Not 6,040

This is joint-written.

Glide met the ship at the docks, his sons with him. "You guys sure took your sweet f****n' time!" He called up to the deck.

"You said it didn't even matter," Niqi yelled back, jumping down. "Something about time flowing differently?"

Glide smirked. "What, you think it's impossible to get bored if time flows differently?"

Niqi rolled her eyes. "We kind of had a lot of people to pick up." The others were getting down from the boat in various ways now, so she swept her hand, indicating Dham, T.K., Maki, and Mambo.

Glide took note of the three newcomers. "Who's the gimpy mouth-breather?" He asked, gesturing toward Micah.

"Hey!" Micah scowled. "I'm right f*****g here."

Niqi facepalmed. "Glide, this is Micah. Micah, Glide. Be nice to each other. And these guys are Aizel and Cole," she tacked on, pointing at the ones that had been with T.K.

"Whatever." Glide muttered. "I hope you guys are fighters and not just seat-fillers for the audience..."

Aizel narrowed his eyes. "Shut your mouth. I could take you out easily."

"Yeah, I doubt it." Glide replied. "Listen, the tournament's gonna start tomorrow. The gods are meeting us there, some will fight and some will watch. We'd best get moving."

 

...

 

"Hey, Keris," Niqi said, finding him and walking over to him.

The imp boy nodded in greeting, not bothering to stop moving, continuing to walk through the enormous arena set up for the tournament. "You need something?"

"Yeah. I want...I was just thinking, I'd rather just sit this one out. Watch instead of fight," Niqi said.

Keris stopped in his tracks. "... You don't want to fight? You?"

Niqi stared at the ground. "Uh...yeah." She looked up and tried to smile.

"Fine." Keris said. "Do you have a replacement ready?"

"Yeah, actually," Niqi replied. "Micah Seraphi. Have you two met each other yet?"

Keris nodded. "We've crossed paths. I fought against him in the First Divine War."

Niqi cocked her head to the side. "Divine War? Don't think I've heard of it. When did that happen?"

Keris paused, trying to recall the exact date. "It was... Well, around six thousand years ago."

Niqi raised her eyebrows. "Micah said he was...forty. Not six thousand and forty."

Keris scratched his head. "Perhaps it was his ancestor."

Niqi shrugged. "I'll ask him about it later. See you around, Keris."

"Good luck." Keris said, continuing his walk.

 

...

 

Niqi checked to make sure the hallway was clear, and then entered Micah's room; they all had one of their own for their stay during the Tournament. "Hey," she greeted him.

Micah, laying on his bed, looked up as Niqi entered. "Hey. You know you're not allowed in here, right?"

"I'm breaking a rule? Awesome. But no, I did not know that." Niqi grinned. "Why am I not allowed?"

Micah smirked. "Because the fighters have to conserve their strength."

Niqi rolled her eyes. "Really? By being isolated the entire day?"

"By being away from... temptation." Micah replied, winking.

Niqi grinned wider and very nearly giggled. "No opposite-sex visits, then?"

Micah shook his head. "Not for the straight fighters."

Niqi sighed. "That's not why I came here, though. I mean...I'd like to, but...it's true. You should preserve your strength." She paused, clearing her throat. "I came to ask about something Keris told me...something about a Divine War? That...you were supposedly in? Around...six thousand years ago?"

Micah blinked. "Divine War? Which one?"

"The first one, he said," Niqi answered.

"Ah, that one." Micah murmured. "No, I wasn't in that one. Way before my time. I was named after the- wait, wait, did you say 'Keris'?"

Niqi nodded. "Yes, Keris, the one who's holding the Tournament."

"I was named after one of the angels that fought in that Divine War." Micah replied. "One killed by an imp kid named Keris..."

Niqi thought for a moment, then smirked. "Maybe you shouldn't fight him in the Tournament, then."

Micah raised an eyebrow. "Why not? Afraid I might end up like the Micah before me?"

"Yeah. Fate seems to like doing that to people. And besides, names have power," Niqi replied, shrugging.

"I might not even make it that far." Micah said. "There's a lot of strong fighters here, plus a few gods..."

"Yeah, we run with a tough crowd." Niqi shook her head, smiling. "I feel for Ambree. I mean, she's a good fighter, a lot better than she was ten years ago, but she's still human and mortal. What chance does she have against any of the more powerful ones among us?"

"Speaking of Ambree, I snuck a look at the tournament board." Micah grinned. "She's in the first round."

"Who against?" Niqi asked.

"Shetani." Micah replied.

"...Dear God," Niqi said, and then laughed. "That girl doesn't stand a chance. She's going down in a matter of minutes, maybe seconds."

"Yeah." Micah chuckled. "She's toast. Say, uh... you mind? I kinda need some sleep, and you do, too. Wouldn't want you falling asleep and missing the fights."

Niqi nodded. "Of course. I'll see you whupping people's asses for me tomorrow," she said. She leaned off from the wall she had been leaning on, hesistated, and then gave him a quick kiss on the lips before exiting.

Shetani was standing out in the hallway when Niqi left Micah's room. "Well, what have we here..."

Niqi's heart leapt, and for a moment she felt like shoving Shetani against a wall and making her swear not to tell anyone - but thankfully, she regained her senses in time to realize Shetani didn't actually see anything. She raised an eyebrow, trying to act confused and unanxious. "I was just asking Micah a question - Keris said something interesting about him. I could've waited until morning, but..." She shrugged.

"If you say so." Shetani smirked, heading down the hall. "Pleasant dreams, vampire."

Niqi scowled at Shetani's retreating form. She didn't want to spend the night worrying about whether or not the goddess would tell anyone. As she walked back to her room, she decided that Shetani wasn't that kind of person, and then shoved the thought from her mind.