Glynis Boltor Magic Lesson: Song Magic
Ever since she was young, Glynis was known for her beautiful voice, so it was no surprise that Song Magic manifested inside her. With both healing spells and power boosting spells, Glynis is the perfect support. She has an incredible amount of magical energy due to her royal blood, but she does have one weakness, which her cousin Admetus frequently exploits…
The Tyrian Arena is equipped with several other rooms other than the main arena, one of which is a clinic, to be used for those Sorcerer Soldiers who get a little too hurt during their arena battle. Usually a White Dove soldier or two take care of the injured, but today for the exams there are about a dozen of them, all overseen by…
"Are you slow?" Octavia scowls, chastising a White Dove soldier. "Don't place him down on the bed with that much force, you're going to hurt him!"
"S-sorry, Lady Octavia…" The soldier quickly apologizes, bowing her head and scurrying off. Octavia rolls her eyes in response.
The Clover Kingdom royal and White Doves Vice Captain, Octavia, has been brought in specially to oversee the injured. Due to her…interesting magic, she is the last resort in order to ensure none of the participants of the exams die from their injuries.
"What happened to her?" A blonde girl suddenly pops up from behind Octavia, looking closely at four beds containing Lumine, Glynis, Ru and Jasper.
The girl is as aforementioned blonde, with her long hair tied into pigtails. Her eyes are an emerald green color and gaze at Lumine with curiosity and slight sadness. She has fair skin and wears a white strapless dress underneath her White Doves robes.
Octavia jumps at the sound of her voice, putting a hand on her heart. "Gods, Tessa! You scared the hell out of me!"
Tessa laughs. "Sorry, Lady Octavia. I just saw that white haired girl being brought in and got curious. I mean that's so much blood!"
Octavia nods, watching a soldier healing an unconscious Lumine. "She's probably going to have to stay the night. Her injuries aren't too severe but we should be safe."
Tessa nods. "That's probably for the best. Poor girl…"
"S-Sorry…" Suddenly, Ru speaks up, slowly rising from his bed but Octavia immediately snaps at him.
"Lay down!" She demands.
Ru's eyes widen and he nods, doing just that. "Y-Yes, ma'am."
Octavia shakes her head. "You four are all hurt in your own way, I don't want any of you moving a muscle until I say it's ok. And quit apologizing, you all were in a duel. I'm sure she hurt you too, no?"
Glynis giggles from her bed. "Oh she hurt him good! Right, feral girl?"
Lumine, of course, doesn't respond.
Jasper sighs. "It's been a long day…"
Tessa laughs once again while Octavia groans.
"It feels quite strange having everyone stare at you like this…" Kandy admits, uncomfortably turning away from the gaze of the spectators.
"You must get used to the attention." Aim encourages. "All eyes will be on us once we join the ranks of the Sorcerer Soldiers."
Joel puts a hand on his heart. "My heart won't stop racing, but…I think I'm ready."
Pollo claps. "Yessir! We got this man. After hearing about your magic, we should definitely be able to work together."
Shizuka clears her throat. "Enough idle chatter. Let's get started, yes?"
Everyone takes a deep breath and nods.
"Well then, once again: please remember to battle with the spirit of the Ace Kingdom and the reminder that this will determine your acceptance into becoming a Sorcerer Soldier in mind." Quinn says.
"On your marks…" Shizuka starts.
"Get set…" Quinn continues.
"Go." Valeo finishes.
ROUND 2: FIGHT!
Similarly to last time, none of the four participants make any move right away, instead observing each other intently, especially Aim who looks rather troubled as she observes the two boys.
Compared to last time though, someone makes a move pretty quickly.
"Bone Magic: Bone Trap!" Kandy chants, opening her grimoire and swinging her arm towards Pollo and Joel. Before the two boys can react, bones come flying from the ground, forming a tight cage around them.
"H-Hey!" Joel says, stunned. "Let me out!"
"Yeah, this is totally unfair. I haven't even gotten to use a spell yet!" Pollo whines, banging on the bones of the cage.
"My bones are nearly unbreakable." Kandy smirks. "My magic may not be the strongest, but I have spent much time on perfecting the spells I do have in my repertoire in order to ensure their durability.
Aim claps. "Impressive. How about I help you out?" The girl pulls out her grimoire and holds a hand out towards Pollo and Joel.
"Animation Magic: Dance of the Devils." She smirks, doing a short little dance while she looks towards the boys. When it's over, all is still for a moment, before a sudden rumbling noise sounds throughout the arena.
Then, the sand on the ground of the arena starts to shake and rise, and slowly, it appears that a creature is being created.
"W-what is that thing?" Pollo gulps while Joel continues to frown.
Finally, the creature is completely formed: a large golem-like creature made out of the sand of the arena.
Aim nods, satisfied with herself but still looking a bit troubled.
The golem appears to turn towards Aim, waiting for orders, to which she points to Pollo and Joel and says, "Go!"
The golem appears to stare at her for a moment longer, before wordlessly trudging towards the boys.
"Damn it, no way!" Pollo shakes his head, whipping his grimoire out and flipping to a page. "I am not getting touched by that thing. "Moon Magic: Rings of Rhea!" The Ace Kingdom peasant casts the all too familiar spell, a flurry of arc shaped slashes shooting from his hand and flying towards his intended target:
Kandy.
"Ow!"
The lunar energy burns the unprepared girl, who falters for a moment, allowing Joel a chance to find an escape.
"Dusk Magic: Swift Dagger!" Suddenly, a dense fog pours out from Joel's grimoire, condensing into small daggers that fly around the cage, cutting through it.
The cage splits in half and Joel and Pollo quickly escape while dazed Kandy sighs in frustration.
"They attacked Kandy so she would lose focus on the spell." Aurora surmises. "Then Joel took the opportunity to break the cage!"
"No shit." Admetus sneers. "What I'm more interested in are those two loser's magic…it's the same shit."
"It would appear so, at first glance." Sherry chimes in, a hand on her chin. "However, I believe there are two main differences. Joel appears to harness more of a fog-like magic and things more related to darkness and the night. Pollo, however, uses magic derived purely from the moon and lunar energy."
"Ah, I guess when you put it that way they do seem quite different." Neo nods.
"Meanwhile Kandy uses bone magic." Cray says. "Her bones are apparently quite strong, unless she loses focus on her spell."
"And the other girl uses animation magic, which seems to be purely summoning magic." Ayumi adds, crossing her arms. "Something tells me that isn't the case."
Joel and Pollo have now escaped the bone cage, but now they have a bigger problem to face…
The golem stomps his foot down, trying to step on Joel and Pollo, but they scurry out of the way. However, the force from the blasts sends the boys flying a few feet away.
"Ugh!" Joel grunts as he lands. "That thing is strong!"
"No kidding…" Pollo sighs.
Aim and Kandy look on, both smiling satisfiedly, looking quite content watching the golem do the work for them.
The smarter one of the two, Joel quickly wracks his brains for ideas.
"Pollo, lunar energy is kind of hot, right?" Joel quickly asks.
Pollo nods. "Well, it depends on the time of day. When the moon is in view of the sun, then yes, it's pretty hot. But when it's night and the moon is turned away from the sun, then it's quite cold."
Joel smiles. "Well, good thing it's day. Use a spell on the golem, quick!"
"W-What spell?" Pollo questions.
"Any!" Joel urges. "Now!"
Pollo nods, obliging and flipping to a page in his grimoire. "Moon Magic: Shooting Star!" A large beam of solidified lunar energy shoots from his hands and hits the Golem right in its center.
The golem groans as the beam hits it, the sand in the middle of its body turning black and crumbling down, dazing it as it stumbles away from Pollo and Joel.
Joel smiles. "Sand isn't flammable, but it can burn. And when it does…"
"The particles break down and it becomes like ash!" Pollo realizes, moving his hands up. "Moon Magic: Shooting STAR!" This time, an even larger beam shoots out as Pollo shoots the Golem right in the head, causing its whole head to crumble down into ash.
Aim curses, flipping through her grimoire while Kandy gets ready to cast a spell.
"Bone Magic: Bone Archer!" Kandy casts, a skeleton rising from the ground with a bow and arrow in hand. The skeleton quickly shoots an arrow at Pollo, hitting him right in the hand.
"Ouch!" He curses, quickly ripping the arrow out as blood pours from the wound. "D-Dang that-"
The skeleton shoots yet another arrow, this time in his stomach, causing Pollo to fall to the ground in pain.
"Pollo!" Joel says worriedly, glancing at the golem and the skeleton. The golem appears to be recovering from the blows, and even without a head is still very much alive. And now, the skeleton has turned its focus from Pollo to Joel, who helplessly flips through his grimoire.
"C'mon, c'mon!" He says to himself. "What should I do?"
"It's useless!" Aim claims. "Animation Magic: F-"
The golem groans loudly, raising his foot and slamming it onto the ground, causing the whole arena to shake and tremble, and making not only Joel fall to the ground, but Kandy and Aim too.
Joel observes this. "I see…"
"What does he see?" Matsu asks. "I cannot see."
"Hm, I think he realizes something that I started to realize." Atlas answers. "Let's see if we're right, though…"
While Aim and Kandy are still downed, Joel nods to himself. "Alright. Dusk Magic: Nightly Espionage!"
Fog-like darkness pours from his grimoire, enveloping him and a still downed Pollo. Once it's done so, Joel and Pollo are nowhere to be found in the fog.
Kandy stands up from the ground and crosses her arms, watching as her skeleton looks around confused.
Aim also stands up and curses. "Kandy. Get ready."
"For what?" Kandy asks.
Aim sighs. "This."
The golem, like the skeleton, is also confused for a moment. But then the golem turns towards Kandy and Aim, raising its leg and kicking sand at them.
The girls' eyes widen, as they cover their face once the huge wave of sand washes over them. They cough violently, sand having gotten inside their lungs as they glare at the golem.
"I see…" Kandy sighs. "Your creatures…"
"They attack anything!" Neo gasps, putting a hand over his mouth. "Not just its opponents!"
"You're almost right." Cray nods. "It attacks anything. Because to it, everything is its opponent."
"This isn't good." Aim frowns, readying her grimoire.
"Can you not just dispel the creature, like so?" Kandy asks, waving a hand as the skeleton seeps back into the ground.
Aim shakes her head. "Once I create my creatures, they have a mind of their own. It is possible to control them, but they hardly listen to me. Their minds are corrupted and they don't even realize what they're doing half the time."
Kandy sighs. "So we must fight it?"
Aim thinks for a moment before smiling. "Not exactly…I have an idea."
He moves to lay down, situating himself comfortably on the bed. "Before I go to sleep...I think I'll have a practice run. Need to know how strong these mages are…"
He lifts an arm in the air. "Sleep Magic...Pleasant Dreams."
A blue-purple light shoots from his hand, spreading around the room. Then after a second, it quickly disperses, shooting out of the room completely.
The boy sighs once again, closing his eyes. "Finally...some sleep."
While one group watches the exam, the boy is continuing to sleep, gathering power. On his face is a slight smile, but his expression is still troubled.
Dark energy radiates from him, spreading out of the room, and into the other guest's room of the inn…
Brewing up something evil.
Inside the Sukehiro Inn, an elderly couple walks into their room.
"Phew, I am quite tired, honey." The woman says, setting her bag on a table. "I think I'll take a nap."
"Are you sure, dear?" The man asks. "It is quite early."
"...I know, I am just…I am…" The woman's speech begins to slow, as her eyes fall. Then, without any warning, she collapses to the ground.
"D-Dear!" The man scrambles after her, bending down to observe her. She is thankfully still breathing, just fast asleep. He continues to shake her, but to no avail.
"Wake up dear!" He pleads. He continues to shake her for a few moments before gradually getting slower and slower.
"Wake…up…" He says one last time, before he also collapses down, right next to her.
Fast asleep.
"Animation Magic: Manifest." Aim casts, a small plant growing out of her hand.
"What's she planning on doing with that little thing?" Admetus scoffs. "Not like it's going to stand a chance against that golem thing."
Ayumi puts a hand on her chin. "No, which I think is exactly her plan."
"Animation Magic: Animate!" The plant slowly starts to move, and before long it has become a creature. It waves at Aim.
"Sorry, little guy." Aim sighs. "But you're going to help me win this."
From inside the mist, Pollo has slightly recovered and is hiding with Joel. "Did she just say win this?" Pollo gulps. "What's she planning on doing?"
Joel shakes his head. "Whatever she tries, it won't work. This mist covers us in a field of invisibility, plus hides our magical energy. We should be saf-"
CRASH!
Joel and Pollo scream, the golem appearing out of nowhere along with the little plant, who appears to be running away from the golem. The problem is, the plant is running towards Joel and Pollo, who quickly stand up and also begin to run away.
"Very clever," Kandy compliments. "You used that little plant to distract the golem from us while also sending it towards Joel and Pollo."
Aim nods. "Precisely. Now, let's see if the outcome is to our advant-"
"Moon Magic: Blinding Seraphim!" Pollo emerges from the mist, a pair of gray wings made of lunar energy sprouting from his back. He grabs onto Joel and the two fly up in the air, a screaming Joel looking quite distressed while Pollo laughs triumphantly.
He waves at Aim and Kandy with the hand he isn't carrying Joel with. "Hey guys! You look great from up here!"
Aim crosses her arms. "What are you planning on doing from up there?"
Pollo chuckles. "This! Moon Magic: Shooting Star!"
A beam shoots directly at Aim, who screams in pain and shock, with Kandy putting a hand over her mouth. "Are you alright?!"
"I-I'm fine…" Aim insists. By this time, the golem and the plant appear to be both lost in the mist, too dumb to figure their way out.
Aim and Kandy are on the ground, with Pollo and Joel up in the sky.
"C'mon, do something already!" Atlas boos. "By this time, Lumine, Glynis, Ru, and Jasper were practically exhausted of magical energy while these four are just chilling!"
"Haha, you want to see bloodshed?" Aurora quips.
"I mean we are in an arena…" Atlas sheepishly smiles.
"There's only one person out there who's exhausted, or going to get so very soon." Matsu suddenly speaks up. "Can you tell?"
Sherry thinks for a moment. "Hm…it must be…"
"Bone Magic: Spikes!" Kandy raises several bones from the ground, several feet tall as they grow towards Pollo and Joel, but the former quickly flies out of the way. "Bone Magic: Bone Archer!" She casts again, on a relentless roll to win, the skeleton from before appearing and shooting his arrow at Pollo, who again flies out of the way.
"Animation Magic: Manifest and Animate!" Aim manifests some rocks from her hand that all fly up towards Pollo with impressive speed.
However, again, he flies out of the way.
"Dusk Magic: Swift Daggers!" Joel steps into the fray again, the same dusk like daggers from before flying towards both Kandy and Aim. They succeed in dodging most of them, but Kandy finds herself hit on her cheek.
The Ace Kingdom native curses silently, but shakes her head. "I must win. Captain Galileo is watching, and I won't let him see me fail! I may not be the strongest, but I'll exhaust all of my energy for Captain Galileo." The magenta haired girl raises her hand. "Bone Magic: Bone Archer…tenfold!"
Suddenly, an army of ten skeletons rise from the ground, joining their skeleton archer comrade. They high five each other and nod, aiming their bows up at the sky.
"Crap!" Joel curses. "Pollo, move out of the wa-...Pollo?"
Joel turns towards Pollo, whose eyes are falling as his skin grows pale, which is when Joel realizes. "Damn it…"
"FIRE!" Kandy demands while an impressed Aim watches with a soft smile.
"I have to…move…" Pollo whispers to himself, attempting to fly out of the way. Unfortunately for the boy, there's simply too many arrows, and both he and Joel find themselves struck.
"Looks like I was right." Sherry nods. "Pollo. Flying up for all that time…"
"There's only one person out there who's exhausted, or going to get so very soon." Matsu suddenly speaks up. "Can you tell?"
Sherry thinks for a moment. "Hm…it must be…"
"Has exhausted him of his magical energy." Matsu finishes for her.
Pollo and Joel both scream as they come flying down, already battered from the arrow. Kandy and Aim watch in horror as they realize just where they're flying down to.
"Look ou-"
CRASH
…
"Ow…" Aim whimpers.
"No kidding…" Kandy sighs.
Aim, Kandy, Pollo, and Joel lay on the ground in a body pile, bloodied and bruised.
"Tell me…" Kandy softly says. "Did we win?"
…
"And the winners are, Aim Ars Valefar and Kandy Avalon!" Shizuka announces, claps sounding throughout the arena as Kandy's skeletons, Aim's golem, and Joel's mist all dissipate.
Joel and Pollo immediately passed out as they hit the ground, unable to take the force. Meanwhile, Aim appears to be fine, other than getting crushed by the two boys. Kandy on the other hand…
"Ah, good…" Kandy sighs in relief. "Time for some rest." she says and passes out, exhausted from having fought so offensively for the first time.
The White Dove medics pour out of the clinic, rushing out to collect the quartet on stretchers, while everyone in the audience takes a breath.
"Damn, I thought Pollo had it there for a second." Neo comments. "He seemed to be doing quite well."
"Pollo has a good hold on his magic, that's for sure." Cray nods. "However, he exhausted his resources too much when he kept that flying spell going. It sapped him of his energy."
"Which cost him the fight." Ayumi concludes. "Pollo and Kandy did a majority of the fighting in this battle…Joel and Aim. I wonder…were they holding back?"
"I am not sure about Joel, but that Aim girl…" Sherry watches Aim refuse a stretcher, choosing to walk with the others towards the clinic. "There's something about her…it almost feels familiar."
Matsu stays quiet, sensing the same thing as Sherry. Aim…gives off a magical energy all too familiar to him.
"Whatever, what's the next fight?" Admetus yawns. "I'm getting tired of being around you dumbfucks."
"I pray I get paired against you." Aurora glares.
"Hey!" Atlas crosses his arms. "Then that means you'll be against me!"
Aurora chuckles. "Sorry, brother. Collateral damage.."
Atlas rolls his eyes.
"Alright, you know the drill by now." Quinn smiles, waving at the audience. "Let's begin our next fight, yes?"
All conversation comes to halt as the participants turn to Quinn, Shizuka, and Valeo.
Valeo looks up from the ground, looking at the audience with a bored expression. "Ahem. Our third match up is…
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Aurora Edelias & Matsu Edelias versus Cray Chroniculus & Neo Hyperion."
Aurora sighs. "Ah, well. I'll fight you another time, Heart Kingdom boy. Come on Matsu, let's show them the power of the Edelias siblings."
("WHAT?" Atlas cries.)
Matsu looks disinterested as ever as he nods and follows Aurora to the middle of the arena. He does, however, steal a glance at Sherry, who looks curiously at him. When she sees him looking at him, she blushes and turns away.
"Ah, it is our time to shine, my friend." Neo smiles, patting Cray on the back. "Shall we be on our way?"
"Neo, I expect you to take this fight seriously." Cray says. "Your actions will not only affect yourself, but me as well. And my family is watching closely…"
Neo gulps. "Y-Yes, of course…"
The two boys make their way into the middle of the arena.
"My friend, it is a shame to see you on the opposite side of the battlefield." Cray comments, looking in Matsu's direction. "However, it will be a pleasure to see how you navigate this fight given your blessing."
"You need not worry about me." Matsu replies. "This isn't my first fight since my incident."
"I've always wanted to see the Soul Snatching twins in action." Neo smirks. "A shame I'll only get to see one of you."
"Together, me and my brother are unstoppable." Aurora nods. "But separately? We're almost even better."
"Is that so?" Neo tilts his head. "I guess we'll see."
The four stand at the ready.
"You all look ready." Shizuka nods. "Let's get started."
" A friendly reminder: please remember to battle with the spirit of the Ace Kingdom and the reminder that this will determine your acceptance into becoming a Sorcerer Soldier in mind." Quinn says.
"On your marks…" Shizuka starts.
"Get set…" Quinn continues.
"Go." Valeo finishes.
ROUND 3: FIGHT!
The Curse of Immortality
Modern Day Icarus
END
ACE CLIPSSS #10
Pollo: GGs you guys. I tried my best but I guess it just wasn't enough…
Aim: Ahahaha, and I didn't try my best and it WAS enough!
Pollo: Hey! You barely did anything in that fight, like Joel!
Joel: H-Hey, if it weren't for my mist spell we would've been beaten by that golem…
Kandy: Precisely, give some credit to your teammate.
Pollo: You're right. Sorry Joel!
Aim: If I had done more than I did in that fight, you would've been crushed to smithereens.
Joel & Pollo: YOU ALREADY TRIED TO DO THAT WITH THE GOLEM!
Kandy: They do have a point…
Aim: No idea what you're talking about…