'Watch it, worm!' A bearded man yelled after Sameth knocked the popcorn out of his hands, spilling half of it on the floor. That costume of his was already proving to be a liability.
'Why couldn't you have chosen the mermaid costume? At least you might have been able to walk straight in it.'
'Just shut up and look for your girlfriend.' The Elf replied, shuffling past another family. I had to help them back up afterwards.
'Violet's not-'
'Here it comes, Frozna. The game of all games.'
'Don't I know it, Rasia!'
The commentators were already chatting amongst themselves, and even the fans seemed to be friendly. It was a pleasant surprise, yet I couldn't help but repay their kindness with suspicion. Even Alistair, the gentle giant was finding it difficult to talk to them.
'Down here.' Molly pointed, taking each step with care.
She'd found the perfect area; a whole bench to ourselves, with only a smattering of people sitting behind.
Sameth was shuffling too, frowning as his costume continued to soak up spilt drinks and rubbish like a sponge. He was livid and losing concentration when he finally slid on a smudged ice cream cone and barreled over the top of the people who had gotten there early. Not exactly the best first impression.
A heavy-set man shoved Sameth's legs away, and the Elf screamed, before rolling unceremoniously onto the end of our bench.
Alistair was laughing uncontrollably. 'Smooth landing.' He chuckled.
It seemed as though we were in the middle band, with our balcony overlooking the more prestigious pitch-side seating below. The stadium had no roof; like we were used to, and the sun was already setting, causing the sky to glow so bright that it looked as though it was on fire. The turf itself seemed almost five times the size of the one's we'd played on, with a seating capacity that appeared to number over one hundred thousand.
I turned to the others. 'Keep an eye out for Butland and Violet-'
'Look at that!' Asher interrupted. Just as the massive retractable player tunnel began moving into position, heavy rock music started beating out to a display of fireworks that were already turning fluffy white coloured clouds to red, purple green and yellow. Coupled with the stunning sunset, it all made for one spectacular sight.
'Ladies and gentlemen; it has been a whole year, but we are back, with a show that you'll never forget!'
The man's voice was crisp, with a soft resonating buzz that only made it easier on the ears. Frozna seemed built for this. 'On the Blue team, standing at almost sixty-five feet, we have Velaris Goddess Of The Sea.' The mermaid was not quite the slender figure I'd imagined her to be; she was beautiful, but her blue tail was coated with razor-sharp spikes that seemed to dig into the ground whenever she moved around to greet the fans.
'And there we have it folks; the Blue team have chosen water for their runic warding.'
'Well, we couldn't have predicted that!' Someone below yelled, laughing at her. While I wouldn't have been crazy enough to antagonise the mermaid; I had to agree with the maniacal fan. Mermaids could supposedly only survive out of water for so long. She might end up becoming a hindrance to the Blue team instead of a hero.
Just when the fan thought he'd gotten away with it, Velaris turned and charged right at him, crushing some of the empty seats as she pressed forward. 'Do you want some this! Come and get it!' She roared, with tones both high pitched and low; it was almost as though two people were speaking simultaneously.
I nearly slid off the bench when her head got too close, revealing sharp and shiny teeth that seemed to twinkle under the dying glare of sunlight. Luckily, she didn't notice us, though.
'Next up for the Blue team, we have a creature so depraved that he was banished to hell. So evil, that he seeks nothing but the slaughter of his enemies. Ladies and gentleman, at a lesser forty-five feet, I give you, Blazelich, Devourer Of Souls!'
Fiery whips flew out and wrapped around the nearby goalpost, and with a thunderous roar, the muscle-ripped behemoth leapt out and landed on two powerful legs before beating wildly on its hairy chest. 'You call me lesser? You'll be next speaker box man!' He grinned, letting his curled index finger point at the commentator's box as though it were a pistol aiming for its next target.
'Erm... Next up on the Blue team, we have a true delight; it's one of the Ifren clan, people. Nagar Von Eirdeside; with eight legs, and a worm-like body that is quite unmeasurable. She will be dashing from one end of the pitch to the other before we've even finished saying her name, Rasia. Look at her go!'
Sameth grinned with relief at the sight of his chosen mascot. 'See, the worm's good for more than sweeping up after people.' He laughed painfully, still trying to convince himself.
'Here he comes people. I'm told he's butchered many a goblin in battle, singlehandedly slain many of the Ifren...' Frozna muted the Mike for a second, sighing as he turned it back on. 'Meet, the one, the only, Blight!'
The crowd went silent; no one spoke as everyone stared at the little thing in confusion.
'What is that, a dagger?' Alistair asked, leaning forward in his seat.
It was so small; we were all trying our damnedest to get a better look at the thing. I tilted my head a little, but I couldn't tear my eyes away. 'A flying dagger, more like.'
Molly shrugged. 'All the same, I don't know what good it'll be in a match.'
'They wouldn't have let it play if it was anything less than spectacular, right?'
'Fair point, Jake.'
'And finally, fans. Your star player, the Captain of this year's Blue team. He's got the strength, he's got leadership, but most importantly, he's got skill! With over one thousand kills to his name, let's give a Stargazan welcome to Niren The Wise, our first Runeborn Troll!'