Countess Leela Turnstine

Genie rushed out of the players' tunnel to greet Kairo on the pitch.

Kairo slouched his shoulders when he saw the energetic man headed for him, feeling exhausted.

"Excellent battle! I was on the edge of my seat the whole time." He heartily slapped Kairo's back and grimaced when Kairo almost toppled over. The man certainly broke a sweat.

"Oops. Here." Genie clicked his fingers in a rapid pattern and waved his hands to stir a soft-green energy about them. He laid his glowing hands over Kairo's head to heal the man's aches and replenish his energy.

"Thank you." Kairo nodded, standing upright and at ease.

"You were amazing!" Lady Bluesteed briskly exited the tunnel to greet them; her eyes sparkled with excitement.

"The runt only won because it was his battle pick." The guard huffed with his excuses for his loss, puffing out his chest with self-importance as he passed the lady.

"Henka-guard. Stop where you are," Jan called out as he calmly strolled into their view with his hands clasped firmly at his back.

"Court Visor, Sir!" Henka-guard snapped to attention, slammed a fist to his chest and bowed.

Jan nodded as he cordially patted his shoulder to make the man feel honored.

Henka-guard's eyes darted wistfully to Lady Bluesteed, who was still praising the runt. But there was no way she'd be interested in the alien, he smugly returned his focus to Jan.

"You did wonderfully as Kairo's combat challenger. I would like you to be one again for the Knowledge and Strategy Trial. And your next pay will contain a bigger bonus."

"Sir! Tell me what to do. I'm your man, Sir!" A reflection of gold crescent moon signs was rolling in Henka-guard's eyes. The prospect of an added cash bonus overexcited him.

He flexed his muscles at Kairo with boasts about his next win.

"Did I just see crescent moon symbols rolling in the man's eyes?" Kairo impassively noted.

"Aah, yes, palace guards get overexcited about moon-cash, our currency here," Jan answered.

"Moon-cash?"

Kairo learned that the crescent moon symbol on the royal seal was also shaped into coins to be money.

"We trade goods and karma with copper, bronze, silver, gold, and meteorite-blue moon-coins. Naturally, meteorite-blue is the most expensive currency value." Jan finished off his explanation.

Kairo looked up at the stadiums and saw people handing over copper moon-coins for food or merchandise, which aisle hawkers had in shop carts at the aisle ends. There were long lines before some of the carts. "I see business is booming then."

"Yes it is! You're proving to be valuable entertainment. Not even one moon-turn on this planet and you're already contributing to the economy! My brother would be pleased." Genie grinned.

"It's good that all of you are here because I need you for Kairo's next trial." Jan advised.

Everyone fell silent.

"Me too. Fu fu fu." A girl cockily called out as she emerged from the player tunnel to show herself before the group.

To Kairo, she appeared tiny, and her top-heavy figure was accentuated by an embroidered red-black silk bodice and a chest-length mage cape with a crescent moon clasp. Her narrow waist and hourglass hips looked perfectly curvy in her short, frilly yellow-red skirt and bike shorts. Red stockings and black, thigh-high spiked-heel boots elongated her skinny legs. She flicked a long blond ponytail off her shoulder.

"Countess Turnstine, Leela. Did our Valide Sultan send you?" Jan formally greeted the young girl, ignoring her expression of incivility from her dull-colored blue eyes. The girl may look innocent and pretty with her soft cheeks and delicate features. But she was something else.

Leela turned up her nose at Jan as she strutted past him to directly address Genie. "My mother told me to join this trial."

"And my brother agreed?"

She answered with a scowl and crudely tossed a pocket-sized paper scroll she pulled out from her hip-pouch, as if she was laying down a gauntlet.

"You have to take me. Mother's orders. Or don't and get whipped!" Her eyes narrowed with smugness. She licked her full red lips, and her hands twitching around her sheathed daggers against her hips, when she added, "But if this alien loses, I get the fun of chopping up his body for shrieker food."

Genie groaned after reading his brother's message, and made the scroll disappear with magic. "I guess that's that. You have a full party for the trial, Court Visor Jan."

"Genie…" Jan was about to say his counterpoint but, instead, he nodded with understanding and answered, "So be it. Everyone has ten ticks to be prepared."

"Ticks?" Kairo looked puzzled by the term.

"Ah, let's see, I guess, in your language it would be 'minute'. According to the Chronicles of Sol." Genie gave him context that had Kairo nodding with understanding.

"Out of my way, losers." Leela haughtily pushed through the group to be the first one to prepare for the trial.

Lady Bluesteed fidgeted on the spot with worry.

"Just have fun. The trial is for Kairo, not for you." Jan reassured her with a friendly pat to her shoulder.

She nodded, feeling more reassured with her part to play.

"Don't worry Kairo. I smelled a good man when we, um, fell together. So, I'll fight for you." She gave Kairo an earnest nod, which made his eyes relax with a smile. He returned her nod.

They dispersed through the player tunnels to prepare in the player resting rooms.

The crowd settled back into their seats when the players returned to the pitch for the second trial.

Kairo felt relieved to be in his usual clothes. Genie had reassured him that this trial was purely a general knowledge test, not combat.

The crowds roared when the players entered a circular stage, which hovered over the pitch, in line with the middle benches and the throne booth.

"Countess Leela is in this one?" A few people in the crowd were either excited by the fact or puzzled.

Leela turned to face the nearby heckles with her fists raised. "You think I won't come over there and smash your heads into melons? Weak fodder."

A few spectators shrank with apologies. She huffed and snootily continued across the stage to be the first one to stand behind a podium stand.

"She would make good on her threat if provoked further. The girl is all brawn and no brains," Genie whispered to Kairo from behind him.

"No brains?" Kairo picked up on this fact. Genie flashed him a knowing wink and smile.

Everyone took their places behind podium stands.

Jan was already standing at the center before the row of five stands.