"I see you slept well," Alara whispered with a chuckle. Studying the 2 goblins in front of her who were readying to fight, she didn't even need to look at Lukas.
His late arrival was telling enough.
"Hey lady, god no sleep!"
"He important!"
The goblins directly below them began chanting their disapproval of Alara's accusation, immediately ready to defend Lukas.
Lukas could barely register them as he slumped into his seat.
Even as he waited for the 2 goblins to fight, he couldn't help but envision Alara on the battlefield. Alara with her stupid, indecipherable battle style.
They were sitting in a stand that overlooked the arena, above all of the goblins except for his servants. Standing to the side, none of them dared to even glance at the impending fight.
Each of them were far more focused on their job. Wine and food wasn't going to serve itself, after all.
Turning to them, Lukas said, "Hey, pour some for yourselves and have a seat. It's our future, after all."
"Our future?" One of them asked, their voice low and wistful.
"Yea," Lukas nodded. "Whoever wins this tournament will be the leader of our army."
"Our army?" Another asked, almost sounding like an echo.
"Yep," Lukas confirmed.
Then, a horn sounded and all the goblins on the ground cheered.
The 2 contestants, one dressed in a red cloth and the other a blue one, circled each other along the edge of a makeshift ring.
Nobody bothered setting up an actual ring, because the crowd was enough. If one of the contestants were to hit the edge of the ring, they would simply throw him back in. There were so many of them that it would literally be impossible for a contestant to escape the ring.
Lukas was surprised that so many had showed up. There were even more goblins than yesterday.
For good reason, too.
Tensions were high as the 2 goblins encircled one another, each looking for an opening.
"Hyah!" The red goblin shouted as he swung a dull sword downward at a 70 degree angle.
Rolling to the right, the blue goblin jumped to a standing position. Holding his own sword tightly, he lunged forward at the open back.
If the strike landed, Blue would win a point.
There were 3 ways to win a fight in this tournament: score 3 points, pin them for 10 seconds, or force them to concede. Although maiming and creating serious injuries was explicitly forbidden, there was nothing stopping a goblin from forcing the other into submission.
Clack!
Just in time, Red swung his sword behind his back, deflecting the strike he couldn't see. Blue wasn't discouraged by this though.
As Red was turning around, Blue had already raised his free hand, grabbing the sword arm of the other goblin.
There was nothing he could do except watch as the Blue goblin quickly finished the match, hitting Red's side 3 times in quick succession.
"Blue win! Blue win!"
"Next! Next!"
Applause arose from the crowd, who began jumping up and down with excited fervor. The match had ended quickly, but for them that just meant the next one could start sooner.
"Next! Next!"
Lukas watched with undisguisable interest as the next 2 matches concluded almost instantly. Even though the 8 goblins selected were the best of this tribe, it seemed like there were layers to skill.
As Pokey walked into the ring, holding a dull spear, he wondered which the goblin was. The best of the best, or just a skilled warrior.
Pokey watched with a calm expression as the other goblin entered the ring. Glancing up at Lukas, Pokey said, "Me captured god to eat. Me is very bad. Now, me will make it up. Me is become the best leader!!"
Even though the grammar was absolutely horrid, Lukas couldn't help but smile a little. Complete and utter devotion was definitely a weird thing to get used to, but he couldn't lie. It was quite a pleasant feeling.
'Begin!" A goblin shouted as a horn blared.
Before the horn quieted, Pokey was already accelerating forward. With his spear, he held a significant advantage over the other goblin, who only had a sword.
Swish!
Pokey's spear pierced through the air with insane ferocity, causing even the wind to cry. The other goblin's eyes widened as it approached, knowing he couldn't possibly raise his sword in time.
Therefore, he dove under the strike and lunged forward. His arms wrapped around Pokey's waist, and without wasting even a second the goblin took him to the ground.
Pokey's spear flew out of his hands to the edge of the arena. As Pokey glanced up at the goblin who was trying to pin him, he knew one thing for certain.
He wasn't going to lose.
"GRAH!!!"
Lukas's eyes widened as he saw the pinned Pokey raise his right hand, planting it squarely on the other goblin's upper chest.
Simultaneously, that goblin swung with his sword, trying to get a strike in before Pokey knocked him off.
Swish!!
A collective gasp sounded through the otherwise silent arena.
"1 point for Red!!"
The sword connected cleanly with the goblin.
"Me will show strength!" Pokey screamed as he maintained his hold on the goblin's sword arm.
Not even Alara could hide her surprise.
Somehow, even while he was pinned down Pokey had found a way to gain an advantage. Pokey pulled down the goblin by his cloth as he was striking with his sword.
Because of this, he couldn't control his sword anymore. Taking advantage of this, Pokey reached out with his free arm and controlled the sword arm.
Now, they were rolling through the arena, each of them trying to gain control of the sword. Although Pokey's last second maneuver got him a point, he was far from victorious.
"Grah!!" Both of the goblins growled as they rolled, both of them still unable to establish control.
Then suddenly the sword clanged on the ground. Unable to resume control over his weapon, the goblin had decided to lose it completely.
Unprepared to face 2 free hands, Pokey squealed as the goblin pounced on top of him.
Unable to move, the winner was becoming more and more clear. Even if Pokey got the first hit, he couldn't escape this pin.
"You no win! Me win!" The goblin roared, a vicious glare in his eyes.
"1! 2! 3!" The judge called out.
Lukas and Alara both sat forward, wondering if Pokey would really lose this quickly.
"5!"
'Unfortunately, bravery doesn't matter in the face of overwhelming skill," Lukas mused.
Pokey would be a formidable ally regardless, no doubt. If Lukas could count on one thing, it was his loyalty.
However, the victor of this match was clear.
Pokey wouldn't become a leader.
"8!"
"9!"
"No! Me leader!" Pokey screamed.
Then he tucked his entire body before extending his legs, pushing the goblin's torso with his feet. The goblin, his position now weakened, fell to the side.
Instantly clamoring to his feet, Pokey ran for the spear. He had narrowly escaped elimination, and now... 2 more hits and he won.
Lukas's eyes grew wide for a second, wondering how this was possible.
Noting his surprise, Alara smiled and then explained as if it was the simplest thing ever.
"The Blue goblin let up. He had the lead and lost it, because he's stupid. That other goblin, the red one, continued fighting until the end."
Lukas nodded as the explanation made sense. Pokey never accepted defeat. From the beginning, he was ready to give up everything to win.
However, the other goblin had expected victory as there were only seconds left. Because of this, he grew lazy and loosened his grip just enough for Pokey to break free.
And now...
Swish! Swish!
"Red advances!!"