//------------------------------// // Chapter Six: A Duel Between Elites! // Story: The Equestria Academy of Magic: A New Star // by Sorcerer //------------------------------// Karate club was... interesting. The instructor was a prefect named Sticks, and he was a little odd. He wore a kasa, those flat, bowl-shaped hats you always see sensei's wear in those cheap martial arts movies, only this time it was for real. He only spoke when asked a question or when he was showing us a combination to practice on our partners. I don't think he was fluent in our language and only spoke in brief phrases or sentences like 'No,' 'Yes,' and 'Okay, go on' so as not to make a mistake. I think the club name should've been changed to "Organized Throw-Jonathan Club" because that's really all we did. Everyone wanted a piece of me like I was some kind of new punching bag that needed to be softened up. I sparred probably seven people in grappling matches which all ended in utter defeat. What was odd about the whole experience was the fact that Mura gave me the stink eye the whole time. "What did I do wrong?" I thought to myself, and the idea echoed in my head over and over as Mura tossed me around like a ragdoll into the nearby concrete wall of the multi-purpose room and chucked me off the set of blue exercise mats we all laid out to cushion our falls. Truth be told, I had so many bruises, I looked like a carrier of some debilitating disease. I was beginning to get kind of pissed off at Mura now. I mean, it just bothered me when I saw someone so... contained about their feelings, it drove me mental, especially when those feelings were about me. I ignored it again to the best of my ability, but I couldn't help but feel like a giant asshat whenever she looked my way. So, my class moved onto the next subject, Magic History. You know that feeling when you're on the edge of your seat? Actually, scratch that, do you know that feeling when you've got a class that you've been waiting for all day, and you're basically slitting your own throat from anticipation because Magic History class is as exciting as going to a second-hand store with your grandma? Well, that's how it felt in my opinion when being taught by Professor Armorè. Magic History as a subject was interesting, no doubt, but Professor Armorè's teaching methods were... let's say dry. There's nothing I hate more than comprehension questions, you know, those questions confused first-year teachers or old teachers would give you. Those questions, in a nutshell, are basically "Did you remember this?", "What happened in this chapter of your textbook?", "Are you dead yet?", things like that. Magic History didn't last too long, mostly because I was just slacking off and doodling. Time flies when you're doing something you enjoy, but that's common knowledge. After one excruciating hour of Magic History, my class jumped up out of their seats at the sound of the bell and ran to Professor Dragoon's room just down the hall. "Hey, wait up!" Miles shouted out to me as he caught up, and my other friends followed him. "Man, you were pretty eager to get out of Professor Armorè's class!" "We all were, Miles," Fraylick added with a 'matter of fact' attitude. "Well, I think sleepy-head beat us in terms of boredom." Saffron implied as she gestured to me. "Sleepy-head?" I thought out-loud. "Did I...?" "You dozed off a few times during the period, dude," Saffron giggled. "You're lucky I propped your head up to make it look like you were awake. You owe me, man." I thought for a moment and realized she was right. My memory of Magic History was in fragments. "Damn, you're right... crap." "Like I said... you owe me," She smirked with a smug expression as she walked ahead of me and into the classroom. My class and I were caught off guard when we entered the room. Everything was in order, but the blackboard was missing, and there was a hastily scribbled note crudely pasted onto the side of Professor Dragoon's metal desk that read "MEET ME OUTSIDE AT THE TRACK SOUTH OF THE CENTRAL PLAZA, I'VE GOT A SURPRISE FOR YOU GUYS..." We all were a little sceptical at first, seeing as how this was the first day of formal classes, but we obliged and met him at the sixteen hundred meter track. He stood on the track in the grass where people would usually gather to watch the races with his blackboard, and he was accompanied by a row of around fifty archery targets set up behind him. He also had someone with him, someone that we all recognized, and all of our jaws pretty much hit the floor the instant we saw her standing there. It was Sweetie Belledonna, the leader of The Ten Elite. "No. Freakin'. Way," Fraylick gasped. Sweetie was an icon at the time, and she still is. She embodied the dream of every aspiring wizard to reach for the stars. She was known as one of the best wizards in history and for good reason. She not only single-handedly defeated a battalion of enemy troops in The Second Changeling War, but defeated the much older, far more experienced mages of Arcane Tower after graduating from The E.A.M. They were all so impressed by her dedication and tenacity, they guaranteed her a spot in their ranks once one of their own stepped down. What was most impressive about her was the fact she was still so young. At the mere age of twenty-two, she was leading the most powerful group of people in the known world. So yeah, the mere sight of her made us cry tears of pure joy. "Everyone, I'd like you to meet one of my closest friends, Sweetie Belledonna, who... based on your speechless expressions, doesn't really need an introduction." Professor Dragoon chuckled as he watched us all stutter and gawk at her. "We decided to team up for our first class today and go over the basics with you again, but don't worry, we'll get to duel today. Sweetie, take it away." "Certainly, Spencer." She nodded with a chipper tone and fascinated expression that only a child could make. Based on the fact that she called him by his first name, I could tell they were fairly close friends. "After a lengthy and in-depth conversation at bowling night a week ago, your Professor and I decided to team up for this first class, with permission from the folks at Arcane Tower and your headmistress! Now, I'm sure you all have a ton of questions you want to ask me, but I'm afraid answering them all would take a millennia, which I don't think you can squeeze into an hour. So, let's make some magic why don't we?" Sweetie spoke in a proper fashion, but there was a hint of childlike playfulness to her demeanour that contradicted her speech patterns. Her pale skin went hand-in-hand with her pink and purple hair, and her bright green eyes were filled to the brim with curiosity and compassion. She wore a white turtleneck and paired it with a thin, lavender coloured scarf. Her acid-washed jeans went surprisingly well with her fuzzy white boots, and it further enhanced her bright-eyed and innocent appearance. She also wore a pair of purple, leather gloves, which, I didn't really pay attention to at first. I looked back at Augustine and grinned a little upon witnessing her expression. It was quite obvious she was a total fangirl, and she was eagerly jumping up and down on the inside. Upon noticing my reaction to her contained excitement, she scoffed and crossed her arms. "What are you staring at?" I shrugged, and she sighed at me in disappointment. "Such a fangirl..." Saffron muttered, which almost made Augustine explode. "Now, I'm sure you all know the basics," Sweetie said as she grabbed the blackboard with her magic and kept it suspended in the air next to her. She grabbed a piece of chalk and started drawing an idea bubble, the one you'd draw when you brainstorm. She started with one large bubble in the center and labelled it 'Magic'. "This is all magic," She then took the chalk and divided it into three separate bubbles. "These are the three classes of magic, Offensive, Defensive, and Passive," She branched off of each bubble and divided them into three more bubbles for each class, nine in total. "These are the sub-classes of magic. We have Offensive Spells: Ranged, Physical, and Burst. We have Defensive Spells: Walls, Shields, and Traps. And finally, we have Passive Spells: Augmentation, Healing, and Illusion. As you all know, every class and subclass relates to one another in some way and can be applied in different ways." "Wow," Augustine sighed as she swooned over Sweetie's eloquent lecture, and Saffron and I giggled in response to her girly obsession. "Shut up!" "Now, for today's class, we'll be showing you the basics of Ranged Offensive Spells. So, find a target of your own and work with it. I want you in a line, about twenty feet away from your target," She instructed us, and we all found an archery target. "We'll be using raw, general magic for now, no specialized abilities or powers. We'll be focusing on a simple magic blast, so just focus your internal energies, use the pure magic within you and hold it in your hand." We all obeyed and each student, including me, raised their hand towards their target and began to charge up a small sphere of magical energy in their hand. I made a ball of yellow energy, celestial and sparkling, unique to my family. It wasn't the brightest or most impressive, but it was certainly something. Like a dim campfire glowing with an entrancing aura that can be described as humble and warm. Fraylick's magic was red and crackling, like a blazing torch the Vikings of ancient history would carry into battle to light fields ablaze. It was spastic, unstable, like a bomb about to go off. Augustine's was a dark green colour, like a deep forest at midnight or an emerald. Mura's was blue like an ocean, tense, mysterious, yet full of wonder and contained vigour. And Saffron's orange magic aura was like electricity, precise and powerful, arcing like a short-circuiting wire. Miles aura was purple and hypnotizing, like a crystal ball or a ghostly entity, humming an odd tune. "Now that we're all set, I want you to hurl it at your target, but show restraint... I don't want you to make them explode, hit the center, and just focus on accuracy for now," Sweetie ordered us. "Also, I don't want you to blow them up because Archery Club would be pretty ticked off if they found their targets blown to pieces. Fire away, guys." We all hurled our magic at the targets, and a vast majority of the students hit the center, or just close enough. However, I missed completely, and my magic attack ricocheted off the ground and dissipated after a few seconds of flight as it shot up into the sky. My face turned bright red, mostly due to the fact that Sweetie was right next to me. "Your magic has heart, but it needs guidance, a clear path. You have to really get a feel for it, man." She encouraged me as she pointed over to my target. "It's Jonathan Star, right?" I nodded nervously in response to her question. "Well, Jonathan, I want you to focus on that target. This is your foe. Keep your eye on the target, and let your body go through the motions. Don't be so tense." I relaxed my body as she watched me charge up another blast. "There you go..." I fired off another shot, and it hit right on the mark that time. A wave of relief swept over me, and I sighed with a confident smile. "Awesome! See? You're just nervous, that's all!" She cheered enthusiastically as she moved on to the next student to my left, who was having some trouble with his posture. "Isn't she just awesome?" Miles grinned as he fired a blast at his target. "I can't believe the Professor was able to get her to come out here," I replied. "You'd think she'd have other, more pressing matters to attend to." "Well, she may be the leader, but I hear she has a pretty open schedule, or... that's just what Canterlot Wizard's Quarterly says about her." Miles admitted as he fired another blast. "Canterlot Wizard's Quarterly?" I asked. "What's that?" "Only the bestselling magazine in Canterlot!" Miles informed me with great interest. "There's lots of cool stuff in that magazine. Tons of facts and trivia, and it really goes in-depth." "That book is for nerds, don't read it." Fraylick chimed in with sarcasm in his tone. "Ha ha..." Miles rolled his eyes as he kept firing at his target with pinpoint accuracy, hitting the center every time. "Nice aim, Miles. You've improved a lot since last year!" Professor Dragoon complimented him, and he lit up almost instantaneously. "Really?!" He said with a shocked expression. "You mean it?" "Of course! I think you'll make a great duellist, Miles!" He beamed as he moseyed over to Fraylick, who wasn't hitting any of his shots. I found Fraylick to be a little bit of a spitfire with his magic, impatient and stubborn, preferring raw power over precision. For every shot he missed, he became more and more frustrated with his target, and ramped up the power of his shots, so much that they burned chunks of grass when they hit the ground. "Whoa, calm down there, dude." Saffron tried to relax him as she put her hand on his shoulder. "She's right, Fraylick, you should simmer down, and that's coming from a fire-wizard," Professor Dragoon insisted as he aided him. "You need to stay calm, and focus that rage into a single point, that target." Fraylick nodded reluctantly and took several deep breaths before finally preparing another sphere of magical power. As his eyes met the target, he closed them for a moment, then hurled his magic at it with the accuracy of a sniper, striking it dead-on. "Awesome! And all you had to do was channel that rage, contain it to a point." Professor Dragoon gave him a cheerful smile and a pat on the back before moving on to another student. After a while, Sweetie and the professor stopped us, and we all shook our hands vigorously, as magic-casting tends to wear on the hands a bit. Professor Dragoon checked his silver wrist watch and looked over to Sweetie. "Three fifty... we have about five more minutes of class time, want to show off a bit for the class?" "Sounds like fun, Spencer. Let's do it!" She cheered as she pumped her fist in the air like a teenager in a rave. "So how about it kids? Want to see us duel each other for a bit?" Again, we were all speechless. "I'll take that as a yes!" They told us to back up to the very edge of the grass next to the surrounding track as they prepared themselves for a duel. Professor Dragoon brushed the dirt off of his white dress shirt and clapped his hands together, activating his magical power. His hands ignited in a burning green inferno, and his eyes were set ablaze with the same flame. His flames seemed to roar like a mighty dragon as he raised his hands towards his opponent as he got down into a ready position. Sweetie removed her gloves and rolled up her sleeves to reveal her steel, mechanical limbs, which was pretty shocking to me. I would've never imagined a small and unthreatening woman like herself to have such a hardy, sturdy feature to her form. I was in awe, "What are those for?" "She has those to cater to her specific powers, the ability to control the velocity of her own body and objects she comes in contact with. She replaced her own arms and legs to better withstand her own power." Miles informed me. "Damn," I shook my head in disbelief. "That's hardcore." Sweetie and Professor Dragoon nodded to each other once, then began their duel. In that instant, Sweetie vanished out of thin air, then materialized behind Professor Dragoon. Sweetie launched a blindingly fast kick, but the professor blocked it skilfully with his right arm. His forearm he used to block took on a purple, scaly texture, and it absorbed the mighty blow that would've flattened anyone else in the class with ease. The impact sent out a faint but noticeable shockwave that shook everyone to the core. "Wow, I felt that from here," Saffron chuckled lightly, impressed by the powerful display of their magical capabilities. "I didn't even see her move." Fraylick gawked at Sweetie. "What were those scales that formed on the professor's arms just now?" I asked Miles. "They're dragon scales, an augmentation magic he learned from dragons," Miles replied. "The professor picked up all his magic abilities from dragons after studying them for many years." "I didn't even know that was possible..." I muttered to myself. Professor Dragoon launched himself into the air using the flames that escaped his hands and soared high above Sweetie. "Hey, no fair!" Sweetie huffed as she opened her clenched fist and thrust her hand forward, towards the professor, as if she were high-fiving the air. Without warning, her hand suddenly let out an intense 'boom' noise, and a shockwave escaped her hand that knocked the professor out of the sky. "Air Palm-Heel!" "What was that?" I wondered. "When she moved her hand forward like that, she pushed the air around it forward, then she accelerated the air she pushed to hypersonic speeds. That's what made that shockwave." Miles observed in detail. The professor recovered within seconds, and before Sweetie could land a blow on him, he surprised her with a fiery trap beneath her feet that erupted into a blazing pillar of emerald fire. "Burning Ascent!" The attack blew her back a few feet and left her open again, which gave the professor enough time to launch another attack. He charged up a ball of fire in both his hands and tossed it at her without even thinking. "Dragon Bomb!" Sweetie blocked the attack with the green magic sphere she surrounded herself with and launched a counterattack with another air 'high-five'. "Air Palm-Heel!" Professor Dragoon dodged that time, and followed up with a fiery fist, but... he stopped before his fist made contact with her face. He looked down at his watch nervously as he heard the bell ring."We got a little carried away, I think." "Crap." Sweetie said with an embarrassed expression. "Sorry about that, kids... we should've stopped earlier." There was an awkward silence, but it was brief. We all broke out into joyous applause and cheer, still struck by their brilliant display. It was the most excitement we had seen all day, and we were pretty satisfied. Admittedly, I kind of lost track of time two. "Don't worry about your questions, kids! I'll be here all day!" Sweetie tried to reassure her disappointed fans who didn't get their questions answered. "Thank you, everyone, I'll clean this up with Sweetie, you guys get in your sports-gear," He ground his teeth together nervously. "Man, Ms. Dashner is gonna be pissed at me..."