down there in seats twenty-six to thirty-one-A; right at the front of the action, Gorga, over there, will be taking your bets tonight, but I'm afraid we can't take any markers; all wagers must be in hard cash. We don't care where it's from as long as it's good gold and silver.
'Enjoy yourselves, gentlemen.'
Grimm and his companions made their way to the row indicated by the attendant. As promised, their seats were right next to the wire barrier, providing an excellent view of the arena. Grimm saw a man sitting in one of their seats, and he cleared his throat.
'What do you want?' the man whined, without facing the mage.
'That's one of our seats,' Grimm said. 'We'd be obliged if you'd move to your own seat.'
'Oh, you'd be obliged, would you?' The interloper rose to his feet, his brows lowered and threatening. 'Well, I'd be obliged if you just got…' The man's voice trailed off as he caught sight of Tordun towering over the mage.
'The gentleman asked you to move, worm.' The albino raised his clenched, ham-like fists. 'So move.'
'All right, all right, all right,' the would-be bravo stammered. 'I'm moving. You only had to ask. If you…'
'Tack off, chicken-neck. Don't just stand around telling us your bloody life story.' Tordun punctuated this riposte with an almost feral growl.
Grimm smiled as the man scuttled out of the seat he had been occupying, and he saw several other people staring at the swordsman.
'It looks as if you've started the entertainment early, Tordun,' Grimm said, settling into his seat. As his companions took up the rest of the row, he looked at his betting card. The mass of names, numbers and statistics meant nothing to him.
'Um… can anyone tell me what all this means?' he said. 'I've never gambled before.'
'Just bet as we do, Questor Grimm,' Harvel advised, patting him on the left shoulder. 'Crest and I are old hands at this sort of game, and we know some of these athletes.'
'Bet on Shugar in Match Three,' Tordun said. 'I faced him in a bout at… somewhere or other, and I remember he broke my nose, my cheekbone and my right wrist.'
'I thought you said you never lost,' Guy said in his usual, acerbic tone.
'I broke my wrist when my right fist hit his jaw and knocked him out.' Tordun grinned. 'I don't like to lose.'
All of the men in the party laughed, including Guy, who seemed still in the best of moods.
'Ah, but your man Shugar's the three-to-one favourite, Tordun,' Crest said, scanning his card. 'It's hardly worth the money. I wonder if they'll take on accumulator bets. See, if we split the bets like this…'
Grimm's first lesson in gambling was underway.
High above the arena, two men sat in a small cubicle, eyeing the small party with interest.
'You see that white-haired guy, Keller?' one of them said, a grizzled man who sported a scarred cheek. 'That's Tordun. He used to fight in the Gallorleyan Bouts, and I never saw him beaten. Feller's got a steel jaw and fists like boulders, and he'd take on all-comers, sometimes four at a time. Names' sakes, he beat our bloody heavyweight champion at his peak, and he doesn't look a day older.
'We've just got to get him to fight for us.'
His older, bald-headed companion, who wore steel-rimmed spectacles and looked more like a clerk than a fighter, nodded. 'Sounds like he would make a good draw, Mort, but just check out the company.'
'Three skinny peacocks, an old man and a half-breed elf?' Mort sneered. 'What's worth taking there?'
'Mort, boy, two of those skinny peacocks are Seventh Rank Guild Mages. From their ages, they've just got to be Questors. They can cast 'most any sort of magic. Pretty destructive magic, I might add. They call 'em Weapons of the Guild.'
'Bloody Guild bastards!' The younger man spat. 'They've got a lot to answer for, around here. Yoren used to be quite a nice town 'til that sodding wizard, Loaraz or whatever his name was, came here. We had a decent slave market going here, 'til he totalled it and killed old Duke Moras, all on the orders of the frackin' Guild. The bastard all but ruined us.'
'A single Questor did all that.' Keller's eyes gleamed. 'There are two of 'em down there.'
He paused, letting his words sink in. 'I was told we had a couple of mages in town, and I got Brant, the telepath, to make a few inquiries with some friends who work for the Guild. Apparently, the youngest one is Loras Afelnor's very grandson: he's famous for it. Wouldn't it just be poetic justice to put him in the Pit?
'I don't know who the other one is, but you can bet your last copper that he's dangerous. I think you'd find two Questors engaged in mortal combat a better draw even than your man Tordun could offer. A one night stand, of course, but I think the ticket receipts alone would make it worth everyone's while. I can see the posters now: 'Magical Mayhem: One Night Only!' Just think about it for a few moments.'
Mort thought about it. 'What about the other guys?'
'The old guy's General Q. You've heard of him, I'm sure. It'd probably be better if we didn't mess around with him too much; he's got a whole army at his disposal, with real weapons, if you understand my meaning. There's
