Everlong

The Contest at the Keep

Olly woke up to a nice cool breeze, the kind that made you want to tuck in tighter into the covers. Sleep was her new best friend as she remembered why she loved sleeping at home so much. Her silk white canopy surrounding her bed shielded her little, instead it tickled her face as the breeze continued on. Dawn was just cresting over the twin mountains that surrounded the city of Silverymoon, a sign that Olly should get up and moving before her father sent for someone to get her out of bed.

Stretching up out of the warm cloth, Olly moved quickly and dressed in some trousers and simple mauve blouse, lacing her boots and dusting herself off before heading out the door. Her hair hung loose and tussled, her fingers quickly brushing it out as she raced down the steps of the tower. Kirwin walked past her as she darted across the halls, his arms carrying a young foal as he called out to her amused "You better pick it up or you'll be late!" as she passed him.

"Thanks for that!" Olly rolled her eyes but found herself quickening her steps knowing he was right. Some things around the Keep never changed.

Down another flight of steps and through the west wing lower halls led her out to the training yard, the recruits all lined up already as Weylyn sat with his back to Olly. Nole stood looking half alive as Mari and Brienne nudged him awake, along with Ed who was looking at the whole situation with a concerned gaze.

"Father" Olly said firmly, knowing that if she was in trouble, she might as well face it.

"The sun hasn't even hit the face of the mountain! I should be fine..." she thought to herself as she double checked the sky. Dark hues still touched the heavens, a few stars dimly resisting the oncoming sun.

"Archers!" Weylyn suddenly said, his ice blue eyes scanning the recruits of Arrowmoor Keep "We've been blessed as of late, while you all have been training, one of the best students from this fortress has come back. I'm sure you all have heard the news of the return of my daughter, Allana, she has been gone for some time, and has faced dangers only some of you can dream about. Today, you will test your metal against her in a surprise competition. If any of you new bloods can beat her, you will spend a fortnight in the Feywild Retreat in Silverymoon, on the account of the Duer's."

Chatter started up then as Olly began feeling a cold sweat start at the nape of her neck, realizing just what her father had up his sleeve to test her training. The Feywild Retreat was a luxurious spa that many of the elite of Silverymoon frequented. To a new recruit, it was a vacation in the islands, a fine prize that would no doubt get the blood pumping between the training archers and fighters.

"And who's bright idea was this?" Olly gritted her teeth as she stared daggers over at her siblings.

"Surprisingly" Nole said with an apologetic smile to his sister "It was all his."

"We are just here in case someone gets hurt" Brienne said quietly.

"Which they will" Mari giggled.

"Shh!" Brienne scolded all of them as Weylyn continued.

"You will all spar with short swords in the ring, then you will compete in the range, and finally, you will have to race through the obstacle course" Weylyn said as his eyes found the large poles and ropes that ran along the high walls of the training yard.

Ed looked up at the massive course, the trainees having to first run up a high wooden slope before reaching the first few platforms. From there, they would have to jump to the thin poles and cross to the second platform. The second platform had a balance beam, where you would have to either hang on, or launch yourself to hopefully grab the thin iron bars that hung from high rafters above. You would have to swing your way through them before landing again and making your way across a bridge, leaping out of the way of spiked clubs that twirled in a magnificent gauntlet. If you made it past this device, you would simply have to do another duck and crawl through netting and then ring the bell that sat on top of the highest platform, another layer of scattered poles that sat between you and the bell. For those that weren't steady on their feet, a safety net was arched along the bottom of the whole course, although the fall itself would scare you enough than actually hitting the ground.