Phase II

There was no announcement that the first trial had been concluded. No commentator explaining events as they transpired to those spectators that surrounded the water globe. But for those of us gathered, the transformative nature and changes to the fluidity of water in motion, the actual make-up and changes of the globe was obvious.

Where before it had been a test of the fearsome forces of cascading water, a flowing that challenged an individual's ability to maintain position, now that motion was stilled. The calming nature of a serene body of water replaced the torrential cascade of waterfalls.

"What is happening?" I asked Una, although I knew that there were four stages of challenge, even what they were named, that didn't translate into a context that I could understand. I had no frame of reference.

"As the water stills, the space between molecules begin to compact. This is one of the properties of the arena sphere itself. No one is sure how the transition is stimulated; what allows the waters to alter the molecular cohesion. The changes are outside the laws of nature," she replied. "We only know what is happening from water samples that have been collected and preserved when challenges have ended during this phase."

"Instead of water in motion, it becomes denser, more compact. This isn't ice, the natural form of water as it hardens, this is different. The water retains temperature relative to the surrounding area. There is no transition to a block of ice.

"As the molecules condense and the atoms become more compact, the hydrostatic forces increase. The very mass of the water increases and brings great pressure to bear on Blayney and Lord Haygan. And as it condenses, it transforms, increasing the very concentration and hydrostatic pressure contained within the arena. The area within the globe grows smaller and smaller.

"Normally, water expands when it crystallizes and solidifies into ice. But in this case, gravity or some equivalent mechanism has compacted the expanding water, encasing Blayney and Herd Lord Haygan in a tomb of pressure.

"Lake waters can reach tremendous depths, not nearly as deep as ocean waters, true, but deep enough that pressures became relevant, and can become insurmountable. Kelpie have had to be able to not only withstand those pressures, but they have also had to adapt in order to be able to ignore them in order to harvest those depths. In order to function and flourish, to really claim the waters as our home, we have to be able to claim and harvest from all areas and depths, no matter where we find ourselves.

"Belisama would test our ability to survive despite the environment and pressures we may encounter. The compact ball of water mirrors the pressures that those deep waters produced, without the need to actually visit those waters," she concluded.

Strangely, as the water continued to compact, the uniform shape of the globe and sphere began to take on a new dimension. No longer perfectly spherical, the arena had deformed, slowly changing until a face took shape.

"The face of Belisama," Una informed me, once the process was complete.

"Although She Sleeps, Her constructs and tools have been imbued with a spark of her divinity. In her Sleep She dreams, and these events are made known to Her.

"Although Gods and Goddesses are capricious by nature, She has never interfered in challenge.

"She remains steadfastly neutral.

"But She observes.

"She is different. Not a creature of the Wild Hunt or a manifestation of Wild Magic.

"She never dispenses judgment or vengeance.

"She considers this arena her bane. Her great failure.

"Proof that those creatures She created to become Peace-makers and Mediators have failed Her vision and their mandate.

"She has imbued the arena with her divine will, forcing herself to monitor every challenge. She chooses to bear witness to that failure," Una said solemnly.

"Does She control the effect of the pressure?" I asked.

"No one really knows," Irvin replied, "But it is doubtful. She set the enchantment in motion when these arenas were first created. When she and the rest of the pantheon were present and active in this world's events.

"But now?

"These waters are alive. Those microscopic particles that make up the impurities and give life have been enhanced to interact with the combatants. To test and set limits for each challenger. Somehow, they monitor the electrical impulses of brain waves and muscle contraction. The computation the water uses to determine what maximum pressure to set for this test, limits and adjusts the parameters and variables, based on the strength of those that enter," Una said resuming the explanation that Irvin had interrupted.

"The pressure for two Commoners would be significantly less than that for two Lords," he explained.

"What happens when people aren't equal in rank or level?" I wondered.

"Although it may look as if one uniform stage exists to meet in challenge, that isn't the case. They are each encased in a field unique to their abilities, levels, and rank. The domains and environments for each person are separate, so each is tested to the fullness of their abilities.

"Each tested is based, generated, and suited to demonstrate their individual abilities and limits. The individual is tested against the globe not each other in the first three phases. This allows level and rank to be factored into the test. A Lord ranked Kelpie would have to withstand substantially more force than a Knight rank," Una explained.

"Do people die during these tests?" I asked.

"Rarely," Irvin replied.

"The magic that imbues the water test limits. They will be tested and stretched to the breaking point, but very seldom is a person not able to withstand. In those few instances where death has resulted, it has almost always been found that an individual was attempting to use an item or enchantment to enhance their abilities," Una said.

"Belisama does not forgive, easily, those who would cheat," Irvin agreed.

Cedric and Uron had ignored our conversation, more worried about the crowd than the spectacle of competition. Their ability to focus and filter out events they felt superfluous was impressive. I envied them that ability.

The rest of my vassals had spread out, attempting to stake out strategic locations in the event of an attack. We hadn't discussed this; this was action taken based on a deeply intrinsic understanding of what it means to be Sidhe. That duplicitous actions and motives were the driving forces that defined how individuals treated each other. They acted in concert, determined to place themselves in locations that would be advantageous to our group if trouble started and they needed to act.

The current trial was boring and tedious for most of the onlookers. It was similar to watching paint dry. Unquestionably we could tell that something was transpiring. But from our perspective, it was more like watching and waiting for water to come to a boil. You knew it was happening, but the more you watched, the slower the process seemed to take.

The sounds of cracking finally signaled the end of this phase of testing. Millions of gallons of water exploding in tandem, free to once more churn and eddy. It was like the sound of automatic gunfire, each water particle releasing the stored energy at once. The reversal of function the restoration to natural water was exponentially more rapid than the reverse. As each particle released the stored energy, a progression of tidal forces resonated outwards from both Blayney and Lord Haygan until each force met in a titanic clash that restored fluidity and liquidity to the globule.