A Crumbling Society

Part 2-4

Day 1

Everybody made their way outside the castle and to the arena, it was pretty massive and had a tent on the side of it. This tent is used for ushering in the next group or a waiting area type of space. Eventually I got to the entrance and headed up a few levels before grabbing a seat in the crowd. Music was playing all around and cheering filled the arena, all three High members of the schools walked out onto the field below. Our Highmistress and two Highmasters stood in a triangle, arms out, they began chanting. A giant version of the lanterns we had floating around the attractions came out of the ground in-between them. It got larger moving up overhead and finally rested where we could all see, just before the clouds. Both Highmasters took turns shooting magic into it from below, before the Highmistress did hers she had one more thing to say. "Let the ARC tradition, begin!", and shot up a beam of white magic meeting the other two. The entire lantern burst into flame that shot a pulse of light and then grew smaller to rest there. A ring of light came off the lantern to illuminate the sky above. This lantern is the symbol of the ARC tournament and has been since I was a here, it takes all three types of magic to function. Each master or mistress of our schools each possess one of the three magic types. Thornrift is only a Black Magic school, Ichencrest is mainly Gray Magic and then Ankastle is predominantly White Magic. It's rumored to be set within a law that heads of the schools must remain that way. It also emits a spell on the grounds so that we can all see what's going on and so that the grounds get quicker recovery times. They apply to the students as well since some of them can be knocked out sometimes.

The first and second years filed into the arena taking their places and finding their partners. It was only one half of the group since there were so many students, this would be the first round. Once every student was paired the lantern sent off another light signaling to begin. Each student began casting at one another or evading attacks, even though none of them could do any real damage. First and second years can really only produce minor bits, well fragments, of magic. Lights and sparks from the fingertips that they can project but it's very basic. Nothing serious like upperclassmen. They don't have magic that is fully developed yet, and there's no indication as to what magic they want to use or specialize in. This is why we do the tradition in the first place; it helps them get ideas and start thinking about it. They're also performing first to get it out of the way so that the upper students have more time to prepare and figure out strategies. A few of the kids showed power and potential as others just cowered from their opponents. Another reason they go first is to get them in the motion of things for the years to follow. It's also like a training class in a sense to learn fighting technique.

Some of these kids are really going at it and others are more on the defensive side of things. I could see higher potential in some over others but know that they'll take a long time to get to my level. That is if they want to be a master mage. The whole thing lasts until each pair has one member left standing to advance. Eventually this group finishes and the next comes out and begins as well. When the group reaches seventy-five in total, they take the top twenty-eight students. From that number they get to the top twelve in order to get that number six in total for the rankings. An intermission takes place about one in the afternoon, and everybody gets concessions and tries out some of the attractions. I grabbed a bag of popfrogs, the magic world equivalent of popcorn but it looks like a frog because when the kernel "pops" open it hops like a frog instead. The line wasn't too bad, but if there had been one it wouldn't have bothered me. Good treats weren't going to take all the pain away, but they could help with the mood. Getting back to my seat wasn't that bad until I heard a voice beside me, "Carson!!!". I half interestedly turned to look, and an old classmate of mine was here, Tabitha Moré. She was a little tall, well taller than most of the guys at least; her clothing was always a bright color and this day she had on vibrant blue that matched the sky. Sandy blonde hair like mine with highlights in it and a little glitter was trimmed at her shoulders. A smile was on her face as she walked over to hug me. I had spent some time in school with her in classes, and she was actually my pair in most of our underclass years. Tabitha uses white magic even though she's from a black magic family, her parents disowned her because of it. We are very similar in that way, but I haven't seen her since my mastery year in eighth term. Her master spell is pretty cool, she can heal everyone around her within a huge radius and it also restores plant life and animal life. She calls it Heavenly Garden, and it earned her master status. I've never seen it with my own eyes but maybe one day I will.