Confessions of the Magpie Wizard Book 3: Dissolution (Chapter 47 & 48) (Patreon)

Chibi Rose art by YoghurtStripper!

We've got a long update this week. It's funny how a chapter where every character gets a few lines and a training fight scene eat up word count.

Chapter 47

Nagoya, Japan

Wednesday, August 13th, 2050

Kiyo surprised me in the elevator lobby on the level of the boy’s dorms. She was in her normal uniform, which made me feel a bit undressed in my Field Day shirt and shorts. Thankfully, they had finally stopped insisting on the full tracksuits once the weather was hot enough to bother Mr. Maki. He was a bit of a taskmaster.

“Good morning, my dear! You’re looking lovely.”

“Thanks!” She pointed up at her face with both hands. “Do you like what I tried with my makeup? The tutorial said it was supposed to make me look seductive.” She had indeed laid it on a bit thicker than normal, and I detected mascara for the first time since I’d met her.

“I’m hardly an unbiased source,” I replied. “I always think you look cute.”

“Sure, but I’m going for seductive. It better have worked! These fake lashes sucked to put on.”

“You left something on your lips right about here.” Our lips met briefly. Too briefly, but I thought I heard noise behind us. “You’re absolutely ravishing.”

“You should teach that to Yukiko,” said Hiro as he entered the lobby.

“I don’t know, she didn’t appreciate the last time I kissed her out of turn,” I quipped.

Annoyance briefly flashed over Hiro’s face because he shook his head. “You know I mean Kiyo should teach…” He stopped himself before he could give me more ammunition for teasing. “You know what I mean, you smartass.” He walked up and put out his closed hand to Kiyo. “Lookin’ good, buddy.”

“Thanks, man,” said Kiyo, lightly meeting her fist with his. “Well, I got two guys to comment on it. Personal record.”

“What’s the occasion?” I asked.

She shifted awkwardly. “H-hiro’s my bro, but I don’t wanna say in public.” She leaned in and whispered in my ear. “It was kinda Paul’s idea.”

I raised an eyebrow. They all knew of the breakup by then. Why was he suddenly talking with Kiyo? He had reportedly ignored her in class before. “Oh? What did he say to you?”

“Well…” She hemmed and hawed a moment before kissing me again. There was something desperate in her touch, and the way she clung to the back of my neck. She broke off when Hiro coughed into his hand. “Later, dude. We’ll talk after school.”

“That’s hardly fair, my dear,” I said. “Now I’ll have no choice but to think about you all day while we train.”

“Mission accomplished.” Kiyo grunted and crossed her arms over her chest. “Stupid Mrs. Perera’s homeroom, doing field days on Monday and Tuesday.”

We parted ways when we arrived at the floor of Room 2-B, but picked up some other students on the way down. I got the sense that Hiro wanted to say something, but he kept his mouth shut in mixed company.

We arrived at the field and did our customary warmup exercises. I hadn’t been in bad shape when I arrived at the school, but I hadn’t been at my peak either. I had spent months in debauchery in Pandemonium as we celebrated the fall of England, and then I had starved myself for weeks to look as much like a human refugee as I could. A few months of conditioning had done their magic; what had initially been a decent workout on its own was now hardly a warmup. Though I regretted that I continued to build up the humans around me, at least the school returned the favor.

Mr. Maki and Ms. Edwards were ready for us when we finished our warmup jog and stretches. “Alright everyone, bring it in!”

“Does Mr. Maki sound kinda pissy this morning?” whispered Leo Hernandez as we shuffled over.

“Just a tad,” I whispered back. I stopped it there, since I didn’t want to push my luck with side chatter after the other morning.

“This will be your last field day before we change gears for the War Games,” said Mr. Maki. “Think carefully about your choice of teammates. Your position when you advance to your second year will depend on your rank in the games. Many of you should even be able to get out of remedial courses!”

There were two types of students in Class 3-B: the type who began chattering excitedly about a possible promotion, and those who shrugged and passively stood at attention. There’s no motivating some people, I supposed. Technically, my Kiyo was one of latter, aside from her fixation on me.

I found myself in the former camp, to my surprise. I wasn’t sure why I cared. Even if I stayed around long enough for another partial year of classes, there was no way I was going to graduate. I chalked it up to my competitive spirit.

“There is one rule,” said Maggie, in her full bubbly, overly enthusiastic teacher persona. Unlike Mr. Maki, she had to speak into a microphone to be clearly heard. “You have to team up with classmates you hadn’t worked with before.”

The go-getters and shirkers all let out a collective groan. At least we could agree on something.

“Before we get started, we’ll run you through some light sword practice,” said Maggie. “Some of you are still struggling with your form, and we need to make sure we have you up to speed before the combat exams.”

I couldn’t help but notice that every underachiever was paired with somebody who knew their way around a blade. I was put with Kowalski. I’ll spare you the details, but I was surprised to find that he wasn’t nearly so hopeless as when we had fought in the War Games. Not worlds better, but enough that I pitied whatever demons had to face him someday. If he could get halfway competent and not have to lean entirely on his Buddy affinity, the towering, broad-shouldered young man could be a force to be reckoned with.

He immediately spoiled that assessment by slipping on the dew-slickened grass and skinning his knee.

“Rafal, you need to be more careful,” Mariko scolded as she healed him. She wore the white and green uniform of a combat medic, including a green beret with a little red cross that gave me a mild headache.

“Sorry, ma’am,” he said, scratching the back of his head awkwardly.

“Ma’am?” she asked, taken aback.

“Point that glare somewhere else, Mariko!” I said. “I didn’t tell him to say it!”

Her petulant pout told me she didn’t believe a word of it.

We were called together again for the main event. “Choose your partner, and we’ll explain the rules shortly,” said Mr. Maki. “Choose wisely, because you’ll be together all day.”

Hiro clapped me on the shoulder, and I nodded. His Immortal Form affinity gave him short bursts of immense physical power, but he didn’t have much in the way of magical reserves. It made a good counterbalance to my magical talents and lack of an offensive magical affinity.

“You’re forgetting something, Asahi,” chided Maggie.

“Don’t call me that in front of the students,” he said. I could just hear him from the front row.

Maggie smirked, and I caught just a hint of the real woman underneath the chirpy mask. “Headmaster Tachibana has been kind enough to furnish us with improved Peace Bond shields!” She stepped aside, revealing a wheelbarrow filled with dozens of leather anklets studded in wood and metal fabricata. “Come on up, don’t be shy.”

“I still say it’s a waste,” muttered Mr. Maki as I passed. I wasn’t sure he meant anyone to hear, but even his muttering had some bass behind it.

“Don’t be a sore loser, Asahi,” said Maggie. That was clearly a show for us.

We all took a minute to strap in. I noticed that Mariko didn’t join us. She wore a white and green cadet’s uniform, with a red cross on a beret to mark her as a medic.

“Mariko, you should take one too,” I said.

She shook her head. “I won’t be fighting.”

I rolled my eyes. “My dear, let’s not make such obvious mistakes after the other night! You don’t have to be a fighter to get caught by a stray spell. You know that better than anyone.”

Now that I knew to look for it, the increased tremor in her right hand told me I’d agitated her. Oh well. If she was going to burden me with her concerns, she couldn’t complain when I wanted to fix them. She took a fabricata without a word, though she struggled a bit with the smaller holes on the lower strap.

“Kowalski, go give her a hand,” I said, shoving the blond boy at her.

He looked at me dumbly. “Me? Why?”

“I don’t want my girlfriend hearing that I was poking around under Ms. Yamada’s skirt. I’m in enough trouble as it is. Consider it a personal favor.”

He nodded. “Sure, man. Though, you know you can call me Rafal.”

“So you’ve told me. I’ll take that under advisement, Kowalski.” The taller boy left with a frown.

“You’re a mean guy, Marlowe,” said Leo as he straightened up, his anklet firmly in place.

“I never said otherwise,” I replied before bending down to put on my own training gear.

I had to tip my metaphorical hat to the headmaster, though I was a little surprised he had cranked out so many so quickly. When last we met, it had sounded like he wanted to do more rounds of testing first. He must have put the rest of his weekend to good use.

The leather anklets were easy to adjust, and surprisingly secure. They had a bit of a heft, though. On the inner part of the ankle, a pouch with straps held a block of wood the size and shape of a bar of soap, etched with runes. A quick scan of the characters gave me the impression that the surface of the anklet was there to guide the energy from the transmitter to the right place, and the wood inside was the “brain.” The fabricata weren’t exactly comfortable, but I doubted that was his main concern.

“I didn’t know he was ready to roll it out yet,” I said.

Rose smirked at me mischievously. “He might have mentioned something when I visited him yesterday. He might have also told me to keep it under my hairband.”

“Gasp!” I said, putting my wrist to my forehead theatrically. “Rose Cooper, keeping secrets? How could you?”

Rose stuck her tongue out at me. “Right, Soren, you’ve never been anything but open.”

“He does like hiding things pointlessly,” said Mariko, as she jogged over. “For example, he didn’t tell me he sent Rafal to help me.”

“No, but he did, I imagine.” I made a mental note to never trust the boy with any secrets worthy of the name.

Hiro cut off Mariko with a shout. “Awesome!” He kicked the air a few times and whistled appreciatively. “Wow, it didn’t slip a centimeter! It’ll be nice to cut loose again!”

“Let’s not go too nuts, Takehara” said Leo. “We don’t all punch like gorillas.”

Yukiko came into our midst and clapped her hands twice. “Alright everyone, fall in! We all have our partners. We are keeping the teachers waiting.”

“Why should we care?” asked Leo.

“Because Mr. Maki makes us run more laps when he gets cross,” I said.

There were disappointed groans from the unambitious students as their chitchat was cut short, but even they resigned themselves to it.

Hiro and I joined up with each other at the center of the field. Maggie fiddled with something on the satellite dish-shaped transmitter and the world distorted, like I was viewing it through a dirty window. The wood and metal fabricata beamed energy to our anklets and shrouded us in a field of energy from head to toe. The Peace Bond was always a disconcerting sensation, since it cut you off from touch and even reduced the heat of the sun. It beat a Magic Bolt to the face, though.

However, I had to shut my eyes. As I had deepened my control over my Mimic, I had begun to see the flow of magic in others without intending to. I was suddenly overwhelmed as everybody was surrounded in the energy bubbles all at once. I uselessly covered my eyes with my hands.

I stayed quiet, trying to force my vision to stop swimming. Damnit all, I needed to tune it out, to get ahold of this deluge of magical information. I shut out the world, taking the techniques from our lessons on meditation and applying them a different way. Usually I saw more magical visions when I meditated, but even that needed to be shut out. Otherwise, my Mimic might drive me to Wizard’s Desolation before the first match of the day! There was no way in Hell I was going to let that happen!

“Are you alright, Soren?” asked Rose. I heard her hand tap against the Peace Bond bubble, but didn’t feel it.

I hopped up to my feet. Sweat ran down my brow, but the overwhelming visions were gone. “Never better, my dear.”

She gave me a doubtful look, but decided not to question it further. “Mr. Maki? It’s a hot day. Maybe we should shut it down for a moment and all grab a drink?”

He nodded, flipping a switch on the transmitting fabricata.“Make it quick. We have a full schedule today.”

We raided a cooler by the side of the track. Several of the students gave me appreciative nods. The Divine Blade tended to forget we were mortals. It wasn’t that he never gave us water breaks, but he thought we didn’t need quite so many of them.

All too soon, we were back in formation. “Alright, ladies,” boomed Mr. Maki, “now that you’ve powdered your noses, are you ready to begin? If you need to warm up more, we can always run more laps!”

A chorus of no’s filled the air.

“Splendid,” said Maggie. “Get ready, it’s going to be a while before you can drink again!” She flipped the switch back on, and we were surrounded by the Peace Bond force fields again.

An odd smell tickled my nose. “Do you smell that, Takehara?”

“Hm? Smell what?” asked Hiro.

“The whole field reeks of lavender,” I said. “Like Rose’s perfume.”

“You must be imagining things,” he said. “She’s half a field away. Unless you’re a bloodhound and not a magpie?”

“Maybe that’s it,” I said sardonically. The scent still filled my nose, and I couldn’t help but detect a lingering Rose-ness all about me. It wasn’t unpleasant, but odd, since I couldn’t account for it.

“Cut the chatter!” bellowed Mr. Maki. “You might have noticed we drew the chalk circles much larger this morning. That’s because there’s going to be four of you in there instead of two.”

So they had. Where normally they were five meters in diameter, these were double that, with a line down the middle to divide them in half. It explained why they had built the arena at double the size of a normal football field. We usually had quite a bit of excess space left over.

I detected a flicker of something magical along the edges of the chalk lines as well. I raised my hand, earning a nod from Mr. Maki. “Sir, is the chalk itself enchanted?”

“Well spotted, cadet! Though, you’re a bit off. Look closer.”

One of the girls I rarely spoke to raised her hand. With her boring haircut and unexciting figure, she had never drawn my eyes like some of the others. “There’s a rope running through the chalk. I almost tripped earlier.”

“That’s correct. Also a tad disappointing, Cadet Yamaguchi! You need to be more aware of your surroundings! The Horde doesn’t miss a trick.”

The mousy-haired young woman deflated a little. “Sorry, sir, I didn’t expect traps on our training field.”

“Now you know to check. We must always be vigilant,” he said. Maggie rolled her eyes where he couldn’t see, but I think many of us shared her opinion. “Today is going to be a two-on-two combat match, but with a bit of a twist. I decided to give you a little taste of an exercise we do with the second-year students.”

He strolled over to one of the circles and pointed all the fingers of his right hand at it, while his left was held aloft in a fist. It was a positively textbook Position Twelve; indeed, Mr. Maki was literally the model they used for the textbooks in those days.

“Red and Blue!”

The ropelike fabricata came to life at his command, and the grass within the sphere was immediately colored red on one half, and blue on the other. A couple of the students applauded at the display.

My Mimic picked up on the spell instantly. I took a step back so that Hiro blocked my line of sight from Mr. Maki. I couldn’t resist trying it out myself. I found that when I whispered the spell and imitated the motion, though, I only succeeded in making a purplish energy structure at my feet that vanished as soon as I stopped casting. I hadn’t put much oomph behind it, but that was still less than I’d intended. I gathered that the spell needed the fabricata rope to give it structure.

Mr. Maki brushed his nose with his thumb. “Who’d like to volunteer to show how Red and Blue is played? How about you, Cadet Cooper?”

“I don’t like the way he’s smirking at me,” said Rose. She pasted a smile and jogged over to him. She gave him a well-practiced salute. “Of course, sir!”

He put his hands in Position Twelve again and rested his fingers on the edges of the Peace Bond bubble surrounding her. Runic energy patterns briefly danced around his fingers. “Blue Team!”

Her clear barrier changed to a light shade of blue. Rose flinched in surprise, but recovered quickly.

“The Peace Bond isn’t the best spell for teaching you about the reality of combat, but it has its advantages,” Mr. Maki continued.

“I’m glad we have it back,” said Maggie. “Red and Blue isn’t the same with colored headbands. It’s dull to watch.”

Mr. Maki nodded to Rose. “Cadet, go walk into the blue side of the circle.”

“Yes, sir!” She walked over the chalk line. “Is it supposed to do something?”

“Patience, Ms. Cooper. Walk over the line.”

She complied, and I could just make out the two magics interacting. She left blue tracks that quickly vanished in the reddened grass. She kept her composure for a few moments, but succumbed and began uselessly scratching at her arms. “What the heck?”

“Is something the matter, cadet?”

Rose stood ramrod straight, trying to act the part of a good soldier. “N-no, sir. Just an itch.”

Maggie stepped up and spoke into her microphone. “Okay, Asahi, that’s enough playing around. Ms. Cooper is experiencing what happens when the two colors clash. It’s the equivalent of a mild itching powder.”

Mr. Maki narrowed his eyes, but let it slide. “That’s right. You’re safe in your own territory, but you’ll itch as soon as you enter the other team’s zone. It’s a point-based system. You earn points the longer you stay in the opposing team’s zone, so your objectives are to stay in their zone, and keep them out of yours. You also gain points when you strike your opponent’s Peace Bond with your own. You forfeit if you leave the circle.”

Rose’s hand shot straight up. “Permission to forfeit, sir?” That earned her some laughter from the waiting cadets.

“Granted,” he said with a chuckle. It must have been payback for the previous Saturday. I made a note not to make the Divine Blade wait around for me. The man could hold a grudge.

“The rest of the rules are simple enough. You can only cast spells when you are on your opponent’s side, but you can use your affinities anywhere. We don’t want to sitting back in your own zone and casting spells from safety. Also, don’t use your spells to force a ring-out. Anything else is fair game.”

I groaned. “Once again, Mimic lets me down.”

“Oh my,” said Mariko, belatedly raising her hand when the teachers focused on her. “Isn’t it cruel to make everybody itch when it’s impossible for them to scratch?”

“What do you care?” asked Maggie with a dismissive wave of her hand. “You aren’t part of the game. You’ll be fine.”

Mr. Maki frowned at Maggie. “I’m sure she’s concerned about her classmates. No worries, Cadet. The magical effect can’t cause any lasting injury. It isn’t physiological, it’s psychological. The spell is the equivalent of a disguise fabricata fooling your eyesight.”

It was strange seeing Mr. Maki defend her with their history of conflict, but then, Mariko had saved his life. He could be spiteful and boastful, but I got the impression he did care about us. If he hadn’t killed so many of my fellows over his career, I might have felt bad about consorting with his would-be assassins.

The issue seemingly settled, the teachers began to walk among the students, marking them as red or blue. I was put on a red team, which was fine by me. I had never looked the part of a proper devil, and the red hue the spell gave my hands let me dream a little.

Mariko crossed her arms under her chest and bit her lip. “Magpie, mark me. I know you must have just copied his spell.”

“I don’t see why-” I started.

“I’m not a fighter, but I’m part of this class,” she said. “For now. I’ll suffer with them.”

I thought back to our conversation in the hallway, when she had expressed her concerns about being left behind by the other students when they moved on to second year. Well, if I could get comfort in false red skin, then she could torture herself to not feel left out. “Of course. Red or blue?”

“Blue,” she said without hesitation. I complied, and she looked pleased with herself. “It’s so pretty! This would be a perfect shade for the school uniforms in my manga.” She covered her mouth with her hands. “Or it would have been.”

Damn that sympathy to the darkest depths of Our Father Below’s domain. “Mariko…”

“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “It slipped out. I’m just not used to having somebody who knows. I’ll try not to be a downer.”

“I would appreciate that.”

Maggie had just finished marking Yukiko in a shade of blue and strolled. “Ms. Yamada, go check in with Mr. Maki. He’ll have a job for you.”

With a gulp, Mariko gave the teacher a respectful bow before walking away. I think she didn’t respond verbally because she didn’t want her voice to break. I had seen that forlorn look the night I had first learned of her scars. Of course reminders of her lost artistry would be a sore spot.

The redheaded teacher didn’t give me long to contemplate it as she dragged me out of the mass of waiting students.

“Yes, Maggie?” I asked, not keeping the annoyance out of my voice.

“I’m having you face Yamaguchi and Hernandez,” she said, her voice barely audible. “Hernandez is useless, but I think Yamaguchi is Holy Sister material. She always agrees with me when I start talking sense about the League. Plus,” she said, brushing a hand through her hair and cocking her hip. “I think she may have a crush on me.”

I rolled my eyes. “You should be Holy Sister Siren, with the way you draw people in.”

“Guilty,” she replied. “I can’t say she’s my type, but I’ll let her dream. We need all the Holy Brothers we can get.”

I might have defended Rei’s honor if I hadn’t just thought the exact same thing. “We do have some job openings. Are you asking me to take it easy on her?”

“God, no,” she said, her nose curled in disgust. “I want to see what both of you can do. Kick her ass, little Magpie.”

I found myself excited by the prospect. Hiro wasn’t the only one eager to cut loose again.

Chapter 48

“What are you thinking, Hiro?” I asked as I entered our side of the circle.

He looked at me curiously. “Wait, since when do you want my advice on things?”

“You aren’t entirely awful at these duels,” I replied.

He gave me a confident smirk. “You mean I almost always win.”

I crossed my arms over my chest. “You have an unfair advantage in these contests. You have the better affinity! You hit like an orc when you’re going at full tilt with Immortal Form, and these fights aren’t long enough for you to run out of steam.”

He chuckled. “Really, Magpie? An affinity that had me passing out all the time is the better one? It needed your Mimic to help me sort it out.”

“Which means I deserve partial credit for each of your victories,” I said. “So really, our win-loss ratio isn’t so lopsided after all.”

He rolled his eyes. “Sure, man. Sure.”

“It’s a bad training format, really. It’s not as if the Horde comes at you one at a time. They’d burn you out quickly in a pitched battle.”

“I know,” he said, his good cheer evaporating. “Speaking of which, I’ll want to be careful. It seems like they’re going to be running us through these duels all day. Unless I want to run out of steam right away, I’ll need to take it easy on Immortal Form.”

I nodded, seeing his point. “So much for rushing in and dominating them with superior strength.”

“It’s not like we really need it,” said Hiro. “Leo’s pretty decent with a sword, but his affinity’s about changing colors and making light effects.”

“What about Yamaguchi? Have you seen her in action before?” I studied Leo and Rei on the other side of the circle. They were having much the same hushed conversation we were. I’d clobbered Leo in enough practice duels that he looked at me with rather gratifying concern. It was nice to be feared for once.

Hiro nodded. “Yeah, they like to pair her up with Yukiko a lot, since they’re about the same height. She says they’re a pretty even match.”

That was high praise from Yukiko. She was dangerous with a naginata. “And what about her affinity?”

Hiro shrugged. “She’s got some sort of magnetic powers. The only thing I’ve seen her do with magic was fry my cell phone the first day of class.”

I met Rei’s gaze, and she didn’t flinch. Maggie might have had a point about her prospects. I could see why she hadn’t caught my eye, though. Much like I thought Hiro looked decidedly average (though my lady friends all seemed to disagree), Rei’s plain face and figure would blend into a crowd. She only came up to Leo’s shoulder, and he wasn’t the tallest boy in class. She was solidly built, though, and carried herself like an athlete.

I felt a predatory grin spread across my face. I was under orders to test her, so test her I would. “Well, those powers of hers shouldn’t be a problem in a contest like this. If these were real swords, the story would be different. I vote we just charge in.”

“You go left, I’ll go right. We’ll catch them in the middle.”

“You always go for the flanking attacks! You need another trick.”

He shrugged. “If it works, it works.”

I shook my head wistfully. “Someday you’re going to fight somebody who’s on to you, and then what will you do?”

“Probably listen to you say you told me so,” he replied. “Then you’ll bail me out, since that’s what friends do.”

I really wondered what I had done to earn that undeservedly high opinion. My little tricks and lies must have worked. I didn’t respond, though. No sense destroying his illusions. “I’ll take Yamaguchi.”

He nodded. “You got it.”

Mr. Maki’s voice boomed across the field, announcing that the game of Red and Blue would begin shortly. “Each round will be three minutes, and you’ll face the same opponents three times before the red teams rotate. The best out of three takes it.”

Yukiko raised her hand from where she stood next to Kowalski in the next ring over. “What if we win the first two contests?”

“Fight on! If your opponents can’t win once, they need the practice even more.”

She nodded, the rulebound girl satisfied to have some uncertainty taken out of her life. One of her opponents, Lisa I believe, gulped and took a step back from the enthusiastic class representative.

Maggie’s voice came to life over the arena’s speakers. “On three. One. Two. Three!”

Hiro and I charged forward, crossing the border between the two colors in moments. With each footstep we took through the blue, we left a red footprint, which vanished and created a pulse of red on the fabricata rope as it tallied our score. Leo and Rei seemed satisfied to hang back and wait for us. Rei held her weapon in a confident stance and her smirk beckoned me on. That confidence seemed to make her more attractive. She wasn’t too bad off in the chest or hips. With the right outfit, she might even…

My randy train of thought was completely derailed as every last inch of my skin demanded to be scratched at once. Maggie had lied again! A mild itching powder, my ass! I’d never encountered the like in England. If the humans were wasting such a fantastic spell on their cadets, no wonder the Horde was winning!

Rei moved fluidly as she swept in to meet my charge. Her training sword jabbed out at me, probing at my left.

The school had tried to impart a certain sword style on the students, a variant of traditional Japanese fighting styles called mahoukenjutsu. The name translates to ‘magical sword arts,’ and it focuses more on defense and limiting your opponent’s movement options. The assumption was that a wizard at melee range was running interference so his allies could deliver the finishing blow with magic. I didn’t often see it performed well at the Nagoya Academy, since most of my classmates were screwups and delinquents, but she wielded the blade with obvious skill and experience.

Unfortunately for her, I had crossed swords with wizards who had mastered mahoukenjutsu. When she pivoted forward and snapped the heel of her left palm at my face, I was ready for her.

At least, I would have been if it wasn’t for that thrice damned itching. I twitched at the wrong moment and her hand filled my vision. The red field around me briefly flashed blue, and I knew she had just scored on me.

However, Rei had left herself open as well, and off balance. I used my superior reach to sweep her leg, knocking her down with a squeak. Her own field flashed red and, if I wasn’t wrong, hers stayed my team’s color a moment longer. I took that to mean the fabricta judged my blow to be stronger.

Leo was doing a bit better than his partner. He had opted to not engage with Hiro at all. Not a bad move, given Hiro’s superior speed and strength. Instead, he ran back to the very edge of the chalk outline.

The air around Hiro’s right leg shimmered for a moment, like pavement on a hot day; he had channeled his Immortal Form to launch himself at Leo. Why the devil wasn’t Hernandez raising his sword?

Rei didn’t give me time to think, as she rolled back to her feet. I took the chance to launch my own offensive. Mahoukenjutsu showed its strength as she parried my attacks, which was all the more impressive with her disadvantage in height and weight. This wasn’t Hiro accidentally using his enhanced strength and speed to enhance himself, or Yukiko crushing me with increased gravity to throw me off. This was a real sword fight, by the Dark Lord!

As least it was, until Leo called out in surprise and a flash of red lit both sides of the circle. Hiro stood over a prone Leo, who sprawled over the chalk line.

“That’s a ring out, my dear,” I said. “I believe that’s a win for us.”

Her blue eyes narrowed. “Ms. Edwards was right, you do call everyone that. Why? That’s so weird.”

“Well I… that’s just how I was raised.”

“When, the nineteenth century?”

I could see why Maggie liked her.

A piercing whistle filled the air and Maggie jogged on over. Speak of the devil. “Time out! That’s a disqualification for Takehara!”

Hiro jerked in surprise. “What? But he left the circle!”

“You knocked him out,” she countered. “We only had a few rules, Hiro. Please try to follow them?” Her tone managed to be perky and condescending all at once.

Hiro’s mouth worked as he tried to find words. “Wait, he stood by the edge and goaded me!”

“You still knocked me out, bro,” Leo said as he stood. “Rules are rules.”

Maggie checked her stopwatch. “You still have one minute and thirty-nine seconds in this round. Mr. Takehara, please leave the ring. Everyone else return to your side of the circle.”

“This hardly seems fair,” I said.

“Think of it as an extra challenge,” said Maggie, her eyes sparkling with wicked glee.

Leo smirked, clearly pleased with himself. Rei, to her credit, steeled her face and prepared herself. I could tell from the way she tensed herself that she was going to go on the attack. She was good, and with Leo backing her up, would be in real trouble.

If I played their game, that is. Maggie blew the whistle again, and we sprang into action. I dropped my sword to free up my hands and dove between the two of them. When we stopped, they were on the red side, and I on the blue. All things being equal, they would accumulate points twice as quickly as me.

However, we were all free to cast spells, but only my hands were free. Rei and Leo’s eyes widened as they realized what I was up to. Leo went to drop his sword, but not in time.

“Spectral Web!” The runes around my hands coalesced into a blue structure with the lattice shape of a spider’s web, wrapping itself around Leo’s legs. It couldn’t penetrate the Peace Bond, but I had guessed right that it didn’t need to in order to bind his legs.

With a yelp, he fell face down. He was still earning points, but there was a flash of red in his blue Peace Bond that stopped their gain for a moment. Just a moment.

Rei hesitated, torn between dropping her weapon and joining me in a proper wizard’s duel, or rushing back in to fight me. I could feel her affinity coursing uselessly through her body, reaching out but failing to grasp anything it could manipulate.

That hesitation was all I needed. “Magic Bolt!”

The dazzling blue spell flew out from my hand like a shot. By Our Father Below, she was fast! Despite the speed of my attack, she raised her training sword and smacked it as hard as she could, warping its surface.

She miscalculated, though. Magic Bolt is a surprisingly complex spell deep down, even though it can be taught in an afternoon. That’s because the only variable in a properly cast Magic Bolt is the circumference. It looks like a undifferentiated ball of energy, but it is really made up of a solid envelope around a mass of magical power. The rear of the Magic Bolt has small vents that allow for this energy to be fired out at a steady rate, propelling it forward.

Her wooden sword would have probably snapped in two, normally. However, our training weapons were wreathed in our matching, colored Peace Bonds. Hitting the Magic Bolt with an ensorcelled blade was like popping a balloon. The distorted Magic Bolt burst, releasing all the energy into the Peace Bond at once. The force of the blast knocked the sword out of her hands and sent Rei to her knees. The Peace Bond held, though, which was a testament to Tachibana’s fabricata skills, or Rose’s raw magical power.

Maggie blew her whistle again, making me flinch.

“You enjoy that too much,” I groused.

Maggie took a glass wand that reminded me of a mercury thermometer and touched it to the fabricata ring. The colorless liquid inside turned blue for about three quarters of the length, and red for the rest. “Ms. Yamaguchi and Mr. Hernandez have it this time! You did well under pressure, Magpie. I’m impressed. Next time, though, make sure you have a way to force them out of your zone. You win by occupying the space, even if you’re out of commission.”

Hiro tapped Maggie on the shoulder. “Can I come back in?”

She smiled brightly at him. “Of course, Hiro. Round two will begin on my signal.”

“Let’s not do that again,” I said to Hiro as we took our positions. “I need you functional.”

“I’m wise to his tricks this time,” muttered Hiro. “I want Leo again.”

“Works for me.” Rei had shown a few good tricks, but we hadn’t been able to really test each other out. I still had my orders. “Let’s try defense this time.”

“Good idea,” he said.

I wonder if Rei knew I was obligated to knock her down? Not that I minded, after her comment. Maggie was besmirching my good name behind my back. Since when was calling a young woman ‘my dear’ strange?

Maggie’s whistle pierced my ears, and we waited on the other team to advance.

They obliged, though Leo stayed on his side of the field. I felt his affinity at work, but Rei had me busy soon enough. She had stuck her sword in the ground next to her to free her hands for casting. “Diamond Shower!”

The water vapor in the air coalesced into a spray of needle sized icicles. It’s a damn painful spell, provided you don’t have a bubble around you. However, she scored just from standing on our side of the field, and from the flashes of blue that filled my vision, the low damage spell was racking up the points.

That was quite enough of that! Rei retrieved her sword just in time to block my second blow, but I tagged her in the left shoulder with the first. Without the Peace Bond, I might well have broken her arm, and the impact sent her back onto the blue half the circle.

“Ack!” The cool demeanor she had affected the whole fight vanished in an instant, but she kept quiet. There was no complaint, no banter, no trash talk. It was efficient, but a far cry from the chatty bunch I had fallen in with.

Hiro crossed training swords with Leo, who didn’t seem overly concerned. I noticed something strange; the longer he fought with Hiro, the more that the lavender scent in the air was replaced with cinnamon. It was almost pleasant, though I worried that I had gone mad at some point.

“Hey, you’re fighting me!” Rei went on the offensive, and relentlessly rained blows down upon me. She forced me onto the border between the red and blue halves of the circle.

That cinnamon scent became almost unbearable an instant before a blinding light emerged from Leo’s body. The world went white and I was driven back by a blow to the chest.

“Slow Barrier!” Rei’s high-pitched voice rang in my ears as she cast. I couldn’t get a bead on her, and I slid to my knees.

When the world came back into focus, Hiro looked as stunned as I. Leo and Rei stood on the red side of the field, and we on the blue. We both stood there, the colors at our feet pulsing as we accumulated points at the same rate.

Hiro sprang into action, his legs glowing with Immortal Form again. He stopped as his sword froze in midair in the shimmering air between us and them.

“So that’s where Rei cast it,” I said. Slow Barrier is a defensive spell that thickens the air with magic, letting thin air block arrows, bullets and, in this case, a training sword. It’s exceptionally useful, and exceptionally infuriating for the other man trying to punch through it.

Hiro pulled uselessly, but his weapon was good and stuck. “What are you doing? We’re getting points at the same rate! Just fight us if you’re going to fight us!”

Leo shook his head. “Nah, I’m good.”

Hiro paced in front of the Slow Barrier like a tiger trapped in a cage, looking for weakness.

Something didn’t smell right. Or rather, something smelled far too strongly of cinnamon. The smell wouldn’t leave my nose, as it conflicted with the lavender.

While I pondered. Hiro stopped short towards the middle of the barrier. “Hah! You missed a spot! Magic-”

It clicked all at once. “Stop! They’re trying to disqualify you again!”

The runes vanished in an instant. “What are you talking about? We’re on their side of the field. Magic’s fair game!”

“She knows she left a gap. Why aren’t they flinging spells at us?”

Leo deflated, though Rei kept her poker face. “Damn, Rei, they’re onto us.” He closed his eyes, and the colors of the field reversed. We were both standing on our home sides.

Hiro glowered at them. “Magpie, let me borrow your sword.” I complied, and with a single bound, he was back on the blue side of the circle. His whole body shone with the exertion of Immortal Form, and neither Rei nor Leo could keep pace with him as he scored hit after hit. So much for saving his energy for later!

The cinnamon scent had vanished, replaced with a faint hint of violet. It was only an undercurrent compared to the still dominant lavender, but it was there nonetheless.

Maggie signaled the end of our match again. “Red team wins. Mr. Hernandez, that was an excellent application of your Kaleidoscope Affinity, but you shouldn’t rely on tricks so much. Sometimes you have to stand your ground.”

“It was Rei’s idea,” he replied. I wasn’t sure if he was sharing credit or shifting blame.

We won the third round since it turned into a raw contest of swordsmanship. I was distracted, though. I had thought I was going mad with these different scents, but a pattern had been established. Could I smell the magic of my fellow students? It seemed odd, but then again, was it any different than seeing the effects with Mimic?

I realized I had a great way to kill two birds with one stone. I knew somebody who would be more than happy to help me test my theory.

*********

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