ULTRAMagic Interlude

Chapter 17

The audience was silent in anticipation of the final duel as Dunja fidgeted around, getting herself ready. She brushed off her mage robes, checked her royal sword, and looked around anxiously. Opposite of her was Englehart, standing still and waiting patiently.

"Nervous, dear?" he asked.

Dunja exhaled. "Yeah... Alright, so what's the goal of this?"

"We cast magic, responding to the other caster's spells. This goes on until one of us is disarmed. Any form of magic is permitted, within reason."

"Alright, so flashy and bombastic I take it?"

Englehart chuckled. "If you feel that's the way to go. It wouldn't hurt to give the audience a performance to remember."

Out of courtesy, the queen was given the first cast. Drawing her silver sword, she ran her first two fingers down the flat edge of the blade. It ignited in a brilliant fire. Swinging it around rhythmically, she summoned a pack of spectral wolves made of flames. They gave a mighty chorus of howls before charging at Englehart. The king drew his dark royal blade, causing a blizzard that brought forth a group of serpents made of ice and snow. They collided with the wolves and fought fiercely.

The serpents had the upper hand, so Dunja cast a torrent of fire towards the battle. As the heat overwhelmed the king's spell, he started using his free hand to direct the inferno into a giant sphere that moved towards the queen. She responded with the same tactic. The globe soon turned into a column of swirling fire that kept going up and up until it fell apart into a rain of glittering embers. The audience applauded the beauty of it all.

Dunja nodded in admiration, thinking of her next spell. "VEY, XRU, TZA!"

Beneath her feet came a rushing surge of water that she rode atop of. Her next move was to charge at Englehart, but he countered with strong winds that howled around him. The two made many attempts to strike each other only to be foiled each time. It had become like a dance, the wind and water flowing and swirling like it would in nature, albeit more akin to a raging storm. This time Dunja planned to come out on top, however. She used the wind to climb to the top of Englehart's vortex and dove down to the center.

Certainly a clever tactic, but the intent was obvious. Englehart froze the water before it could get to him. With his guard down, Dunja brought back the fire. This was stopped by a barrier of earth that was propelled into the air with the wind. A truly impeccable counter to behold and the audience loved every bit of it. Dunja found herself caught off guard by the maneuver. She had to think quickly on how to respond as she dropped to the ground.

Fortunately the earth she had been launched on was perfect for her next move. Dunja swiftly turned it into a massive boulder and set it ablaze. What looked like a meteor rocketed towards her opponent. Englehart stood his ground and began speaking what sounded like a void spell of his own. Two ethereal arms manifested above him and slammed the rock into the ground. Dunja was thoroughly impressed as it seemed like he had been studying void magic.

"Engle, was that what I thought it was?" Dunja questioned as she touched back down on the arena.

"Aye. I spent time practicing in your absence. I felt bad for not being able to perfect what you taught me so long ago..."

She smiled with warmth. "Well, your spells still need some work... but I'm certainly in the mood to provide some tutoring... AR, VEY, XRU, TZA, RAS!" Four, colossal stone arms appeared behind Dunja, causing the entire arena to tremble.

Englehart did not expect this, but he was not going to back down. It was clear that Dunja had also improved her magic over the years. With a deep breath, a fierce aura enveloped the king. His gaze was intense and his body looked like it could barely contain his might. He effortlessly dodged Dunja's strikes and batted away any that caught him. The duel had ramped up in intensity with the audience on the edge of their seats once again. Blood-Wraith in particular was utterly enthralled by all of this.