What it means to be a Guild Ace!

It was a disappointing day for Aven Alveron, one that he wasn't likely to forget, as poured over his thoughts at end of the bar, lightly sipping a cool Apple Cider. What did it mean to be strong? His Mother had drilled the lesson into him from his very first day of training, that only the strong could shape the world, and only the victor decides what is Good. He tended to disagree with her second notion, but the first was certainly true. If he truly wanted to help make the world a better place, he would need to be far more powerful than he was at the moment, in both body and mind.

These thoughts, of course, stemmed from the frustration of earlier that morning, where he'd met Rina's challenge of a duel, as a test of his skill for advancing to a higher rank as a Wizard. He'd stayed up several nights formulating his strategy, working with the meager knowledge he'd had about Rina's magic, ironing out his tactics and concocting a viable counter to the general strengths and weaknesses of Light. Then, when the moment of truth arrived, and he stepped onto the battlefield, poised to give the battle everything he had, to show his Guild Ace what he'd learned, to prove himself, she returned his rigor with disrespect.

She'd underestimated him.

Aven's normally jovial expression twisted, and the glass in his hand fractured from the pressure of his grip. He'd never felt so insulted in his life, to be taken for a fool by a Wizard he'd assumed to be his superior. She'd tried to toy with him, play Hide and Seek with a magic that shined like a beacon in the dark, assuming he'd have no response. Then, to salt the wound, when he responded with a counter-strategy, instead of defending herself from the blow, or attacking back, she deemed it fit to end the battle, disappearing into some kind of defensive magic, and staying there. She'd ran from their duel, and ground her heel into his Honor as an Alveron. Anger roiled in his chest, and he was unable to stop himself from questioning aloud, as he slammed him tightened fist on the counter. "I thought being a Guild Ace meant you were strong!?"

It had been a while since Mura spent that much time inside the walls of the guild hall. As busy as he was as an Ace - even though he had all the time in the world given his expertise, in which previous statement had lost value - many things kept him out of the borders of Fiore. You know, monster hunting, securing nearly-crashing dams, solving mysteries of an increased murders of newly-wed women and meeting a dozen of new faces in the last month, stretching from the mischievous nekomata to Dez, he… he got some fresh air here. It was early afternoon, and Sorano was busy with something more practical than papers for once. Therefore, he was sitting at the corner of the bar table, enjoying a carbon drink to cool down his soul in the harsh heat.

A sudden slam caught his attention a bit too suddenly; he almost choked on his drink when Aven proclaimed a question: ‘I thought being a Guild Ace meant you were strong!?’ … The shaman had no idea what he meant by that, and he hadn’t been there for the exam that Aven went through, so he was left ignorant. It annoyed him to not know of the intent behind those words, but perhaps he could figure it out through dialog. Although, as forethinking as Mura was, he began stuttering a little. Aven was a strong wizard, no doubt, but Mura couldn’t predict the future. He had to find out…

“W-Well, I guess you have a point… although, I wouldn’t call myself strong,” he spoke. He was actually being honest by now; Mura couldn’t imagine himself comparing to power bombs like Sorano or even one of the other Wizard Saints and master wizards out there - Izayuki, Ardere, Des, Ken - and he kept working with and against unrealistically powerful entities which just blew his mind. What was strength, in the end? Did he possess it too? If so, could he confirm himself through the reckless guildmate?

“… I have something to figure out. Aven, please accept my challenge,” he then suddenly invited Aven in a monotone voice. He wanted to fight… sometimes, words weren’t enough to communicate. Magic had to interfere…

Aven's eyes shot open in surprise, he hadn't meant to be so loud. He'd obviously attracted the attention of some of the other guild members, not least of which Mura, Fairy Tail's other ace! He immediately felt foolish, the errant question so unlike him, just as the residual anger that echoed through his mind. He'd truly looked up to the wizards of Fairy Tail growing up, hearing tales of their exploits and greatness. In a way, after such a disappointing experience against Rina, he felt as though the illusion he'd been under was slowly stripping away, and he was beginning to see Fairy Tail as it was: a shadow of it's former self. He had no idea just who they'd lost that made them this way, what event transpired to break their former glory, but he knew, deep down, that he wanted to restore it.

He hadn't much interaction with Mura since joining, perhaps a sideways glance, or a casual greeting here or there. To Aven, it seemed as though Mura was a deep thinker, the kind of person to examine the world through a different lens than himself, if not one that was slightly removed so as to view the truth behind the truth. Individuals like this shaped thinking in the past, paved paths through life and codes of living. His initial statement, of course, was humble, though Aven could feel the energy emanating from Mura's core: it was a slow, steady pulse, like ripples on a pond. What Aven did not expect, of course, was the challenge that was issued forth. Fighting both Aces, in one day? To be completely honest, he wasn't at all winded from his battle with Rina, seeing as though it'd lasted perhaps fifteen seconds before she fled, leaving him bewildered. Perhaps, this was what he needed, to fight a real duel, one with Honor and Dignity. Of all the things Aven sensed from Mura, not a single one of them spoke of cowardice.

Aven nodded, setting down the cider. Mura was absolutely right, Aven had something to figure out as well, and the best way to find it would be through the exchange of blows. "I accept your challenge, Mura." He paused for a moment. Where should it be held? The fight with Rina was in a forest, he didn't fancy that venue, especially for a fight as potentially destructive as what could happen between Aven and Mura. Leveling a portion of the East Forest was not his goal for the day. He calmed himself, finding his center, and banished the anger from that morning: it was senseless anger, with no direction. Aven smiled, and gestured to the door. "Let's have it in the field." The challenged normally would pick a location, so he figured it wouldn't be an issue.

With that, Aven set off out the door, making his way toward the designated area. It was obvious that they'd both resolved to speak through their actions, an understanding to be had through the art of combat, not discourse. When he finally arrived, he positioned himself near one side of the middle of the field. It was a large, open area, so they'd both have plenty of maneuverability, and better yet, nothing notable in range to be destroyed. As Aven had picked the venue, it was courtesy to allow Mura the first attack: in preparation, Aven summoned a Blink circle beside him, a Displacement circle appearing and shattering beside it, causing it to glow a deep violet. A moment after, three more identical Circles appeared spread in the area around Aven, and the tip of his cane dug into the dirt: he was ready.

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Health: 400.
Magic Power: 380.

Displacement Circle: No cooldown remaining.
Multiplcation Glyph: No cooldown remaining.
Protection Glyph, Kha: 1 post cooldown remaining.
Blink Circle: 5 posts cooldown remaining.

Passive Abilities:

- Absorption Glyph, Su: Aven's Magic Circles passively draw in the natural surrounding magic energy, storing 2.5% of Aven's maximum per post that they persist, up to a maximum of 10%. When they are successfully triggered, that energy is immediately transferred to Aven. (Applies at the end of each post. Circles that are triggered the same post they were created do not restore any mana.)

- Rotation Glyph, Vec: Aven's Magic Circles gain a 20% User rank damage Shield made of residual magic each time he casts different type of magic than his previous cast, which drops off either after two consecutive posts of not casting magic or when he casts the same Magic Type twice.

- Purification: The Light of Will is derived from the desire to protect and preserve, thus it grants users the ability to cleanse themselves and others. Whenever Aven heals or shields himself or an ally, one harmful magical effect is automatically removed from their person, expending effect rank of Aven's MP.

- Repetition Glyph, Lae: Aven's Magic Circles automatically reappear when they are triggered at their maximum duration.

Mura simply nodded, delighted of the acceptance. It didn’t take long before he was outside in the requested field, a large, flat area designated for movement and exercise. The shaman threw a quick glance at the guild hall, not expecting any spectators for this one. It would distract him, at the least, to have eyes other than Aven’s on him right now. And although it had been a while since he fought one of his own, Mura appeared all too used to this - no signs of excitement or eagerness were shown on his face. It was focusing and assuming a thousand things.

A blue ball suddenly entered Mura’s body in an instant, covering his contour in a bluish ray. His eyes’ tone and color changed, before he charged forward with Harusame in his hands. An invisible sphere manifested around him in that instance as he approached Aven in his top speed boosted by the spirit magic.

A clone appeared behind Mura just as he began to charge. Standing just behind him at a distance of 50 meters, the real Mura intended to go up front whilst white slashes of light passed by the shaman from behind, charging forward and approaching Aven at an even higher speed. The real Mura simply did the same thing and unleashed a single slash that caused light to shatter and send out a dome of slashes from his position at 20 meters.

HP: 500
MP: 420 (-40 x 2 from Kyuken-Style: Grand Halo Blade, 0 from Spirit Bind: Unity and Spirit Bind: Sphere)

Activated Weapon Ability:
Limbo

Eyes On The Neck:

A Soul Is Hard To Heal:

Ghost Slayer:

Lineage:

It was on! Mura had dashed forward, seeming to create a double of himself, both travelling extremely fast, one of them staying further back and creating a slash of energy that soared along with the first. Aven tensed his muscles, the scenery slowing down to his perception. Mura was quick, that was for sure, and Aven was almost positive that he wouldn't be able to block the strike, much less dodge or counter. He really was dealing with a powerful opponent this time. Quickly, he summoned a Seeker Circle, as well as a Displacement Circle beside it, which shattered, causing the Seeker Circle to pulse white.

He didn't have much time, however, as the leading Mura followed up his initial slash by striking.... everywhere? The energy from the sword seemed to spread in any direction Aven would look to defend, becoming increasingly obvious to Aven's heightened perception that his body was fast enough to deal with the speed of the strikes on it's own. Mura wasn't the only one with a plan, however.

Aven multiplied the now empowered Seeker Circle, surrounding himself with a total of four of them. As the blade strikes showered his body, he felt the cuts damage not just him, but his essence. It was like the energy cut through to his soul. Still, the fight was long from done, as he trans-located the Blink circle to his right ninety meter to the right, as a precaution, before summoning a green Healing Circle on his back. With that, his Seeker Circles activated, a shower of thirty two bolts of Arcane energy pouring from the circles, 12 or them homing in on the Mura farthest away, and twenty of them homing in on the Mura closest to Aven.

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Health: 336.
Magic Power: 320.

Displacement Circle: No cooldown remaining.
Multiplcation Glyph: No cooldown remaining.
Protection Glyph, Kha: No cooldown remaining.
Destruction Glyph, Rho: 1 post cooldown remaining.
Seeker Circle: 1 post cooldown remaining.
Healing Circle: 5 posts cooldown remaining.
Blink Circle: 5 posts cooldown remaining.

When the circles appeared around Aven’s position, Mura expected upcoming counterattacks. He did take his Grand Halo Blade severely, but it was the circles that worried him in that instance - and for good reason. Upon being 20 meters away from Aven, the shaman stopped up in a rush and spotted the Blink Circle being sent to the right. His vision let him see such without being distracted by what was going on in front of him - and Aven was full on ready to send a shower of twenty bolts homing straight at the swordsman.

Upon dashing five meters to the right, Mura noticed the homing effects of the bolts. He had to move faster… a sudden burst of wind suddenly escaped his position as he readied for the first bolt to hit. Upon hit, his body suddenly charged at a speed of 60 m/s towards Aven’s position right behind him, meeting him in the middle of the circles. If the bolts targeted him… then he could use Aven’s own spell against himself!

The other clone charged to the left and ran away from the other bolts for as long as possible. Meanwhile, two other clones jumped out of the first one, dashing towards Mura’s position.

HP: 480 (-20 from the last 50% increase in D-Ranked Spell Hit (D+) )
MP: 400 (-20 from Kyuken-Style: Samurai's Grace)

Activated Weapon Ability:
Limbo

Eyes On The Neck:

A Soul Is Hard To Heal:

Ghost Slayer:

Lineage:

Aven hadn't been wrong, Mura was fast. Still, did he know that he'd just entered the lion's den? With a twirl of his cane, Aven multiplied the Seeker Circles once more, a total of seven surrounding them, beginning to cut off avenues for escape, as they were each two feet wide. The problem had become, Aven then knew that Mura could outrun the Circles in a pinch, and that was going to be troublesome if he couldn't lock Mura down. The question was, how to accomplish that?

He whirled around, as the two clones began to close in. It was apparent that the Mura behind him was the real one, as it'd used magic of it's own, so he could rest assured that he wasn't wasting his time targeting him. He summoned a displacement circle, before destroying it to empower the Healing Circle on his back. With that knowledge, he gave Mura a little wink, before he blipped out of existence, now ninety meters to the right, a purple Blink circle in place where he'd been standing. Just as he teleported, as well, the seven Seeker Circles fired off their rounds, a total of fifty six this time: thirty of them targeted the real Mura, who was point blank, and thirteen heading for each of the two clones.

------------------------------

Health: 374.
Magic Power: 360.

Multiplication Circle: No post Cooldown remaining.
Destruction Glyph, Rho: No post Cooldown remaining.
Protection Glyph, Kha: 1 post Cooldown remaining.
Seeker Circle: 2 post Cooldown remaining.
Healing Circle: 5 post Cooldown remaining.
Blink Circle: 5 post Cooldown remaining.

Oh crap. Aven lured him into the circles on purpose, preventing any chance of escaping the circles that now surrounded the shaman. The instance Aven popped away, Mura panicked and raised his hand up in the air. The same types of projectiles were fired at him point-black, creating dust in their massacre of an assault at his position… but at the end, when the dust settled, a metallic egg was found where Mura was standing.

The Seeker Circles were countless in numbers, but they were rather inefficient in finishing power. Now, Mura was all but finishing power in its essence, but using this spell whilst knowing of its limitations did give births to some hunches and thoughts inside the Ace’s head. Perhaps Aven used it on a back thought… Mura would have to continue the battle a little to convince himself. A couple seconds later, the metal dome crumbled down and revealed the absence of the shaman. During the pause, he had clapped his hands together - which was loud enough to travel through the metal and reach Aven’s ears - and disappeared under the sandy earth that was under his control. From deep beneath the ground, 3 dazzling lines of fire travelled only to erupt at different lengths from Aven; one erupted at 10 meters away, another one 5 meters behind his location (which was 90 meters to the right from Mura) and a third one right beneath his feet. Depending on his moves, Mura tried to ensure a direct hit using this tactic.

The two clones that approached Mura’s earlier position - where the volley of Seeker Circles had taken place - dove into the earth too. It was risky, since Aven could get suspicious of Mura’s location… which forced a shaman to strike up from the earth between the three fire beams. Many attacks at once would surely confuse the fight-sick guildmate.

HP: 480
MP: 360 (-40 from Onmyōdō: Kakkou)

Activated Weapon Ability:
Limbo

Eyes On The Neck:

A Soul Is Hard To Heal:

Ghost Slayer:

Lineage:

Aven's tiny grin widened, as the metallic egg deflected his magic, and Mura disappeared. This was the kind of fight he'd been waiting for, a true test of his prowess and planning. The clones, also, dodged the volley, diving down into the earth, a kind of tunneling magic, it seemed. Since Mura was also gone, that stood to reason he'd done the same, and all three were currently underground, waiting to strike.

Before he could formulate a proper response, however, lines of flame began to erupt from the ground, progressively toward him, and under hit feet, he felt the earth heat for a moment. He was essentially trapped, and if he dashed with Radiance, he'd be leaving himself completely open to attack. Instead, he blinked away once more, reappearing at the spot he'd blinked away from before, the purple circle there shattering. He quickly trans-located one of the three remaining empowered Blink Circles ninety meters to the right, and summoned a Frost Circle next to him, empowering it by destroying a quickly summoned Overcharge Circle, then multiplying it to surround him in a Square-like pattern. With each moment, his defenses grew, and he needed to ensure that continued if he hoped to have any chance of winning the fight. With that, the Seeker Circles would fire once more, sending their arcane barrage at anything that dare surface, the circles reappearing to charge for their next battery.

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Health: 374.
Magic Power: 400.

Multiplication Circle: No post Cooldown remaining.
Destruction Glyph, Rho: 1 post Cooldown remaining.
Protection Glyph, Kha: No post Cooldown remaining.
Seeker Circle: 2 post Cooldown remaining.
Overcharge Circle: 3 post cooldown remaining.
Frost Circle: 4 post cooldown remaining.
Healing Circle: 5 post Cooldown remaining.
Blink Circle: 5 post Cooldown remaining.

Well. His clone got left out once again as Aven used his teleportation magic - or rather, there was a specific teleportation spell that he kept using, even though it was the second time only. He wasn’t close-combat attuned, was he? It only left the clone exposed to the several Seeker Circles which gunned it down - yes, the one surfacing was but a clone - but the other clones along with Mura were reaching their limits. The last ones would stick up after the first one was gunned down, trying to spot Aven’s next position before slowly disappearing into nothingness. That way, Mura got a decent idea of his intent…

Hmh, it was rather annoying. Aven was surrounded in some spheres- oh damn, what was this? A field of magic just hit Mura from nowhere, covering his body in an effect of sorts. No apparent reaction, though… he would have to hurry, in which he moved underground closer to Aven's location until he was 30 meters away.

“Hmh…”

Knowing where Aven was now, he grabbed Harusame and Futsu no Mitama. The next moment, a bluish, spirit blade would grind up from the surface and power towards Aven’s belly, hopefully ‘stabbing’ his soul. An instance after, he swung Futsu no Mitama beneath the ground, which caused another blue light to cut the line between him and manifest a large, devastating slash towards Aven as well. If he got the guy with the first spirit blade, then that would heed the impact with the other blade… ahh, blades…

HP: 480 (hit by DoT Frozen Circle, health reducing later)
MP: 320 (-40 from Spirit Bind: Dual Control)

Activated Weapon Ability:
Limbo (ended)
Art of The Sword God: Heaven/Earth Scattering

Eyes On The Neck:

A Soul Is Hard To Heal:

Ghost Slayer:

Lineage:

Aven watched as his Seeker Circles mowed down Mura's clones, and he calmed his mind to search for Mura's magical presence. To no effect, unfortunately, as his magic circles were clouding the area with power, and also absorbing latent magical energy in the area to restore to Aven when they'd triggered. His circles had their disadvantages, and one of them was quite apparent, as a sword slash rent up through the ground, and straight into Aven's stomach, pain coursing through him. The Blow was fierce, and staggered him enough that the second slash also caught him, tearing into his chest and damaging his soul. The edge really did cut deep, beyond the physical realm, though there was really no way he could've known it was coming.

With a slight grit of his teeth, Aven cast Judgement, which created a Golden magic circle, floating beside him. Mura was still underground, so there was no telling when the next strike would come. He translocated the Blink circle behind him 90 meters to the south, then multiplied the Seeker Circles once more, a total of ten now raging, as the year released another barrage, and the Judgement circle shot a blade of golden light into Aven's body, creating an aura of gold around him, shielding his body from harm and cleansing it, before he Blinked three times in succession, once to the right, once to the south, and then back, quickly stepping off the third Blink circle as it reappeared.

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Health: 200.
Magic Power: 400.

His clones had dispersed by now. That also gave a feeling that Aven was trying to answer back… but a breath’s moment, a pause, gave it out. He got hit! At last, Mura hadn’t got such a clean hit in forever! His battles always ended with who got the smallest bruises and fainted because of them, and they were too fast and rapid too… this was more classic fighting. Truly.

His position must’ve been given away by now. He put on his headphones and turned on to his hype song, before he proceeded with his next move:


Clenching his grasp on Futsu no Mitama, an auric suit of armor spawned on him. With that on, he popped his head out from the ground, taking a look at the attack launched at him. This armor would do for a few moments, in which he quickly rose up and approached Aven, his armor slowly cracking off shards and parts by the volley of Seeker Circles.

“Rina doesn’t like to fight heedlessly… and she’s not thirsty for bruises and bonecracking-“

His words travelled through the air between him and Aven as he came closer, almost lining up against the Judgement Circle.

“-But there are men in this world who water for a good battle. I kinda get them.”

During his sentence, he rose up a wall in front of him - it was rather thin compared to his normal walls which had more mana infused into them, but he was using it as a decoy to move around. The wall could break down at any time, so he consecutively rose up walls right between him and Aven to try and trap the male for a brief moment.


HP: 480
MP: 320

UA Used: Change By Will

Activated Weapon Ability:
Art of the Sword God: Welded Plates

Eyes On The Neck:

A Soul Is Hard To Heal:

Ghost Slayer:

Change By Will:

Lineage:

It was the end game. Aven had fought enough opponents to know that look of intensity, the spark that appeared when they were about to go all out. He knew exactly why, too: Aven was in bad shape after that last assault, and Mura was all too keen to notice the fatigue in his stance. The senior wizard surfaced, and began what seemed to be his final approach, rattling off a few choice words on Rina's intentions, and an understanding of his qualms with her dishonorable retreat. Mura wasn't the only one who'd learned something from their clash, however; it was obvious, then, to Aven what kind of person Mura was, and the smile on his face became one of content for a brief moment. This is what an Ace should be!

Aven's eyes flickered to Mura's diversion around the walls he began to erect, his contented smile widening, reflecting the glee of battle. He'd gone into the fight knowing there was a high probability of his defeat, his hand clutching the spot where the spiritual sword had pierced his essence. Nevertheless, all the pieces were in place, and as he felt the aura of the Healing Circle on his back peak, the smile became one of triumph, and the same glint that he'd seen in Mura's approach appeared headstrong in his emerald eyes as they followed his progress around the steadily breaking walls. "I'm glad to hear that, Mura! Perhaps we can do this again some time, I could always use a sparring partner," He winked, as he multiplied the Healing Circle on his back, "This match, however, is already decided." In an instant, healing magic coursed through Aven, restoring his body to peak condition, as the four healing Circles stacked on his back flooded him with restorative energies, then reappeared to begin charging once more. The Seeker Circles also followed suit, unloading a total of eighty arcane missiles that sped toward Mura in a near cloud of white magical power. Aven had set all the pieces in place, and there would be no dodging this time, as his Frost Circle's effect was at it's peak. He'd be frozen in place in less than a moment, as the weight of Aven's strategy bore down on him. He planted his cane in the ground, a small gesture of victory. It was fortunate that the Seeker Circles wouldn't cause any lasting harm, perhaps a few bruises, but they would certainly decide the fight.

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Health: 400.
Mana: 400.

Incoming Damage:
- Empowered Frost Circle (immediate third turn effect): 120 damage, and Frozen in place for 1 Post.
- Empowered Seeker Circle (x10): 80 bolts of arcane magic, each dealing 15 damage. 80 x 15 = 1200 damage.

A sparring partner… yeah, that sounded good. Mura needed to up his own battle prowess himself, because there were many things that he needed to get in place… his pace, his stance, his momentum, everything needed an optimizer. Perhaps that was why the heavens blessed him with powerful opponents such as Aven… and all the other opponents in his past.

This world just never got any easier with him… but it felt like home.

About getting easier… it sure wasn’t easier moving around. The Frost Circle getting on to him from before, and Aven had released another volley of missiles. They came from behind, and just as Mura thought that he had velocity enough to at least duck, the Frost Circle kicked in and completely immobilized his limbs. The missiles hit him right in the back, making the Ace fall forth in a moment of defeat…

Black aura immediately began fixing his back after that impact as he was laying down, exhausted and unable to keep on fighting. Sometimes, this world gave you a challenge that felt too much for you to complete… and sometimes… you got up and continued your day. Mura slowly rose up on his feet, too, his back exposed as his gi was ripped off by the missiles.

“Man… right in the neck,” he sighed, “I’m beginning to get really annoyed about those Circles, Aven...” He couldn’t help but chuckle despite a slight pain - the black magic on his back just kept doing its thing and heal his back…