The Dragon Realms Saga

“Nia!” Azeva embraced her student with a warm hug. “Are you alright? Were you harmed?”

Nia shook her head and returned the hug. “No, headmaster. These two shrouds rescued me just in time. They were planning to take my magic.”

Azeva set her student down and walked to Elucard and Cade. Azeva crossed her arms. “Will they come after her again?”

Elucard held his ribs and winced. “Their leader is a man called Raze, as hellbent as he is to rid the world of mages like yourself, he will flee this city.”

Azeva stroked her chin. “How can you be sure?”

Koda stepped forward. “I will see to that. Isana will listen to me when I tell her of the threat under her nose.”

Azeva nodded and turned back to Nia. “My child, rest in camp until you are ready to take any challenges.”

Nia bowed and once more to Koda, Elucard, and Cade. “Thank you, Lord Koda. If it weren’t for your shrouds I would have…”

“You will be safe here. I will also see to it that Travin’s people, like yourself, are well taken care of.”

Nia gave Koda a tearful laugh. “Thank you so much—for everything, Lord Koda!”

“Rest, Nia. Someone shall bring you dinner.” She waited for Nia to walk off to the refugee encampment before turning back to Koda.

“So you will accept my challenge, Master Azeva?”

“You have done more for me and my people than Isana has ever done for the dune elf nation. You will have your battle.”

Koda gave her a gleeful smile and clapped his hands. “Thank you, Master Azeva.”

Azeva snapped her fingers and in an instant her students cleared the field. Koda gave his entourage a quick glance, and likewise they exited the area as well.

Warm winds pelted Koda and Azeva’s skin with trails of sand and dust. The sun roasted the back of the necks, and sweat rolled down their cheeks. Koda wiped his brow and squinted his eyes.

“Base or multicolor?” asked Azeva.

Raine and she gave him a reassuring thumbs up.

Azeva only had red, but any mage that becomes the head of a school must be a master of their element. All the same, he went after earth because he needed the protection from fire. It was an easy choice for Koda. “Multicolor,” he answered.

“First hit, first to three hits, or unconsciousness?” Azeva asked next. “Death is off the table for obvious reasons.”

Koda paused. He hadn’t given much thought for the win condition against someone as talented as Azeva. He had gotten lucky with the first hit against her brother, surely another first blow match wouldn’t be as forgiving. However he now had another color in his arsenal, earth. With the defenses of stone armor or rock walls, he was sure he could withstand any fireball Azeva threw at him. On the other hand, she probably had experience dealing with earth mages, but even Ezevan, her own brother, said earth was a good strategy. Koda had no doubt in his mind, he could win, but how?

Koda went through his options one last time. First hit. No, I don’t think that would be a victory in my cards. What else? Third hit. Yes, that seems more plausible. Unconsciousness doesn’t sound appealing.

Azeva tapped her foot impatiently. “Have you made a decision, Lord Koda?”

Koda blew out a long sigh. “I-I believe I have.”

“And?”

Koda curled his fist. “Third hit!”

Azeva nodded to the referee to begin the battle. He raised a bright red flag with a darker red stripe.

“This sanctioned battle is for the element of fire! Combatants will be allowed to use their full array of colors. The first to score three hits will be victorious!”

The referee looked to Koda. “Is the challenger ready?”

Koda tightened his fist even more. “Ready!”

The referee then looked to the Head Mage. “Is the defender ready?”

“Get on with it!” she shouted.

The referee flapped down the flag. “Commence!”

Like a comet slicing through the night, Azeva launched forward. Trails of flames and black smoke followed in her wake.

Azeva reeled back her right arm and a whip of burning, orange fire ignited from her hand. Koda’s legs tensed to dodge, but the red mage became a blur in his eyes and his body froze in anticipation of her next move. When? Now? Now?

Azeva cracked her wrist and the blazing whip threw Koda onto his back, the front of his robes smoldering.

“First hit, Azeva!” called out the referee.

Azeva surfed through the sand, curving around Koda. She created a wave of fire as she propelled herself around the battlefield.

Koda could only spin on his heels, trying desperately to keep a bead on his opponent.

The fire mage flanked Koda and flicked her wrist popping up a wall of plasma, burning Koda with a whirl of flames.

“Second hit, Azeva,”

Koda scampered away from Azeva, as the fire shrank down to small singeing embers over his robes. To Koda’s surprise, Azeva’s fire only burned as warm as a paving stone on a summer’s day. Even holding herself back, she was still this dangerous. Stryneth’s warning of Azeva’s Magi control rang true. If he didn’t pull himself together, he would have another embarrassing loss on his hands.

“Come on, focus, Koda!” Raine shouted to him at the top of her lungs. “Show her some earth defense!”

Right! Earth defense! Koda said to himself

Koda raised his fist and struck it on the ground and a complete dome of rocks instantly surrounded him. The shelter muffled Raine’s cheers. The gray and tan stones warmed up as Azeva blasted streams of fire at Koda’s shielding. Sweat dripped from Koda’s chin within the sweltering dome.

Let’s see where she is. Koda whispered to himself. He lifted his hand to one of the cooler stones and focused his vision past the wall. There he watched Azeva pace back and forth, itching for a moment to get her winning hit. Every so often she threw another fireball.

Okay, let’s score some points. Koda patiently waited for another fireball and then pushed against the stone. Like a cannonball it exploded forward, catching Azeva off-guard and nailing her in the shoulder.

“First hit, Koda!”

Koda laughed. I’m far from finished! Koda thrusted his hands at several more stones, rapidly firing them at Azeva.

The dune elf ducked and dodged, backpedaling away from the deadly dome, but more and more stones of the structure drove at her. Finally a boulder cracked against her head. Azeva crashed to the sand.

“Second hit, Koda!”

Koda shuffled nervously away from the safety of his shelter. He wondered if he killed the desert elf. Perhaps he was a little too zealous in his attacks, too fervent for his win. Koda stood over Azeva’s still form, but his pupils shrank as she turned and shot a fire blast at his face.

Koda threw himself away, covering his head with the sleeve of his robe and dashed back to his dome. He looked back toward Azeva, a stone mask covering his face.

“I don’t think so, Koda!” Azeva hissed. A flash of light erupted from the dome followed by a loud explosion. Koda crossed his arms and thrust them downwards in instinct. A large trunk enveloped him, protecting the elven king from the brunt of the blast.

“Do you really think wood will protect you from the fury of my red magic?” sneered Azeva.

Koda frantically lined the wood with a layer of stone. I hope that holds her for now.

However, inside the tree, molten stone began to glow as more and more of the bark heated up into a fiery display of Azeva’s Tamed Magi.

Koda leaped through the wood just as it flared into ash and lava.

The green mage sprinted at full speed away from an onslaught of small meteors crashing to his left and right, splashing sand and glass across Koda’s vision.

“You can’t run forever!” Azeva cried from the other end of the battlefield.

Koda knew she was right. He slid to a stop just shy of the sidelines where his friends watched in intense excitement.

“Koda, this is the match point,” whispered Raine. “Whoever gets this final hit wins the duel!”

Koda swallowed the bundle of stress in his throat. “I know, I know.”

“You aren’t using your full arsenal, my king,” said Stryneth. “Unleash your Magi upon her!”

Koda glanced at the blue mage master. Should I? He asked himself.

“No, you shouldn’t,” argued Wildeye. “You can beat her without resorting to your crutch. You are more than the mage you think you are, Koda Dawenedge.”

Koda glanced at Wildeye, desperation clouded his eyes.

“She’s right Koda. Don’t rely on cheap tricks!” spat Elucard, flexing his glass-like fist.

Koda turned back to Azeva. Azeva held a sword of flame in one hand, a floating fireball in the other.

A low growl cracked through the conversation and echoed through his mind. Do not be afraid of your gift, my dear Koda. Raspy and dark, the voice interrupted Koda’s thoughts. The Magi is not a curse, and you know this!

“I do.” Koda agreed underneath his breath.

The more you hide your true power, the weaker you will become.

“The weaker I will become.” Koda’s voice grew louder.

“What did you say Kod…” Wildeye’s concerned words slowly drowned under the weight of the new voice’s words.

Show those who doubt you. Show your enemies. Show everyone who controls the Magi!

“I will!” Koda clenched his teeth and unleashed a loud roar. “I control the Magi!!!”

Koda thrust his hands forward and clawed his fingers. From the center of his palms he focused a spark of green energy, then after a brief hum, A beam of green light pulsed across the desert. The intensity of light pushed Raine, Stryneth, Wildeye, Elucard, and Cade over, and Koda’s feet slid backwards in the rumbling sand.

Azeva dug her heels into the sand trying with all her might to avoid the brilliant emerald light. But Sparks of Magi erupted into a swath of vines and thorns and the wild magic mummified the dune elf, coiling tightly until she was crushed within the force of the vernal magic.

A wave of silence hung over the battlefield. Koda collapsed to the ground, huffing from the excess adrenaline and Magi pumping through his veins. “What—what was that?”

Raine put her calm hand on his shoulder. “A victory…I think.”

Third point!” the referee finally announced, “The Challenger wins!”

Koda laughed with a sense of relief washing over his face. “My, that was a close one,” he puffed, before falling on his back.

Wildeye stood over him and gave him a disappointed look. “Why must you—”

“Well done, my king!” Stryneth lifted Koda to his feet and vigorously shook the young elf’s hand.

Koda stole a glance from Elucard. The shroud’s face shivered in pain as he clutched his arm.

“You better figure out this Magi addiction, or I’ll figure it out for you!” Elucard spat in a vicious whisper.

Koda bit his lip and turned back to Stryneth and Raine.

“Well done, indeed, Koda,” Raine laughed.

“Onward to your next victory, young king!” Stryneth continued to compliment Koda with a slap on the elf’s back.

Koda gave Wildeye a sheepish frown.

Sorry girl.

“Save it, Koda. Just save it,” said Wildeye.