Royal Academy Diaries I

Conquer ⚜ Ch. 8

Raelynn couldn't decide if time passed quickly or slowly as she trained hard for the Tri event. By the time it arrived, she was glad to have just passed the school eliminations.

She and the other two Knight Academy competitors - and one slightly more than friend - all travelled to the Royal Prep of Scotland castle, where the huge event was held annually.

As they got out of the bus, she stopped and looked up at the imposing stone fortress.

"You ready for this Rae?" Finn asked.

She took the girl's hand and a deep breath. "Ready as I'll ever be."

Together they went up to the registration desk to get her number, then to the castle's great hall. Its soaring medieval ceilings and tapestries made it feel like she was a true knight, come to show off her skill. To say that she'd be performing for kings wasn't an exaggeration; there were surely more than one in the crowd. Perhaps Finn would give her a token. Touching a clover charm around her neck, Rae realized with a smile that she already had.

A herald ushered the last of the latecomers and everyone else into the hall. Getting up onto the dais, he raised his hands. "Welcome one and all to the annual Tri Event, and welcome to The Royal Prep of Scotland."

Some students began chanting their motto and the man held up his hands again.

"Today will be divided into three parts. First, the swordsmanship task. Two competitors will be paired up and scored based on their performance. Negative points will be assigned for each mistake. Then will be archery. Points will be assigned based on form and accuracy. Lastly will be a race on the grounds, where the competitors will have to dodge, climb, and conquer obstacles of every kind. Intermittently, there will be knife throwing, rope tying, and puzzle solving. Points will be assigned each completed task. Those who finish will be given points based on their time. The record holds at fifteen minutes, forty eight seconds."

The crowd cheered and someone shouted, "Let the games begin!"

"To the back of the hall for swordfighting."

Khesar led the way to the back and had the trio huddle with him. "Alright, Darius, remember your inside. Cheng, remember to not bite your tongue. Raelynn, remember to breathe. Got it?"

"Yes sir," they said in unison.

"Alright," he nodded. "Now get in there and do your best."

An organizer came down with a clipboard. "Alright, two five minute matches at once, one to the left, one to the right. Eighteen matches total. Let's move through these people. We've got one hour. First up, The Prussian School of Military Training, The Academy of London, The Nobility Training Centre of Amsterdam, and The Kings' Alliance Royal Academies. Send forward a competitor, please."

Raelynn stepped forward, wanting to get this over with. Across from her, a blonde girl from the infamous Prussian school came forward. A pair of attendants handed them dulled sparring swords, and the judges gathered around as they took their stances.

The girl swung the sword a little to get a feel for the blade, and Raelynn did the same, adding a spin.

With a smirk, her opponent took a final stance. Behind her, her coach started barking reminders. Freya seemed to be her name.

"Alright Freya, let's go." With a lunge, Raelynn made the first move.

Freya parried quickly and easily with her, and they both grinned. It was nice to be evenly matched. It was a game of who gets the best opening, and who makes the fewest mistakes.

They went the full five minutes before a whistle blew.

"Time! The judges will finish tallying the points while new teams step forward."

Tired and out of breath, she stepped back, passing the sword to Darius.

"Good job out there," he smiled.

She just nodded and gave a thumbs up. That was by far the most difficult match of her life. Her anxiety was through the roof, but if she could conquer it enough to accomplish this, there wasn't anything she couldn't do.

And it looked like Prince Darius was about to face his. His opponent looked like serious competition. Adam of Liechtenstein. He and Freya seemed to be the ones to beat.

Raelynn just watched, thrilled for Darius that he won his match. Time seemed to fly as the eighteen match-ups went on. Soon enough, it was time for archery.

"Everyone to the stairs please. And be sure to turn in the swords, thank you," the announcer called out.

Andris took the lead as they went up the stairs to the second story, where they had set up archery on the windy open walkways. "Well this looks challenging."

"Yes it does," Cheng said nervously, wringing her hands.

Raelynn stood by one of the stations, and a new organizer approached them.

"There are bows and three arrows apiece," he said. "The walkways are blocked off, so as soon as the judges get here, you may begin."

"Thank you sir." Beside her, a dark haired girl took the other side of the station. She didn't say a word as she took her bow.

The judges pushed though the crowds, and a pair came up beside Raelynn and the girl. "You may proceed."

Taking the bow, Raelynn could tell it wasn't an easy draw. She notched her first arrow and got into the proper position, hoping it was perfect enough for the judges. Taking a deep breath, she pulled back on the string with all her strength. And... a perfect bullseye!

Her team cheered, encouraging her as she readied another.

The girl beside her also got a good shot, but the cheers in the next row over told her that someone else was even better.

Raelynn took her next shot, very close to centre. Then the third. She took a breath and released the string.

"Three bullseye's in a row! You did it!" Finn exclaimed, jumping up.

She had to grin as she put down her bow. As she walked around the judges, she nearly bumped into the person from the next row - Freya. They exchanged a sort of smirk as they went back to their teams.

The archery section went much faster, and within twenty minutes, they were ready to go to the obstacle course.

The course was infamous across the schools. It was different every year, with new challenges added to keep the older students from winning too easily. No first year had ever completed the run, at least, not from the Kings' Alliance Royal Academy.

The judges were ready with stopwatches for ten competitors at a time. As she looked around, she saw that Adam was lined up with their school, and a few others.

"Ready."

Oh boy, was she?

"Set."

Here goes.

"Go!"

She sprinted off the starting line with the others. But before she got very far through the mud, she heard something unexpected.

"Go Rae!" a man screamed from the sides.

She recognized that voice. "Dad!" But she couldn't look back just now. Up ahead was a steep wooden slope. She scrambled to the top with the others, although a few were already slipping down the first obstacle.

Once at the top, there were two rope bridges to cross. Or rather, a three rope configurement that was supposedly meant to work as a bridge for the creative. She used the lower rope to walk on, and got between the upper two, using them as handholds.

Beside her, someone was trying to scoot across upside down, but he lost his grip with muddy hands and fell. She could feel the mud splash her leg, but kept moving steadily forward.

Carefully, she dismounted on the next platform. To the right was open space, and there were nine targets with eighteen throwing knives.

She took the one with the number 12 (the number she'd been assigned at the beginning) and aimed very carefully. The knife just left her hand as someone else got onto the platform.

"Psst," they whispered, "want some?" They slipped a small vial out of their pocket with a strange glowing liquid. It appeared to have been partially drank from.

"No thanks," she said, backing away. Behind them was a rope climb, and she quickly started up it.

Once at the top of the highest platform, she saw neatly coiled ropes. Out ahead - over a mud pit - was a beam stretching across the half way point. She could see the other platform, but the rope seemed to be the only way to get across. Tying a sturdy knot, she made a lasso, and started tossing it towards the beam.

Someone made it behind her, and started trying to do the same. She glanced up briefly to see that it was Adam. He made it first and swung across to the next platform, leaving her to keep trying.

"Come on," she muttered, trying once again. At last, her loop hooked the beam. "Yes!" She swung across, making a safe landing. Then she had to run over tops of barrels, then found herself standing with Adam at the base of an insurmountable wall.

"We have to help," he said definitively.

She quickly realized he was right. "Okay."

"Promise you'll help me up?" he asked intently.

She nodded. "I will."

He then knelt down and laced his fingers together, offering her a boost.

Hoping he wouldn't dump her off the side, she stepped there, and he lifted her as high as he could. She grabbed onto the edge and hoisted herself up. Turning, she reached down for him.

He smiled, glad to see she'd kept her word, and helped her as much as he could get them both on top of the next platform.

"Thanks," she said.

"And to you. You are strong for one so little," he said in his heavy accent.

She smirked and ran to the next obstacle. The puzzle.

Ahead of them were six doors.

They all seemed to be leading the same direction, and she ran up to one.

Beside her, Adam kicked one down. She tried the handle. It was unlocked.

Now was the most challenging part of the course - walking a log over water. Adam was already on it, and nearly slipped a few times because of the mud on his shoes.

She decided to play it safe, crawling across. Once safely at the end, she rounded another corner, crossed more barrels - almost losing her balance at the end - and found herself at the end of the course.

She was quickly engulfed by the crowd. "Dad! Finn!"

"Fifteen minutes and fifty six seconds, you did it Rae! That was intense!" Finn said.

"I don't know who this girl is that's hugging you, but I take it you're okay with it," her dad said.

She laughed. "Yes, she's my friend. Dad I can't believe you're here!"

His green eyes glinted. "Do you think I'd miss this? Especially with that challenge you gave your aunt? No way. And honestly, sweetheart, you have a very good chance at actually succeeding."

She crossed her fingers, adrenaline still coursing through her. "Oh I hope so!" Looking back, she wanted to see who else made it. Darius, someone from Mahoutokoro, and Freya.

Seeing each other again, the blonde saluted her. Raelynn returned the gesture.

"Well done, Lady Kilarney."

Turning, she saw Headmaster Negro. "Thank you sir."

"Hey, they've got the scores tallied!"

"Some of the scores are tallied, come on!"

"Let's go!" she said, pulling her two favourite people over to the judges stand.

They waited anxiously.

"Alright, we'll announce the top places as of now. In first, so far..."

Please, please, please...

"Adam of Lichtenstein, second, Raelynn of Ireland, third, Freya of Norway, fourth Darius of Persia..."

Her heart sank. "So close..."

Their party fell a bit somber, knowing what this meant.

"I'm so proud of you, lass," her father smiled sadly.

"You should be proud," Negro nodded. "I only wish it ended differently."

She bit back her tears. "I just can't leave school yet, I have an obligation to fulfill."

"What's that?"

"I promised Salvatore I'd help help guard a princess during the 48 challenge."

Her father nodded. "Very well. Finish the year, sweetheart. Its's close enough."

The fullness of the realization hit her and she could't hold back her tears. Hugging him again, she muttered, "Thank you."