Chezka

Avatar - The Fall of Si Wong City

@Sep yes please

World Beyond the Lexicon

_{Genelogia outskirts → Train}
☆═━━━━━━━━━━━

Yvaine was all ears as Sekhandur shared some information about his fascinating heritage, and had even hurriedly rummaged through her pack for her journal. Eagerly, she jotted down notes as thoroughly as though she were listening to one of Professor Nyx's lectures, writing questions in the margins and circling the things she was particularly interested in. Like the Judges of Duat! She practiced the proper pronunciation of Shan'iatu under her breath and spent the next couple of moments imagining an ancient desert ruled over by kings that transcended life and death.

_{Genelogia outskirts → The Village}
☆═━━━━━━━━━━━

As they trekked through outskirts of Genelogia, Yvaine was wide eyed and awestruck at every little thing. The green of the forests seemed richer up close than it had been through the smudged lens of her telescope. The babbling and burbling of the river were like music to her, and she trailed close to the bank to watch the little frogs and fish go about their day. She took joy in Sophiel's company, pointing out dozens and dozens of curiosities that caught her attention as they passed by. Eventually, her eagerness took its toll. Despite having built stamina from years of grueling chores, Yvaine had yet to be accustomed to long stretches of walk, and soon after their hallway point, she had started lagging behind along with Alberta.

To remedy this, she manifested her wings and flitted by Caelum, who had been acting as rearguard. The rest of the trip became easier now that she was off her feet, and twice she soared up high to better appreciate the landscape. She didn't think she would ever tire of such a view, especially an outlandish one like this, where autumnal trees grew happily beside springtime ones. From what she read in books, such a thing could have only happened inside magical greenhouses, yet here it was.

Yvaine thought nothing of it until Professor Nyx pointed it out. How curious! She was normally sensitive to mana, but this had completely escaped her notice. It must have been very unusual magic indeed.

It wasn't until they arrived at the village that Yvaine understood the levity of the situation. Her smile faltered at the solemn sight as an unsettling chill ran down her spine. It was obvious something was amiss; but beyond strong sentiments that the village was sick, Yvaine couldn't tell what was causing it. Ankaa was first to spring into action, and Yvaine heeded her call immediately, unceremoniously dropping her baggage to rush in and help. Her hands had already unfurled her scroll instinctively, needing no guidance to find the exact verse she wanted, and the melody half out of her lips when Sophiel's warning reached her.

Yvaine stopped in her track, hesitantly halting the magic. The others were correct. They didn't know what ailed this man—what if her magic only made his condition worse? She studied the growths on the man's skin with uncertainty, her brows furrowing in apprehension as she failed to come up with a diagnosis. When she helped out at the priory's sanatorium, Yvaine became exposed to a number of ailments she hadn't known existed, both of the magical and non-magical variety. Even with that knowledge, she drew a blank now.

"Professor," Yvaine turned to him helplessly. It didn't sit well with her to ignore someone in need of aid. She was relieved when Kiara at least acknowledged tending to him, even if the others seemed hesitant. "Please, there must be something we can do for him!"

World Beyond the Lexicon

Yvaine was last to head to their designated area. Partly because she took a moment to wonder at the locomotive up close, curious to see how close the figures in her textbook were to the actual thing. Partly because something the professor had said put a kink in her plans. She hasn't realized that one would be able to order drinks and food in the train. It seemed quite amazing to her; she imagined a full-sized kitchen fitting in one of the train's car, its imaginary chefs moving gracefully even as the train lurched ever forward. Unfortunately, it also meant her classmates would have no use for her snacks. It would be too presumptuous for her to impose it upon them, knowing that there would be better food served.

The big bag in her hands, filled to the brim with small containers individually labeled, felt heftier now as she maneuvered through the first of the train cars. Perhaps she could give it away to the other passengers later on? Not everyone would have the luxury of the academy's coin sponsoring them. Along the way, Yvaine took a moment to help an elderly woman to her seat, after she had staggered and nearly lost balance when the train had jerked forward for its departure. The woman refused when she offered one of her packed snacks, and in the end, she wound up with more than she came with, upon the woman's insistence to repay her simple gesture.

When she finally arrived at the fifth car, the others seemed to have settled on their seats. Mandi's exuberant playfulness seemed to be already in full gear, making Yvaine smile as she passed her by mid-teasing Alberta. She greeted the others who were nearby as well—Sanhan and Misa, who were sitting with Alberta; Caelum who was just a row over.

Everyone seemed to have taken their seats… except for Sekhandur. It was hard to miss him, standing, as stately as ever, by his lonesome all the way in the back. She wondered why he alone remained standing, especially when there were many vacant seats reserved for them. Was it a Kemeti custom, perhaps? Or maybe he preferred to stand as he read? She wasn't sure what effects a moving locomotive would have on your reading.

Curious, Yvaine decided to approach him, stopping only to greet the professor along the way. "Blessed day, Professor," she beamed. A quick glimpse at his visage had been enough to tell her he was in a sour mood once more. Seeing him unhappy had only dismayed her at first, but after two weeks, she had also come to expect it. For a brief moment, Yvaine looked up at him wordlessly, a spark of determination in her eyes as her silent promise to cheer him up echoed in her head. "Please let me know if you'd like some company. I'll be right here!"

Yvaine excused herself and continued on her way to the back. She stood across from Sekhandur, still holding her bag and surprisingly stable even as train felt wobbly beneath her feet. "Good morning," she greeted after a beat, making sure she wasn't interrupting him in the middle of his reading. Out of all her classmates, Sekhandur had been hardest to approach. Not because he'd said or done anything to scare her off, but mostly because he seemed to Yvaine the type that would have so many princely duties to attend to, on top of all the schoolwork and extracurriculars. She'd been worried about wasting his time.

"I've not read many texts about Kemeti magic," Yvaine said, mostly thinking out loud. "But there was a passage I remembered seeing once, about the Shan'iatu." The word came out clumsily—it was the first time she'd tried saying it out loud. "It had been so interesting, I wish I could have read more about it."

_{☆═━━ ━ @Dead Cruiser@Blu}

World Beyond the Lexicon

"Today, we're going on a mission!"

Yvaine said the words out loud as she scribbled them on her notebook, her flowery script neatly filling in the spaces between the lines. It would be her first time out in the city, her first chance to experience the bustling metropolis she'd read so much about. She had glimpsed some of it during her travels with her guardian, but they had moved at such an efficient pace that there had been no time to appreciate the sights.

"I hope we can find the culprits without much trouble."

Her first two weeks had been nothing short of amazing, seeming as though the years' worth of experiences she missed out on had been packed into each wonder-filled day. Most important to her were the precious moments with her classmates, and the opportunities to get to know them better. Some were harder to approach than others, but she was nothing if not gently persistent in her endeavors. Mandi and Sophiel have already won over her heart so completely, she knew she would do anything to keep them happy and safe.

Club activities (she joined choir and was already in the running for a solo!) kept her busy whenever she wasn't training her mana control or reviewing Professor Nyx's lesson for the day. And on top of all that, she was still adapting to living outside the priory. Some habits were harder to break—she still rose with the sun to do chores, for instance—but she was beginning to feel more comfortable with her new normal.

Yvaine had said as much to her guardian, who wrote to her every three days to see how she fared. Her journaling came about for his sake, to make sure she didn't miss anything when she recounted her previous days. Her guardian remained a mystery to her, but it touched her to see him so invested in her and her progress in the academy.

And speaking of the academy… Yvaine brought her pen to the top-right corner of the page and sketched a cutesy doodle of Professor Nyx's head with his face currently blank. It was to be filled at night, after she finished the entry with reflections of the day's events and she had gotten an overall impression of the professor's mood. Yvaine leafed through the previous pages and examined the past doodle Professor Nyxes with a fond smile.

Currently, they were all drawn with frowny faces. She hoped to change that one day.

_{☆═━═☆}

Extra preparations had made her slow to get ready on the day of the mission. Mandi had gone ahead minutes ago and she spied Sophiel's note earlier. Yvaine hummed happily as she packed the last of the small containers and neatly stacked them into two bags. "And that makes fourteen!" She didn't know what riding a train would entail, but she hoped there was room in there for the snacks she made for the class. Ah, and she hoped they would like it! Fruits and pastries seemed safe enough.

With the class's snacks ready, she was all set to go. Her own bag contained very little—just the bare essentials, as the professor instructed. Yvaine looked at the time and hurried along with a renewed sense of urgency, clumsily toting the bags beside her as she broke into a run. She mustn't be late again! Timeliness is next to godliness, as they say.

_{☆═━═☆}

Yvaine reached the station not long after Ankaa, her arrival punctuated by the sound of her packed snacks clattering to the ground as she tripped on loose gravel. "Hello, everyone!"

World Beyond the Lexicon

Will try to have mine up sometime today as well!

World Beyond the Lexicon

As she stared at the ring of light beneath her feet, Yvaine frowned. Her hands anxiously clutched a fistful of her dress as she teetered between relief and guilt over the outcome of Professor Nyx's harsh culling of the class. It had slipped her mind that there had been stakes involved, that they were put into these matches for a certain purpose. But to expel more than half the class on the first day… was this the way in Avalice? From the headmaster's rousing speech, she had envisioned a wonderful school that fostered hope, valor, and a sense of togetherness against the darkness in the world. It didn't occur to her that the school was prestigious for a reason, or that the academy's rumored graduate rate of 5% wasn't an exaggeration after all.

Yvaine felt the panic and anguish of the other students as they protested their expulsion, and it was all she could do to reach out helplessly when their own shadows swallowed them whole, removing them from the courtyard. It became more apparent to her now that Professor Nyx could be ruthless, though she still held out hope that his motivations come from a place of caring. Perhaps this was done to protect the other students? Yvaine nodded to herself at the thought. Professor Nyx may seem unforgiving and rough, and his words can be hurtful at times, but deep inside, he was doing what he thought was best for his students. Yes, it must be that.

With only the passing students remaining, Yvaine took the chance to take a proper look at everyone else selected. She was grateful that her friends were among them. Mandi, Sophiel, Kress, Misaiya; it would have hurt her heart all the more if they had been expelled while she was allowed to stay. There were those whose names she still must learn, and others more familiar. Argumentative Ty and his lovely debate partner. Ah, and there was Caelum with his hard head and infectious smile—although it wasn't there right now, replaced instead by a pained one. Yvaine gave him an apologetic look; if she'd had more energy, she would have healed him right away.

After the professor dismissed the class, Yvaine took a moment to bid her sparring partners farewell. Misaiya had thanked her for healing him when it was really the least she could do. "It was no trouble, Misa," She smiled softly up at him, then at Kress. Although the time they'd spent together had been in battle, Yvaine was glad for the chance to get to know them. "Today has been quite eventful, hasn't it?"

From the distance, she heard both Sophiel and Mandi calling out to her. "It seems it's time to head back. I wish you both a good night!" Yvaine bowed her head before once again taking hold of their hands, her face alight with unbridled enthusiasm. "I shall make you both desserts tomorrow, as thanks for a wonderful battle. I hope you will like it."

And with that she left to join her roommates.

Yvaine found both of them waiting for her before returning back to the dorm. Just the mere gesture had made her heart full. It has been less than a day since she's met Mandi and Sophiel, but already she felt at home in their company. Upon approaching them, she all but flung herself into their arms in greeting. "Hello again! I am so happy we all passed!" She settled in between them and they walked back to their dorms, arm-in-arm-in-arm. While she wanted to hear all about their fights, she knew what was more important at the moment: a warm meal to soothe the body as well as the soul. "To celebrate, I would like to make dinner! What would either of you like?"

At some point during their walk back, a curious frog bounded by their path. Yvaine patiently waited for it to cross and waved goodbye as it leapt into a bush, idly wondering if Mr. Frog had lost its way home.

_{☆═━━ ━ @Dezuel@AThousandCurses}

World Beyond the Lexicon

"Kress. You and I, and Ankaa, are going to go see the arcane paints club later. No matter what happens, it's a promise. All right?" It was faux conviction that Misaiya mustered, although one wouldn't be able to tell from his voice alone.

They'd better not sabotage their own chances on my account.

"The two of you'd jolly well do your best—" or would it technically be their worst? "—and please don't even think about holding back, for I will not."

"Sure sure," Kress replied, tying his sleeves up at his elbows. "But, uh, let's make this clear first, ok? We're still classmates and all, so let's not try to kill each other?"

Someone in the distance was literally screaming. His gaze flickered nervously in that direction, but didn't catch what exactly was causing it. The young man gulped, before slapping his cheeks.

"Seriously, though, let's not."

"Of course." The reply was clipped, almost curt. It was just an act, but Misaiya's neutral expression betrayed nothing. Pole in one hand and loaded sling in the other, he took a few steps back, sling spinning overhead as he went. "Then let us begin — ready, set, go!"

The little pebble flew out of the sling's pouch with a crack, whistling through the air and thankfully right over Yvaine's shoulder. It impacted the ground a hundred feet behind her. Good grief, if I'd missed that shot and hit her head instead… Misaiya readied the next bullet, and it wouldn't be long until it went airborne. Its target: Kress.

As she was wont to do, Yvaine had stepped back and allowed herself a moment to observe. She had no way of knowing beforehand what powerful magic they wielded, which meant she had to be prepared for anything—including a little pebble that came whizzing by, just inches shy of hitting her. "Oh!" Her grip on her scroll tightened. Was that Misaiya's brand of magic? No, she didn't sense mana emanating from it.

Yvaine took the chance to evoke the sign of the Sun, calling for clarity. When entering one of the three states, nothing changed except the way you viewed the world. In her case, mana crystalized into her vision. A gently flowing blue to her left, restrained for now; an unchanging gray to her right, dim but surging with potential. In the distance, a rainbow of colors from her classmates, muted in her vision as she kept it out of focus.

Kress had yet to reveal his abilities, but as with Masaiya and his sling, Yvaine had to be ready.

If it was quickdraw, Kress had no intention of losing! As Misaiya's pellet burst in the dirt, the blue-haired youth pulled out his own spellbook, a silver-framed abacus hung across his shoulder and chest by an embroidered leather strap. His left hand swept over it, gliding over guiding grooves and beads. Three fingers splayed out before sliding three beads up. Light brown, dark brown, and blue.

No red this time; being scalded by hot tea was the sort of experience he wanted on no one.

"Sorry, Misaiya! And Yvaine too!" Kress chirped, before stretching out with his own hand, aetheric mana coiling outwards, upwards and then...

Cold liquid fell from above their heads, a steady stream that washed over their gloriously long hair, until their drenched bangs clung over their eyes. Unpleasant, but not harmful, and even strangely aromatic. Was this scent peppermint?

In hindsight, Misaiya should have tied his hair up. As he gurgled and spat out the flavoured water (or was it a beverage? He had to thank Kress for making it cold either way), it was more his own dripping-wet hair that interfered rather than the conjured liquid Itself. His shirt and his sling felt a good bit heavier, soaked as they were. When he moved to pocket the latter, he found his shorts only a little better off. How burdensome.

Misaiya's shots had attracted the attention of both mages. But Yvaine had yet to retaliate, and if she was using her magic it wasn't as obvious to the naked eye as Kress's abacus. It was clear what her spellcasting tool was - the scroll in her hand - but he couldn't perceive others' mana well enough to tell quite what the black-haired girl was doing with it. And while going after their foci was a tantalising prospect, promising a quick and clean means of neutralising their spells — it would be difficult to say the least. No doubt the magic users would guard those, tightly; plus, he would rather avoid damaging their belongings. The repair and replacement costs for a mage's equipment could be pretty hefty. And if it were an heirloom or artefact, the less said the better.

Right now, the best places to be are up close and very far away.

Looking at the cramped arena, which was slowly devolving into more of a battlefield, it was evident that the former was the only viable position. Too far from their little lot and he would have to brave the havoc their classmates were wreaking upon the field. Misaiya had to close the distance.

"I'll get back at you for that some day, Kress…" Misaiya feigned a sort of pent-up, sulking displeasure, furrowing his eyebrows at Kress with a mix of ire and disappointment that left him resembling an unhappy prank victim. And then he began to advance - with large and careful strides, he approached Yvaine as best as he could. The weight of the magic peppermint tea slowed him down noticeably. Both of his hands held onto the base of his pole now, left above his right, cautiously keeping it pointed forwards like a spear.

"But we’ve got other problems right now. I’m not sure what, but Yvaine’s building up for something really big! I’ll play the bait," he stopped moving, and turned to give Kress a nod. "Counting on you for the rest!"

Misaiya charged.

The shift in his intent was almost palpable to Yvaine in her clarity, the gray aura growing brighter now as it approached. While she looked unprepared, seemingly more focused on wringing her soaked hair and dress, those perceptive enough would see her lips move in a quiet hymn and those close enough would hear the melody nearing its end.

^♬ ო ჰოლy wინგს, გრანთ მე fლიღთ _♫

A pair of golden, shimmering wings manifested on her back then, lifting her off the ground, just in time to allow her to glide away from Misaiya's attack. Yvaine flitted about, carefully giving Misaiya and his superior reach a wide berth as she circled him. All the while, she sung a hymn under her breath, the melody distinctly different from the one moments before. The scroll on her hand was unfurled, the page aglow as the notes she sung shimmered with her golden light. Once she reached the end of the melody, she started all over. Again and again and again, she repeated the hymn, yet nothing readily visible manifested after each repetition.

Despite giving herself wings, Yvaine kept low, hovering no more than a feet above the ground. Instead, she used her improved range in an attempt to outmaneuver Misaiya, who seemed to move slower than he was capable. Yvaine was inwardly grateful for Kress then, even though her hair would probably smell of peppermints for a while. She wondered if she could goad him into doing another spell like that, but for the moment, her focus remained in biding her time in preparation for something… big, just as Misaiya had said. He was proving to be as observant and astute as his scholarly demeanor suggested.

Uh...damnit, this was why 1v1v1s were confusing! Because things could just feel like turning into a 2v1 outta nowhere! Kress's own brows furrowed now, the blue-haired mage struggling not with his next spell, but more with the moral quandary of teaming up to beat up a girl who looked like a nice, soft-spoken person. Wasn't that what only bad guys did? Aghhhhh, being opportunistic was super strange...

But Yvaine growing wings was super cool! Briefly forgetting his own mental dilemmas at the sight of those wings of light blooming from her back, Kress called out, "Wow! That's pretty cool!" Though he had tried to make wings himself before, they've always just ended up as wings, rather than his wings. Definitely gonna have to pick her brain later, which meant that he definitely shouldn't just team up on one of them!

Equality meant fighting them equally!

His fingers danced up and down his abacus again, three translucent beads sliding up, while blue and light brown dropped down. If he was doing it properly, the dark brown beads would have also been swept down, in favor of three silver ones, but his sister would literally eat him alive if she found out he accidentally broke a girl's nose; Kress manifested something softer than a shield instead. Holding his mana in his outstretched hand, he watched Yvaine's movements carefully, getting a read on the patterns of her flight.

"There!"

A wall of loose dirt, barely held in place by aether, popped up right in front of the celestial spellsinger. It wouldn't hold against the momentum of her own flight, but it would impede it, blinding her and maybe even causing her to fall. That same dirt, though, would fly back after colliding with Yvaine, hopefully showering Misaiya as well and maybe dissuading his continued advance?

Hm...Kress decided to take a few more steps back from all this.

It'd been totally unfounded speculation when Misaiya had said that Yvaine was up to something, but now he was increasingly certain that he’d actually been right. His jabs and sweeps grew slow and infrequent, and were eventually reduced to half-hearted probing as she fluttered around him, chanting and singing to no visible effect.

Whatever that was she had in store, Misaiya would rather not be on the receiving end of it. He came up with a plan when Kress finally took action and conjured his wall.

He could have stopped. He should have stopped. It certainly would have saved him an awful lot of hurt. When Misaiya saw Kress's magic earthen wall pop up, he didn’t stop. He doubled down and leapt forward, pole held high above his head, perhaps gunning for Yvaine while she was at her most vulnerable — and ate way more dirt than he ever needed or intended to as he ploughed head-first into the wall as well. It was softer than he'd expected and harder than he'd hoped.

Just… as planned…?

Misaiya fell to the ground, prone, and ate even more dirt. His shoes had fallen off and were flung a little ways away, along with his pole. For a moment, he was motionless. Then, slowly, he turned his head and gave Kress a thumbs-up.

"I'll be fine. Go get 'er, tiger…" Misaiya's voice was hoarse, and the aura of his mana somewhat dimmed when his arm went limp.

I can feel my heartbeat in my skull right now. Time to take a break, I suppose.

Misaiya closed his eyes and laid still. He didn't get back up.

^♬ ო დივინე სთარს -

The prolonged and repeated incantation of one spell combined with the overexertion of sustaining another was wearing Yvaine down. The light from her wings was gradually fading, flickering like a flame. Her clarity had slipped from her already, along with it the kaleidoscope of colors that was her classmates' mana and the heightened focus that kept her just a half-step ahead of Misaiya's next attack. When Kress's magic wall of dirt burst out of nowhere, it caught her completely by surprise. There was no time for her to do anything but plunge directly through it.

- შოwერ უს wითჰ -

Yvaine braced for the impact, expecting something painful but found it more encumbering instead. Dirt obstructed her vision, and to her dismay, a smattering got into her mouth as well. She fought the urge to spit it out, lest she lose control of her spell, and powered through with disgust. Beside her, Misaiya had his share of dirt, except his experience was perhaps more violent as he had all but flung himself against, and then through, Kress' wall.

- yოურ ლიღთ _♫

Concern nagged at her when she realized Misaiya had landed harshly. She had little time to react, however, as immediately after, something hit her squarely on her forehead—right where a bruise was already forming due to her earlier collision with the professor's podium. It was... a shoe? Whatever it was, the shock from the pain had been enough to throw her off. The light of her wings had sputtered out and as she fell, what little control she had over the ongoing spell slipped away.

"Kress, please watch out!" Yvaine called out, struggling to get upright. The sight of a knocked out Misaiya had struck a chord in her. At first, she wanted to do her best in this match and make the professor proud, but right now she felt more compelled to help a classmate in pain. And to prevent another from getting hurt. She gestured upward in warning.

Directly above the small section of the arena the three claimed, floating higher than the tallest building in Avalice, was Yvaine's "something big." A collection of stars—manifestations of her mana—that spanned the area they occupied, hundreds of golden orbs bobbing up and down as they awaited release. Normally, the spell would have been instantaneous. But by repeating the same hymn and deliberately stopping before the last verse each time, Yvaine was able to delay the release and extend the gathering phase.

What loomed above them now was the fruits of her labor. And now they were falling.

"Oh geez oh geez oh geez!"

From up above, it looked like a veritable raincloud of holy light, and it was absolutely, positively gorgeous. From his wider view of the arena, Kress was able to take in the entirety of just how brilliantly beautiful Yvaine's spellcasting was. How much control did that require, to delay a spellsong over so many iterations to gather up something like that? He definitely hoped that Professor Nyx knew where to look, because that collection of spellwork was basically...super cool? Super frickin' cool. He was gonna have to invite Yvaine too and have a hell of a chat with her after this!

But only after the battle. Because right now...

Click-clack went his beads. The adjustments he needed to make for a proper Shield were minimal, and so long as the bombardment fell down vertically, rather than do some crazy homing, weaving thing, he should be fine. His own mana reserves were still alright too; he may be a bit on the below average side of magical capacity, but Kress hadn't exerted himself nearly as much as his opponents during the fight. He had energy to spare.

"Yvaine! Stay still please!"

Forcibly pulling out his mana, Kress manifested translucent shields above all of them, the phantasmal steel locked in place by etheric anchors. If Yvaine's song magic could punch through steel, then that was that (and in which case fleshy humans like Kress and Misaiya were basically dead), but if not, then it was fine! Probably. The rain of light began to fall, and all he could do now was hope that his defenses worked.

It seemed like everyone in this academy was virtuous. Yvaine and Kress were caring even to their adversaries, Ankaa was refreshingly honest — and good Misaiya, meanwhile, was committing perfidy in order to gain an advantage in a friendly spar. Hoo-ray.

Misaiya could only guess at what sort of calamity was occurring above and around him. The two mages’ voices had drawn near, and from what he could hear it would be best to continue his mid-battle recess for a little while longer. Until Yvaine’s ‘something big’ had passed, at least.

Now that he was temporarily bereft of his sight, Misaiya began to listen more closely to the soundscape of the arena. There were shouts and shrieks, clashing metal, the sounds of magic: fireballs, earthwalls, waterfalls, animal calls… no, those were humans all right, they just screamed like beasts. A diverse and complex melody, some avant-garde musician might have called it, although it was a little too experimental for his tastes. Yvaine’s singing was a better fit for his preferences. The hymns were in a tongue he did not know, but her voice was so heavenly and waitaminute.

Oh. Sudden realisation time.

It was the middle of the day. The sun was at its peak. Yvaine was a mage with something up her sleeve. She used a scroll and sang hymns and resembled a novice plucked from a nunnery. She could grow wings that looked to be made of stars. There were numerous faiths that worshipped and called upon the heavenly bodies for power.

Yvaine‘s about to drop the Sun on our heads, isn’t she?

It was an apt and well-timed prediction, if slightly astronomically imprecise. The sun was merely a solitary star. But in the next instant there were tens and dozens and hundreds of stars descending from the heavens, each brilliant and bright, each a Sun in its own right. In the beginning, it was said: let there be light —

And there was light.

The world grew silent and strangely dim, save for the roaring of the light. The light was beaming and blinding, blazing and blinding; beautiful to behold, and to witness, blinding. The stars had been heralds of a holy hell that they themselves wrought. The light infiltrated the earth and floated with the air. In every place, it was there. It was blinding — but this hell was harmless. To Misaiya, at least. He couldn't feel anything much besides the all-pervasive sensation of the light, though he had Kress’s barriers to thank for that. And since his eyes were closed and his head buried in the ground, he had inadvertently put himself in the best possible position to avoid the dazzling wrath of the stars well in advance. As a result, he still retained his sight - though it wasn't like he could tell the difference at the moment.

Wow, I’m still alive. It was equal parts amazement and relief. But even as the starfall trickled to an end, Misaiya remained unmoving as the mountain, and showed no signs of rousing. After all, escaping further injury didn’t mean the collision earlier hadn’t left him any less sore. Plus, Kress had put the magic shields directly over him - he couldn't get up even if he'd tried.

It was pleasant for all of five seconds, like a scene straight out of a fairy tale. Kress looked upwards in amazement as the stars fell like rain, his own translucent barrier serving as an umbrella against the coming storm. They splattered harmlessly against his shield, as effective as hailstones and then EXPLODED IN BURSTS OF SEARING LIGHT!

"AGGGGGGHHHHHHHH!"

Kress immediately closed his eyes, hands over his face as he curled into a ball, the afterimage of those microexplosions seared into the inside of his eyelids as serpents of red and orange light. So they were blinding? Shit, he took everything back about how pretty they all were; this was awful! But on the other hand, wasn't this still pretty interesting? If Yvaine hadn't warned him about it, he probably wouldn't have raised his defenses to begin with. It was just that pretty, wasn't it? Really made one want to reach out and catch one of those globes of light, like you'd catch a snowflake during the first snowfall of the season. Still with his eyes shut, Kress felt for his abacus, his pianist fingers dancing up and down it before feeling the grooves in the beads that told him what they were.

Moments later, he made himself a chair and sat down on it, as he continued to mull over whether or not the starfall spellsong also had a hypnosis or entrancement effect.

Time passed. The starfall ended. Kress opened his eyes, the world looking strangely dark now that it wasn't being lit up by the radiance of a thousand suns.

Walking over to where Yvaine and the still-unconscious Misaiya was, he offered the lady a hand to get back up, removing the shield over both his friends. "So, does that mean I win, or do you wanna go at it some more?"

Yvaine wiped the beads of sweat rolling down her temple, straining to keep the last note of Sunrise on pitch. The glowing glyph that appeared beneath Misaiya was smaller and dimmer than her usual, unable to be sustained for too long as she drew on her reserve reserves, but it was better than nothing. At the very least, Misaiya won't have a terrible headache when he awakens.

When she heard Kress approach, Yvaine slowly opened her eyes to look for him. Starfall should have ended moments ago, but it never hurt to be cautious. Even she wasn't completely immune to its dazzling effects. She shuddered at the thought; her stars weren't painful, per se, but its debilitating effects were still unpleasant, almost reminiscent of severe vertigo.

"Kress, you're unhurt!" Yvaine smiled at the sight of the blue mage looking no worse for wear and accepted the helping hand he offered, only to fall back down again as her knees buckled almost immediately. Ah, she might have overexerted herself quite a bit! "Thank goodness for your wonderful shields! I don't think we would have much enjoyed being stunned."

After attempting and failing to get up one more time, Yvaine flashed Kress a sheepish grin and bowed her slightly, conceding defeat. "I'm afraid I've no energy to spare at the moment. I believe that makes you the winn-- oh!"

Click.

Looming over Kress by a whole head was Misaiya, a little ragged and bruised, but far less exhausted than what would be expected of such an intense spar. In his left hand he gripped his air rifle, its barrel resting on Kress’s back with a freshly chambered bullet inside. Held against the shorter mage’s shoulder was the dull, cool blade of his classmate's machete.

Yvaine. Kress. I am so sorry.

Misaiya had escaped the cascade of stars unmolested — only because, he would note, he had the fortune of having the kindest, most empathetic people in the world as his opponents — and thanks to Yvaine’s healing, even the pain of his earlier bodyslamming-into-magic-walls plan had subsided. He was practically as fighting-fit as he had been at the start of the combat. As a result, the moment he found himself free from the protective prison of Kress’s shields, Misaiya had stood up. He was half-expecting to get pummeled by spells as soon as someone noticed, but it wasn't like he had arisen without a purpose.

At this point the two mages had surely displayed enough of their spellcasting ability to pass. Among the three, Misaiya's performance had by far been, without doubt, the most lacklustre. Of course, Nyx seemed like a fickle man, and nothing at all was guaranteed: but it made for a convenient justification for the time being to go all out in biting the hands that had just fed him so much.

Misaiya had already drawn the machete and slid the rifle off his shoulder. He had psyched himself up for confronting and all but betraying his classmates who had done nothing but help him. He had been scheming from the outset to remove himself from the fight early and take on whichever of the two was left standing; planning to take advantage of their civility and friendliness to play the wounded gazelle without drawing suspicion; biding his time even as they kept him safe, waiting for the opportune moment to arise and take action once they had been manipulated into checkmate. It had all been premeditated, and it had been a resounding success.

But even so — no, even more so because of this, it was disgust at himself that Misaiya felt when he took aim at his friend.

”Kress. I am pointing a loaded gun at your back, and a machete at your neck. Surrender.”

It was pragmatism. It was betrayal. It was permitted. It was cruel. It was the correct way to win.

But surely this isn't right.

There was silence for a moment. Around them all, battles continued on, explosions of magic and exertions of physical ability. From behind, Misaiya could see the tensing in Kress's body, a total stillness in the mage's movements. Restraint? Or anticipation? Seconds passed by. Seconds and then, movement.

Kress fell down, the rifle sliding up his back as the machete rose over his shoulder. In that instant, magic surged out from his fingertips, entwining with the beads in his abacus to trigger another creation!

Pomf.

Kress sat down on a newly created chair, and leaned his head against the back of the chair, looking up at Misaiya. A wide grin was on his face as he declared, "Last man standing, right? Gratz on your win!" His abacus rested on his lap, and he flicked the beads up and down again, structuring a new spell. "Now, uh, hm...looks like we've still got a bit before everything wraps up, and no one's dead or anything, so how about the two of you clean up? Sorry again about all the stuff I pulled, but the only actual offensive spell I have involves launching a spear, so...what can I do, neh?"

He stood up, and in front of him, a sphere of revolving water formed, roughly the size of a human's head. Steam wafted from it, and within, white, soapy suds began to swirl as well. With a small flourish, Kress motioned to Yvaine.

"Ladies gotta make themselves presentable first, right?"

As Misaiya was crowned the victor, in a surprising twist that to Yvaine, only cemented his strategic prowess, Yvaine cheered. She wondered if he had planned every action he had taken—ah, like his shoe hitting her! That was quite well-timed.

"Well fought, Misaiya!" Yvaine congratulated. Then she turned to Kress, eyes wide in wonder as she watched the soapy bubble rotating in front of him as though caught in a miniature whirlpool. "That's amazing!"

She heaved herself up with great effort and walked clumsily toward him to inspect his magic water closer. Such a practical spell! Her hands curiously reached in and cupped soapy water into her hands, watching delightedly as it washed away the grime that coated her fingers. She'd almost forgotten what a mess she looked, with her hair and face caked in mud and her dress sticky with the tea.

"Please proceed," Yvaine positioned herself directly in front of Kress and closed her eyes, bracing herself. She was under the assumption that he would be pouring it over her again, as he did with the tea.

Had the rifle’s air reservoir not been punctured and emptied, Misaiya wasn’t sure if he would have shot Kress for moving or not. But his finger never reached for the trigger, and the machete blade stayed put even as Kress shifted and fell and… plopped onto a chair. Magical, of course.

It was Misaiya's victory. He wasn't exhilarated. Just, exhausted.

And — bless them and their selfless hearts — his classmates were already congratulating him. There was no veiled resentment in Kress’s smile, no deceit in Yvaine’s words. Their sincerity only made the guilt worse. Well-fought my foot. What I did wasn’t fighting. What strong people they were; how caring in action and pure in heart! If he had instead lost, Misaiya wasn’t sure how he would have reacted.

”Yvaine, Kress. Thank you. Both of you are skilled spellcasters. But you two are also incredibly kind — and I took advantage of that kindness to win.”

What sort of expression would be best? In his chest he felt the leaden weight of a heavy heart and guilty conscience. But at that moment his face showed only the same neutrality he had adopted at the start of the spar: mild melancholy, albeit this time faintly tinged with regret. He had just met these people, these classmates of his. They had no problems with what he’d done or what sort of person he was. Yet why was he feeling so strongly about this?

”That’s entirely on me. I have much to learn from the two of you." Even if that Nyx expelled him from Avalice, it had been a day of enrichment and enlightening experiences. Looking at things from that perspective, then maybe there was nothing to regret. "You all are good people: better than I, for certain. Stay that way.”

Misaiya hadn't anything else to say, so he quickly excused himself and went to pick up his shoes, his pole, and the machete handle that had popped off at some point, all strewn here and there across the field. Nothing had been broken to irreparability, not even the damaged reservoir - although that would need a specialist’s care, he had a few spares anyhow. He reminded himself to retrieve the robes he had earlier left at the outskirts fo the arena, away from the action. Those could not be replaced.

When Misaiya returned back to his classmates’ side, it appeared that it was time to wash up. Watching Yvaine rinse her hands, he all of a sudden grew conscious of the fact that he still had a little soil in his mouth. Hopefully it didn’t have parasites or heavy metals or somesuch in it.

Kress had conjured another ball of water, this time a little warmer and with what appeared to be soap in it. Yvaine was waiting expectantly, eyes closed, standing in front of the cleaner mage. Surely she didn’t expect him to — never mind, she was definitely waiting for another magic shower. Well, they were already soaked from the tea, so getting more water dumped on their heads couldn’t make things worse. Misaiya couldn't deny that it was a tempting prospect, but…

”Pour the water on Yvaine first,” he flicked his hand at her, ”but save your energy if you're tired. I can survive until we're released to the dorms.”

"Hey, c'mon now, Misaiya," Kress said, tilting his head in his friend's direction. "Some people win by winning and other people win by losing; it's just how the cards fall sometimes. One day, your...intelligence will probably work in my favour anyhow, so if you wanna not feel bad about this, just sharpen your noggin and do something nice for the two of us in the future! And please, I'm a spellcaster. I've got plenty of energy left."

A slight exaggeration, true, but it wasn't as if Kress was so weak as to keel over after only a handful of mundane spells.

As he spoke, the sphere of water began to float up and down Yvaine's hair, streaming between the strands to wash away particles of dirt and the residue of the tea. Kress's fingers worked carefully as well, untangling clumps of hair before they turned into knots from hell, while making sure that the ends didn't just hit the ground again. It always confused him, why people grew their hair out so much. It looked nice and all, but also looked like a bother to care for.

Once Yvaine's hair was cleaned up, Kress pulled his sphere upwards and frowned. He used to do it for his mom all the time, but now that he thought about it some more, Yvaine was a girl. One that he really only met just now, honestly. Probably would be unbecoming of him to wash her face too. Yeah. Alright. Definitely unbecoming. He pulled out his embroidered handkerchief instead, wet it in the swirling contents of his 'Make Clean' spell, and offered it to Yvaine.

"Uh, here." Kress wiped his other hand on his pants, looking off to the side. "For your face."

Another spell click-clacked into his abacus, and warm air billowed out from behind Yvaine. He still needed to clean up Misaiya, but right now, all Kress wanted was for Professor Nyx to call them all in for classes again.

In her exhaustion, Yvaine could have taken a nap right where she stood, but it was Kress' magic, weaving in and out of her hair like it was playing with each strand, that soothed her nearly to sleep. Only Misaiya's solemn acceptance of his victory, overflowing with so much sincerity that it touched her heart, had kept her awake and in rapt attention. She nodded fervently as Kress responded with wonderfully upbeat words of encouragement, stopping only when she realized she was causing water to splash about by doing so.

"Sister Agatha liked to say that it was important for us to 'look beyond the pieces and see the whole board.' I never understood what she meant, but thanks to you, Misaiya, I think I'm starting to!"

By the time Kress had finished with her hair, and with the help of his handkerchief—quite the gentleman, he was!—Yvaine felt beyond refreshed. Only the sweet scent of peppermint that lingered in her dress remained of his earlier attack. She still felt the aches that came with overuse of her mana, but it was all the more tolerable. "Thanks so much, Kress," she would have to make it up to him later; perhaps with some baked goods to go along with tea. For now, she settled with a quick kiss on his cheek to show her gratitude. "Your spells are amazing!"

All around them, the chaos that filled the vast arena was dwindling. It seemed everyone else had been wrapping up their fights, as well. Yvaine had been slightly disappointed she couldn't observe the others, but she would ask Professor Nyx about it later. Perhaps he had cast a spell to record everything! That would be wonderful.

"Well, shall we find the professor and see how we did?" Yvaine positioned herself between Misaiya and Kress, cheerfully grabbing both their hands as she led them forward.

World Beyond the Lexicon

Yvaine listened to their young professor in rapt attention as he explained the nature of mana, the power of a Lexicon, and the significance of control. The lattermost was a subject she was very familiar with, one drilled into apostles from the moment they set foot in the priory. Discipline above else was prioritized and all the nuns endeavored to teach different ways of learning to channel and control one's mana. Yvaine in particular had favored the ways of Sister Agatha, who was in charge of the mystic class. She had taught all manner of techniques used to attain the three-fold mind, states derived from the celestial bodies. From the Moon, serenity. From the Sun, clarity. From the Stars, tenacity. It was said that mastering all three was necessary to perfect one's control over their mana, but each mental state on its own has its benefits.

The professor's sudden call for one-on-one (on-one, in her case) bouts meant she would have to use these techniques in practice. It seemed Avalice would never cease to amaze her with its constant surprises! Yvaine was excited, though, so much so that she completely overlooked the high stakes involved. She had observed many practice fights like this in the priory, and she had always wondered what it was like to participate in one. Professor Nyx has given her this chance now; she only hoped she could make him—and her opponents—proud with her efforts.

After wishing Mandi and Sophiel luck with their own matches, Yvaine headed over to find her group. Immediately her eyes were drawn to a flash of blue and the fine attire; there was something about the first boy that made Yvaine feel immediately comfortable. Across from him was someone taller with robes that she recognized from her books as Suanneipuan in origin. Contrasting what she felt earlier with the boy with the azure soul, Yvaine's initial impression of him was one tinged slightly with gray discomfort. Yvaine appreciated his scholarly mannerisms and civility, but there was something in him that brought to mind the bleak rigidity of the priory.

Ah, but one must not be so quick to judge! Yvaine knew that first impressions never gave you the whole story. She would just have to get to know them better later. Right now, she had to focus on giving it her all—anything less would be disrespectful.

"Well met, Kress, Misaiya," she smiled at each in turn, a giddy sort of excitement gleaming in her eyes. "Let us all do our best!"

World Beyond the Lexicon

@ERode Since we got a three-way going, we might benefit more from a collab?

Avatar | The New Cycle

Interested as well! Though also would like clarification of the time period.