“But he is asking us to fight for the Emerald,” said Ryn, “just in a different way to what Sagar’s saying: he wants us to enter this tournament thing. What’s the deal with that?”

“It’s because the Farrians love fighting so much,” said Elrann, the first time she had spoken up in the huddle. “I remember this from the times I was in Farr before. They love fighting here--not brawling for arguments’ sake like you, pirate-man, more like a controlled, practiced, disciplined sort of fighting, without weapons. It’s kind of like a sport for them. They do it for exercise, to train themselves--I think it’s even part of their religion. All those monks in the green robes are trained in it. Like Huld. And they hold these fighting tournaments quite often--to give themselves something to train and practice for, and so the different students and masters of their fighting schools and show off their skills and gain prestige. I got to see one once, on one of my visits. It was pretty amazing actually.”

“Alright then…” said Sagar, eyeing her carefully. “I enter this tournament, I beat the Farrians, I get the Emerald for us. Easy. A bit more work than I’d hoped, but still: Easy.”

“What?” said Elrann. “Ya think you can win it just like that? Ya think you can beat monk-man?”

“Baldy? I could take him, easy!”

“Have you seen the way he fights? And he has earth powers now as well.”

“Pffft,” Sagar made a dismissive noise and waved his hand. “I could still take him...” His words remained confident, but Ryn noticed his voice became a little quieter.

“I wonder if we’d be allowed to use our elemental powers in this tournament,” Ryn said. “If we were, I think I’d have a pretty good chance of beating the Farrians with earth powers, what with their being weak to fire and everything.” He deliberately phrased his words in a less brash way than Sagar. He didn’t want to get shot down like the pirate had.

“That’s a good point,” said Cid. “Before we accept this offer of a tournament, we should find out if elemental projection will be allowed or not. If it is, it does seem like we have a good chance with Ryn.”

Sagar mumbled something indistinctly.

“Well what do you do if you’re not allowed to use elemental powers in the tournament?” said Elrann.

“Then we would need to rely on someone who is extremely skilled at fighting, even without them.”

They all looked at Vish.

“What?” said Vish after a moment, the first thing he had said in the huddle.

“Will you fight for us, Shadowfinger Vish?” Nuthea asked him.

“Yes,” said Vish simply, “if you give me poppy.”

“We’ve spoken about this, young man,” Cid said. “You need to spread out your poppy hits more in order to come off of it.”

“Alright then,” said Vish, a tinge of irritation touching his tone. “What I mean is, if you continue to supply me with poppy and to...help me ‘come off it’, then yes, of course, I will do whatever you want, yes. I will fight in this tournament for you, yes. I will win it.”

“Excellent,” said Nuthea.

“Oh sure,” mumbled Sagar, “he gets to assume that he’ll just win even without powers…”

“I think it’s settled, then,” Nuthea continued. “We will enter this ‘tournament’ that the Governor is proposing. Either Ryn will win it if powers are allowed, or Shadowfinger Vish if they are not--”

“Or me,” said Sagar.

“--and we will get the Emerald that way. Are we all agreed?”

“Agreed,” everyone said.

“Good. Let’s go back in there and find out some more details, then.”

They broke the huddle and marched back through the double doors to the Governor’s audience chamber, resuming their places in a line in front of his desk together. The monks had resumed their own places at the doors and either side of the desk. Huld now stood at the right hand of the seated Governor, hands behind his back, upright and attentive. The Emerald shone on the wooden surface in front of them.

“Well then,” said the Governor, sneering at them, “do you accept my generous offer of a tournament?”

“We think so, yes,” said Nuthea. “We just have a few questions, if we may.”

“What?” said the Governor rudely.

“Well, firstly, will Jewel-gifted powers of elemental projection be allowed at this tournament?”

“Yes.”

Huld’s face cracked into a frown, breaking the mask of his serene smile. “My Lord Governor! Are you sure?”

“Quiet, Huld!” barked the Governor. “I am quite sure. The whole point of this tournament is to find the person or persons most worthy and capable of guarding and defending the Emerald. If elemental projection is to play a part in that, then so be it. What’s more,” he added, almost to himself, “if the people of Farr see one of you defeat the fighting monks of Eto and win the tournament (which I highly doubt will happen), they will find it much easier to understand why I am entrusting the safety of the Emerald to a band of foreigners…”

That’s good, thought Ryn. Though the pressure’s on me now… Find the Jewels. Save the world. Win the tournament.

“Thank you, Lord Governor,” said Nuthea. “Question two:” ‘Question Two’? thought Ryn. Who talks like that? “When will you be able to hold this tournament? My companions and I must be leaving as soon as possible in search of other Jewels.”

“We’ve just been talking about the logistics,” said the Governor. “The tournament will be held in one week.”

“One week?!”

“That’s what I said, Manolian.”

“But my Lord Governor, we need to be off in search of the other Jewels as soon as possible. A week is a long amount of time at the moment. The Empire could make significant progress in a week! They could discover the whereabouts of more Jewels, even obtain them…”

“I remind you that my decision to hold a tournament to decide who keeps the Emerald is my final offer, Manolian. In truth, whether you accept and enter or not is really irrelevant--I am going to hold ot anyway. It is simply what I have decided to do.”

“May we confer again?”

“No. I want your answer now.”

Nuthea looked pained. “It seems you leave us no other course of action, Lord Governor. The Emerald is the only Jewel which we fear the Empire may know of already, due to the public nature of its previous discovery and hiding. It is the highest priority on our list. Though I regret it, we will wait a week for this tournament. Then we will enter it, and one of us will win it.”

“We shall see,” said the Governor, the corner of his mouth curling up mockingly. “Very well. You shall enter the tournament, which shall be held in one week, in the Tenkachi arena. Until then, I will provide lodgings for you in Shun Pei. Explore the city. Witness our superior culture. Train, I suggest, if you want even a faintest flicker of a hope of winning in the tournament! I will see you in one week. Yal!” He shouted the last word.

There was a fumbling at the door and then a harangued head poked around it. Ryn recognised the official who had first led them to the Governor’s chamber.

“Yes, Lord Governor?”

“Have these foreigners shown to guest rooms in the manse. Then issue a decree: There is to be a tournament at Tenkachi, open to all Farrians and anyone in Farr. They have one week to travel here. There will be a great prize for the winner.”

“Yes, my Lord Governor.” The official’s gaze fell on the Emerald where it sat on the Governor’s desk. “Shall I say what the prize will be?”

“No,” said the Governor. “Absolutely not. We don’t want the Morekemians getting wind of recent events. Just tell them there will be vast sums of money involved. Say, a million gold pieces from the treasury. That should attract the very best talent; not that we need any more than what we have in the city. Now be off with you.”

“Very good, Lord Governor,” said the official. “Please come with me,” he said to Ryn and his friends, and the party bid goodbye to the Governor, for now, and followed him out.