The Exam (one person)

Orama walked down one of the great halls in the institution of mages. That day was an important day. She had to take her first exam over the use of high arc mage magic. Walking proudly down the hall the half-elf didn't even think about practicing any magic. Orama knew she had everything down pat. The great instituion was rather empty that day. You see, it was the in middle of summer, and most mages used the summer to travel and pick up quests with their new found magic. Orama however, had already lived that life. Now she is ready to become a high arc mage. To get such a title she had to study and practice alot. The whole wing of the institution where she was walking was completely empty. Only a few teaches and students were even present during the summer, and the ones that were, happen to all be taking the same test at the opposite side of the building. After I show that I am the best in the class, I'm sure they will move me up a few. She thought as she walked down the long, empty hall. Looking to her left she could see a beautiful courtyard with a large fountain in the middle. The sun's rays reflected of the water's surface and formed patterns on the celeing above the mage. Her boots made a loud thumping pattern in the empty hall which made her decide to walk on the grass in the courtyard, rather then the marble floor.

During that moment of peace and quiet a loud crash rang out through the hall and courtyard.

"What was that?" Orama asked herself out loud.

Then from behind one of the great white pillars in the hall, out stepped a figure, staying in the shadow of the pillar.

"Who are you? And why are you here?" Orama asked the shadow coverd figure bravely.

OoC: *Reserves* I was asked nicly to join, and I accept. Expect my post later today. Using Arin Bryant, as requested.

[Edit]

BiC:
*/\/\/\*/\/\/\*/\/\/\*

Nostalgia flooded through the young mage’s head as he walked down the main hall of the campus he once called home. His multi-coloured robes gained the attention of the occasional passing student as they waved with the air that flowed around him. Normally, graduates were not expected to return after they left, however, circumstances had changed.

The high arc magical exams were today, a special sort of exam that the mage with the crystal staff went through himself. As tradition dictated, only one who had gone through it could administer the test to a potential graduate. However, he could not reveal it was an exam until it was over, or else face the dire consequences.

Finally coming to the big, wooden door that sported a gold plate saying, “Headmaster”, the man known as Arin Bryant knocked on the massive door. “Enter,” came a harsh voice from beyond. That voice rang in the mage’s ears, still remembering the countless times he had to visit for his … “attitude”, as the Headmaster called it

His office was made almost entirely out of oak; the only thing not wooden in the entire room was the Headmaster himself, and various other items on and in the desk. Such a fire hazard, thought the mage walked in. Seating himself automatically on the hard, wooden chair in front of the desk, but was then directed to the soft, comfortable chair beside it.

“Relax, Arin,” said the man, his voice now soft and kind. “You are my guest today.”

“Sorry,” replied the mage. “Force of habit.”

“Quite,” said the man, his voice becoming a little more rigid. “Now, we have some business to attend to.”

Ten minutes later, Arin reemerged from the fire hazard and back into the halls of the school. Carrying an envelope, he opened it to view the contents, which read as follows:

“Orama Darku, west wing, fountain room”

*/\/\/\*/\/\/\*/\/\/\*

The man under the shadow of the pillar smiled at the young maiden, her hair as golden as the sun itself. A half-elf? Interesting, thought the young mage as he noticed her ears. “I am merely enjoying this fine architecture,” he responded to her question. “As for my identity, you will find out once you beat me in combat.” Stepping out of the shadows, Arin lowered his prized Crystal Staff of Llyeta, and pointed it at the student. Anticipating her reluctance to strike at him, he swung his staff at the half-elf.

Raising her own staff Orama blocked, and pressed forward, buying her some time to speak.

"Wait! I don't want to fight you!" She blocked another swing. "I sense no evil in you! What are you doing?" The mage asked, blocking another.

Arin realized he would have to do more, in order to make this beautiful mage angry enough to fight. Jumping back he created a weak wind arrow which hit Orama in the chest, causing her to fly into a near by bench. Oww! Whats with this guy? I have to end this before more damage is done to the institution. The half-elf thought while getting to her feet and charging a ball of light.

"You chose this sir." She said before releasing the orb.

The great white ball was just about to hit the other mage right in the face before he side stepped, causing the light orb to crash into the pillar behind him. Orama covered her mouth. I can't believe I just did that. Err. Thats It! She ran at Arin in full swing with her staff, who blocked with his own. The two fought with their staffs for a few moments before the man jumped back and spoke.

"You are a mage, correct? Well then, why dont you show me what you got!" Arin exclaimed while fireing more wind arrows at her.

Orama dodged a few and shot balls of light at a few others. The light orbs would collide with the wind magic and create little blue clouds as they equaled each other out.

"My turn!" The half-elf said while shooting balls of light at the other mage.

He quickly dodged the first three, but wasn't able to escape the fourth that hit him in the back. He fell, catching himself with his hands.

Orama walked closer. "Now, I will ask you nicely. Will you please leave this place? You have made me late enough, and now i have to face the Headmaster to explain why one of his pillars is cracked. Trust me, I dont understand why you are here,. . . but the Headmaster is worse. So, please leave,. . or else." Orama exclaimed, waiting for a reply.

OoC: Shortness, blah! That and I did not want to over-control your character.

BiC:
Unfortunately for the half-elf, the mage had no plans to back down any time soon. She should not come so close to her opponent, thought the collapsed mage. He sprung to his feet with all the speed of a bolt of lightning, and shot another, more powerful, Wind Arrow at the student. “Never drop your guard!” Arin shouted at Orama as she slammed into a nearby bench.

She pulled herself out of the rubble of the wooden bench, the small scrapes that she received healing herself. “How many times do I have to say this!?” The half-elf shouted. “I don’t want to fight!”

Placing his hand on the ground, two large slabs of stone pushed out of the ground, blocking all the exits. “I’m afraid,” started the mage. “That this is a battle you must fight.” Without hesitation, he sent another Wind Arrow hurtling towards the half-elf. However, she managed to avoid most of the atmospheric attack, yet not enough for her jump to remain unaffected.

The gusting wind caused her body to twist in midair, altering her step and causing her to trip. Seeing his chance, Arin charged at the collapsed pupil ready to strike her down with his staff. Raising his staff above his head as though it was a sword, the mage continued his charge. Just as he was bringing his hard, crystal staff down on her head, she blocked using her own.

Sweeping her body around and kicking at the mages feet, she managed to make him fall to the ground, allowing her time to regain her composure. “I’m giving you one more chance,” Orama said. “If you keep attacking I will fight back with all my strength, no matter how much I may hate it!”

“You should have been doing that from the beginning,” Arin replied as he got back on his feet. “I won’t hold back, and neither should you, miss half-elf.”

“How did you know?” She asked?

“Your ears,” replied the oddly dressed mage. “That and the energy you produce is common in half-elves.” Without another word, Arin quickly struck with another Wind Arrow; however, she countered it with her ball of light, the wind dissipating as blue mist.

Ooc: I know, its hard to not control a character when you are fighting a mage. But I give you permission as long as I can use yours a little more too.

Bic: The blue mist cleared, and Orama realized that she had no choice but to fight this guy. Even if he is not evil. She thought.

"So be it!" The mage yelled while throwing a punch at the air. "Stunning Light!" She screamed, as loud thunder sounded and a blinding white light filled the room.

Arin stepped back, immediantly shielding his eyes. He finished rubbing them just in time to see a bright white staff collide with his collar bone, causing him to fall to his butt. Orama hopped back, charging a ball of light. The other mage sat there and smiled, realizing that he finally go the student to fight. The smile quickly faded as he avoided a great ball of light. Jumping up, he slammed the end of his crystal staff into the ground. The earth around Orama started to growl and move.

Whats this? She thought while spotting some lava that started to seep through the ground. Thinking quickly as to not be engulfed by the lava and be burned alive, the half-elf held her white staff to the sky. Half a second later, a very heavy downpour of rain came. The water and the lava created a great steam which filled the courtyard. Before another two seconds went by, the lava had hardened into solid rock.

When the foggy mist cleared the two mages could see each other once again. Orama stood in front of the great fountain, and the other stood next to the broken pillar. Both just stood there, staring at each, hair and robes soaked and stuck to the skin. Almost as if they were judging each others abilities, and predicting the next attack.

Poor Orama could not have predicted his next attack even if she was told a hint. . . .

Ooc: Also I think in a mage mage battle, you can't really avoid the short posts.

OoC: Not true. You can flesh out any post just by going into detail about everything that happens. Allow me to demonstarte. (Yes, I am being obvious)

BiC:
Silence pierced the courtyard like a knife in butter, the two combatants staring each other down. Time to go all out, thought the mage with the crystal staff. “Well then,” Arin addressed. “If you are going to fight back, we may as well fight to the best of our abilities.” Tiny ice crystals began to form near the tip of the transparent staff, their numbers increasing to an unfathomable amount.

“Ice Barrage!” Arin shouted. The myriad of ice crystals hurtled forward toward the Light mage, their razor-sharp points ready to pierce her skin. They hit everything in their path, defacing statues, carving benches, and even passing through concrete. Spewing leaks like there was no tomorrow, the fountain looked like an animal slowly bleeding to death. Dodging behind it, the half-elf avoided a fate similar to Swiss cheese with one ice shard missing her head by mere centimeters.

The entire enclosure looked like a battle zone, statues similar to those who met the firing squad, and benches turned into nothing but splinters. An apprehensive silence filled the air afterwards. I hope I did not kill her, thought the mage. If he did, the headmaster would surely have his head, literally this time.

“You were close,” sounded Orama from her hiding spot. “Yet, not close enough!”

She rose her hand into the air, the water from the nearby fountain heeding her call. Slowly, the water accumulated into the form of a ball. That ball then began to expand until it was roughly the size of a basketball. With a small smile on her face, she hurtled the ball at the mage much like he did with the ice shards.

Arin returned her smile and stood there, as though unconcerned by the ball of water and light heading towards him. Even as it drew within a couple of feet of him, the mage refused to back down. BY simply thinking about it, an invisible, magical barrier surrounded him, staving off the attack made by Orama completely.

“I could say the same for you,” voiced the mage in the multicoloured robes. “However, my last attack wasn’t that weak.”

Quickly summoning another ice barrage, the mage finally drew blood on the half-elf as an ice shard scraped her arm. Hiding behind the fountain was no longer an option, for either of the combatants. Much like the first, this ice barrage left a legacy of destruction behind. The statues and main fountain were reduced to little more then rubble.

Looking down at her arm, Orama decided to take a more close combat approach. Now, time to create another destraction. She thought. But what? Then a smile slowly crept up the mage's face.

Running at her enemy, staff ready for battle, Orama threw another punch at the air in front of her. "Stunning Light!"

The other mage shielded his eyes yet again, but this time not to be fooled. He rose his staff to block any attack that the half-elf would bring. Suddenly, while waiting for contact, he wasn't so sure of himself. The light faded away and Orama was no longer there.

"Wha. .What?" Her foe whispered, dissapointed in his mistake.

"Right here." Orama gently spoke into his ear, standing behind him.

Before the man could react or even say another word, the mage held the sides of his head with her hands. Using the Touch Of Grace the half-elf brought her foe to his knees, draining him of his energy. Placing the end of her staff to the man's back, she created an enormous blast of light energy, sending the man face first into the earth, back smoking.

The mage held her hand to the scrape on her arm.

"Grace of the Gods, heal my wound." Orama spoke, the bloody cut on her arm dissipating.

Now she stood behind the other mage, waiting and watching for movement.

Pain surged in Arin back from the blow the light ball delivered. Deprived of energy, he could not stand and take his vengeance. However, that did not mean he was ready to give up, or not be able to continue the fight with the student mage. She’s quite cleaver, reasoned the mage. It would mean my end to underestimate her again.

“Well,” boomed her voice from behind him. “Are you finished, or do you want some more?”

If there was one thing Arin would never do, it was admit defeat. Using a well-place Wind Arrow, the mage got back to his feet. Before the Light mage could do anything, the Crystal Staff of Llyeta began to shimmer and glow, going from its regular form and morphing into the shape of a hand-mounted cannon. Pulling the trigger, instead of bullets it shot out blasts of energy.

Orama ducked behind a nearby statue as the onslaught continued, pinned down by the rapid gunfire. The sight of Arin’s staff morphing caught her by surprise, who knew a staff could do that? She would need an out, and fast since her cover crumbled more so with every passing second.

Ceasing the barrage, the mage in the strange robes made his staff transform again, this time into the shape of a sword. “Shockwave Blade!” Arin shouted as he swung the crystal sword. The shock wave created from the attack slammed into the statue Orama crouched behind, turning it into a cloud of dust and rubble.

“I am more then just a mage!” Arin shouted into the debris. “I am a bit of a swordsman as well!”

Arin strained his ears and closed his eyes, hoping to sense her magical energy before she could launch a counter attack on him. He did not want to go through the agony of being drained of almost all his energy, then blasted in the back. Continuing to listen and wait, the mage held his crystal sword, ready to slice the half-elf at any given moment.

Looks like I have no choice but to fight some melee combat. Orama looked down at her staff. I have no chance against a swordsman. I'll just have to even the odds a bit. The mage thought while creating an orb of light, the size of a tennis ball, at the end of her staff. Waving her hand over the ball she made the light brighten to a blinding level. The half-elf slowly stepped out from her hiding place.

"Ok mage of many talents, I made things a little more fair in our battle." She stated, pointing her staff at the man in colorful robes.

He shielded his eyes but smiled at the intelligent student. "So be it."

Raising his sword, the other mage lead the duel. He brought his blade straight down on the mage who blocked with her staff, raising it above her head. Her foe strained his eyes, searching for an opening in the intense light. The blade was swung at her left side, then her right. Orama did all that she could just to block his attemps to slice her open, not having a chance to lead an attack of her own.

"You are in fact a good swordsman." She deflected an attack that nearly took off her nose. "But honestly, you can't be both." She said while blocking another swing at her head. "I was always taught that you can only reach your full potential by focusing on one thing." She blocked another, while brightening her light. "I know you want to hurt me for some reason, but I'm just saying that I believe you can be an even better mage, or swordsman if you gave up the other." Orama finished her speech hoping to have confused or upset her enemy.

While the half-elf raised her staff to block another attack, the other mage cleverly planted a boot to her stomach. Orama let out a gasp of air as she fell to the ground, the light on her staff fading.

"Word games will not work with me miss Darku. Now stand and face me once more. Oh, and loose the light this time." The mage smirked.

I dont understand. Why didn't he strike me while he had the chance? Is he so powerful that he is just playing games with me? No that can't be it,. . .I sense no evil, or cruel intension. Orama stood and spoke.

"Listen, I am no professional at melee combat, but I do realize you had the chance to cut me while I was down. I still sense no corruption in your heart. Who are you, and why are you fighting me like this? I mean, we can go on forever if you choose. I would just like a reason." Orama stated while lowering her staff to her side.

“I have my motives, Miss Orama. That is all you need to know,” replied Arin with a slight smirk on his face.

“Wait,” spoke the student. “How did you … know my name?”

He could not help but chuckle at the look of shock etched on her face. “I know a few things you would not expect,” replied the mage in the Infinity Robes. “However, my knowledge of you ends there.”

“Okay then,” voiced Orama as the shock subsided. “How about telling me your name then?”

“Did you not hear me the first time?” Arin asked. “I said you would know my name when the battle is done.”

“Alright, but you brought this on yourself,” replied the Light mage. She gripped her staff with both of her hands, as though it were a two-handed sword. Her opponent followed suit, raising his crystalline blade to chest level. Both mages ready, waiting for the other to make the first move. Only the sound of gurgling water from the broken fountain disturbed the silence.

“Ladies first,” Arin said.

She simply nodded, accepting his offer. She then thrust her staff toward the heavens, the clear sky suddenly turning stormy. Thunder crackled and lightning flared as the heavens above unleashed a torrential downpour comparable to the faucet in a sink. Rainwater quickly began to flow off the brim of the mage in the colourful robes, obscuring his vision.

Raising his magical shield to prevent himself from getting soaked, he reached into his pocket and withdrew an old, beaten book. Flipping through the pages, he quickly came across the spell he wanted, the yellowed page threatening to disintegrate at any moment. He closed his eyes and muttered a chant in a language the half-elf could not understand, however, the intent was clear when the tops of the walls began to converge on each other.

The stone dome slammed shut with a resounding boom, all the rainwater from the spell negated by the solid marble slabs. Carefully closing the book and putting it back in his pocket, the mage turned to his opponent and asked, “Do you have any more tricks, or is that it?”

Ooc: Ok, its short and sweet, Im rusty so cut me some slack

Looking around at all the water from the rain and the fountain, Orama smirked and said.

"Oh, I think I have one more trick."

She held her hand high into the air as her rival watched as all the surrounding water turned into a mist form and started to spin around the palm of her hand creating a ball of light water. Orama squinted as she focused harder and drew the moisture into her palm faster and faster. Before long the ball more than tripled the size of her opponent.

The mage of many talents catiously took a few steps back. Looking around he noticed that not only was all the water gone, but everything was dry as a bone as well. Smacking his lips together he couldn't help but to think how badly he wanted a drink of water.

"Ahh, yes. You are expieriencing extream dehydration. There was no more water for me to absorb so I started taking the very fluids from your body!" Orama yelled from behind her enormous creation.

She waited another minute and watched as her weakened enemy fell to his knees.

"Now, what will you do about this!" The light mage said as she released the great ball atop of him.

OoC: =/ You did just a teeny, tiny bit of god-modding in your last post. Negligable, but I should point it out. "Smacking his lips together he couldn't help but to think how badly he wanted a drink of water." The bolded part is where it happens. Instead of saying he thought that, say how his actions made your character think he thought that, if you catch my drift. =P

BiC:
So that was how she wanted to play, eh? He had to admit stealing his very own bodily fluids would be what he himself would do in a similar situation. All the mage needed to do now was get re-hydrated, and kick the living snot out of the student who stood so confidently before him. Still, the orb of water rushing toward him had magical properties associated to light.

Suddenly, it hit him like a ton of bricks.

A spell he once read up in his book told the reader how to absorb most of the impact from a light-based attack. It would still hurt, but at least he’d be able to fight… and get a drink to boot. As the immense ball of water rushed toward him, he quickly performed the spell. Its description couldn’t be any more right as the water stung him fiercely. If he hadn’t of performed it, right now he may well feel like every inch of his body met the tip of a super heated blade.

Using the chance, he drank as much as the painful water as he could before the attack subsided, leaving him drenched in the still stinging water. “Very nice,” Arin spoke as he wiped away some water. “However, you just exposed where your strengths lie.”

“What!?” Orama spoke, flabbergasted.

“Indeed, I noticed your spells rely on three elements: Water, Light, and Air. Now, I can’t very well get rid of Water and Air, or else we’d both be in trouble. I can, however, get rid of light. Wind Arrow!” Pointing his Crystal Sword at the sconces on the wall of the courtyard, he douched the flames they provided, eliminating most of the light in a single blow.

I guess I should step it up a notch. Turning the tip of his blade to her, he focused on his ‘Inner Light’ as much as he could, as dictated by the book. “I think this battle will soon come to an end,” Arin continued. “Light Cannon.” However, just before the spell could finish, the mage pointed it above her toward one of the massive pillars. He could tell an attack as pure as Light Cannon would have no effect on a non-evil creature, so instead, he would use the scenery to his gain.

The pillar exploded in both light and rubble, separating itself from the rest of the building, right on top of Orama.

OoC: Oh, and I'm happy to see this alive again. Hopefully we can finish before you disappear off the face of the Earth again. xD

Orama let out a gasp as the pillar fell on her, taking the wind from her lungs. With a deep grunt she tried rolling the pillar off her. The mage rolled her eyes, realizing she would never have such strength.

" Oww! Ahh!" Orama yelled as the pillar settled and cracked one of her delicate ribs.

From this position I can't even cast my spells. I can't heal myself! Her look of determination quickly faded to worry.

Glancing at her opponent, she couldn't help but wonder why he didn't finish her off while she was pinned to the earth.

Focus Orama, focus!

The half-elf then grinded her teeth together and put the pain far behind her, loosing herself in deep thought. A moment passed and then a most unusual thing started to happen. The smaller pieces of rubble started to float up from the ground. Then bigger ones, and then even bigger pieces.

Soon the entire pillar lifted off of the half-elf's body. She slowly stood and muttered something under her breath. With that, all the rubble including the pillar burst in a bright light and nothing more.

The light slowly faded and the mage of many talents was able to make out Orama's face. A wide grin came across the fair face of the light mage.

" Oh...my... I have done it! Haha! I have done it!" She paused and looked at her enemy, to excited to not share the news with him. " I have gone fully to the light! I am no longer a half mage! I can finally focus on my chosen art!" She exclaimed while jumping up and throwing her arms around her rival mage.

After an akward silence Orama hopped back and took her staff from the ground.

"I am sorry sir, I was just very excited. If you wish to continue then we shall." She said with a sigh.

OoC: It was short (post wise) but fun. ^_^

BiC:
Arin smiled at the new full mage for a second, before it faded back into a neutral expression. “No, there’s no need to continue,” he spoke. His Crystal Sword shimmered and slimmed in the near darkness, back to its staff form. Pounding it into the ground once, the dome overhead disappeared, allowing light to shine on the battlefield.

Pulling out some cards from his pocket, he read the contents allowed. “Congratulations,” he recited with no enthusiasm. “For, on this day we see you, insert name… I mean, um… Orama Darku, as a competent mage. We apologize for the no doubt challenging battle, but we needed to test your abilities against some of our graduated students to see if you have what it takes.

“I shake you warmly by the hand and say congratulations as well,” Arin said instead of acting on them, like they expected him to. Looking at the cards again, he threw them over his shoulder in defiance. “Lousy scripted crap.”

“Wait,” Orama spoke. “You mean that was all a test?”

“Yeah, pretty much,” the mage in the multicoloured robes responded. “Oh, yeah, that name promise thingy. Arin Bryant, nice to meet you, Orama.” He extended his hand in order to bridge a gap that may have appeared during their spar.

“Nice to meet you too, Arin,” she replied.

Pounding his staff on the ground again, the chunks of earth used to block off the courtyard collapsed, and clear “ghost” images of all the destroyed items appeared before fading back into existence. The student looked a little surprised at his skill, to which he said, “I have a temper, but I don’t really seek fights all that much, hence my limited attacks. Anyway, my work here is done, so I guess I should get going.”

“Wait!” Orama shouted. “I’m not mad or anything. In fact, I was wondering if, maybe, we could be friends? You seem like a nice enough guy to me.”

“If that is what you wish, then sure. Just keep in mind that I follow my own path and schedule, so don’t expect to find me easily. Now then, I’ve spent enough time here, so it’s time for me to get going. Before I leave though, some advice for you: Always make note of your surroundings, how you can manipulate them, and be sure to try and figure out where your opponent gets their strength. Then, use them to your advantage.”

“Alright, I’ll keep that in mind,” the light mage said as Arin walked out of the courtyard.

He stopped, just barely at the exit of the area. Turning around, he rose his voice so she could hear them. “When we see each other again, we should have another friendly battle, to see how far you’ve come.” With that, he left without another word, leaving her to stand in the courtyard alone.

“Okay, you’re on!” The full light mages shouted in reply.

Grow strong, Arin thought as he left the school. You’ll need all the strength you can get in this ever-changing world.