Metal Working

by 1000Fights

Rise of the Viking-Into Battle

Much to the joy of thousands, the week Ignatius had returned had come to a close. At the week's end, many people converged to the cities central hub outside of Canterlot Castle. Vendors were selling food and drinks. Local marketers shouted about their low prices and fair deals as they attempted to sell their memorabilia. The smell of excitement and anticipation filled the air. Oh, what a remarkable sight this day was! Well, that is how it was going for the Wonderbolts Stadium across from the College of Combatives Magic.

On the other side of the street, half the amount of one section of the Wonderbolts Stadium walked into the College's stadium. It was set up nicely enough. Bleachers that were made high and an enormous fighting pit below with a good stone floor emblazoned with the royal crest. The bleachers were made of stone with velvet padding on the seats. Each spectator had plenty of room to sit for barely anyone chose to come to this occasion.

Ignatius took his seat at the front row as was customary for family and, close friends if seating was available, to take. Twilight Sparkle, along with her brother, Shining Armor, sat next to the leather clad man.

"Kind of an empty house." Ignatius pointed out. He noticed that he and his companions were the only ones in about forty feet of anyone else in either direction.

"Yeah, this bout isn't exactly the most exciting thing to go to." Shining Armor admitted. "I have seen only one of these things and I have got to say, they get boring really fast."

"How fast?" Ignatius inquired.

"About as fast as a virgin on his first time." the royal guard whispered into the man's ear. The both of them shared a laugh at that as Twilight was left out of the fun and pouted slightly. She did not like being left out of stuff, though over time, the pain of such things seemed to be fading away.

"Aw, don't worry, little sis." Shining Armor said as he wrapped his arm around her shoulder. "You'll be able to share in on the fun when you've done enough studying on the subject." the guardsman hoped that his sister wouldn't be complete with her 'studying' on the matter until he was good and ready to accept such things.

Ignatius took a mental note as he noticed the pair. 'Shining Armor is a good example of a big brother. Notice his every move and implement maneuvers to reach desired results.'

"Oh! Oh! It's starting!" Twilight beamed as she notice the arena light up as the illuminating crystals in the floors, and the torches high on the walls sprang to life. The other torches around the tops of the stands began to dim slightly as the one before shone brightly.

From the middle of the field, a ball of sky blue energy formed and from its dying radiance, an entire group of mages appeared. Each of them ranging in both height and weight. However, one navy blue clad individual stood out as the tallest, and probably the heaviest out of all on them.

A proctor from the middle of the group wore white robes that stretched down to the floor, along with his brilliant, grey beard and flowing mane. He used his magic to float above the contestants, and put up his hands to silence the crowd's chatter.

"Contestants!" he began. The proctor's voice was booming and steady. One that another would expect to have come from an old man, but shared the same volume as one that would come from a microphone "You have voluntarily chosen to participate in one of the oldest traditions in Equestrian history. You all come from great families that have supported you this far, and now, you show them what you have learned so far. This arena was built during the time following Nightmare Moon's banishment in order to train those such as yourselves to become Battle Mages, in case the need to repel such a threat had it arisen. Today, we honor the memory of those brave enough to push their limits in order to show their strength in magic and become protectors of Equestria. Today is your day. Today you shall rise above your comrades in a duel and bring honor and glory to your names. Contestants! Ready yourselves. For the tournament is about to begin!"

A soft roar of clapping and whistling came from the stands as parents and family members cheered on their children. Ignatius and his band hollered to Aquinas, who smiled widely at them as he saw them wave and cheer.

The proctor put his hands up again to silence the crowd. "The rules are as follows: The tournament will last six rounds. Each round with have one on one matches with the victors advancing to the next round. Each match will last three, five minute intervals, or until one of the opponents is defeated or the time runs out. Only magic is to be used to touch your opponent. No physical contact will be allowed until the use of weapons is allowed in round four. Each contestant during these first three of six rounds will use whatever magic they can to dispatch their opponent. If you cannot perform another spell to attack or defend, you will be eliminated from the match and the round will continue. If you fall unconscious, you are eliminated also. If both members of the match are still standing when the hourglass runs dry, then it will be up to the judges to decide the victor."

The proctor took in a breath and bellowed, "Steel yourselves, young ones! For today you rise as champions!"

The crowd hooped, hollered, and whistled. Their enthusiasm was high, but Shining Armor knew that with one hundred and nine contestants, it was going to be a long day.

"May the spirits watch over your battles!"
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The first round began with the ring of a large bell. Two contestants took their places across from each other and, on the command of the proctor, the two mages unleashed their fury. One's magic pushing against the other in a struggle for dominance. It was quite a sight to see. That is, until that was the only thing the mages did until the one of them ran out of steam. Most of the later matches went off in a similar fashion, and it was not until the fifth match that the fights started to get interesting. The use of burst magic like lightning bolts, fire balls and frost spikes along with shields made it all worth watching, until that in itself became a back and forth motion of attack and defense fighting. Ignatius ended up sleeping through most of the matches and found little interest in any of these fights. If one could consider them fights. Ignatius was used to the upfront confrontation that brought you to use your skills to parry and counter-attack your foe in a blaze of fury. But this, this was just boring.

That is, until Aquinas took his place in the arena. The warrior in leather was jolted awake when he heard his brother's name being called. He looked down to find that his brother was taking his place across from a peculiar mage. He was average height, but lacked muscle mass. He wore an ocean blue garment that had gold sticking on the front to make a family crest. His name was announced as Sea Wave. He shared a striking resemblance to one of the bullies that were harassing Twilight.

"That's Sea Wave." Shining Armor said. "He's a blood relative to the shipping baron that runs the most successful company to ever sail the seas. He's also one of the up and coming protégés of Equestria's better teachers in combatives magic."

"He's also cousin to Sea Star." Twilight sneered.

"Should Aquinas be worried?" Ignatius asked with more than a hint of concern.

Shining Armor nodded his head. "Yes, he should." The grimness in his voice solidified his claim. "If Aquinas isn't careful, Sea Wave can mop the floor with him."

Ignatius head told him to pull him out of there, but his heart said to have his brother stand and fight. He could not decide which one to listen to. His body was becoming uneasy as he thought of all the possibilities of how Aquinas could get hurt, but he also knew how much damage he could take. He looked down to his brother and knew that Aquinas would never back down from this. Ignatius had to believe that his brother would be okay.
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Aquinas' eyes narrowed as he stood silently across the arena from his opponent. His blood boiled as he remembered all the humiliation that he had suffered through the months at the college at this one's hands. The battle mage across from the Naval Officer smirked triumphantly, as if he already knew the outcome of the battle. He flipped his sea foam white hair, and his smile grew.

The ring of the bell released the tension and the battle began. Sea Wave lashed out with a quick magic bolt as soon as the metal was struck. Aquinas reacted quickly enough to put up a shield and deflect the blow. He then charged his own bolt of magic and hit Sea Wave's shield that he had put up. The match continued in this way for some time. Each side pitting their magic attack against the other in a display of power. Navy blue against sea blue. The first interval was about to end. Neither side showing any side of exhaustion. Aquinas took a breath of calm as he noticed the hourglass was about to run out, but as he looked back he noticed that his opponent was charging up both his hands and lifting them above his head. Aquinas acted quickly, and cast another bolt of energy, but when he did, Sea Wave slammed both his hands on the ground and a wave of blue came the officer's way. Aquinas' bolt was diminished as soon as it hit, and there was no way to dodge the monstrous wave. The heavyset man put up a shield with both hands and did his best to stop the wave. Alas, it was a futile effort. The energy from the spell broke Aquinas' shield and sent the man in blue flying backwards and tumbling to the ground. The round ended as Aquinas shakingly got to his feet.
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Ignatius saw his brother walked over to the chair that materialized on his side of the arena and sat down heavily in it. He only had three minutes to recover from the blow. The blacksmith flew down to his sibling while the rest of the cheering section teleported down to his side.

"What the fuck was that?" Aquinas bellowed.

"Sea Wave's signature spell." Shining Armor informed him. "Amply called the Wave, it takes a great deal of energy and magical strength to perform it, and even more to stop it."

"Is there any way to combat it?" Ignatius asked.

"You can concentrate your shields down to a smaller size." The guard went on. "Concentrating your shields and giving them more energy makes them stronger."

"But even with that, it would take a great amount of magic in your shield to stop that wave." Twilight said. "The speed at which that was going would take a lot of force to push that wave back."

Ignatius bent down to his brother's eyes and locked his blue gaze with his brother's hue of the same color.

"I don't think I can do this." The officer said. Ignatius heard his brother's fear in his voice. "With that kind of skill, I can't hope to beat him. He's been training with this stuff a hell of a ton more than I have."

"Those vanguards I took down had more skill than me, yet I still beat them." Ignatius reminded his brother. Aquinas thought back to that day in Celestia's court when his brother had made complete fools out of the elite royal guards. "But do you know how I beat them?" Aquinas shook his head. "I beat them because I used something against them that they couldn't defend against. I was lighter, faster, and I was already thinking of how to beat them while you were defending me against Celestia." Ignatius put his hands on Aquinas' shoulder. "Use something against him that he can't defend against." With that, the warning bell rang and the contestants and spectators took their places.

Time for the second interval.
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Aquinas took a stance as he put up his shield. Now a bit smaller, the naval man's power in his defense was greater. Sea Wave had his shield just as large as it was before, so Aquinas knew that he would have to use more power if he wanted to defeat his opponent's defense. Aquinas charged up his hands with a spell and let, not a bolt of magical energy, but lightning flew from his hands. The bolt cracked against Sea Wave's shield and actually looked to do a little bit of damage. However, Sea Wave let loose with hot fireballs that pelted Aquinas shields. The officer's brow became drenched with sweat as the heat of the flames danced on his shield. Aquinas renewed the strength in his defense and the flame disappeared. He then sent another crack of lightning the other man's way and hit him dead on. Aquinas was not finished though. He charged up another bolt and hit Sea Wave's shields again. The former was not about to let a third one strike. Sea Wave charged up his magic and let his fireball spell loose again. Aquinas saw the orbs of hell flame rocketing towards him and immediately put up both his hands to block them his defensive ward. As the flames died on the navy blue shield, so did Aquinas' confidence. For when the light of flame in front of his eyes disappeared, a wall of sea blue slammed into his shields and broke his defense once more. Aquinas' knees shook and tried to stand up after being tossed against the ground for a second time. This time, like last, he made it to his feet at the end of the interval. He took his spot on his seat and covered his face in shame. He saw that his brother and friends came to his side once more.

"I can't do it!" Aquinas said. "I'm not strong enough to face him."

"Yes, you are." Ignatius protested.

"I'm not even a good mage!" Aquinas bellowed back.

"Then don't fight like a mage!" Ignatius cried. "Fight like a Viking!" Ignatius took his brother by his shoulders. "Back in high school you had a name. A name that put fear in everyone that ever had the curse of walking on your field. That named changed when you made it the Naval Academy. And why?! To replace someone who you beat the living shit out of. The only reason they call you the Bull was because you took a man's title, but you already had a title. Your school's legacy lives on in you. The Vikings remember you. Time to show this asshole that the warriors your people get their name from deserve it. It's Viking time again. It's time for Odin to rise."

Aquinas' knees shook, and his head throbbed as he stood up. But as he did before, during all his games, he planted his feet and steeled his gaze. Ignatius knew this face well, and knew that this last interval would end epically.
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Aquinas took his stand with firm determination. However, even with that, his heart still sank when he saw Sea Wave already was launching his attack. Another wave came Aquinas' way and he tried to reacted, but even with all his might, he couldn't block the wave. He rolled three times and felt the taste of floor in his mouth. He heard his brother call out to him from the stands.

"Get up! Fight through the pain! Fight like a Viking!"

"Fight like a Viking!" Aquinas spat to himself. "By now a Viking would just use his . . ."

'Concentrating your shields and giving them more energy makes them stronger.'

'The speed at which that was going would take a lot of force to push that wave back.'

'Use something against him that he can't defend against.'

The voices of his friends and brother rang in his head and this gave him an idea. He stood up once more. He looked at his opponent as he celebrated his 'apparent' victory. However, Aquinas wouldn't let his pride go unwounded.

"Hey, pussy!" He shouted. Sea Wave's head snapped around. "Yeah, I'm talking to you fuck stick! Come and face me like a man, instead of like a short dick, little shit!"

"Why, you worm!" the proud mage said through clenched teeth. "I'll show you to insult me!" He charged up his hands even more this time. Wanting to exact revenge on his opponent for the barrage of insults.

Ignatius and the siblings all shared concerned looks. "What's he doing?" Twilight questioned.

"I think he's lost it." Shining Armor stated.

"He's got 'em right where he wants 'em." Ignatius said with a wicked grin.

The other two couldn't see it, but Ignatius knew his brother had a plan, and he had a good idea of what it was.

Sea Wave gathered up all his energy into this one attack. He would make it clear that no one, NO ONE, is to insult a man of the Sea family. He slammed his hands down to the stone floor and the wave he made was twice the size of the last one.

Undaunted by size, Aquinas stood firm until the spell was getting close, then he ran towards it. Everyone watched as he took strides towards it. Some thought he was going to try and run through it, but Ignatius saw it clear as day. He say the hip flex back and he saw the shoulder rise. And along with everyone else, he saw Aquinas' fist slam full speed into the wave of aqua. The spell violently jerked at the sudden impact, but almost as if it had to complete its intensions, the spell sped off at full speed in the other direction.

Sea Wave's eyes became as wide as dinner plates when he saw the display, and they nearly flew out of his head when his own spell turned on him. He put out his shield and tried to hold fast against his own magic, but try as he might, he still felt himself sliding against the ground and ended up succumbing to the effect of his spell and flew backwards and smacked into the wall behind him. Sea Wave tried to regain his feet, but as soon as he firmly planted both, a fist was firmly planted into his face.

Aquinas heaved his entire body into the next strike and made contact with the other side of his opponent's face. He made the next strike connect with Sea Wave's stomach. The latter spit up blood as his torso and head were ravaged by the savage warrior that kept coming at him with hit after hit, after hit, after hit. By the third minute's end, Sea Wave's face was beaten, bloody and ugly. Aquinas' arms started to get tired, but he decided that his arms would make one final act before the end of the round. Aquinas' arms glowed navy blue and he grabbed his opponent by the collar and the belt and lifted him over his head. Aquinas turned around from the wall and stepped into the center of the arena. He did a complete clockwise turn and paraded his prize. Everyone watched in abject horror as Aquinas squatted down and threw Sea Wave into the air above his head and as he came down, the warrior in navy blue slammed his fist into the former's face and the crowd watched as he tumbled on the floor before lying still on the ground. Aquinas threw up his arms and roared in triumph. He flexed his arms in praise in his abilities and his roar was released from his lungs in a thunder that would put a lion to shame. At the ring of the bell, the third interval was over. Aquinas had grabbed victory.
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The entire stadium was in shock. Never have they seen such a display. They were so content with seeing a fight going back and forth with only magic being used. For someone to use their own bodies, it was unheard of. So much so, that the silence that had taken the moment of shock was broken by the shouts and booing coming from the people above the arena. Aquinas stood proud and strong against the bellows of hate.

The head proctor teleported down to the triumphant warrior and put up his hands up to silence the crowd once more. He turned to the man in navy blue and stared into his eyes. The Officer didn't blink. The old man turned back to the crowd and proclaimed, "The winner is . . . Aquinas!"

The crowd reeled in horror at the statement. "How could he have won?!" A voice came from the arena. The voice's owner was Sea Wave's teacher. "He used physical contact! It's a strict rule and he broke it!" The educator pointed an accusatory finger his way. "He should be thrown out of the school for this outrage!"

"My brother did nothing wrong." Another voice stated. This one Aquinas knew. Ignatius folded his wings back in when he landed next to the proctor. "He used magic throughout the whole match." He turned to Aquinas. "Show 'em." The battle mage raised a fist and made it glow blue. It was faint, but it was there. "Aquinas hit Sea Wave with his shields the whole time, and since shields are magic, Aquinas was still following all the set rules."

"But, but, but . . ." The teacher stammered.

"No buts!" The proctor boomed. "The decision is final. Aquinas has proven his strength and will advance to the next round." The grey bearded man then turned to the rest of the crowd and with a loud voice said, "The round has ended! The next shall begin in one half hour. When the bell rings again, round two will begin and the bout will continue!"

The crowd babbled and cursed under their breath that someone like Aquinas was advancing through to the next round. However, no one was going to argue with a powerful mage like the Proctor. They all made their way out to the street for some fresh air, but because of the increase in oxygen, the hot air in the spectators' stuffy heads began to build pressure and their roaring voices garnered attention from the people who were leaving the Wonderbolts stadium. Some of them asked what was going on, and when they had heard of what had transpired, their adrenaline, already in a boil from the spectacular performance of the airborne daredevils, was now about to explode when they heard that a battle mage competition was getting this heated. At the end of the half hour, the stadium began to fill up again. However, the seats seemed to be a little less empty than before. More people had come to see what all the commotion was about, and others just wanted something that they thought was going to put them to sleep. What they didn't know, was that they were about to get the ride of their lives.
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The next battle mage match ended with more flair and flash than any other round in the college's history. The competition was traditionally watched by high-class citizens and family members. Now it seems that more people were flooding the doors with every match beginning and ending. This brought a flame to the competition that had not been seen since ever. Each contestant was now eager to prove themselves to the city of Canterlot that they were the best and brightest of their classes. By the middle of the second round, three quarters of the stadium was filled with people. Cheers and shouts from the spectators urged the robed gladiators on.

The next match was over in a matter of seconds when one mage wasn't quick enough to put up his shields up and was blown away by a raging fireball. Half the hair on his head was burned off by this, and his face was now a crisp black. The medical personnel were quick to respond and were able to save his mug. Though, it would take a while for the tender flesh to heal.

Every onlooker was enjoying the round, more than they thought they would, but what they wanted to see was the one who was using his fists. It was two rounds later, that they had their wish full filled.

Aquinas stepped out into the arena with a soft saunter. He was relaxed and ready for the challenge ahead. However, he wasn't expecting the crowd to go absolutely nuts when he did. As the door disappeared into the stone behind him, the crowd was shouting in his name and honor. This wasn't foreign to him, as he was pretty famous in a similar arena, though the previous one had more green.

Aquinas' challenger stepped through his door next. He had the same walk that Aquinas did, but instead of being well known, he was a relatively small person. He was a head shorter than Aquinas, but he stood with just as much confidence. No one would expect much from this young man, but Aquinas knew better. It was this one that had taught the Naval Officer a powerful lesson during their training. A lesson that he tried to always remember. That same lesson was the reason that Aquinas gave him a fitting nickname.

Loki.

Loki was more suited to the task of being a shrewd businessperson and robbing a man blind by making him sign a legal document than fighting on the battlefield. Even though Loki never had a head for open confrontation, he was still a formidable opponent. He had just as many tricks up his sleeve as Aquinas had pounds of muscle on his body. Loki was the type to skip class by placing a stand in for himself and then going into the street and conning people out of their money. Then again, there wasn't much that the teacher was lecturing about that Loki couldn't pick up on in an instant. He was a notoriously fast learner and he was more than capable of just making stuff up as he went along and able to give people the show they wished for by reading their eyes and body language. Aquinas couldn't help but feel that Loki was about to give him another harsh lesson that would stick with him till the day he died.

The bell rang and the match began. Aquinas threw up his arms in defense with his shielded hands ready to block. However, Loki only stood there. Stood there, and smiled. Those pearly white teeth flashed and he flicked back his long, dark-green hair. His locks touched his emerald, and gold trimmed shoulders as he let them waterfall from his hands. Over and over again, he combed his hair.

Silence gripped the entire stadium. They were waiting for something to happen, but it never did. A whole minute passed. Then another. Aquinas questioned Loki's motives, but then it hit him. He hadn't moved a bit. Accept for his hands, which shared the same color crystal as his hair.

Aquinas ducked and rolled at the realization. A magical double, created by Loki, had almost caught the hefty man in the back of
the head with a flying kick as it materialized. Aquinas came up to face all three Loki's. He swung his fists and caught one in the chin and the other in the nose. Both shattering into dust when they were struck. The last Loki caught air as the battle mage ducked and dodged the double's fist. Aquinas rose as to bring his head into Loki's nose. As like the other ones, this Loki also shattered. Aquinas looked around the room and found that he was alone. The arena was empty. The other spectators also looked around to find the green robed battle mage, but it seems that he was nowhere to be found. Aquinas grew concerned. Then he felt it. That cold chill in his spine and that ach in his stomach. This only came when he was about to hear his most hated sound.

Loki's laugh.

That horrible cackle only meant that more was to come. Aquinas put up his guard and started to move about the arena. He tried to think of what happened to his opponent. Did he turn invisible, or did he teleport somewhere? Perhaps he changed his size and shrunk down to move to another spot without being seen. Loki was a trickster, and always had some ace up his sleeve.

Aquinas paced and surveyed the area. He had to be here somewhere. "Show yourself!" he shouted. "Come and face me like a man!"

"Oh," Loki's voice sounded. "but where would be the fun in that?"

A small tornado came from the other side of the arena and raged towards the battle mage. Aquinas threw up a shield and rode the direction of the tornado's twist to land in the center of the battleground. Aquinas looked around to find no sign of Loki anywhere.

"Where are you?!" Aquinas shouted.

"Here." whispered Loki.

Before Aquinas could react, he was blasted in the back with a pulse of magic. The Naval Officer hit the ground face first. He got back up with quickness and as he rose, he swung his blue tinted fists, only to catch air. He was about to look around when he was blasted again in the back with a magic burst. Aquinas reacted faster, only to have the same result happen again. He rose, then was shot down over and over again. Each time Loki hit him, it only did enough to stun Aquinas, but the more he was hit, the more enraged the large man would become. Loki giggled as he continued his game with Aquinas. Alas, as with all good things, it had to come to an end. The bell rang, and both parties had to go to their respective corners. Aquinas kicked his chair in rage, rendering it a pile of tinder. He breathed heavily as his rage boiled his blood.

"Should we go to him and calm him down?" Twilight asked Ignatius.

"No." the blacksmith said with a snort. "You don't calm my brother down. You wait out the storm until his body tires from exhaustion, or you win by beating him to a pulp. If you can do neither, he'll stop when 'you're' beaten to a bloody pulp."

"If he's to win," a voice said. "he'll have to learn to calm down." the voice's owner was none other than Loki himself. He twiddled his fingers to make the puppet in his corner drink a bit of water. The puppeteer gulped heavily as the liquid graced his throat.

The trio stared at the Unicorn Blessed man in astonishment.

"Shouldn't you be down there?" Shining Armor asked incredulously.

"Yes," Loki admitted. "but I need a break. I'll just let my clones to my work." The bell rang and the trickster cast a spell that made his puppet make more of himself.

The trio watched as Aquinas rushed head long into the fray and beat every copy into dust as he continued his determined pace forward at full speed. He caught one by his throat and tossed him at his cornered foe. Both shattered into dust. No Loki stood in the arena again. The blue-coated fighter's head was now visibly red from the stands due to his anger coming to a point. Loki, from the stands, made more of his clones pop up behind Aquinas and made the man dance the way he wanted his to.

"How long have you been sitting here?" Ignatius inquired.

"Oh, the whole time." Loki said. "I actually wasn't even in the arena when they were announcing the rules."

"What were you doing?" Shining Armor pressed.

"I was masturbating." Loki coyly chimed.

"Ewe!" the guard recoiled in horror.

"Oh, grow up!" the trickster shot.

Ignatius paid no heed to the conversation. Aquinas was being made a fool out of and now, the man that took down a prestigious family member, was now being toyed with by a prankster. The blacksmith knew not who this man was, but he knew what he was. And he didn't like it. Aquinas stood no chance against this one's kind. The conmen, the tricksters, and pranksters. Aquinas could only handle so much before his rage got in the way.

Loki's clones did not cease in the slightest. They just kept coming at him in a barrage from every direction. The puppet master had Aquinas where he wanted him. A squad of Loki's seized the battlemage's right with a coordinated attack. The weight of each man on him was too much for that one side to take. He used his left fist to clear them off of him, but with his energy diminishing and his anger not being able to sustain his drive, the mighty man fell as a wave of Loki's consumed him. Aquinas tried to grab hold of something as he slowly met the ground. He saw the last bit of light fade behind the smile of a Loki clone before the bell was rung.
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Ignatius, Twilight and Shining Armor saw Aquinas' fall. The young girl's heart began to throb as she saw her hero fall. The guard's eyes were locked in horror at the sight. The blacksmith however, was completely fine. He saw the outcome of the battle when he saw his brother become enraged and saw who he was dealing with. Aquinas was never good at dealing with people who play games like that.

At the sound of the bell, Loki let his clones fade away to dust, leaving the still, yet conscious, body of Aquinas alone in the arena. The Naval Officer looked up toward the high ceiling in the same way that he did when he had first met Alvi. He had thought that he knew his opponent well, only to find that he was dead wrong. He never thought that someone at Loki's level would know a duplication spell.

The head proctor teleported down to Aquinas' side and used his magic to levitate him to his feet. The once proud man now stood on weak legs and craned his neck in shame. He turned his head to the left where Loki walked down from the stands on foot-sized platforms with his hands folded behind the small of his back.

"For leaving the battlefield and making a mess out of my office in a very disgusting manner," the proctor clenched his teeth harder as he spoke. "I declare Aquinas the victor, and you, Silver Tongue, expelled from this school!"

"So be it." Loki said without any sign of regret. "I will collect my things and leave." He turned to the know dumbfounded Aquinas and said, "Good game." He left without uttering another word.
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Aquinas took in a relieved breath after he had sucked down another glass of chilling water. His muscles screamed for rest, but the Naval Officer ignored them and drank more water. He tried to stand as well as he could on his quaking legs. The other competing students hailed his victory and praised him for getting rid of Silver Tongue. For it was the trickster that had conned them many times out of precious items and substantial amounts of money.

The battlemage, hearing enough, decided to retreat to the restroom where it was quiet. He went over to the sink and splashed some water on his face. He reached for a towel, but instead of just grabbing cloth, he also grabbed a hand. Aquinas jolted and saw that the owner of the hand was his opponent.

"Doing well, I presume." The dark-green haired man chimed with a smile.

Aquinas snatched the towel from Loki's hand and rubbed his face that was now fuming. "The fuck do you want?" he shot from the muffle of the soft cloth.

"I came here to help." the businessman said. He levitated a vial towards his counterpart who grasped it. "Drink this." Aquinas only snorted in anger as he threw the towel aside and caught the vial. "It's a revitalizing potion."

The trickster made the vial vanish and said. "Listen." Loki spoke that word with a sort of command that gave the logical portion of Aquinas' brain a jolt. "Relatively speaking, you lost to me, and it wasn't because you lacked the skill, it was because when you got angry you let go. My illusions were able to make you do whatever I wanted you to because you fell apart when I started to humiliate you. Because you did not keep your composure, I won."

Loki's words sobered Aquinas up from his tantrum.

"I am only going to be able to tell you this once." Loki continued. "Put aside your feelings and use every logical part of your brain when you are confronted. If you don't remember this the next time you are in a situation like this, you will end up losing. Possibly a lot more than you can afford."

Aquinas breathed a heavy sigh. "I see." he said. "It seems you taught me another lesson Loki."

"Oh!" Loki beamed. "I am going to teach you a little more than that." The mage put out his finger and touched Aquinas head. When he connected a million stars flashed in Aquinas' eyes. The blinding light show stunned the battlemage and made him cry out.

"What did you do?" bellowed as he rubbed his eyes until he could see.

"Consider this one a favor." Loki said. "Concentrate on the event I just shared with you, and use it. I learned this technique from the high level section of the Star Swirl the Bearded wing."

Aquinas calmed his mind with a deep breath and did as he was commanded. When his mind started to form a picture, he saw what it was that those little bits were trying to create. A series of images that gave Aquinas a lesson on how to master a new spell.

"Use it wisely." Loki said before teleporting away.

Aquinas drank the contents of the glass bottle and instantly felt his muscular pains disappear. He even felt like he could run a 5k. The Naval Officer gave a smile to the room. "Thank you, Loki. I'll see what I can do about paying you back for this one."
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Ignatius popped a smile as he collected another ten bits from Shining Armor. The latter fumed in frustration as he saw his money being played with. The blacksmith had no intention of keeping more than a quarter of his winnings, but that was only because it was more than enough to see the young guard steam at the ears when he lost another bet.

Round three had gone off nicely after Aquinas and Silver Tongue's battle. The crowd was pleased to see that the magic users were now getting closer to each other and throwing off more dangerous attacks as they advanced on their opponent's position. Two of them decided to adopt Aquinas' tactic of cloaking their hands and having a fistfight of both might and magic. All of this commotion and labeled 'barbarism' was unheard of at the school. The bout was supposed to be a display of learned magic and fought as honorable people with the winner being the one who had learned at a higher level and applied their scholastic skills. However, it seemed that it was turning into a dual of strength and power. Where opponents, whether female or male, locked their magic at arm's length and heaved their weight into a punch or kick. One woman snapped a man's arm at the elbow with a stone covered fist and then commanded the ground to burst upward and hit the poor fellow in the abdomen and sent him flying into the stands without breath to scream. Most of the contestant's families and colleagues awed and gasped when they saw their dearest being beaten and battered. Sometimes the match ended with both of the contestants unconscious and the winner was the one that fell last. Some in the stands took to leaving as soon as their loved one was beaten, but those seats were quickly filled by spectators who had come to see the bout. Four seats were taken up by none other than the Wonderbolts who had taken up seats next to Ignatius. Going back to the blacksmith, Ignatius hailed Spitfire and her gang and even started to play the same game that he had with Shining Armor. Much to the afore mentioned performer's distaste, she lost the next two fights. However, even someone as hotheaded as Spitfire knew when it was time to quit, and that time was now. For who, in that cheering section, would bet against their own fighter?
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Out from the flash of navy blue, came the man in the coat of the sea. Aquinas stood proud as he heard his name being chanted through the stands by strangers who had only heard his name from friends who have seen him in action. The crowd cheered and demanded that he showed them what he was made of.

Aquinas looked to the stands where his friends and brother pumped their fists and roared. The Naval Officer threw his own fists up in the air and made them collide as he let out his own deafening call. The crowd's noise doubled, but it was Ignatius who know that his brother was reliving his glory days as a football player. He was crowned the fiercest of players and was both respected and feared for his strength.

Aquinas, having his fill of praise, turned back to find that his opponent's chair was not empty. He recognized the stout, bearded man that faced him.

Phoenix Right-Wing. The cousin to Lightning Rod and the second son of the largest coal mining industry in Equestria. Power was his play thing, and so was fire. Aquinas knew that he was going to be in for a fight this time around. Phoenix was not only a good cook, but he was skilled in making the hottest fires as well. The Naval Officer's challenge however, wasn't the flames. The flames could be extinguished. It was the battlemage's temper that he would have to contend with. Aquinas had his own, but it took a bit to get him to that point. Phoenix on the other hand, could go from loving his life to fuck-everything-with-fire mode in point eight seconds. He knew his opponent would use his flames, but what he would do with them was beyond his imagination.

The bell was about to ring, and after the chime had died; Aquinas' next battle would begin.

Author's Note:

You all wanted it and here it is. The continuation of Metal Working! Please leave a comment on what you thought of the chapter. I could use the feedback.

Comments

[Moongaze14]

I'm glad to see this story update again after so long.

[1000Fights]

4379321 Does it meet your expectations?

[Moongaze14]

4381150 Damn right it does.