Magician's Deathwish

Maniacal Meeting

"Ladies and Gentlemen! Welcome to the yearly qualifications! And to those who may have passed in the future. . . Welcome to The Castle of Hysteryia!" Chiron said on the magician-made mic.

Whispers could be heard all across the town's square, those filled with curiosity and intrigue, but most of it was about all 12 Scouts being there.

"Is it true that you can immediately get picked for the Scouts?" I asked one of the participants near me.

"Yeah, but it's like a one-in-a-million case, it's either you're really lucky or really skilled." She said.

I turn to Palade as I look with wide eyes
"Hey! If I'm good enough I could get elected for the Scouts!" I said to Palade who was clearly focusing on the presentation.

"Yeah...yeah," Palade said like he was half asleep and not listening.

"Are the dance performers that ho-" I had cut myself off when I saw the presentation.

It was the most colorful magic show that I've ever seen, I've been to magic shows but this was the most impressive one I've been to, it really touched my heart, as a magician; Hecate was only lifting her staff up and it was doing so much, fireworks were spat out from thin air, water drops that made everything sparkly and the wind blowing everybody's expectations off the roof. Dude, the fireworks had SHAPES! I've never been to a show where the fireworks had SHAPES! It even had a smiley face! Like, how crazy is that?!

It ended fast, sadly, but everybody's eyes were already satisfied at the first minute. We were almost sad that it ended, it was literal eye candy.

"Thank you very much, Hecate," Chiron said, "Just like last year, we shall have 3 tests overall in the qualifications. Firstly, A handwritten test, secondly, a dungeon survival test, and finally, a duel with Hecate." Things were silent for a good 5 seconds, and then everybody whispered.

"A duel with Hecate?! Surely not, right?"

"A duel?! Seriously?! I can't believe this!" 

Duel this, duel that, I was happy that I even had the chance to meet Hecate, now I can fight her? That's a dream come true, though I might just get destroyed before I even get the opportunity to come back at her. 

"Hecate, huh? I guess you can have a shot at being a Scout if you beat her?" Palade asked me, 
"I guess so, man I'm getting so excited already!" I said, my heart beating ever so fast.

After a long while of waiting, Chiron was finally able to fix the technical difficulties of the Magicmic2000. 

"We will host the handwritten test today, later at 5:00 PM," Chiron said, seeming to whisper something to the Scouts before giving the mic to Lei, my father.

"Good luck to every competitor that is giving this a chance, not many people were here last year, and almost none of them passed. I hope that you all have the will and determination to compete and win! Also, can somebody beat Hecate? I'm getting bored of only having 12 Scouts." He said, making a lot of people laugh with his joke, but right after he said that, he looked at me for at least 2 seconds and hesitated to speak. 

"A-a fair warning to some, the dungeons are harsh, it may kill you or mentally damage you past your limits...But I believe you all can do it if you all have the determination and the mental power to push through it!" Lei said like he said that specifically for me. Warning me of what's in the dungeons and to be strong.

Lei had given the Magicmic2000 back to Chiron who seemed pleased with his speech.

"Lei's inspirational words should all be taken to heart, his sense of what needs to be said and what he wants to say really mix well together. All 12 of the Scouts wish you all well, we shall see you at 5:00 PM, good luck." Chiron said, leaving Hecate to the final act.