Jake stepped out of the shadow of the tunnel and into the bright light. Shouting from the stands bombarded him as he moved into the open. Around him, the stone coliseum rose high up. Smooth polished stone tiles lined the long oval battlefield. A man stepped up on a balcony overlooking the tournament floor. He was dressed like most of the people of haven, in what looked like some medieval peasant dress. Even without any microphone to assist his voice boomed drowning out the shouts.
"Our first fighter of our first fight is an extraordinary one. With seven confirmed evolver kills he is as deadly as they come. Not only that he recently destroyed a dimensional anchor forcing all those living in that realm to move to the town he controls! They don't call them the Demon of the Wastelands for nothing!"
As the announcer's voice died down the shouting changed in tone. More boos and angry cries. Insults and threats. Jake calmly looked around at the surprisingly dense crowd while wearing nothing but his dark cloth pants. "So this is what they meant." He muttered to himself. "Nothing has gone right since this all started."
**********
Captain Greger stepped out of the log out room and looked around. He was wearing the big bulky space suit Jon had worn when they left the safe zone previously. It was hard to see his expression thanks to that oversized helmet. But his body language was stiff, he appeared nervous. Jake glanced at Nira who was in the shadows off to the side. She still didn't talk to him much, but she would be going with them. After all, she was a citizen of his town too now.
"Move aside move aside so the others can come out. The mark one is old news." Jon physically shoved the captain aside so he could shut the door, rocking on the heels of his feet waiting.
Shortly after the door opened again and another person in a heavy suit came out. This one was trimmed down, far less bulky but with a similar helmet to the first. "Well? How is the Mark Two it is much lighter yes?" Leru pushed the dark visor up, leaving just the clear reinforced glass. She blinked down at Jon and opened her mouth to answer.
"Yes yes I know I'm amazing. Now move aside so the other one can come through." Jon again pushed them aside almost knocking them into Greger before slamming the door.
When the door opened another figure emerged in a white suit. The helmet was different this time. A wide bowl-like rim rose up from their neck and stopped at chin level. The rest of it was a clear reinforced glass dome. It gave a much better view of the person's face and they in turn a better view. It did limit their ability to see downwards at their own body. Which Jake thought was for the best. Otherwise, Gerri would never have walked out of that door. The Mark Three as Jon was already shouting about. Was a white skin tight suit. Unlike the previous two suits that were bulky, this one was made of something very thin and stretched over Gerri's body.
Jake gaped a bit, his mouth opening and closing. Gerri always wore plain clothes that apparently hid a rather nice figure. There wasn't anything hidden in this outfit.
"Jon! What do you have her wearing?" Jake grabbed the crafter by the shoulder shaking him some.
"What? It is far more lightweight than the others it really is amazing. Oh, that is right." He pulled free of Jake's grip and lunged at Gerri. "Have you tried the waste disposal feature yet? It is really a miracle of science! Please let me know the moment you start to use it. I want to get your immediate feedback. In fact, if you wouldn't mind you could go ahead and…" Jake closed an oversized hand over Jon's face muffling his mouth.
"Clive! We are ready. Send us to Haven!" Jake ushered a confused Gerri back into the log out room with the rest. Haven was a dimensional city. There was no physical distance to travel. Creating a tunnel between his home and Haven would be difficult. Plus the last time a tunnel had been opened they were invaded. Instead, they had to simply head to Earth. From there jumping to another city only required some sort of key or authorization. When Jake, Jon, Leah, Gerri, Gregor, Nira, and Leru entered the log out room there was a new feature. On the far wall stood a stone archway with swirling light inside.
"To Haven!" Jon wiggled out of Jake's grip and rushed into the portal. The rest shared looks before following.
When they emerged it wasn't into a log out room. In fact, it wasn't a room at all. They stepped out of a stone archway into a bright sunny day. Around them fields of green speckled with bright colored flowers swayed in a gentle warm breeze. The ground they emerged on had been paved in smooth cobblestone and a woman in a plain brown and white dress stood with a bright smile.
"Welcome heroes of other lands to Haven! We greet you who have evolved beyond humanity and your servants. Please come with me." The woman flashed a pretty smile and motioned for them to follow. Looking past her in the distance they got their first glimpse of Haven. After hearing how many people lived there Jake had pictured towering skyscrapers in a modern city similar to what he had seen in movies. Instead, there was a low outline of a simple city. It stretched off into the distance but most of the buildings were two story at best.
Also, instead of modern buildings, everything looked ancient. As if they had stepped back in time to a more primitive era. Buildings of rough stone, timber, and plaster dotted the horizon ahead. Jake glanced at Leru who was currently pulling her suits helmet off. She just gave him a nod. Jake was still pondering things where there was a shriek. Turning around he found Gerri covering herself, she had taken the helmet off and apparently realized how the suit covered her.
"Don't look!" Jake let out a sigh and allowed his gauntlets to melt back into his arms. In a panic, he had brought them out in a hurry and shredded the sleeves of his shirt. He wasn't sure why, but this place had him on edge.
**********
"Welcome welcome! You are the last to arrive." A towering muscular man in his early thirties announced loudly as Jake and Nira entered the large room. There were hundreds of others gathered in a mix of tech and magic equipment. The man that spoke wore the same plain clothes they had seen on almost everyone as they entered Haven. It looked like something out of a renaissance faire. Most clothes had laces or large wooden looking buttons. Various merchants shouted out the many things they sold. Mostly food items Jake noticed. Declaring one delicacy after another. Everything seemed so… primitive. It was not what he expected a city where all the people knew the truth to look like.
Other than the plain clothes their host had sandy brown hair was cut in a neat crew cut. His face was broad and masculine, it looked to Jake like the chiseled face of an action hero. "Now that everyone has arrived. Let me introduce myself. I am Xavier. But you can call me Xav. I rule this town as the strongest evolver here. It is my pleasure to host this Territory Tournament. It is a big event for towns like ours. People have come from many other settlements to watch. It is basically a huge holiday for our kind. I know that will be strange for those of you who live in worlds of ignorance. But hey I hope you enjoy your time here." He clapped his hands and a number of people entered the room. Each moving directly to a different person. "These are your assigned servants. If you need or desire anything they will provide it for you. The first matches starts tomorrow so please enjoy yourselves tonight!"
A pretty girl stopped in front of Jake and curtsied while a tawny skinned boy flashed Nira a brillant white smile as he bowed before her. Both stopped to stand in front of them as if waiting for an order. Jake glanced at Nira who scowled at him. The girl infront of him tilted her head slightly her eyes looking off into the distance before focusing on Jake again. "Would you come with me? Our master wishes to meet you." The handsome youth standing in front of Nira gave her a similar statement.
Jake again glanced at Nira and sighed when all he got was a glare. "Ok sure. Um. What is your name?"
The girl flashed him a radiant smile, Jake felt his pulse quicken. She really was beautiful. "I'm Rose!" She twirled her crimson hair. "A perfect name for me don't you think?" She took his hand before he could answer and with a lithe laugh pulled him along.
Rose led Jake and Nira followed by her companion to a room. There a dozen or so people with similar escorts were milling around while Xavier watched everyone. His gaze fell on Jake and in response Jake almost deployed his full arsenal of equipment. But the urge passed as quickly as it came. Jake shook off the strange urge as the man's gaze swept over the rest of those gathered.
"Hello all! I wanted to greet the newest participants myself. Most of you also come from worlds of ignorance. What we like to call those places that hide from their citizens the truth of the world. Things are a bit different around here I'm sure you have noticed. So don't hesitate to ask if you have any questions." He flashed a smile and swept his gaze slowly across the group again. This time Jake didn't feel the sudden swell of hostility.
Xavier spoke for a while, greeting everyone. Telling them about Haven. Then the various escorts started dragging people away. It wasn't until the boy took Nira away that Jake realized he was the last one left in the room. Just him, Xavier, and Rose.
When he turned to the exit Rose's lithe hand slipped into his and held him back. "Please not yet. I wanted to speak to you in private, Demon." Xavier walked over with a friendly smile.
"Me?" Jake asked.
"Yes you! Does the name Aoe and Breeze mean anything to you?" Xavier walked past Jake to a set of couches. Rose tugged on his hand and lead him over to sit at one. It took Jake a few moments to realize she was sitting beside him still holding his hand. When he tried to pull back she just clung to it more and smiled at him in a way that set his blood to boiling.
Ignoring the pretty girl clinging to him he cleared his throat. "Do they live in Haven?"
"I wish! Those two are great wide area attackers. Get them out on an open field and they are a nightmare. They have no town and are sell swords as it is. Still, they come through Haven to trade at times. Breeze came here for a new staff." Xavier leaned in as he said the last part.
"They talked a bit about you. Not much mind you. We don't exactly see eye to eye on many things. But one of the things they mentioned was that you were D ranked?" The man leaned back and Rose finally let go of Jake's hand to pour drinks.
"Is that a problem?' Jake asked and refused the drink Rose offered him. He was pretty sure that wasn't juice. He started to point out he wasn't old enough but realized how stupid that was.
"Absolutely not. Just… interesting. They both spoke highly of you. Not very many earn their respect." He chuckled. "Tho Breeze seems to have some hostility towards you?"
Jake shifted on the couch some. "So what did they say about me?"
"Not much. Only that you were strong despite being D ranked." There was a pause. "Well, Breeze did sell me some information about you after I pushed. Aoe in her stubborn ways wouldn't tell me anything even if I paid."
Jake was curious why this person would pay for information about him. "What did she tell you?"