The Ranger (Book 1) by E.A. Whitehead Read Free Book Online

the field to where a group of priestesses who held the token of healing awaited to help them. The remaining contestants were paired off again. Vincent was paired with Jan. This time Vincent had the size advantage.
    At the command from Master Auna, Jan started clumsily swinging his staff at Vincent. He was nowhere near as skilled as Peter and Vincent dodged the swings easily as the staff hit nothing but air. Jan was getting frustrated as Vincent continued to dance around him effortlessly and his swings became wider and wider.
    Vincent quickly ducked under one of Jan’s swings, coming up beside him. Vincent swung his staff, hitting Jan squarely in the back of the head. He crumpled to the ground.
    The other fight was still in progress. Thomas was paired against Kai, and was doing well despite the huge difference in size and strength. Kai was being pushed back. In an act of desperation Kai swung at Thomas’s knees and, by a stroke of luck, connected. Thomas winced for a moment and dropped his defense. Kai took advantage of the situation and sent a chopping blow down on top of Thomas’s head.
    The round was over. The only remaining contestants were Vincent and Kai. The thought occurred to Vincent that all he had to do was win this round and he’d have won the tournament; or at very least tied.
    The next round started quickly. Kai charged waving his staff with all his might. Vincent scrambled to defend. Every blow sent a numbing shock down his arms. Kai was huge and strong. A deep respect for Thomas grew in him as he marveled as to how Thomas had gotten Kai on the run.
    Kai drove his staff downward in a chopping swing aimed at Vincent’s head. He raised his staff to defend. The staves collided with a thunderous crack as Vincent’s staff snapped in half like a twig. Kai’s staff continued downward, crashing hard onto Vincent’s head.
     

Chapter 3: The Final Challenge
     
     
     
    Vincent slowly opened his eyes. His head throbbed. Where was he? The stars above him seemed to spin through a strange orange haze. Why was he laying on the ground? None of it made sense to him.
    The memory of the last event slowly returned. Groggily, he looked around taking in his surroundings. He was lying at the side of the field. The orange haze was emanating from an old priestess who was kneeling over him. Her silvery hair and care-worn face had a familiarity about them that eventually clawed its way through the swirling mist in his head. It was Eliza.
    “Welcome back,” Eliza said, sounding relived. Vincent’s headache had faded and his head finally felt clear again. The orange glow surrounding him faded. Vincent sat up. “That was quite the hit you took. That Kai is one strong man,” she said admiringly. “You’re lucky to be alive.”
    “How long was I out?” Vincent asked.
    “About two and a half hours,” Eliza responded. “They went ahead without you. They couldn’t wait, especially since we weren’t completely sure you were going to make it out of this at all for a while there.”
    “What?” Vincent exclaimed incredulously as he tried to scramble to his feet. “I need to be in those events to even have a chance at winning.”
    “Slow down,” Eliza eased Vincent back to the ground. She was a lot stronger than Vincent had expected for such an old lady. “Take your time; the other events are already over.”
    Vincent’s heart sank as he allowed himself to be pushed back to a seated position.
    “Who won?” He asked half-heartedly.
    “No one yet,” Eliza smiled. Vincent looked at her, confused. “There was a four way tie.”
    “Have they announced the next event?”
    “Not yet. It would seem that the abbots are having trouble deciding,” Eliza pointed a short distance away to where the abbots were huddled, obviously deep in discussion. Master Auna and the man in black were there as well. “They have been discussing for nearly twenty minutes.”
    “So... who else won?” Vincent asked curiously.
    “Well, Kai