The sun has not yet risen, but for those few gathered around the council table, the day has already begun. Light flickers through the room on the backs of candles, barely illuminating the worried glances of those in attendance. They sit spread out across the vast table, like ships circling an empty harbor. Too many of the chairs between them are empty these days. Perhaps they will never be filled again. 

All eyes look to the King. 

"Sir?" Forseti is the first to break the silence.

King Charles looks over them all and takes in a deep breath, letting it blow out loudly with a sigh.

"Do you think we'll find the one?" he asks. The stentorian voice took over the room, filling in each empty crevice. It was, without a doubt, a voice you'd be amiss to forget.

Parzifal nods and opens his mouth to talk, but he's cut off by Crestienne. He shoots her a glance but doesn't dare to interrupt her. Instead, he turns to the King and watches as he listens. 

Her voice is crystal clear and full of confidence as she speaks. "Of course, we will, my highness. Our hero is bound to be there among the masses. We'll weed out everyone until we find the perfect hero."

The brothers speak at the same time, "Agreed!"

They turn to one another. Forseti furrows his brows towards his brother, but then smiles and turns to the king and says, "Very true, Crestienne! I've personally made certain all the best heroes got the invitation before our summons went out. Everyone who is someone will be there."

Fostus nods in agreement. "I agree. That's also why we have the Brawl, to get rid of the weak ones first. I've even set it up so we know our entrants will be the luckiest of them all. Part of an amazing hero, after all, is luck."

The king reviews them all again. He looks thoughtful. The silence is somehow louder than his voice. All of them wait, hardly breathing, while he ponders. It seems that minutes could be confused for hours.

Finally, he speaks again.

"Let us begin."

***

Hello, my brave and wonderful heroes! I'm sorry that this took so long. I meant to post at 12 pm on Friday...but life happened.

Task

For your first task, we've got your classic Hero's Challenge!

This is the Pit Fight held before the dungeon is opened. Here, you'll gladiator-style fight one another. Using non-bladed weapons and full armor, of course. You're not allowed to kill, but an accident can happen.

This glorious challenge includes a timed limit, if you fall off stage you're automatically out, and you can and are encouraged to use your full skills and strengths to remain in the center. However, there's a twist. In the final few minutes, the bottom is going to fall open (into the water, hopefully, but that's up to you), and anyone who falls is disqualified.

This is the King's way of checking who's the luckiest, and the strongest. These people will be invited to the dungeon and will take part in the events from there.

Word Count: 2000 MAX

Ballots: You'll receive one ballot. Use it wisely.
(Send me the name of the person you're giving this ballot to in the email you sent your entry from. Please also include your Wattpad username.)

Due Date: Monday, March 27 at 8pm CDT.
6PM PDT, 7PM MDT, 8PM CDT, 9PM EDT.

For more time zones, please put in the comment your time zone. I will covert for you.