"Ah crap, today's the last day," Allen mumbled to himself as he rolled out of bed. Today would be the last day Allen and his friends would be in the Magical Knights Training Program.
They had spent the last two days pretty much doing what they did on day one: touring outside of the areas of the main London marketplace, learning about what magical knights do on a day-to-day basis, how they protect the cities of London, and how they handle their security.
Allen, Thomas, and Cecily were all bummed out with the coming of the last day of the training program. However, since their training program is ending, that should mean their club meetings should start up again soon!
Once Allen and everyone else had arrived at the D ranked classroom - Mr. Lyon's classroom - Philip began to explain their plans for today.
"Alright everyone, I know you're bummed out with today being our last day! However, we have something special planned for today!," Philip announced.
After Philip talked, almost everyone in the room started to get antsy as to what the special plan was.
Normally everyone in the room would just listen in, but as the week had progressed, everyone started to warm up to Philip more, and even a little towards Jerome, though he didn't talk much.
"Today, we will all meet up with the other groups in one of the areas outside of the main London marketplace, near the official Triumvirate building!," he began to explain.
The Triumvirate, Allen thought. They're the current governing figure of elemental magic. And the ones who execute fire mages.
"Why, you may ask? It's so all of you can learn the opportunities in store for you when you graduate in three years!," he explained. "We will actually be having a Division IV squad, yes you heard me right, that will be personally speaking to all of you regarding the magical knight divisions!"
Excitement within the room grew larger. After all, it is a Division IV squad. Allen had learned in the past few days that a new member in the Division squads starts at a rank of I, and can work their way up to the rank of IV.
Earning a rank is based on merit and performance, which means it would be harder to be promoted with each rank you earn, V being the most difficult.
This would explain everyone's excitement, as there are fewer Division IV ranks compared to Philip and Jerome's rank of Division II.
"Normally today our third member would also tag along, but as I had previously explained on our first day, she currently has some business to attend to," he explained, with a slight sad look on his face. "Anyways, it will be once again Jerome and I today, and if everyone is ready, we shall go ahead and make our way there!"
Everyone immediately began to get out of their seats, making conversations with their friends and classmates, as they began to shuffle outside of the room to follow Philip and Jerome. Mr. Lyon would be following behind them.
"Our last day is finally here," Allen sighed, as he got up out of his seat.
"Why Allen? Why must today be our last day?," Thomas exclaimed.
"You are just sad that we will be returning to our normal classes after the weekend," Cecily remarked, as she got up, her face engrossed in her textbook once again.
"You remind me of someone we all know, in our class, who seems to read all the time," Thomas grinned.
"Oh? Care to say that again?," Cecily asked, glaring at Thomas.
"Umm, no…," Thomas looked away as he began to follow Allen, as Allen was laughing.
The three of them finally made their way with the others, as they left the academy grounds.
I wonder what the Division IV Magical Knights are like, Allen thought, as the group headed towards the London marketplace. Also, we will be near the official Triumvirate building.
While Allen would be excited to finally see Division IV Magical Knights, he would also be right near the building of the Triumvirate, who are the ones killing any and all fire mages they find. So he would have to be extremely careful for today, lest he wishes to be found out that he himself is a fire mage.
They finally shuffled to a somewhat large area, with all sorts of other groups of students with their appointed magical knights waiting around. There was a fairly sized wooden stand and podium far ahead, where Allen assumed the Division IV squad would be speaking from.
The Triumvirate building (at least that's what Allen assumed it was, considering its size and appearance), was directly behind the stage, not far from it. If not for the fact that it was the Triumvirate building, Allen almost found it beautiful. Despite the color mix of gray, brown, and blue, the building managed to look stunning and easily caught the eye. Allen presumed each color matched the elements, and of course the color red was missing.
The area around them was really loud due to all sorts of students holding conversations with each other, so it was hard for Allen to hear when his friends or one of their appointed magical knights was speaking.
"-wonder when they will be-," Thomas was trying to say to Allen, but Allen didn't catch everything he said.
"What?," Allen asked, getting closer to him.
"I said, I wonder when they will be appearing," he reiterated, speaking louder.
"Hopefully soon," Allen responded, looking over at Philip to see if he had any idea.
The look on Philip's face seemed as though he was trying to figure out when they would be appearing as well. Allen looked over at Jerome, but he didn't seem to have much interest in today.
Just when Allen was starting to debate if they would show up, he finally saw them come up on the stage. There were three of them total, which matches what Philip had told them for the number of members in each squad.
All three of them wore uniforms the same as Philip and Jerome. However, two of them had gray uniforms and one of them had a blue uniform like Jerome's. This meant that the ones with gray uniforms have the air element, and the one with the blue uniform has the water element. The uniforms they wore not only had a different color (aside from Jerome's blue matching the other one), the uniforms looked a little nicer as well.
One of the Division IV magical knights in an air uniform was in front of the other two, which Allen suspected would be the division captain as well as being the main person to talk today.
As if to answer his question, he started to speak.
"If I may have all of your attention please," the magical knight spoke loudly and proudly.
All of the conversations within the crowd began to quickly die down until it was almost completely silent.
"Thank you all for coming. I hope all of you have enjoyed the Magical Knights Training Program so far. My name is Payne, and I am a Division IV squad captain, elemental rank A; and here with me are my two other squad members, Taylor and Hewes, who are both Division IV, elemental rank A likewise" he gestured to each one individually as he spoke, Taylor being the female air mage, and Hewes being the male water mage.
Just after he spoke, the both of them gave the crowd a slight bow. Just as when Payne spoke, the other two held themselves in high regard even without talking.
That does make sense, since they are Division IV members. Of course they would act proud, since they are only one rank away from being Division V, the highest rank they could be, Allen thought to himself. Not to mention, all of their elemental ranks are A.
"We are here today to further explain to you how the division squads work. Your appointed magical knights in your training program may have gone over most or some of the details, but we are here inform you of all the finer details, including what can come after your graduation once you complete your 3rd year"
He began to explain most of the information Allen already knew; that each division squad has three members total, each appointed with a division captain, which is the person in charge of the squad (for example: Philip is the division captain of his squad, with his two other members Jerome and another he did not give the name for).
All three of their members started at the division rank of I, regardless of their current elemental rank. This is because elemental rank is based upon your output and power of your elemental magic, while your division rank is based upon merit and performance in your magical knight squad.
Also what surprised Allen was the fact that most of the time, your squad all ranks up in division rank at the same time. So if all of your squad members are rank I, and you all do well, you could all get promoted to division rank II. Payne explained only in very rare cases does only one or two members get promoted in division rank.
Of course, anyone's elemental rank could get promoted at any time, since it's dependent on your own magic.
"Your squad is like your own family," Payne continued to explain. "You look after each other, you watch each other's backs, and you must be always able to rely on each other"
"We must always ensure the safety and security of England, but in order to do so, we must properly be united and work together, and always have trust for one another," he added.
His voice was very enthusiastic; you could tell that he was genuinely happy to be a magical knight, and you could tell you could rely on him to protect you and those around you. This only made Allen want to become a magical knight even more.
"All of our squads are appointed under the Triumvirate. As all of you may already know, the Triumvirate is our governing figure of elemental magic. Their main purpose is to ensure the safety and security of England, which is why they employ us in order to carry out this very important duty"
"As magical knights, we must always pay respect to the Triumvirate. Without them, elemental magic would not be properly governed and handled, and England could fall into chaos!," he spoke with his words filled with pure emotion. "So please, follow with me and my squad to pay respect to our current leaders Judith Rivertide, Giles Terrastone, and of course Solomon Windblade"
Solomon, Allen thought. William's older brother.
Payne as well as the other two magical knights in his squad suddenly began to bow their heads. Everyone else within the crowd began to do the same, leaving Allen confused.
"Aren't you going to bow your head?," Thomas whispered, his head already bowed.
"Wha-," he started to say, but Cecily already moved his head down into a bow.
"Just do it," she whispered, her voice assertive. "Lest you want anyone to think you are against the Triumvirate"
"Alright," was all he could say, both confused and with mixed feelings about it.
"Thank you all for that moment," Payne began to speak again, his head raising up first and everyone following after. "Now then, let's talk about what comes after graduation! I'm sure all of you are excited to know!"
He began to go into depth about the steps after graduation. Once you complete your three years at the academy and graduate, you may almost immediately begin the Magical Knight Division Training.
The training system is to properly train you to become a magical knight, fully equipped with all of the correct knowledge and understanding of what you will need to do for your job.
Once you graduate the training program, you are then finally given the division rank of I, and placed into a squad of two other members. The squad captain is then selected for your squad, however all members must follow orders from anyone above.
Once you are placed into your squad, you are essentially in that squad with those members for life (In most cases, newly appointed magical knights are allowed to choose who they partner up with, and they encourage so in order to ensure a powerful bond between all three squad members.
"There is no greater honor than serving the Triumvirate and working with your brothers and sisters," he spoke proudly once again. His other two squad members nodded their heads in unison. "I do wish all of you success in your future as a magical knight. That is all"
The crowd suddenly got loud and a little antsy, talking to each other about their futures and other related topics about magical knights.
Just before the crowd got any louder, Payne began to speak up again. "Oh and before all of you begin to leave, I will be able to answer any questions you all may have, only for a short time though! Any questions, anyone?"
His question suddenly got almost everyone's attention. As if his speech wasn't already enough, now almost everyone wanted to jump the gun for an opportunity to ask questions to a Division IV Magical Knight.
While everyone began to ask questions, Allen was having thoughts of his own. He had mixed feelings about the whole thing.
Of course what Allen wanted more than anything was to become a magical knight. Well, other than finding out who his real parents are, and where they might be (since William won't tell him anything).
However, his thoughts about the Triumvirate were a separate matter. The Triumvirate is bent on killing any and all fire mages they find, regardless if they follow the Anti-Fire Act (The act that banned any and all use of fire magic).
Since Allen is a fire mage (alongside having air magic), he is included in that list of people they would kill if they found him out. Luckily he has William to cover his back, but if Allen's found out, there's almost nothing he or William can do.
"Al?," Thomas' voice shook Allen out of his thoughts.
"Yeah?"
"Did you hear what I had said?"
"Oh no, I didn't. What did you say?"
"I said I hope the three of us can be in the same magical knight division squad!," Thomas enthusiastically said.
"Yeah, of course. I really hope so too," he responded, but his thoughts of fire magic and the Triumvirate still in the back of his mind.
"Lily, you would want to be on the same squad too, right?," Thomas asked.
"Of course, as long as we graduate from the academy by then. I'm sure I won't have any problems, but if you don't study you may be a separate matter," she remarked.
"Lily-"
Just as Thomas and Cecily were getting into another quarrel (which doesn't surprise Allen), he noticed something strange happening up on the wooden stage.
Another magical knight, which Allen wasn't sure which squad he was with, had suddenly come up on the stage.
It seemed that Payne and his squad members were also not expecting this, because it looked like Payne started questioning him. The magical knight began to explain something to him, very briefly, which led to a concerned look on Payne's face.
Allen looked over at Philip to see if maybe he knew what was going on, but he looked just as surprised as Payne and his squad initially looked.
Just as the magical knight left the stage as fast as he had gotten up on there, Payne stepped forward and spoke to everyone, just like before.
"Everyone, I apologize, but I believe our question time is now over," he spoke loudly, and you could hear the concern in his voice.
Just after he spoke, you could hear all the annoyed and disappointed gasps coming from everyone in the crowd.
"I know you are all saddened, but unfortunately something is going on that takes higher precedence. I must ask all of you that something is currently going on in the area, and our magical knights are doing their best to handle the situation," he elaborated.
This sent a wave of confusion in the crowd, making everyone wonder what was going on that was causing problems.
"I ask that our magical knights in the crowd to please watch over our students to ensure their safety while we are handling this situation," he added, right before stepping off the stage, his squad members following.
Just what is going on?, Allen thought to himself, as the crowd began to look around and figure out what was the commotion.
The area around them only began to become louder, as students began to ask each other or the magical knights what was going on, as well as students began to walk and look around to try to figure it out themselves.
The magical knights in the crowd were doing their best to help calm the situation down, but there was only so much they could do to keep all the students in the crowd at bay.
"What do we do, Al?," Thomas suddenly asked, also wondering what was going on.
"I-I don't know," Allen responded, not sure himself. "I guess we just wait here until further notice?"
"Let's just stay here and be safe," Cecily assertively suggested.
"Yeah, good idea," Thomas nodded. "Let's just wait for the magical knights to clear things up.
Allen could tell they were worried. After all, something was going on, and they had no idea what it was. Were they safe? What would happen?
Allen looked over again to Philip, who was currently trying to keep the D ranks in line with Jerome. It seemed like he wouldn't be getting any possible answers from him either.
Just before he could decide what he would do next, he suddenly had a new and extremely weird feeling. It was though his fire mana in his body was suddenly reacting, becoming more… aggressive.
"What the-," Allen tried to say, before falling to his knees on the ground.
"Al! Are you okay?," Thomas asked as he and Cecily rushed to his side.
"I- I'm fine. It's just…"
Just what was wrong with him? Why was his fire magic acting up?
I need to get this under control before someone with mana sensitivity like William picks up on me, Allen thought, as he tried to get his fire mana under control.
It wasn't helping that his fire mana was… attacking… his air mana. That was the best way to put it.
Fire magic has an advantage over air magic. This unfortunately also applies to mana, which in Allen's case does not help at all.
His fire mana is always constantly keeping his air mana at bay, which makes using and utilizing his air mana a lot more difficult than it already is.
Normally speaking, while this is a problem for him, he usually doesn't feel it unless he tries to use his air mana. It's almost as if the fire mana blocks his air mana from being able to move around his body easily.
However in this case, instead of his fire mana 'blocking' his air mana, it almost feels as though it's attacking it entirely.
"Al! Say something!," Thomas yelled, trying to get Allen's attention.
By now, Philip had noticed what was going on with Allen, and tried to make his way over to him.
No, not right now. I can't have problems now!, Allen thought, trying as quickly as possible to get his own fire mana under control.
As he was trying harder to get it under control, he suddenly felt what he could only describe as a jolt within his body. His attention was suddenly forced over to the right of his current position, just past the crowd. But what was over there?
"Fire mage!," someone from outside the crowd had suddenly yelled.
Before Allen could debate whether they somehow found him out, he suddenly noticed a figure just outside the crowd running away, directly away from the Triumvirate building.
At least it wasn't me they were talking about, Allen thought as he sighed a breath of relief. But wait, a- fire mage?
Before Thomas or Cecily could react, Allen had suddenly got up off of his knees, standing up again.
"Al! Are you okay now?," he asked.
"Y-Yeah, thanks," he responded, his attention still diverted to where the fire mage was running to. The magical knights seemed to be looking for him nearby, but it seems he somehow evaded them. But Allen could somehow tell where the fire mage had gone.
"Just what happened? You just almost fainted over!," Thomas asked, concerned. Cecily nodded her head, also wondering what happened.
Philip was just about to get over to Allen's position to see what happened, but Allen had decided he would do something else instead.
"Sorry guys, but I have to step away," he apologized, before skimming through the crowd.
"Allen! What are you doing?," Philip yelled.
Allen gave him no response as he finally got out of the crowd, adamant on only one thing to do.
"Wait! Don't, it's too dangerous!," he yelled at him.
But it was already too late. Allen had already concentrated on using his air mana, utilizing it to his legs. He then used his air mana to allow him to move faster, to his and his fire mana's only one destination: the fire mage in question.