Zora Ideale Magic Lesson: Ash Magic
Zora Ideale, the commander in charge of the Sorcerer Soldiers from the Clover Kingdom, uses Ash Magic. He frequently uses this magic in the form of traps, tricking his opponents and causing them to hurt themselves with him barely having to lift a finger.
He does, however, also use normal Ash Magic spells, one of which helped him and his allies defeat the elf Kivn during the battle against the elves (one of the first times Zora willingly helped out nobility such as Noelle and Nozel).
Zora loaded Aurora, Atlas, and the rest of the group standing outside into the carriage, hurrying them along as they were apparently behind schedule.
Once inside, Aurora and Atlas got to look around.
The inside of the carriage is incredibly fancy, with three rows of seating. In the front is Zora and a few kids they didn't recognize. The second row has Gil and Octavia, along with even more unfamiliar kids. The third row has Petula and Adrien, and again, a few more unfamiliar kids.
Atlas and Aurora got to sit in the last row, with only one other person sitting in it…
Joel Sashunora, a fellow Clover Kingdom noble slightly acquainted with the Edelias twins. Compared to Aurora and Atlas, he is much more humble and sincere, but mysteriously stopped making public appearances a few years ago. Aurora and Atlas would see him from time to time, but it was always very quick and short, like he was in a rush to get away from them.
His skin is very pale, and as forementioned, his hair is blonde with bright orange streaks, neatly styled. He's a little bit taller and built than Atlas, but nothing dramatic. His eyes are the color of amber stones and he wears a very simple outfit consisting of a long sleeved orange collared shirt and black pants.
"Lord Joel," Aurora greeted, taking a seat next to her brother, who sat in the middle of Aurora and Joel. "How have you been? It's been far too long since you've come over for dinner with my family."
"Right!" Atlas agreed. "Remember when Aurora and I would use our magic at your family's burial ground, so you could talk to them?"
Joel laughed, appearing nonchalant. "Oh, yes, yes, those were the days! Unfortunately I've just been extremely busy with my studies. My parents hired a tutor from the Heart Kingdom, super super strict guy. He has me occupied 24/7!"
"I feel you on that one," Atlas sighed, lazily lounging in his chair. "Aurora and I have been taking lessons from this nun that the Wizard King once went on a mission with. She's almost 90 something but continuously drains Aurora and I every lesson!"
"She sounds incredibly intense." Joel agreed with a nod. "Enough about me though, what made you two sign up for the Sorcerer Soldiers?"
"Our parents." Aurora dryly responded, rolling her eyes. "They claim it's a better path to the Wizard King throne, as it will show how we helped out our 'sister kingdom' in a time of need. Still, I find it hard to believe Atlas and I will get to impress the Wizard King from all the way in Ace."
"Oh, I wouldn't worry about that."
Adrien turned around, having overheard the conversation between Joel and the twins.
Adrien Bordeaux is the charming Vice Captain of the Grey Foxes. He is another noble, but strangely does not introduce himself as a lord of the House of Bordeaux.
He is an attractive young man, with sparkling blue eyes and dark blonde-brown hair, styled just as you'd think someone like Adrien would style it. His build is tall and athletic, and a little imposing. He wears a black tanktop and black pants underneath his Gray Fox robes.
"Asta himself won't be present at the opening ceremony of the Sorcerer Soldier squad exams, but I do have some insider info about one of the guest speakers who'll be speaking on his behalf…" Adrien said with a sly smile.
"Adrien, I'm not sure you're supposed to give away information like that." Petula sighed. "Captain Amaterasu did trust you with the secret info, after all. I'm fairly certain you weren't even supposed to tell me..."
Petula Kennarde, a Clover Kingdom commoner. She is sweet as she sounds and one of the soldiers handpicked by Captain Amaterasu herself to join the Gray Foxes.
Despite being older than the twins, Petula unfortunately has the appearance of a young teenager, with a virtually curveless body and short stature. Her skin is slightly tanned, and her ginger wavy hair is pulled up in a mini ponytail, with micro bangs side swept to the right of her head. Her hair is slightly unkempt, sort of resembling Atlas'. Freckles for the bridge of her nose and cheeks.
She wears a light teal, puffy sweater with flared sleeves and bottom. Overtop is a worn leather apron, with stars embroidered on the bottom of it along with her name in the center. She wears a short black skirt, but most of the skirt is covered by the sweater. Her shoes are black boots with yellow lining and a similar star on the boots, along with light teal stockings.
"Oh relax, Petula!" Adrien laughed. "Captain wouldn't mind in the slightest, especially when it comes to telling these eager little children!"
"Little children?" Aurora repeated in a dry tone.
"Well, if you all insist on hearing it, I guess I can tell you." Adrien chuckled. "Asta's wife, royal, and former Captain of the Silver Eagles, Noelle Silva, will be delivering some words to all the participants of the exams! This is such a special occasion that the coordinators of the event invited as many special guests as they could."
"And that's tomorrow, right?" Joel questioned. "Today we're just getting our grimoires."
Petula nodded. "That's right! I'm not sure if they're doing anything special for that, but it's a possibility since this is the first time the Ace Kingdom is handing out grimoires."
"I sure hope so," Atlas said in a hopeful tone. "From retired Magic Knights, Shining Generals, and even Spade Kingdom military, there's so many possibilities!"
Gil turned around, having overheard the conversation.
Gilgamesh "Gil" is a twenty five year old man from the Clover Kingdom…
Not much else is known about him. He is one of the most laidback captains among the ranks of the Sorcerer Soldiers, and is almost always seen with a smile on his face. He isn't taken incredibly seriously by a lot of people, however he does give off a certain powerful aura…
Gil is a tall slender male with messy curly white hair with the bangs parted in the middle that drape down to his ears. His big yellow eyes are always curiously looking around for new excitement and his lips are usually always pursed into a smile.
Gil wears his squad cloak with the hood on and a black cloak that covers up most of his body down to his shins. Under that he has on a white v neck with khaki pants with black combat boots that they are tucked into.
"Ah, interested in the special faces you can expect to see in Ace?" Gil questioned with a grin. "As a captain, I have super secret special insider information that not even Adrien possesses…"
"Hey!" Adrien frowned. "Captain Amaterasu was supposed to tell me everything…"
"Well this particular piece of info is tight under wraps, so I'm not sure she knows." Gil explained. "Or she could've just lied to you about telling you everything."
Adrien began to pout while Petula laughed. "That's Captain Amaterasu for you!"
"Are you really going to tell them?" Octavia asked, rolling her eyes. "I don't see why little rugrats should know about her."
Octavia is in short, beautiful. Royalty descended from the Kira-Clover's, Octavia is not at all happy to see a Vermillion, much less one that married into the family, on the throne. Despite her parents efforts to try and reel her in, a certain someone she's related to keeps riling her up.
Octavia is a young woman who puts a great deal of effort into her appearance. She has long, straight black hair with two short braids framing either side of her face. Her skin is pale and fair and her eyes are purple. She's fairly tall and rather well-built and she absolutely always 100% has perfect hygiene.
Octavia wears her robes over an outfit with a lot of pockets. She wears an enchanted beige jacket with a giant clover on the back that has two pockets. Under the jacket is a plain white half-shirt. Octavia's pants are tight black cargo pants tucked into thigh-length leather boots.
"Octavia, they're excited." Gil sighed. "Be nice to them!"
"Be nice?" Octavia repeated with a frown. "They're about to be enlisted into the Sorcerer Soldier army. I don't see why I should be nice to them when the enemies they're going to have to deal with are anything but nice."
"But you're not our enemy, are you?" Aurora sarcastically quipped. "Allies should respect and help each other. Your words and insults do neither."
Atlas' eyes widened. "Aurora!" He whispered under his breath.
Octavia gave Aurora the evil eye. "You're 15 years old, a child. Learn your place before you speak to a superior. You may be a noble, but that doesn't give you the right to talk to me like that."
"And what, because you're royalty you can speak to me like that?" Aurora glared.
"Now, now, let's all take a second to breathe." Gil chuckled. "No need to start an arguments so soon."
"He's right." Zora said from the front, not bothering to turn around. "Keep your mouths shut. Both of you."
Aurora and Octavia pouted, crossing their arms and looking away from each other.
"Um, anyways," Joel said, changing the topic. "What were you saying about that special information, Captain Gil?"
"Just Gil please." Gil said. "And well, I happen to know that a very important member of the royal family is joining the Sorcerer Soldiers, and will be receiving their grimoire along with you all."
"Wait, wait, wait," Atlas interrupted. "Are we talking about the royal family? As in the Vermillions?"
Gil nodded.
"That's way cooler than Octavia!" Atlas beamed. Octavia glared at him. "Uh, no offense…" He added.
"It could be any of them," Petula said, beginning to think. "I know King Yuno and Queen Mimosa have their child, but I seriously doubt they'd let her join the SSA. It's probably one of Leopold, Kirsch, or Fuegoleon's kids."
"Maybe…" Adrien thought aloud. "I suppose we'll have to wait and see."
"Well, we don't have to wait too much longer." Gil smiled, pointing out the window. "We're nearing the Automatic Transport Zone."
Automatic Transport Zones are areas in various places across the realm where wizard engineers have condensed mana to flow in a specific direction. The mana carries a magical vehicle in that direction, without any of the drivers or passengers having to use magic of their own.
When this happens, most mages are put to sleep, unable to take the intense energy of an Automatic Transport Zone. Their bodies still feel the energy during sleep however, and most mages report feeling incredibly groggy and sore upon exiting an Automatic Transport Zone.
Atlas took a deep breath. "Here goes nothing." He said, looking out the window at the Clover Kingdom scenery.
Aurora closed her eyes in preparation. "May the Gods guide us through this journey safely."
"I hope this is the beginning of a good path for us." Joel sighed, looking down at his hands. "And I make my parents proud."
One by one, the passengers in the carriage closed their eyes, preparing for the surge of mana.
The carriage slowly eased into the ATZ, the driver setting the reins down and securing himself in with a seatbelt. As soon as the carriage entered the ATZ, he fell asleep, the carriage becoming enveloped in a purple magic light, signifying its entrance into the ATZ.
The passengers fell asleep, row by row. Zora, Gil, Octavia, Petula, Adrien, Aurora, Joel…
…
…
…
"Dang it." Atlas frowned, watching his fellow passengers fall asleep.
He sighed, looking at his right hand. The eyes on his hands are usually closed, barely noticeable, however…
"Wake up!" He yelled, shaking his hand around. "I know you have something to do with this."
The eyes on his hand slowly opened, revealing red pupils.
"HAHAHAHA!" A voice said from his hand. "You didn't actually think this whole 'extra mana' thing would put YOU to sleep? Buddy, our body has taken in so much mana we're practically drowning in it!"
"My body." Atlas corrected. "And I know, but I thought just this once…"
"NOPE!" The voice said. "All the souls in your body are eating up that mana, along with the mana in your body! The souls are super hungry and need to eat as much as they can!"
"And taking away my lifespan isn't enough?" Atlas frowned.
The voice grew quiet.
"Hey buddy, this is what you signed up for when you started eating souls." The voice said softly. "I've told you plenty of times that you need to stop."
"I can't," Atlas replied with a sad smile. "If it's for my sister, there's no way I can stop. She's a million times smarter and better than me, so if one of us should live it should be her."
"You throw away your life so easily." The voice said in a disappointed tone. "Do you not want the Wizard King throne?"
"Well of course I do." Atlas responded. "But if it means my sister has to die then there's no way I can take it for myself! I'll continue eating souls to save her, even if it means I have to give my soul up."
"How noble of you!" The voice cackled. "Well, get comfortable! We're in for a LONGGG ride!"
Atlas groaned. "Trust me, I know…"
Atlas closed his eyes, slowly falling asleep on his own (without the help of the mana produced by the ATZ)
A few hours later, the carriage arrived in the Ace Kingdom.
The Ace Kingdom is a kingdom ripe with greenery, tall trees and fruit bushes. Due to being partially undeveloped, there's far more trees and forestry in major cities than in Clover, Diamond, and Spade, taking more after the Heart Kingdom than anywhere else.
"Ngh…"
The passengers in the Ace Kingdom began to wake up as the carriage exited the ATZ, pulling into a forest.
"Where are we now?" Joel questioned, rubbing his eyes and yawning. "Some kind of forest?"
"Looks like it." Aurora nodded, also yawning. "It's awfully dark."
The Sorcerer Soldiers all looked relatively ok after waking up, far less tired than the new recruits.
"Yup." Petula nodded. "This is the Ace Border Forest."
"The end of the ATZ and the beginning of the Ace Kingdom territory." Adrien continued to explain. "The forest is protected by mana, shielding away outside enemies without authorization to enter the Ace Kingdom."
"You all were granted authorization after signing up for the exams. The magic commanders in charge of each kingdom handled all of that." Octavia said, not even bothering to turn and look at Joel and Aurora.
"Thanks for explaining my job," Zora sighed. "Yes, the royal princess is right. All of you in here have special authorization from the Ace Kingdom queen to enter her kingdom, given to you by us commanders. No one without this authorization can enter the Ace Kingdom."
"Interesting." Aurora remarked. "So then no enemies can enter. Which means if a crime is committed, it was committed by someone with authorization."
"Bingo." Gil smiled. "Because of this unique requirement, the Ace Kingdom hasn't experienced any crimes at all!"
"However, with hundreds of people coming to take the SS exams, this is likely to change." Octavia darkly said.
"Way to be negative, Octavia." Petula frowned.
"I'm just stating facts." Octavia shrugged.
The carriage continued into the forest, getting closer and closer to the site containing the Ace Kingdom grimoires.
It was then when Aurora noticed her brother still sleeping.
She raised a brow, shaking his shoulder. "Atlas? Why are you still asleep, the effects of the ATZ should've worn off by now."
His eyes slowly blinked open. "...Huh? Oh, uh…" He stood up, rubbing his eyes of sleep. "Sorry about that, I guess I was actually tired and the ATZ added onto it!"
"I see…" Aurora slowly nodded. "Well, we're almost there. Are you ready?"
Atlas smiled. "Definitely! Plus, when we get there…"
Aurora also smiled. "Matsu."
"Matsu?" Joel repeated, tilting his head. "Is that a friend of yours?"
Aurora and Atlas' eyes widened.
They hadn't counted on someone who knew them being with them in the Sorcerer Soldiers. Now how were they supposed to use the Matsu sibling lie?
Aurora thought about and carefully thought up a plan…
"So," She whispered, making sure no one could hear. "My brother and I found out our parents had another child, our brother, who is our triplet. He got kidnapped by a rival kingdom but has since returned. His existence is super top secret because of the matters concerning his kidnapping, so please try to keep quiet."
"Oh!" Joel gasped. "I see. Well then, forget I said anything!"
Aurora smirked, flashing her most charming expression. "Thank you so much for understanding, Joel."
Atlas rolled his eyes.
At last, the carriage pulled up to an incredibly large building with several other carriages parked and people standing around, chatting and showing off their magic. The building is situated in the middle of the forest, surrounded by trees, almost hidden. It resembles a large church, with white stone brick and stained glass windows.
"Alrighty you guys!" Gil beamed. "Welcome to the Grimoire Distribution Center of the Ace Kingdom. This brand spanking new facility has been artificially imbued with mana from several mages across all four kingdoms. Your grimoires have been taken care of by them, and are being written and made up as we speak."
"Again, stop explaining things for me." Zora frowned. "Like the goofball captain said, your grimoires are just about ready to go. You'll wait for a few minutes out here and then the High Priest will be inviting you inside when they're ready. Now, get out."
"Get out?!" Atlas worriedly repeated. "Wait, so you're not coming with us?"
"You guys can handle yourselves, don't worry!" Petula smiled. "You'll be just fine in the care of the High Priest."
"Trust me, you'll be pleasantly surprised." Adrien winked.
"But still, we don't know how any of this works!" Joel said. "What happens after we get our grimoires?"
"The High Priest will handle all of that information for you." Octavia answered. "Now, get out so we can head back to the capital!"
Aurora heavily sighed. "Come on everyone. We might as well get this over with."
"Have fun you guys!" Petula beamed. "See you at the exams!"
"Remember, every grimoire is beautiful." Adrien said, blowing a kiss.
"Try not to make a fool of yourself in front of the High Priest." Octavia sneered.
"This is the first step in your journey." Gil said. "From here on out, you're on the path to your future, whatever you choose to do. Make the good decisions that will get you to where you need to be, and avoid those who will stop you from that path. I wish you all the best of luck, and I'll see you at the exams."
Aurora, Joel, Atlas, and the rest of the kids in carriage bid them farewell, exiting the carriage and watching it pull off, continuing on the road to venture to the capital of Ace.
The trio looked around, all sorts of new faces staring at them.
"Well," Aurora began. "This is quite uncomfortable."
"Royalty, nobility, and commoners...these people can be anybody." Atlas whispered in awe, starting back at those staring back at him.
"Who is an ally and who is a foe?" Joel wondered aloud. "Thankfully we have each other to trust, because at the moment I'm not sure there's anyone who sticks out to me as being trustworthy…"
"Hey!" A boy with messy blonde hair yelled, standing next to a girl similar looking to him. "Are you those nobles from Clover?"
"Um...yes?" Atlas nervously answered.
"Hm, so you're with her…" A short girl with purple hair remarked.
"Her?" Aurora repeated. "Who's her?"
"Oh, princess!" A boy with two piercings on his ear called, waving to a random girl surrounded by several older people in armor. "More Clover peeps!"
"Did he just say princess?" Joel asked, eyes wide.
"Please let me approach," The girl softly said, talking to the people in armor. They nodded, making way for her.
She slowly approached the trio, nervously looking down and blushing. "Um...hello."
"Uh, hi." Atlas said. "We're supposedly your friends?"
"Um, no, it's not that you're my friends or anything." The girl shook her head. "I've just been introducing myself to every Clover Kingdom citizen...my mother is making me…"
"Your mother?" Aurora repeated. "Wait so…"
The girl nodded. "You'd know her as...Queen Mimosa Vermillion."
One Fateful Day (Part 3)
ACE CLIPSSS #2
Atlas: If I were a princess, the first thing I'd do is declare every day a holiday!
Petula: That sounds just a little unreasonable...
Joel: Yeah, then no one would work!
Atlas: Oh, no worries! There'd be a select few people chosen to work for the benefit of others. Hm...I think Octavia is a good option!
Gil: Ooo, that sounds about right!
Adrien: A perfect option, Princess Atlas!
Zora: Just as long as you don't make me work...
Octavia: Perish.
A/N: And here we go, part 3! Next time we'll meet a whole new set of characters and see them get their grimoires. Please make sure to review the new updates info on Chapter 1!