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Through the gates, into the outer courtyard, and then skirting around the inner rampart, the crowd was ushered on. Knights stood assembled around them, guiding a path around to a large square arena on the western side of the castle. Just beyond the high wall, the sound of the Barrier Falls echoed off the towers over their heads, mingling with the countless excited voices of prospects and knights alike, and rendering the whole plaza a perfectly unintelligible din.

This was the storied tournament grounds of the Sentinel Knights. On both the Northern and Southern sides were the stands -- towering stone structures with rows and rows of wooden benches, in which countless spectators had already taken up their places. And, built high in the western wall was a box for the nobles, the officers, and the royal family. Four seats in particular were pulled forward from this assemblage, and figures clad in red, gold, white, and black could respectively be seen peering intently down into the arena below.

The arena floor itself was set upon a raised dais, with a staircase leading up to it from the gate by which the prospects entered. It was further segmented by makeshift fences into four separate quadrants, each flying the flag of one of the Four Houses from one of the great marble pillars positioned at each corner.

It was a vivid spectacle. All color and life and vibrancy packed into such a small space and filled with so much sound and energy and... and...

And Julian couldn't see [i]anything.[/i]

[i]Hop.[/i] Just a little higher. [i]Hop.[/i] No, still not enough. [i]Hop.[/i] Almost made it that time! [i]Hop.[/i] Okay come on, this was getting silly. [i]Hop.[/i] There! And the arena floor was... still empty! Or at least, she was pretty sure it was. Maybe one more just to check? [i]Hop.[/i] Yup, still empty.

[i]Rumble.[/i]

Her stomach was still empty too, just in case she had somehow managed to forget that unpleasant fact. But she still had at least a couple coins left in her purse... Maybe after the fighting was over she could at least get something to tide herself over for the next few days. She just had to hold out a little longer. Sure, she'd only had a slice of bread that morning... and hadn't had anything the day before. But she [i]had[/i] technically eaten, which was better than nothing!

She sighed. And she actually [i]heard[/i] herself sigh, which told her that something must have been happening after all, since everybody around her had suddenly stopped talking. She hopped again -- to little avail. But the blaring trumpets that echoed through the courtyard a moment later thankfully conveyed the general gist of what was going on even to one as vertically challenged as herself, as all in attendance stood, and the cadets were ushered forward to assemble at the foot of the arena. And then, ringing through the clear morning air, punctuated by the low rumble of the Barrier Falls, an announcer began to speak.

It was a longwinded speech. There was a great deal of preamble dedicated to commemorating the noble tradition of Grayle's knighthood, the history of the Four Houses, the accomplishments of their commanders, the duties of a true knight, and the noble purpose of protecting the people of Grayle. Really, it was incredible how easily the man managed to turn so many of her favorite things into something Julian could hardly listen to without yawning. It was so belabored, in fact, that she almost didn't even notice when he finally started to explain the rules.

Matches would be split between the four arenas. They'd be one-on-one fights run four at a time. Training swords would be provided -- and no other weapons. However, those with their own weapons could use them, provided that their edges and tips were blunted and safe. Magic could even be applied -- but no offensive spells capable of inflicting lasting physical harm.

Julian nodded to herself, bobbing up and down as she did so. The pockets of her heavy mantle gave a reassuring [i]rattle[/i] that thankfully went unnoticed over the rumbling of the waterfall and the words of the announcer. Her weapons were definitely [i]blunt,[/i] so there was no problem there! And as for magic, well -- that just meant her odds were even better than expected! If her opponents had to fight at her level, then maybe -- just maybe -- she'd be able to drag them down and score some wins - particularly since the actual win conditions were pretty flexible. You could win by disarming the opponent, pushing them out of the arena, or landing "a decisive blow." She wasn't really sure what constituted that last one, but... Well, whacking 'em in the head a few times was pretty decisive, right?

Without any further ado, candidates began to be called forward one by one. Judging by the short and simple sound of the names being called, though, it seemed like commoners were being called up first -- a fact which seemed confirmed when she noticed that the crowd of prospects was splitting into two distinct groups, and one of them was distinctly better dressed than the other. A more intelligent person would have probably realized that since the nobles didn't have anything to prove, they were free to take this time while the commoners were struggling to even make the qualifiers to exchange greetings and start making connections with their fellow blue-bloods. 

Unfortunately, all of Julian's working braincells were currently far too busy thinking of strategies to beat trained swordsmen with a pocket full of sand and a cloak full of rocks. And, wouldn't you know it, she was going to need every last one of those strategies she could muster -- because after a round or two of quick fights she was unfortunately too short to even see, she heard the name Julian Baker called. And, after taking a moment to remember that was [i]her[/i] name, she quickly scampered her way up to the stage, wondering as she did so just what was up with the contestant called to the next arena over from her, and just who exactly named their kid [i]Donathon.[/i]