Alone at my table, I opened my spell tome. After what happened earlier, I was hopeful she had more spells, but I tempered my expectations with a reminder that spell tomes learn through repeated observation or experience, not by getting a name.

Still, my heart pounded excitedly as I turned each page carefully. As before there were only the two spells, but this time I actually understood them. As I closed the book, Valentina whispered, “I’m sorry, Dexter. I know that I have limited utility to you, but I will do my best to assist you.”

“Thank you,” I replied with a smile.

A few moments later Alex appeared in the center of the room looking defeated and weary. His shoulders slumped forward and his head hung low as he shuffled toward me. The dark circles around his eyes were so well defined that he looked like a raccoon. In addition to sleep, he must have skipped grooming, because his hair was gathered in clumps and tangled heaps that stuck out every which way.

His spell tome rested in his hands like a heavy weight dragging along the floor. Alex glanced around lazily, looking right past me twice before his gaze finally met mine. Moving like a wounded trogger, clumsy and lumbering, he let his feet drag over the floor.

Alex held his spell tome only a few inches from the ground and looked as if he might fall over at any moment. When he reached my table, he let it fall to the floor with a thump then collapsed, face first, into a chair.

“Hey!” the tome hissed savagely. “How dare you drop me, I am…” a shirtless boy with golden hair and a godly physique appeared next to him. “…the ultimate spell tome! You should show me some respect.” Finishing, the boy grabbed Alex in a headlock and ground a fist in his hair.

The whole while Alex remained silent, allowing himself to be mocked without even trying to fight back.

After a few minutes of pummeling, the spell tome stopped, demanding, “Apologize, slave.”

Dropping his head lower, Alex whined out, “I’m sorry master Thor, please forgive me.”

Thor shrugged, picking at his fingernails and looking bored. “I didn’t feel it.”

“I'm sorry master Thor, please forgive me,” Alex repeated louder.

“Eh, you’re not really moving my spirit.”

Alex got on his knees and pressed his hands and face to the ground. “I’m sorry master Thor, please forgive your miserable servant.”

“Yea, that’s a little better…” Thor stepped over Alex to take a seat at the table. Leaning aside in the chair and posing dramatically, Thor continued, “…but why don’t you try saying, “Master Thor, though I be not worthy to eat your shit, please take pity on your slave and have mercy.” Then you can kiss my feet and maybe I’ll consider your request.”

Alex shuddered, mumbling something under his breath.

“I can’t hear you,” Thor growled.

Bowing repeatedly, Alex yelled, “Master Thor, though I be not worthy to eat your shit, pls—”

Thor burst into a roaring cackle that nearly rolled him right out of his seat. “That’s good,” he giggled. “You can stop there.” As Alex sat up, bemused, Thor continued. “See, aren’t I benevolent?”

Alex stared back deadpan, his eyes drooping into a listless tired gaze. It was the look of a man who’d given up on his pride and dreams. In that moment I felt his pain, but I also felt a sense of joy and relief. If I’d ended up with a spell tome like Thor, then I might’ve given up on becoming a magister entirely.

With a smug grin and a shrug, the spell tome replied, “Okay, get up—and fix your face, you’re making the place look gloomy.”

Alex got up letting out a sigh then looked over at me. His eyes met mine for a moment, forcing a smile before he lowered his gaze and slumped toward a seat beside Thor.

As he tried to take his seat, Thor kicked it out from under him and leaned back in seat, putting his grimy black boots on the table. “Go get me something to eat,” he demanded.

As Alex nodded and plodded off towards a table with food, Thor shifted his gaze to me. “And you, get me a—AHH!” he shrieked, falling out of his chair as Valentina personified beside me.

Eyeing her cautiously he mouthed something I couldn’t make out, but Valentina must’ve understood because she nodded. Her purple-white hair swirled around her face like a cloud of miasma as she gave him a smile that seemed more threatening than reassuring.

His demeanor changed instantly. He eased into a more dignified posture as he returned to his seat and a tight white shirt materialized over his flesh. The buttons popped into place one at a time with an audible click, each snapping closed neatly until only the very top button remained open.

Looking me in the eye, Thor said, “I look forward to meeting you in a duel.”

“Good morning, class D3,” professor Kaylastal said, his boyish voice echoing through the chamber, silencing idle chatter and grabbing everyone’s attention.

He was standing at the center of the circular room with Kayla and a tall woman dressed in a long red shirt that was longer on the back than it was in front. The bottoms of her black leather shorts could barely be seen under the shirt, but her legs were mostly covered by thigh high boots with gold snaps instead of laces.

She was young, or at least she looked young, but she was probably just sculpted. Her maroon hair fell in thick layers around her face and down past the end of her shirt. She smiled broadly, displaying teeth so white they seemed to sparkle.

Beside her, there was a sleek cylinder, similar in size and shape to a barrel. It was smooth like metal and onyx black with a crystalline globe set in its top surface. It had to be an artifact of some kind.

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“I told you yesterday that you would participate in very important duels today. What I did not explain is that these duels will be your opportunity to demonstrate your innate talent as a magister.” He paused, letting his words simmer on our minds as he turned and activated the artifact.

There was a heavy click inside the device, like gears grinding together. As the noise faded into a smooth hum, multi-colored lights danced inside the globe. Spraying out all over the place like water from a fountain, the colors of light blended together, forming a life sized, three dimensional, replica of a training field.

The professor continued. “Your performance today will determine everything from the type, difficulty, and value of work you may take as a magister in training, as well as exactly which specialties are available for you to study.”

Doesn’t that mean I’m fucked then?

I sighed deeply.

“Are you worried we’ll lose?” Valentina asked, her eyes piercing through my mask. “Winning isn’t impossible, although depending on our opponent it may be quite difficult given my current state.”

A sense of hope blossomed inside me as I let myself consider the idea of actually winning. That hope died quickly stamped out by the reminder that my spell tome only had two spells.

With a flick of the professor's finger, the image began to move, morphing into a line up of my classmates, displaying two single file lines side by side.

There were forty six in all. So fourteen either failed or missed the chance to get a spell tome. I couldn’t help wondering if that was because Valentina appeared. The professor said order didn’t matter, which implied that everyone should’ve gotten an opportunity.

“You will be randomly paired with another student and teleported to a training field for combat. As this duel is intended to determine your natural talent, there will be no terrain in the arena.”

As he spoke, the two lines moved past each other in opposite directions with great speed. When they stopped, two students were highlighted and the rest vanished.

“Kailyn Ray, Alex Vellden, please step forward.”

Alex jolted. His eyes went wide, but his pupils shrunk and his jaw went slack and his lips began to tremble.

Thor smiled. “Oh yeah, it’s thunder time!” The spell tome jumped out of his seat, dragging a completely stunned Alex behind him as he raced across the room.

When they were halfway across the room, the professor spoke again, saying, “These duels are important for your future as a magister, but they aren’t just about winning. Do your best.”

As Thor and Alex reached the professor, Alex’s eye’s returned to focus. He gasped as if struggling to breathe and he pulled away from his spell tome. Thor kept an iron grip and yanked Alex back.

When Kailyn reached the center of the room, she, Alex and Thor were teleported out.

The artifacts image shifted back to the training room, only this time Alex was at one end, Kailyn the other.

“No, no! Please no, Thor. Can’t we just use regular magic?”

Thor smirked.

Kailyn adjusted her glasses, saying, “Uhm, should we begin?”

Alex broke free of Thor, rushing towards Kailyn. “Help me please!”

Pulling her spell tome from behind her, Kailyn curled her lips into a devious smile. “Hail the mountain king, Brekohr. Behold his majesty and beg forgiveness of your transgressions.” She held out her spell tome showing Alex its cover. “Brekohr come forth.”

The spell tome pulsed with malice as two small black eyes opened on the cover. A slender face pushed out from the book with a threatening “Mehehehe!” Two curved horns spiraled out to either side of its head and the beast's hooves clopped on the ground. It looked like a demonic buck. He was small at first, but in an instant, Brekohr grew to the size of a bear.

Alex stopped, taking a knee, pleading, begging, crying as Brekohr stepped forward. The beast slammed his hooves on the ground, pawing the floor and letting out a vicious laugh as it prepared to attack.

“Come on,” Thor roared. “let’s show that mountain goat what a real king looks like”

Brekohr glared back at him.

The beast reared up then charged toward Alex, who was still pleading for mercy.

Brekohr struck hard and fast. The black buck drove his head into Alex with so much force that I felt the blow crack through my bones. The resulting crash echoed like thunder, leaving me breathless and trembling.

Thor laughed maniacally, his voice charged with the sound of crackling lightning.

Alex was standing in place, wreathed in blue light but Thor was gone.

Brekohr reared back, letting out a frustrated cry. As he came back down, a dark light enveloped his form and Brekohr grew even larger and darker until he became a mass of pitch black shadow.

As the beast charged forward, Kailyn chanted, “Shake the earth with your fury, Brekohr. Crush all in your path.”

A thick horned skull, that looked just like Brekohr if his skin and fur were replaced with bone and black smoke, emerged from the shadows, rushing at Alex.

Completely unfazed, Alex raised a hand to stop the beast. With a bright flash and a loud roar, lightning arced all over Brekohr, forcing him back.

Alex seemed completely different.

Alex and Thor howled with glee, their voices merged into one, but the sound was chaotic and vicious blue light erupted from Alex’ body. It surrounded him like an aura and shot into the sky where it collided with the ceiling and arced down to strike Brekohr. The shadow beast let out a tortured cry as his body disintegrated into dust.

The impact shockwave knocked Kailyn to the floor. Her tome fell from her grasp as she tried to stop her glasses flying off her face. She only caught air. Apparently she really did need spectacles to see, because as soon as she sat up, she got to patting the floor searching for them, or maybe for her tome.

Alex advanced toward Kailyn, moving forward with thunderous steps. Lightning arced off his body striking at random as he moved, but Kailyn didn’t seem to notice.

Kailyn glanced around, her eyes darting from side to side frantically searching the floor, then her face relaxed as her hand found her glasses and she hurried to put them back on.

After they were safely on her face she froze.

Looking up at the human thunderbolt before her, Kailyn tried to scramble back, but her legs tangled under her, causing her to fall backwards over her feet.

Alex stood over Kailyn, lifting a hand high, then thunder struck as a blinding light swallowed the whole arena.

“Kailyn Ray, eliminated. Alex Vellden, victorious.” The professor's voice was a shock to my ears, reminding me that this was only a duel.

The room shifted back to normal as Thor and Alex reappeared before the professor. The spell tome gave Alex an angry glare, saying, “How dare you end that duel before we had a chance to enjoy the slaughter!”

Kailyn appeared behind them, clutching her tome close to her chest. “That was a very good duel, but next time, my goats will win.”

Thor narrowed his gaze. He looked over the two with an annoyed expression then scoffed and walked away.

Alex glowered, saying, “Next time, end it before he possesses me.”

A deep booming laughter erupted from Thor as Alex stalked off. Snickering across the table, Thor said, “You honestly think she could have?”