Blood poured out of my skin, but before I could pass out, I felt the last blade coming towards me. It was aimed again at my chest. A barrier stopped it before it reached me; it was Gwen. She was now beside me, her eyes glowing with light. She looked down and put a hand on my back, chanting, "Reverse Paradigm." My wounds began to heal rapidly, my eyes that were dazed became focused as I breathed a sigh of relief. I nodded, "Thanks." My body was still in shambles, but this would make me able to fight again as I stood up. Gwen nodded, "Focus up; we got a game to win. First, let's get rid of this pesky fog. Eyes of the Sun!" She shot a beam of light on the floor. The fog didn't clear up; however, the shot made the fog see-through. The light acted as a beacon that made our surroundings clear up, but what we saw was anything but pleasant.
The sight before us had Pylus on her knees behind Professor Berkley, with Mynus knocked out on the ground, bleeding. Professor Berkley had a magnet shield up, absorbing the onslaught of attacks to protect us. He was getting pushed back as blood trickled down his face and onto the ground. Gwen explained, raising her voice, "Professor! Let's use it now; we have no choice!" He grunted but nodded, "Our last resort, huh? It is lacking refinement, but what better place for a test than here. Very well, have that boy Lucius back you up." Gwen smiled, "Lucius, please give me a single opening, and we'll win in one attack." I nodded, "What do you need?" Gwen smiled, "I need an explosion; I need you to distract them." I laughed, "That is what I do best – being a distraction. Before you leave, I have a plan; focus some dark magic on me." She brought her hand close and briefly channeled some dark magic into me.
Gwen flanked their right side to execute her last resort plan. Meanwhile, I focused on my attack, deciding to use my own last resort. I was spotted quickly by both Isaac and April, but it was already too late; I smiled. This attack almost killed me last time, but I have grown a lot in only a few days. I focused my gauntlet at both of them, "Magivara! Ouroboros Annulation!" The blast shot out like a buckshot; my body shot through the air and out of the see-through fog. The audience seemed to gasp as sight returned to them. I shot out the same explosive energy I had used on Samuel back in Veilstead. Both of the students, as I predicted, put up barriers, saving them from the full force of the blast. However, the blast of black energy was super strong; it may have absorbed the lethality of the blast, but they still fell to their knees, passed out. Black energy radiated off their bodies; it was truly like a bomb had exploded.
In front of me, as I lay on the ground in pain, I heard Gwen yell out, "Twilight Whispers!" The attack was aimed at the boy Atom, who attempted to use some sort of fire shield, but the moment the attack reached him, he passed out. Unlike her student, Professor Castweaver used her foot as ignition with her fire magic as she simply dodged out of the way. When she landed, she looked around, her students defeated before her. "It won't be enough; lukewarm attacks like that will never reach my level. You have to always have something to follow it up. I am done playing games; let's end this." Gwen mocked, "Oh, we have a follow-up. I didn't aim this attack to hit you, but rather I wanted to move you." Professor Castweaver looked confused, "Move me?"
Professor Berkley laughed, his hands glowing with power, "Right, you aren't the only one going all out. I want to get to the finals." That was when I noticed it from the last battle I had done; Pilot had scattered metal all over the place. It wasn't fully cleaned up. There were still debris all over the place, perfect for Professor Berkley. He smiled, "Finally, the conditions are ripe. Iron Planet!" Professor Berkley pulled down his goggles as pieces of debris began forming around him. His cane acted as the magnet, and a giant ball was effortlessly made in front of him. He raised his cane over his head, threatening to crush Castweaver with the giant mass.
He yelled out, "Grit your teeth, Jade; this might sting." Pylus was on her feet again as Professor Berkley winked at her, seemingly with the final piece of his strategy in place. He sent the giant mass of metal towards her; she was fast though as she jumped into the air. She used the ball as a stepping stool as she yelled out, "Don't get cocky, James. This year the title of the best team is mine." That was when it happened, the seemingly impossible. Pylus readied her giant blade overhead as she intercepted the massive ball. Surely, nobody could hit that giant ball, but to my surprise, she went for it. She yelled out, "Iron Planet Orbit!" She struck the ball with all her might as Professor Berkley smiled, "Right on cue, my dear Pylus. Bravo, Jade. But victory isn't guaranteed by a single flashy move. Maybe you can think on it again next year, God's hands!"
The flying ball sped up, coming back the way it came with Pylus hitting it, and Professor Berkley's magnet magic. The ball made contact. Professor Berkley casually stepped to the right as the ball hit its mark; Castweaver fell off the ball, and instead was slammed into the ball. The ball hit her directly, sending her into the barrier; it broke through like a wrecking ball. I guess the prediction came true; the barrier did break, but it was Professor Berkley's magnetic magic that caused the hole in the barrier. The match was over; we won. I raised my hand in a thumbs up as my body was seemingly wracked with pain. Medical staff quickly carted me off as I heard Eris yelling out with glee. Eris shouted, "Team Dream has done it! From the brink of defeat, they will advance to the finals vs. Grinreapers. I hope you are ready because after the next break, your kings of the year will be announced!"
I was brought to the medical ward for treatment, my team coming in as per our usual routine. I laughed, "Hey, guys, haha, I guess I was kinda useless at the end there." Lysandra shouted, "Useless? Hardly! What was that spell? That dark spell, could you always do that?" I smiled, "Nah, that was a one-and-done. I would need a dark rune for that in the future. I could only do it because Gwen supported me." Lysandra laughed, "I wasn't aware you could do that. Let me know if you want to use solar power for a spell!" I smiled, "Yeah, that could be interesting combined with some of my runes. " She really was a fighting junkie, but then Prince Sorbek stood up. His eyes were tired, but he was alert. Prince Sorbek looked at me with an intense gaze, "I hope you don't use your injuries as an excuse when I destroy you in the finals." I joked, "This? Oh, this is just a flesh wound, nothing that would stop me from wiping that smug look off your face."
He huffed, "I will be waiting. Take a few minutes to regain your strength. I won't pull any punches just because you helped me. My brother's memory means more than that." He looked down, and I could tell he was carrying deep sorrow. "When we meet next, it will be as enemies, and if I notice you're holding anything back, I might get careless with my blade." He walked out of the room, his mere presence alone making the temperature of the room go down a few degrees. They all congratulated me as Quinn added, "Lucius, the boy is hurting, but I will say I sense that he respects you as a warrior. I think he wants an honorable last match; his form seems mostly improved." Altaria walked into the room after Prince Sorbek left. Altaria clapped her hands, "Alright, students, let me give you some final words before I send you off to your last match."
She grew serious, "I suggest you do exactly what he says. Don't hold anything back; there are no teams waiting for you after this battle. Watch out for the anti-magic properties of that boys armor and his ice attacks. I will tell you from what his father tells me; he has a number of attacks he himself has never used in combat. His loss to Stormsurge was nothing more than overconfidence; he won't make the same mistake twice." Yuna smiled, "That boy's armor won't save him from my attacks." Lulith nodded, "Yuna, Quinn, and I will be on Sorbek duty. I suggest that Lucius and Lysandra focus on the others or provide us with assistance as needed. We need to deal with him first." Altaria nodded, "Yes, but don't forget about my niece. Of the mages here, even among my professors, she is a force of nature. Keep your eyes on the other three too; they are a deadly triforce. This team is a super team formed with the best of the best mages here."
Lysandra chimed in, "So are we. I have been saving a spell or two in my back pocket. They should worry about how to stop our team." I feel excitement welling up in my chest, "Exactly, we're going to win this entire tournament and put the question to bed of who should go after the covenant. Once we get Era back, there really are no limits to how far the Grin Reapers will go." Quinn added, "This is also a special mission from the King, so no doubt our guild will gain notoriety." Yuna mocked, "You won't even get through the front doors of our hideout." I laughed, "Front doors, back doors, secret passages – it doesn't matter. The Grin Reapers will find a way to Era, mark my words."