All the Dust that Falls

Chapter 201: Ready to Rumble

As the first two combatants clashed, Bee realized that neither of them was older than five. But from how they moved, one would be forgiven for not realizing it. Their little fingers gripped the narrow hilts of their wooden swords with sureness, and each step was fluid enough to look choreographed.

The two combatants circled each other for several seconds, their feet never crossing, and the distance between them stayed remarkably consistent. With no warnings or tells, one of the combatants suddenly struck. The little kid crossed the distance in a blink with a slashing swipe that barely seemed to move the blade at all; it was so subtle.

A clack rang through the cheering crowd as the strike was deflected, followed by a quick counter. Bee was able to see what had happened, but she didn't think many others could make it out. Indeed, as the exchange started, an oppressive silence filled the arena as everyone's full focus trained on following the fight.

It wasn't that the moves were too fast; while they were quick, they were only made by level 5 combatants. No, it was because the movements were so slight and economical. Somehow, each was in just the right place at the right time. It was as if they had been dueling for decades, not months. The sight was unreal. But what else could she expect from god-trained protégés?

The fight ended as suddenly as it started. A tight series of blows ended with a surprise front kick, pushing the slightly smaller boy out of the ring. Void declared a winner and congratulated both of the kids on the good fight. The dead silent audience took a beat to process the development before erupting into cheers.

Most of the adults had never bothered to watch the children playing with Void. Bee had, and so wasn't completely caught off guard, but even she couldn't deny that their skill level was impressive. She knew that both of these kids, in particular, had variations on the sword proficiency skill, so the match wasn't representative of the rest of them. But everyone was in for a surprise when the other skills came out.

When the brackets were updated, Bee took a closer look at them. There were a few oddities; one was that Leanne was outside of and next to the winner's bracket. She had been given an honorary victory, according to the note there.

That made sense; her laser eyes were a bit overpowered and dangerous in a spar. Perhaps they had decided it was best to not have her compete at all. Though Bee would have liked her to just avoid using the skill. But if the kids decided the handicap wasn't fair, and if they were happy with it, she wasn't going to complain. Not if Void didn't.

The next strange occurrence was when Felix was marked down for an exhibition with the winner after the final fight. That made more sense; since he was the commander of the Knights, it wasn't quite fair for him to participate. Of course, his power also made it hard to fairly fight him, so it was deemed they would fight without powers in that particular bout. The rules were a bit chaotic.

Tanu was one of the next to step into the ring, but he wasn't alone. Apparently, Cliff was deemed too unfair to bring along. Instead, two of the cubs padded along behind him as a compromise. They didn't radiate frost like their mother, but they still were still as tall as the children themselves. A little girl named Irene stepped in across from him.

The girl didn't look intimidated by the massive wolf cubs. After a few seconds, Bee understood why. She had thought Irene looked familiar but wasn't able to place her face. Not until the match started, and she bowed her head in prayer.

A massive ethereal black disk appeared behind her. Her skill had grown in strength considerably. Now instead of just one claw, the phantasm boasted six claws. As the wolves charged, the claws came down in a flurry, sweeping them out of the ring with gentle force. Still, Tanu wasn't simply a beast tamer. His skill with the sword was commendable.

Even as his companions were ejected, he was already charging forward using the opening they had provided. A vicious upward cut would have sent Irene flying out of the ring, but she stepped to the side, her eyes still closed, and the swing missed by a hair. Tanu's swing passed through the projection and turned to continue his assault, but a call from Void froze the fight.

Above Void, an image appeared. It was a view of the fight from the top down, showing a replay of both combatants. In slow motion, it zoomed in right as Tanu stepped on the line, his foot slightly out of bounds. The crowd oohed in dismay. Hanging his head, Tanu walked off, but Void stopped him. They shared a quick conversation, and as he rejoined the rest of the Nighty Knights, he held his head high. The two cubs licked his face appreciatively as he scratched their ears.

Each of the next fights was nearly as exciting in its own way. Most of the combatants used swords in some way. Proficiency skills were the most common among the children, but benign common didn't mean they were bad or even equal. One of the larger girls came into her fight with no weapons and met her opponent's sword with her bare fists.

Her knuckles were able to turn aside the blows without taking any damage, but the blazing fire her opponent's movements left in his wake proved too much. The fire obscured the pugilist's vision long enough, and she was tapped three times in vital areas over several minutes, Void keeping score with a simple projection.

The fights got even more intense as they moved into the second round. The audience was still on the edge of its seat, despite the solid hour round had taken. Most of the mothers looked on with a mix of pride and worry. Those without children competing were the most torn. Bee could understand. They likely wanted their children to just be kids, stay safe, and play games. But at the same time, the level of skill displayed clearly indicated that these children could take care of themselves. Perhaps even better than most of the soldiers back in Caleb.

The newer children watched with unveiled jealousy at first, but as dazzling skill after impressive stunts were displayed, even they were swept into the atmosphere. Soon, they were cheering louder than anyone.

In the second round, favorites soon emerged. Little Irene, by far, received the most support, even from among the rest of the Nighty Knights. One of the older boys with long blond hair and blue eyes seemed to be the darling of the mothers and little blushing girls.

Bradley was one of the pure sword users. Though Bee was sure, he had a variant skill, as his movements were different from those of the others. More graceful and fluid. He was also quite the showman. Waving to the crowd and gracious in victory, it was easy to see why he was so favored.

Bee was surprised that not one of them used a broom. She had thought Void would have taught them all how her master had taught her, but no. Was it because she was special? Or just that it didn't have a sword on hand when she was learning? Either way, she wasn't too upset. Nowadays, she was comfortable with her weapon, but maybe her spending so much time training with Tony wasn't as useful as she would have liked.

There were a few who used the sticks that Void had made as spears instead of swords, but they were the newest members. Their lack of experience didn't take a single one past the second round.

The fights moved quickly, and with the leadership of Susan, Void, and Felix, they managed to get to the finals in only another hour. The last several fights were actually over quicker than some of the first rounds. Though despite the intense matches, it was clear who would be in the finals long before they were held.

Irene and Bradley faced off in a tense moment. Each one of them has dominated their previous fights. But now, it was time for the main event.

Irene bowed her head, and the battle started. Each one of the six claws struck at once. The impact tossed up the trampled dust, obscuring the view of the field for a second.

When it settled, five mini craters ringed the spot where Bradley had been standing. He had somehow appeared several yards in front of where he was last seen, his sword held above his head with one hand bracing the blade. The final massive claw bore down on him. His arms shook under the pressure but still held. The other claws came in from the sides, and it looked like it was over. Bee just hoped she could get there in time with some healing potions.

Somehow, though, he dodged. With an odd twist of his body, Bradley slipped out from the assault and darted forward. In a flash, he was before Irene, catching her falling body. Then he gently lowered her to the ground.

The crowd went crazy. Cheers of excitement, confusion, and awe melded into a singular mass of sound. It was so loud that Void had to call for everyone's attention twice.

Once she had calmed enough to look up at her master, it showed the end of the fight in super slow motion. Bradley had dodged each blow by the skin of his teeth. A look of calm concentration adorned his face as, even in slow motion, he blurred and tapped Irene on the forehead. Her eyes widened in surprise, causing her to stumble backward.

Already she was back on her feet, trading some quiet words with the tournament victor. The crowd soon gathered around the pair, clapping them on the shoulder or shouting encouragement. Frowning in suspicion, Bee ran a Scan on Bradley.

Name: Bradley Chadwick, Level: 11, Race: Human, Class: Spot's Prodigy, Titles: Nighty Knight's Champion, Age: 7, Highest Stat: Speed. Lowest Stat: Intelligence.

Bee nodded; he not only had a class but had also reached his second skill. That made sense. She quickly ran Scan over the rest of the Nighty Knights. Most were between levels 2 and 4. Some were above level 5, but other than Felix, no one else had their second skill.

Checking Irene quickly, Bee couldn't help but be even more surprised.

Name: Irene Chadwick, Level: 8, Race: Human, Class: Spot's Disciple, Titles: God-Touched, Age: 4, Highest Stat: Faith, Lowest Stat: Strength.

They were siblings. That made sense. Also, Irene was only 4 years old! Bee had trouble believing it. But with a title like that, perhaps it was possible. She could only imagine how scary these children would be when they grew up enough to be her age.

Bee thought that she had been leveling quickly… At this rate, she would be left in the dust. That was if the children were able to keep up the pace.

Once everyone had settled down, Void called Bradley to receive his reward. Kneeling in the center of the circle, he bowed low to his lord.

Void gave no speech but instead simply drew out the prize. An audible gasp arose from the crowd. Immediately after, a young woman's panicked voice could be heard. "Oh no you don't, not at your age!"

Mrs. Chadwick rushed into the ring to intercept the massive flaming sword Void was about to give her son. Bee recognized her as one of the more nervous women they had first rescued from the ruins of Greg so long ago.

The crowd was on edge as she took the sword from Void with a dark look. Everyone held their breath to see how the god would respond to such disrespect, but Void just watched her passively. Turning to Bradley, she crossed her arms. "You can have this when you're older, young man. Until then, I'm holding onto it. You are much too young for real weapons."

"But Mooooom!"

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