The Tournament Diary

Charlotte made her way to the palace. She didn’t know the way but she followed those walking confidently. There was still so much more to explore here. Right from the different clothes to their accents and looks. Centaurs were playing hacky sack using an apple while dwarves were singing poem and dancing. Knights were fencing while the giants were walking around making tiny earthquakes, every time they set foot. All around you could see women wearing kimonos and high neck cheongsams and men wearing linen coats and silk shirts with high black boots. You could smell fresh banana bread and date puddings. It was as if being in wonderland itself. By the time she reached the palace, it was already 6:30 PM. The sovereign sat gracefully on the red velvet throne which had gold carvings on the sides. She looked at everyone with her green eyes and smiled. Her light rose cheeks complimented her porcelain skin. Her salt and pepper hair were plaited neatly and a diamond tiara sat atop her head. After asking everyone to introduce themselves, she advised everyone to go to their respective dormitories and rest for some time before the audience.

Let me rewind for you.

A few months ago, Charlotte, a young and adventurous girl had enrolled in The Annual Lyria Tournament. This was solely because of her wanting to escape what awaited her and rather be free. In a few months, she would be forced to uphold the position of a minister, serving the queen of her hometown. This tournament was among the top three tournaments in the world for it had more tasks than just hunting. In order to win this competition, you had to be an expert in hunting, logical thinking, poetry, art and warfare. You see, this was because the queen was a conformist of sorts. Back in the day, poetry and art was considered a must. But, still a person with these skills was considered a rare breed.

After an hour or so, Charlotte got up to get ready for the feast. Just as she was about to change into her fatigue suit she heard a loud clatter followed by a series of screams. Charlotte looked down the window holding a leather belt in case something jumped at her. She quickly dropped everything and ran downstairs. When she reached downstairs, she saw several other people also coming from their dormitories to see what was happening.

Suddenly she heard heavy footsteps and the ground shook. A massive shadow appeared in front of her. When the mysterious figure came closer, she could make out that it the shape of a dragon.

She could see its massive wings and smoke coming out and making wisp sort of shapes before blending into the mist. Finally, it approached the group and Charlotte realised that it was way far bigger then it originally seemed. It was at least ten metres tall and its body occupied quite a lot of a space. It said something which sounded like, “Flabbergibbydish” and then “Hashiyakokoma”. When it saw everybody’s confused faces, he let out a deep groan and translated it from dragon to English with hints of snarling and growling. “I am Godrava, The Godrava”. The dragon opened its mouth and it smelt disgusting. A bald and portly man walked briskly towards the group. He must have been a part of Lyria’s court for he wore a caduceus brooch on his silk robes. He then shouted, “ Fight”.

Charlotte looked around to see if anyone was going to do as instructed but when no one did, she took out an arrow from her quiver, fixed it on the bow and shot it at the dragon. The people cheered but just then the dragon turned. Little did everyone know that at the end of the arrow, a cork was fixed.

“Here” she shouted, waving her arms frantically. The dragon approached her slowly, his head bobbing front and back.

Once the dragon was about a foot far from her, he hesitated. The smell of oak or maple bows made him ticklish. But he stepped forward with a tiny step. Charlotte dropped her bow on the rock, arranged her arrows in her quiver all while the dragon looked at her with curiosity. She took out her rope and stretched it. She pointed at it and then at the dragon trying to convey to him that she might use it on him. The dragon didn’t look pleased but sat on his hind limbs. She jumped down and the dragon moved his head forward and let out a wisp of fire as Charlotte stepped aside. She just wanted to scare the dragon and not hurt him. She tied a knot and looped it around her hand just when an arrow hit dragon’s wing and he fell forward on Charlotte making her hit her head on the rock and fall unconscious.      

“Oww” she muttered, trying to rub her left arm. Charlotte felt a cold, stone-like thing on her head which made water trickle down her shoulder and shivered. She looked up and saw a medic applying an ice pack on her head. When the medic saw Charlotte she stared at her with her icy blue eyes. She smirked, as if feeling proud for providing first aid. Charlotte sat up and leaned onto the boulder she fell near. The medic said, “Stay here for some time till your head stops spinning. When you feel comfortable, try to get up and make your way to the palace. If you have trouble we are right next to that pillar” pointing at a marble pillar with a minaret shaped marble. Charlotte nodded weakly and the medic clapped her back and walked away. After a moment or two Charlotte was back on her legs walking through the fest which was a few meters ahead of the med camp.

Suddenly a voice boomed, “Announcement! Announcement! The welcome feast has been delayed. Please assemble in the hall at 9 ‘o’ clock.” Charlotte breathed a sigh of relief. She had more time to rest.

After a few minutes, when Charlotte had reached her dorm, she lay on her bed as her eyes slowly shut.

Charlotte leapt onto a rock and took out her bow and arrow. Closing one eye, she aimed at her prey and let loose the arrow. The arrow sped with force and hit the target. Her parents' faces turned from the prey to Charlotte and a huge smile spread on their face. A few moments later they walked through the woods arm in arm, Charlotte in the centre and all you could hear was laughter and the sound of the leaves crunching as they stepped on them. The scene shifted. Charlotte’s parents were handing over an animal covered with a white cloth. There were blood smears in areas and the brown spots here and there. The queen looked at the sheet with approval. She nodded and smiled coldly at Charlotte. Charlotte’s fingers trembled and her face turned pale. Her vision shook and she fell to the cold marble floor.

Charlotte jumped up in bed as she heard someone banging on the door. She opened the door and saw her companion, Dwarf Ulrik, who had years of experience in the tournament, looking up at her.

“Do you want to be late for the audience session? What kind of impression would that make on the queen? Did you know that these tiny things matter?”

 ”Huh?” was all that came out of her mouth.

“It’s time for the audience. Come on!” Dwarf Ulrik explained, pulling her from her elbow out of her room. As the friends went down the steps talking, Charlotte asked Dwarf Ulrik, “What happens in this audience anyways? Are there performances?”

The Dwarf stared at her in disbelief. “Charlotte! Didn’t you read the poster stuck downstairs? You are going to be performing for the queen. A poem dedicated to the Queen.”

“But I don’t even know her”, protested, the now pale-faced Charlotte.

“That’s the point of it. This challenge tests your ability to think at the spot. Quick and smart thinking is the skills a true winner must have.”

Charlotte nodded nervously as she started forming a poem in her head. This time, Charlotte was guided to a different hallway which was right opposite to her dormitory. She gasped when she entered. The high ceilings had paintings depicting the wars that took place. The side walls were bathed with red silk curtains while the pillars were carved beautifully. Charlotte stood in a line where all contestants were. The first contestant was a lady named Sonya who included a lot of action in her poem. The next few people were unknown to her. When it was Charlotte’s turn she whispered a prayer and approached the queen. The queen smiled at her and nodded. Charlotte had barely prepared something on her way and in the line.

This contestant in front of you,

Might as well say “Whew”

For she expected the queen

To be quite strict and mean

This contestant right here,

Is not here to sneer

In fact here to have fun

And not compete with anyone

There is a motherly look

In her eyes,

She reads her kids like a book,

And know the reason for their cries

The queen in front of me,

Can only be present in a dream.

With that motherly look in her eyes,

All the problems and worries in front of me die.

The queen smiled while the contestants clapped. Dwarf Ulrik whispered, “That was pretty good for an on the spot poem”. Charlotte tried to smile but couldn’t. She felt a wave of nausea pass through her. The last time a queen had smiled at her it hadn’t been good. She ran as fast as she could to her dormitory and locked the door and lay on her bed. She closed her eyes and memories of her past flashed in front of her.

She ran up the stairs huffing and puffing until she reached a hall. The guards on the sides acted as if they didn’t care but were clearly surprised with what was going on. They had heard something about a conflict between the queen, her parents and her in front of the whole court. Charlotte’s eyes were watering and her nose was tingling. Although this wasn’t something new, it always made her feel powerless and incapable of making her own decisions. This time though the topic varied. It had started out as a mere discussion about the position Charlotte was going to take soon in the court but like always when she tried to oppose her

She ran into an empty room and slammed the door shut. She sat on the dusty floor and wiped her tears using the back of her hand. She felt like a cauldron; steaming and bubbling with emotions building up inside her. She wished stuff would go back to normal but it was too late. Her parents were under the impression of the queen being good. She got up and walked around the room observing the bricked walls and the scenery outside. She wanted to have a voice which was heard, not just muted. She wanted to be seen, not just ignored and she wanted to be herself not just the shadow of her parents.

The way down to the court had been full of the expressions Charlotte’s parents could have. She first imagined them red with fury, grasping her shoulders and shaking it till her head came off. Her mother’s long nails digging deep into her shoulders and her father’s tight grip making her shoulder go numb. Then she thought of them crying over her, telling her how sorry they were for pressuring her. Her mother ran and hugged her and her father nodding at her, approving her just as she was. This scene was very unlikely to happen.

Charlotte walked into the hall, looking at the ministers and courtiers on the sides, some of whom were openly sniggering and others were covering their hands. She saw her parents expressionless. Her mother, opening her mouth halfway in disbelief while her father staring at her almost like hypnotizing her with his stare.

The queen smiled coldly and started laughing manically. Charlotte woke up, gasping for breath. It was already morning and as she walked to check her calendar, she jumped up in joy. “Arena! Arena!” she cheered. It was the day of the arena challenge. 

She rushed to get ready and then packed the weapons she would be needing.

A sword and its sheath, check.

A long and strong rope, check.

And lastly a bow and arrow check.

Charlotte was about to leave when she stopped and stared at herself in her mirror. She saw a young, adventurous girl getting ready for what was perhaps, the most important event in the tournament and one of the milestones in her life! She looked at her freckled face and then looked down at her clothes. Her camouflage tracksuit was good for almost every occasion and paired with her boots, she could definitely put her opponents to the ground. After a thought, Charlotte quickly grabbed a backpack and stuffed a water bottle and a couple of bandages and then left her room.

On her way to the arena, she wondered the size of it. Would it be a huge rocky ground or will it be more like fencing on a grassy area. “It would probably be a stone ground. Those types of grounds are literally everywhere.”

When Charlotte entered she saw a long wooden table covered with a white runner. On top of it lay hundreds of weapons, all made out of wood. Be it swords or shields, bows or arrows, you could find every weapon created out there. Suddenly a loud voice boomed, “Contestants, get ready for the fight. The rules are simple; killin’ isn’t permitted, all weapons are allowed, oh an’ don’t forget once you have fallen in the water, you are disqualified.”

“Wait.. What water?” thought Charlotte. She looked around and saw a wooden plank of dimensions about 5m x 7m tied from all sides using iron chains using iron chains to the sides of the humongous water tank.

Charlotte turned pale, she suffered from aquaphobia; a fear of drowning. One slip would mean lots of discomfort. Soon the tournament started. About 40% of the contestants refused to participate, so that left just about 60 of the most strong and burly contestants of the tournament. Charlotte was about to go and sit on the non-participants bench when she heard her parent’s voice in her head.

“When will Charlotte’s ordination take place” asked her concerned mother

“When will she learn to be responsible?” said her disappointed father.

These were the most common things Charlotte heard from her parents. She took a deep breath and walked towards the arena. She saw a knight being pushed into the water with a loud ‘splash’ by his opponent while the latter’s friends cheered and applauded.

A few minutes later, the same loud voice announced,” Up next, we have Charlotte from Australia and Sonya from Spain.”

“Sonya?” thought Charlotte. “Out of all the 60 contestants Sonya?”

Charlotte saw Sonya approaching confidently fiddling with the hilt of her sword. Charlotte walked towards the arena following Sonya but it didn’t really look the same. Charlotte tried to copy Sonya’s squared shoulders, up-right posture and poise walk, but it substituted with scrunched up shoulders, slouching and her tripping walk.

When both of them were on the plank a bell rang signifying the start of the fight. Sonya uncapped her sword and waited for Charlotte to gain balance. When Charlotte finally did, Sonya swung her sword aiming at the former’s legs to make her lose balance, but Charlotte managed to jump up slightly, careful not to fall, making the plank shake. It was then that Charlotte quickly grabbed her rope trying to trap Sonya’s hand when Sonya tried to stab Charlotte’s foot with the hilt of her sword but Charlotte lifted her foot for a second or so. The force of the sword was too much and it made the plank shake violently. Charlotte and Sonya stopped and stared at each other. They both had heard a loud ‘Snap’ and then the plank moved towards the extreme left and the end of the right side dropped underwater. Both of them screamed though the reasons were quite different. Sonya screamed for she was scared of losing, a dip in the water would mean disqualification while Charlotte screamed in fear. “It’s now or never” thought Charlotte. She threw her rope down and reached for her sword and used the hilt of it to push Sonya into the water while she was distracted by the loose plank.

And that was that.

Charlotte saw Sonya fall into the water as she slowly lifted herself and climbed onto the side-pavement.

The now-familiar voice boomed, “We have a winner!” as viewers including Etna and Dwarf Ulrik cheered.

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The next day, Charlotte got ready for the labyrinth, one of the most trickiest challenges of them all. When she reached the spot, she saw several other confused contestants staring at the gate in front of them, trying to figure out what was happening. Suddenly a loud voice announced, “Attention! Attention! Please form a line as we will open the gates.”

The group formed a line of sorts as the courtiers opened the gates slowly. The contestants rushed in pushing one another. Charlotte was one of the last people to enter the labyrinth. She walked slowly inside trying to think of a strategy. The goal was to make it out from the other side of the labyrinth. What the contestants didn’t know was that the maze was full of obstacles and difficulties.

As Charlotte took a few steps, she saw mist swirling around the maze changing the pattern of the walls every now and then. She suddenly heard the sound of metal clanking. She looked around, alarmed. She turned right and saw herself facing about twenty dwarves, all with their tiny hats and ears. But what was surprising was that in their hands, they held hammers and axes.

“Who.. who are you?” she asked trembling. The last thing she wanted to do was make a group of dwarves with weapons angry at her.

“We are dwarves. Cant, you see?” replied a stout one stroking his beard.

“But the Code of Lyria stated that dwarves present in the labyrinth act as the gardeners. Do you use these weapons to trim the grass?”

“What’s the point? Our grandfather has made this maze. It changes and grows every day. Why fix something. Now building a new thing. That’s something.” Said another dwarf.

Charlotte nodded as an idea struck. “I have a favour to ask. Could you help me cross this maze?” she asked slowly.

“Help you?” laughed the stout dwarf, ”Why should we?”

“I could do something in return, if you want. Maybe help you do a chore.”

“There is something. We need a song. A merry one, you see. We love creating. The satisfaction after hours of hard work and concentration. Hearing the sounds of the hammer, seeing the fire burn. That is what we like.”

Charlotte nodded and sat down to think of one. After twenty minutes or so she got up and recited it, watching everyone’s reaction.

Hearing the sound clank clank clank,

Making jewelry worth going in the bank.

Banging sword made of bronze,

While listing out our pros and cons.

We are the dwarves you know,

We have only friends no foe.

Working with nature’s elements we love,

Thanking the god above.

We love glow of gold,

And the steel being so cold.

We are the dwarves you know,

We have only friends no foe.

Don’t like gardening much,

The soil we don’t like to touch.

We are the dwarves you know,

We have only friends no foe.

We are tiny creature you see,

There is no me only we.

That is our rule while working

Banging iron is never tiring.

We are the dwarves you know,

We have only friends no foe.

The dwarves burst into applause.

“That is a good song, young lady. Now as promised we will help you.” The dwarf told her the directions as Charlotte thanked him and went along her way.

When Charlotte got out of the maze, she saw herself face-to-face with the queen. Sonya and another knight were already there. The queen congratulated her and gave her pin with a caduceus symbol on it. She then told the three contestants to go the dormitories and take rest.

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Charlotte woke up to a bell. She trudged out of bed slowly, rubbing her eyes. She got ready and entered the court room. Charlotte noticed that the red curtains that once draped the walls were now replaced by shiny golden curtains and there were chairs arranged for the contestants on the previously empty and wide floor.

Once everyone was seated, and you could hear the occasional sound of armor jingling, the queen entered the room and sat on the throne.

“Time for the winners!” she announced, “As I call out your names, please step forward. Sonya Fernsby; for being the first one to exit the changing labyrinth, you have shown smart thinking. Sir Galahad Vivar; for being the champion of the arena, you have shown bravery and wits. Lastly we have Charlotte Acker for your bravery, ekphrasis and lastly your good communication skills and helping nature.”

Once the three winners were on the stage, the queen presented them with a medal and a gold pin of a shield and sword.

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Charlotte stuffed her bow and arrow into her overflowing suitcase. She sat on her bed and started thinking about her experience. She had faced challenges. A thing she was always afraid of and wanted to run away from. But now, it seemed different. The tournament was like life, the tasks the obstacles you face and the prize; happiness. The key to life is to accept challenges. Maybe she was ready for accepting her position as a minister.

Once she was packed, Charlotte headed towards her ship and waved at Dwarf Ulrik and Sonya till they weren’t visible.