{~Overview POV~}The energy of the crowd as the two students stared each other down was nothing short of electrified, the only sounds were that of the soft thumping from the speakers that surrounded the party. As soon as the gold band referee started the duel, the Mountaineer lunged forwards, the ground cracking beneath him as he propelled himself forward. Samuel smirked and stood his ground, his eyes never leaving his opponents. With a yell, Jasper slashed downwards as he came in range. Samuel sidestepped and spun out of the way, dodging the follow up slash from Jasper as well. The steel mage growling out "Stay still! Afraid you cant take a hit, coward!"Samuel narrowed his eyes and everyone took a step back even through the barrier as he shot forward and landed two solid hits on Jasper's side causing the man to suck in a pained breath and turn to slash down at him. He spun then just as quick landed two more hits on the opposite side, Jasper yelled in pain and slammed his sword into the ground causing the ground in the arena to erupt and force Samuel back. Sam smirked as he stood staring down his opponent before he taunted "Do you know the main weakness of an earth mage? They are too solid, in almost all essence, they are walls. Rigid, unyielding, strong. Their greatest strength is their greatest weakness."He made a grabbing motion with his hands and chains materialized out of the soft black and red haze that was hanging around him, the ends disappearing into nothing, murmurs erupted in the crowd before gasps as Samuel made a pulling motion and chains erupted from the ground around and underneath Jasper. He sneered as he used his sword to slash and bat away the chains. The more he slashed and batted the chains away, the more their attacks increased in ferocity. Jasper yelled again in anger as he sent out a magic pulse that sent the chains flying away, he stabbed his sword into the ground and slammed his fists together, his skin taking on a silver sheen as he encased his body in steel. The Mountaineer grinned and went to taunt Samuel before the chains shot forward giving him only enough time to shield his face before he was battered from all sides by the chains. Samuel had a passive expression on his face but his eyes were watching with an intensity that gave most of the onlookers shivers. He sighed softly before making a fist with the chains that caused them to stop before surging forward again, wrapping themselves around his arms and legs forcing him to his knees. Jasper realized too late and attempted to struggle, ripping a few of the chains apart and causing Samuel to narrow his eyes and more chains materialized around his extremities. Jasper growled and slammed his fist into the ground sending a large pillar of earth towards Samuel who waved his free hand and a wall of magic rose up stopping the pillar just before it hit him. He grinned as the chains tightened around Jasper like a snake. The more the giant man struggled, the tighter they became.Sam made his way towards Jasper, kneeling in front of the man who was staring angrily up at him. He chuckled and remarked "Awe no more jeers and jokes? Let me ask, did you think that luck was the reason I rose to the top of the class? That I simply became number one because I was born special? I fought and bled for my position and you think that a simple act of the gods would dethrone me? You are naïve."He shook his head in disappointment as he once again made a fist with the hand of chains then made a twisting motion, causing chains to wrap around his throat and slowly tightening. "Yield Mountaineer."Jasper gasped as the chains tightened around his body, the crowd staring in silence as his steel skin began to crack in places before his rough voice sounded out "To you? Never."Samuel nodded with a small smile on his lips "Honorable but you will not win."Then with a kick, he sent the earth mage flying backwards into the barrier. Jasper managed to quickly send a spray of earth spikes towards Sam as the chains disappeared, causing him to jump backwards to avoid getting hit. It gave Jasper a few minutes of relief as he stumbled to his feet, his skin slowly mending itself. He held out his hand and his sword flew into his grip. Samuel nodded and the haze returned as the chains dematerialized from his palm and markings slowly appeared on his face. A savage grin greeted his opponent before he shot forward, cracking the ground underneath him.He slammed into Jasper with a high kick that he shrugged off with an arm before Samuel let loose a brutal flurry of punches into the sides of his torso, dodging out of the way of Jaspers punches and futile attempts of hitting him. He had capitalized on Jasper's inability of fighting close range and was battering him, the effects showing as every punch left behind a small cloud of the red and black magic that seeped into the cracks that were spanning his skin. Samuel let out a triumphant grin before dropping into a low crouch and attempting to sweep his leg. Jasper hopped back and Sam shot an arm out, a blast of magic sending Jasper flying back into the barrier again causing him to let out a yell of pain. His steel skin audibly cracking from the magic blast, before chains once again lashed out, uncoiling from the veins in his arms and wrapping around Jasper's torso and flinging him toward the opposite end of arena.The mountaineer slammed into the barrier causing one of the gold years to step up and strengthen the barrier. He fell to the ground with a thump, his steel skin slowly returning to normal. The man groaned loudly and struggled to stand, using his sword to shakily make it to his feet. Samuel narrowed his eyes as he walked towards him, Jasper slowly getting into a fighting stance as he growled out "I won't yield to you."Samuel shook his head before turning his attention to the crowd of onlookers who had began jeering and cheering throughout the fight. He raised his arms and the crowd yelled louder as he turned in a circle earning more and more cheers before turning back towards Jasper and nodding "Tannis, you have my respect. But, I have a reputation to uphold."Jasper growled and lunged forward in a last attack this time however Samuel met it head on, his arms coated in magic that stopped the sword slash high and sent Jasper's arm reeling back before slamming a solid right hook into her face knocking him out cold. The crowd eating it up, cheering loudly.Sam nodded to himself and flexed his hand, notably out of breath before leveling a gaze towards the crowd and speaking in a loud voice as the barrier came down and the medics tended to Jasper "Now. Does anyone else wish to test me? Does anyone else believe that I am not strong anymore. You know who I am! You've seen what I can do. I hold my spot for a reason." He turned looking around at the crowd who had quieted down, most of them gazing back with respect and some with hostility. He nodded with a satisfied smirk as no-one stepped up before making his way to the bar and grabbing a cup, turning back to the crowd and raising it high with a loud and solid toast that was echoed by the rest of the mages "To the Phalanx!""To the Phalanx!"{~Samuel's POV~}I downed the cup as the crowd cheered and the party continued, DJ Zeez cranked the music back up and the party took off once again. I was joined by Marcie who pulled me away towards a more secluded area and gave me a look while crossing her arms. I raised an eyebrow down at her and she sighed and shook her head "Are you alright? It looked like the fight took a lot out of you."I chuckled softly and patted her head "Mm you don't have to worry about me Marcie. I can handle myself. Or were you worried about little old me?"She rolled her eyes and hit my shoulder "That's not the point Sam, and you know it. Gah! What am I going to do with you." She shook her head and threw her hands up into the air before disappearing into the party with one last glance at me.I furrowed my eyebrows and stared after her lost in thought when a voice brought me out of them, "Welll, that was smooth Sam."I glanced to the side to see Andre walking over with two cups in his hands. I accepted the one he offered and shrugged in response "I can handle myself just fine, even if i have a new magic."He shook his head and took a sip of his drink and chuckled "We both know that's not what i was talking about. Act clueless if you want but Marcie's concern for you is warranted, and not just because you're in the same class."I glanced at him with a raised eyebrow and asked "What are you getting at Dre?"He shook his head as he simply drank from his cup and gazed at the party wistfully with a smirk on his lips as the others found us, Naxian and Charlene. Charlene was leaning against her partner, the elf was gazing down at the drunk woman completely enamored. I groaned at the look and when Charlene rolled her eyes "Oh don't start Sam, we're in lovee. Leave us be."I chuckled and shook my head "Just please don't start sucking each others faces again. You two were like highschoolers who made out in the back of the classroom."She huffed and simply flipped her platinum blonde hair before laying her head on Naxian's shoulder and taking a sip of her cup. I smirked and finished my cup, using my magic to turn it into magical essence. The essence was the semi-clear color of magic before it disappeared into the air. Naxian looked up and said "Congrats on the fight Sam, I mean we all knew you'd win but Jasper is a legend on his own."I nodded "Yea, I've heard of the Mountaineers. Though on the group ranking, they were third. After us and the alchemists of course. I guess they wanted to punch above their weight class."Naxian laughed softly and gently started to rub Charlene's head who was barely awake. Andre smirked and retorted "Speaking of which, you owe me fifty bucks. And I feel cheated. You said you'd put on a show, and I'll admit, the fight was something but you've done better before."I groaned as I shook my head "Man I totally forgot we made that bet. I don't know what it was about him but he really got to me."Andre nodded as I begrudgingly handed him the cash, "Mm bet it was the girlfriend taunt. Don't tell me you've finally got your eye on someone."I scoffed and turned my attention back towards the party ignoring his pointed question, finding Marcie dancing with some of the other phalanx members, the gold bands watching the party with passive faces in their little groups.The party's been going on for about three hours and it didn't seem to be winding down anytime soon. Dj Zeez was keeping the crowd alive and entertained. The dwarven bartender was kicking drunk students out left and right as the night went on. But many more students were flocking to Conglomerate Field as the night went on. I sighed as I made my way back into the throng of people, attempting to help the gold bands control the more rowdy partiers.The next morning came way too quickly for my liking, for two major reasons. I had a hell of a hangover and someone was banging on my room door to wake me up. I rolled over and saw that it was 7:15 in the morning. About 45 minutes until we had to be in class. I got up and made my way to the door snagging my flannel and slipping it onto my shoulders before opening the door just as the short woman went to knock again. Her cheerfully soft voice causing my head to throb more oddly enough "Well well good morning sleepy head. Hope you had a good night! I sure did, Travis is making breakfast and Marceline is helping. She told me to wake you up for the first day of classes."I nodded as I yawned and looked over Sidney's head seeing Travis and Marcie in the kitchen cooking food, Travis was dressed in simple slacks and a t-shirt and Marcie in what looked like a sundress. I rubbed my eyes and nodded my thanks to Sidney before turning and walking back into my room to take a shower, just as I finished my shower the smell of breakfast reached my nose. I kept my flannel and slipped into some jeans, snagging my amulet before heading out into the common area. Sidney was sat in the dining area as Travis and Marcie brought the breakfast to the table, it looked delicious. Bacon and eggs with a side of toast and potatoes, there was also yogurt, milk and orange juice. I chuckled as I helped set the table, grabbing plates and cups before sitting next to Travis, "You've outdone yourselves."Travis chuckled and Marcie smirked as she remarked "Oh please, this is nothing. But thank you. I see you've recovered from last night."I shrugged as I started to pile food on my plate "Oh I am very hungover but the shower helped and I'm sure the food will too."Travis nodded and followed my lead "Surprised you didn't black out Sam, especially after that drinking game."Marcie smiled and shook her head "Not the first time he's played drunk cards. And certainly won't be the last. Speaking of which, where did you two disappear off too hmm? "I just shook my head with a smile as I offered up a prayer to the gods before I started to eat, the others doing the same to their respective gods. A soft feeling came over me, as if someone was placing their hands on my shoulder but the feeling disappeared as I finished the prayer. We made small talk as we ate, mostly about what our first class with the professor would be like.Pixonia was packed as always, various species roamed the halls from elves and humans, to different kinds of nymphs and ogres, the bigger cousins of orcs. We made it to Goldstein's class early and 8 a.m on the dot, our teacher appeared at the podium situated at the front of the classroom in a shower of golden sparks and strangely, the smell of oil, that caused Sidney to squeak in surprise.He simply raised an eyebrow at her as her freckled cheeks turned red and she adjusted her glasses embarrassed. Goldstein's voice echoing through the mostly empty classroom "Well, on time to class I see. Good, you are punctual. Now, tell me Ms.Mallowmeyer, what are the two most important things for a mage?"Sidney furrowed her eyes as she thought before replying "The two most important things for a mage are consideration and training. During a conflict, a mage must consider all possibilities of their actions and have trained enough to know their bodies limits so they don't make mistakes and get themselves or others killed."Goldstein nodded with an impressed looked before shaking his head "That is good but not the answer I was looking for. In my class, no answer is a wrong answer. Even the absence of an answer is an answer after all. Mr.Sitner, could you tell me why Ms.Mallowmeyer's answer was the answer she gave?"Travis shook his head and said "No sir, but I believe that Sidney may be speaking from experience."He nodded as he rounded his podium and placed two silver armbands next to them before turning his eyes on Marcie and I. Marcie shook her head and I said "Patience and humility. A mage must be patient in training and humble in battle."He chuckled and nodded "Still not the answer I was looking for but a good one, one I'm sure is hard earned. But the answer I was looking for is intention and emotion. When wielded, magic is weak with only emotion, easily overcome with determination and training. A mage will easily lose themselves and often their life. While also, magic is formless without intention, weak and easily manipulative by outside forces. That is the two most important things a mage must realize."He handed two silver bands to Marcie and I and turned with a smile as he remarked "Alrighty those are your official study bands. Now off to the fields, for your next lesson!"The fields were empty with no sign of the Tarachí we had last night, Goldstein stopped us near the middle of the field and turned to us and said "Alright, each of you will be studying different things relating to your magic and what I believe would benefit you as a mage. Now, Ms.Mallowmeyer if you would explain the magic you'll be studying to your classmates and Mr.Sitner after her please. I'm sure we both know Mr.Degrays magic, and Ms.Garcia will close us out before I show you all why we're here."Sidney groaned and moved away from us to get a little area as she said "I came here to study magical beasts, I have a pretty okay affinity for water and earth and am very close to officially calling myself a nature and beast mage. Uhmm I've currently only got one familiar but she's still in the hatchling age of her species so I don't really summon her besides to bond. Although I guess this would be a good time."Sidney played with her hair as she spoke before she wrung her hands and knelt as she started to summon her familiar, a green glow emanating from her skin before golf-balled sized spheres of magic began to appear before coalescing in a bright light in front of her. We shielded our eyes and looked away when a squeak was heard. In front of Sidney sat a chicken sized lizard, it had six legs and a medium long spiny tail, it chirped again as it looked around. Sidney cooed softly and the lizard moved towards her, flicking its tongue out before gently rubbing its head against her knee. It's rough looking slate colored skin didn't seem to bother Sidney who rubbed her hands over it's back as she commented "They're a species of lizard related to the old world's Tegus, this one is called a Stonekin Teguan. They're only found in mountain ranges and often only underground in large families. I saved this one from a hatching ground that was being exploited by poachers. They use earth magic to sense their surroundings and 'see'. They mostly eat lichen and plants but are omnivores I believe." The lizard flicked it's tongue as it turned its head, showing it only had what passed for a nose, two flared holes that were positioned above its mouth, towards us before going back to snuggling Sidney who had picked it up and continued rubbing its back.Marcie smiled and asked "So what are you gonna call it?"Sidney shook her head "I'm waiting until it's ready to agree to the bonding. Too young and it messes with their brain and magic circuits."I nodded as Goldstein clapped "Beautifully explained my dear. However, these early stages are the most crucial. What do you plan to do with it?"Sidney frowned and shrugged "Uhm I'm not sure, I saved it because I couldn't just sit by and watch as the entire family was killed. I don't want to raise it simply to fight. I guess...well..I'd just like it if it grew up to live life. It would depend on what it wants too, a lot of people don't know this but a lot of magical creatures are super intelligent. Scholars believe it's the magic that gives them the required thought processes to be fully sentient, capable of thought processes like humans and other independent thought species. They don't simply live each day as hunt, sleep, survive."We all nodded as Goldstein smiled and turned to Travis "Well I believe for now that is a good enough explanation for Ms.Mallowmeyer, now Mr.Sitner?"He shrugged and crossed his arms "I'm just a pure water mage nothing special. I'm not planning on specializing in anything. The plan is to build up my body to dive the trench."Goldstein nodded and asked "Even the water species stay away from the Mariana Trench. That's a tall dream. I believe you will need more than just physical conditioning so for the foreseeable future, consider this your first long-term project. I want you to train with Mr.Degray, and develop an efficient way to shield yourself from the pressure of the ocean and a way to efficiently defend yourself while underwater."We both nodded and Goldstein turned to Marceline "Ms.Garcia."She nodded and replied "I'm an air mage that specializes in spatial teleportation thanks to our dear teacher here. I plan on creating a new magic involving spatial theory although I am not sure what exactly I will be working towards next."He nodded and replied "Good, we have spoken a few times so I will allow you to brainstorm your ideas. While spatial teleportation is not a new concept, it is challenging to master and the risks are great. I will need two to four ideas by the end of the week. Now, Mr.Degray."He had an amused look in his eye as he crossed his arms "I see you couldn't keep your magic a secret for too long. Regardless, the little demonstration did give me some good information about it. I simply want you to continue training with your magic, along with Mr.Sitner. Your long-term project will be simple, train as long as you wish until you believe you can beat me in a duel."I raised my eyebrow at him and replied "That's very straight-forward sir."He chuckled and nodded "It may seem so. But you are not yet proficient with your magic. And it will take more than pure strength to overcome me Mr.Degray. Raw strength may have beaten Mr.Tannis but I became Head Exotic Mage for a reason. A simple assignment that will be due by the end of the week for you Mr.Degray will be creating a Marker, a type of magical transportation that some mages use. It is the act of surrounding yourself in your magic and traveling distances. Mr.Sitner! Tell me what could be a caution for Mr.Degray to be wary of in this assignment?"Travis's eyes went hard as he spoke "Any mage that uses too much magic that their body cannot handle could undergo a magical dissolution, where the magic takes over their body and causes a mage to lose their mind. Turning them into what is called a Lost. Elementals who were previously magic users. Or simply being consumed by their magic and disappearing into nothingness. It's why Markers aren't a widespread transportation system. Professor, are you sure this is a good idea?"Professor Goldstein smiled and asked "Ms.Garcia, what could be the advantages of being able to utilize a Marker?"Marceline responded "Transportation obviously. And surprise, only strong mages can create a marker and only the elite can use them confidently enough to travel long distances."He nodded and clapped "A great answer Ms.Garcia. Sometimes, the risks are worth it and I have faith in Mr.Degray. Remember, intention and emotion are a mages best weapon. You have your assignments for the day so I will leave you be. I will see you all tomorrow morning for an update! Good day." He smiled largely before taking a bow and disappearing in a flash of golden sparks and the smell of oil once again.I looked at the others with a small laugh and a smile before saying "That was unique. I wonder if this is how everyone's classes go, he's basically giving us items with no instructions and expecting us to know how they work by the end of the week."Marcie nodded and walked towards Sidney, sitting next to her and petting the Teguan that had sprawled on Sidney's lap before replying "What did you expect? There's only four of us, the usual classes are around ten students as the professor said. Of course it's going to be unique. And not like he left us helpless. We're the best of our groups or so he said. He even gave us a head start, all the other classes won't be getting their study bands until they're ready to pursue their own studies. We should be able to get some extra training in with the school facilities before the other classes are let out to their own devices, I say a few days at least before they're allowed to use the facilities and who knows on their study bands"I crossed my arms and snorted "But what's the catch? This feels like he's giving us our stuff on a platter to me."Travis nodded and Sidney looked between all of us before saying "You guys didn't realize? He's giving us a head start because all of the other classes will be gunning for us."I glanced at her confused and she shook her head and continued "Each band group still has a class ranking, that's made up of points given for various achievements and activities the class competes in. Silver and new students are grouped together. The higher the ranking, the better stuff that class gets. From first dibs on anything they may need, classrooms, arenas, items, trip approvals, etc. It's all based on the ranking system, and breeds a sense of competition that's normal for the real world. It's implementation was a big scandal for a year or two until it showed promise and Pixonia raised to the top of the school ranking for strong mages and most graduates that became established mages. All the other classes will probably do anything to beat us, so as a gift he gave us clear paths for our studies. The rankings are posted in the arenas and cafeteria plaza."I nodded as the realization hit me "And at the same time, he put us in every classes crosshairs. I guess I should have expected it, they did have it before classes officially started but I thought it was just something to keep us occupied."Marcie smirked "And leaving us to our own devices basically says, 'hey we're better and smarter, we've already started studies,' smart."Sidney nodded and I sighed and shook my head remarking "Well. Nothing to do about it then get to it huh? Seems we have the field to ourselves for the time being, Travis. Lets get to it."The water mage looked up as I cracked my knuckles and my chaos slowly rose up in it's customary haze and I said "First things first. Let's see how well you can fight on land."