After a LOOOOONG time, I finally updated!

REVIEWER RESPONSE!

Evil Mina: Thank you! Your stories inspired me to write this, and I'm happy to see a good review! In response to the minor nitpicking, I plan to give Rad's opinions about his parents, leaving home, and the world outside throughout the story. I didn't want to shove it all into the Prologue, as that would be too much info in not enough words.

Redzin: Thank you for the compliment!

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"So THIS is the legendary Magic City?"

Rad was in awe. He had never seen such amazing…special effects. Fireworks silently (?) exploded, dyeing the sky brilliant colors. Surely, he would be hired to guard this marvel of a city!

But first things first: he had to find somewhere to stay. Wait, first thing? Nah. It was only morning! He had TONS of time to find a place to stay. And thus, he set off to find a job (and possibly some magic classes).

First, the most bulbous thing in the city, it stuck out like a sore thumb over all the other buildings: the Gariland Military Cadet Academy and Magical University. If Rad could get a job here, he'd be killing two birds with one stone! In he went, determined that he WOULD get a job.

The receptionist at the counter looked bored. VERY bored. She was almost asleep, because at this time of year, there were NO signups, because all of the rich families went to go see some festival somewhere. Rad couldn't remember where. To his credit, he didn't try very hard.

"Excuse me, miss? I'm a freelance mercenary, and I was wondering if you'd like to hire me to defend this decadent palace. It is certainly a target for thieves and the like, is it not?"

The woman, still half-asleep, mumbled a reply.

"Mmm, sure. Go an' see the pay & lodgings desk, down the hall and…"

She then slumped back to sleep. Some help SHE was. But he did get his first job, and for that, Rad was ecstatic! Now, to find that desk…

As he walked the halls, blindly trying to find the Pay & Lodgings desk, he heard whispers of a priestess named "Rena".

"She's so NICE! It's amazing how she's always serene and calm! She's the kindest person I've ever met! How can she fight in the tournament, she'd be too nice to strike them down, she'd let them win!"

Something in Rad's head was screaming, "SUE! SUE! She's a SUE!" But since he had no idea what that meant, he continued blindly down the hall, trying to find the desk. As he walked, he heard more murmurs of this unimaginably holy priestess's escapades, and decided he'd have to meet her later. Apparently, to whoever was governing Rad's luck with the halls, "later" meant "now".

He passed a room, like any other room, but he heard talking. Rad liked to eavesdrop in his own home, because he couldn't get FIRED or anything. But he forgot about that, and began listening at the door…

"Ahh, here we are. Hello little squirrel-y. You're so cute and OOP! Your head's on fire! Out the window you go!"

Rad then heard a splash. He decided to take a look at this frightening girl, and be on his way before HE got set on fire. He opened the door just a bit, and took a look at her, so that he wouldn't make the mistake of pissing HER off.

She was wearing priestess's gowns, and her hair was in an elaborate ponytail, with many multicoloured ribbons and a diamond hairband depicting a holy scene. Rad wondered how she got into the priestessship as he quickly walked away from the room, conveniently finding the desk just around the corner. He worked out a reasonable fee and a room, and asked about magic classes. He was directed to the classroom, and told that he could just walk in and begin studying with one of the textbooks on the shelf. So he did.

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Rad was interrupted from his "beauty sleep" as his mother liked to call it (why she did, he'd never know) by shouts and screams. He latched on his armor and went downstairs to see what was happening. Several hardened-looking men were trying to break down the door to the palace, and a piercing call came from somewhere in the castle, "ALL MERCENARIES, CADETS, AND MAGIC-WIELDING PRIESTESSES, TO THE MAIN HALL!" This was time to earn his pay! His first real fight! The cadets probably thought he was experienced at fighting, but they were WRONG.

As it turns out, he was placed in a group of 3 at the front line with the top-of-the-class cadet, and a priestess. THAT priestess. Oh, the poor, poor bandits. Although this time, she wore a sweet smile, and carried a book of WHITE magic. She greeted him,

"Hello! Are you a mercenary? My name is Rena. It's a pleasure to meet you!"

Rad's face reflected his emotions: he was HORRIFIED. She asked him what was wrong, and told him that the bandit's wouldn't get in for a while.

"You…you…you're the one who was burning small animals! HELP MEEEE!"

A strange expression flitted across her face, but only for a second.

"Why, sir mercenary, I have no idea what you're talking about! Could it be that you saw another girl who looks like me?"

Suddenly, a light bulb appeared over Rad's head. Again. He started the incantation for the fire spell he had learned last night, after A LOT of practice. She finished it for him out of habit, and burned a nearby potted plant. She then realized what she just did, and let out a small shriek. Then she sighed.

"I guess there's no reason to hide it from you anymore. Ah, well, at least I get to have some fun."

She started a complicated incantation that Rad didn't even recognize, and a small fireball grew in her hand. It suddenly grew to the size of a helmet, and then to the size of a small cottage. She hurled it out the gate, screaming, "BURN, SUCKERS! FIRE 3!"

Many bandits were toasted that night. And I don't mean high. Their remains were still very hot to touch 5 hours later. Rad felt sorry for them, a fireball THAT big can't be fun to experience.

Meanwhile, there was the matter of the priestess Rena. As Rad was walking through the palace, he heard the teacher yelling, screaming, and cussing (?) at the young priestess. He would expect a fragile priestess to walk out of that room crying her eyes out, but she simply exited with a smile on her face, leaving the teacher dumbfounded at where she learned "those words". Yep.

"Well, I guess I'm outta here. Ah, well. I never really liked being prim, proper, and perfect. Hey, you. Yes, you. The dorky looking mercenary."

Rad turned. He shouldn't have, but he did. "Yes, oh pyromaniac ex-priestess?" He asked with a feigned cheerful smile on his face. "What ever could you want with a mercenary like me?"

"Well, um…I'm going to need money if I don't want to starve, so could you possibly take me with you? An amateur like you could certainly use the expertise of such a fine mage as me!"

Rad made a face that suggested "What are you, CRAZY?" but he accepted her offer anyway. Two hands are always better than one, after all. But what about that tournament he heard about earlier? That probably had a cash prize! He told Rena of his idea.

"HELL yeah! If I use my magic, they won't stand a chance! You just…stay out of the way. There might be some carnage."

And with that, they made off towards the colosseum. As they did, Rad thought to himself about his first job, and how exciting the life of a mercenary would be. Life at home was boring, but his parents DID love him. Nobody out here loved him, or would go easy on him. He was just as likely to die as an adult. He would have to take extra care to stay alive, just so he could go back to see his parents in Goland.

At the entrance was a desk made of marble, and a very muscular man sitting behind it. Rad had seen similar men at the colosseum at home, so they must employ them by looks. The man gruffly asked who was entering. When the ex-priestess stepped forward, the man's eyes almost boggled out of his head.

"You, young lady? Do you even know what this IS? It's a fightin' tournament, not some heal-a-thon or whatever you priestesses do!"

She smacked him over the head with her rod, and confirmed that she did, in fact, want to enter the fighting tournament. He mumbled something along the lines of "Your death wish…" and filled out the form. He then asked her to step through the competitors' door, while Rad was to go to the stone seating area.

The tournament was no contest from the start. Every single competitor came out of the door charred and very badly burnt. Or frozen, if she was feeling different. She even casted so many status effects on one man that he forgot who he was! With their pockets a bit heavier, the duo left the city on Strawberry and Rena's (stolen) chocobo from the academy, hoping that there would be a job available in Igros.

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Remember to click that review button! Constructive criticism is actually BETTER than just a "Great story, update soon", because it helps me to improve my (rusty) writing skills! But senseless flames will, again, be used to cook my dinner.