It went without saying that the audience wasn't nearly as enthusiastic about the remainder of the tournament's matches. There was cheering for Trebar and Cholst's showdown, a duel which Trebar won handily, but it was not nearly on the magnitude that such an event would normally entail. The crowd was far more concerned about what was happening on a certain levee, still on the ground.

They could see her curled up in Donovan's chest, shaking ever so slightly, and their hearts bled for her.

The Arboreal Maiden might have been the only one not concerned for her health. She had the Great Csillacra's assurances that she would be fine, which was phenomenal given that she had been under the effects of a Heartbreaker poison, but the very fact that she had been poisoned infuriated her. She was fuming, rage building inside her towards her kin. Despite being a Velar herself, the Arboreal Maiden hated them, and this was why.

But for now she had to remain calm. 'Nemo' could be punished later, with prejudice, for violating her edict. Now was the time to brainstorm a solution to this situation. She was already planning to give Titanyana a title, but now there was a need to do something more, and she was absolutely going to have to smooth this whole thing over with Donovan.

Now would be an excellent time to fix her.

A vine was wrapped around her foot, she and the Great Csillacra were exchanging thoughts, brainstorming.

'Fix her? I don't recall her being broken.'

Her core is completely out of sorts, and she has sustained damage to her heart. The heart injuries were likely the result of the cardiac arrest, but the core is absolutely the result of the environment she grew up in.

The Arboreal Maiden didn't really probe the Nekh's core when she performed her check up, it went without saying that she was unaware.

'Is that even something that can be mended?'

Not by normal means.

'Not by normal means' was code for 'I am going to have to do something drastic'.

'Are you really fine parting with another seed?'

I have a great many children remaining, thousands, tens of thousands. I may be unable to create more, but I am willing to part with one of my stronger children to provide the boy with such a useful assistant. Is now not the opportune time to maximize the assistance she can provide? We know she will be at their side for an extended period of time.

That's right. In this moment, they had justification to bring Titanyana to the Inner Sanctum.

So long as you act in your capacity as a Progenitor then I can handle the rest. I am perfectly willing to exert a little bit of effort to further our goals. It may be a good chance for me to speak with the boy as well.

'What is there to discuss?'

That is a secret. For now at least. You already know what I am going to discuss with him, I simply do not want you to know what he knows. It would adversely affect your performance going forward.

That probably meant the Great Csillacra didn't want her worrying about Donovan doing something to interrupt their plans. 

"My Lady." The Marshall returned, walking up the stairs and kneeling before her. "It is almost time for the ceremony."

- - - - -

Titanyana's mannerisms were still a little shaky by the time she needed to take her place on the podium. She struggled to stand level, couldn't focus her vision, and had a strange ringing in her ears that just wouldn't stop. It was by the mercy of the enforcers that she was permitted a chair.

The podium was strange to her as well. It was more like a layer cake, all things considered, with the contestants standing on a level representative of their number of losses. Trebar stood at the top, undefeated, while Cholst, Nemo, Kerefel and five other people who had risen through the loser's bracket without a loss stood one level below him, evenly spaced on a circular platform that slowly rotated.

Titanyana was on the second level down, similarly evenly spaced with 27 other people, Zhoie somewhere among their number. Her platform was spinning the opposite direction the ones directly above and below her.

Titanyana was in no state to do the math, not that she could have handled it in the first place, but there were 56 people on the platform below her, and 70 on the one below that. Because of the difference in magnitude, the next rung was actually 'stepped' with lower steppes representing more losses. That segment didn't move, but there was one more person not on the podium, the person who had lost every single one of their matches was forced to stand shamefully to the side.

For the bottom rung, up to those with four losses, individuals were given a number of tokens corresponding with the number of their wins plus one so that even the 'loser' received something, as well as a medallion that corroborated with the first round in which they lost. The medallion could be redeemed for a reward somewhere, while the tokens were some form of currency that were received across competitions. They could be kept as mementos of course, though Titanyana could not care about any of that in this moment. She just wanted it to be done.

The third rung received more of the tokens, doubled to ten from the fourth rung's five, and a . . . flower? Maybe it was just a pretty talisman.

Then came the second rung, Titanyana's rung. There was a more significant change in rewards here. There were tokens of course, 25 per person, and a medallion, and three flowers. Titanyana was still clueless as to what those flowers were for, but the five crystals handed to each person were something that Titanyana could recognize anywhere. Split crystals, incredible concentrations of wealth.

For some reason she was skipped though, probably a consideration for her inability to move off the podium once she received those awards. Then the first rung received their rewards in kind, same as the second rung but more, with the exception of Nemo. Finally, Trebar accepted his rewards, the medallion changing to a trophy, with thunderous applause from the audience.

They weren't filtering out though.

Why weren't they leaving?

Wasn't the tournament over now?

They were supposed to leave right?

A chill ran down Titanyana's spine. For only a brief moment she felt like a silently raging beast was looking at her. Panicking, she turned to the source. Silently emerging from one of the many entrances, the Arboreal Maiden was walking towards the podium. The crowd went silent, only whispers of excitement and apprehension. This was the first time in a very long while that the Arboreal Maiden was not wearing her blindfold.

Very few, if any, remembered a time when she had removed it in public. A great many of them suddenly put together why she was the authority within the Sanctum, the only three who could reasonably be expected to challenge it not even coming close to having the same air. She exuded that very same air of confidence and poise as before, but now there was an element of absolutism to it, as if anything in her sight would immediately fall under her control.

The scary part was that she was frowning.

It wasn't much, only a slight downward curl at the ends, but it was undoubtedly a frown. Right now, the Arboreal Maiden could not be described as having a neutral mood. Given the events of a certain match, some in the audience were expecting heads to roll. Glued to their seats, curious as to what her will was going to be, the audience watched her walk to the center of the arena. It was a slow walk, painfully so, but it only increased their anticipation.

Finally, stopping a few feet away from the podium, the ground she was standing on was elevated gently by roots. For many, this was the first time they had seen the Great Csillacra move so much, and some gasps of awe escaped from them. 

" SILENCE "

A command, a single word spoken with a tremendous volume of split, descended upon the crowd. Nobody dared to make a sound.

"I arrived here today at the behest of the Great Csillacra. I came expecting to witness a valiant individual in the field. I came to resolve an undesirable situation my subordinate found himself unable to figure out with his limited experience."

She was enhancing the volume of her voice with split, sure, but the fact that everyone could hear her clearly spoke to the people's silence.

"While I can say that I was a witness to a truly spectacular showing, and that the problem was resolved without issue, I must express my fury over the other event I watched with my own eyes. You unnamed Velar of the Nameless Clan, have come so infinitesimally close to violating the rules I set forth for your kind to set foot here I am left wondering if I should just kill you to be safe. While it is . . . unfortunate . . . that you escape expulsion from the academy on a mere technicality. You should make NO MISTAKE that I will be having a stern talking to you, as both the guardian of the Sanctum, and as progenitor of the Velar."

A great many sets of undergarments had been soiled in the wake of the divine rage that was being set out to dry on the field. There was little doubt among those in attendance that this Nemo character was going to be the subject of a very painful 'talking to'.

"Your reward for this tournament has been revoked, granted to your victim as reparation for your wrongs. You are to submit to the enforcers and wait for me to relieve them of their burden. ANY resistance will be all the grounds I need to execute you, so I suggest you behave yourself." 

A small group of enforcers stepped forward in response to her orders, a somewhat recited action. Nemo accepted her imprisonment while violently shaking.

"Unbelievable." The Arboreal Maiden shook her head, the vast majority of the fury leaving her as her headache was escorted from the field. "Now, we move on to the primary reason for my presence.

As I am certain most of you are aware - no. My apologies. That is not how I should say this. I arrived here today at the behest of the Great Csillacra, who had informed me of a great surge of enthusiasm in the crowd, one greater than it could remember in a long time. 'A fighter' it said, 'has earned for herself the affection of the crowd'. This is nothing new, you lot will find certain fights incredibly entertaining. Sometimes you will find and individual particularly skilled. 

However I found it strange that The Great Csillacra would inform me of such a development. Many of you may not be aware, but 'normal' does not trigger much of a response from it. Circumstances would have to be exceptional for it to bring something like this to my attention with such enthusiasm. 'The child' it said to me, 'is only participating in this tournament for the first time.' Now, at that time I was informed that she was undefeated, impressive for a rookie to reach the fifth round, but not necessarily worthy of my attention.

It was only on a whim that came here. I desired a break from a particularly tedious segment of my duties that I was making little progress on. Fresh air and crowds, the opposite of my usual exposure, might help me come up better solution to my problems. I did not arrive in time to witness her sixth match, one I learned was a loss, but I was here in time to listen to you. Truly, it was like nothing I had ever heard. It was at that time that I had to help the Marshall make his decision.

It was, ultimately, by my advice that her remaining matches were given the same level of focus as those still undefeated. Not only did I wish to gauge your reactions to her, but I wished to follow through on the promise of entertainment we promised to you. I was not disappointed. Her seventh fight was truly phenomenal, her skill and speed simply unmatched by her opponent, a woman with a two year experience gap with an equivalent level of split. Your response was similarly reassuring.

I needed more though, proof that is. Her final match would determine my actions going forward. Now, I will ask you all to remember how that fight went down. Yes, Princess Strapper ultimately lost, but not because of a lack of skill or ability. In fact of the two, Titanyana was the only one able to draw blood. That, I am sorry to say, was her undoing. Velar blood is poisonous you see, the unavoidable fact that it is part of her body is the only reason she has avoided expulsion . . . for now.

The Great Csillacra discovered that her heart would have shortly stopped, and ended the match. The protection of the Veil was not enough though, and shortly after being moved outside of the ring her heart stopped once again. It was only because of the rapid response of her superior, Lord Strauss, and the Great Csillacra that she did not pass away. The boy, Lord Strauss, served as a replacement for her heart and lungs, keeping her blood moving and ensuring that she did not suffocate while the Great Csillacra removed the poison and restarted her heart. His desperation and rudeness, as you might imagine, was entirely justified. 

It was upon her successful revival that both the Great Csillacra and I came to a conclusion. Now, I wish to hear what it is you all think.

Tell me, people of the Sanctum, is this child, warrior, princess, deserving of a title?"

For a moment, silence, but it felt like an eternity for the young and damaged Nekh.

A veritable tidal wave of sound, all crashing into the podium at once, shook Titanyana like an earthquake. Her ears, still ringing from before, began to physically hurt now. Just as quickly as it started, it stopped. The Arboreal Maiden only needed to raise a hand.

"I have heard you, and shall act on your behalf." The roots she was standing on grew 'stairs' that descended to the podium, which she walked down. "I know you are tired, child, but I must ask you to stand."

Carefully, Titanyana staggered to her feet. She wasn't really aware of what was going on right now, so she was just going with the flow.

"Hm. Very good. Now, hear me! It is with great honor that I, the Arboreal Maiden, Arbiter of Neutrality and Steward of the Great Csillacra, act on the will and intentions of the Great Csillacra to provide this child, Princess Titanyana Strapper of the Nekh, with a Title befitting her actions, temperament, and achievements. Princess Strapper came into this tournament young and inexperienced, and yet claimed victory after victory against opponents she had every right to fail against. Like a great and mighty storm, she ripped into her foes, ending her fights as shortly as possible. Should she be unable to strike, she would wait, analyzing her opponents for the slightest weakness, which she would pounce upon once found, unleashing strike after strike until either her opponents were subdued. Even in defeat, her struggle was valiant, striking and scratching to claw back any hopes of victory. For her efforts, she earned the love of the audience, the ever watching eye of the public."

The Arboreal Maiden then rested her staff on Titanyana's shoulder.

"  ' TEMPEST '  " 

Springing from the stairs the Arboreal Maiden descended from, a branch extended towards Titanyana, curling around to the back of her neck. From that branch came vines, vines formed a ring which rested on her head. Flowers then bloomed from those vines, flowers of every color. Titanyana had been gifted a crown of flowers, the symbol of recognized achievement from the Great Csillacra itself.

Screams and cheers once more came from the crowd, and Titanyana's heart once more began to echo in her ears. She stood there at a loss for what to do until she was beckoned down by the Arboreal Maiden. She began to walk back to one of the openings in the arena walls, putting a good amount of her weight on Donovan as she went. She wasn't thinking about anything, but there was a lot going through her mind on the way there, most of it being drowned out by the sound.

Once in the darker passageway, the noise of the crowds began to fade, and the stress began to hit her.

Slowly, she began to lose her footing. She was lucky Donovan was there to catch her this time.

cakeonfrosting

First Tournament arc FINISHED!!! Finally! Well there's still a bit of fallout to deal with. Nemo needs punishing, Titanyana needs healing, and there's a whole bunch of preparation that Donovan needs to get going on.