The Ranch

Returning (4)

The group finish up their meals and head to the Lecture Hall. They are supposed to go with their combat class to the tournament. If someone chose two fighting classes, they would have to pick one out of the two.

Kai informs Tih about what happened after the incident yesterday," After you fell, I was in physiological shock and couldn't continue, so was the kid that almost fell down. Some others also wimped out from seeing just how dangerous the course was, with you as the example. Sherlock and Lucien quit too, staying with me. We never wanted to become representatives in the first place, so I guess it all worked out fine. Anyways, from the rest of the group, five people were chosen."

They make their way to the Parkour class that none of them have been in since the first day, except for Tih, who was in a coma at the time. They sit down among a small percentage of the first class, the ones that passed that first test of the instructors, and Tih.

Just like that first day, Instructor Henri came in through the window, danced through the air, and lightly landed on the floor," Welcome, My Lovely Pupils! Today Is The Last Day Of Class. Whether You Pass Of Fail This Class Will Depend On How Well You Use What I Taught You During Your Individual Matches. Your Final Placing Does Not Matter, Only Application Of Learned Material." With the same smile stuck on his face, Instructor Henri's eyes zoom across the room, admiring all the pupils he personally groomed, some he's proud of, some he is not.

His eyes pass a familiar yet unfamiliar face and does a double take. His eyes light up in surprise," You- You're Alive?! And Perfectly Intact!?" He runs and jumps across the tops of the chair aisles, landing cleanly next to Tih.

Instructor Henri inspects him from top to bottom," No Broken Bones, No Contusions, No Fractures, I Don't Even See A Bruise?!" He stares at Tih in wonder. "How Did You Survive That Fall? Even I- From That Height...A Sprained Ankle Most Likely, A Fracture If I Wasn't Prepared, But You..." The instructor stares at Tih curiously, the smile on his face only growing.

"Wait, Instructor Henri, is participating in the individual tournament mandatory?" Asks Kai, who worried about Tih's condition, unaware he's actually in perfect shape.

"Hm? I've Never Heard Of A Newbie Not Participate In The Tournament, If Not For The Acclaim, Then The Prizes."

"Prizes?" Although they've been told there were prizes, Kai and the others haven't heard what the specific awards were.

As their teacher, Instructor Henri explains," In The Individual Competition, First Place Receives Enough Kquil For Two Months Worth Of Meals. Second Place Gets A Month and Third Receives A Week. In The Team Competition, Only First Place Receives a Prize Of A Years Worth Of Meals. But You Have To Remember, The Group Prize Has To Be Split Up Between Everyone."

"Where are they getting the money for this?" A curious student wonders.

"Tournaments Are Sponsered By The Higher Ups." Instructor Henri answers. Clapping his hands, he urges the children," Come Along Now, We Still Have To Sign All Of You Up For The Tournament."

The class follows the Instructor to the closest colosseum. "Colosseum Three Will Hold The Group Tournament In The Morning And Colosseum One And Two Will Hold The Individual Matches In The Evening." They walk through the slightly crowded entrance and Instructor Henri stops before an electronic board," Representatives Need To Register For Both The Individual And Group Matches. Everyone Else Only Needs To Sign Up For Individual."

"Wait, isn't that unfair for us? We'll have to fight twice as many rounds!" One of the representatives explains.

"That's Why You Need To Do Your Best To Conserve Energy. To Be Able To Effectively Use Simple Movements To Achieve The Desired Goal. It's An Important Aspect Of Many Physical Arts." The Instructor answers with the same smile plastered onto his face. He strokes his balbo beard, keeping an eye on his students, so as to not lose them in the increasingly growing crowd.

The class crowds around the electronic board. Kai, Sherlock, Lucien, and Tih stray a small distance behind them.

Kai looks at Tih worriedly," You just got out of a coma and fell off a cliff, I really don't think you should be participating."

"Well...considering he survived a fall from that height with relatively no injuries, I don't think it would be much of a problem." Sherlock counters.

"I'm still surprised you didn't die from that." Lucien adds in a blunt manner.

Kai asks Tih," What do you want to do? Do you want to fight?"

Tih automatically shakes his head after hearing the word "fight". Tih doesn't like fighting because the old man doesn't like fighting. He would always berate the other children for "fighting".

Tih isn't specifically sure what is counted as fighting and what is not, as shown by his with Instructor Kane, which he believes was only a "surprise". He only knows that something is a fight if it is said aloud. That being said, as long as he believes it is a fight, he will be unwilling to partake it in, because the old man said people shouldn't fight.

Seeing Tih shake his head, Kai sighs in relief. He takes Tih's arm and drags him towards the Instructor, but not before saying," You guys go on ahead first. I'll sign up in a bit." Like this, the group of four split up once again.