Tutorial

Wolfe looked at the letter from the officers in her area. The letter she had received only a day ago told her to come to the Mysterious Canyon and meet someone. Even though she was in a guild, the high ups in the wizarding community wanted to test her and see if she was cut out to make it as a wizard. Sometimes it was hard being new.

Lifting her wrist to her face, she looked into the eye of the snake that was there. "Ryuu, what do you think of this? Do you think I should fight some random wizard just because the officials say so?" The snake turned more towards her, hissing as he spoke. "Wolfe, you know you put off those tests. Every time you met with an official on your way to Cor Draco, they told you to take the test. Now you can't run from it, since you have a home. This is your own fault. And to answer your question, yes, I think you should have your power tested. How will you know your true strength and what you need to work on? I think every year each wizard should have to be tested." He flicked his tongue at her, then turned back to the path they were on. Up ahead there appeared to be some commotion.

As Wolfe reached the group of people, for that was what it was, she looked around. Nearly everyone had an official uniform on. It appeared that only she and one other wizard were in "street clothes." She couldn't get a good look at them, and was about to go and do just that, when an officer walked up to her, holding a clip board and pencil. "Wolfe Tsukino, I presume? Today for your test you will be fighting against Aether Lepan. You will not be able to use your sword or pet. You may leave them on that chair over there before you fight, it is in view of the fighting area. Keep in mind, you are also supposed to showcase how well you socialize, so before you fight, you must hold some semblance of a conversation." He led her to the man she had seen earlier.

Now that she was closer, she could see he looked to be about her age, dressed entirely in black it seemed, with white hair, an a black mask covering the lower half of his face and one eye, letting the other silver eye show. The mask unsettled her just a tad, as it showcased a gruesome lip-less mouth. Wolfe held her wrist to her neck, letting Ryuu slither into her hair, his head popping out again at the crown of her skull, watching the other wizard, Aether, with caution. She then held out her hand to him to shake. "Hello, I'm Wolfe Tsukino."

A few days ago Aether had received a letter with details regarding a fight. He had no idea what this fight was for but he accepted nonetheless, it’d be a great way to test out his tendrils in combat with a live target, so far all that he actually managed to hit with his tendrils were stationary targets that surrounded him at varying lengths. When he got back to the Black Rose he’d have to try and get some targeting lacrima for practice, but for now he had to focus on the fight at hand. Standing before him was a young woman and from appearance looked much younger than the letter said. Her hair flowed behind her as she walked, her clothes didn’t seem that out of the ordinary but comparing his clothes to hers he could tell that he was out of the ordinary, even though this is what he usually wore when he was fighting it was clear that she didn’t really care about changing into a combat outfit.

Regardless as he began to step towards the woman he was stopped by an officer, holding a clipboard and pencil, a surveillance lacrima hung over the officers shoulder, most likely to record the fight that would happen within the canyon. “Aether Lepan, thank you for joining us. Today you’ll be put up against the mage Wolfe Tsukino, if you have any weaponry or have any sort of pets on your person, please place them by the chair. Our men will guard them whilst you duel your opponent.” He flipped a piece of paper over the clipboard “There will be a limit of two spells in this fight, a referee will call the match once one mage has been proven unfit to continue or forfeits. Now you will be allowed to socialize with your opponent before the match begins. You have 5 minutes before the match starts so I suggest learning all you can.” He flips the paper back over and smiles at the man in the mask “Good luck, you both will be paid finely for this dual.”

Aether nodded at the officer and walked towards the woman. As he got closer he noticed a small head popping out from the crown of her skull, a snake no less. He reached his hand out to shake hers as she was reaching. “Aether Lepan, pleasure to meet you.” He spoke softly, shaking her hand.

Wolfe chuckled at how they introduced themselves at the same time. With one hand she tucked some hair behing her ear, and with the other she shook her opponents hand, smiling. "I'm Wolfe Tsukino. And this here on my head is Ryuu!" She pointed to her head at the snake, who flicked his tongue at the man, then made a hissing sound. Wolfe turned her eyes up, "I agree Ryuu. But we gotta fight him." She looked back at Aether. She made sure to keep her eyes anywhere but his, settling for looking at the space between his eyes.

For a moment, her eyes slid across his single shown eye, and she quickly looked away. She didn't want to get disqualified or something because she accidentally began fighting before the actual fight started. Memories began to surface in her mind's eye, and no matter what she did, she couldn't stop them from coming.

"Hey, you have pretty eyes!" The little girl with brown hair leaned closer to the little girl with pink hair. When little Wolfe looked into the other girl's eyes, however, they were quickly filled with terror. The little brunette screamed, but it seemed as though she couldn't look away from Wolfe. "Why won't she look away!" Wolfe thought to herself, bursting into tears only moments later. When she went to wipe her leaking eyes, the eye contact broke, and the little terror-stricken girl backed away from the pinkette. "You're a monster!!!!" She ran quickly away from Wolfe, screaming for her mother. She hadn't meant to do anything to her, she pleaded with the angry mother after she had come over and begun yelling at young Wolfe. She didn't know what happened, all she knew was that one moment, she and Lily, her first and only friend at the time were playing and she looked at Lily's eyes, and their friendship was effectively broken with a scream of terror.

Later she would learn she had a secret power, one that if she looked into a person's eyes, she could cause their worst nightmares to flash before their eyes. She set out and began trying to control it. She made one friend, a snake who had bitten her when she had been walking in a forest. The snake then began to speak to her, telling her his name was Ryuu. They became friends. One day Ryuu asked her why she would never look him in the eyes, and she told him her story. He vollunteered to be her training partner, that she could look into his and learn to control her power. At first she was against it, but he eventually wore her down.

The flashback only lasted moments, but the worry that flashed in her eyes was still evident. She knew she could control her power when looking at Ryuu, but he was a snake. She didn't know how she would fair with a human. Yeah, she did look into her guild master's eyes when she first met him, but it was only for a second or two. And she made sure to blink between those two seconds.

Wolfe forced a smile back onto her face. "So what kind of magic do you use, if I may ask?"

Aether smiled beneath his mask as he shook her hand, avoiding eye contact with her and keeping his one eye focused on the bridge of her nose as she talked. He never could look someone in the eye for fear of what they thought of him and seeing their reaction in their eyes. However from how this person reacted he could already tell that his mask was slightly working. He donned this mask everywhere he went as to stop people from coming up and talking to him out of the blue, afraid that they might become attached to him over time. Shaking the thought from his mind his eye drifted to the snake protruding from her hair. He always had a fondness for animals and remembered reading from a book about all sorts of varieties of snakes when he was younger.

“A speckled racer.” he thought out loud, speaking softly again and staring straight at the snake. His mask had muffled some of the words he spoke but was sure that he was heard by the girl. “Very rare, supposed ability to talk but never confirmed.” He continued. “Found mostly near places with high levels of plant life and permanent water sources. Few known to be tame. Those who are bitten are driven insane due to a voice in their head.” He blinked and shook his head and noticed the girl was asking a question, most likely what magic he used. “Actions speak louder than words, so I’d rather you finding out during our fight than beforehand.” Speaking gently, but he points to eye, his iris turning red and his sclera turning black. “I can see through dimensions, this allows me to see through illusions.” He blinks and his eye returns to normal “However I haven’t mastered it yet, so I can only see through weak illusions.” He shrugs and tilts his head to the side slightly. “And from what I can tell since those types of snakes tend to only stay near high levels of plant life you might possess a plant magic, right?”

Wolfe noticed that Aether was looking at Ryuu. "A speckled racer. Very rare, supposed ability to talk but never confirmed. Found mostly near places with high levels of plant life and permanent water sources. Few known to be tame. Those who are bitten are driven insane due to a voice in their head." Her eyes widened at this point. She didn't know people had been driven insane by Ryuu's kind. She absentmindedly rubbed her hand, the spot between her thumb and forefinger, where Ryuu had first bitten her.

“Actions speak louder than words, so I’d rather you finding out during our fight than beforehand. I can see through dimensions, this allows me to see through illusions. However I haven’t mastered it yet, so I can only see through weak illusions.” So that was part of his power. It makes sense that he wouldn't reveal all of it. Just the stuff that Wolfe wouldn't learn from the fight. What he said next though surprised her. “And from what I can tell since those types of snakes tend to only stay near high levels of plant life you might possess a plant magic, right?”

Wolfe nodded. "Yeah, I use Plant-Make magic. And, as you so expertly deduced, this is Ryuu. And yes, he talks to me. But I'm not insane or anything. Or at least I don't think I am." She smiled, nearly laughing at the thought of being insane. Though he may have an odd appearance, and he spoke very matter-of-factually, Wolfe was beginning to think this man in front of her was interesting. She wondered if they would ever become friends or even see each other after this task. "You're very smart. Maybe after this is all through, I could buy you a smoothie from the town nearby? I'd love to get your opinion on some things. I have an ongoing argument with a friend about some leaves that may not be leaves and I would like a second opinion."

"Yeah, I use Plant-Make magic. And, as you so expertly deduced, this is Ryuu. And yes, he talks to me. But I'm not insane or anything. Or at least I don't think I am." Aether nods at this information, making sure to write it down later and take note that insanity is not an assured thing from a bite. "You're very smart. Maybe after this is all through, I could buy you a smoothie from the town nearby? I'd love to get your opinion on some things. I have an ongoing argument with a friend about some leaves that may not be leaves and I would like a second opinion." He placed a hand on the back of his head and leaned back “That sounds like an interesting argument, but since your magic is based around plants wouldn’t they trust you with everything plant related?” he asked, moving his arm back down and stretching a bit.

“Everything I know is from books I read, always have loved books since I was younger, there’s still many that I wish to read but knowledge is spread few and far between.” He raised his hand “In fact, I’ve read most of the books that have been published and imported into Fiore in the last 100 years. I’ve always had that pursuit for knowledge but never had the chance to actually pursue it outside of Fiore. Most of the books I own are imported from various countries but at some point in the future I plan to take a Wakusei portal to another planet in search of more books to read and things to learn.” He stops himself from giving away any more information about himself. “Sorry, I ramble on to other subjects when people ask me to explain something to them. But back to your proposal. Sure I’ll go.”

Wolfe had been staring at Aether in rapture. It seems that she had found someone who loved books more than she did. “Sorry, I ramble on to other subjects when people ask me to explain something to them. But back to your proposal. Sure I’ll go.” She waved her hands in front of her. "No need to stop! I love books too! maybe not that much, because I love to go on adventures and write stories based on those adventures. It thrills me to see someone who values books as highly as you do. And to your comment earlier, you would think they would listen to me, but they don't. Their logic is just because my magic has to do with plants doesn't mean that I know everything about them. And they're right. I don't know everything. Most of what I know, like terms and stuff about plants I've never seen, comes from books."

Wolfe rocked back onto her heels, then stood on her tip toes. "Thank you for accepting my offer. I know this great place that makes the best pomegranate smoothies around, not that that is the only great thing they make. I just have only ever had that. I love pomegranates! Hey look! Now I'm the one who's rambling!" She giggled. There was a hiss from atop her head, and she went cross-eyed trying to see. Reaching up and pulling the snake out of her hair, she looked at him. "Yes Ryuu, we can get you some apples. But pomegranates are better and you can't convince me otherwise!" She pet her snake once, adn let him wind his way up her left arm, disappear into her shirt sleeve, only to reappear on the other side. He then wrapped around her right arm, following her snake tattoo perfectly.

"No need to stop! I love books too! maybe not that much, because I love to go on adventures and write stories based on those adventures. It thrills me to see someone who values books as highly as you do. And to your comment earlier, you would think they would listen to me, but they don't. Their logic is just because my magic has to do with plants doesn't mean that I know everything about them. And they're right. I don't know everything. Most of what I know, like terms and stuff about plants I've never seen, comes from books." Aether nods, crossing his arms. “I see, I see. Well in that case I’d be happy to voice my opinion in your argument, it’s been a long time since I’ve had a good educated argument. The last argument I had was about the existence of multiple dimensions and let’s just say that it didn’t end up as well as you might expect”

The young woman then continued to ramble on about pomegranates with Aether nodding through the entire conversation, then an idea came to mind. “Then hows about we make a small wager in our battle? Loser purchases the victor’s drink at our meet. How about it?” he held his hand out towards the pink haired woman going to shake her hand.
An officer walked over to them, clip board in hand and surveillance lacrima watching over his shoulder. “I believe that is enough  talk for now, we’ve finished setting up our equipment and are ready to start.” The man then bows his head to the two mages “we thank you for your cooperation and participation in this matter.” The officer returns to standing up straight and moving over to the side lines, tapping another officer on the shoulder, letting him know it’s time to start the battle. The man stands up and walks over, wearing a slightly different designed robe to the other officers in the area, more black and gold in coloration. “The rules are simple, each mage is limited to two spells only, most of the fight will consist of close combat brawling. There is to be no outside help nor can any weapons be used unless it is required to use spells. I winner will be determined when your opponent is unable to continue.”

Grabbing his hand, Wolfe shook it, smirking. "Deal. I hope you have your wallet ready!" She winked at Aether, laughing. Just then an officer walked over with a clip board. “I believe that is enough  talk for now, we’ve finished setting up our equipment and are ready to start. We thank you for your cooperation and participation in this matter.” He then sort of tagged out with another officer, who walked over to them. He was dressed differently than most of the other officers. Wolfe just couldn't tell how he was different. She just knew he looked different.

“The rules are simple, each mage is limited to two spells only, most of the fight will consist of close combat brawling. There is to be no outside help nor can any weapons be used unless it is required to use spells. The winner will be determined when your opponent is unable to continue.” She nodded and walked over to the chair that had been pointed out to her before she and Aether met. She unwound Ryuu from her hair. "Sorry friend. I gotta do this alone. At least you'll have a good seat!" She leaned Midori, her sword, against the back of the chair with the strap looped on it, then she shrugged out of her vest and folded it up. She picked up Ryuu and placed the vest where he had been on the seat, then put Ryuu on top of it.  Now it would be comfortable for him!

Wolfe walked back to the center of the ring, which is where she and Aether had been talking. On her way, she stretched her arms back behind herself, but then she lost her balance and fell back onto her butt. Picking herself up and dusting off her skirt, she pouted all the way to the center, a bit embarassed that she had shown just how clumsy she could be. Way to give up your weaknesses Wolfe! Why not just tell him how to defeat you???

Aether grinned beneath his mask as he shook her hand “Make sure to hold up to your end of the bargan.” As the officer in black and gold explained the rules he made sure to recount all he could recall about what this girl had told him. She was a young woman around his age, could hear the voice of a snake in her head and had the ability to make the average houseplant a deadly weapon. Recalling all he could about plant’s capability to protect themselves, thorns and pollen that can cause drowsiness within non-plant life. Being a plant mage she would surely have some sort of vine attack. He thought to himself. They always seem to love their vines. He placed a hand on the small of his lower back whilst his opponent was pre-occupied removing her vest and placing the snake on top of it, secretly hoping that he wouldn’t have to bring out his excess limbs for this fight, but if it called for it he would do so.

As the young woman was heading back he recounted again what he had learned and then noticed that she had stretched to far back and fallen over. He ticked off a small checkbox for clumsiness in his mind. He was sure he wouldn’t need to use his tendrils that much and from what he could assume of her is that she thought he was a small man with little to no muscles to his slender frame, using baggy clothes as his way to hide it. He removed his coat, revealing a skin-tight battle suit with an open back and shoulder area that revealed his pale skin. His slender frame packing a muscular build. As soon as she and Aether were a few meters apart he got into a defensive stance. “Fighters ready!” the announcer called out, raising a hand towards the sky. “Battle commence!” as the announcer spoke those words a small burst of fire flew up into the sky and signalled the start of the battle.

When she had finished berating herself for showing weakness, Wolfe looked at Aether. He eyes widened slightly at his new attire. She let her eyes roam his body, taking in the muscles and clothes that screamed that they were made to fight in. This guy knew his body, that much was clear. Everything clicked now that she saw him without those baggy clothes. The way he had walked, the way he held himself, it all hinted at the hidden strength this man possessed. Wolfe thought back to all the times she had been forced to defend herself from bullies or angry parents when their child accidentally looked into her eyes. At first she wouldn't fight. It was her fault. She should have been more careful. But after Ryuu bit her, and she learned she didn't need to be a victim, she began training. Soon children learned not to look her in the eyes. Every once in a while one would be dared to look her in the eyes, and would suffer the nightmares her vision brought on. Then either the poor kid's friends would come to save him from the "witch" or the parents of the child would demand to have her arrested. Every time she would fight, and she grew stronger. Wolfe felt sure of her power, not just her magic, but her strength. She knew she had to beat this guy, it was a matter of principle.

She stretched one more time, once she had stopped walking, then got into a defensive stance that mimicked Aether's.

"Fighters ready!"

Wolfe cleared her mind of all thoughts that may distract her. She knew she needed to save her spell for when she would absolutely need it. She didn't want to waste it on something like jsut weakening the guy. She would need her spell for either protecting herself from whatever powers Aether had or for landing the "killing" blow. She licked her lips, taking a deep breath, then she heard and saw the flare go off.

"Battle commence!"

She immeditately rushed forward, and just as she reached the perfect distance to punch, she jumped up, over Aeither, landing behind him. She spun around and aimed a punch straight for the middle of his back along his spine.

Aether noticed the fire that burned within her, her muscles tensing up as he removed his coat. Most likely recalling a memory of something, but he didn’t think much of it and watched her mimic his defensive stance, which he himself mimicked from a scroll he read a few months ago, one that of which completed his collection of Aikido scrolls. He watched carefully as she rushed forward, going in for a punch. She was fast, but not as fast as he was. Knowing that he’ll need a spell for a quick exit or surprise attack he rushed to go under her just before she unleashed a punch, but instead she jumped over him. Surprised he continued to go forward, keeping low to the ground before turning around about 6 meters from his starting position and getting into the same defensive stance. Open palms towards each other, hunched over with both feet around shoulder length apart with one in front of the other.

His iris turned red as his sclera turned black. I have to be prepared, she might have something that produces an illusion. He thought to himself, having read of multiple plants capable of doing so. He watched his target and opponent carefully, looking at her muscles for when she might go in for an attack. But for now he just waits for her to make her move, close the distance, waiting for the best chance to strike out against her. Keeping his one watchful eye on her at all times. He had seen her move to jump over him at an attempt to strike at his back and would most likely not try to do so again. He couldn’t attempt to use his spells just yet, not until she attacked him first would he be able to do so.

After she had spun, and Aether wasn't there to recieve her fist, Wolfe swiftly moved back into a defensive stance. She knew this guy could fight, so she thought she might just shake him up a bit. She glanced around the arena, and she could guess that the canyon walls were about maybe 30 yards away from each other? The officials didn't give them any fighting perimeters, though she doubted they wanted the fight in the tents. But that jsut meant that everywhere in the other direction, the open canyon walls and the canyon floor included.

She was done taking in all she needed of her surroundings, besides what was behind her, she would be a fool to look behind her, when she would probably see it later in the fight. Besides, to look behind her now would leave her open, and she couldn't just give the fight to Aether, now could she? Anyways, she was pretty sure what was behind her was the open canyon. She had come from the tents, and Aether and Wolfe hadn't circled each other, so that would mean that after she jumped and turned, she was facing the tents. Wolfe glanced around a bit more, then ran to the right. She then cut across to run at Aether again instead of toward the canyon wall. She planted one foot, then launched herself into the air, twisting to face the same direction her advisary was facing, then she placed her hands on Aether's shoulders. She felt her feet fall behind the man and she gripped his shoulders. The moment her feet hit the dirt, she lifted her knee and jammed it into the small of his back. She threw her head back and pushed with her knee, pulling with her arms on his shoulder's attpemting to throw him over her head.

Quickly taking his eye off her he began to take in the area, the walls of the canyon appeared to be around 28 meters in length, the tents behind him most likely 15 meters away and a boulder behind his opponent roughly 10 meters away, the announcer watching the fight intently and jotting down our movements, what we’ve done so far and our appearances. Guess even the magic council needs to update their files once in a while.

Just as he turned his attention back to his opponent he watched her move towards the wall, then quickly change direction to attack him. He maintained his defensive stance as she charged him again. But not much to his surprise she jumped into the air once again, another chance to dodge her attack since she would be unable to change her course mid-air. He leaned lower to the ground and quickly moved towards the side and around his opponent, running towards the boulder, calculating that he would be around 5 meters away from the boulder by the time his opponent had landed. He turned and faced her once again. “You seem to love jumping.” he called out to her “But you cannot change your direction whilst in the air, nor can you stop, A quick twist might change your perspective but doesn't change your forward motion. Not the best action if you ask me and quite easy to dodge.” He got into his defensive stance again “And after the first time you’re just getting a little repetitive.”

He would wait for her to react and charge at him once more, either she would take this as advice and go for a non-airborne attack, use magic or attempt a jumping attack once again. There was little to no land mass between them besides the ground but he would wait patiently, upon her decision to rush him again he would remain still before attempting a counter.

Wolfe frowned. This guy was mocking her! He easily dodged her jump attack again. “You seem to love jumping.” He called out to her “But you cannot change your direction whilst in the air, nor can you stop, A quick twist might change your perspective but doesn't change your forward motion. Not the best action if you ask me and quite easy to dodge.” He got into his defensive stance again “And after the first time you’re just getting a little repetitive.” His last comment made her narrow her eyes. Repetative eh? I'll show you repetative... She noticed how he was about 17 feet from the boulder. Not close enough...

Taking slow steps, Wolfe walked towards Aether. "So you think I'm being repetative? That hurts me here." She tapped her chest where her heart was. "I guess, since you think my jumping is repetative, and inefecive, I should try something different right? Maybe I'll just get close to you and we can do a little duking? That sounds like a good idea to me!" She balled her hands into fists and smirked, getting ever closer. She knew she was going to have to time her attack perfectly to get a hit in.

While all this was happenning, she thought to herself. If I can get him closer to that boulder, I can shift to the right just a foot or two. That will put him within range of my whiplash, and maybe I'll land a hit. I hate having to use my magic when I don't know what magic he has. what if he can use ice magic! Oh dear... Well if anything, I can always keep to what I said and punch it out with him if this doesn't work. Maybe later I can go back to jumping. Those canyon walls look like they'd be fun to jump off and attack from above.

Just a little closer. He thought to himself, backing up further towards the boulder. A little closer and this might just work. “So you think I'm being repetative? That hurts me here." She yelled as she tapped her chest right around her heart was. "I guess, since you think my jumping is repetitive, and ineffective, I should try something different right? Maybe I'll just get close to you and we can do a little duking? That sounds like a good idea to me!" her hands balled into fists and she smirked at him. The announcer noticing the fight moving towards his direction jumped off the boulder and ran towards a nearby tent. He had the right idea of heading inside and using a surveillance lacrima instead, it might get a little dangerous very soon.

A light wind picked up in the bottom of the canyon, running towards his opponent. He was two meters from the boulder now, getting closer with every step. He stopped around 1.5 meters away from the boulder, taking in its shape and size to be roughly 5 meters from when he saw it and seeing that his guess was correct he grinned behind his mask. “I know it’s a good idea!” he shouted back at her “That’s why I mentioned it!” He brought his hand up and made a come on motion before getting back into his defensive stance. He was hoping that he wouldn’t have to use his tendrils for this fight and it looks like he won’t need to. This girl was easy to read and predict, and if she got any closer he’d be able to dodge almost every attack she’d attempt to make. With each step closer to the boulder came another step closer to victory. He knew that it would be easy to take her down with his tendrils but he wanted to see how well this girl could analyse the situation, possibly recruit her. But right now she seemed to be a little hot headed and easily baited.

With a snicker, Wolfe stepped closer. Just a little more... She realized she was at the perfect distance. he was about 5 feet from the boulder and she was about 9 or 10. Her eyes widened a fraction when he taunted her with his hand. She moved into a position that hinted that she was going to run at Aether. She whispered softly, "...Whiplash..." and as the green vine appeared in her hand, she swung her arm over her shoulder at a 45 degree angle, like she was going to perfectly knock Aether back. Instead, she twisted her wrist slightly and the vine flew around the man, past him to the boulder. It struck the rock, sending some chips off, and then rebounded off the hard surface. It appeared to be going straight for Aether's back, specifically the middle. But Wolfe had no control over where it landed. Once her whip hit the rock, she lost all steering capabilities, which was a loss she was prepared to take.

With her whip set on its path, she let go. The "handle" began to vanish, but Wolfe wasn't worried because she knew it wouldn't vanish before it possibly hit her target. She made sure she let go of the handle so she had enough time to ready the next phase of her attack, and yet her whip wouldn't vanish before it hit something. What she did instead of watch her vine is rush forward. She pulled her arm back and sent her fist flying towards Aether's left cheek. She was sure between the vine and her fist, there was no way he could dodge her attack this time. Even without the confirmation of flesh on flesh, she already was bunching up the muscles in her left arm, getting ready to throw that fist into his gut once her right fist connected.

As she got into position to get ready to run he prepared for what might happen, getting back into his defensive stance. But what happened was a little unexpected, she threw her arm over her shoulder, a vine clearly in her grasp. But that didn’t stop him from beneath his mask, the vine was making it’s way around him. Her clumsiness had caught her at a bad time and her attack was aiming to miss. He kept his one black and red eye focused on his opponent, paying no attention to the vine until it passed him and then it all fit together like a jigsaw puzzle in his mind as the world seemed to slow down. The boulder behind him was a perfect shape to rebound and hit him in the back. This was something he wasn’t prepared for. He tried to move forward to try to avoid the whip from hitting him but it was too little too late and the whip connected with the small of his back.

Upon connection with the small on his back six tendrils burst forth from that very spot, blocking the sputter of rubble that came with the vine. Black as the night sky with veins of red that pulsed along with his heartbeat. “I was hoping this wouldn’t happen.” He muttered to himself, looking down then straight at his opponent, tendrils waving side to side as he stood up straight. “Guess I have no choice.” He spoke, tendrils pointed towards his opponent. “To make this a fair fight I will tell you about me. I am Aether Lepan, a mage who can open portals to other dimensions at will. I will give you one shot to attempt to hit me again, however I will not be so careless as I was just then.” He spread his arms, tilted his head back and spoke in an ominous tone. “Come. Show me what you can do, mage of nature”

Just before her fist touched skin, Wolfe's whip struck Aether at the small of his back. This would have been perfect, if six inky black tendrils hadn't burst from the point of impact. Wolfe sprung back about 5 feet, her eyes wide. Just what are those things! How in the world am I going to beat him now! Hmm.... “I was hoping this wouldn’t happen.” Wolfe looked to Aether's face, away from the black and red tendrils, at this. “Guess I have no choice.” As he spoke, his tendrils pointed towards her. “To make this a fair fight I will tell you about me. I am Aether Lepan, a mage who can open portals to other dimensions at will. I will give you one shot to attempt to hit me again, however I will not be so careless as I was just then.”

He then spread his arms, with his head tilted back, looking a bit maniacal in Wolfe's opinion. “Come. Show me what you can do, mage of nature.” Wolfe wracked her brain. Weaknesses.... Those things only appeared because I hit the small of his back. That appears to be where they attach, so maybe, if I can hit that spot again, I can paralyze them for a moment. Cause there is no way I'm getting past those tendrils unless they aren't momentarily distracted.

Wolfe took a breath. "Hey Aether, you seem to have something on your back." She grinned and rushed forward, getting ready to punch Aether in the face like she had originally planned. She had thought it through, since she had been attacking indirectly, it only stood to reason that Aether would expect her to continue doing that. So instead of attacking with another switch-up, Wolfe would just outright punch him. But there was a little voice in the back of her head saying He wants you to change your tactics. He is egging you on! You need to keep up with what you've been doing! Knock his feet out or hit his stomach instead! He is expecting a straight punch to the face!

Aether kept a close eye on his opponent, her reaction for when his tendrils revealed themselves upon contact with the small of his back. She was going in for a punch when the tendrils had made themselves known, causing her to pull back temporarily and reconsider her outcomes. Whilst she did so Aether ran variables within his mind of how she would attack. They were too far from the wall for her to do a rebounding kick from the air, she was too slow to attempt an overhead attack again from a jump. This left her with two options, going in for a direct attack or using her final magic spell for the battle. Aether already had the advantage of being capable of staying at a distance whilst attacking, his extra limbs giving him enough reach to counter almost anything she would attempt.

She has little to no options he thought, predicting her lines of movements. If she was fast enough she could avoid his tendrils and attempt a direct attack at him if she came from the side in an arc, but after all the provoking he did she would most likely attempt to come straight at him. “Hey Aether, you’ve got something on your back.” She called out before rushing forward. He predicted successfully. As soon as she got within 7 meters of him he launched three tendrils around her, one overhead and two to either side, linking up behind her and giving her at least 2 meters on each side to move, limiting her escape options. Two remaining tendrils were poised to strike at her if she got closer, the one remaining tendril coiled into a spring behind him. If she were to actually make it past the two tendrils this one would launch him up and using the three tendrils that surrounded her to stabilize and land cleanly. At three meters the tendrils would attack.

Wolfe's eyes widened. She had only taken a few steps and suddenly tendrils surrounded her. They weren't touching her, but they weren't going to let her escape. In front of her, two more were blocking her way, kind of pointing at her, like they were going to attack. She kept running though. In her head, she decided that the best plan was to do a switch-up after all, and her original choice seemed to still be open. There was a gap under the two tendrils in front that looked just big enough for her.

Just before she got to the two lenths of muscle, she dodged to the right, then ducked under towards the left. Mid-duck, she leaned back and leet her feet slide forward into the gap, her momentum carrying her forward through the gap. The next part was tricky though. She couldn't see Aether, since the tendrils were blocking her vision. So she had to go on her gut as to where he was. She remembered he was in the center, so before the skid, that was where she aimed her feet.

Her intention was to knock his feet out from under him, or cause him to move or something. Just to do anything that would get her out of the cage he had put her in. She felt if she could break his concentration, maybe she could even get his tendrils to get tangled. It made sense to her that controlling so many limbs required great concentration, since she often had trouble operating just her four limbs. A thought of Aether all tangled up in his tendrils in a ball flashed through her mind, and a small part of her, to the back of her conciousness, laughed at the thought. But she pushed the image away. She could laugh later, and maybe she would tell him about it. Maybe she could get him to laugh?

Aether’s tendrils somehow managed to miss their target even though they were faster than her and there were two of them attacking simultaneously but this lead to her skidding towards him. Using his speed and the shaft of the tendrils overhead he dropped them down on his opponent and expanded their thickness to 1 meter each and forcing them down on her. She was most likely attempting to knock out his feet but was far away enough to stop before that would happen. She was unable to move under the mass of tendrils, piling on the two at the sides of them to help keep her pinned. “Attempting to out speed a faster opponent is not always the smartest option, but how you managed to avoid both my attacks I’m slightly confused by. Your speed is inferior to my own and yet you avoided them. However you got yourself into a struggle as soon as you dropped down to slide. With all the room still between us you could be easily stopped. You are pinned, cannot move and have one spell remaining and from what I gathered from your previous spell you require the use of your hands to cast spells.” He spoke, describing her actions and what might have been a bad decision. “It is over.” He told her. “Repetitive actions at first caused you to change your tactics once I pointed them out. Your idea for a surprise attack was a good one but luck wasn’t on your side. And now even at great odds against you, you would attempt to still win.” He lifted her up to eye level. “You know my magic but do not know how I use it, information is key in battle. Think before you act if you have the ability to. The best choice is not always the first one, nor is it the quickest.”

Wolfe's skid ended abruptly when the tendrils above her slammed down on her, pinning her to the ground. Then more tendrils piled on, making sure she couldn't use her hands for magic. She struggled, trying to wrench her arm free. “Attempting to out speed a faster opponent is not always the smartest option, but how you managed to avoid both my attacks I’m slightly confused by. Your speed is inferior to my own and yet you avoided them. However you got yourself into a struggle as soon as you dropped down to slide. With all the room still between us you could be easily stopped. You are pinned, cannot move and have one spell remaining and from what I gathered from your previous spell you require the use of your hands to cast spells.” Aether spoke to her as she struggled.

“It is over.” He told Wolfe. “Repetitive actions at first caused you to change your tactics once I pointed them out. Your idea for a surprise attack was a good one but luck wasn’t on your side. And now even at great odds against you, you would attempt to still win.” She was then lifted up to Aether's eye level by his tendrils. “You know my magic but do not know how I use it, information is key in battle. Think before you act if you have the ability to. The best choice is not always the first one, nor is it the quickest.”

Wolfe struggled more, then squeezed her eyes shut. She cried out, "Cocoon!" A magic circle appeared under her and a giant flower bud swallowed her up, effectively pushing the tendrils away. A moment later, the bud disappeared because it couldn't handle the pressure Aether's tendrils put on it, but the room it gave Wolfe was enough to slip through the limbs. She darted forward the moment her feet touched the ground towards Aether, intending to go out fighting. She launched her fist towards Aether's stomach.

Aether was grinning within his mask as he told her what she did wrong but then it happened. She managed to escape his grasp by creating a flower bud around herself from within his tendrils. It gave her enough time to squeeze out from between them before the bud collapsed and disappeared but as soon as she touched the ground she launched herself towards him. This gave Aether enough time to trigger the tendril behind him to launch him into the air in an arc. The tendrils he used to restrain his opponent now used to cushion his landing, using them as a suspension as he touched the ground around 5 meters away from her. He’d land softly just as his opponent stopped and turned around.

That was her last spell he thought She’s unable to continue this fight on fair ground. I’ll give her the option to give up but I will no longer hold back. With that he raised his voice “Still have a little fight within you.” He spoke. “One thing about being a great mage and fighter is knowing when to stop.” He flexed his tendrils around him, standing up straight. “Do you wish to continue? Even against the odds pressed against you?” he got into a defensive stance “If you wish to continue, fight me with all you have and I will match your efforts.” His red iris seemed to glow within the blackness of his sclera. He began positioning himself to allow his tendrils an easy target. He had yet to use any spells and his opponent had used both spells, if she were to use another spell she would lose the fight through disqualification. He didn’t want that to happen and so wouldn’t use his spells either, but it was already clear that he had an advantage as long as he had his tendrils. “Come, let’s not continue this charade for much longer, you’ve got a smoothie to buy me.”

Skidding to a stop, Wolfe turned when she saw her adversary had jumped over her. He used those damned tendrils again! She stared across the distance at him, when he spoke again. “Still have a little fight within you. One thing about being a great mage and fighter is knowing when to stop.” The tendrils around Aether moved. “Do you wish to continue? Even against the odds pressed against you? If you wish to continue, fight me with all you have and I will match your efforts.” His red iris seemed to glow within the blackness of his sclera. “Come, let’s not continue this charade for much longer, you’ve got a smoothie to buy me.”

Wolfe glared and got ready to run. "You insult me. By suggesting I give up, you are calling me a person you perceive as a quitter. I am no quitter! We were told to fight till one of us no longer can. By offering me the option of giving up insults my character, implying you think I would take the easy way out. Yes, there are times to quit, but this is not one of them. Now fight me!" She narrowed her eyes and ran at Aether again, her fist drawn back, ready to punch him. She felt her blood boil when he invited her to quit. It caused a fierceness to flash in her eyes. She was not a quitter. She would fight till she was exhausted or immobilized again. Yes, this was a test fight, but if it were to be truly accurate for the officials, then she would give it her all. As she ran, she let out a growl and ducked a little lower, shifting from ready to punch him to intending to tackle him. She would show him she would never give up!