Chapter 19 - The First Test of the Magic Contest

Plenty of people were gathered in a huge amphitheatre, which had on one side, an area full of chairs like the largest football stadium ever seen. All chairs for the students and the lodges specially created for the professors formed a huge semicircle, quite roomy even for the inhabitants of a small town.

Everyone gathered there came to see the Magic Contest, or to support their favourite team, hoping until the last moment it would be the winner.

That stadium had a snowy surface set up on the huge field. There were rocks, small hills, even small mountains and a lake. The mountains were drilled everywhere by small caves as if someone used dozens of cannons and a whole day to shoot with howitzers at them. Some were more or less deep than others and some of them were so tight that even if you managed to get in there, you had to look for another exit because you definitely couldn't get out in the same place.

In one of those entrance halls of the caves, somewhere in the middle of that huge arena, there was a pedestal with a parchment that was surrounded by ice and wrapped in some magic flames that didn’t burn the parchment, but didn’t melt the ice around it either.

What was even more amazing at this field where the event was to be held, was that although everything was filled with snow and ice on the surface where that difficult test would take place, in the stands the students were dressed as if they went for a walk on a pleasant June day, on the streets of London.

“Welcome to the Magic Contest of this Decade!”

Cheers, shouts, whistles of the audience gathered at the event. Hundreds of students from the 3 schools were there. And their professors were happy, shouting, supporting their students who were to compete in one of the most difficult tests so far.

The elf delegation consisted of only about twenty elves. They, unlike people, were discreet in expressing their joy. For them, joy meant a smile or a slight nod of the head.

The area that was offered to them to enjoy the show was a little isolated from the others’, the supporters’ seats being more distanced from each other than the people’s seats. There was an area of lush greenery in which they were used to living too.

The pillars on which the chairs were placed were made of braided roots, enriched with wonderful flowers filled with strong and inviting scent and exotic trees and bushes that completed the green decor were just as sophisticated. To see such greenery in a place where at less than 100 meters there was only ice and snow, moreover, various decorative flowers, was a splendour that you could hardly explain ... if you were a sceptic ...

The elf students couldn’t hide their joy as their professors did. They kept smiling when they saw people’s joy. The audience was so happy as if they’d benefit from the prizes offered to the winners. Especially since people only expressed so much joy ten years ago.

A younger elf student even laughed slightly when she saw so much joy, but only for a moment, as a gesture from a professor wiped off her smile. The girl tried hard not to laugh, but she still smiled slightly from time to time, especially because with every sentence Nakutsck said, the famous wizard cast spells at the spectators too ... and of course each one made them laugh.

“It’s my honour to present the first test, my dear! It’s an extremely difficult event, even if it’s the first in the Magic Contest of the Decade. Even if we were accustomed to an easier first event, this decade I decided it would be different. The breath of the Cold Wind was my guide ...!”

A short break followed when a brief spell of Nakutsck’s showed the spectators what the breath of the Cold Wind was. A strong gust of wind came to a part where there were a few spectators, causing some capes, hats and other things to fly.

Those who knew Nakutsck's style and knew he was always up to mischief were prepared for such an event, keeping hold of their capes and stuff. But the younger ones, who didn’t expect it, lost capes, hats or lighter items, because they were all flying objects now.

The rest of the spectators who weren’t affected by the breath of the Cold Wind laughed loud at those who had trouble picking up their stuff scattered all over. Even some of those who were tricked smiled and laughed.

“The cold breath made me think of something that will be one of the biggest obstacles in the tests. My mind, under my friends’ guidance worked for almost half a decade to create these creatures born from the North Frost!”

Again a small spell, the same sly smile of Nakutsck’s and a slight frost was cast on other spectators. Besides, a few teenage wizards who weren’t dressed properly when talking to the white wizard felt on their skin what the North Frost meant. They began to shiver with cold, as any of us would do if we wore a light or sleeveless shirt, in the middle of the coldest winter, some of them having white frosty eyebrows and others, small icicles attached to the eyebrows, to the hair on the head or even coming out of the nostrils. For a few moments, or even a little more, those helpless students really got frozen. After this moment, there was again the same pleasant atmosphere of the Magic Contest and water started dripping from those icicles created until they melted away.

Cheers and laughter were everywhere again, except in the elves’ area. They only smiled, and we got used to it.

“Very cold creatures that won’t let anyone win the challenge ... win the magic ice parchment! Creatures that are completely made of ice! Real monsters! I introduce ... the Ice Golems to you!”

Nakutsck cast a brief spell for fireworks above the ground where the first event was to take place. The fireworks were white, in the shape of a polar bear or fox that grew and grew until they disappeared completely, followed by icy green-blue fireworks in the shape of huge and odious creatures, those ice creatures, to end with green-Bordeaux colours of the aurora borealis. In the light of these fireworks, one could hear the sound of musical instruments appeared from nowhere playing on their own. Then when the firework display was over some giant Ice Golems showed up.

“These are the guardians of the ice parchment!”

The spectators were delighted, but also terrified at what they saw, which was a great joy to Nakutsck, their creator. It was a sign to him that he did a good job.

“But, let's introduce the schools! We’ll start with our distant guests: the ‘Sacred Tree’ School. The magic school that sent to us some of the greatest wizards in the world, the witchcraft founders. The first wizards ... we’re grateful for that!”

Hail and shouts of joy from everyone there. The elves smiled. They felt very welcome.

“There follows the magic school ‘Jade Tiger’, which is represented by many friends, who in the last three years offered us the bravest and the most intelligent wizards. And who won the junior wizards Magic Championship three years ago ...”

Cheers again from the audience. A group of students, supporters of the jade tigers, when the spectators were quiet, began to recite in chorus some words that encouraged the students who participated in that first event of the competition.

"We’re fearless tigers,

All for one brave fighters,

None of us is left behind

Tiger brothers, right and kind”

The three jade tigers in the contest greeted their supporters respectfully.

“And of course, our friend Knudlac’s school of magic! The renowned Elmbridge School of Magic!”

Again shouts and cheers.

“But let's get to know the representatives of the three schools, the brave ones who’ll try not only to face these ice creatures but also to be better, more agile and stronger than them.”

Nakutsck stopped, and then continued:

“We have young students this year, but they’ll definitely achieve a lot in their magic lives. Students with ages of only 9, 10 and 12 ...”

But someone made a sign to him, and when Nakutsck saw it, he smiled.

“Of course ... I forgot. We have students between the ages of 8, 9 and 700, 800. But even so, they’re the smallest participants so far. Smallest not youngest.”

It was clear that even Nakutsck found it hard to introduce the human kids as the youngest, when the elf wizard students were between 600 and 800 years old. Age that people could never even dream of. It was more difficult to get that although they were so old, which for the elves was natural, the elf students had the height of a child of 8, 9 or even less. Only the pointed ears were as large as the adults’.

“We wish them luck, may the school they represent be proud of them!”

Nakutsck signalled to the children to come closer. Nine little wizards approached the white wizard, more or less prepared for what was to come.

“The three representatives of the School of the ‘Sacred Tree’ are Pmyrie, Ehm'il and Fahria.”

The three children with pointed ears approached Nakutsck, each to get a golden key, which would let them access to the stadium area and an emerald-coloured wizard's cap.

The first elf, Pmyrie was that blonde girl with long, braided hair. A real, gorgeous and beautiful witch. It was clear that her clothing was woven from roots and plants, very beautifully made, with a very fine fabric. The fresh smell of the clothes made Nakutsck smile:

“Ihm ... Jasmine, lavender ... very strong smell. Here's the key and a wizard's cape, my dear.”

Then Ehm'il got the key, along with a cape, his size. Ehm'il was taller than Pmyrie, with intense dark long hair, also braided.

Fahria, a teenager as beautiful but taller than the first, also came and took the key and the cape.

After the elves went away, Nakutsck continued:

“The three representatives of the Jade Tiger School are Ming Hoa, Sakura Nakamoto and the winner of the Junior Magic Contest, Jiao Long.”

The jade tigers also came to pick up their keys and capes.

“And of course ... Johnny Davies, Alexander Soimesti and Elizabeth Catherine Edwards. The three wizards of the world famous Elmbridge Magic School.”

After all the students got the keys and capes needed to participate in the contest, Nakutsck continued:

“As you know, the first test will be the last one for three of the competitors, one from each team. And the three who’ll leave the competition will each win a parchment of fire. Will he be the best competitor of the event ... or the weakest participant in the competition? We don't know exactly. But what we know for sure is that after winning the magic he/she will leave this competition.”

A brief pause, when Nakutsck saw a smaller group of four young spectator students not listening to what he said, so a magic of his pulled their sideburns one at a time or ripped their ears. There was silence again on the stadium.

“No one will be hurt in this challenge. But I don’t guarantee for the second challenge. We don’t know in which of the other eight possible locations it will take place,” smiled the white wizard slightly. “Who’ll be caught in this event by one of the golems, without having escape, will be automatically eliminated from the competition, without being seriously injured.”

Nakutsck smiled because he thought he said a good joke, but as he saw them a bit bored, probably thinking the white wizard would give a long speech, decided to deceive their expectations.

“In the second challenge, other three competitors go home. And of the last three, only one, the best, will win the last event. And the ‘Divine Parchment’ the big prize, will go to the best one, only one. This is how the contest will take place. Good luck to all the competitors and let the Magic Contest of this Decade start! May the best ones win the ‘Divine Parchment’!”

A wonderful firework display at least as fantastic and interesting as the aurora borealis phenomenon appeared again above the stadium.

The viewers who expected a much longer monologue were amazed when they saw Nakutsck finished the presentation.

“What happened to Nakutsck?” an older wizard asked, smiling. “He got me used to his extremely long lectures ... I thought I couldn’t see this contest start.”

“I think someone told him it's only a decade between competitions and he thought the time is too short to say everything he had to say. So he shortened his speech,” smiled the other older professor.

“Anyway, I'm glad it was so short. I can't wait to see how our favourite will win ... Alexander,” ended another, who was a professor at the Elmbridge School of Magic.

“I bet on the elves,” another one ended the discussion.

…

Nakutsck was on a kind of stage set up right next to the entrance into the arena where the first challenge will take place:

“The first competitors who’ll try to pass the first test are the ones from the ‘Sacred Tree’ School. May their wands help and protect them!”

The three elves entered the area where the dangerous quest was to take place with no fear. As they entered that huge, snowy field, two 30-cubit tall golems got up from that snow ... they had neither more nor less than the height of ten people sitting on top of each other.

The body of the elves got covered with all kinds of beautifully made and coloured tattoos, feeling the danger to which the competitors would be subjected. Even their face was full of tattoos as if they were little ... adult wizards.

“How many magic tricks!” exclaims a younger student. “I guess not even Knudlac knows as many magic tricks as these elf children.”

“They’ll surely make that golem become snow in just a few moments,” said another of the same age.

“As far as I know, no team is allowed to use more than three magic tricks altogether,” one of the prefects answered, unasked, disturbed by the fact that those children kept whispering.

As they showed up, the two ice golems became aggressive, so the elves had no time to waste.

“Celeritas!” shouted Fahria, using her magic for Ehm'il.

“Ignis!” shouted Pmyrie, and a circle of fire that melted everything around surrounded the dark-haired elf, but he didn’t suffer any harm.

It was clear who was to fight to get and take in the Ice Parchment. So the young elf ran very fast to the cave where that parchment was found. One of the golems began to chase him while the other tried to catch the elf girls.

But the agility and speed the elves are endowed with since the first part of their lives were useful to them. When Pmyrie was attacked by the ice monster, the girl ran so fast, hitting the ground and slipping so easily between the legs of the golem, that it seemed like everything was just a game. Even as she reached behind him, she grabbed an icicle on his knee and jumped just on his back.

Anyone who saw so much agility in these children would surely wonder how it’s possible to be so quick and accurate, though so young. But only a sceptic wouldn’t get ... that not only the elf adults but also the children were skilful and sneaky.

Fahria, taking advantage of a moment when the golem wasn’t careful, jumped on his knee and using an object like a hammer used for climbing, quickly reached the area of his back of the skull.

The golem obviously had problems. The elf girls easily avoided his arms as he tried to catch them, exasperating the monster. It was like a play for the two girls.

Ehm'il was followed by the other golem, but the speed Fahria gave him further amplified his speed. Beside agility, he had his innate ability to climb, which helped him. The golem, even though he reached Ehm’il, couldn’t catch him. The ice monster's arms, though now transformed into a spear and ice mace, terrible weapons, they couldn’t reach him. Although he quickly hit all the rocks the elf child climbed, destroying everything around, the frozen giant missed the target every time, which was Ehm'il, as he flew from one place to another with ease.

Everyone was amazed at the elf boy’s qualities. Ehm'il jumped with the ease of a snow leopard on the high rock wall, clinging to any depth or prominence of the rocks, no matter how small and insignificant they were, thus managing to climb higher and higher.

Eventually he managed to reach the top, to the ice golem's fury, which now hit the rock wall trying to blow it away. But in vain. Even when the golem blew heavily towards the elf boy, freezing his cape in a blinking, with no fear, the boy removed it and let it fall from him.

When the cape now fully coated in ice touched the ground broke into thousands of pieces like a broken mirror. The thought he could become ice dust didn’t scare Ehm'il at all.

When he finally reached the ice parchment, he approached his now flaming hand to the icy water surrounding the parchment. The ice melted at once, and the elf grabbed the Ice Parchment with his hand.

At that moment the two ice golems melted, disappearing completely.

“Congratulations! It’s definitely the shortest ... test. The fastest… a formidable team,” said confusedly about what happened the white wizard, astonished at the ease with which these three elves passed so easily the test he prepared for almost five years.

“I mean ... the best result so far. A record. And you didn't even use all the three spells that were allowed. They’ll definitely be winni ...”

But Nakutsck stopped.

He saw how many of the other professors looked at him, suggesting him to avoid saying such a stupid thing, no matter how true it was. So, even though he wanted to say wholeheartedly that the elves were to be the winners, which was easy to get, Nakutsck didn't do that.

“The competition will be tough! The competitors will do their best fighting to win the contest.”

Cheered by the audience, under the smiling eyes of the elves, the three little wizards of the Sacred Tree school left the arena triumphantly.

Several professors approached the winners to congratulate them. When they stopped in front of Lord Elf Tbylisium, he told Ehm'il:

“Learn the parchment content.”

Ehm'il took the parchment, the wand and shouted in the eyes of all the spectators:

“Discite!”

At that moment the parchment became the usual fine dust and was taken by the wind, and a small tattoo appeared on one of Ehm'il’s fingers.

“Omnes Tenebrae... A powerful magic that will leave everyone in total darkness. They’ll act as if they were blind. Who knows this spell, who casts it, is the only one who can see everything as before using it,” Nakutsck explained to Ehm'il.

“A very good magic, if used properly,” Knudlac added.

Nakutsck sat down again at the entrance to the arena and shouted:

“Elizabeth, Johnny and Alexander will enter the arena.”

“Johnny you’ll get the parchment!” Alexander ordered sharply. “I’ll deal with the Golems.”

In an instant, the two ice monsters also showed up, just as the three of them entered the arena.

“They’re ... huge,” Elizabeth managed to say, looking up at the terrifying face of one of those walking mountains.

"Yes, they look bigger when you're in their way," Johnny added.

But the two golems didn’t want to talk. They prepared to attack the three competitors.

“Johnny, I'm taking the parchment! Give me your power!”

Johnny took his wand and shouted that magic so famous because of him:

“Imperium.”

And the spell was cast on Alexander. The young boy began to run towards the cave where the ice parchment was. But unfortunately he wasn’t alone.

It seems the two golems didn’t expect Johnny and Elizabeth would bother them, so they started chasing Alexander to get him out of the contest. Probably ... this thought was precisely ordered by Nakutsck.

Johnny and Elizabeth started running after Alexander and the golems, so the gallery laughed loud.

“Look, they chase the golems not the other way around ...”, some spectators made fun. They were that picky category of people, who didn’t know, nor understood how difficult it was to be a competitor in that arena.

But when they met the gaze of a frowning professor, who was also worried about the situation created for he knew the gravity of the situation, those ignorant quickly stopped laughing.

They had a reason to stop laughing. The situation wasn’t easy for the three competitors at the Elmbridge Magic School. The young wizard Alexander probably thought that everything would be simple, after he saw how easily Ehm'il managed to take the parchment. But unfortunately, he lacked the speed and the agility of the elf.

So in a few moments the golems were behind him. One of them tried to catch him, and young Alexander hardly managed at the last moment to avoid his blow.

“Constantiam!” he shouted, pointing his wand at that ice monster. And the golem remained immobilized.

But the second one avenged the immobilized one successfully. He managed to hit Alexander so hard that he flung him away as if he were a pebble thrown against a rock wall. The boy, even with Johnny's resistance to pain, screamed because of the blow. It couldn’t be worse, so at that moment a professor from the jury came near the boy, ready to protect him, sending him out of the arena. But this would mean not only Alexander's rescue but also his quitting the competition. So the young boy, considering the sacrifice too great, although he was hit hard by the monster, signalled he didn’t need help.

“Imperium, he smiled slightly forced at the careful professor.

The professor got that the blow wouldn’t be a problem for Alexander, so he went away, giving the young wizard another chance to win.

But it seemed Alexander had almost no chance against that monster. The golem hit him and threw him powerfully upwards. The boy felt pain when his frail body reached those sharp rocks. Alexander gave the impression that Johnny's magic either began to lose its effect more or more, or he couldn’t cope with such blows.

Still, it was also an advantage now ... only one, but quite important, namely that Alexander was much closer to the parchment.

However, the ice golem was close to the parchment too. So the giant was about to hit the young boy again. Yet, right at the moment when there seemed to be no escape, when that huge piece of ice, the golem’s hand, was about to crush Alexander, that professor was there again to protect him, to remove, eliminate him from the competition.

Holding his wand, the professor tried to say the spell needed to save the boy, to get Prince Soimesti out of the contest but someone beat him to it and cast a spell at the golem:

“Nunc Educandi”, Elizabeth saved the young boy.

And the golem began to move extremely slowly, like a snail. It was visible on his face that he didn’t understand what happened to him and he didn’t agree with that, but it was in vain. Until he managed to take a step, the young wizard managed to get up, cross a few meters and climb a little higher, closer to that parchment.

Alexander was astonished, perhaps slightly offended deep in his heart when he saw that Elizabeth saved him. Even so, he kept trying to climb up the rock to take the parchment, with the awkwardness of an elephant who managed to climb a ladder.

“Run away! Take the parchment!” the girl encouraged him.

The boy began to climb the last two meters that separated him from the parchment, with great difficulty. He managed to climb a little, then slipped, unfortunately more than he had managed to climb.

“Come on Alexander!” Professor Knudlac’s students shouted. “Come on, take the parchment!”

“Come on Alexander!” Elizabeth shouted again. “Even I could get to the parchment faster!”

The magic the young wizard cast on the other golem lost its effect. Johnny was rescued by a professor at the very last moment from the hands of that ice beast, which meant, of course, end of competition for him.

The same golem who eliminated Johnny from the contest ran toward the girl trying to catch her. Eventually, Elizabeth managed to hide in a small opening in the rock. The golem tried for a few moments to reach her, but as the girl was well sheltered, he gave up this idea. Elizabeth stayed there for a few moments, like a little mouse, listening if she was still being chased, and then, sure the golem was no longer around, she went out.

She looked after the golems, but she could only see a golem’s head, melting and disappearing completely.

“This means…”

She looked at Alexander. Yes, this meant that Alexander finally managed to take the parchment. Finally ... The boy now put out the fire on the cape, holding the parchment.

One by one, the professors came to Alexander and congratulated him. Knudlac was there too.

“Well done, Alexander! We did it,” Elizabeth shouted down there as if she succeeded. She was so happy! When Johnny came next to her, a bit sad, he shouted too:

“Good job, Alexander!”

Nakutsck, who wasn’t as happy as the others, instead of congratulating him, he kind of discouraged him.

“If you found it so hard to win the first test, how would you pass the next tests?”

Then looking at Elizabeth:

“Lucky you with this girl, who acted above my expectations. She saved you ...”

Even though he gave the impression that he wasn’t affected by Nakutsck's words, Alexander hardly hid his deception. Even if he got the Ice Parchment, his pride was affected by that comment.

When he went with the parchment to the other professors’ group, with Elizabeth and Johnny, he didn’t smile.

“Congratulations Alexander, I knew you’d succeed!” one of his friends told the young boy, as if it were only his success.

“Thanks, Geoffrey. It wasn’t easy for me,” said the little wizard Soimesti, in agreement with that Geoffrey, as if only he worked to overcome that test.

Knudlac approached Elizabeth leaving the crowd surrounding Alexander to congratulate him and he smiled at her.

“You did very well. Bravo, my dear.”

“Thank you, Professor Knudlac. I didn't expect it to be that hard. And I didn't expect to have our lives endangered.”

“Our lives are in danger all the time, my dear. That’s why we must always be prepared to take care of ourselves and the ones we love.”

“As I could see today, we started to be good at that ...”

"That's right," Knudlac replied.

Nakutsck went to the arena entrance for the last time, to let the young warriors of Hikkaido win the long-awaited Ice Parchment too.

While Mr. Hikkaido's students did their best to finish the test and win the prize, Professor Knudlac's students were the happiest. Many of the people there congratulated the two who faced the test, Elizabeth and Alexander, but also Johnny who sacrificed himself for the success of his team.

And so the magic school Elmbridge through the three competitors managed to move on to the second stage of the Magic Contest of the Decade, to take part in the final battle to win the divine parchment.