Part 1

Magic Imperium

Abundus, the most powerful mage in all of history, his mana was set to be nearly infinite, the world was overwhelmed by darkness, when the great mage emerged from the chaos. It's believed, that Abundus wiped out an army of demons with one attack. It's been 1,000 years since that day...

Exius Cyrel was a young teen that loved magic, he went to an academy where citizens could learn all types of magic. However, the amount of magic users had greatly lowered over the millennia since most crime didn't involve magic casters...

Exius walked through the hall of the magic academy, torches of different colored flames aligning the walls. The floor was covered in red carpet with the rest being white. Wiping his black hair out of his hazel eyes, Exius walked into his first class, this involved channeling fire until the user could morph it into shapes and sizes.

"Alright everyone, glad to see more magic users in this class than last year. Now, we're going to start with the basic of fire magic: controlling the size and shape of your flame. Watch carefully" The mage held out his hand, breathing in a calm pattern, suddenly a sphere of fire manifested, hovering in his grasp. The caster slowly proceeded to increase the size of the ball of flames until it was as big as a bowling ball. The magic users could feel the mana flowing around the large fire ball.

The man closed his hand and the sphere vanished. "Alright warlocks and witches, I want all of you to give it a try" Their teacher stood by his desk in case something were to happen. All the students began holding out their hands, focusing the warm feeling within them, all to their palm. Most seem to be doing fine for their first time except Cyrel, it seemed as if no matter how much mana he focused into his hand, nothing appeared.

The young wizard started to breath more, hoping to conjure up just a small flame...That's when he created a fire ball five times the size of anyone else's. Luckily the boy closed his fist and stopped his breathing pattern just before the orb got to close to anyone. His teacher looked at him, his golden eyes staring at him. (Hmm, he may've lost control. However, I felt a great amount of magical energy coming from him at that moment)

Two of the students sitting beside him, slowly scooted away in fear of getting hurt. Some of the others just laughed with him being the only one causing a scene...

After their lesson had ended, the teacher asked Exius to stay for a minute so they could talk. The young wizard could hear the quiet laughter from a few classmates as they walked out. The teen tried his best to ignore them. His teacher sat down next to him by the rows of tables used as desks, like a long bar table.

"Don't let those kids get to you, you might've put too much mana into your ability, but when you did, I felt great power coming from it, a lot more than those kids. You have great potential, don't let anyone tell you otherwise"

"Thank you sir" He replied with a slight smile on his face. The teacher commented: "Oh and you don't have to call me sir, call me Daikas" His student bowed to him in understanding before heading for his next class. The boy didn't notice a teen dressed in black a long sleeve with jeans, watching him, leaning up against the wall with his arms crossed. An emotionless expression on his face. His dark red hair covering his right eye.

Cyrel raced into the court yard filled with students when a tree root came out of the ground, tripping the caster, causing him to roll across the paved area. He heard a guy laughing at him a few feet away. "Aww, seems the poor freshmen can't even control his legs!" Only the bully and his three other friends were laughing. They wore green cloaks with a symbol of a tree on them.

(Ah, seems they're skilled in the art of life magic. But wearing their cloaks and giving away their focused class will give me an idea of what spells they'll use. I may be a novice caster, but I am skilled in the light class. Luckily I'm only wearing my black jacket with blue jeans, they have no clue what arts I focus in)

"Are you gonna cry like the unworthy trash you are?" The bully taunted. Exius stood up beginning to laugh. "Wait, why are you laughing, this shouldn't be amusing!" His attacker aimed both hands out in his direction, a magic symbol made of green light, lit up in front of his palms. "Root coffin!" Suddenly a large number of roots came out of the ground, wrapping themselves around the poor wizard.

"Not so funny now is it!?" The boy shouted in anger. Again Exius laughed, but this time he used a spell of his own. "Lightning strike!" A powerful bolt of lightning came down, completely obliterating the coffin that was holding the student. "I may not have full control, but I have a few spells I've mastered" However, the group of delinquents wouldn't give up, their leader had them activate a spell together: "Stone golem!" That's when all the concreate of the courtyard merged itself together to form a human-sized monster, it had orange eyes.

"You're lucky worm, there wasn't enough materials around to create a full-sized golem, though even a small one should be strong enough to give you a few wounds!" Right as the leader ordered the monster to attack, something rushed by, causing the monster to fall to pieces back to normal stone tiles. Everyone turned to see the red-haired teen facing away from them, holding a sword made out of rock. "Ugh another peasant to deal with" The upper-classmen complained. The newcomer let go of the weapon, causing it to shatter into small rocks.

"You four have no right picking on a freshmen for any reason, now leave before this gets ugly" The bully was about to say something but froze when the unknown student aimed his hand toward the rubble where his sword had shattered. "Fine, we're going, but this isn't the end, no one messes with Kasaka and gets away with it!"

The group of upper-class casters walked away while the unknown student walked over to Cyrel, holding out his hand. The caster smiled shaking his ally's hand. "Thanks for the help, but you didn't have to waste your mana on those jerks" His friend smiled, crossing his arms. "Heh, you're right, but there are multiple factors to why I should...First, I have more mana and control than you do being a freshmen. Not saying you couldn't have taken them, but with my help it saved you energy. Also I don't tolerate casters that think they're better than everyone. I'm sure if it had been a real fight, I would've beaten them without much trouble"

"My name is Exius Cyrel. What's your name?" The tall boy smiled once more then replied: "Vergil, glad to meet another caster who isn't selfish" Just then a loud bell rang out. "Crap I'm gonna be late to class, I'll see you later" The boy threw his palm to the ground and vanished in a burst of energy. Exius raced to his class just as the teacher began talking. He was now in the class of light. Their teacher went over the uses of light magic: " My name is Mr. Tokomi...Light magic would be considered life as well, though with light, you cast spell that involve your spirit using it to create many forms of light" The teacher dressed in a gold cloak, put his hands together as if praying. Suddenly a yellow magic symbol formed under his feet.

That's when a duplicate of him formed beside him made out of the yellow light, like a ghost. All the novice wizards watched with amazement while the 2nd years watched as if they had seen in several times before. Cyrel looked around to see upper-classmen wearing cloaks from a certain class they either mastered or was at least excelling at. Seemed the majority of his classmates where dressed in dark red, which he assumed was fire. Either fire magic was the simplest magic art or it was just a coincidence.

Going back to his teacher, "Alright, I wall you all to create a wisp, it's a small orb that projects light for you in dark areas" The young caster opened his hand and concentrated on it...At first fire began to form, the boy was embarrassed hoping no one had seen. Trying once more, a small green sparkle of energy manifested in his hand. He smile at the sight of his successful cast. Cyrel knew it was only light, but didn't try to put more energy into his small wisp in fear of it blinding the others.

"Well done, seems all of you have created a stable source of light to help you in dark places. The final step is to have your light move around, when you can't see, you'll need your light to scan the area so you have a good perspective of your surroundings" Exius watched as different color wisps flew by him like fireflies. The dark-haired caster motioned his fingers up, his sparkle slowly ascended up. He tried using his mind to get the light to move. But no matter what he did, the wisp stayed in place above him.

Exius had to move his hand in the direction he wanted the sparkle to go. The boy was a little disappointed that he couldn't mentally control it's movements, but was glad he could keep it stable and move it at all...Cyrel was given a "B" for his good concentration.

Next was his 3rd class: Darkness, he heard that dark magic was one of the harder types of magic since it needed a great amount of mana to cast most spells...

The wizard found himself sitting next to a girl with long-dark blue hair. Her eyes were a light green as well. He could feel himself blush looking at her. When she looked at him, Exius smiled waving at her. She didn't say anything but smiled back, bowing. Their teacher walked in, he seemed to have elf ears with long white hair. The man had dark purple eyes and was wearing all black which wasn't surprising since he taught dark magic.

"Welcome young casters, my name is Carsamic Daygen, I will be your dark spell teacher for this semester...By the way, many of you have heard this style of magic is advanced compared to normal arts and it's true. It's not the hardest but it's close. Anyway, let's proceed"

Carsamic aimed his hand at the tiled floor with his other hand holding onto it to keep it still. "Dark summon: Demonic blade" Suddenly a black wormhole formed in from of the spot his palm was aimed toward. A large, dark blade ascended up from the rift with it's handle facing up so he could pull the rest of the sword out. It had a purple line running down the center of his summoned weapon.

"Behold class, this is one of the basic spells for a dark class, but very useful when low on mana or want to conserve it" Daygen sliced the area with his blade, the others watched as dark flames appeared before going out just as it reached the first row's students. Their teacher smirked, facing the sword down toward the ground. The dark caster let it slide through the rift and vanish.

"Now, I would like a volunteer to come up and try it out" The girl Exius had been sitting next to, got up from her seat, walking down the ramp to the center of the room where their teacher was waiting. She gave him a determined look and nodded. She aimed her hand toward the floor just like him. "Dark summon: Obeum blade!" All watched as a dark-purple katana emerged from a black rift. Carsamic crossed his arms, nodding with a smile. "Good work, you seem to have plenty of control when summoning your weapon. However, summoning a dark blade is nothing compared to summoning creatures or a person, those spells require a lot of mana and focus. All depends on what you're summoning and how far it is"

The girl bowed to him then sent her blade through the rift back where it came from. As she sat back down, Exius responded: "That was great, I also liked the sword you summoned" She smiled saying "Thank you" Then went back to focusing her attention on their teacher...

The class finally ending, meaning it was lunch time. Cyrel found Vergil and decided to follow him into the lunch line. The young caster spotted Kasaka, along with his group of juveniles. Though, Exius tried to ignore them, even if those punks tried causing trouble, it's not like he couldn't handle it. Along with the fact Kasaka was probably a little worried about taking on Vergil, that caster seemed to be in a higher tier than the group of bullies. As if he could take them all at once without support...

Both picked a table to sit at. Each table was covered with a red table cloth, having cushioned seats as well. Cyrel was eating fried chicken with mac and cheese. Vergil had a chicken leg but a big salad. "You should try eating better, it helps keep your mana going. If you eat like that, you're not gonna last long in a fight"

The young wizard laughed saying: "You're right, I do eat a little much, I need to keep my body in good condition if I hope to be a powerful caster some day" Just then something hit both wizards in the back of the head. The two magic users turned around to see chicken bones on the floor. "Well, it's not hard to figure out who threw those at us" The freshmen commented.

Vergil found their target standing a few tables away from them. A slight smirk washed over Vergil's face. The thought of a challenger made him excited for a good fight. "Alright Kasaka, you have our attention now what?" Instead of saying anything, all the tables were spread apart creating a large space. That's when all four students released a wave of fire out of their mouths like dragons.

Exius threw his hand out in front of him. "Fire vortex!" A spiraling rift appeared in front of the coming attack. Their massive fire blast was absorbed by the rift as if it we're made out of water. (Good thing I'm wearing a 1st year cloak, otherwise they'd know I'm experienced in fire spells, even if I can't control the amount of mana I put into the offensive spells)

"Damn it, that shrimp stopped our combined attacked single-handily. He must be a high tier fire caster. In that case, let's try this. Chaotic tornado!" Throwing his hand in the pair's direction, a room-sized tornado formed between them, heading right for the two casters. Just as Vergil prepared to counter the coming spell, the blue-haired girl jumped in between the attack and the two. "Ravaging wind!" Suddenly an immense force of wind fired out from her palm, it was so powerful, it caused the boy's tornado to move in the opposite direction back towards it's user.

Kasaka didn't have time to stop his own spell. All the upper-classmen were lifted off their feet into the tornado. Right as they were thrown from the spiraling wind, The female caster took in a deep breath before blowing cold air in their direction. Exius watched in amazement as the four boys were sealed inside large blocks of ice.

"Wow, you're really good at magic" The young boy commented. She was out of breath and replied: "Thanks, by the way...why were those jerks attacking you guys anyway?" Cyrel told her how they started picking on him then Vergil stepped in. They were sure that Kasaka wanted revenge for getting embarrassed earlier.

"Well, looks like he embarrassed himself again, a teacher should be here to thaw them out then put them in detention. Oh by the way I'm Sara Kamaki, a 2nd year" Vergil bowed replying: "Hello, my name's Vergil, I am also a 2nd year, surprised you haven't popped up in my other classes. Then again, nod like I was looking for you so who knows"

The three of them laughed before heading back to their 4th class, which they seem to have together: Life magic. All three of them sat next to each other in the middle row, Exius in the middle with Sara on the right and Vergil on the left. They saw a beautiful women with blonde hair, wearing a green cloak. "Welcome to the class of life, here you will learn to heal and support your allies, but don't worry...there's plenty of offensive spells as well. Now...our first spell will be rejuvenation: the ability to heal someone's injuries. It does take some mana, but as long as you aren't constantly using this spell, you should have plenty to spare, depending on the injury as well"

A man dressed in royal clothing walked in. He was muscular and hand short dark hair. They could see a gold symbol of a want on the collar of the uniform. Exius didn't no much about it, but heard that the golden wand is the symbol of one of the elite magic guilds. Only high tier wizards were able to enter the golden wand guild.

"This is Haru Mizu, one of the 12 members of the golden wand guild. As you can see, his arm is broken from his last tournament fight. I would like a student to come up and rejuvenate him. I will be walking you through how to cast the spell" Cyrel was nervous but decided to walk down the ramp over to them. The young caster could feel all eyes on him.

"Alright, place your hand on the wounded area then try transferring your mana to it slowly" Taking a quick breath, Exius placed his hand on the broken arm and slowly shared his energy with the elite. His body was outlined in a green light. After a few seconds he removed his hand. Haru moved his buff arm around, testing it's state.

"Good work, my arm's good as new" The man responded. Cyrel bowed replying: "Thank you for the positive comment, I'm glad I could help" A few of the other students also clapped even Sara and Vergil. His teacher opened the door to the hall. Haru walked over to the doorway, "Here this all you great casters, study hard to expand your class mastery from more than one! You don't have to overwork yourself and master them all, just strive to be the best wizard or witch you can be!"

Mizu smiled than walked out the door. "Wow, a speech from one of the elite mages, that's awesome" Their teacher cheered. "Oh I forget to introduce myself, what kind of a teacher am I haha. My name is Chino Yumara" Next was their 5th class and Exius wasn't expecting them to teach it in their academy.

"Welcome students, my name is Sagero Tomara, I will be your teacher for this art of magic. Some say this type of magic shouldn't be permitted in magic academies, well I say different! Now, this art of magic is called: Blood magic, the name is self-explanatory, you use your blood or the blood of your target to activate the spell. I won't force any of you to endure the spells I teach you, I'm going to show you using animals. Also, for any here that have a problem with using animals for volunteers may take their place or look away"

Sagero left for a moment, returning with a glass cage of king cobras. The teacher took one out carefully and used a syringe to take some of the serpent's blood. The cobra tried to attack but was helpless in the man's grasp. Placing the creature in it's own separate cage, Tomora began the ritual, he used his mana to draw an "X" inside a circle then poured some blood onto his palm. Finally he crouched down saying: "Blood curse: Physic link!" They watched as their teacher slapped his blood covered hand onto the symbol made of his own mana.

His silver symbol turned to green, the color of the cobra's blood then vanished. Everyone was wondering what happened while Sara who was sitting next to only Exius knew what happened. (It's obvious what that curse did, it's called Physic link, it's effect caused it's target to be mind controlled by the caster's mind) Everyone saw the cobra's eyes glowing red from the control spell. It slithered over to the first row of students, silently staring at a young girl.

The red-haired girl sat there motionless. She knew the serpent wouldn't attack, but she still felt scared to have a venomous snake just inches from her. After a moment of silence, Sagero ordered the snake to go back into it's cage. Once inside the glass cage, their blood magic teacher ended the spell by clapping his palms together.

"That my casters is blood magic. Blood is really powerful when added to the right spell. Technically some would call these hexes or curses instead of spell, really it doesn't matter what you call it, just be sure you know what you're dealing with...Some magic arts can have drawbacks that could wound or even kill the caster"

Class six: Ice. Exius found himself without his friends in the class, though he was sitting next to a silver-haired wizard that could be a potential friend. An elderly women dressed in blue stood in the center of the room waiting for everyone to take their seats. "Welcome future casters, my name is Mrs. Frost, I'll be your ice caster teacher" Exius, along with a few others laughed as she said her name.

(Haha, Frost? How cheesy for her to name herself that and be an ice caster) She proceeded with her lesson: "Alright, this first spell is pretty simple, as you all no doubt heard, ice magic is one of the easiest magic classes to learn. Your first spell is to create an ice crystal. She held her hand out in front of them. They watched as a shiny crystal of ice formed in her palm.

Once more the young boy was unsure of his magic capabilities, his main focus was fire, so trying to cast his opposite class sounded like it'll be a challenge. Taking deep slow breaths, Cyrel tried to lower his body temperature, focusing on the cold feeling throughout his body. After countless breathing, a shard of ice began to form between his hands. Exius watched as it slowly rotated above his hand. The caster felt achieved that he managed to cast a spell that was the opposite of his best class. He looked around the room to see people playing with their ice crystals like coins, flicking them up in the air and catching them.

"Great work students, remember to practice, adding a little more mana with each cast to strengthen the power of your ice crystal" Finally there was one last class: Battle training. Exius found himself in a large room similar to the classrooms but much bigger with a dueling stage in the center of the room.

All of their teachers were sitting in a large table a few feet away from the dueling arena like judges would. Cyrel found himself standing in a crowd of tons of other casters that he assumed he'd have to duel.

"Alright casters, it's time to see where you all stand in power! We will randomly pair you with another caster to duel and see how well you've practiced your magic before coming to this school. However, there will be some upper-classmen dueling 1st years, and I ask you to use only basic and maybe one 2nd year spell, just go easy on them is what I'm saying" Chino announced as she sat between Daikas, the teacher of fire and Mrs. Frost, the teacher of ice.

Just than he heard another voice, it wasn't the teachers. Looking to the left of the stage, he saw Haru, the member of the golden wands. "First up will be, Amato V.S Dunku" The young first year saw a winter-haired boy walk past him from the left side of the square-tiled stage, stepping onto it and waiting for his combatant. That's when a light-blonde guy approached from the opposite end of the arena.

"Ready?...duel!" With out hesitation, the winter caster unleashed a furious blizzard spell from his left hand, sending a strong wave of wind and snow in his target's direction. The crowd used their cloaks to block the blizzard while the other duelist pulled out a wand. Exius was surprised at this, sure they were wizards, but this was the first caster he's seen use a wand.

"Fire hydra!" Suddenly a large dragon-like creature with three heads, made out of fire appeared between them. All the 1st years were astonished at the large creature. Most of the ice hit the beast's chest, barely affecting it. Once his attacker's spell had faded, "Attack hydra!" The crowd watched as the flame creature unleashed a wave of flames back at their foe. However, the white-haired boy slapped his palm onto the floor, "Ice barrier!"

A 10 foot dome of thick ice covered the young wizard, protecting him from the blazing attack. Once the flames and smoke faded, they saw the ice melting, but managed to protect it's caster. "Well done Dunku, I was getting a little anxious for a moment. Now that your monster's done attacking, let's see how well you defend! Amato clapped his hands together, causing a dome of ice to seal his target inside, similar to what protected the ice caster.

"What is the point of this attack? All you've done is trapped me in ice!" Just then the ice caster swiped his hand to the left, explosive tags suddenly surrounded the wizard within the ice barrier. All he could do was stare at all the set bombs around him. Amato made a fist, causing all of the explosives to go off all at once. The ice broke apart from all the sheer force of the tags. All watched as the young duelist collapsed.

Haru ran up to the injured kid to examine him, luckily he was just knocked out. "It's alright everyone, he's just unconscious!" The crowd of students applauded for Amato's skilled victory. "Impressive work Amato, you managed to get creative with two of your spells" The caster bowed for all of them while another student helped carry Dunku off the stage, into the crowd.

"Alright magic users! Time for another great battle! Exius Cyrel V.S Vergil" This made the young 1st year feel cold inside. He knew his friend was an upper-classmen with much more talent in spell casting than himself. Cyrel looked at his opponent that was a few feet away in the crowd he was in. Both wizards walked onto the stage. Sara watched from the crowd as she brushed her blue hair out of her eyes.

Exius put his hands up in an offensive position. His combatant unleashed a spiral of wind that surrounded his body. The dark-haired caster shot a fierce blast of fire aimed toward the small tornado. The flames made contact with the rotating wind, merging into an inferno tornado. The audience backed away from the stage as flames ravaged through the air.

That's when Vergil stopped the wind attack, causing the flames to dissipate into thin air. "Nice try, but even if the inferno had burned me, I could've easily expanded the tornado until it covered the entire stage, though it'd be an unfair tactic since this is only training. Now then, how about we stop playing around. Show me a spell you've been keeping from me"

Exius was nervous but decided to go along with his friend's suggestion. Throwing his right arm out in front of him, making a fist he announced: "Art of fire: Electric flame!" The young caster was engulfed in a protective suit of flames with lightning flowing through it. The students watched in shock by the first year's advance spell.

"Wow, never have I seen a 1st year pull-off such a high tier defensive move. What year do you think that spell is?" Tokomi asked turning to Daikas the fire mage. "Well let's see...The fire barrier would probably be 2nd year magic while the electric flow is merely a 1st year skill. But combing both into one technique, both increase the caster's offensive and defensive power if done correctly. So I'd consider it possibly 3rd year magic!"

All were shocked to see a novice wizard using a spell combination two years ahead of his own. Vergil also had a look of astonishment on his face as well. Without warning, Exius moved at superhuman speed from the electricity flowing through his body. Just as the boy's flaming fist was about to strike his target, a wall of stone shot up between them. Cyrel shattered it like it was merely glass. However, the defensive wall bought Vergil enough time to step out of the way just before impact.

"Astounding work Exius, to think you've mastered such a spell so quickly" Right as his opponent had said that, the young caster's flames and power vanished from his body, causing him to face plant onto the tiled stage. All stared in surprise by the sudden give out of such a young prodigy.

Using mana sight, Haru scanned the boy's mana levels... "He must've drained his mana from the use of such a high level move compared to his level. He must've not been used to using all that power at one time that caused him to give out" Even though the caster had lost, everyone applauded for both wizards for their strategy and power.

That's when Vergil called out his next opponent: I challenge Sara Kamaki!" A few teens gasped while the few standing around her backed away, giving away her location. She sighed but proceeded toward the stage. "Hmph, didn't think you'd challenge me so soon" She stood ready, wearing a light class cloak. Vergil grinned at the excitement he felt, being able to fight one of the high class witches of the academy.

"Sara Kamaki, age: 23, class: Light, but is not your only mastered class" Vergil announced. She looked away with a frown. Her attacker shot a large fire ball directed head on for him target, but right as it hit her, Vergil could see a golden barrier of light appeared when it made contact.

"Don't tell me you didn't think I hadn't set preparations for such an obvious attack" Instead of worrying, the young man smiled once more. Replying: "I wasn't expecting this fight to be easy, I wanted a challenge!" Sara laughed quietly. Suddenly she threw her hand up and a ray of light came down, Vergil managed to evade it just in time as the golden ray of light hit the stage.

Her opponent slapped his hand onto the stage, a blaze of flames racing in his foe's direction. Everyone watched as Kamaki swiped her hand up, sending a wall of wind rushing into the wall, blocking the flames from reaching her. "Alright Vergil, let's get serious!" Exius watched as both casters repositioned to the opposite sides of the arena.

"Light projection: Tracking beam!" Sara shouted as she fired a beam of gold light from her index finger. All watched as it moved at an incredible speed. Her combatant boosted himself with electricity, allowing him to evade the projectile. However, even after dodging the attack, it suddenly changed course, aiming for him once again.

"Shit!" The red-haired wizard maintained his defensive buff to keep out-running the fast beam. Once more Sara laughed responding: "If all you intend to do is run, you'll just drain your mana faster until it finally hits you. Once I cast the tracking beam, it only costs a fraction to keep it going, unless I had multiple going after you"

Vergil sighed and stopped in his tracks. Students and teachers watched as the light attack hit him head on. When the light cleared, everyone saw the caster badly wounded but still standing. "W-wow, for a spell that doesn't take much mana, it sure packs a punch" Kamaki nodded replying: "Thank you, I will take that as a complement. Now, since I'm sure you're weakened from the attack, I'm going to finish this was something special"

"Water prison!" At that moment, Vergil was sealed inside a large sphere of water a few feet above the ring. "Now the finishing blow, true lightning!" A blinding flash of light filled the room as the electricity struck the orb of liquid. Power instantly surged through the water, electrocuting the wizard inside. She lowered her hand, causing the water to separate into a puddle on the stage. Her friend's cloak was scorched by her lightning attack, but nothing too bad. Even with his wounds and weakened state, Vergil slowly stood up and shook his opponent's hand for a good match.

"Well, I'm just glad you didn't lose consciousness like the others"

"Y-yeah, that was a great finisher, but I'm sure that wasn't your full power attack" He commented. Blood on his lip but still smiling. "She smiled back answering: Of course not, if I had used a full power attack, also counting your already hurt body...You could've died from such force!" He just gave her a thumbs up before landing on his back, luckily still awake.

Exius helped his friend off the stage with Sara behind them. A few students backed away from the girl after seeing what she was capable of, even when she wasn't using her full power. All the teachers clapped for the advanced skill both caster's had shown in the duel. Chino, the mage of life came over to both Exius and Vergil, beginning to heal them with rejuvenation, their bodies glowing green.

Haru also clapped announcing: Alright, that was a spectacular duel you two, hoping to see even a little growth from you two for the future duels! For the rest of you, hoping you've paid attention to what you've seen here and know the kind of spells you all can learn or improve. Hope to see you all at the caster's world tournament that takes place half way through the school year. But a word of warning...This tournament involves other schools and of any class year, a 2nd year could be fighting a 6th year or any caster capable of high tier magic. Anyway, I'm sure you all get my message and hope to be careful when signing up for the challenge!" Taking his leave, the golden wand member teleported using a dark blue rift he created just as it closed behind him...

CHAPTER 2: Welcome new challenges

Weeks went by, Exius tried his best to learn all he could, even practicing spells in his dorm room on the weekends or just after school. Sometimes when he had to duel in their last class, he usually was too drained to even conjure a spell such as a mere flame...

Cyrel walked through the large campus of the academy when he spotted Sara and Vergil sitting at a table talking. "Hey guys!" The red-haired caster smirked replying: "Hey look it's the shrimp!" Before the boy could protest in anger, Sara knocked Vergil on the head. "Ow, what was that for!?

"Sorry Exius, he's just being over confident. Why are you out her on the weekend? Aren't you normally training or resting from dueling lessons?"

"Yea, but decided to check out the school story for possibly getting a wand. Originally I thought of them as accessories but people are saying it helps focus your mana and increases accuracy" His friend laughed telling him it was basic 101 to have a wand. Sara hit him upside the head again, explaining that not many casters have wants either because they're used to not using them or they don't have enough school coins to buy a decent one.

Cyrel walked through the courtyard, down a long hall before reaching an ally that had a few small magic shops. His friends were right behind him as he pulled out his academy I.D. "Hello, I would like to see how much is on my I.D so I may buy a wand" He set it on the cloth covered desk in the store. A long pink-haired women who looked young to be working at the store smiled and tapped the I.D using her own wand. An amount appeared above the card made of magic.

"Looks like you have about 12,000 units sir, may I ask what kind of want you're looking for?"

"Is there any you'd suggest?" She thought for a moment then brought out four wands and set the boxes down on the desk aligned with the tops off so he could see each wand. First he picked up a wand that was aqua colored, it had a similar color crystal on the end of it. He could feel a rush of mana rushing through it. "That's a possible" the caster commented placing it back in it's box.

Next was a green one with a vine wrapped around the handle. It felt as though he could hear the trees from outside blowing more, a strange connection to nature itself. Just then, he felt as if something was beckoning to him. Looking past the next wand, he saw the last one, it was black with a dark purple handle. He slowly picked it up and felt a level of mana that he had never experienced before.

"What kind of wand is this?" Exius asked trying his best to contain such overwhelming power. The story clerk thought for a moment then replied: We're actually not sure, one of our students found it a few years ago but since they already had spare wands they decided to bring it here. I'm guessing you can feel a great power within it?" She asked.

Exius nodded placing the wand in his tiny bag on his waist. "How much?" She told them how a wand like that would be around 30,000 but since it was donated and no one's claimed it in so long, she was willing to give it to him for 10,000. He thanked her just before they left. Even with it at his side, Cyrel could feel it's great power emanating from it.

That's when Kasaka came out from a corner, this time alone. "Exius, Vergil! It's time I pay you back for the trouble and embarrassment you caused me! I've been perfecting a new spell that I'm sure will beat you!" He slit his left hand then placed it on the ground.

"As I thought, he's using blood magic" Vergil commented. "Come forth Miradan!" The caster yelled. The three students watched as a giant blood-red demon emerged from the ground, it was 10 feet tall, buff with dark mana flowing around it's body. That's when Exius heard a voice whispering inside his head: "Use the spell: Demonic absorption"

The 1st year was anxious by the voice but followed it's advice, drawing his wand. "Attack Miradan!" Kasaka commanded. His target aimed his want at the creature shouting: "Demonic absorption!" Suddenly his wand began absorbing the demon's mana, all of them saw the demon's body weaken while Cyrel's body swarmed with the dark-red mana Miradan had just moments ago.

"No, this can't be! You can't do this! Miradan, strike him down!" But right as he gave the command, his target gripped his wand tightly unleashing a condensed fire ball. The demon threw a punch and missed as his fist went past it's target's head. The caster's fire attack made contact with the creature, causing a fierce explosion. Kasaka went flying backwards from it's sheer force while Sara protected them with her light barrier.

When it cleared, the demon was gone, only a large crater remaining in it's spot. They saw their attacker get up and run away in fear. The demonic mana dissipated from the boy's body, leaving him drained once again. Vergil caught him before he could fall. "You ok?" The man asked helping him stand up straight. Cyrel nodded shaking it off. They went over to Exius' dorm room to hang out while he studied his new wand...

The next day...

The day went by faster than usual as the caster waited to try out his black wand...Finally, it was dueling practice. The young wizard stepped up to the stage before a teacher could call out the first participant. "Looks like we have our first volunteer! Who will battle him?" After about 20 seconds, Daikas pointed to a random boy standing in the large crowd.

A blonde student wearing a dark class cloak walked onto the right side of the arena. He also had aqua blue eyes. "Hello Exius, my name is Genya Nozomi, 2nd year. As you can see, I'm skilled in dark magic spells. I hope you give me a challenge" Cyrel quickly pulled out his wand, waiting for the first attack.

All of a sudden, Genya swiped both his hands left and right, sending a dark mist in the 1st year's direction. However, his defender aimed his wand toward the coming attack. "Demonic absorption!" His want lit up with gold sparkles around the tip as the dark spell was absorbed.

"Take this! Fire demon! Exius summoned a large demon with fire blazing around it's body. The caster gave the command to attack. His target threw his hand out in front of him quickly summoning a large black shield. The powerful demon struck the shield, shaking the ring.

"Impressive, I'm sure you could pass for a 2nd year with that kind of power" Cyrel smiled, nodding to thank him. That's when Nozomi threw his shield like a frisbee, it spiraled right for the demon who was only a few feet away from him. Instead of bouncing off the creature's chest, it pierced right through them.

Most were shocked to see the monster fall to the ground before bursting into pieces of purple sparkles. Exius took a deep breath, the young wizard slid his wand back to his side, clinching his fists. "Electric boost, limit breaker!" All watched in anticipation as he called out his spells. His body surged with electricity, along with gold light outlining his body.

With out warning, Cyrel moved at incredible speed. Nozomi held his black shield In one had as his target charged him. The blonde wizard guarded with the shield when it was abruptly shattered by the 1st year's blow. Some complained about the duel becoming a melee fight, but since Exius was using spells during the fight, it didn't matter to the teachers.

Genya's eyes widened at the sight of such power. (Is this really a freshmen? His abilities are much more focused and accurate than your average novice) Exius struck the combatant, sending him backwards at super-human speed. Luckily the caster hit the invisible barrier just before he could hit the crowd. All saw that the barrier was multi-layered, the first being golden light, with the 2nd being dark mana.

Nozomi softly laughed just as he hit the tiled stage. Just as they prepare for the next duel, the entire campus proceeded to shake. Their teachers asked all casters to stay inside while the upper-classmen protected them. Exius tried to follow the mages but was stopped by Sara grabbing his collar. "Didn't you hear them, we're supposed to stay here until they give an all clear"

Meanwhile...

Haru Mizu and a few of the golden wand members stood out in front of the school, the academy was hidden on a large mountain with only two roads on both sides leading down into a large forest. "What's going on?" A tall women dressed in golden armor of the G.W. Haru explained he could feel a dark mana just as the school shook and they were searching for the caster.

That's when she looked up to see a dark hooded man with a steel mask canceling his face. "Welcome casters, I see you've all noticed my earthquake spell and have come to resolve it. My name is Momora Kanchi a high tier magic user of the Demion Corp. I've come to demand you all submit to us and do what we say. Otherwise we'll kill you lower class casters" The masked wizard snapped his fingers, sending a powerful shock wave throughout the area. Haru and the others went staggering in random directions.

Mizu caught his balance just in time. He lit up with an outline of blue. The caster ascended up into the air, right for the assailant. "Storm of lightning!" Haru threw his palm in his target's direction, a massive cloud formed above the villain, sending a ray of lightning right for him. Momora was struck head on, his body covered with a field of light.

The hero smirked at the effectiveness of his spell when out of nowhere, the attacker began laughing. "Hehe, so this is the power of an elite caster!? Or are you overconfident of your own abilities?" The golden wand caster was about to unleash his secret spell when the villain shot a beam of dark mana going through the hero's torso. Haru coughed out blood as he fell from the high altitude.

His partner flew up into the air, catching her teammate just before he hit the street. She descended back down, placing the wounded wizard up against the wall of the school with Daikas watching over him. Kanchi laughed into his hand, his cloak brushing through the breeze. "Come now, a member of the golden wand guild should be strong enough to faze me in some way. Maybe a little incentive"

The teachers watched as the masked assailant fired off a barrage of dark mana beams. The women held both arms out in front of her, creating a barrier of light. Each projectile hit the invisible barrier then vanished. "Mmm, that's better. How about raising the power" Kanchi suggested before firing the beams of darkness at a fierce pace.

The heroine kept her shield up but could feel it weakening, the others behind her could see cracks all around her field of light. Finally her barrier shattered, sending her back a few feet. Luckily she managed to keep her balance. (Damn it, he's just toying with us. He knows he could exterminate anyone whenever he pleased...But I still have a few tricks up my sleeve. I wasn't accepted into the golden wand for nothing!)

"My name is Kyla Izago and I am one of the highest tier casters in the world!" She told the mages to seal the academy inside a strong barrier while she went all-out. She put her hands together as if praying then shouted: "Mirror image!" Suddenly a duplicate of her emerged out of sparkles of golden light. The clone copied her movements in sync. "Now, Raging blizzard!"

At that moment, a monstrous snow storm washed over kilometers of the area. Momora was getting excited by his target's strategy by combing two defensive spells. Making a clone of herself, along with trying to blind him with thick layers of snow. "Very creative, this is the kind of plan I was hoping from such a famous guild!" She could hear such excitement from the masked attacker.

(Now for the finishing touch) "Immortal possession!" At that moment, a dark-red transparent demon came up behind her from underground, black flames blazing from it's rift even with the intense blizzard occurring. It slowly hovered into the girl, taking over her body. The only change is, her irises were now gray. She brushed her silver hair out of her dark eyes.

"Time to show him what an advanced tier caster can do!" She bolted right for her target. Kanchi sealed his body inside a sphere of flames. Though, right when she went for an attack, instead of striking it, she slapped her pam against the blazing hot surface. The villain assumed her hand would be melted on contact from the intensity of his flames, but Kyla was unaffected from such a trap. Instead, she filled the orb of orange flames with her demon's black flames.

Kanchi could feel himself being engulfed by his own altered flames. The evil caster lost his focus from all the burns, causing him to fall toward the paved road, face planting. Kyla disabled her defensive spells, landing in front of the unconscious threat. She knelt down in front of the criminal, slowly reaching for the mask. She knew it was suicide, but needed to know the truth.

Right as she removed the mask, her face filled with a look of horror. The identity of the assailant...was her older brother: Zagan Izago. He had thick brown hair and she remembered him having light green eyes when they were young...

(Flashback)

"Kyla look at this! Her brother called-out. She ran over to see his 12 year-old brother keeping a blue flame lit in between his hands as it hovered between them. "Let's see you try!" He suggested. Kyla held her little eight year-old hands out trying to form a candle-like wave of fire. No matter how much mana she put into it, or how hard she focused...The flame would die out seconds after lighting.

"I can't Zagan, I don't have as much practice as you!" She looked at her tall brother with tear-filled eyes. He laughed, placing his palm on her head. "Don't sweat it, I didn't get it the first time either, it just takes practice" Kyla smiled and nodded with hope...

(End of flash back)

She reached over to her brother, placing her hand on his cheek. That's when Zagan's eyes snapped open. Just as she stepped back in fear, he unleashed a wave of purple flames in every direction. Kyla went staggering back into the wall of the school as the mages shielded her and the school from the overwhelming attack. When the smoke cleared, the assailant had vanished.

"D-damn it, how could I let him escape!? He was my problem and brother!"

Kyla and Haru met with the other golden wand members at their hidden base in the middle of the forest near the school. "Thank you for this new piece of info on the masked criminal. However, seeing that this man is your brother...Kyla you will not be allowed to confront Zagan without another member present. We believe your emotions will get the better of you and won't act if extermination is called for"

She looked at the elder of the guild then responded: "But sir, I'm one of the top ranking members of golden wand, surely that stands for some form of trust. The elder nodded as he sat there dressed all in white with a long gray beard. Finally he said: "definitely, you're well skilled and one of the top casters known to the academy. But even the greatest casters can be influenced by a family matter, that goes for me as well. No one's perfect, but you must accept my decision"

She sighed in frustration but nodded to his demand. Haru was healed by Kyla's healing spell and was ready for their next task. However, another elite member was put with them to make sure their objective goes well. Mizu and the other two returned to the school. Haru continued watching over from inside the campus while Kyla watched from outside the school, soaring through the sky, searching the mountain for anything suspicious. Meanwhile Their new teammate, another caster of the golden wand, had left a doppelganger of himself at the school for back up while he searched for any activity of the Demion corp or signs of Zagan.

The caster's name was Brandon Alacore, age: 22 with short brown hair and light brown skin. He might've not been as quick-thinking like Kyla or Mizu, but his mana was great. The young wizard was capable of using multiple high tier spells whether it be offensive or defensive. Like the others, he too wore armor with the guild symbol on the right part of his torso. His was silver with gold glittering on his gauntlets, boots and the guild's symbol.

Meanwhile...

Exius and all the other students were told to wait in their dormitories until further update. Since the rooms acted more like single apartments instead of students being paired together, the young wizard was stuck in his room alone. All he could think to do was study one of his spell books and try to moderate how much mana he put into his spells. If the caster puts too much energy into a spell, it could go wild or have the opposite effect. If you don't focus enough, the spell will either burn out or not work at all.

Cyrel held out his hand with his palm facing up then proceeded to focus mana into his hand. Blue surges of electricity danced around his fingers as he carefully put more focus into it. Each time he added half his mana into the spell, it would surge around his whole arm out of control. But the caster wouldn't give up, he made a fist just before the half power mark and went for it.

Keeping his hand in a fist was a way he could try containing the excessive jolts of power. Finally it worked! Keeping his fist tightened, the electricity flowed within his entire arm instead of surging around the outside. "Finally, at least I can contain half my mana energy into my arm for a powerful lightning attack.

That's when Sara and Vergil appeared in his room through a rift of blue light. Cyrel laughed once responding: "Here I thought you two would stay in your rooms until a teacher said otherwise" Vergil sat on the black soft couch in the right corner of the room answering: "Normally we would follow the set rulers, her mostly, but if there were to be another attack...I'm sure there's no solo student here that could take on a Demion member"

Exius sat in the left side of the couch agreeing with him. Haru Mizu was one of the casters that he looked up to, finding out that your hero was taken out by one attack just showed the threat of their current foe. Along with the fact that was only one of them and probably wasn't even the most dangerous one...

Deep Underground Miles Away...

Zagan walked through an underground hallway with torches of purple flames on both sides of the hall every few feet towards a large steel door. The man pushed it open, entering a large meeting room with a big round table for all six members of the guild. Taking a seat, Zagan placed his mask down on the table, pulling back his hood.

"Well Zagan, seems you not only lost, but your identity was uncovered as well. This does not look good for you. However, our other member: Jaycen Korsa found the first of multiple magical items needed for our plan to move forward. The man snapped his fingers as he sat in the head chair of the guild table. Jaycen walked into the room through anther steel door in the back corner of the room.

Jaycen had short black hair with hazel eyes. He sat what looked like a gold statue down onto the center of the table in front of all the members. "This is the statue of despair, each gem contains a specific ability" The leader pointed to the gold statue of death, the grim reaper had a red stone on it's chest, a blue one on it's forehead and a white one on it's scythe. "The red stone, it conjures up a mile of black flames that can't be extinguished without commanding the statue. Next is the blue stone, that gem is capable of controlling the weather and other factors of earth. If used smartly, that stone could have many uses. Finally...the white stone is used to steal the youth from anything, using it will heal any wounds and give you back your youth as well. That gentlemen is the power of this artifact. So much power in such a small thing"

Their guild master snapped his fingers and Jaycen put the statue in the back room that was one big safe. "Now then, we have other artifacts to retrieve so I want two of you to watch over that school and the golden wand. While the other two gather info on the whereabouts of the other hidden items" A random four stop up and bowed before taking off on their assignment. Zagan stared at his mask...his identity was now know to the academy. The man felt as if he had lost the element of surprise, like he would be defeated if he came out of hiding.

Their master just suggested he stay on the sidelines for now until the final parts of the plan fell into place. Meanwhile at the academy...They had a member of golden wand in each large area of the campus, cafeteria, courtyard, dueling arena and one or two hall ways. The head master of the school took as many precautions he could to make sure the students were safe.

The day went by a little slow, Exius could hear people talking about Zagan, how he was part of a dark cult to kill them all. The young caster new the rumors were somewhat correct, but the students were over-thinking the situation and possibly scaring others more than they should be. But once it was time for his dueling class, he was happy to battle against someone to see how much he had improved.

Cyrel had noticed that he had expanded his mana limit a little, so the caster was capable of using more spells or much higher tier ones that used more mana. The young wizard went up on stage without the teachers having to call out a name. Sara decided to join him, walking up onto the right side of the dueling stage.

"Well, I think this'll be the first time we've dueled" Cyrel commented. She nodded, waiting for him to unleash the first attack. Exius slammed his palm onto the tiled stage, sending a ray of white light traveling through each cube, expanding throughout the stage. Sara jumped over the light just before it could touch her, but right as she landed back down, she realized she couldn't move. Looking down at her feet, she could see the stage was still lit with the caster's white light.

"Nice try Sara, but I could keep the paralysis beam flowing through the whole stage long enough for you to be affected" She sighed in frustration, only able to shake. She closed her eyes, focusing her mana all through her body. Moments later, a pink aura surrounded her body then broke apart like glass.

"I knew you would escape with ease, even if that is just a trap spell I've been improving with"

"My turn, take this! Ice blade barrage!" The students watched as a wall of swords made out of ice formed behind her. Vergil was impressed with the high tier offensive spell. That's when the female caster threw her hand forward toward her combatant's direction, all the sharp pieces of ice went rushing toward the young wizard like bullets. Exius only had time to form a small shield with his arms stretched out in front of him.

Most of the projectiles either missed or shattered on contact with his blade. However, just as it seemed like Exius had overcome such a fierce spell, His protective spell was broken as his blue transparent shield shattered to pieces. The last few swords pierced his shoulders with one cutting the side of his cheek.

"Damn, how could my mana barrier be destroyed by pieces of ice? She must've been holding back until the end"

"Are you done Cyrel? I don't want to hurt you more than I have to" The wizard weakly laughed as blood dripped from his wounds. Creating a puddle of blood. "I have one last spell up my sleeve. "Demonic shadow!" At that moment, Exius' shadow rose up into a figure shaped just like him but completely dark as if hidden in the shade.

The caster signaled his doppelganger to attack. It moved right up to Kamaki. She fired a shard of ice from her palm just a foot away, but it went right through him as if he were made out of black mist. Once the shadow went for a blow, it's dark shadowy arm became a solid normal hand, punching her across the face.

The girl slid back a few feet before coming to a halt on the edge of the stage. "So that's your trick, becoming solid on the second of impact while being able to stay a gas-like creature until an opening appears. Annoying yet useful" She new an easy way to finish off her target's final attack. The shadow moved around the stage at super-human speed, trying to get the female caster to lose sight of him.

Sara had keen battle instincts and could keep up with the shadow's movements with little trouble. Right as she sensed him headed for her, she formed a blade around her hand behind her back. The figure went for attack once more, but was stabbed through the solid part of it's body as it became solid. The spectators watched as Exius' ally vanished while he fell to his knees out of mana.

"D-damn it, looks like you win. I really had hope I was at least gonna end it in a tie, cuz I know I couldn't beat you in my current level" She walked over to him...Her frown became a smile as she helped him to his feet responding: "You may've lost...but you've certainly improved. You have my respect Exius" Everyone applauded at the great show of showmanship between the two casters.

Cyrel was too tired to watch the other duels, so he made his way back to the dorm room where he passed out on the bed. In the middle of the night, Exius awoke to something in his room. Without thinking he flipped on the light to see a transparent version of a wizard standing by his bed. Just as the young wizard prepared a spell, the stranger grabbed him by the throat, lifting up from the bed.

"You'll do" He said in a deep voice. His dark green hair brushed over his right eye. Without another word they vanished in a mist of black smoke...

The next day Vergil was the first to realize his friend hadn't come to class. (Exius is the type to cut class. Maybe I should go find him) Vergil asked to go use the bathroom then proceeded outside, heading for his friend's dormitory. He snuck past a G.W member that was guarding the courtyard. The man reached his friend's door and knocked....No answer. He tried once more...Still silence.

His patience gone and worry growing, he put his hand on the door and used a spell to unlock it. He quickly rushed in, looking in every room for his friend, but no trace was found other than him laying in bed the night before. Unsure what to do at this point, he used a spell that allowed him to speak to Kamaki telepathically. "Sara, we have a problem...Exius is missing. I was a little curious to why such a motivated wizard would just randomly skip class like that. I assumed he was in bed or dormitory, but I've checked all the rooms and there's no sign of him"

"Alright I'll be right there. Don't alert any of the G.W members or teachers, we need to conform he's missing before we stir up something about a student being kidnapped. If the students hear about a boy getting kidnapped, I'm sure they'd be some kind of panic"

After about 20 minutes, Sara showed up at Exius' door where Vergil was waiting. "So, do you have a plan to find him?" The 2nd year asked. She put her hand up to quiet him. She put both arms out in opposite directions as she closed her eyes. A pink mist of magical energy flowed through the room around them. That's when a transparent figure appeared along with Cyrel, they looked like holograms as both casters watched their friend get taken by the unknown man.

"Well, looks like we conformed that he was kidnapped. Finding him is the hard part though" Vergil commented. Sara rolled her eyes at the absurd comment. "It's not hard to find a caster that used a transportation spell. When a caster uses a teleporting spell, they leave a cloud of mana from the movement. That's why you see a burst of light when they leave. So I should be able to locate the wizard that used the spell"

Vergil was impressed that Kamaki seemed to be a head of him on terms of skill. He didn't know any mana tracking spells. She went outside and told her friend to follow her as she went behind one of the buildings and created a rift. They rushed in as it closed behind them. Moments later they arrived at a large forest with a rocky ground. Sara slowly proceeded through the shady forest as they walked through the leave-covered ground.

Just then Sara stopped in a large lot in the woods. Vergil looked around but saw nothing. Sara could feel the mana of the man that had kidnapped Exius. She placed her hand onto the ground...She felt the flow of mana coming from underground. "The energy is coming from...underground. They must be keeping him in a secret bunker underground!" She exclaimed with her hand feeling the stream of mana under them.

She leapt back, firing off a rush of force right for the ground. The immense force blew open a large crater in the ground. They notice a metal trap door at the bottom of the hole. "Allow me" The wizard commented as he stood in front of her holding his arm out for an attack...

Meanwhile...

Cyrel awoke inside a dark room, feeling his arms bound by something with a strong magical aura. "W-where am I?" The boy said in a weak voice. That's when movement could be heard in the corner of the large brick room.

"Welcome Exius Cyrel, I was hoping you'd awake in due time. My name is Avaris, the Lord of the Demions. One of my subordinates brought you to me, so I presume you have extraordinary power for your age. Let us see just how much power you contain"

The man snapped his fingers....The blue mana chains keeping Exius bound, changed to violet. The caster could feel his magical energy draining from his body. (Damn, I-I can't let this happen. I may be a 1st year...But I have the potential to exceed my limits!)

Just then a large boom echoed throughout the lair. Avaris put two fingers to his left ear as if using a Bluetooth earpiece. "Zagan, Scout sector A of the base, I think we have company" Cyrel realized the mage was using a spell used to contact others without the use of a device.

"D-don't have much left in me..." Once more the 1st year caster began to slowly lose consciousness from the withdraw of magic energy within him...

Back Outside...

"There, took a few fire blasts, but managed to blow down the large door" Kamaki clapped sarcastically from her partner's comment. Both casters slowly made their way down a flight of stairs before touching Down on a tiled floor.

The hall lit up from torches on both sides of the walls. Sara led the way as they went deeper through the lair, eventually the sunlight fading with the torches of blue flames being their only source of light. After a minute or so walking through the shaded hall, they entered a large meeting room.

"I'd say we're getting close" Vergil responded as they looked around the large room. That's when an abrupt noise rang out. Turning their heads, they saw Zagan standing in a doorway on the other side of the room.

"Ah sis, come to see me again so soon?"

"Shut it, you know why we're here. Give us back Exius, the freshmen you kidnapped!" The man laughed into his hand, a sinister grin on his face. "What makes you think I know?" Kamaki's right eye twitched in anger. In an abrupt movement, she unleashed a devastating fire blast that incinerated all the chairs and table instantly.

She let out a long sigh as the flames died down. There stood her brother, all scorched and bruised, but still standing. "Hehe, you really are powerful when you don't hold back"

"Ha, you think that was my full strength!?"

"What!?" Zagan exclaimed in shock. Sara opened her hand as a small red fire ball formed in her palm. "Vergil" The wizard nodded realizing what she meant. The witch let go of the sphere, it slowly drifted toward their target. Once it was a few feet away from them, Vergil formed a thick-layered barrier of light to protect them.

"So this is your full power?" Her brother jumped back into the hall, shooting a purple beam right at it. The sphere of fire blew up in a violent explosion, utterly destroying the room. Zagan was caught in the blast getting obliterated along with the entire sector.

The casters stood there staring at the remaining rubble from her attack. The wizard looked at his ally, she just stood there staring at the ruins where her brother had ran to. He patted her shoulder while making his way up to the blocked doorway from the ceiling caving-in on itself.

The caster used a spell like Sara, to send all the debris scattering in different directions. Just enough to open a path for them. Kamaki told him, she could sense their friend's mana nearby, but it was faint. They rushed through the destroyed base until reaching the dungeon where Exius was being kept.

"Welcome Sara, Vergil. Allow me to congratulate the both of you on getting past one of my followers, I'm sorry some of my members are either gone or haven't been contacted yet. I thought it would be fun to fight you myself to see how far you both are from my tier level"

The dark caster summoned an armored creature with pale skin. It wore black armor. "Behold, the death reaper!" Both magic users prepared for the coming threat. "Death reaper, attack the two in front of you" The zombie-like creature aimed his index finger toward them. A gray mist covered the tip of his finger. That's when it fired a silver beam right for Kamaki. Without thinking, Vergil slid into the beam's path, getting hit head on.

"Argh! T-this feeling...like burning needles all over my body!" His ally saw him paralyzed in place, with the smoke-like mana outlining the boy's body. Sara looked at Avaris with a look of annoyance before firing a powerful strike of lightning right for the villain. Right as the high tier attack was just a foot away from it's target, the death reaper dove in front, taking the attack for it's master. Her electricity went inside the undead's abdomen....The creature blew up in an abrupt wave of power.

"Heh, not bad, I'll give you points on strategy, no matter who it had hit, one of us would've been killed anyway. Good work. Let's see how you handle my 2nd summon. Come forth: Hikari of light!" Suddenly the entire base begun to shake, a ray of light manifested as a being in an armored cloak emerged from the golden light. It wore blue with gold on the edges of his clothes.

"Oh no" Sara sight to herself. (That's the god of light magic. How could someone summon him so casually) The dark wizard grinned as the deity floated beside him. "Hikari, deal with them, but don't kill them" Even Kamaki stood there shaking as the master of light magic stood before her. "Crap, only way I can buy time to escape is if we use dark magic"

Vergil nodded hearing her plan. Both readied their first dark spell. Their foe crossed his arms like an "X" as an abrupt dome of light was sent in all directions. Both magic users fired a blast of pure darkness right for the expanding shockwave. As their beam hit, the light barrier slowed down, but slowly continued toward them. Both slowly stepped back every few seconds as the dome got closer.

"N-not much mana left!" Vergil cried out as the beam grew thinner. Sara could feel herself sweating, she didn't normally have to use so much magical energy at one time. At that moment, she could fell herself becoming filled with large amounts of mana. Vergil didn't have much but joined in as well. Looking over to the back right corner, she saw Exius transferring mana to her. Avaris realized what was happening and spun around to face Cyrel.

"You little shit!" He kicked the caster in the ribs, but the wizard continued sending mana. The dark man frowned with anger. "Don't ignore me!" Avaris threw a punch right at the focusing wizard. Vergil abruptly moved in between the two and was struck across the face. Luckily it didn't do much damage.

"You got this-Sara" Vergil's body gave out on him from lack of energy, hitting the floor. Cyrel had finally given the witch all his regained mana. It was up to Kamaki, Exius was out of energy while Vergil was out-cold. Focusing all her obtained power, her blast of darkness condensed the deity's light dome back so far, it blew up, sending the god of light through the wall of the base.

The ceiling began to collapse above them. With just a little magic left, she ran over to her allied and teleported as soon as she grabbed them. "This isn't over" Avaris said to himself as his summon vanished and he was buried underneath all the rubble...

All three of them came falling out of a rift into the school courtyard. Vergil was still out while the other two were dizzy from using so much mana. A guard came over to them, it was Brandon Alacore. He grabbed Sara and Cyrel, pulling them to their feet. "Where were you three!?" Kamaki took a breath then replied: "We just went for a walk and fell of a cliff, it took all our magic to keep from hit the ground" The golden wand member glared at her in disbelief but told her to return to their dorms. Both magic users took both arms of their knocked-out friend and proceeded to their rooms.

Brandon put his fingers to his left ear, using the telepathic spell. "Sir, we may have another problem on our hands. Yes...consider it done sir"

The next morning, the lord of the golden wand called for the three casters to meet him in the G.W base in another part of the mountain. The trio made their way through the hall, into the throne room where the master of the golden wand sat. "Welcome Sara, Vergil and Exius. I'm delighted to see you three here. Please have a seat"

The trio of casters looked around the room, the walls were covered in glittery gold. The floor was red carpet and 12 flags hung on the wall, each was the name of each member in order of their rank. Brandon's was pretty high rang along with Kyla's. Each flag was shiny green with gold text.

"Now then, my comrade alerted me that you three emerged from a rift into the school yard when you should've been in class. May I ask why that was?" They looked up at the master of the golden wand, he had gold eyes that reflected the light like marbles. He also had red hair. Finally he was wearing something different than the rest of the members. The members wore white and gold armor while his with gold and black, along with a black cape on his back with a gem in the chest plate of his armor. They could see how important he looked from the unique clothing.

"We-we went to the enemy's lair to save our friend that had been kidnapped" Sara answered with her head bowed. Brandon, one of the golden wand casters spoke out: "You had no right to leave the academy along with entering enemy territory!" Just then the master raised his hand to signal Brandon to be quiet.

"It is true you three broke several rules: Leaving the grounds, entering foreign land, specifically the Demion's land and finally, not alerting a teacher or member of our guild of the situation...However, you two, Sara and Vergil. You both showed the courage all casters should bare. Along with your great spell tracing technique. My magic users couldn't find a way to locate their base. But here you come, finding it in no time. How would you three like to become a golden wand caster?"

"What!?" Brandon cried out in question by his master's decision. Kyla glared at the wizard replying: "You would question our lord's decision? Know your place Alamore, we are to follow our master's choice, no matter how surprising it may be. If you have a problem with that, you may stand down as a golden wand caster" The wizard sighed crossing his arms then stepping back where he stood before, on the left side of the leader's throne with Kyla standing on the right.

"Brandon, you are one of my best comrades, but you must learn not to overreact in such a small situation. I will over-look this behavior since I understand why you would act like this. Just be aware, if you continue questioning my orders, you will be demoted then expelled from the guild"

Alamore put his hand across his chest bowing. "Yes lord, I won't disrespect your wishes again" The ruler nodded to him before facing them. "Oh how rude of me, my name is Kinmus Demaro, the ruler of the golden wand and the most powerful wizard known in this generation. There our names used for a caster's power and knowledge:

WIZARD these are your common magic users with very few spells.

MAGE this is higher level casters, they have mastered one or more classes of magic, which is why we call teachers mages. Now for the last one, you were taught of only the two tiers of magic users. But there is a 3rd...

SAGE this is the highest title a caster may receive. There has only been a small few that have been given such a title. We choose the most skilled magic user to be the sage until they pass away. The sage may pass the title down or the 2nd most skilled caster may take his place until a magic user surpasses him. A witch or wizard may request a duel against the sage. If they win, they will be given the title: Sage. We call these duels: Caster's awakening"

"Wow, I never knew this" Exius commented with a surprised expression across his face. The others also seemed fascinated by the story of the sage. Kinmus rose from his chair, approaching the three students. "So what is your answer?" He asked as the sage held his hand out to them. Sara and Vergil shook the man's hand accepting his offer. Cyrel was nervous but walked over to the wise man. Accepting the offer as well...

CHAPTER 3 Golden Wand's Order

All three of them arrived at the guild's lobby where an unknown man dressed in G.W armor was waiting for them. "Good morning young casters, we've prepared your uniforms for the guild. Since you're just starting out and are the youngest magic users to join the golden wand, we've made the armor the same as your mastered class.

Exius got a dark red one with gold on the edges of his armor since he focused on fire magic. Sara got a silver and gold for her light mastery. Lastly, Vergil got a black and gold armor for his dark mastery. "These are your uniforms until you improve to the skills of a mage"

"But all three of us have mastered a class already" Sara commented.

"Yes, but you just joined the guild, once you complete a few missions and master a 2nd class, you should be promoted to mage class" The unnamed caster walked off into the nearby hallway while the trio waited for another member to order them to do something.

Kyla came over to them, her long hair brushing side to side. "Welcome new members. Glad our leader has seen the great potential within you three. Kinmus was going to assign you all a mission, but he's thought of something better: You three will duel me, Brandon and Haru. First as a solo duel, then as a trio. I will be taking you to the dueling arena. If you will follow me please"

The three students followed behind as they walked through a long white hall with doors on both sides. It was about three minutes of walking when they entered through a large pair of golden doors. They found themselves in a large round arena with a dirt ground. Brandon and Haru was already there waiting for them in the center of the arena.

Alacaore still had a displeased expression on his face as he watched them approach. Miz smacked him upside the head. "Stop acting like such a child, unless you want an expulsion form written for your release" The wizard nodded and stood there with a plain expression instead of annoyance as they met with the young casters.

"Alright you three, I assume Kyla went over your objective?" All three nodded. Haru smiled and finished: "I will duel Exius first" The others remained quiet, walking to different parts of the wall, giving them enough space.

"I will give you the first move Cyrel" Mizu commented as he put his hands together waiting. The young wizard skimmed through the spells he knew, not many were high tier magic, but the goal wasn't to win anyway. "Fire imperium!" Quickly reveling his wand, Exius unleashed a fierce blast of fire that abruptly became two. All watched as instead of scorching it's target, the two flames orbited around Haru, becoming an inferno tornado.

"Well done lad, to think you've mastered a 2nd year submissive spell. However, submissive spells are somewhat flawed, to keep your target trapped within the spell, the caster must focus a great portion of their mana on the spell to keep it going. Meaning...You can't attack, at least not at full power. Also, if you keep flowing energy into the submissive, you're bound to run low or even out of mana"

The boy sighed, lowering his wand. The inferno cyclone burst into wisps of orange light.

"I am going to attack now, thought it would be a little more chivalrous to forewarn you of the coming attack since you used more mana than expected for a first spell" Mizu held his palm out toward the young magic user. "Fire magic: Flame of despair" A circle of black flames emerged under Exius' feet. Haru made a fist, causing the flames to rise up into ball, trapping his combatant"

Throwing his arm up, the sphere of flames went skyrocketing into the air before coming back down like a cannonball. Both young casters watched as their friend was helpless to stop the barrier he was sealed inside. Moments before impact, the mage stopped the fireball. Exius was released from the sphere, hitting the floor covered in minor burns.

"I might've over-did it, but seem you're still kicking with just a few burns" His opponent helped him to his feet, taking him over to the others where he could rest against the wall. "Alright, who's next?" The winner questioned.

Kyla walked past him, onto the center of the arena. Sara hesitated then followed as her challenger. Kyla smirked. "This should be a good duel" The mage went into an offensive position. "Light magic: Boost of momentum!" Pink electricity surged through her body. With the increased speed, Kyla dashed straight for the witch, the force of her foot pushing off cracking the ground. Kamaki put up a large barrier of light that reached both sides of the arena. Cyrel watched in amazement from her massive shield. Izago unleashed an onslaught of blows against the caster's barrier.

The mage's fists were moving at such velocity that the barrier of light was weakening faster than the caster could fix it. Finally the shield shattered apart in an abrupt burst of force. Her opponent went staggering back while keeping her balance. "Damn, to think she shattered my protective spell in mere moments. Let's try this! Dark summon: Hell hounds!" A rift made of flames manifested between both casters.

That's when two large dogs with flames swarming around there body, even coming out of their eyes. "Hmph, seems interesting. Lightning prison!" Jumping back, the mage clapped her hands together. A fierce bolt of lightning came down, forming into a cage made of electricity. "Nice attempt, but you'll have to try better" The mage commented.

Kamaki groaned in annoyance. "At this rate, I'll have to use my advanced spells to even making this a real match...Light magic: A thousand swords!" A wall of blades made completely out of golden light manifested behind Kamaki. "Take this!" Throwing her arm forward, all of the swords went firing right at her. Kyla's eyes widened as endless projectiles rushed her.

Izago evaded every blade that came her way with incredible speed and agility. Right as it seemed like she had over-come yet another attack, the last few blades of mana pierced both shoulders of the witch, knocking her off her feet. Vergil cheered in the background as the group continued to spectate from the sidelines.

A smile washed over Kamaki's face. Brushing the hair from her eyes, she held both hands out in front of her. "Magic bind!" In an instant, binds made of pink mana formed around her opponent's body. "Go head and try to attack, that's a high tier submission spell"

Kyla blew her hair out of her eyes and smiled at the young caster. "Well done, this is a pretty useful defensive spell. However, there's two ways to break such a spell" Once more Izago proceeded to multiply her capabilities using not only boosting magic for her speed but also for her stamina. Blue and rose electricity surged all around her body.

All the bonds around her body began absorbing her magical energy that was emanating from her limit boost spells. "What's going on?" Exius asked as Sara's mana swarmed around her body in an outline of pink and blue light.

"Those bonds absorb any form of active spell magic, so if she tries attacking or countering, the spell will be absorbed. If you don't use any form of magic the bonds can't syphon your mana" Mizu answered. Sara could feel her body flowing with her target's immense mana, almost more than what she could contain. In an abrupt burst of light, the mana bonds faded away. Kyla fell to one knee out of breath.

"I-I'm impressed, you managed to drain me of half my mana. I'll give you a 7 out of 10 for this duel" Kamaki smiled excitedly, bowing to her. "Thank you Mrs. Izago!" The two wizards were amazed at the girl's happiness, Sara rarely showed much positive expressions, yet here she was all happy.

"She must really respect Kyla's opinion" Vergil whispered to his partner. Cyrel tried to laugh into his hand to keep their friend from hearing. "Time for the last solo duel: Vergil V.S Brandon" Kyla announced as she followed Sara back over to the sidelines.

Both male casters walked over to the center of the arena. "I'm not holding back" Vergil taunted with confidence. Brandon waited with his hands up, a serious expression on his face. "Dragon surge!" In an abrupt blaze of flames, a shape of a dragon formed within the flames. The large creature let out a devastating roar, rushing it's target.

Brandon drew his katana, covering it in his own mana. "Wind slash!" The mage swung his sword with such power, an intense wave of force rushed toward the coming threat. Right as the inferno dragon was a mere foot away, the surge of wind caused the flames to scatter apart. The beast blew past him as mere wisps of fire before piecing itself back together. "Darn, was sure the inferno dragon would've at least burned you"

With amazing speed, Alcamore darted right up to the young wizard, passing him. The mage stood there motionless, his back to his opponent. After a moment of silence, Vergil face planted onto the soil. Cyrel's jaw dropped at the sight of it, his friend on the ground from one attack.

"Don't worry, he shouldn't be too hurt to fight, that's not the purpose of that skill" Vergil slowly stood up, his body felt extremely sore, all throughout his body. "Damn, that really did a number on me, but I can still fight!" The red-haired wizard threw both hands in the air. "Fire nova!" Something was wrong...Nothing was happening, not even a mere flame would light.

"Have you figured it out?" His enemy commented. Vergil thought for a moment...You took away my magic!?" Brandon laughed replying: Sealed or nullified would sound better, but as long as you get the jest of the situation, I don't have to explain it any further"

"So you're saying I'm incapable of using any form of magic?!" His opponent nodded. Replying: So are you finished? You're at a great disadvantage" Instead of withdrawing, Vergil charged his foe, throwing blows as fast as he could with all his strength. However, his target evaded each attack with ease.

"Come now, you have no chance of winning against me without any form of magical boost" The young caster finally halted his assault. "Fine, I surrender" Alcomore stared as his target for a moment before a smile spread across his face. "Well done, you've exceeded my expectations"

"What do you mean?" Vergil questioned. The mage explained that he only used his magic seal to observe his foe's reaction in such a disadvantage. "You still fought back, even though you had no chance, I see it as great bravery but you need to know when to retreat"

"We'll give you some time to rest before we have our three on three duel" Mizu announced. The trio of casters went to the cafeteria while the mages went to the lounge where the teachers normally hung out...

Exius sat with the others, eating fried chicken. Sara was eating salad while Vergil had soup. After about half an hour, they were called back to the arena. Kyla placed a protective barrier around the walls of the arena to keep them from getting destroyed by the battle. "Alright, let's see how you three do in a team battle, though we'll have to hold back since all three of us mages will be fighting"

Without warning, Cyrel shot a fierce blast of red flames directed right at the group. However, right as the immense flames were just moments away from scorching the trio, Haru took a step forward. Being a master of fire spells, the pyro mage made an abrupt hand movement that condensed the massive blast into a narrow beam that cycled around the golden wand's group, going right back at it's caster.

Luckily Sara put up a light barrier that shielded them from the approaching backfire. As soon as the blast hit, both Vergil and Kamaki used boosting spells to multiply their attack and defense. Both took off at great speed. Exius stayed put to plan a strategy to support the two allies.

While both casters traded blows with Kyla and Haru, Brandon turned his attention toward Cyrel who was concentrating a large quantity of his mana into a spell. (Hmm, seems he's getting ready to unleash a high tier spell, at least the highest class he knows) Brandon slowly drew his sword. (Let's see how powerful this one truly is)

Exius opened his eyes as he fired a barrage of shards from multiple classes at once. Ice, fire, light and darkness. The shards soared ahead, right for the three mages. The young caster could feel great strain on his body from such a combined attack. (I can do this) he thought.

Vergil and Sara noticed the coming projectiles and moved out of the way. Each swarm of shrapnels went for a specific target, the ice shards went for Mizu since his main class dealt with fire. Dark shards went for Kyla and the fire shards were aimed toward Brandon. Sara used her magic to protect her attacking ally from any attack from the enemy team.

Vergil guarded Kamaki in case the mages went for them. Kyla quickly created a golden barrier to defend herself against the dark magic. The projectiles penetrated her transparent shield endlessly. She could see her barrier begin to form cracks from such repeated assault. Brandon took a step forward, that's when the inferno projectiles went for him.

Cyrel's allies were surprised by the power and control of the wizard's combined assault. Alcamore whirled his blade in a circle, shielding himself from coming projectiles. All three mages seemed to hold off the single caster's thought were having to put more effort into it than they thought. That's when Vergil had a plan, he aimed one had toward Exius to transfer his mana, while facing the other hand to the right where the trio of mages were.

Using half his mana, the wizard used magic bind on all three of them! He too felt drained quickly from combing spells. Magical bind is mainly used for a single target, also the fact the 2nd year was giving his energy to someone at the same time.

Kyla begun powering up, but all it did was transfer from Vergil to Exius. With the obtained mana, Cyrel created superior shards than the first barrage. They were much bigger and moved faster. Kyla's protective barrier cracked more and more. She put more concentration into the barrier's recovery. But it was no use, the wall of gold light shattered away, causing the elite caster to stumble back with multiple dark shards piercing her body just enough to wound her.