Trials Chapter 10: Exhibition part 3

                The rules of the arena had changed since Dixie had competed. In the past the opening games were a savage free for all where the weak were slaughtered all at once and the toughest moved on. As time went by and more outsiders joined amazons were allowed to compete with foreign partners. This was mostly to promote foreign relations but most outsiders would be overwhelmed in the first round. This caused discontent among the neighboring nations bringing them on the verge of war with the amazons. In order to stave off warfare a new opening round was formed. Amazons would be chosen at random and their partners would take place in the first match. This was seen as earning their place in the games and helped stem some of the bloodshed. So when Dixie pulled Kiri’s name it was not her who would fight but the short unassuming man in military uniform next to her.

                The past day had been hell for Ramsey. Tree walking was not something done easily and had taken a lot from him. The heights alone left him shaken. When he had finally caught up to Kiri she did not even seem worried. It was as if this was expected of him. He found her reactions to be more confusing than ever. The rest of the day was spent training on the outskirts of the village.

                He looked up a Kiri. She was silent as the warriors around them dispersed. Ramsey was amazed at the size of these women. It became clear that for all of Kiri’s amazing size she was below average. Some of these women easily broke fifteen feet. That didn’t even count for the ones standing on the stage before him. One woman in particular stood heads and shoulders above the rest. He doubted he even came up to her knees. He took in the splendor of arena, the noise of the crowd deafened his ears. He found it hard to breath. All these impressive woman gathered together created a pressure that was almost unbearable. He felt like he would break.

                Soon the arena had been cleared and only ten pairs remained. Ramsey assumed their names had also been called. Kiri knelt down and looked him in his eyes. She had a serious air about her and they lingered there for moment the gravity of the situation communicated in her eyes. He was still confused by everything but he gave her an assured nod that showed more confidence than he had. She didn’t look exactly confident herself as she turned away from him. Suddenly a word was uttered by a woman atop the podium clad in robes. At that signal Kiri and the other amazons left the arena leaving him alone with what he easily considered the strangest and most intimidating group of people he had ever seen.

                One was a human. A man standing twice his size and built like an ox he may have even been taller than Kiri. He carried a large hammer one handed over his shoulder. Another was an ogre greenish brown fur covering its back. It had large canines and was the size of a bear. Some looked like prisoners deranged murderous looks on their faces. And the last he noticed was an elfin woman. She was thin and beautiful. Compared to these titans Ramsey felt like a child. He clutched his sword nervously as he was sized up in turn. He noticed some of them snickering.

                The robed woman spoke again and all the warriors grouped inside an area marked by a large white circle. All except Ramsey who stood there with a vacant expression which earned a laugh from the audience. He realized his mistake and went to join the others. Was he really the only one to make this mistake? It seemed all the other warriors knew the Amazonian language, even the ogre! He cursed to himself as he took his place.

                The robed woman spoke again and the warriors broke off into pairs; the elf with the large man, a pair of psychopathic murders, and him with the ogre. Ramsey hoped that didn’t mean what he thought it meant. Then the woman on the podium came down and approached the pairs. The largest of which approached them. At close she was truly massive. He looked up and saw her kneecaps. Even as she bent down he could only see her chest. She stared down and inspected them both. The ogre let out a guttural roar making the amazon sneer. She then looked at Ramsey. Hard. He had been judged like this before and he was beginning to grow tired of it. He copied the ogre giving his best battle cry which came out rather pathetic and raspy. Both the ogre and amazon laughed at him. This was happening too often. She produced a rope and bound the two’s hands together. When that was done her and the rest of the amazons exited leaving them alone in the arena.

                Ramsey surveyed the arena to see the other pairs and been bound in a similar fashion. Then Ramsey noticed something else. The quiet; the crowd had gone eerily quiet. Then drums began to sound in powerful rhythms. A loud grinding sound could be heard and then chains ringing through the air. The ogre turned forcing him to turn as well as a large gate opened. Then a pounding came. It was the drums again. The pounding got louder and Ramsey realized it wasn’t the drums. Suddenly with a loud crash a monster larger than any he had seen crashed through the gates. It was something he had come to fear more than anything., it was known to make grown men cry like babes. It sent a chill down his spine and even the large man stood shocked. For before them was a legendary stone giant.