First Duel - Part 1

Kir cracked his neck as he took the elevator up to the 80th floor.

A sense of anticipation overtook him as he ascended, his heart beating faster at the prospect of a fight.

It was the fight itself that mattered to him. Not as a proof of his manliness or any such nonsense, but as proof that he belonged here, in this school.

It made him wet his lips in anticipation, realizing that battle, for him at least, came with its own form of lust.

By the time he exited, he had on a wide, villainous smile as he stepped into the arena that only yesterday had been a testing ground.

The raised stone floor was still there, and as he ascended the few steps to it, he saw that the tables and podium had all been put away. The only objects on the stage were a pair of stone pillars, one on Kir's side and the other opposite the stage.

His bully, pun intended, marched up the stage with his two cronies. Kir didn't think much of beefy minion number one, but the skinnier of the two looked much smarter than his boss.

He made a mental note to watch out for that one as he stepped into the stage, noting for the first time that there were plenty of students arriving for the school year's first duel. It would have made him nervous if he thought the three in front of him posed any actual threat.

A sense of hushed anticipation permeated the crowd, and Kir watched as the three boys grandstanded to the audience.

Kir saw what had to be first years, their uniforms edged in white, filling in seats as fast as the elevators could deliver them.

Sensing this would be a while, Kir made a mental exercise of guessing which level of shielding he would need. Latticing his shields certainly made them stronger than the norm, and more efficient. Most mages could only protect against either magic or physical attacks, but his shields worked on both because he could sustain two at once.

He could even add more layers depending on how tough he thought an attack was, albeit with diminishing returns and more of a drain when adding a second set and beyond. The one big disadvantage to full shielding was that it also meant he excluded himself from receiving new air, so remembering to hold his breath was essential if he had to sustain more than an anti-magic shield.

He was off in his own little world, so he didn't notice a change in his situation until the bull-boy started shouting at him.

"Hey idiot! Put your damn claw on the pillar so we can start this!"

There was a murmur of laughter from parts of the crowd, though Kir noted that many second years, their uniforms marked with red highlights, did not laugh.

Kir looked at the bull boy and smirked. He saw that the pillar the boy was touching glowed with yellow lines, and with a little magic sight he could see the pillar extracting a small amount of mana.

Without a word he placed his hand on the pillar next to him, and felt the subtle drain before both pillars shone blue, and the mana traced a set of lines out to the middle of the stage before joining.

From the sigil at the floor's center, a hologram formed, and Kir's eyes went wide as he saw it. It was clearly illusory, but rather than go for any specific race, they'd used a generally featureless humanoid form dressed in robes. Their Host, as Kir thought of the construct, appeared to be genderless and only had lines to indicate a face. They were so dense with magic, he could tell that they were stronger than everyone in the arena and the audience combined.

"Two mages come to settle their grievances in the arena. State your names, your grievances, and your terms," the holographic host said, looking first to the bull boy.

"I am Bjab Bravehorn! This devilkin dishonors the Academy with his mere presence. My terms are that when me and my boys defeat him, he will leave this school and never return." Bjab said.

There were murmurs of anticipation from the crowd. It seemed betting on someone's expulsion was cause for some drama.

Kir sighed as the hologram faced him.

"I am Kir Gale. I don't have a particular grievance with Bob over there, except for the racism. I just want him and his cronies to leave me alone... oh, and to never bully anyone again."

"It's Bjab, you sulfur shitter!" Bjab yelled from across the stage, drawing laughter from the crowd.

Their host seemed to pause. After a long moment, it spoke. "The terms of this duel are unequal. By Charter, Kir is asked if he wishes to demand equal terms."

Oh, so expulsion was a big ask, Kir realized. "I've set my terms," he replied to the host. "I do not wish to change them."

"Very well." The host straightened. "Do both opponents accept the terms that have been laid forth?"

""Yes!"" Kir and Bjab said at the same time.

"The rules for defeat shall be as follows. Rendering unto unconsciousness or sleep. Departure from or being forced to leave the arena. Fatal magics will result in a forfeit. External interference will result in a draw." As the Host said this, a shield came up around the arena, and all the windows opened themselves. "Furthermore, each opponent shall accept a binding oath to fulfill the terms of victory and defeat."

Circles of light appeared at about waist height before Kir and his three opponents.

"Place your limb within the ring to accept the oath. You have one hundred counts to comply or forfeit," the Host explained.

Kir saw that the ring itself was made up of complex sigils, magic circles within magic circles. He took only a few seconds to decide before sticking his tail into the ring, watching as it compressed until it made contact with his skin, leaving a simple black line circling his tail like a tattoo.

A moment later, Bjab pulled up the sleeve of his left arm, revealing a half dozen rings leading up from his wrist. His cronies didn't have any, and as they all placed their left arms in the rings, the circles tightened, adding one more to Bjab's collection and fresh black lines to the wrists of his minions.

"The oaths are sworn. As the recipient of greater stakes, Kir Gale is granted the right to choose the arena," the Host said.

"What are my options?" Kir asked.

"Land, Sea, and Sky," the Host replied.

"I choose land," Kir said.

With a rumble, Kir felt himself lift from the ground as illusory terrain began to form within the bounds of the arena. Boulders and trees appeared, and though they were not real, they seemed to be made to act like the real thing, if the complex sigils and magic circles they were made of beneath the surface were any indication.

The Host stood unphased in the middle of the arena. After a few seconds, it was done taking shape, and the Host spoke one last time as it disappeared.

"The stage is set. Let the duel begin!"