James felt someone grab his arms as he swam back to the surface of consciousness. Roland lifted the Lion's body off his leg as Barbara dragged him from underneath. James felt another Soothing Touch Spell from Doris caress his skin.

  "Are you alright," Doris asked when she saw his eyes open.

  James nodded, not trusting his words. The Arena was quiet. Looking around, James saw that the stadium was empty of spectators.

  "Where did they go?" James asked.

  Connie shrugged, "They left a few seconds after the Chimera was killed."

  "Start healing yourself. I don't think we are done," Doris advised.

  It took two activations of Heal Self before James was strong enough to get to his feet. Roland was in the battle-ready position, watching a group of armed soldiers march toward them. The solider wore bronze breastplate armour with a leather wrap that ended above their knees. Their feet were shod in sandals; they carried a round shield, and a bronze weapon called a Kophesh. The strangest part was that their helmets were bronze and shaped like a serpent's head.

  In the middle of the soldiers were five men wearing loin cloths and head wraps, each carrying a chest. In front of them was a tall man wearing colourful fabrics wrapped around his body. Instead of having a helm in the shape of a serpent, his head was a snake's head. It was disconcerting.

  Connie and Barbara moved to the side to get a better angle, and Doris moved to protect them.

  When the soldiers stopped, they did so in unison about ten meters away. The non-combatant men in the centre of their ranks shuffled to a stop and waited.

  "Congratulations," the serpent-headed man in the center started. "You are the first to best my champion."

  The man made a hand signal, and the porters behind him hurried forward and placed the chest they carried on the ground. The chests appeared the same but were set to face their intended recipient. "An impressive feat," the man said before turning to Roland, "Although I wager to guess that some of you are stronger than you appear."

  Roland shrugged but maintained his ready position.

  "That being said, you have won your rewards. Once you have collected your rewards, you may depart through the portal." The man pointed to a glowing blue portal that appeared off one side. With his task done, the man turned around and headed back across the Arena. His guards did an about-face and then marched along with him. His gaggle of servants scrambled to keep up.

  Once they were halfway across the Arena, Roland eased his stance and looked back at the others, "Everyone okay?"

  Everyone nodded as James fished out a waterskin to deal with his parched throat.

  "What happened with the arrow?" Roland asked Barbara.

  "I used it as you said, and it didn't seem to do anything," Barbara stated.

  "The arrow slammed into the creature's side and then disappeared," Connie added.

  "How come it didn't kill it?" James asked.

  Roland shrugged, "It says there is a chance it will kill it. It may also do a massive amount of damage. Not sure."

  "Did everyone level?" Doris asked, "Or was it just me."

  "Ya, I did, but just barely," Connie agreed. Barbara and Roland nodded, and James noticed that he had a blinking notification.

  "That is good, at least. What order do you want to do this?" James asked.

  "I say we deal with our new level, check what new spells and powers we get. Then get the rewards from the chest, then get back home," Roland suggested.

  "Don't you have your Specialization you can select, big brother," Connie asked Roland.

  Roland nodded, "Yes, but I will worry about it later. I know what I want to take, but I also want to see what other Specializations are offered."

  James frowned, "I thought you didn't get a choice in your Class?"

  Roland agreed, "For your Class, that is true, but for Specialization, you usually get a choice of two or three options."

  James shrugged; he still had a way to go before he had to worry about this Specialization, and Rocko already had that planned. James started by reviewing his notifications.

  James looked at this Advantaged and shrugged. It wasn't as good as Shield Slam, but it worked without a Shield. And it probably functioned in conjunction with Shield Slam.

  'There are penalties when you dropped below 50% health?' James asked Rocko.

  "Yes, there are more penalties when you drop below 25% as well," Rocko explained.

  'So, stay above 50%,' James confirmed.

  Rocko nodded, "If at all possible, yes."

  James saved the blinking notification for last.

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  ** Modified by an Enchanted Item (+5)

  James saw that he had two Attributes at 19. All they required was an additional point, and he would get a bonus for them reaching 20. He also had four Skills that were at 9.

  'So tempting,' James said to Rocko.

  "What's that?" Rocko asked.

  'Upgrading my Skills and Attributes to the next level for the bonuses,' James explained.

  "Please don't. They will come soon enough. Especially the Skills," Rocko pleaded.

  'How so?' James inquired.

  Rocko followed James to his chest, "I was hoping we could focus on doubling all your skills. For that, we need some serious focus."

  James knelt by his chest and opened it, 'I don't think we are going to double my Skills in a week.' Inside the chest was a suit of scale armour.

  James picked up the armour and held it up. The scales were not metal but made from a creature with iridescent green/blue scales. The effect was striking, and James was very pleased with his reward.

  Doris Walked over with a new shield, "Can you check this, please?"

  "Doesn't Connie have an Identify Spell?" James asked.

  Doris shrugged, "Ya, but she is busy with Barbara, and I want to know what my new toy is."

  James could understand that, "Did you get a new spell?"

  Doris nodded, "Ya, not what I was expecting, but I got Cure Disease."

  "That's a good Spell. We would have needed it if those rats overran us," James tried to encourage her. When she didn't respond, he examined the shield.

  When James advised her of the Attributes, she frowned, "I don't know if I should be offended or not."

  James just chuckled and handed the shield back to her.

  Connie and Barbara joined them and showed him their rewards. Connie had a dagger, a dagger that she was very excited about.

  Connie smiled as James nodded his appreciation, "I like that it is also a weapon. It means I can use it to stab people if necessary."

  James quirked, "That's very ... nice for you."

  Connie laughed and tucked the blade into the sheath on her belt. Barbara stepped forward with her leather armour.

  James handed the armour back to Barbara, "That's nice. Not great in the Armour Rating, but a nice bonus to your Stealth Skill."

  Barbara smiled, "I rarely get hit with my Dodge Skill, so this is perfect. Not being seen is more important for me."

  "Well, I can appreciate that," James quipped, "What did you get for Spells and Abilities?"

  Barbara frowned, "I got nothing this level."

  Connie put her arm around Barbara's shoulder and hugged her, "I got something I wasn't expecting. I got Fly."

  "Fly?" James asked.

  Connie nodded, "Yup. It lasts for ten minutes per level and allows me to fly at a little faster than walking speed."

  James was impressed, "Nice."

  Barbara teased, "She didn't mention that there was a warning with it, though."

  James looked at Connie, "Oh?"

  Connie frowned, "It recommended that I be on a solid surface when the Spell expires."

  James, Rocko and Barbara laughed. Connie, not so much.

  Roland approached after his sisters left. He held up his reward, which was an amulet.

  "I already Analyzed it, but I thought you might find it amusing." Roland grinned.