So as not to disturb the participants, Tori asked Albert if their cheering would be a distraction during the event. The crowds normally cheered when the participant entered and when the event was complete, but were silent during it.
This was Toris first ever equestrian competition in both worlds and she followed the first set of participants carefully to try to understand what was going on. Todays events were the pairs and there were two rounds; a sort of coordinated freestyle dressage with two participants in the center ring and an individual show jumping around the stadiums track, where the final scores were combined and averaged out. The pairs could be sa-sex or mixed.
Tomorrows event, where only Sonia was participating, was the longer and more challenging cross-country event, which started and ended in the stadium, but circled an elaborate track in the fields between the Imperial Stadium and the Imperial Stables that was usually used for training. This was Sonias specialty.
The final day would be held in the stadium again, and it was the target run. The participant circled the stadium three tis; each ti was a single round and each round they received twenty arrows. They needed to hit as many targets as possible with each round and the best score out of three rounds would be counted. Specific targets had set points. Arrows that were not used were deducted points.
Individuals were ranked by their total scores per specific event, with the target run simply moving the decimal two spaces. The higher the target count, the better. Schools were ranked by the total points averaged per event. Lyce was often in the top three and was expected to be in the top three again.
What other schools out rank us? Ilyana asked.
The Osten Equestrian Academy and the Anlar School of Riding, Albert said. Theyre the best all-round, but in terms of cross country, Escola de Equestre is almost always ranked first.
Tori furrowed her brows. She knew that school. It was in the Bettencourt Sub-March in Sur. My Uncle Rom went there, she said. I wonder if he competed. She made a ntal note to ask her family.
Are there any local schools that compete? Ilyana asked as she kept her eyes on the current participants marching along.
There are and they may rank within the top twenty, but its Lyce and the big riding schools that tend to rank high, Albert said. Most schools dont even send the maximum number of participants allowed.
Tori noticed that there were a handful of schools that had a significant number of participants. How is the host school decided?
They cycle through the big five in the sport, Albert answered. Last year, Anlar hosted. Next Year it will be hosted by the Thora Nordursin School, then Osten, then Escola, back to Anlar and then us. This doesnt an that the venue changes, only the thes and organization for everything are handled by the hosts.
Tori nodded. She was learning a lot today.
After the third or so school finished, Tori was much more relaxed and no longer kept her eyes glued to the field. All they had to do was wait for their friends and so they spent that ti eating what snacks Ewan and Henrik brought. Ilyana gave Ewan money to go buy them drinks and he and Albert returned with several wooden cups.
By the ti Lyce du Soleil was announced to begin, they had eaten all their food and Tori was surprised that they managed to eat that much. Granted, it was over several hours. When the bannern carrying Lyces seal appeared, the crowd grew loud and clapping and yelling ca from around the stadium.
Tori and her friends rose to their feet and unrolled the signs. From the gate on the far left, where participants entered, two figures on identical white horses trotted out.
There they are! Ewan pointed as they raised the signs high.
Sonia! JP! They yelled and Tori let out loud whoo sounds. The two paraded around the stadium once more, this ti in a steady, synchronized trot.
Looking good, Ciel Noir! Ewan said. Youre doing great, Nuage! Albert gave him a confused look and Ewan grinned. The horses work hard, too.
As the twins finished their circle, they entered the center ring, which had been covered by a layer of dirt for the event. The crowds quieted down and Tori and her friends took their seats. Ilyana scooted closer to Tori.
Im not the one out there, but Im so nervous, she whispered as she reached for Toris hands. Tori held hers and squeezed, nodding in agreent. With how busy she was, she had yet to see her friends perform and the last school was amazing and scored high.
Sonia and JP trotted to the center of the ring and turned to face their side of the stadium. Tori could almost feel the tension in the air as they saw Sonia take a deep breath.
Then, they started. Like a mirror image of each other, the twins moved around the ring, rising and falling on their saddles in tandem as each horse moved its leg as if it were connected to the others. The transitions were smooth and even when the horses were turned in a circle, they were in sync.
Tori had confidence in her friends abilities, but she didnt know they were that good. Of course, she was looking at it from the eyes of a layman. To her, they were flawless. When the event was over, the horses seed to bow to the audience. A flag was raised indicating that their round was complete.
At once, Tori and the others jumped to their feet and waved the signs while chanting their friends nas. From the relieved smiles on Sonia and JPs faces, Tori relaxed a bit; it ant that they were satisfied with their performance and if they were satisfied, then they thought they did well.
The two trotted outside the ring and moved to the side to await their scores. Large number cards were on the right side of the stadium and they were moved to show the score out of ten.
The group held their collective breath as they waited and watched the attendants reveal the number cards out of a full score of ten.
9.79! Henrik shouted as the numbers were shown. That puts them in third for the first part!
Tori clenched her hands and let out a low breath. Considering it was their first of these competitions, that was very good. She looked back towards the twins, who were in various states of relief. Once more, she and others scread their nas and waved the signs until JP and Sonia left the stadium.
Ten-minute break before the jumps, Tori said as she put her corner of the sign down. Attendants were pushing the various obstacles in place. Once the outer ring was ready, JP would go first, followed by Sonia. Do you think theyll hold the position?
I hope so. If they keep it up, theyll have a good start and will place in at least the top five today, Albert said. But, they do have a few upperclassn that are exceptional.
Top five is good, Henrik said. Besides, this is only their first year. There is room for improvent.
When the break was over, they stood up once more to welco JP back onto the field. He started at the far-left side and would go counterclockwise around the track, jumping over about ten obstacles, each scored individually and then averaged for his score. Tori couldnt help but hold her breath each ti he ca to an obstacle.
It wasnt until JP completed his round that all five of them let out a breath of relief.
This is more nerve wracking than I thought, Tori said as she pressed against her chest. Im not even the one out there on the horse.
I dont know how theyre able to calm their nerves, Ilyana agreed. She held out her hand. Im still shaking!
Sonia was next. While Tori had seen many people do the obstacles and lost interest after the third one, watching her friends jump was a different matter and they were all on the edge of their seats. Sonia seed to jump over all the obstacles with ease and faster than her brother. She mustve done a good job as the crowd exploded with applause and cheer as soon as she cleared the last obstacle.
Tori and the others scread her na and waved her sign up as Sonia turned and waved to the crowd. She seed to see them and her na in massive letters, then froze, and looked away, her face turning red. The group in the audience laughed and waited for her score and the total for her and JPs pairs event.
As soon as the score was revealed, all of them let out yells of satisfaction. 9.81! 9.81 puts them in third and individually in fourth and tenth, Henrik said, nodding with approval. This is really good for a first day.
JPs individual rank will drop tomorrow because hes not competing in the cross country, but with this, he should be able to be in the top twenty-five, Albert told Tori and Ilyana.
Tori clapped her hands together as she looked towards the gate, where JP had co out to see the score and stood beside Sonia. The twins had an arm around each others shoulders and were looking satisfied with their scores. A wide, proud smile filled Toris face.
I have the most amazing friends.
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