October 24, X791, 11:00 P.M, Scarlet Phantom Guild Hall

The entire guild stood watching as Master Narissa berated Sou.

"You cheated!" she yelled at the young man before her.

Sou Tsubaki hung his head in an effort to avoid her gaze that he was sure would burn a hole through him. "Madam," he whimpered. "I didn't really cheat" he said emphasizing every word other than "cheat".

The guild fell silent once more, knowing full well what line Sou had crossed. Master Narissa stalked over to the young man and grabbed ahold of his jaw forcing him to look her in the eyes.

"We all heard you, Sou," she said coldly. "You invited that trash to a final confrontation and when you saw that you couldn't beat him you unleashed a set of wolves to clinch your win." She let go of his chin forcefully pushing him to the ground before her. Then she turned to the guild that stood watching the spectacle and her voice boomed through the halls for all to hear.

"You will all listen to what I say next!" she yelled as she scanned the crowd for everyone's attention. "We are the pinnacle of strength in this city. If you lose, then you lose. That only means you're not worthy to wear this mark," Narissa said as she grabbed ahold of the phantom shaped pendant that hung from her neck. "However, I'm not merciless. You're all here because I know you're talented."

She walked back towards Sou who was still seated on the floor and looked down on him.

"You're actions are unforgivable," she said coldly. "You put our name on the line by confronting Junjo like that. If you had lost, I'd be angry. But to win like that only makes us look weak. It makes it seem as if our strength is unfounded and that won't be tolerated."

Narissa scanned the crowd once more and when found the person she wanted to come forth. "Sukki!" she yelled forcing a young girl to step forth immediately.

A young girl stumbled out of the crowd immediately. Her hair was jet black, but red highlights could be seen here and there. Her red boots stopped just short of the knee length black dress that shaped her childlike body. And while she currently hung her head to avoid her Master's wrath she was worried for her companion, Sou, who had cared for her for as long as she could remember. Her icy blue eyes were constantly darting between her master and her friend.

"Y-yes Mistress Narissa?" she stuttered, hoping to not infuriate the fiery tyrant before her.

"You may take Sou to get bandaged and properly care for his injuries," said Master Narissa to everyone's surprise.

The young girl ran over to Sou and immediately helped him to his feet. He had his arm slung over her shoulders and they were limping towards the exit.

"When he's done," added Narissa, "he'll report to Rosca for penance."

Sou's eyes went wide in fear and Sukki could be heard whimpering as she carried him out.

The rest of the guild dispersed after Sou's sentencing. They had only gathered to see that one moment. It was common knowledge within the Scarlet Phantom walls. Master Narissa only wasted her time on the best of the best. Losing wasn't the end of the world in her eyes because she had always been an advocate for redemption. However, the manner in which Sou had won his match might as well have been a loss in Narissa's eyes. Losing twice in such a short time tarnished Scarlet Phantom's esteem and that was only forgivable through punishment; a special type of punishment that Rosca was quite familiar with.

The room had cleared out save for Master Narissa and Rosca.

"What? You, of all people, think I was too harsh?" she asked in disgust.

He scanned her face and every fiber of her being and then his mask twisted into a grin. "You know I could care less," he said chuckling a bit. "I was just wondering why you think you were being too harsh. Something like this used to come easy to you."

"Leave me Rosca, you know I can't stand it when you smile!" she snapped at him as she turned and walked towards her office.

"Yes ma'am!" he said, playfully saluting her. "I'll go prepare for the fun I'll be having immediately."

He exited the guild and Master Narissa took a seat in her office and awaited the report that was sure to come any moment.

Within a moment, Madeline and Fuyumi entered the office.

"Ah, I'm glad to see you two don't disappoint," then she eyed Fuyumi and added, "often."

"Yes milady," answered Fuyumi as Madeline began their report.

Madeline stepped forward and said, "I've scanned, listened to and taken note of every citizen who felt poorly concerning Sou's actions. So far, there are only 13 cases and all of them belong to common citizens with no immediate influence within the city."

"Right!" added Fuyumi zealously. Then she composed herself and continued "I patrolled people listening to the fight over a radio or through lacrima vision and found only 6 people only believed he acted poorly. They too fit the criteria Ms. Madeline described."

"Well done," answered Master Narissa. "It seems we may be able to put this fiasco behind us shortly. You're dismissed."

Fuyumi prepared to exit, but found her senior lingering. Master Narissa caught a glimpse of Madeline hesitation as well.

"You of all people should know better than to hold your tongue Madeline. Ask what you want," said Narissa.

"My apologies madam, I was wondering what Sou's punishment would be."

"He'll report to Rosca for penance," she answered.

Madeline stood, shocked. "Milady, I do believe you're being too lenient. Expulsion is the only course of action that I find…"

She was cut off as Narissa signaled her to stop talking. "I appreciate your concern for my actions, but let's not forget that these are my decisions," she said in as calm a voice as possible.

Madeline's eyes went wide with regret and she immediately hung her head in shame. "Of course!" she said apologetically. "I meant no disrespect. I accept any punishment for my actions."

"Now. Now. Madeline. There's no need for that. You're only concerned for the guild. I'll let it slide."

Madeline and Fuyumi turned to leave the office immediately, but Narissa stopped them.

"And Madeline," she said releasing her immense magical energy and causing Fuyumi to fall to her knees and Madeline to struggle to maintain her composure. "Remember, that even you are not above reproach. Question me again and you'll be met with a fate similar to Sou."

Madeline shook her head without turning to face Narissa. She helped Fuyumi to her feet and they exited the room.

Alone in her office Narissa began to slowly laugh until it built into hysteria. "Did my eyes deceive me or did that child almost manage to stand her ground before me?" she asked aloud for no one to hear.


October 25, X791, 11:00 A.M, On a Road East of Brightholt

"Yes!" exclaimed Vado cheerfully for everyone to hear. The tall man turned around to look at the group of mages that he had convinced to come along with him on an S-class mission. Behind him stood Kenneth Snyder and Melody Stanz from Nova Eos, Korianne Smith from the Eternal Knights and Marionette from Scarlet Phantom.

"I don't get it," said Marionette calmly. "How on Earth did all of our masters agree to sanction this mission?"

She had decided to cast off her signature guild cloak. She wore a white, sleeveless haori with its collar propped open. It had countless inner pockets and silver with swirling lotus spiral designs around the edges.

To most people the silver was purely decorative, but upon closer inspection, the stitched-in pure silver was actually an endless chain of runes that prevented any malfunctions from her innate magic. Underneath, she wore a sheer metallic tunic whose sleeves were long enough to reach past her wrists and the bottom to reach past her thighs. As she walked her thick, dark cargo pants' and silver-buckled, black, heavy-duty, all-terrain boots swished back and forth. Most of her porcelain-like face was covered by a silver-stitched white scarf that covered everywhere from her neck to the bridge of her nose

"Hmm, whatever do you mean?" Vado asked playfully.

"Oh come on now," said Kenneth in awe of the situation. "All three guild masters accepting doing an S-class mission together seems impossible."

Vado placed his fists on his waists and puffed out his chest striking a pose. "Yes," he said in a mysteriously heroic voice. "For any other hero this would be impossible, but for Vado Boin it was a trifle matt..."

He was sent flying by a quick boot to the back from Kenneth. "Get on with it already!" he yelled.

Vado jumped to his feet and dusted himself off as if nothing happened. "-ter. I ran straight to Master Narissa's office as I knew she would be the most difficult hurdle."

As he told his story the group got into a huddle without him. "Did he just pretend that didn't happen?" asked Melody, worried.

"This is going to be impossible," said Korianne pushing her golden brown bangs out of her face for a moment.

"I say we just go back home," said Mary.

"No, I don't think that's a good idea," said Vado.

"Yeah, if we can put up with Vado for now, then we can all go on this mission," said Kenneth.

The group looked at Vado in the huddle and then back at the spot he was standing in previously.

"Why are you in the huddle!" yelled everyone as they broke out into a brawl.


October 25, X791, 11:00 A.M, Town square

Narissa had decided to take a stroll through the square to clear her head. She was certain that Rosca was dealing with Sou at the moment and thought maybe it was for the best if she went and saw how things were going.

Behind her were her three most loyal mages. To the rest of Brightholt they had come to be known as the crimson trio. Narissa stopped and took a look at them, pleased with how far they had come. Sai Nuria, Number 6. Madeline Sable, Number 5. Cerise, Number 4.

She broke into a smile and her trio stopped in their tracks confused. "Madam?" asked Cerise.

"Nothing to worry about Cerise, I only asked you three here today, so that I could take stock of the strength that our guild possesses."

"Ah, of course Milady," said Madeline stepping forward. She pulled out several transcripts on every member with the guild currently and began to refresh their master of each mage's standings.

After a half hour had passed, Madeline put away the files that she carried with her and awaited her next orders; orders that would never come as their meeting was interrupted by the arrival of Master Jade and Auron.

"Why are you here Auron, can't you see we're busy?" said Narissa as he and Jade walked by.

Auron and Jade continued to walk by as they had never intended to acknowledge her. Narissa sat there dejected by their actions. When her crimson trio caught on to the situation, they immediately acted.

They moved into a triangle formation around Auron and Master Jade, with Cerise in front of them and Sai and Madeline behind them. "Our mistress spoke to you. Answer," said Cerise coldly.

Auron turned to her. "Little girl, you will move. I have lunch reservations and I don't plan on being late because Narissa realized she's not as important as she thought she was."

A white flame took shape in Cerise's hand and she charged at him, ready to strike Auron down.

Auron and Master Jade continued walking. To the untrained eye, nothing happened. Cerise suddenly lost her balance and was sent crashing to the ground. But Narissa could tell immediately. A slight twitch of Auron's finger rotated the ground around him and had sent Cerise careening into the ground between Madeline and Sou.

"You dare attack one of my mages!" yelled Narissa igniting a dense blood red flame in her hand. The townspeople caught a glance and immediately scattered off.

Now Auron and Master Jade turned to face the enraged lady before them. "You sit this out, Jade," said Auron as he stepped closer to Narissa. "You know that was only self-defense." His voice grew colder. "That child would be dead otherwise and all because of you. Another person hurt because they love you."

Narissa's rage exploded and with it, the flame in her hand.

"Reverse-Photosynthesis," barked Auron with his arm outstretched.

A tree sprouted from the earth breaking apart the cobble stone and growing into full maturation and then it slowly withered away and died, taking with it all of the oxygen fueling Narissa's flame.

"You know better than that Narissa," exclaimed Auron as he turned back to Jade. "Let's go."

"That was amazing!" yelled an unknown voice.

The mages turned towards the source of the voice and saw a young girl cheering and waving and behind her stood a younger boy. He was hiding behind her, but also clapping.

Her shoulder length black hair had single cerulean colored streak. Her complexion was a lovely mocha color. She wore a high collared long sleeve white shirt with the sleeves rolled up to her elbows and a dark blue vest over it. She had on denim shorts that reached her knees, black leggings, and cerulean blue shoes to match her streak.

Her vibrant blue eyes clashed with the dark green eyes of her companion. His curly dark green hair matched his eyes. His skin was a shade of tan and he stood a little over five feet tall making him a bit shorter than his friend. He wore a short black jacket over a short sleeve button-up white shirt with an emerald sash tied over his waist. He also had on black pants and green sneakers.

The girl stepped forward and the young man stayed close behind her.

"Hi, I'm Florence Ermalia, but you can call me Flora. And this," she said as she struggled to pull her companion out of hiding. "is Angelo Dienzo."

Narissa had been focused on Auron, but an idea clicked in her head immediately. She couldn't fight with them here, but she could always beat them in one battle for sure. Recruitment.

"Why hello there, my darlings," she said feigning excitement by their arrival. "Come over here and tell us where you're from."

Master Jade, not wanting to lose a step, dashed over to the pair quickly. "Yes, do tell us about yourselves."

Flora nudged Angelo from behind to lead their introduction. His eyes pleaded for her to spare him the trouble, but when she wouldn't budge he said, "G-good morning," he struggled to say. "We w-were sent h-here t-to join Sca-Scarlet Phantom."

Every mage there could see now, why Flora had been the more engaging of the two.

Jade ignored his reason and threw his arm around the boy pulling him in, "No need to be so nervous. You're around friends. Just relax."

Angelo smiled and when Flora felt comfortable, she continued for them. "His father sent us here to join Scarlet Phantom. From the description we heard, you seem to be Master Narissa," she said extending her hand to Narissa.

"Your father is quite an intelligent man," she said buttering up Angelo.

Madeline stepped forward. "We're quite pleased to have you with us, but if you could show us what magic you use we would greatly appreciate it."

"Of course," said Flora taking out a miniature easel. "I, paint pictures, and bring them to life," she said emphasizing each brush with a pause. She finished, placed her hand on her drawing and pulled out a scythe.

She brandished it with a proud smile on her face and then turned to her friend. "Your turn, Angelo."

"Requip: Adapt Armor," he said sheepishly as a pure silver armor took shape around his body. A bladeless sword formed in his hand and he looked around at everyone hoping he had impressed them.

"Uh? What's it do?" said Sai breaking the silence that had settled.

"It absorbs the element of an opponent and converts the armor to that element," said Flora as she quickly covered for Angelo.

A white flame sparked and Cerise instantly hit Angelo square in the chest with it, sending him flying.

He struggled to his feet and his armor was now bright red and in his hand a sword of fire had formed.

Flora's rage got the better of her and she yelled out, "What the hell was that for?!" as her scythe swung and came to a halt just short of Cerise's throat.

Cerise stood on her feet, unfazed, and gripped the scythe barehanded. She squeezed and shattered it. "We had to see if what you two were saying was true," she said calmly. "Sorry, but a lot of people come here looking to join us and figure they have to lie to get in to a prestigious guild."

Narissa interjected now. "I'm sorry, but unfortunately it's true." Then she smiled and continued. "You all don't have to worry about that, you're both plenty interesting and will definitely get stronger once you join us. I'm sure the coliseum will push you to your utmost limits."

Flora dropped the remains of her scythe and cocked her head to the side. "Oh! Right! I'm so excited about that. We read about it on the train ride here and it sounds like so much fun. Angelo's not interested, but I can't wait."

As she spoke the smile on the Scarlet Phantoms turned to disgust.

"What do you mean he's not interested?" asked Sai who now wore a scowl on his face.

"Well, it's not really his kind of thing," said Flora. She thought for a moment and added "I mean, like his magic, he's not really the kind of guy to go looking for a fight, it's more likely that a fight will come to him, that's why his defensive adapt armor suits him so well."

Then Sai and Cerise were doubled over in laughter. Madeline was hiding her face as she stifled laughter as well. Master Narissa was furious once more. Her welcoming attitude had drifted away. "All of my mages participate in the coliseum," she pointed at Angelo now and added, "he is not welcome otherwise."

Flora turned to Angelo who seemed to be fighting back tears and then she burst in anger. "Then we won't join your stupid guild!"

The laughter stopped and the crimson trio was instantly inches from attacking Flora with their own specialties. As their magic came closer to her, they were instantly put down by Master Jade.

"Rock Tomb!" He encased all of them in body tight rock prisons. "Be careful Narissa, the mages you're raising are dangerously close to bringing you all towards illegal guild status," he added as he poked holes for them to breath.

She stood, furious and then ignited the crevices in each rock giving each mage a chance to break free. The crimson trio stood there equally infuriated, but Narissa waved them off. "We'll be leaving," was all she said as she turned and walked away from them forcing them to follow.

Angelo was being consoled by Flora. "It's not your fault. Forget about them, we'll join another guild in some other town."

Master Jade walked over to them. "Might I interject? My friend and I were about to have lunch. How about you join us for a free meal and I see if I can't get you to join my guild instead?"

Flora looked for Angelo to decide and when he shook his head yes, they both followed Auron and Master Jade towards Magdalena's.


October 25, X791, 11:30 A.M, On a Road East of Brightholt

Vado looked at the four mages who were now seated around him with bruises all over them.

"As I was saying, I ran straight to Master Narissa. At first she reacted as one would expect. She lit me on fire," he said calmly as he paced back and forth.

He turned to see everyone's jaw on the floor. "Not to worry, little rugrats. The hero must always face danger at first," he added before continuing. "I then appealed to her sense of competition. I told her the other masters had both agreed to it and she would look weak if she didn't accept."

"She lit me on fire again…" he said. "But after the fire died down, she accepted. I then ran to Master Jade and told him that Master Narissa didn't believe he would accept since his guild was weak and once he heard that he accepted." Vado turned towards his group now and his tone became graver with each word. "After I left him, I faced the final challenge, but I was well prepared for Master Seigfreid's rebuttals. I convinced him that I was well equipped to handle all four of you."

"He believed you!?" yelled Korianne.

"No. So when that failed I volunteered to bring back ingredients for sundaes."

"So you lied, tricked and bribed your way through," said Kenneth shaking his head. "Well, if it works, it works."

They traveled for a few more hours until they reached a town to the Southeast of Brightholt called Rogim Town. The town was calm and most people seemed to be at ease as they strolled about completing daily tasks. The Brightholt mages walked into the town and were immediately stopped by guards. They were dressed in brown body suits with black boots and black gloves. Their faces were covered by protective visors.

"Are you the mages that were sent to help us?" asked the guard who appeared to be in charge.

The group turned to Vado who, now being a man of his word, gestured for them to take the reins. Melody took the queue when nobody answered. "Yes, we are. Can you tell us what the problem is?"

The guard turned and pointed towards a large manor that resided in the middle of town. "This manor belongs to our resident scientist. He was working on something a few months back and then all of sudden he disappeared. When anyone went to check on him, they disappeared as well. We've sent mages from all over in there, but have been unable to make any progress with the situation."

Kenneth chimed in now, "No worries, we'll get it done."

"Yea, best of luck," said the guard as he led them to the gate outside the manor.

The group walked towards the manor and opened the door. The door opened with ease and they stared into what seemed to be complete darkness. When no one made a move, Vado cleared his throat as an indicator that they should move on.

The group walked into the manor and once they were all inside, the door behind them dematerialized and a platform of purple tiles materialized. Beneath the floor seemed to be an endless supply of nothingness, giving the group of mages the appearance of walking on floating tiles.

"Opal's going to be so mad I left her home," said Korianne as she took in their predicament. "If she was here, I could fly ahead and scope out the area."

Vado struggled to put a face to the name before coming to a realization. "Ahah!" he yelled. "You mean the dragon that travels with you."

"You have a dragon?!" yelled Kenneth in bewilderment. "How did we miss that?"

"She's not a dragon. She's a wyvern," Korianne sheepishly said as she fiddled with the ends of her fingers.

"Nonetheless," said Mary walking forward. "We must press on."

As they walked floating sconces appeared alongside them revealing more and more of the path. They walked for what seemed like ages until they hit a fork in the path.

"Should we split up?" asked Kenneth.

"Not a chance!" yelled Melody. "That seems like perfect way to get killed."

"So do we flip for it?" asked Korianne as she took out a coin.

They flipped it and ended up going right. They followed this path until it opened out into what resembled a room. While the flooring remained purple tiles and there were still no walls. The sconces appeared all around them forming a large rectangular shape.

"Is this supposed to be a room?" asked Mary. "It's not very charming."

There was a sudden low rumbling sound that echoed throughout the darkness and then it stopped. Several tiles disappeared in the middle of the makeshift room that they stood in and a sound could be heard coming closer from beneath them.

"It's not a room!" yelled Vado jumping backwards. "Get back! It's an arena."

The team of mages jumped back at the S-class' advice and soon a large figure emerged from the ground. The sconces glowed brighter and the light then shone on it revealed it to be a colossal humanoid. It stood at a height more than twice Vado's imposing stature and its arms were seemingly big enough to grab two of them at once. However, it's most perplexing quality was that its skin was made entirely of diamond.

When they finally came to terms with what stood before them, it unleashed a roar whose shockwave was enough to throw them off balance. It charged at them ready to kill.

"What do we do?!" yelled Melody.

"Fight it," said Vado simply as he took a seat.

The diamond creature arched back a fist as it charged at them and swung at the group.

Mary slid in front of the giant blow. She raised her arms and readied herself to catch and sustain the blow.

The large fist connected with her open palms and the force of the blow was cut to nothing almost instantaneously with the large creature using its momentum to push her back.

The friction caused smoke to emanate from her hands and when it cleared, the rest of her group could see into the inner-automated nature of her body.

Korianne rushed to help her, but Mary waved her off immediately. "I'm not someone you need concern yourself with," she said coldly.

Mary jumped along the creatures arm and ran towards his face connecting a swift punch with its head, dismounting and landing far behind the giant on the tiles once more.

The giant teetered from its lack of balance and the rest of the group sought to capitalize on that.

Kenneth pulled his whistle to his lips and just before he blew, he barked out, "Companion: Rudolphus!" He blew and an ethereal wolf comprised of lightning took shape.

Vado took stock of his team's abilities from the sideline. He thought to himself, "Mary revealed her automaton nature and now Kenneth has called on the infamous Rudolphus. This could get interesting."

Rudolphus and Kenneth were infamous not for their strength, but their communication. They didn't need words or even some sort of telepathy. Rudolphus functioned more as Kenneth's will and acted on his instincts.

Rudolphus howled and lightning rained down on the teetering giant.

Melody jumped to the air and chanted a song that resonated through the air. The sound hit the giant forcing him to scream out in agony.

"Water Jets!" Shouted Korianne as she caught on to the plan. Water twisted around her arms and then shot forward colliding with the giant and knocking him off his feet.

The group cheered and celebrated until they were interrupted by a deafening roar from the beast. It crawled to its knees and swung at Mary sending her flying over the edge.

"Oh Crap!" yelled Kenneth as he darted off the side to catch her and Mary's body collided with him sending them both away. As they fell, they heard the beast continue to thrash about above them.

Kenneth pulled the whistle to his lips once more and blew. "Companion: Shea!" he yelled forcing a wind to contort into a majestic ethereal hawk. They landed on the hawk's back and it flew back to the platform above them.

As they flew in, they could see that Korianne and Melody had been trying their best to hold it off. They were covered in bruises and Melody could barely stand.

"How fast can this creature go?" Mary asked calmly.

"Shea can go plenty fast if she needs to," said Kenneth.

"That being cannot hurt me easily because of my body. If I can move fast enough, I could pierce its body."

Kenneth's face broke into a smile. "I guess we're going diving, Shea."

The hawk soared into the darkness that surrounded them and then began its descent above the diamond creature.

Mary posed herself on the hawk's back, ready to jump off once it pulled back to give her the speed she required.

Korianne, Melody and Rodulphus were attacking the beast to no avail. Neither the lightning nor water seemed to have any effect on its diamond skin.

"What if you both fall through the floor?" asked Kenneth as they closed in on their target.

"Then I fall. Clockwork Art: Juggernaut" she said calmly her body was coated in its own armor and a spear took shape in her hand.

She leapt from her perched position. The Hawk's decent combined with her leap sent her crashing into the diamond coated beast at bewildering speeds. The floor buckled under the collision, but settled without collapsing.

Kenneth and Shea landed alongside their teammates and waited for the dust to settle.

A loud roar burst the dust cloud and the diamond giant stood to his feet. Behind him lay Mary unconscious.

"That didn't work!" yelled Kenneth. "We've got to help her."

"Right," answered Melody as they made a run for Mary.

Korianne had remained still in awe of the beast's imperviousness and then she saw a newly formed jagged scar in the diamond armor. "Wait!" she yelled. "Look at him. That scar wasn't there before."

The lightning wolf read his master's thoughts and electrified himself as he darted at the diamond giant. He collided with the scar breaking off a piece of diamond.

The hole began to regenerate immediately, but before it completed, Korianne could see a sort of soft inner core pulsating inside. The giant remained stationary as it regenerated.

"We've got to break open that scar again and hit that mass of disgusting goo," said Kenneth.

"Have Rodulphus hit him again like that and then I'll hit the core!" yelled Korianne as the giant slowly became mobile once more.

Kenneth grimaced at the thought. "He can't. That isn't possible in repetition…" He turned to the wolf, which seemed to be locked in a silent argument with its master. "Never mind, he'll give it his all and open him up as much as possible."

Kenneth and Rodulphus hopped onto Shea's back and flew off.

"Where are you going?!" yelled Korianne to no avail as they were already too far away.

The beast stirred and Korianne instinctively dodged a diamond fist aimed at her feet by jumping back.

"Water Jet!" barked Korianne continuously as she blasted torrent after torrent of water at the beast. He marched through each blast unscathed. He raised his fist to crush her once and for all.

"Sonic hertz!" yelled Melody as she sang an inaudible song at the beast. He roared in agony and swung his fist at the source of his pain. The defenseless Melody stood in shock as the fist headed towards her. She winced in fear and prepared for the blow.

When a few moments past, she saw the diamond coated fist stopped just short of her.

"Haunted Soul Technique: Possession," said a voice from behind the creature.

Melody peered beyond the fist to see a ragged Mary breathing heavily with her arms tightening into a fist. As she tightened the beast's movements became more restricted. "You might want to move," she said, taking a breath between every few words.

Melody ran towards her side.

"Release," whispered Mary forcing silvery substance to emanate off of the beast, condense and then be breathed in by Mary.

Vado sat in thought to himself. "Ahh, so that's the puppetry technique I've heard about."

The beast turned to them, ready to deliver his once delayed punch.

"Watch out!" yelled Kenneth's voice from above. Rudolphus was perched much like Mary had been earlier, but when he leapt, his entire body converted into a single lightning bolt hitting the creature.

Kenneth landed beside his teammates and took in the sight that stood before them now. The once-diamond covered beast now stood as a lump of muscle with bits of diamond splotched here and there and the rest of his skin burnt to a crisp.

Kenneth's eyes widened. "He's regenerating!" He yelled.

"Not a chance. Tornado Wave!" yelled Korianne as she enveloped her arms in torrents of wind now and pierced the exposed muscle. The creature cried out in pain and collapsed. They stood over him and breathed a sigh of relief.

"Bravo!" yelled Vado. "Bravo! That was great. A little long for my taste, but great job either way, huh."

"Why didn't you help?" yelled Kenneth.

"I promised you all, you'd get to do this mission all by yourselves. I only planned to intervene if your lives were in danger," said Vado in a matter of fact tone.

"What do you call this whole fight? We all almost died countless times," said Korianne in disbelief.

"Nah, you were fi…" said Vado before he paused to inspect the giant corpse. "You might want to take a better look at your friend here."

The group took a look at the giant and found that he was instantly deteriorating. The corpse faded into dust and where it once laid; now laid the body of a young man.

The man was young and slim, yet muscular. His skin was a light tan complexion and his dark blue hair had silver highlights. He was dressed formally. His dark royal blue button up shirt was tucked into his black dress pants. He had on a black tie and a matching vest. His shoes were also black. There was a light blue diamond stud earing on his right ear.

He must have sensed the commotion around him since he began stir, shocking the group who had thought he was dead. He awoke and revealed his light blue eyes.

"Aaaaawaaaaawh," he yawned as he stretched. "Hi," he said casually. "I'm Damien Stones."


October 25, X791, 12:00 P.M, Magdalena's

Auron and Jade sat across from the two newly acquired Nova Eos mages with them. Jade was a ray of sunshine after having convinced both Flora and Angelo to stay in Brightholt and join his guild.

"You guys are going to love the guild," he said, like a kid getting ready to share his new toy.

"Th-thanks again, for having us," whispered Angelo.

Flora was shocked he had even spoken.

Auron and Jade broke into laughter. "Come on Angelo!" cheered Master Jade as he got up from his seat in excitement. "There's no need to be bashful. We're family now."

He jumped up onto the table and pulled Angelo up with him. Then he called out to everyone around the restaurant. "Listen up!" he yelled, hiccupping as a buzzed stupor took over. "We're all going to sing a welcome song for my two newest – hiccup – family members!"

The restaurant cheered alongside him and broke into song. Afterwards, Jade collapsed into his seat and began napping.

Flora was excited too. "Is it always this fun?!" she asked in a yell over the singing restaurant.

"It gets better," Auron yelled back. "You haven't even met the guild yet."

Magdalena was bustling back and forth when she bumped into a young man whom she didn't recognize. He was skinny, but underneath his long sleeved gray shirt and white trench coat one could clearly see his muscle. His small pointed nose peeked through the face mask he wore. His left eye was a golden color and his right eye was blue. His white baggy pants were tucked into black combat boots and tied off at his waist with a long blue sash. He had his hood up, but his choppy azure hair could be seen peeking through.

Years of mages fighting in her restaurant had made Magdalena wary of any newcomers covering their face indoors.

"I'm sorry hun, but if I've never seen you before then I'd like to have a clear idea of who it is I'll be having arrested if you break something," she said as sweetly as possible.

"Sorry, about that," he said peacefully. He pulled down the mask to reveal a thin layer of stubble on his chin and a claw mark on the right side of his rugged jawline.

Magdalena didn't bat an eye. She immediately grabbed a hold of the young man's chin forcing her gaze into her own and said, "Now, you're a handsome young man. There's absolutely no reason for you to hide that face."

He blushed, but decided the best way to save his pride was to deal with his reason for having come here in the first place. "Um, could you tell me where Jade Bastion is?

Magdalena thought for a moment and then realized he was referring to Master Jade. "Oh, you mean Master Jade?" she asked with a bright smile. "He's right over there," she said pointing in Jade's direction. Then she caught a glimpse of his drunken state and walked off into the kitchen. "Drunk out of his mind!" she yelled back.

The young man walked over to the table where the four mages sat and attempted to introduce himself. "Excuse me, sir," he said in an attempt to get past the awkwardness.

Flora could tell that Jade was passed out, but she wanted to try something out to see how it felt. "Master Jade!" she yelled forcing the man awake and a smile on her face at the idea of finally having joined a guild. "This guy wants your attention."

"Right," he said he shook his obvious stupor. "How can – hiccup – I help you son?"

"My name is Drayden Kresczech," he started, but was interrupted by Jade.

"Kresczech?" he hiccupped. "Where do I know that name from? Was it Pelgrande?"

"No it's from Velgresk," Drayden answered.

"Ahh, that's right. I worked a job there years ago with a guy named Kresczech," he paused to laugh. "What are the odds you guys would have the same last name?" he said before laughing himself asleep once more.

Auron had tired of his friend's idiocy and slapped the back of his head. "The kid means to say that they're related," he said nodding to the Drayden and fighting his own drunkenness.

Master Jade hopped awake fully sober. "You know Kresczech?" he asked in complete seriousness.

His change of pace startled everyone, but Drayden responded nonetheless. "Yes, he's my father. He sent me here to join your guild."

Jade's face broke out into an unending smile. "Magdalena!" he called out. "Bring out some more beers; we've got a lot to celebrate today!"

He hopped from his seat, pulled up a chair for Drayden and introduced him to the other new members.

Once the three mages started talking, he took a seat again beside his friend. "3 mages in one day. I must be losing my mind," he whispered.

"I told you things would turn around eventually old friend," said Auron.


October 25, X791, 2:00 P.M, Eternal Knights Training Ground

Tally and Aoba stood across from a Jacqueline Arison. Today's training for their premier tag-team match debut consisted of fighting a singular opponent who is stronger than any one member of the team.

Tally and Aoba had invited Jackie over as a chance for her to get back into the groove with a no strings attached match.

The tag team duo stood poised for what was to come from Jackie and when nothing happened they gave a glance at each other.

"It's okay!" yelled Aoba. "No need to go fast!"

Jackie rolled her eyes from across the field. She liked Aoba, but she was gonna make her eat her words today. "Ok, gotcha!" yelled Jackie. "Demon Soul: Aim". Her forearms became black gauntlets with her hands reforming into giant black claws. The rest of her body slowly became encased in scales and her hair grew wildly down to her waist.

She burst forward at tremendous speed forcing Tally to dodge to her left and Aoba to her right.

Jackie was caught in a web of invisible thread. She focused her eyes and traced the thread back to Aoba who now wore a sly grin.

"Gotcha!" she cheered.

"Oh, yeah!" yelled Jackie as she spun forcing the threads to tighten around her scales and snap. She came to a halt prepared to make a witty comeback.

"Who's stu…" she managed before she was interrupted by Tally.

"Violet Djinn's Slayer's Wing!" she yelled as she forced her fist into Jackie's cheek.

The punch sent the thread covered girl flying.

She skidded along the ground and then placed her hand beneath her and pushed off into the air landing on her feet.

"Couture de Affûtée!" barked Aoba, as her sleeves hardened and she came into close quarters with Jackie forcing her guard up to defend against the relentless barrage of punches.

Jackie caught both fists after the she realized the attack barely scuffed her scales and flung Aoba away.

She was immediately met with Tally's hymn. A flurry of purple energy berated Jackie for the entirety of its duration.

She was out of breath, but she had sustained minor injuries.

"You guys, are good," She said as she tried to catch her breath. "But I think I can win this if you can't do more than that."

Jackie dispelled her Aim Take Over and immediately leapt into her next form. "Demon Soul: Leraje!" Jackie's legs were covered in thigh length short sleeved forest green dress with an uneven and chopped hem. Her ears had grown long resembled an elfish being. Her hair was tied to her waist and in a braid down her back. She had short green felt ankle boots and a green hood hung from her neck. There was an arrow shaped scar above her right eye.

She snapped her fingers and formed a bow and arrow of green energy. A grin broke out on her face and she began her retaliation. She fired countless arrows that were nigh impossible to dodge.

Tally had retreated to Aoba as a means of regrouping.

"I forgot she could do that!" yelled Tally as she ducked out of an arrow's trajectory.

"Yeah, her take overs are really something," said Aoba as she simultaneously concocted a plan and deflected an arrow with her strings.

"That's it," she said. "We'll show her a takeover that she can appreciate."

Tally's face turned from one of confusion to mischievous as the pair finally clicked on a solution.

She darted towards Jackie dodging arrows as she closed the distance.

Within moments she was in close quarters with Jackie once more prepared to unleash her hymn.

As an archer, it was common knowledge to maintain the gap, but Jackie wanted Tally close for now.

"Did you think I couldn't fight with you up close," she yelled excitedly.

"Heaven's retali..."

Aoba interrupted her from behind. "Hostile Takeover!" Threads now connected every fiber of her body to Jackie's body.

Aoba took stock of the situation and sighed. "Hmm, looks like a draw," she said plainly.

"What do you mean?" asked Jackie as she pointlessly struggled to get out of the threads.

"If you fire that attack at Tally, her hymn will unleash knocking out both of you and since we're currently connected, I'd lose as well," Aoba explained. "I'll admit, I didn't think we'd mess up so fast."

All three girls dispelled their attacks. "It was a lot of fun though," said Jackie.

Tally jumped on her, throwing her to the ground. "You've gotta come train with us again sometime Jackie!" she yelled as she gripped Jackie in a vice-like hug.


October 25, X791, 4:00 P.M, Coliseum Main Arena

Shaw stood in the arena across from Christina Vaunt. He had been preparing for this very moment. He was determined to turn the tide in Nova Eos.

"I'm sorry about this," Shaw said sincerely. He didn't mind Christina at all and seeing how Scarlet Phantom looked down on them, he'd much rather fight one of them, but as luck would have it he was set to fight Christina.

"Why is that?" she asked earnestly.

"I've been working way too hard to lose here. Master Jade paired me with you because he thought I'd have my best shot against you, number 9.

"He's mistaken," she said as her voice took on a graver tone. "I'll explain something to you. The numbers of the coliseum don't mean much when you put everything in perspective."

She walked forward a bit and continued. "For example, Lucia and Rosca are separated by 1 spot, but are almost equal in strength. The crimson trio holds their spots because they collectively can't surpass the hurdle that is Hazel Rochelle. Marco is too lazy to continue on and I don't care to fight Francheska."

Shaw stood confused. "None of that matters, you'll be seeing how hard I've worked just for this fight in a bit."

The Referee now floated between them. He turned to Shaw and said "Challenger, Shaw Riley, are you ready?" To which he nodded his head. "Number 9, Christina Vaunt, are you ready?" With that the referee shot into the air above them and announced for the arena to hear. "You May Begin!"

"I'll waste no time!" yelled Shaw. "First Gear!" White vapor rose off of his body and he burst off at Christina with his fist cocked back.

"Shotgu…"

The crowd sat frozen as the speeding bullet that was Shaw met with an unthinkably faster fist from Christina.

Her fist was planted squarely in his gut forcing him to gasp for air. His eyes rolled back into his head and he fell to the ground.

"I think that's enough referee," Christina said calmly. "I don't wish to hurt him."

This forced the referee to come and inspect Shaw and see if he was willing to continue. "Challenger, Shaw Riley, are you fit to continue?"

There was no response.

"Challenger, Shaw Riley, are you fit to continue?" he tried once more.

There was no sound in the stadium and then a gasp was heard from the center of the arena. Shaw sat back up and looked as if he had seen a depth he couldn't imagine.

"I'm ok," he said as he stumbled to his feet.

"Point to Christina Vaunt!" yelled the referee.

"Please, don't do this," Christina pleaded emotionlessly.

"Like I said, I'll win today," Shaw shot back. "I'll see it coming this time. Don't worry Christina."

She could see his determination and it only fueled her desire to fight.

Christina darted at him and aimed a punch for at his face. For a brief moment, he blocked it and the crowd went wild and began cheering.

Christina was ecstatic and unleashed a flurry of punches that Shaw could barely see. He struggled to keep up, but maintained his composure and saw his chance come in her endless stream of punches.

"Critical Impact!" he barked as he unleashed his fastest and most powerful punch.

The fist sailed towards Christina's face and for that moment, Shaw could see the interaction perfectly. This perfect punch slowly inched towards its mark and then it was effortlessly deflected with a flick of her wrist.

The punch's force collided with barrier in front of the spectators and shook it.

Shaw was left completely open.

Energy welled up inside Christina and was unleashed at point blank range. "Holy… God's… Bellow!"

The silvery white light enveloped Shaw and when the dust cleared he lay on the ground once more.

The referee "Challenger, Shaw Riley, are you fit to continue?"

The boy lay awake and fully conscious, but every fiber of his being told him to stay down.

"I can go on," he whispered as if talking hurt as well.

"Point to Christina Vaunt!" yelled the referee.

A few minutes went by and then forced himself to stand. Most of his body was burnt. But he stood. "I told you, I'm winning today. No matter what."

Magical energy welled up inside him. His gaze never broke from Christina's and then it burst forth again. "Second Gear," he said trying his best to breathe evenly. Vapor intensified as it steamed off of every muscle.

"I told you t…" Christina started.

Shaw's fist connected with Christina sending her flying across the arena.

She sat up with a crazed look in her eyes. "That. That right there," she said as she started to laugh. "Don't ease up. I want you to stay just like that… so I can break you down!" she yelled as her magical energy intensified.

"Holy God's Flight of Hermes!" she yelled as he body was enveloped in the familiar silver white light.

She burst forth, rocketing a punch at Shaw, who blocked it. The force of the punch created a crater in the arena beneath him.

He deflected the follow up punch with ease and then bicycle kicked her body away from him.

She landed on all fours and skidded to a stop.

Then she darted forwards again. He was prepared for this and had already activated his shotgun spell.

The spell sent several un-seeable punches forward to no avail. Her speed had already brought her behind him.

She was a few feet in the air and unleashed her bellow once more.

"Critical Impact!" he barked out as the torrent came closer. The force of this upgraded punch split the wave onto either side of him. She landed in front of an unprepared Shaw.

Her punch connected with his gut. He doubled over in pain only to find his jaw connect with a rising knee.

As they both rose from the momentum of the kick, her leg rose far above his head. Once momentum took over, her leg dropped onto the back of his neck driving him into the ground.

"Match point, Number 9 Christina Vaunt!" called the referee. The medics entered the arena and carried Shaw out on a stretcher.


October 25, X791, 6:00 P.M, Rogim Town manor

Vado looked over at the team of mages around him. "You all did wonderfully," he said as Korianne tried her best to heal everyone in her wounded state.

The man named Damien had become more lucid in the time that they rested and had since disclosed what he knew about the manor.

"Tell us again how you ended up as a giant diamond monster that wanted to kill us," said Kenneth.

"Like I said," started Damien. "I was traveling with another mage. We took this job as a means of making money. We figured we'd come in, find some scientist and then get paid. However, it didn't go that way. We walked the same path as you and were confronted by a giant monster."

Damien's face twisted in thought as something clicked in his head. "The monster we fought wasn't made of diamond," he said catching everyone's attention. "It was made of Water. I think I was made of diamond because I use diamond based magic."

"You mean, there are more giants and inside of them are all mages?" asked Mary.

"So the magic they use is somehow being used as a source for their power," asked Korianne. "How is that even possible?"

"That I can answer," said Damien as he stood to his feet. "The last thing I remember was my friend and I tearing through a giant and a woman being freed. Before we could attend to her, two more giants showed up. We took out one of them, but no one was freed from within and then the other one was made completely of fire and it we were too exhausted to keep going. He beat us and then the scientist showed up and carted us off somewhere. Next thing I know I'm waking up here again."

Before any more questions could be asked, a giant hand made of flame slammed down on the purple tiles as a flame giant pulled himself up onto the platform.

"It's back!" yelled Damien.

"How are we supposed to fight him like this?" asked Melody.

Vado looked around at his team and smiled a devious smile. "Looks like it's time for a hero to save the day," he chuckled as he struck a pose.


Author Note:

Special Thanks:

Special thanks to Raiyane

Special Thanks to all of the readers.

How's it going?

So… Submissions are closed for this arc and for the next arc. Let me explain, I've changed the next arc and this arc a bit and with those changes I'll be able to introduce a few more OCs this arc. That only leaves a fair amount of space for introductions next arc which has forced my hand here. It will re-open eventually.

Um… Not a big issue, but if you're going to change your name. I'd greatly appreciate a heads up, so I can change the reference name in my notes. Sorry for the inconvenience.

One of my intelligent readers mentioned creating a character list. I think it's a great idea and to make it a bit more interesting I decided to borrow an idea and ask the creators of the OCs to send in a link to an image which represents their OC. Now… it doesn't have to be exact and you don't even have to send one in if you don't want to. You could also say they look like "blank" from "blank anime/manga" but with a different hair color or different clothes. If any of you draw and happened to draw the character on a website of some sort, you can send me the link for that as well.

I'm hyping up this tag-team league, but if there are any teams 2 man teams, within any one guild, that you all want to suggest now or in the coming chapters feel free to do so and I'll definitely take it into consideration. The only criteria are that the team consists of mages who aren't S-class.

Are my fights clear?

As you all know, I have been planning another story for a while. I uploaded the first chapter of Knights of Fiore alongside this, for anyone that's interested.

S-class openings update:

S-class positions closed. You're all lovely people. But this is closed, terribly sorry about that.

Chapter Release Event

Who caught the Anagram? What was it?

Release Events Rules

The first person answer correctly receives a prize

Then I'll PM the winner.