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Jake's scythe begins glowing as he is getting ready

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"Aw spaghetti, time to brawl." Sobble brings out his sword and pretends to slash someone in front of him. "I need to work on my senses. Time for some meditating and you too Calico, since you don't have the skills to fight you have to learn how to at least dodge." Sobble and Calico sit on the floor.

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The students were all gathered in the courtyard, waiting for the announcement of the tournament. Excitement was mixed with nerves, as a frenetic energy infected the entire student body.

Suddenly, a lone bugle sounded, echoing through the grounds. The rest of the Council had arrived. Slowly, they processed in, wearing their colorful council robes. The students parted respectfully, and watched their silent walk with barely concealed interest.

They joined Headmistress Stanpnacia, Councillor Lediana, and a group of five teachers on stage. The judging panel was made up of thirteen members.

"Hello, students." Councillor Lediana had taken the stage. "The tournament starts in thirty minutes. The rules have been posted throughout the school. You are responsible for knowing them thoroughly. Additionally, you have each been provided with a copy of them, which may be brought penalty-free into the arena."

A piece of paper appears in each of the students' hands. Many are additionally hung on the walls of the school. The Councillor smiles.


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The Tournament of the Council
This tournament will start as a battle royale competition to find the ten most skilled mages in each House: Fireflame, Waterstream, and Earthrock. The judges will add two additional wild cards from the fray. These thirty-two students will make up what is to be known as the champion's bracket. Everyone else will be ranked based on their performance in the battle royale.

Eliminations in the battle royale will occur when a competitor is covered in dispersion magic, and they will be automatically teleported out of the arena. Dispersion magic will come from a magineered weapon granted at the beginning of the event, simply pull the trigger to activate it. Each student will have a unique dispersion signature so that staff can figure out who eliminated whom. Even the most basic shielding will block dispersion magic. To discourage camping, there will be a border of dispersion magic closing in upon the center of the arena. To ensure that the most powerful students are accepted into the champion's bracket, the dispersion guns will automatically teleport students to the judges box once their dispersion magic has eliminated twenty other players.

Those in the champion's bracket will be required to complete tasks and challenges based upon magical speed, magical strength, and magical endurance at the discretion of the judges. Half of the remaining field will be eliminated at the end of each challenge. After a series of five challenges, the school will crown the grand champion. In rounds where there are multiple eliminations, the judges will rank the competitors based on the skill shown.

Anyone found in the bottom half of the rankings will need to take a proficiency test to remain at the academy. Those who fail will be let go, and have the right to reapply at the next admissions cycle.

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Rules:
Magic cannot be cast with the intent to maim/kill at any point in the tournament. The judges have the final say on each instance. Anyone found breaking this rule will be expelled immediately.

Outside technology may be brought into the battle royale with a maximum of three items per student. The staff will get preliminary approval, and the judges have final say on each item. Anyone found smuggling in any additional/illegal/unsanctioned items, accessing pocket dimensions to access more items, or any other action the judges determine unfairly break this rule, will be expelled immediately.

Teleportation outside of the arena is not allowed, unless in an extreme medical emergency. If such an emergency happens, teleport yourself and the injured student out of the arena directly to the medics. The judges will determine an appropriate reentry to the tournament.

Disguises and camouflage are allowed at a student's own risk.

Alliances are allowed. The judges are not responsible for those who break their word in the arena.

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Additional misconduct within the arena is subject to review.
This may result in detention, the bracelet, or expulsion.
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"And with that said, let the tournament begin! All students should report to the East Arena Gate so they may enter the battle royale. There will be a thirty minute grace period before your dispersion magic pistols are activated. Best of luck to all." With that, the students applauded, and began to make their way to the designated area.

She hoped Athena would do well. She hoped Athena would make her proud.

Councillor Lediana turned to her fellow Council Members, and began to speak in a low voice. They listened, rapt with attention. "This place... it has been run terribly. We all know the Headmistress is unfit for the job, but... yes. I have implemented the bracelet that we have designed with varying levels of success. There are already nearly a hundred students benefiting from its effect."

"This school needs a Councillor in residence!" One of her colleagues said, incensed. The rest of them agreed.

It was the Lord-Councillor Bracken that spoke next. A wizened old man and the head of the Council, he was one of the smartest and strongest men in the world. "Councillor Lediana shall hold the post for now. We will discuss the matter in depth upon the completion of the tournament."

There were grim nods of assent.

The council would not abandon the victims of the school.

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Jake came in to be ready for the battle royal while some sort of shadowy figure was behind him with a scary smile on the face

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"AH great, they never said if pets where allowed. At least I'm not sure if they said pets were allowed or not. HEY! ARE PETS ALLOWED!?"

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Athena scanned the piece of paper, still not comprehending much. The other students looked excited, ready to get going, the polar opposite of what she felt right now.

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A teacher wandered up to Sobble, and took one look at Calico. They strode up to the judges and muttered something.

"A living creature, or any other object considered sentient, may be entered into the arena as a substitute for all three objects. If you bring an animal or sentient item into the arena, you may not bring anything else." Councillor Lediana nodded approval at Sobble for asking the question.

Athena was disappointing as usual. The Councillor had high hopes for her daughter entering the tournament. A pity she was... weak.

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"Nice, you are going to do great Calico!" Sobble pets Calico. "You need to learn how to defend yourself and fight though, maybe you'll learn through immersive experience."

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Of course her mother wanted her to participate, to win, to bring honor to the family, yada yada yada. Did she really care? No. Will she ever care? Probably not. It wasn't like her mother's opinion of her was going to change just because she won some tournament. She'd still be a disappointment, a failure. So why bother even trying to please her? The tournament was about to start soon, but Athena remained in the same slouched position, giving no indication of knowing what was going on. She was about as good as dead, really.

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Jake's skull begin to crack and shows a little crack on his skull which is slightly noticeable "tch"

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Sobble runs around with his Sword for defense while looking for people to team up with.

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Councillor Lediana smiled briefly. Using her strong, light magic, she amplified her voice. She stepped back up to the podium, her grey cloak billowing out behind her. A passerby could mistake her for an avenging angel.

"Students!" She raised her hand in the air, her stern voice echoing through the entire arena. "The tournament starts..." She paused, glancing at the students lined up at the entrance. "NOW!" She brought her arm quickly like a checkered flag at the beginning of a race.

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The setting suddenly changed, and some students disappeared, probably teleported to another area. Athena was standing in the middle of a lush rainforest. She could hear someone approaching, if that was what they thought of as stealthily, they really needed some work. They jumped out at her, obviously thinking the ambush had worked, only to be blocked by her sword. She dueled them halfheartedly, jabbed their torso, and got them out.

There was nothing hard about this tournament. Dueling was always something she was good at. So was stealth, strategizing, you get the idea. But she had no interest in it whatsoever. So what if she won? It really didn't mean anything. She sat down on a moss covered rock, she would give this whole crazy thing a go, but if she got out, no loss on her part. If she won, whatever.

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Sophie was in the middle of a canyon. Rust-red cliffs surrounded her on all sides. Her three items were:

her bone-flute
a length of enchanted rope
a mysterious potion

She began to hum softly to herself, and ripping off a strip of cloth from her cloak, she blind-folded herself. While this may seem counter-intuitive, she had a plan. By reducing her sight, she improved her hearing. Her music was working similar to echolocation. Sophie smiled. She was alone.

Extending her sights, she could see at the edges of the canyon other biomes. A jungle, a desert, a tundra, an archipelago, and a forest. She grabbed a small rectangular rock, and carved small symbols into each side. Rolling the makeshift die, the jungle side landed face up. Jungle it was.

Grabbing a driftwood log as a walking stick, she continued the music, and headed west. Because of the magic, her sight was still perfect.

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Athena slashed down a few more students. She was staring off into space, an idle expression on her face.

Come on! This is your chance to prove yourself, remember?
I'm never going to be able to prove myself, so why keep trying?
Maybe there's a chance... Besides, do you want to make your situation worse?
It can't get any worse.
Come one! Don't think negatively!
I always think negatively.
Just give it a try? Please?
Fine. But only one chance. Only one last chance.

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Sophie had encountered a few students, and enchanted them to sleep so she could take them out. She had made her way to the edge of the jungle. With a deep breath, Sophie stepped across the border. Her sharpened hearing was an amazing advantage.

She wondered if she would find Athena or Kendo. She continued to sneak through the jungle.

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Athena's fingers twitched a little, she heard something. The footsteps sounded slightly familiar... But her mind was too tired to process why. If it was an enemy, she was prepared. She'd keep her promise, one last final chance.

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Sophie smiled. She could sense Athena on the other side of a copse of trees. "Athena, it's me." She whispered.

She knew that Athena would have more eliminations than she did. Most people probably had more eliminations than Sophie at this point. Sophie hoped the girl wouldn't try to eliminate her, either by choice, or mistake.

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Oh, so it was Sophie. She kept her guard up though, just in case someone was trying to impersonate her friend. Still, she showed no indication of having heard, letting the other approach.

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"Smart. No indication you know of my approach. But I know it's you." She sighed, wearily. "How do you want me to prove it to you?"

She continued to hum, picking her way through the trees toward her friend.

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