There's blood on her sheets.
That is, Gwen's scraped knee had bled over her sheets.

Pulling the gauzy cotton painfully from her skin, she stripped the linen from her bed. The last thing Gwen wanted to hear was her father's new bimbo having a crack at her bloody sheets.

Gwen took a moment to compose her thoughts.
Yesterday was behind her, and today was a new day.
Shit happens. At work, at home, at the bar.
But life had a habit of going head regardless.

While discretely dealing with the evidence, she mentally listed critical events moving forward:

1\. Register with the school's dorms.

2\. Sort out accommodation, hopefully with Yue.

3\. Move stuff to the dorms and leave Morye behind forever.

4\. Prepare for two years of Spellcraft boot camp.

5\. Attend University - AGAIN. Become the greatest Mage of her generation.

6\. Earn millions or billions, whose's counting?

7\. Buy a new bayside house and retire with two cats. MAGICAL ONES.

8\. Life, back on track!

Well, she snorted. Maybe just the first four for now.
That, and she needed a hot shower.

The tap screeched; a torrent of lukewarm water brought back her motivation for living. Gwen washed off the grime and dirt, making sure to pick apart her wounds for whatever part of Hyde Park that came home with her.

Her mangled dermis stung like a bitch.

Knowing that her father and brother were out, she allowed herself the liberty of walking around the apartment in her towels, enjoying a glass of cold milk as her injury aired out. The cramped abode had no large windows and thus offered no risk of unwanted exposure.

When she had sufficiently dried herself, Gwen folded away her Miu-Miu dress for dry cleaning, packed away her shoes after applying some fix-it polish, and dressed in a cheap linen skirt hanging droopily just above her wounded knee.

I was a wizard once, but then I took a Magic Missile to the knee. She mused alone before becoming even more depressed.

She rummaged through her closet and found the school diary, an old thing that they gave out every year. Gwen scanned the pages, found Yue’s number, then dialled it into the ancient corded phone that they kept near the kitchen.

"Yue, it's me."

“Hello? Who's this?” Yue’s voice sounded suspicious.

"It's me, Gwen," Gwen appended just in case.

"Bloody hell, Gwen," Yue groaned. "I've been trying to call your Message Device since yesterday! Did you hear about our dorm arrangement?!"

"Dorm arrangement?"

"YEAH!" Yue's voice blasted her over the speaker. "It's bullshit!"

"Wha?" Gwen was now thoroughly confused.

"Didn't you check your phone?" Yue asked, "They sent out a Message yesterday."

"Ah...." Gwen knew then that she had to share. "My phone. Right. Well, I got a hell of a story to tell..."

The Message had informed students that they had to find a roommate or be assigned one. Furthermore, registration was on a first-come, first-serve basis.

Thus far, barring three misfits, all the students had already registered.

Misfit One was Yue, who had been waiting on Gwen, who had been AWOL.

Misfit Two was Gwen, who was having suicidal thoughts.

Finally, there was misfit Three, the quiet Elvia, whom despite her sudden, unexpected fame, had no friends with whom to share a room.

As such, the trio received the use of a staff room where all three would have to share a common area, with the advantage of having an ensuite to themselves. The news would have been a remarkable boon for Gwen and Yue, but now they had a tag-along - Elvia Lindholm.

Yue continued to rant in that endearing but offensive vernacular of hers as Gwen searched her memory for information on their third wheel. Elvia was the kind of girl that was ever present but never seen or heard. She tried to recall the girl's face, but remembered only long, ash-blonde bangs that covered her eyes. She seldom spoke, and rarely interacted with others except when necessary, when she did, her soft voice that made one strain to hear. She was short for her age, maybe edging past a meter-fifty, skinny too, giving the impression of one much younger.

That was it. That was all Gwen knew about this girl. A vague idea of what she looked like, and her unassuming hairstyle.

"Right? RIGHT?" Yue demanded on the other end of the phone.

"Yep, total bull," Gwen replied, having missed about half of what Yue had just splurted.

"So how about you?" Yue asked, her voice becoming tender. "Shit's pretty shitty, but it doesn't stop us from having a nice meet up on the city right? Wanna talk?"

"I think I had enough of the city," Gwen replied. "Love to meet up though, what you got in mind?"

"Wanna check out the dorm then?" Yue replied. "You gonna bring any furniture? I think the mail said all the usual furnishings are standardised, but you get to bring some crap along anyway, I wanna see how much room we have."

"Its close to the school, yeah?"

"Pretty much, its the apartment block directly behind it."

Gwen thought about it. She could walk to the station and catch a bus direct, as it was a weekday.

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"Alright, see you there in an hour?"

"Cool, I am shouting you lunch," Yue added.

"No need."

"Too bad," Yue insisted sweetly. "After what you went through, you could use some sweet, sweet calories."

Gwen smiled.
There was a reason she thought of Yue so often, even after they went their separate ways.

“Cheers, luv. See ya."

Gwen hung up and felt far less fatigued than before.

She was ready for a bit of that soulful healing they sang about in songs.

Unlike yesterday, it only took her a few minutes to get ready, no need for makeup or lashes, just a dab of lipgloss, a quick hammering of her unruly long hair, and she was out.

Ignoring her smarting knee, Gwen pushed past the pain and made haste for the familiar comfort of her dear friend.

When the bus pulled up to the school gate, Yue was already waiting for her. It was break time for the juniors, and the fire Evoker already had a dozen of them making moon-eyes at her. The ones closest to Yue and trying to strike up a conversation were all girls, adorable juniors who wanted to know the secret of her Awakening. The boys hung back more apprehensively - Yue's reputation for having a barbed tongue preceded her.

"Gwen!" Yue breathed a sigh of relief.

"Hey." Gwen waved back.

"Who's that?" Someone asked.
"Gwen Song."
"A nobody..."
"I heard she’s a NoM."
"What a nuisance," a girl added unkindly.

"Shut your pie holes!" Yue shouted at the juniors, silencing them at once. "Stupid fuckwits."

Had Gwen done what Yue just did, some of the juniors would have demanded to duel her. Yue, however, possessed the countenance of a Conjurer barking orders at her summons.

"Let's go." Yue urged Gwen to move.

"Are they staying together?" a student demanded incredulously.
"That's so unfair," a junior wailed.
"I want to room with Yue..."

Yue dragged Gwen along until they were out of sight.

"You alright?" she asked, a little guilty for the display.

"Yeah, I am fine," Gwen replied, glad to be out of the limelight.

The duo made their way past the schoolhouse and into the residential zone that Blackwattle had prepared for its Spellcraft students. It was an old apartment, likely built in the first reclamation in the 80s, with a distinct Brutalist facade which said, come wind, rain, or Thunder Elemental, I am here to stay.

The building's levitation platform was a freight-lift, rumbling unhappily up the shaft until it reached the top level. The staff room was no penthouse, but it offered a beautiful view of the city and the Barrier Shield that extended into the harbour.

At the entrance of 1201, they were surprised to find that the door was unlocked.

The girls exchanged a glance, then turned the handle.

What greeted them was the small figure of a girl with ash blonde hair, holding a dress in one hand and a coat hanger in another. Their intruder stared back, eyes wide with shock, the very picture of a doe the moment before it was incinerated by a Scorching Ray.

“… ...” there was a silent scream. The girl had made the right expression but what emerged instead was a kind of half choked, half muffled yelp.

“Hello there…” Gwen said.

“…”

“I am Gwen Song."

“…”

We are going off to a good start. Gwen thought.

“You a mute or something?” Yue asked suddenly.

“…” Gwen pulled her friend's elbow. Elvia is a healer! She's a koala bear! You (Yue) can't go around bullying koalas.

“…. No.” A soft voice whimpered, sharp and high pitched, like the trill of a nightingale.

“You got like, a condition or something?” Yue kept on with her interrogation. “Don't you think it's good form to ask our permission before you start unpacking your things?”

Elvia looked up; her eyes brimming with apprehension.

To their surprise, their intruder had a small face that was alluring and white, pale like milk; possessing a button nose that gave her the impression of a pixie or a fairy. Her lips, pink and delicate, was also pale and bloodless. Combined with her luminous ocean-blue eyes, she reminded Gwen of those uncanny character-actors who played Disney princesses.

Gwen's heart melt like Devondale butter under a December sun.

The stunned expression, the soft eyes, the pale face - her maternal instincts were tripping every alarm in her body. Yue was an only child, and she couldn't possibly understand how Gwen felt. Gwen had raised Percy in her mother’s absence and desired more than anything to have a cute little sister she could hug and adore and cuddle.

Without a word, Gwen reached out to Elvia and pulled her to her chest.

“Yue, not another word.” Gwen made eyes at her friend that said she'd take care of it.

Yue maintained her cynicism as Gwen felt Elvia’s rigid body stiffen. The petite girl only reached her shoulders; her head was just the right height for Gwen to rest her chin. There was a delicious scent of expensive shampoo.

“There, there,” Gwen comforted the frightened little creature, gazing into Elvia’s eyes with her most sisterly expression. There was an attraction there, nothing unbecoming of course, but an attraction nonetheless. Gwen felt strangely drawn, as though something about Elvia completed her in an inexplicable way.

“I am sorry,” Elvia stammered. “I didn't want to be a bother when you two are moving in.”

“Is that right?” Yue demanded sceptically.

“It's fine.” Gwen gave both of the girls a reassuring glance. “We’re here to have a look at the room. You’re no bother. I am Gwen Song, and this is Yue Bai, her name means white moon.”

“The fire Mage?” Elvia asked, her eyes lighting up.

“The one and only.” Gwen nodded.

The girls measured one another with their eyes.

“I am Elvia Lindholm,” Elvia answered after an eternity. “It's a pleasure to meet you both.”

The diminutive girl looked up at Gwen.

“Where are you from?” Elvia asked in that soft timbre of hers.

It was not an unusual question. In an overtly multicultural city like Sydney, people were often inquisitive about where one was from, at least originally.

“I was born here, but my family came from all over,” Gwen satiated Elvia's curiosity. Her eyes, her height, her hair, nothing seemed to come as a racial set. “My mother is mixed South East Asian, my father is Russian - Chinese, from near the Sino Fault.”

Elvia’s mouth formed an ‘o’ of wonderment.

“You're so pretty.” Elvia blushed adorably, then noted that Gwen held her shoulders protectively.

“So tall,” the girl added enviously.

Yue coughed, thrusting out her best features.

“You’re … very pretty too,” Elvia added, her eyes becoming as large as ping pong balls. “I love your… erm…blouse.”

“I think we'll get along fine,” Gwen concluded with confidence.

“Like a house on fire,” Yue added with a grin that showed her pearly whites.

Elvia glanced at Yue shudderingly before being assuaged by Gwen that all evidence aside, Yue was not a deranged pyro.

Greetings accomplished, the girls went on to conduct the business of sharing a room. The spacious common area was divided into three sections, with each side having a bed, wardrobe, wall mounted cabinet and a study desk. The foot of the bed had an enchanted storage chest linked to their mana signature. The third wall contained the shared bathroom. The room furthermore possessed a small kitchenette, the kind one found in served apartments.

The girls soon agreed on their respective areas of privacy.

"Oh!" Elvia interjected. "Gwen! You're bleeding!"

Gwen looked down.

"Ah bugger," she cursed. Her wound was indeed weeping.

"Don't touch it." Elvia stopped her before Gwen could dab her knee with a tissue. "I can help."

Kneeling in front of Gwen, she placed her hands just above Gwen's wound.

"Healing Touch!"

A ticklish, tingling sensation crawled up Gwen's leg.

"Oh!" Gwen fought an impulse to kick out. The itching grew unbearable.

"All done!" Elvia stood back proudly.

Gwen looked down.

The scab fell away, revealing pink flesh.

HOLY SHIT! Her mind rioted.

REAL LIFE HEALING MAGIC?

"What do you like to eat?" Gwen asked the girls, flexing her knee. "My shout!"

After some deliberation, the trio made for Market City, where cheap, greasy food was sold daily by the ton.

"I don't usually eat out..." Elvia confessed, expecting mockery and displeasure.

"Yeah, I usually just eat home too," Gwen confessed in turn, somewhat misreading the sentiment. “It's much cheaper just to have toast."

"Oh, Gods," Yue, who was a foodie, rolled her eyes, "This one time, Gwen placed a piece of soft bread between two toasted multigrain bread, and called it a sandwich..."

"That sounds... delicious?" Elvia envisioned the spectacle in her head. "But can't you put something else in the middle?"

"This one time I put leftover stir-fry, it was awesome." Gwen’s morale had now recovered enough to revealing her culinary secrets. Her knee was 100% recovered. "Its even better if you can cram some SPAM in there."

Yue made a gagging motion, which made Elvia laugh. Her new roommates were far too comfortable with one another. The pacing of their interactions threw off her mental metronome immensely.

The girls made their way around town and were on their third serve of sweet nothings when Elvia announced that any more food and she would burst at the seams.

Beside her, Gwen and Yue continued to eat.

Elvia shuddered. The appetite of her new friends was a terrifying thing!


The week came and went, then it was time for Gwen to go.

With her father's latest lover still lounging in the living room, Gwen felt no obligation for an amicable departure as the last of her boxes were packed.

Her only regret was leaving Percy.

Her brother seemed precociously aware that in a few years, the distance between himself and his sister would only continue to grow. As such, their parting the night before had been bittersweet. The guilt of having left her little brother in her past life, combined with the sentimentality of her usurped experiences, made the moment melancholic.

They would always be siblings, of course, but this was a world far more meritocratic than her old one. Already, even at the tender age of thirteen, she could sense the wane kindness in his face. He possessed a natural arrogance born out of necessity and circumstance. Percy attended a Selective High School. Their Aunty once said that if he awakened 'properly', she would move him to Prince's with a paid-tuition. When Gwen tried to impart her worldly wisdom for the last time; Percy had the glazed look of someone who thought very little of her advice.

No heartfelt hugs, no thunderous dramatics. Just a wry smile.

"That all Miss?" The Removalist topped up his three-wheeled trolley and asked for final confirmation.

Gwen looked back at the Forestville apartment and saw her father still fuming in the kitchen, her brother's door slightly ajar.

"Yeah." She shut the front door. "That's it."

The last of the boxes were pressed and packed for recycling as Gwen sat on the single bed of her new home for the next two years. Yue wouldn't be here for another day. Elvia said she would be moving in on the first day of the new term, the following Monday.

For the moment then, Gwen had the place to herself. She resented these moments, for idle minds grew anxious.

I was one traveller, long I stood...
looked down one as far as I could...

Brambles permeated her path, and she had no idea where the road bent in the undergrowth. A week into her new life, the wisdom of her old world was all the evidence she had of her former self. If she were to re-live her teenagehood, how was her old world knowledge going to help her Spellcraft? Magic ignored every rule of natural philosophy she knew; she couldn't just pull a wonderful Wizard of Oz, could she?

Would scientific charlatanism be enough to walk the path of Spellcraft?

On that note, Gwen sighed. The more she learned about the road ahead, the less confident she grew.

She had a year and a half of senior education which she had to complete. Within that time, the Mages who were talented and those who were mediocre were divided again into separate vocations. Those with talent sought higher education, entering Mandatory Military Service as junior officers. Those without the talent joined foundational training in industries beginning their military service as grunts.

Mandatory Military Service.

She had baulked when Yue began to boast about how much she looked forward to her rite of passage.

Actual combat? Against Monsters? Gwen struggled to visualise the event.

She's going to be Spellfodder, Gwen moped.

Think positive, think positive! She reversed gears, chanting to herself like a mantra. There was nothing to be done now, nothing but the coming on of human sleep.

Yue arrived in a day later, accompanied by her father who acted as her manual labourer. Mr Bai had known Gwen since they were young and so had asked her to look after his hot-headed daughter. Together they unpacked and waited for their third member.

"Where's your Mum?" Gwen asked.

"She doesn't like to be in a place full of Mages; you know that, right?" Yue pushed a box under her bed. "My mom's pretty sensitive about her NoM status. My talent has got her in a good mood though. She's been bragging to her family for the last week. I think the whole neighbourhood knows."

"Hahaha," Gwen chuckled. Even in this world, Yue's boisterous mother was the same.

'Ding!'

A Message spell bloomed beside Gwen's ear.

"Looks like Elvia's here early," Gwen remarked. "She's down below."

A gargantuan Mercedes S-Class pulled up at the front of the apartment. A manservant opened the door for Elvia as another, the driver, took out her luggage. The vehicle would not have caused such a stir if they were in Pineford’s Ladies College up the Shore, but here was Blackwattle! It was a government-sanctioned Spellcraft school with blue-collar kids. Even the staff were a humbled bunch, been retired Mages from different government industries, as well as the Military.

To the dismay of the academy cohort, Elvia exchanged cheeks with Gwen and Yue, then together, the trio made for the ‘penthouse’ suite.

Chinese whispers ran rampant within the hour. Tales told of Gwen worming her deceptive way into the friendship of her better peers. Others declared that Gwen was a rebellious gal who ran a gang and imperilled the two into accepting her. Another contested that Gwen was, in fact, the bastard daughter of a politician who used his influence to set her up with illicit means of success.

The truth behind the schoolyard jealousy was of course, merely one of pragmatism.

During the summer semester, the school held a government-sanctioned live-combat examination, known euphemistically as the Field Trip. For this field assignment, Mages were set up in 'Parties' of five. Naturally, everyone wanted to be on the team with a Healer and the top damage dealing acolyte of the academy. All the A-team needed to add was an Abjurer, and they were good to go.

How had Gwen Song ingratiated herself into the A-Team effortlessly? Who does she think she is?

The academic term plodded along, bulldozing forward without a care for the student's natural abilities. Blackwattle was, after all, a Public School with no time to spare for those who faltered. As for Gwen, her classes underscored current magical theory, progressing through a dozen topics interchangeably given by staff and guest speakers.

Gwen marked off November with an impending sense of dread.

Every waking hour had been spent studying by herself, or with Elvia and Yue, who supplemented her work.

**Astral Theory**
 **Theory of Mana**
 **Senior Spellcraft 101**
 **Enchantments and Constructs**
 **Study of Magical Creatures**

Amongst the all-important subjects were also the necessities of life in the modern world. Arts, Natural Philosophy, and Home Economics - a topic insultingly catered only for the girls.

Furthermore, Spellcraft students received two vital but limited resources:

Low-Density Mana Crystals identified as LDMs and an allocated time in the Cognisance Chamber.

LDMs were used to replenish mana quickly, allowing students more practice with aligning their astral presence, drawing upon the elemental planes to manifest phenomena. Invocation practice was an all-important daily ritual for most students, as the constant process of draining, using, and channelling mana made one's capacity for Spells higher in both volume and flux. The instructors described the process as akin to physical training, wherein only by pushing oneself to exhaustion with constant strain and repetition can one's proficiency for affinity and Sigil increase.

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Conversely, the Cognisance Chamber was a quasi-magical chamber constructed to allow Mages to see within themselves and visualise their links to the elemental planes to which they were interconnected. As it was impossible for the average Acylote to comprehend Astral Theory, the chamber cognitively generated Illusion, allowing the Acylote to 'interact' with their Astral Bodies. The education wasn't holistic, but the Frontier's purpose, after all, was to put bodies behind mana engines, barriers and factories, not produce scholars.

Pushing herself to study, Gwen voraciously acquired an entire lexicon during her remedial, chief of which was an understanding of 'Affinity'.

Talent Affinity signified the ease of manifesting phenomena from a particular School of Magic, as well as reducing spell fatigue.

Elemental Affinity increased power and reduced cost.

When queried, Yue anecdotally drew upon the ubiquitous Fireball, her most desired Evocation.

"The higher my affinity, the hotter my flame, the more penetrative my strike, and the larger my area of effect. Concurrently, I got lower casting cost and therefore lesser risk of mana burn."

Additionally, Mages could attune themselves with Elemental Spirits, further compounding the manifested phenomena. A low-tier Element Sprite could add a single tier of effectiveness to a Mage's spells. At higher tiers, sapient Sprites manipulated spells in unique and unimaginable ways.

Element-shift was likewise a post-industrial Spellcraft staple. A neutral Shielding Abjurer generated an invisible magic barrier. An Earthen Mage, however, manifested a Stone Shield. A Fire Mage created a Fire Shield which burned melee assailants. A Water Mage produced a circulating cascade, a self-replenishing Shield capable of nullifying lesser elemental effects.

The mechanical limitations of Spellcraft, therefore, was why Gwen's reputation as a null-Element preceded her.

When her turn in the Cognisance Chamber came around, her peers jeered and joked as she made the inevitable walk of shame. It had only been two months into the academic term, and she was already infamous.

Her intimacy with Yue and Elvia served only to add fuel to the fire. She was very much the tall poppy. As a semi-giantess at six feet, she was instantly recognisable a block away. Her only saving grace, Gwen noted bitterly, was the absence of a scarlet 'A' on her uniform.

But her social suicide wasn't her only problem. Her most vexing irritation was that in two months, she had yet to cast a single spell successfully without feeling utterly sick with mana burn. Her incompetence made no sense, as many of the elementary spells were without an element.

Meanwhile, Yue had already managed a flame channel. She showed off by playing around with a dab of flame that danced harmlessly around her hands. Elvia, apparently born ready, effortlessly managed Healing cantrips.

Plagued by self-doubt and misery, Gwen made her way through to the Cognisance Chamber, jeered by cold glances and mocking faces.

She was the last to visit the Chamber.

The arrangement was that students with more 'potential' were allowed to used the chamber first. Tellingly, it took two fortnights of micro-management to affirm her appointment.

"Don't worry Gwen," Her friend had comforted her. "Once you're in there, you'll know what's wrong."

"I am hopelessly optimistic," Gwen replied with a wane smile.

"You can do it!" Yue declared. "Try harder!"

“You’re reading way too many propaganda pieces," Gwen observed wrily. If wanting something badly enough made it happen, Humanity wouldn't be half as desperate.

"I have confidence in you!" Elvia added, straddling a pillow between her legs and her chest. "My dad says I have excellent magical senses, and you don't feel like a squib to me."

Gwen winced.

A 'squib' was a NoM born into a Mage bloodline. They were rare, but fate liked to play silly buggers.

At the door, a staff member scanned her ID card.

"You have an hour. Your student card should record any changes in your abilities," the middle-aged clerk, a NoM, informed her expressionlessly.

"Thank you, Ma'am," Gwen replied politely nonetheless.

Inside the chamber was a platform for her to stand. The whole set up reminded her of a 60's space module, but bigger. Gwen positioned herself, then waited for the Enchantment to activate.

Slowly, the room dimmed, its dimensions transforming into a grey, edgeless space. A reflection expanded below Gwen's body, refracted by Illusory glyphs to appear above, beside, and around her. According to the student guide, each Sigil the Acolyte gained appeared as glowing nebulas.

Gwen by now had two months of study under her belt. She was no longer blindly guessing at arcane phenomena.

Floating through the darkness, she made sense of the pseudo-space before beginning her navigation. Not far, she spotted an illuminated space. Gwen willed her Astral Body toward what was hopefully her Evocation Sigil.

Yue had tried and failed to describe to Gwen the indefinable phenomenon, but the sight now had Gwen's heart pounding. When she came closer to the nebula of starlight, she could see it pulsing with a familiar twinkle, blinking and winking as though signalling her.

"Hello?" Gwen thought out loud, her pulse quickening.

This better not be the precursor to something worse, she thought. That would be a bloody lark. She was a Generalist, possessing no talent and no affinity. Theoretically, seeing a Sigil with such distinct illumination was impossible.

"Fuck it."

Abandoning all care, she thrust herself violently into the stardust.

"!"

Her Astral Body grew incandescent.

Inexplicably, she understood Evocation.

It was as though she had always known how to use Evocation, as profoundly as one dextrously employed a limb, balanced on a wall, or caught a ball. The knowledge was instinctual and habitual, it was thinking in abstraction.

"Magic Missile!"

The mana conducted splendidly through her body. There was no puzzle, no mystery. Where she had blindly groped for guidance on the open planes of potential, there were now distinct paths she could take, solutions that were self-evident.

Breathless with excitement, she yelped.

As her Magic Missile faded into the distance, a fissure of light swept through her Sigil. Her newly visualised Evocation Sigil tapped into its elementally aligned gate.

'Crack!'

A flash of lightning danced through the illusory star-field, filling the uncertain space with cobalt-blue and Tyrian-purple.

"Oh my God!"

Gwen wailed with affirmation, overcome with relief and joy.
The folks on the train were right!

She was a Quasi-Elementalist!

A Lightning Mage!

She was a sorceress who tapped into the Quasi-elemental Plane between the Plane of Air and Positive Energy.

Why hadn't she awaken earlier? Why was she denied?

Was it her ignorance? She had stared at the Sigil dumbfounded, not knowing that she had to reach out.

But enough of that. Gwen wanted to laugh, to scream, to cry out in triumph. Within the Chamber, Gwen punched the air. Had she finally managed to supersede her predecessor's curse of mediocrity?

As the electricity encircling her body simmered, Gwen knew that the portal to the Quasi-Elemental Plane of Lightning had stabilised. She willed mana into the Sigil, drawing upon a mental image of Yue playing with her Dancing Light, and felt a numbing sensation travelling across her forearm as a sliver of blue light twirled around her finger into a small phantom creature.

Her creation hummed and purred at her, making Gwen question if the thing was sentient or merely a manifestation of her animus.

'Spak!'

"Woa!"

Suddenly, abruptly, her abstract elemental zapped out angrily at something hidden just out of sight.

Gwen focused her mind's eye, concentrating on the space beyond the glowing stardust. Something was there, hidden in an obscured section darker than black. She moved past the glimmering, static-charged mass of the Evocation sigil, then reached out for the slivers of something that seemed to fade in and out of her vision.

A sudden shudder engendered within her Astral Body. She felt a sharp, biting pain. Flinching, Gwen withdrew her phantom hand. She saw that there were tenebrous incisions all over her illusory skin. At the edge of her vision, slivers of black continued to twist and turn, appearing both closer and further away, taunting her.

Gwen thought back to the dream she had before. There was light, and there was dark. If the light was Lightning, then what was the dark?

Yin and Yang, light and dark, milk and coffee?

She willed her electrical creature to investigate. The sliver of lightning coiled upon itself, then with a mighty leap, launched itself towards the shadows.

"Dancing Light!"

Gwen attempted a second Evocation spell, achieving resounding success.

A white radiance dispelled all shadow. Gwen could see the slivers now, like small dark fish, swimming and fleeing as the ball lightning grew in intensity and rolled towards them. They cowered in the presence of her electricity, nestling and writhing like slippery eels.

The aura given off by the creatures was both alien and foreign, uncomfortable to the extreme, inducing inexplicable vertigo. But if this mysterious thing existed in the Cognisance projection, Gwen thought to herself. Then it must also exist within herself.

Besides her, the lightning spark returned from its show of force, resting on her shoulder as it sizzled. Gwen reached out as she had done so before, snatching one of the creatures with her hand. There was that sensation again, that strange shuddering that felt as if space itself had distorted-

Gwen found herself in the real world.

She was no longer in the sensory illusion created by the Cognisance Chamber. Gwen flexed her fingers, disorientated to the extreme. She still had no idea what she had discovered.

The door to the chamber opened with a distinct displacement of air.

"That's time," The admin asked Gwen for her card. When she noted the changes inscribed by the Chamber’s magically driven recording scripts, her eyes widened.

"Congratulations," the woman spoke with a tone of awe, "I shall inform the Principal."

When Gwen received her I.D card, she took a moment to be equally astounded.

**Gwen Song**
 **S.I.D** :: 0043598
 **Evoker Tier** :: 1
 **Elemental Affinity** :: Quasi Elemental - Lightning (3)

The rest of the card was blank, its space reserved for other achievements.

Holy shit. Gwen's fingers trembled. I made it.

Here was the watershed moment, the moment the life of the old Gwen ceased to be, the moment fate caught the cliff's edge and pulled her up by the fingernails.

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, and I—
I took the Magic Carpet through—

Thank GOD she didn't have to trudge through the Wildland woods. Lord knew what lurked in the dark; knowing this cursed world, it was probably Shub-Niggurath.

In her moment of private reverie, Gwen hadn't noticed some sticky-beaked students sneaking up behind her to read her card, to announce it to the world and viciously mock the object of their ire.

"Gwen Song," someone read out aloud before Gwen could stow her card, but it was too late. "Tier 1 Evoker..."

Then the reader's voice croaked.

"Well?"
"Come on?"
"What does it say?"
"It says nothing after that, duh..."

"..."

The student respectfully took a step back and gave Gwen a look of no hard feelings. He possessed the greatest respect for his schoolmate.

"Tier 3... Quasi Lightning!" he announced, biting every syllable.

A few of the students anticipating sweet nothings from the public announcement was already laughing. A split-second later, their mockery changed to grave concern.

A dangerous silence reigned.

Gwen slipped the card into her skirt-pocket, then fled the scene.


The terrible news of Gwen's 'true' talent spread like the thirteenth-century quasi-magical bubonic plague. She quickly left the main building before a mob could pick up enough momentum to start throwing textbooks.

When Gwen finally got to the dorm apartments, Yue and Elvia were already giddy with the good news.

"See? Told you so." Yue beamed with optimism; an infectious grin split from ear to ear.

"Congratulations, Gwen on discovering your talent!" Elvia ran into Gwen's arms, her small frame twirling about Gwen's neck.

Feeling overwhelmed by fortune's favour, Gwen embraced her two besties, feeling grateful for having made such dependable friends.

"You'll probably have to see Old Bartlett soon,” Yue advised. "Man, just thinking about your Quasi-Lightning gets my blood boiling - you and me, two powerhouse duos, Elvia at the back healing ... we are going to rock that Field Trip."

"Don't count your cockatrices before they hatch. We still need to find a Tank," Elvia lectured them. Unlike Yue, she was not looking forward to facing live combat. "There's no one good in our year. We ask the Seniors."

"Abjurers are a dime a dozen." Yue shrugged. "Although we could put you up as a prize and hold a school-wide competition to find the BEST Abjurer! A day with Elvia, a date with the Golden Princess!"

"Please don’t," Elvia rebuked Yue sternly; Yue had on an evil expression.

“Hoho, I can see it now! The three of us, piling up that mountain of beast carcasses. Maybe we’ll even find a Creature Core or two if we kill enough of them.”

“You mean the five of us?” Gwen interjected sceptically.

“Pufft… its just going to be us pulling the weight anyway.” Yue snickered arrogantly. "You know, finding a Core on our first adventure would be awesome. We can exchange it. We'll have LDMs for days!"

All Mages dreamt of finding a Creature Core.

The Core of Magical Beasts formed the basic ingredient for Magical Items. The stronger the beast, the denser the Core, the higher the danger involved. A few Earthen Goblins was merely fodder, but a Coastal Basilisk could wipe out an entire mining outpost.

"Alright, clear out, don’t stand in the doorway for Magus’ sake!” The gruff voice of a man announced behind them; it was the caretaker of the Dorm. Iron-Faced Rawson, Yue nicknamed him for his stern and stoic nature, but Gwen rather liked the man. Rawson was the sort of person who was the opposite of her father - focused, laconic, and useful.

"Got a call from Admin." He turned to the trio. "Gwen Song, the old man wants to see you."

"Thanks, Mr Rawson.”

Rawson nodded back.

"Congratulations,” the caretaker intoned expressionlessly before returning to the interior of the apartment.

"You like that sort of man huh, Gwen?" Yue's brows wiggled.

"Mr Rawson?" Elvia looked at Gwen with shock. "He's like a Dad!"

"That's the point... hee hee hee," Yue persisted in her dirty hypothesis. “We all know Gwen’s got Daddy issues…”

"Good God, you two..." Gwen rolled her eyes. Bloody immature teenage hormonal meat bags.

BUT, she was a teen herself, there was no help discounting that. Her body had a mind of its own, even now. Somewhere inside her flesh and blood, the old ghost of the erstwhile Gwen haunted its halls.

At anyway rate, Gwen was not attracted to Rawson, no. She was merely admiring the rare bird known as competence.

The Principal's Office was on the ground floor of the main building. Blackwattle was a simple school with a simple pedigree, and so a simple oaken door opened up to a spacious interior adorned with awards and accolades.

Magus Jules Bartlett had served as the Principal of Blackwattle for two decades. He was a well-known figure both within the school itself and in the neighbourhood. Generations of Acolytes came and went, but all recognised the ever-present personage that was Principal Bartlett at the gates, 0700 sharp, dutifully greeting each student. Amiable and approachable, the Principal was a man fond of conversation.

When Gwen entered, she was met with a reassuring smile.

My God, his beard is impeccable. Gwen thought. Not a hair out of place.

"Miss Song, please take a seat and make yourself comfortable, have a cuppa if you like." The Magus motioned to the table, adorned with a steaming pot of stoutly brewed English Breakfast.

"Thank you, Sir." Gwen sat, tilting her long legs to one side and crossing her ankles behind chair's lip.

“Your progress comes as a great blessing, Ms Song.” Bartlett began. “Barely two month ago, you Awakened only as a Generalist!”

“I wasn't feeling my best sir,” Gwen replied sheepishly.

Principal Bartlett laughed.

“If only matters of Awakening were accountable by moods!” He exclaimed. “I called you here to congratulate you, Miss Song. And to offer an apology.”

The Principal's eyes observed the young woman in front of him before continuing.

“Instructor Thomas informed me of your happy accident. That despite NOT Awakening in Evocation, he had placed you out of pity."

Gwen felt a little stunned at the news.

“I am sure Instructor Thomas was correct though…” Gwen answered, wondering if she could salvage the situation. She was to blame, after all, both her confused incompetence and her enticement of the Instructor to pity her. “When I got home, I tried to do all sorts of experiments. Nothing succeeded, I was truly a Generalist.”

“That may be,” Bartlett intercepted on her behalf. “But to think that but for a moment of pity, he would have recommended you for the Non Magical stream…”

Yeah, that would have been catastrophic, Gwen concurred.

“I understand,” she replied carefully. “I still don’t blame Instructor Thomas though.”

“A warning then. You are too kind.” Bartlett waved a hand through the air. “If we had a Diviner, perhaps this could have been averted, but alas.”

Gwen nodded demurely, playing the unworldly school girl.

“How is your training fairing?” The Principal pivoted toward a more discerning topic.

“I’ve only really awakened to the Sigil this morning,” Gwen answered honestly. “I don't think I have had an opportunity to test the extent of my abilities…”

“Are you able to manifest?”

“Yes, Sir.” Gwen hoped that she wasn't overextending her luck, a performance failure now of all times would be catastrophic.

“Would you mind a demonstration?” Bartlett asked.

Gwen swallowed discretely.

“I’ll try my best sir.”

The two of then left their seats and stood in the middle of the spacious office.

Gwen turned her mind inwards and invoked the Evocation sigil. Having experienced its invocation in the Cognisance Chamber, she could envision it now perfectly, feeling the mana flow through her Astral Form, shift into Lightning, then flood her conduits.

"Lightning Grasp!" she incanted, a spell that was a cousin to Flaming Hands, Yue’s favourite. She felt a jolt of electricity travel across her forearm, then the collated energy of her arcane phenomena manifested.

With a muffled crash, a coil of blue-white lightning crackled around her hand, creating the element’s distinct chitter. Ozone filled the air, and static electricity flooded the surrounding space, sending up strands of Gwen’s hair and Principal Bartlett’s beard.

“Beautiful,” the old Magus exclaimed.

“It’s hard to control sir,” Gwen confessed, her face beginning to sweat. It was her first time, and her spell furiously sought to discharge. The sensation was akin to wrangling a thrashing weasel, any more and it was going to take off her fingers.

“!”

Magus Bartlett drew an Abjuration Sigil in the air. A Shield shimmered around the Magus silently. Transmuters and Abjurers could shape their Shields, but other Schools of Mages tended to favour semi-circle domes.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

“Strike my Shield,” Bartlett invited Gwen. “Let us see the efficacy of your affinity.”

Gwen did not doubt for a second that the Magus thought little of her mere tier 1 spell. She extended her hand and touched the shimmering, near opaque Shield.

With a resounding 'Crack!' the electricity dissipated, deforming it for a fraction of a second before the membrane returned to its original shape.

“Impressive. Truly wonderful!” Magus Bartlett exclaimed happily. “Lightning is the lovechild of Evocation; its penetrative impact power is far stronger than that of Fire, Earth, or Water!”

With the spell fizzling after its expenditure, Gwen regained control of her hand. Her head felt a little woozy for the effort.

“Your affinity is exceptional,” Bartlett announced after a moment of thought. “I could feel the free nature of the Lightning element flowing strongly in your spell. Well done, Miss Song!"

Gwen noted a strange discolouration in the Principal’s eyes.

She recognised the phenomenon as Detect Magic; there was a picture of it in her textbooks. The Divination staple was useful for detecting magical events. At very high tiers, it could act as a portable version of Cognisance. Watching the Principal flit between schools and spells, Gwen realised just how far she had to go.

Principal Bartlett meanwhile, was lost in the thought of what he should do with the newly minted sorceress, having now two capable Evokers on his hands. He felt that perhaps, it was best to report to the Tower and make a request for them to send an external instructor.

“That was your first time?” He turned to Gwen. If true, then he should be doubly impressed.

Gwen felt her face aglow with embarrassment, unsure whether she performed well or poorly. Was her manifestation unclean or crudely managed? A clumsy spell was as dangerous to herself as it was to others.

“Yessir," she confessed.

“I must then acknowledge your talent, then admonish your rashness,” the Principal intoned with sagacity. “It is good to be ambitious, Gwen, but know your limits.”

Gwen bowed her head, staying in character.

“I will have your LDM allowance upgraded to the same level as Miss Bai and Miss Lindholm,” The Magus added kindly. “I anticipate great things from you at the next examination.”

“I won't disappoint you, Sir,” Gwen replied, her eyes sparkling as she met the Principal's demanding gaze head-on, switching from humility to braggadocio.

"Very good. Dismissed."

Gwen closed the door behind her.

Yue and Elvia met her outside the administration building.

“How did it go?”

Gwen gave her companion a 'V' for victory.

“On par with Yue (you).” She laughed.

The girls uttered a unified hip-hip, hurray, drawing curious glances from juniors and seniors alike.

Things were finally looking up! Gwen mused happily. To think that only two months ago, she was molested and robbed and was about to live a life of unfulfilled mediocrity! In two days, she would receive a new tithe of LDMs, and then her training could begin in earnest!

The girls' practice settled into a routine.

Gathered on the lower oval's practice range, she and Yue lit up the field with their Evocation incantations.

Grudgingly, the school's cohort came to accept Gwen's new found powers. Albeit many refuted their budding admiration, the crowds that gathered whenever Yue and Gwen practised suggested otherwise.

Once she was OoM, Gwen meditated, cradling an LDM shard. Within a quarter of an hour, she was topped up and ready for another round.

With a growing stockpile of crystals at their disposal, their training was going swimmingly. Each day, when others had gone back to their dorms to study theory, Gwen, Yue, along with a talented few, could remain until sundown. The repetition meant that they built up a tolerance to mana drain, increasing both mana pool and mental stamina. Gwen's meals were also significantly improved, consisting mainly of Quasi-magical Beasts harvested and delivered to the school's cafeteria.

As classes came and went, Gwen's night and days were beginning to blend. Her practice often became so exhaustive that she lost track of time. She called this 'the zone', feeling a curious Zen as the condensed mana stowed within her LDMs permeated her body.

Blasts of flame roared across the field, creating pockmarks of craters across the asphalt practice zone. Beside the torrents of arcane fire, flashes of cobalt lightning tore at the ground, materialising from the aether.

The gathered crowd was here to observe the ‘Dynamic Duo,’ as Yue had come to call herself and Gwen. Yue possessed affinity 4 for Fire and Gwen 3 for Lightning. Compared to their tier 1 peers, they could fire off four spells to the other's three.

The passing grade for participation in the field trial was the demonstration of the ability to produce ten consecutive phenomena and a Shield, graded for damage, speed, variation, and defence.

The micro-management of mana was drilled daily into the students by stern instructors. With each bout of exhaustion, the students alternated between rest and casting, optimising spell cycling.

The crowd cheered.

Yue was radiant as always, perspiring with youthful exuberance. As a Fire Mage, her body would slowly attune to the element, becoming resistant to heat and cold. By the same measure, her constitution would become increasingly hostile to water-based Enchantments and body-buffs.

"Fire Missiles!"

The crowd roared as darts of fire leapt from Yue's finger to envelop a conjured practice dummy, turning the effigy into smouldering chunks.

Such grace! Such smooth and fluid somatic casting! The crowd applauded.

Satisfied, Yue turned to observe Gwen, only to see her friend gesticulate wildly at the field like a madwoman flinging invisible cats.

"Hahaha!" Yue couldn't help but burst into laughter.

Hilarity aside, Gwen's bolts were making quick work of the dummies as well.

For the audience, the difference between Fire and Lightning was instructive in themselves.

Yue's AoE was far more impressive but had travel time, and was subject to line-of-sight.

Gwen’s Lightning spells appeared from thin air, materialising from above the target, striking almost instantaneously. This difference in manifestation was why Lightning was so dominant in both duels and Monster hunting. However, as a trade-off, Gwen's spells were localised and exceedingly difficult to aim.

“Spatial casting is much harder than it looks,” Gwen complained cattily to Yue, wiping herself down with a towel. “How do you find your projectile magic?”

“Line barrages are fine,” Yue admitted. “But the whole parabola thing is pretty abstract; I still need to get through the physics of it in class.”

After practice, the two became immediately surrounded by juniors, more so favouring Yue than Gwen, who had a reputation as the illegitimate daughter of an underworld mob boss.

“Can I get you a bottle of water?” someone asked eagerly.

“Two.” Yue was shameless.

“Alright!” A boy ran off happily.

“…” Gwen blinked at Yue with judgemental eyes.

“Hey,” Yue sniggered. “I only exploit those who are willing.”

Gwen shook her head.

“When's Elvia finishing?”

Elvia wasn't with the girls. The healer undertook specialised training in mundane Medical Triage as well as magical healing. The School couldn't find an Instructor willing to teach just one student, so Elvia's family provided their own. As it were, she was now presided over by her uncle, a senior Cleric.

When the two returned to the dorms, each holding a gift of chilled mineral water, they were greeted by a jubilant Elvia.

"Hey." Yue glanced at the clock. "Elvia, you had dinner yet?"

The blonde girl shook her head.

"That's what I like to hear." Yue grinned expansively. "We're heading to my place. My mum's made dumplings!"

Elvia blinked.

"You know." Yue made a shape with her hand. "Wontons? Jiaozi?"

Elvia shook her little blonde head.

Yue took the tiny girl by the shoulder, feeling her nervous bones creak.

"Alright, mate." she grinned. "You're in for a treat!"

Yue had her house in the suburban sector of Forrestville, roughly thirty minutes away from Blackwattle via public transport. Where Gwen's apartment was nestled in a forest of concrete habitat blocks, Yue's two-bedroom abode was caught between two six-storey flats, reminding Gwen of the house from UP.

"Here we are!" Yue opened the groaning gate. Her father had done his best, but there was so much one could do for corrugated iron.

Elvia stood on the dying grass of Yue's front lawn and took in the distended scent of heavy industry that permeated the suburb. Only two streets away, the housing gave way to an industrial zone filled with warehouses. Before the flats went up, Yue's house had enjoyed the sun. Now, it rested permanently in shadow.

Even here, developers were a plague, Gwen observed. It must be a universal constant.

"Bai Yue, welcome home!"

"Good evening, Mrs Bai." Gwen bowed.

Flustered, Elvia quickly bowed as well, sending a cascade of flaxen strands flowing over her shoulders.

"Oh..." Yue's mother made an 'O' with her lips. "Who is this?"

"I am Elvia Lindholm." Elvia curtseyed.

Yue's mother audibly gulped.

"She's the healer friend," Yue interjected helpfully. "The one I've been telling you all about."

Elvia looked up with her big blue eyes.

"HOW WONDERFUL!" Yue's mother gushed, drunk on Elvia's adorable presence. "COME IN! COME IN!"

The girls entered.

Gwen had always envied Yue's home, this world or the last.
Though cramped and narrow, it was lived-in and homely. The corridor leading to the living room was filled with Lumen-pics, decorating the walls eclectically. The living room itself was plushly carpeted, possessing an old fireplace in front of which Mr Bai had read picture books to a young Gwen and Yue.

Besides the modest living space was a cramped kitchen-dining combo: a domain entirely strange to Gwen, whose father rarely if ever cooked, and whose personal culinary expertise consisted only of instant ramen and Spam. Had Forrestville not been such a Mecca for street food, Gwen and Percy would have grown into the teenagehood knowing just toast and Vegemite, a cheap but potent form of quasi-magical compost.

Mrs Bai settled the girls around the dining table; a beaten old thing accompanied only three seats.

"Food's almost ready. You girls must be hungry!"

Gwen and Elvia watched marvelled as Yue's NoM mother suddenly appeared as if she possessed multiple sets of limbs, chopping, frying, stirring, mixing and plating all at once while multiple pots bubbled on the stove.

She returned a few minutes later with a steaming heap of pork and cabbage Jaozi.

"I made it with Wildland pork," Yue's mother stated proudly. "It's a rare treat! Eat up!"

Yue mixed the dipping sauces for her two friends while Elvia struggled with her chopsticks.

"Like this-" Gwen demonstrated with one hand. "The index finger and the middle finger should be pressing against the moving stick, while the stationary stick rests against the phalanx."

Elvia was quick on the uptake.

"Mum, are you eating?" Yue asked her mother.

"Go ahead," Yue's mother smiled sweetly. "I'll wait for your father. He likes em fresh."

Eager and curious, Elvia gingerly picked up a dumpling, dipped it into the sauce Yue had prepared, then placed it into her mouth.

"!!!"

Her ocean-blue orbs grew large.

Pain, pleasure, scalding meat-soup, spicy and savouriness struck her tongue at once.

"Evee!" Gwen gasped. "It's HOT! There's soup inside! Oh my God, Yue, you didn't tell her?"

Yue popped a boiling dumpling into her mouth.

"Its fine to me."

"You're a tier 4 Fire Mage!" Gwen chided her friend. "We don't have heat resistance!"

"Oh?" Yue touched her lips. Looking at Elvia, she realised her friend was in genuine pain. "Shit, sorry Evee. I'll get you some water."

Having caught the commotion, Yue's mother returned with a glass of cold water.

Elvia waved the cup away.

"Hwealing Tooch!" she announced, wincing as she incanted the Clerical cantrip. "Oh Lord... my goodness."

"Are you alright?" Gwen asked worriedly. Yue's mother trembled by the bench, not knowing if she should apologise or disappear.

"Delicious!" Elvia beamed, surprising all of them. "Thank you, Ma'am."

"Oh... I am no Ma'am... haha..." Yue's mother squirmed.

Yue's cloudly mien lightened. She had thought Elvia would have left, or at least berated her.

Gwen caught the sparkle in Elvia's eyes and marvelled at the girl's emotional intelligence. It wasn't often that someone could overcome their agony, especially when it was dealt by the ignorance of another. Gwen felt happy to be right, Elvia was beyond precious! She was an angel inside and out.

"It IS delicious, isn't it?!" Gwen joined in. "Break it apart first and let the steam and the soup out."

"It's SO GOOD," Elvia beamed at Yue's mother. The poor woman had been sweating buckets when the healer held her mouth. As a NoM, she had an innate fear of Mages that was difficult to dispel even after a decade in Sydney.

"I've got other flavours too!" Mrs Bai uttered jubilantly. "Just you wait, I've got prawn dumplings made with Wildland chives!"

"My favourite!" Gwen hailed the prospect of chive-dumplings, though not its room-clearing farts.

Yue raised a glass of water.
Gwen met her half-way.
Elvia fumbled for a cup.

"To dumplings!"
"To Mrs Bai!"
"To us!"
"Cheers!"

The asymmetrical collection of glasses clinked; joining the sound of clattering chopsticks, hissing steam, and the trilling laughter of women.


Spring ended with November; then summer came on with its stifling heat.

Fair-skinned and petite, Elvia wilted like a rare white flower.

Gwen likewise melted in a most un-ladylike manner, legs akimbo, a spaghetti-string singlet loosely hung over one shoulder, its sheer cotton stuck to her stomach like wet rice paper.

She must have died, and this is hell, Gwen moped. What kind of magical world lacked air conditioning? She hadn't experienced an Aussie summer without air-conditioning since she left home at sixteen. Even the youth hostel had air-con.

Beside the sweltering Gwen, Yue was as cool as a cucumber; her affinity for Fire meant she naturally regulated heat in her body. Gwen's bodacious companion wore a comfortable singlet that barely hung on for dear life.

“How come.” Yue looked at her friend. “How come we both bought small, and your one fits?”

“Humblebrag?” Gwen moaned, too tired to return a volley.

“Funbags,” Elvia added an acute observation.

“What have you being teaching her?” Gwen wailed. “My innocent Evee is despoiled!”

“They grow up so fast.” Yue sobbed. “Just the other day she was making eyes at a boy.”

“I was not!” Elvia protested.

“No no!” Gwen wailed, "Evee is mine! For now and forever!"

The girls fell about in laughter, making the room hotter.

'Knock! Knock!'

“Ahem!”

A cough came from the doorway; the door opened just a peep.

"I er... knocked, but you all appeared to be pre-occupied," mumbled a voice from the hallway.

Gwen grabbed the closest linen, though her modesty proved was a futile effort; she was too tall for the meagre fabric. Besides her, Elvia dived for her bed, throwing a silken shaw over her cut-off shorts.

"Oh yeah..." Yue seemed to recall something. "I invited a cooling glyph."

The door opened. A young man about the girls' age entered nervously.

"I am not er... interrupting anything am I?" asked the young man apprehensively.

"Thank the Magus you are here." Yue bounced up to greet the young man.

Their guest averted his eyes. On his right, Gwen was looking defensive and hostile, to his left, Elvia hissed like a cat. Trapped, their intruder found great interest in the old art-deco lighting fixtures.

"Ladies..." Yue placed her hands together. "This is Jun, a wonderful young man whom I have recruited to our cause." She nodded at Jun, who was still reeling at the girl's attire.

"Jun, do the thing."

The girls turned to look at Jun, who was now the colour of beetroot.

"Excuse me," Jun muttered, making the circular Sigil of the school of Abjuration.

A sound of crinkling filled the air, then the temperature plummeted. A thin sheet of ice seemed to form in the air around Jun, before finally coalescing into a semi-dome ball of frost that radiated cold.

Yue flourish with a bow, twirling her off-hand floridly.

"Ta da~ "

The heat in the room dissipated and a cool breeze began to circulate. Gwen felt as though she was in one of those improbable air conditioning commercials where hot and bothered women became emancipated by Mitsubishi split-air systems.

Yue patted the cushion of the two-seat couch in a come-hither manner.

"Sit."

Hawkishly, the trio watched as Jun sat on the edge of the couch, scratching his nose nervously.

"This is Jun Murrow." Yue paused for dramatic effect. "Abjurer, affinity 2, Ice."

Elvia's blue eyes peeked out from behind her pillow. Gwen straightened her singlet before shaking Jun's hand.

"Jun."
"Gwen."
"Elvia," Elvia called out from afar.
"Hi."

Silence reigned.

“So, as you know,” Yue broke the ice. “We have our Field Trip soon. I figured we should pick the good fruit before they’re gone, that sort of thing.”

She motioned to Jun.

“I asked around for the best Abjurer in our curriculum, and now we have him. Applause, ladies!”

The girls golf-clapped.

“Ahem, thank you. It's good to be here.”

Jun’s eyes scanned the room, falling toward his enviable audience.

“As Yue stated… I am a Quasi-Elemental Mage like you Gwen,” Jun began. “We Ice Mages tap into the space between the Air and Water elements.”

Gwen nodded.

“Few elements are as stable as Ice,” Jun continued with a hint of pride. “Especially with Abjuration, we can create Shields and walls that are both transparent and hardy.”

“Whereas Lightning…” Jun's stated with admiration. “Lighting is the most volatile, but a real showstopper. Perfect for Evocation.”

“Does us sharing the Air element do anything?” Gwen enquired. "Synergy, for example."

“Unfortunately no,” Jun replied with a wave of his hand. “At least, not that I know of. Lightning doesn't interact well with anything. A water Mage and I could synergise something impregnable, but I doubt Fire, Air, or Water could do anything for you. In fact, I am fairly sure Earthen Mages counter Lightning.”

I bet water could conduct Lightning, Gwen mused. Some of the potential energy may be lost, but it should be feasible.

Watching Jun and Gwen converse, Yue nudged Elvia. Gwen turned to see Yue wiggling her brows at her. Rolling her eyes, she threw a towel at her overimaginative friend.

“Sorry, they're just kids," Gwen apologised. "Look, Jun, I think its pretty obvious that we're all inexperienced. It's going to be our first time. Can you lend us a hand?"

Stolen novel; please report.

"..." Yue's expressive brows once again came to life.

Elvia's face glowed a hot-pink.

Admirably, Gwen's inopportune expressions flew over Jun's head.

"What do you want to know?"

"What's our role in an Adventuring Party?" Gwen inquired. "I mean, how does it work? We've never Adventured before."

"Okay." Jun took a moment to begin. "Essentially, a perfect Party has FIVE members, each with unique roles. The Scout is typically an Air Mage with Transmutation or Divination. The Tank is an Abjurer, typically Earth attuned. The Damage Dealers are usually Conjurers, Evokers, or Transmuters. And Utility is taken up by Diviners, an Enchanters, or an Illusionists. In the best case scenario, the Utility is a Healer who can Buff, Heal and Dispel."

“How would the setup work with us four?”

“Good question." Jun scratched his nose again. "I believe we have excellent synergy.”

“Fire Evokers have widespread damage over a huge area. Lightning Evokers have instant pin-point damage. Both are extremely accomplished between tier 1 and 3, with the firepower of say, multiple Air or Earthen Acolytes.”

“I am pretty confident myself as a Tank, and with my affinity, I could stand in for two basic level Abjurers at the very least. As an Abjurer, I can instantly create hard Shields mid-air, good for blocking both physical and elemental attacks. If we have access to a water source, I can even manage Shield walls."

"For our team, I'd say the game-changer is Elvia. With a healer, we can ramp up our hunting speed immensely, even if we are a little reckless. Having a Cleric makes the 'survival' aspect of the Field Trip rather trivial."

Ah~, Gwen nodded affirmatively. Elvia, of course. Theirs would be the only team with a Healer in the entire school. How could they lose a survival competition if they could negate the inconvenience of inevitable injury?

"That's all fine and dandy, but Yue did advise you that we're just a few months into our training, right?” Gwen confessed dubiously. "I doubt we can chain more than a dozen spells at the moment. Not to mention that Elvia isn't yet certified - are you Evee?"

"I need to pass the medical tier 1 examination first.” Elvia shook her head.

“There's still two months until the Field Trip,” Jun proclaimed confidently. “Not a problem with your affinity and resources.”

"What can you tell us about the Field Trip itself, Jun?" Gwen continued.

"Well, it takes place near the Royal National Park, deep down the coastal area. The area south of it was never really reclaimed, just kind of 'cleansed' a few times- it's now infested with low-level creepers."

"Horned-Rabbits and angry Wombats?" Gwen thought about her Magical Creatures classes with its absurdly thick Monster manual.

"A little more advanced than that I hope!" Jun jovially quipped, "We're talking more the garden variety of sentient magical beings, like Goblins."

"Goblins..." Gwen still couldn't believe there were Goblins in this world. The critters were not the green-skins of yore though, but humanoid creatures gifted animation by the magical residue of the Wildlands. The Bestiary stated that when enough elemental essence coalescence in an area, it attracted spirits sensitive to that element and gave them material form.

Within the bestiary, Goblins referred explicitly to the malignant little creatures that formed where Earth and Fire elements were particularly strong. Lesser Goblins, or Snotlings, were little more than mindless animals that scavenged for food, while an adult Goblin could take down a grown man with its claws and teeth, ultimately becoming a Hob, a human-sized, flesh-eating creature of immense cunning.

"Have you ever seen a Goblin before?" Gwen asked.

“Seen 'em and killed dozens." Jun's eyes clouded over with remembrance, "It was when we got to one of the outposts down near Wollongong. The little buggers had overrun a mining camp, and were busy trying to get to the workers in their Construction-Golems."

"What happened?"

"Well, the workers were there to dig up crystals. Unfortunately, they struck a warren. When the golems came through, they broke into the tribe's main chamber, and the Gobs came flooding out like hornets."

"When my Party finally got there, the critters had already murdered a few of the workers. The rest locked themselves up in their construction golems, waiting for rescue. If you want to know what they look like, the ones we saw were different. They had these little horns they used for head-butting and carried these nasty obsidian clubs, They could even walk on walls, like spiders."

"That's disgusting..." Elvia gasped.

The trio sat around the Abjurer, hugging their knees to their chests, hanging onto every word.

"So..." Gwen wanted to hear the important parts. "How did you... kill them?"

"We had a fire Evoker with us, but the Gobs were resistant to fire, so our Air Mage and I had to double duty. He used Gust spells to slam them onto the walls, and I froze them in place with Creeping Frost and my Shields. The Water Transmuter ended up performing most of the defence because the Goblins had a tough time getting their small bodies through the Water Barrier."

Gwen leaned in closer, a dozen questions dancing on the tip of her tongue.

“… so finally, we popped the warren, and there were hundreds of the little buggers running around trying to get through the Shield. The fire Mage ended up throwing half a dozen Fire Balls at the cavern until it collapsed on the whole chamber, sealing the shaft.”

Gwen considered the information she had just received and knew that there was something she had to ask, something she had never done.

"How does it feel to kill something." She inquired carefully.

Jun visibly struggled to describe the strange, sickening feeling of taking life. Should he explain the sounds the Goblins made as the ice crawled up their spine? The crunch as their scaly-skin broke? The screaming and the yelping as they burned? The yellow ichor that oozed from their orifices?

"It will be hard at first," Jun replied finally. "The 'being' you're attacking had been alive, and now it's dead. I could describe the ichor and the smell, but it's something you have to experience yourself."

"The animals are not so bad..." Jun paused. “But Demi-humanoid Magical Creatures will test you. Some of them get pretty lifelike. The biggest thing I saw was a Hob, watching it get cut down by a barrage of Magic Missiles was no different to seeing a man die.”

Jun's voice trailed off. Only the sound of soft breathing and perspiration transpired through the dorm room.

'Snap!'

With a pop, Jun's ball of frost collapsed. The room once again felt stifling.

“I hope we can work well together,” Jun announced seriously.

“Yeah,” Gwen agreed. “Thanks for the heads up.”

“Thank you,” added Elvia, her complexion paler for the wisdom.

“Well, there's still the summer break, then a couple of weeks until your exams." Jun pushed up his spectacles and grinned at the girls. "I haven't agreed to anything other than I'll wait. You need to show me that my trust is well-founded."

"Alright," Yue announced excitedly. "I am pumped! We're gonna rock that test!"

Yue leaned in aggressively.

"Jun, you're not going to join another team, right?” Yue watched as Jun's eyes pivoted to and fro. The crude manner of Yue's strategic presentation made Gwen vomit a little in her mouth. "Promise?"

"Of.. of course." Jun stammered. Gwen wondered if his glasses would fog up, but then again, an ice Mage naturally had a lowered body temperature.

Jun escaped before Yue could push him to make another promise.

Yue had an extroverted, forceful personality; Jun was passive and humble.
Fire and ice, Gwen mused, was there a correlation there?

Gwen consulted a mental Astral-chart to recall what her oppositional element was and find it to be Dust. The Quasi-elemental Plane of Dust, consisting of nothing but death and the erosion of time and space. What kind of Mage would that be? Who could even awaken to such a thing? Gwen shuddered, imagining a grey old man with a constant air of apathy, dandruff falling like fallout about his head.

When the door finally closed, Yue turned to her companions.

"That was embarrassing," Yue confessed.

So you do feel embarrassment. Gwen patted her friend on the head.

"Well done!"

"Would you expect anything less?" Yue raised a mischievous brow, assuming a hands-on-hip power pose, expecting praise for her negotiators.

"Arrr I am so jealous!" Elvia blurted. "What are you eating! "

"Well, there is a secret..." Yue sauntered closer to the unsuspecting Elvia before hugging her tightly.

"Hot! Hot! Hot! It's TOO HOT Yue!" Elvia moaned. "How can your body temp be so high? I am dying!"

"Feels alright to me." Yue giggled mischievously.

Gwen felt the ambient temperature soar. The air-conditioned hour they shared with Jun felt so far away.

"You sure that your family can't just install air or water-based conditioning Glyphs here?"

"Nup." Elvia moped sadly, feeling sweat pouring from her ivory skin after Yue's heated assault. "Rawson said that the building is Warded. We're not allowed to install foreign Enchantments."

"Gar~ Get away from me woman!" Gwen yelped as Yue snuck towards her, hoping to spread some more misery.

In the end, it was too hot even to move. Gwen sat on the wooden desk, sweating into the grain. Elvia laid on her bed like a corpse.

"I touched a dead body the other day." Elvia declared suddenly.

Both Yue and Gwen froze.

"At the clinic!" Elvia corrected herself just in case the girls thought she was responsible for the cadaver. "A worker was attacked. He succumbed to his injuries. My uncle got me to sit in on the autopsy."

The other two girls listened quietly, the subject efficiently chilling the room.

"I watched Uncle go through the... organs, and he took them out and showed them to me one by one. There was so much it, the heart, the lungs, the liver..."

"The man had been alive only hours before, but now he was dead and being taken apart for studies. I wanted to vomit, but Uncle said that I had to see this sooner or later because no matter how good a Mage can be, there will come a day..."

The song of cicadas filled the humid air.

"I want to be the one to heal you if that ever happens." Elvia intoned solemnly, "I'll never let either of you die!"

Gwen's throat became swollen as her eyes welled with moisture; her heart throbbed with maternal love and boundless affection.

"... and we'll protect you too, always," Yue solemnly declared.

"Aye," Gwen concurred, her hazel eyes full of conviction.

There was nothing else to be said. The girls smiled as one, happy in their naive promise.


_Putt! Putt! Putt!_

The training dummy split in twain with a resounding 'crack!' as several stone-tipped Magic Missiles cracked its wooden surface, sending up a cloud of fragments.

The area around the dummy next shimmered; a mana Shield made opaque by dust, rock, and assorted sediments materialised.

Thunk! Thunk! Thunk!

The mana shield remained immovable as the missile shattered against it, but a section of it became chipped where a projectile had struck, penetrating some of its exterior and sending spiralling shards to bounce off its interior.

"B"

"C"

"B"

The instructors announced.

"Would you like another attempt?"

"No sir, I believe this is my current limit," the earthen Abjurer announced sadly. He had already surpassed the expectant ten consecutive incantations but could do nothing more about the lacklustre power. That was a problem of both School and affinity.

"Very well, you may go."

The exam took place, much to Gwen's dismay, in public and before the assembly of Spellcraft students deemed eligible for the Field Trip. There was at least a hundred of the gathered cohort. Gwen sighed. It wasn't so much that she resented presentations or speeches - she loved those - she disliked being judged for the sake of being judged.

Half the day had passed, and half the students remained, waiting the drawing of their lots. So far, neither Gwen or Yue had been chosen. Yue suspected with a confident smirk that the other students were just the opening act and that the inspectors were saving the best for last.

Though Gwen was sceptical, she could see that Yue's hypothesis had some merit. None of the other students with highly attuned affinity had presented themselves yet.

They watched as an Air Mage cut down half a dozen dummies, marvelling at the speed of her smooth, acrobatic movements through the obstacle course. Each element had their distinct advantages; the Air Mage's defence proved woeful, her mana Shield barely holding against two of the instructor's missiles.

Then a familiar face appeared: Debora, Gwen's old childhood friend who had bickered with them on the day of the Awakening, took to the stage. Since their spiteful rendezvous, Gwen had kept herself from Debora's presence.

Debora had grown taller somehow, more alluring; her signature long legs appeared more muscular and sculpted than before. Gwen knew that Earthen Mages all possessed exceptional stamina, constitution and strength- that those with high affinity eventually possessed rock solid, chiselled bodies akin to marble statues.

The once-heavy mass of Debora's auburn hair had been bundled up into a knotted ponytail, giving her the air of a track athlete. Cries of audacious exhalation went up from the crowd as Debora entered. Though Debora had always been a queen-bee type as a junior, she worked hard as well. During their training, Gwen and Yue had heard nothing but praise for the 'genius' of Class 3 from the Instructors.

"Catapult!"

Debora began with a classic, offensive Transmutation spell, launching a fifty-odd kilogram projectile in the shape of a spiked ball towards the target. 'Catapult' was the Transmuter's version of Magic Missile. There was no auto-guidance, but the spell packed a far stronger wallop. Debora's wrecking ball arched gracefully through the air, meeting the wooden dummy in violent matrimony. The mannequin shattered spectacularly, sending up a spray of splinters. The stone rolled on for another dozen metres, taking out several back-up dummies.

"Catapult!... Catapult!... Catapult!..."

She incanted in quick succession, and a barrage of boulders devastated the field.

The crowd cheered and clapped, Debora wasn't even breaking a sweat.

"I think she's at least tier 3 affinity now." An instructor observed. "Wonderfully smooth mana conversion, almost no lag or wasted potential."

"I concur." Gwen heard another Instructor speak before feeling an acidic twang.

Debora then walked into the field. As she sauntered, her skin turned a deep bronze, becoming coarse and rigid.

Bronze Skin? Bark Skin? That was a tier 2 Transmutation spell! Gwen blinked. Were they doing Tier 2 spells already?

"Are you certain about this?" An instructor asked.

"Yessir, you have my consent," Debora replied, smiling bravely. “Though not my hair, Sir. I will have it styled more appropriately for the Field Trip."

The instructors nodded as one, then began.

A barrage of three missiles flew towards Debora and struck her on the chest, the arm and the leg. She barely flinched as a few motes of stones fell. Her Earthen armour remained impenetrable.

"Very good!" one of the Instructors announced. More barrages followed; it was only on the tenth strike that finally a chunk of the armour chipped off, and Debora fell to one knee.

She walked back towards the demonstration platform, dramatically turning to unleash one more spell.

"Stone Blast!"

A simmering glow appeared beneath a dummy before the pavement suddenly sprouted half a dozen spikes, piercing blonde wood and sending the torso flying a good ten meters.

Another Tier 2 Transmutation spell! Gwen's delicate brows knitted apprehensively. Debora was kicking ass.

"Debora sure is special!" Someone behind Gwen remarked appreciatively.

"A"

"A"

"S"

The grading was unanimous.

"Geez, first High Distinction and we're sixty people down already!"

Gwen saw Debora turn to look through the crowd. She felt Yue tensing beside her.

From across the assembly, their eyes locked.

You think you have talent? What I have is what hard work gets you, Debora's eyes seemed to taunt them. I am every bit as good as you think you are.

"I am going to enjoy this." Yue spat beside Gwen. "Looks like Debby need a good spanking."

Gwen felt caught between two colliding forces. She felt respect for Debora. After all, had Debora being a company colleague, Gwen herself would have felt nothing but praise for someone so driven and dedicated to their craft.

But Yue was never one to leave a slight unmolested.

A few more students came and went.

“You’re going to show them ‘that’ already?” Gwen whispered, watching Yue rubbing her hands together.

"Her holier than thou purist attitude pisses me off," Yue snarled, baring her teeth. “Watch me rock her world. I wonder what she'll think after she gets her ass ripped by an Asian half-NoM."

"Yue Bai. No. 14002. Yue Bai."

"I am up!" Yue's presence drew envious glances and wanton stares. "See you on the other side!"

"Miss Bai." The Instructor nodded when Yue made her way up the platform to the sound of applause. Gwen could swear that the crowd was chanting 'Yue! Yue! Yue!'

"I am ready." Yue turned to the field and watched the Dummies conjured into place. "I shall begin."

"Firebolt!"

A dazzling arc of fire flew through the air like a falling star and struck the dummy. The force of it splintered the wood cinematically, before engulfing the target in an explosion that left nothing but a smoking stump.

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

The crowd collectively took in a breath.

That was a Tier 1 spell?! How did she make Magic Missile explode? Were there two stages to the Evocation spell?

"Astounding display Miss Bai," the Instructor's praise was full of approval.

"To think you could place an unstable mote within the frame of the missile particle.”

"Yessir, but the missile is no longer self-guiding," Yue answered honestly. That was beyond the girls' knowledge of rudimentary Spellcraft.

"A distance to go before you perfect it then, do you intend to craft a Signature spell?"

A Signature Spell was a spell that solely belonged to a single Mage, not taught in the general curriculum. It was the hallmark of a skilled mage to create unique incantations, and almost all the noted Magus had their unique incantations.

"Yessir."

"I would advise patience then." The instructor advised warmly, "There are far more resources when you arrive at university and have access to senior instructors who are more attuned to elemental Fire."

"Thank you, Sir."

“You may continue.”

Yue gathered her wits once again, and the air around her became scorchingly hot.

“Barrage!”

With a burst of fiery mana, Yue conjured a dozen fire bolts and fired them off at different angles in a vertical line.

A line of explosions shook the field, sending dummies flying every way, cutting a deep channel in the splintered bedrock. The pyrotechnic fireworks shook the ground and forced students to conjure Mana Shields to intercept the flying debris.

“By the Magus!”
“Holy hell!” someone screamed over the cacophony.
“Are we really in a high school division?”
“Nothing's surviving that…”

The air cleared. All the dummies were gone.

“Incredible,” an instructor marvelled.

“Indeed, marvellous,” another concurred.

Despite their high praise, the Instructors still offered essential criticisms. Her incomplete-signature spell took too much mana; it lacked focus each explosion was inconsistent, and so on.

“Are you able to continue?” The third inquired.

“Yes,” Yue's chest rose and fell. “One last spell.”

Yue invoked her Mana Shield.

“Blast Shield!”

Fire Mages had offensive shields that worked wonders on melee opponents but had severe limitations against ranged attacks. As Yue manifested, a shimmering, glowing Shield surrounded her in a half-dome.

“Another Signature Spell!”

Three missiles shrieked towards Yue. As the projectiles struck the Fire Mage's Shield, a volatile reaction spat forth gouts of orange flame.

The first missile exploded.

The second skimmed the Shield.

The third, however, penetrated her shield and struck Yue on the shoulder. The force of the impact drove her toward the ground.

“Yue!” Gwen cried out.

“I am fine.” Yue waved back, nursing her collarbone.

“Looks like that modified spell still needs work,” one of the Instructors commented.

“Yessir,” Yue admitted. “It's far from ready.”

“Good concept though, if you can somehow accelerate your reaction…”

“Indeed…”

“I believe there's a Magus at the Sydney Tower who has designed a similar spell. Perhaps, if you are interested, I can ask the faculty to put you in contact with the Magus.”

“Thank you, Sir.”

“I'll be honest with you.” Another instructor's criticism was sterner. “You are wasting too much time on creating these spells, Yue. The basics are the foundation of Spellcrafting, and you need to have a solid foundation before venturing into new things. These spells are as dangerous for your enemies as your allies if you cannot control them well. My recommendation is to forgo these fancies, at least for now.”

Yue nodded solemnly.

“After the Field Test,” The instructor added. “You will have team and survival training; please focus on that to the best of your abilities. No distractions.”

“Yessir, I'll try my best,” Yue answered seriously,

“S”

“S”

“B”

S stood for supersede. An achievement beyond what could be measured by the Senior performance metric.

The first mark was for effective damage.

The second was for speed and or stamina.

The third was for defence and utility.

The Fire element was a naturally offensive element, though Yue’s attempt at innovation by using offence to offset defence was commendable.

Yue returned to Gwen surrounded by the cheers of their peers. Not, however, before she found Debora in the crowd and gave her the bird.

“You had me worried when that missile went through.” Gwen took her friend by the shoulder and gave her arm a soft prod.

"Eee Yarh!” Yue hissed. “Yep, it's gonna swell for sure.”

"If only Elvia were here..." Gwen lamented.

"She's got a whole other thing going. Much more difficult than us grunts, ha!"

A dozen more students had their turns, some failing, some succeeding, but none matched the rating given to Debora and Yue.

Gwen awaited her turn with bated breath.

Eventually, it came.

"Gwen Song. No. 14026."

The gathered assembly had no cheers nor applause for Gwen. Gwen reached the platform and met the benevolent gaze of three Instructors.

"We have heard good things from Principle Bartlett," one of them spoke benevolently. "It is rare to see a Quasi-elementalist in action, and an offensive caster at that."

An array of target dummies moved into position.

Deep breath! Focus. Do it like you always do, Gwen assured herself.

She turned to face her wooden opponents and tapped into the Sigil, sensing it burst into brilliance within her mind. She pointed rather flamboyantly towards one of the wooden figures and spoke the incantation that she had practised a thousand times before.

“Blast Bolt!"

The smell of hot ozone filled the air, mixing with the unstable Positive Energy. A shunt of electricity split the air.

'Crack!'

A flash, followed by a thunderous 'crack' filled the field with light and sound.

Lightning! The crowd gasped. The power of the Gods themselves! The purest form of absolute destruction.

A cloud of dust rose into the air, obscuring all sight.

WHO COULD SURVIVE THE FIST OF HEAVEN ITSELF? The crowd cooed. SUCH POWER.

The moment of awe passed.
The dust settled.
The assembly stared dumbfounded at an intact dummy.

The faceless Dummy stared at Gwen, dumbfounded.

She missed. Gwen Song missed the target.

Oh. My. God. Gwen's mind turned as brilliantly white as her bolt of plasma.

I MISSED THE FUCKING TARGET! She screamed internally.

"Did she miss?" Someone asked.

People began to laugh out loud.

"She missed the dummy!"
"Oh my God, this is too good!"
"What the hell!"
"Ha! What an idiot!"
"I knew she was just a vase!"

The laughter spread like the tide, some of the students were so overcome that they doubled over trying to breathe.

"SILENCE!" An enhanced auditory spell blasted across the assembly.

"Continue," said one of the instructors. "Don't be so nervous. That was a wonderful manifest."

Gwen nodded, trying to block out the stifled mockery filling the space between her ears.

Show them what you can do. Gwen thought to herself. Show the world what you can do.

Her Evocation Sigil flared, sending a torrent of lightning-charged mana into her conduits. Gwen raised her hand, a finger extended towards the heavens, then swiftly pointed downwards.

"Blast Bolt!"

The roar of her incantation rang out through the field. Those close to her instantaneously felt their hair rose to a stand-still. A vacuum formed above the dummies.

A blue-purple shriek of lightning cut through the air and struck the closest scarecrow. The wood grew bright before exploding into ten-thousand pieces, sundered into motes of ash and dust. The obliteration was so complete that not even the stump remained, leaving only a half metre crate.

Before the first arc faded, another arc cut through the air, obliterating another dummy.

Then another, and another.

Shards of lightning filled the air, indiscriminately ravaging the world within the radius of the spell, increasing in frequency.

Gwen felt her mana pool drain like snowmelt at springtime, pouring into the white-hot Sigil.

More! The exhilaration thrilled her to the core. I can do more!

A final bolt of lightning struck the ground, a beam of solid light, blinding all within sight. A shockwave expanded from the epicentre, send out a concentric ring of dust. As the particles settled, there remained only decimated stumps amidst a criss-cross of molten sand-turned-glass.

Gwen felt her knees give out as mana drain came on. Pulling herself up by the hair, she stood through force of will.

"Magnificent."

"Can we even do that as a Senior Mage?” One of the instructors quipped.

"Sure, but I am fifty, and she's fifteen..."

The instructors observed the devastation.

That was the same chained signature spell that Yue was using but elementally charged with lightning; a multi-cast of Fire Bolt given a new form. Though it was not well known, it was an observed phenomenon that an area charged with positive energy gave rise to greater lightning manifests. It meant that for each subsequent bolt striking the same location, the following strike was substantially stronger.

The question, of course, was how was Gwen controlling the direction of the blasts so accurately as to converge?

The assembly of students picked their jaws off the floor.

"Are we still at a high school level?"
"Surely military mages are only about this powerful?"

The crowd went wild with speculation.

Gwen regarded her handiwork with a feeling of satisfaction. For someone schooled in the scientific method, it wasn’ that difficult. One time, she fumbled a spell and left excessive motes of positive energy at the location. She subsequently found that all her other strikes kept becoming redirected to this particular spot. Testing and experimentation ensured, and she found herself a little knack for directing lightning bolts. Since then, she had named her first attack as the 'Guiding Bolt'.

"Can you continue?"

Gwen nodded, summoning a second wind.

She made the gesture of the circle, forming within her mind the Shield spell, and channelled into it whatever mana she had remaining.

"Please, I can't hold this for much longer. Sir," Gwen replied between clenched teeth.

The choice was as much tactical as it was necessary.

Only Abjurers could hold Shields indefinitely, and only Abjurers could generate a shield for others. For all other schools of Mages, a Shield was the last resort of self-preservation. During duels or in competitions, getting past the enemy Abjurer to force enemy Mages into 'Shield-Break' was the victory condition. Once a Mage lost their Shield, they were just flesh and blood humans.

Gwen's mana shield was pale blue, with the occasional spark leaping off its sides. Like all Lightning shields, it was an offensive barrier.

"Ready yourself," the Instructors forewarned.

Three missiles shrieked through the air and struck Gwen's Shield.

The first missile burst into a brilliant ball of light upon contact, consumed by the triggering of the Shield's capacitative energy. The second cut through the electrical barrier, missing her torso. The third pierced the Shield with a sound of breaking glass and struck Gwen squarely in the chest, sending her stumbling backwards and onto her buttocks.

"Gwen!" Now it was Yue's turn to worry.

The instructors breathed out. Much of Spellcraft operated on a balance of power. Abjuration was tough and impenetrable but weak in the offence department. Transmutation was versatile but unexceptional in defence or offence. Evocation Mages had incredible aggression, but tend to be glass cannons.

"S"

"A"

"B"

The verdict was out - Gwen passed with flying colours.

All the tension drained from her body. She had not disappointed Yue, and she had not disappointed herself. Half a year of nothing but hard work, working through Christmas, Boxing Day and New Year, had paid off.

The instructors then offered advice on tuning Gwen's spells for stamina and endurance, discussing possible scenarios and weaknesses. Gwen listened attentively and noted each of their concerns for the future.

"Congratulations Gwen!"
"Good work!"
"Nice!"
The crowd was finally warming up to her.

Gwen wanted to hail back, but she was dizzy with exhaustion. Her whole body felt drained of energy, wanting collapse somewhere and rest.

I need to work on this mana conservation business, Gwen cautioned herself. The last thing Gwen recalled was getting back to Yue before falling into her friend.

"Woa there, hold it steady!" Gwen heard Yue cry out. "Miss! I am taking Gwen to the infirmary!"