---------

”Oh divines, what are you wearing?” Arjuna asked as soon as Karna’s illusory image appeared in front of him. They had installed a permanent communication array between Karna’s tower and his, allowing the two to communicate over vast distances. What threw him off was the fact that the array showed the person on the other end just as they were, and currently his daughter was wearing what he could only describe as a swimming attire that barely covered anything. As a father, he was very conflicted.

“What? I was working on my tan when you contacted me, and you told Zuellni it was urgent.” His daughter protested. He was very conflicted.

“We will discuss this at a later time young lady. Even if you’re having a vacation, there are things that are proper and things that are not.” He went into a slight lecture mode.

“You really have adopted the social mores of the Magocracy. This is actually one of my more conservative suits.” His daughter grumbled. He didn’t see how that was possible. If there was any less fabric, then the whole ensemble would be positively indecent. “You didn’t contact me to lecture me on my dress code I hope? Otherwise, I’m ending this now.”

“No. Something has come up. You remember how we’ve been looking for a suitable world to claim with the expansion? The problem has never been finding a worthy world, but keeping it. It’s easy to come in and snatch resources, but to actually hold a world requires enough power to hold it. With the scourges and the newcomers around, that has been difficult. We also haven’t found the exact right world that would be worth the effort.” Arjuna summarized.

“I’m assuming that has changed.” Karna cut to the heart of the matter as usual. She had a habit of focusing on the important things.

“Yes. We have found a very lucrative world. Not quite as good as the one that you found on the border of the Divine Planes, but the next best thing. There’s also a…potential solution to the problem of holding it. As you’re aware, while some of the new worlds created by the Expansion have intelligent life in the form of magical beasts, there are no actual civilizations present to compete for the space. Well, now we’re skirting on the very edge of that definition. We’ve found a world that is protected by magical constructs that call themselves the Sentinels. These Sentinels are perfectly capable of protecting the world against most threats, and they can be negotiated with, possibly even controlled.” Arjuna had been quite excited about the prospect of studying these Sentinels at some point.

“I’m sensing a but, and I’m guessing it comes in the form of competition.” Karna pointed out accurately.

“Quite. We’re not even close to being the only ones that have found the world. Gaining control of the Sentinels is also conditional on beating this competition. The Sentinels don’t want to turn their world into a battleground though. They’re tasked with protecting the world after all. They have indicated that they have a solution to the problem. They have constructed a special arena where representatives from all those that want to claim the world can send representatives to fight for it. There are some conditions though. We don’t even know all the conditions, but we know a few. Everyone can only send a single representative for instance. There’s a second issue. The Sentinels didn’t want the whole thing to turn into something where a single Immortal can come in and sweep the whole thing. So, they limited those that can participate. Limiting it to just rank 9 beings would only kick the can down a level though.” Arjuna was not exactly pleased about what he was about to tell her.

“Let me guess. They’re limiting things by age.” Karna guessed the problem immediately.

"Exactly. While you're not even close to the age limit, which would give you a bit of a disadvantage, no one of the higher-ups of the Magocracy could argue against your selection after Tsumi and I put you forward." He'd done so only grudgingly. "You're much stronger than your rank indicates, and you'll be able to appear as less of a threat. Here's the problem. We have absolutely no idea what kind of things this arena will present to any claimants. We can assume it's some sort of Battle Royale, but I doubt it will be that simple."

“Which also favors me, as you know I can be very adaptable. I can see why even you recommended me despite your obvious worry.” Karna gave a small fond smile to her father. “I get the sense that there’s more to this. The timing is a bit too…convenient.”

"I agree. I've also been informed that the Wei-Jin has sent a representative. And we found this place at a very convenient time. I doubt they're behind this whole thing, but I'm confident they were the ones to tip us off. They're planning on utilizing this opportunity." Arjuna agreed with his daughter's suspicion.

“That’s not exactly what I had in mind. I was more suspecting this was caused by someone’s karma, but what you said makes sense as well.” Her words confused Arjuna a bit, but he let it go. She often said things that were hard to understand or explain. “When am I needed?”

“The event starts in two weeks. I already gave your tower spirit the location.” Arjuna provided.

Karna tilted her head a bit as if listening to something. “I see. The travel time is around four days, so I still have a bit more time to work on my tan.”

“Find a proper attire first! And be sure to put on proper clothes before you arrive! You look indecent!” Arjuna reminded his grinning daughter.

“You know, I could probably gain an advantage if I did arrive like this. There’s going to be alliances between participants, and what better way to attract allies than with honey?” Now Karna was just teasing him. Hopefully.

“No! I’m calling in my dad-veto!” He decided to put a stop to that idea just in case anyway. She wasn’t wrong though. If she did arrive looking like that, she’d definitely gain allies. Of the wrong sort though.

“You’re no fun today.” She teased before cutting the connection.

------

Usually, Karna wasn't against making a grand entrance, but this time she decided against it. Once her tower reached the vicinity of the world in question, she left the tower there while flying the rest of the way in her phoenix form. She wasn't sure how the Sentinels would react to the presence of her tower, and it would also draw the wrong kind of attention. She would still become the center of attention as soon as she arrived, but that would be due to her appearance and not because she had caused everyone to become wary of her. She didn’t need the other claimants allying against her right from the start. Besides, she wouldn’t be able to utilize her tower during the event anyway.

The Sentinels themselves were an odd collection of constructs made of dark metal in brass-colored armor. They wielded curved weapons and seemed to be moving with surprising grace considering their metallic forms. They took many forms and sizes depending on their location, ranging from tiny to gigantic, and it seemed the entire world was dotted with them. They seemed to be forming some sort of a network, and the distance between two Sentinels was never longer than two kilometers. Some places had much larger concentrations of the constructs. It seemed that the ones spread around were there to monitor things and to report any changes, while the larger concentrations of forces would respond to any emergencies.

The world itself was relatively standard with nine continents with varying climates, ranging from the standard arctic at the poles to deserts and rain forests near the equator. A standard paradise world to be exact, as the climate in general seemed mild and the world extremely temperate and fertile. It was hard to say what resources could be found without doing a proper survey, but one thing was certain. The air was thick with power. Arjuna had been right in saying that this place was the next best thing to the half-divine world they had discovered. If she could use this world for cultivation, it would speed up her progress significantly.

It wasn’t hard to find the place where the event would take place as all the airships from different worlds had gathered around a single city. It seemed the city had been nothing but ruins not long before, but it had been turned habitable in a record time. It still bore the marks of age and devastation, but it also had a quaint charm to its scratched walls made of white stone and marble pillars. The number of Sentinels present was also very high. Likely to make sure peace was kept. The sheer number of outsiders necessitated the forced peace. Hundreds if not thousands of airships could be seen either docked or floating around the city, and the number of people wandering around the city made the ruins seem quite lively. The word about the event had obviously gotten out and everyone wanted to be present. And many of those present would be hostile with at least one of the other parties.

"Divines! Girl, you almost gave me a heart attack arriving like you did." Wolfgang cursed as Karna arrived at the bridge of the airship in a burst of flames.

“It’s almost worrying I was able to do it in the first place. Your anti-teleportation wards need some work.” Karna countered while assuming her usual appearance.

“The wards are fine. You know it and I know it. They just don’t apply to you and your bullshit abilities as a flaming chicken.” Wolfgang countered. “It’s good to see you though. Arjuna wasn’t completely sure you’d be able to make it in time. And if you hadn’t, Sieg would’ve had to attend in your stead. I have confidence in his abilities, but he’s not quite ready for some of the monsters the great powers will throw into the mix.”

“And yet you don’t seem worried about me.” Karna queried with a raised eyebrow.

"Of course not. I already know your abilities are complete bullshit like I just said. Even if you don't win, you'll find a way to return in one piece." Wolfgang seemed quite certain of his assessment.

“What a resounding vote of confidence.” Karna was slightly surprised by the endorsement.

“I’ve seen enough to have that much faith at least. That’s why I voted for your participation.” Wolfgang wasn’t stupid. Not by a long shot. He might act like a boorish oaf at times, but that was just him not wanting to put up a front.

“Father may have forgotten to mention that. Anyway, what can you tell me?” She wasn’t surprised Arjuna hadn’t mentioned Wolfgang, as the man was excellent at getting under her father’s skin at times.

“We have confirmed the participation of at least nine hundred people the last time I checked. Might be more now. I’m guessing we’ll reach way over a thousand by the time the festivities start. For the event itself, we know very little. We know that it’s age-restricted, and we know every party can send only a single participant. We’re not even sure where this is all taking place. The tinheads mentioned that they have the perfect arena for such an event, but we’ve seen nothing to indicate that’s true. They are restricting equipment to whatever you can carry, so no spatial artifacts. We’ve also been informed that we’ll be able to observe, but that we can’t communicate with the participants in any way.” Wolfgang listed the little information they had.

“Do you know how they’re determining the age of participants?” She asked.

“Something about a magical spell. I’m not really up on the details.” Wolfgang hadn’t really cared about that tidbit since it didn’t matter to him or supposedly to Karna either.

“Any Outsiders participating?” Karna questioned.

“What now?” Wolfgang wasn’t familiar with the term.

"The ones brought by the Expansion," Karna explained.

“Ah, so that’s what you call them. Fits, I suppose. As far as I know, there is at least one group we suspect of being these…Outsiders, but we can’t be certain. No weird ships or technologies that I’m able to determine.” Wolfgang was aware that some of the Outsiders didn’t differ from them too much, which is why it was hard to tell the difference in some cases.

“Right then. I suppose all we can do is wait and gather information on our competition.” Karna nodded. Information was power after all.

------

By the time the event was about to start, the number of participants had risen to 1215. The number of observing parties was more than thrice that, as many factions knew they had no chance at victory. That didn't mean they couldn't enjoy the festivities and gather information. The Sentinels had finally, under constant pressure, revealed that all participants would be provided with a way to forfeit and leave the field of battle, which encouraged more people to take part. After all, the event was shaping up to be the perfect venue for all the big factions to show off their younger generation. While this world was remote enough that only a certain portion of the Higher Planes could take part, the word of the event had spread far enough that every big faction was involved.

“They’re sending you?” Karna asked a little surprised when Shaheera entered the large magical formation that was supposed to take them to the prepared arena.

“Ashanti knows I won’t win, but he wants me to test myself against others of similar age. And I must say that I’m curious to see how I’ll do.” The Leonid replied.

“Well, try not to get yourself killed.” Karna shrugged. She’d already noticed the presence of several people that would defeat Shaheera easily despite their time together in the Academy. It was a simple matter of strength and age.

“Same to you.” Shaheera nodded and mixed among the rest of the crowd. He didn’t want to draw too much attention, which he would automatically get just by associating with Karna. Even now she’d drawn the attention of most of the gathered people.

Karna fingered the small bracelet on her wrist. The Sentinels had provided it, informing the participants that breaking the rather flimsy bracelet would automatically teleport the participant outside, forfeiting their chance at victory. That meant that the bracelets would also become an obvious target for everyone, a weak spot to target. Most had hidden it among their clothes, while she was wearing it very obviously on her wrist as a bit of a bait.

The Sentinels weren’t big on explanations, expecting the participants to discover all the details on their own, and there was no signal as the formation activated, transporting everyone inside. Karna found herself alone among underground ruins. It seemed that the formation had scattered them, and she couldn’t sense anyone in the immediate vicinity. While the Sentinels had mentioned an arena, they obviously hadn’t meant an actual physical arena. She idly wondered if the whole thing was underground or was that just for her arrival point?

She had only taken a single step before she noticed another anomaly. The spiritual power in the air was thin. Extremely thin. To the point of almost not existing at all. It was worse than the Mortal Planes. It was like this place had been deliberately drained of all power. That complicated things. Many spells and abilities relied on ambient power, and mages and warriors would find it extremely difficult to replenish their power. Was this one of the conditions imposed by the Sentinels? If so, then it was a very interesting twist, turning this battle royale into a battle of attrition. Any power you wasted on fighting someone would take a long time to recover, leaving you vulnerable to others.

Except the restriction didn't apply to everyone equally. Mages would be the most affected, while on the other end both those that used holy power and those that used Aura would be the least affected. Both of the latter groups used ambient power to a certain extent to cultivate, but holy casters gained their power from the gods they followed, while Aura users regenerated their power internally. If this was a condition applied everywhere, then this would be a huge advantage to her.

With a small grin, she turned into her full Vanagandr form, a white wolf that had grown almost to the size of a large building. As soon as she did, the inherent ability of her form activated, and the temperature in her surroundings started to plummet. Fimbulwinter was an ability that started slow but grew worse the more time passed. The area affected would grow and so would the severity of the cold weather created. At first, it would only be an annoyance to people of this level, but sooner or later they would need to start taking measures against the cold, and that would drain their powers slowly but surely. Something that might become important in a battle of attrition like this. Additionally, the weather would also turn bad and there would be storms created, even underground. She would be immune to the effects, others wouldn't. With a literal wolfish grin, she slipped into the shadows in search of her first prey.

-----

Shaheera found himself in a coniferous forest with extremely tall and thick trees. There was little undergrowth, but the heavy and thick branches above made it hard to do more than catch glimpses of the sky above. With a deep breath, he could smell the aromas of the somewhat moist forest. He didn't smell any animals. Or people for that matter. The air was thick with ambient power, almost to the point of it being suffocating. Was he just placed on a different spot on the same world? What was the point? Not that he really minded, as a straight-up battle in an arena would’ve been disadvantageous to him. At least this way he could try to remain hidden for a time, to observe others.

With the basics of a plan, he climbed the nearest tree and started moving along the canopy in search of others. Perhaps he could find allies?