Winds of Magic Chapter 8

Chapter 8

We arrived at Battle Tower. Rei approached the front desk.

“I’m looking to join the curling team,” she said.

“Auditions are being held next week,” said the person behind the desk, without looking up from her computer. “I can pre-register you for it if you would like. Today is the last day for sign ups.”

“Please,” said Rei. “List me as Rei Ward, with York Dune as my auxiliary.”

“We don’t allow players to choose their auxiliaries—”

Rei slammed her fist down on the table. “You’ll do it this time.” She looked at me, appearing surprised at her own ferocity. “Um, yeah. I just really think York here will benefit the team.”

“He’s a Third,” said the receptionist.

“So?” said Rei. “He’s part of the student council. Surely that counts for something?”

The receptionist sighed. “I’ll register Mr. Dune with the auxiliary audition happening adjacent to the team auditions,” she said. “That’s the best I can do.”

“I appreciate it,” said Rei. She turned to me. “Do you want to take a look at the curling ring?”

“That would be on the fiftieth floor,” said the receptionist. “No one is there at the moment but the door should be unlocked.”

“Thanks,” said Rei. She led me to the elevator, which we took up. We were there in under a minute. The doors opened onto an auditorium half the size of Peter’s Hall, which meant that it was still miles larger than any regular one. This one seemed to be suited for a boxing match. Where the ring should have been was an empty swimming-pool shaped box about the size of an Olympic pool. On each end were diving board-like protrusions that contained electronics. The whole place gave a “Yu-Gi-Oh” dual system vibe.

The six pillars for each side would be erected in front of the players. Right now the depression was empty.

Rei walked down to the ring and took a stroll around the deep pool.

“How does it feel?” I said.

“Good,” said Rei, calling up to me. “It’s amazing. I feel like the queen of the world down here.” She examined the ring for a while longer and then returned to the exit.

I nodded at her and we took the elevator back down to the ground floor.

When we were in the hallway on the first floor a First who was probably in his third or fourth year of school was standing in the hallway.

“You,” he said, pointing to Rei. “You’re that upstart who scored super high on the practical exam.”

“Upstart?” said Rei. “What’s with that choice of words. Are you a geezer who is aging out of his game?”

This appeared to enrage the student to the point where his cheeks went red. “No,” he said. “I don’t think that. Just know that I’m watching you. I know you think you’re better than the rest of us. Just wait. You’ll do horribly during the audition. Types like you who are more bark than bite always do.”

“You know nothing about her,” I said, stepping in between Rei and the student. “I won’t let you insult her.”

“Yeah?” said the student. “You. Me. A Kamigeki. Now.”

I sighed. “Are you sure?” I said.

The student gritted his teeth. “Now. If you don’t I’ll knock you over right now, teach you a lesson.”

I shrugged. “Okay. Let’s go schedule a Kamigeki. What’s going to be on the line?”

“If I win, you two won’t get a chance to join the curling team,” said the student.

“And if I win?” I said.

“You won’t.”

“If I do anyways?” I said.

“I’ll give you my position as head of the auxiliary core.” The student scoffed. “Not like a peon like you would know how to handle such a prestigious post.”

I walked past the student.

“Your name,” said the student. “So I can register our Kamigeki.”

“York Dune,” I said. “Yours?”

“Jerrod.”

“Last name?”

“Why the hell would I tell you?” said Jerrod.

I put my arm on Rei’s shoulder and ushered her away.

“Three o’clock this afternoon,” said Jerrod. “Be there. In the ring.”

It was currently one pm. I turned around and looked at Jerrod. “I’ll be there,” I said.

“You don’t have to,” said Rei, once we were out of earshot. “I know you’ll win, but I also know that you might hurt him beyond repair.”

I sighed. “It was his choice. If he were a competent magician, he would have realized I wasn’t who he thought I was.”

“Head of the auxiliary core,” said Rei, elbowing me. “Nice title for you.”

“I haven’t won yet,” I said. We were silent until we reached the courtyard. Rei sat down on a bench.

Tetra walked past. She stopped when she saw us.

“Hello,” she said. “How did the application to join the curling team go?”

“I’ve been challenged to a Kamigeki,” I said.

Tetra looked stone-faced. “Do they realize you’ll trounce them?”

“Huh?” said Rei. “You know York’s power level?”

“Yeah,” said Tetra. “During the raid on the cultists’ site, you were the one who held back enough power to rip the entire building to shreds. That’s why I worked so hard to end the battle fast.”

I chuckled. “Good of you to notice that,” I said.

“But your practical exam results don’t show any of that power,” said Tetra. “I’ve always wondered why.”

“Because York’s power can’t be measured by the standardized test,” said Rei. “It’s been that way for as long as we can remember. His power just evaporates whenever he needs to prove it exists.”

“I’ve heard of stories like that,” said Tetra. “But no worries. I believe you will win, York.” She flipped her curled hair. “In any case, I must get to my next class.”

I nodded and Tetra walked away. I turned to Rei.

“So,” I said. “About the audition. Do you know what’s going to happen?”

“Not exactly,” said Rei. “But I’m hopeful.”

We didn’t say anything for several minutes. Even though I knew that I had the ability to win the Kamigeki, I also knew that things could go wrong at any moment and I could lose, or even worse, be injured in the fight.

It was time for Rei to get to class. She would skip as soon as the Kamigeki started, but for now she had to maintain her grades as much as possible. I went to the campus gym and practiced with a punching bag for the rest of the time before the battle.

When it was time for the battle I entered Battle Tower and rode the elevator to the seventieth floor. This part of the building was in aether space and so did not exist inside the real world. Sort of like how video game houses always look smaller on the outside than the inside.

The Kamigeki stadium was smaller than I thought it would be. Seating for about a hundred people surrounded a ten meter by ten meter square. When I stepped onto the platform, a magical wall rose out of the edges and surrounded me. Before they got too high Jerrod jumped onto the platform.

He cracked his knuckles and began typing at his casting device. A klaxon blared and the game started.

I held out my casting device and, using the data I could see emitting from Jarrod’s device, created a cancellation wave that would nullify the attack. The specific wave that I used was a low-energy and low activation cost spell, which would accommodate my inability to produce relevant power at this speed. I could unleash the “cry” but that would, as Tetra had noticed before, do a lot more damage than necessary in this case.

Jerrod’s casting device fizzled. He looked surprised for a moment and then his eyes rolled back into his head.

“Um,” I said, as soon as he hit the floor.

The klaxon blared again.

“That wasn’t supposed to happen,” I said. Then I had the epiphany. “Hey,” I said, as the judges lowered the shield. “Test him for magical steroids.”

“Why would we do that?” said a judge, approaching me.

“Just do it,” I said.

The judge looked as if he were considering it, and then shook his head. “We need a warrant to test for illicit substances.”

“Just figure out a way to do it.”

The judge looked frazzled. “In all my days as a Kamigeki judge I’ve never seen a knockout this fast.”

“I’m telling you,” I said. “My interference spell tangled with his magical enhancements and caused brain knock.”

“We’ll take a look,” said the judge, turning away.

The surveying professor, whose job it was to record the results, approached me.

“Good lord,” he said, clearly surprised. “That was quick. I had expected the exact opposite.” He paused. “I guess you are now the captain of the auxiliary corps for the curling team.”

“It was happenstance that I won this fast,” I said. “And I still don’t know exactly what my new job will entail.”

“If you’re as good a student as I’ve heard,” said the professor, “Then you will have no problem leading the auxiliary core.”

Rei appeared from the entrance to the ring’s seating. “Did I miss it?” she said. She looked at me. “Wow. That was quick.”

I gave her the thumbs-up.

“York Dune has won this match,” said a judge, approaching me. He held up my hand. There were no people to cheer, but I felt the pride that came with my victory. It was Jerrod’s fault, after all, for doing illegal magical stimulants. Like I had explained to the judge, my interference spell interacted with the drug’s enchantments and caused an effect called “brain knock” where the affected person’s consciousness disappeared for a moment, blinking in and out of existence. The result was a clean knockout and days of headaches and pains once he woke up.

His fault. He probably expected to make mince meat of me with his enhanced magical abilities.

I walked up to where Rei was standing.

“Looks like you’re in charge now,” she said, her hands on her hips. “You can choose who you get to work for. Obviously it’s going to be me.”

“Of course,” I said, putting my hand on her shoulder. “And I’ll make you the top curling player in the nation, at least at the collegiate level.”

Rei grinned and then turned around. “Let’s blow this place.”

“You said it,” I said, and then we walked out of the room and took the elevator to the ground floor. When I arrived a girl who looked straight out of the Wizard of Oz—the old one—was leaning against the wall.

“You think just because you won the title of captain of the auxiliary team that you can just walk all over us?”

“I haven’t done anything with the title yet,” I said.

“To be honest, Jerrod wasn’t the best captain. He was too proud and he did stimulants. But how can you, a first year Third, be any better?”

I stopped and faced her. “For one,” I said, “I’m not going to topple the current power structure. You’re on the auxiliary team, I can see?”

“I’m the vice captain,” said the girl. “Alice. I hate to admit it, but the Kamigeki is law. You’re the captain now, at least until the next election cycle.”

“I hope I’ll present myself to you as an asset to the team,” I said, bowing.

“Hm,” said Alice. “You’re humbler than I took you for.”

Rei grinned. “He’s not at all like Jerrod,” she said. “I know that.”

Alice sighed. “Follow me. I’ll get you to meet the rest of the auxiliaries as well as the main players.”

I followed Alice, Rei behind me, and we walked to an annex of Battle Tower.