Despite that the science in the field of magical research has progressed significantly during the last half of this century, there is still no reliable explanation how the energy is generated and what are the exact factors which determine the blood color of an individual... After its stabilization, the tint of energy cells does not change. That’s why the age of 14-15 is the recommended period for mage registration.

From a collection of essays ‘Science and Magic’, 53th issue, January 2010

The blood was burning. Crimson spectrum cells were resourceful, and Niji had enough magical energy. Sunny ran to Niji and swiftly struck the air right in front of her nose. The Crimson kept on dodging the lunges, which became a bit slower after the shorty got her weapons. Niji managed to fish out a test tube with water to gather some elemental energy. A powerful flow spattered right into Sunny’s face, so she lost control and sprang to safety. Dammit let out a satisfied laugh.

“Okay… you did something,” the shorty said and threw both of the chakrams toward her rival. Niji evaded, leaning almost to the ground, but there was actually no point in doing so, as the protective barrier covered her with a semi-transparent mist. The blades scratched the magical sphere, and their trajectory was altered. Niji made it to the lighter, jumped away from boomeranging semi-disks and released a roaring stream of flame to Sunny, unaware of the change of events. The fire completely engulfed her, and the girl succumbed, yelling hysterically. The barrier around the Crimson dispersed, and the chakrams pierced into the ground like predators right beside Sunny.

“That’s enough,” Dasnor commanded. “Niji, take away the fire.”

He must have known that it wasn’t a true flame, just the essence of it, which was not the same. However, the elemental energy could bring a lot of pain, long and heavy, with the intensity depending on how much mana had been put into a spell. Niji gathered her fingers in a theatrical gesture to stop the flame and release Sunny.

Sunny was burning in every sense of the word. “I want my revenge, Dasnor!”

“Learn to lose. You talk too much during the combat; this is worthless. Dammit, tend to her wounds.”

“Iiitaiii... it burns!” she whined. The prospect of being close to Dammit completely changed her mood.

The medic jumped off the veranda and brought the girl to the stairs, mumbling something like “Don’t move, Yu-chan.” Then he reached both of his hands in front of him and directed light blue rays of energy to the girl. The burns disappeared bit by bit, to make a room for completely renewed skin. During the process Dammit was babbling, “Seems like Niji’s amplifier skill is a Celestial Shield. An aura which deflects the attack.”

“Something like Ultimate Defense?”

“Not exactly. It is even more sick! You can’t move while Ultimate Defense is active, otherwise it drops off. Moreover, it’s like you are physically restrained for a while, so it is a challenge to run away later or hit somebody. But Celestial Shield is insane, because there are no limitations. You can do anything while it’s on. To put in short, it’s a total time-limited invulnerability. It takes years for the best healers to master, if they want to cast it on themselves or anyone else. But dammit, years! And this one pops up just like that! Awesome!”

“The effect is there if Niji’s targeted from a distance,” said Rem, somewhat forgotten in this ferocious event. “Doesn’t matter if it’s magic or flying objects.”

“Even like this…” Dammit finished with his healing. Sunny had completely forgotten about her humiliation and was dreamily watching the medic with her eyes half-closed. Dammit, on the contrary, had a serious look on his face and took Niji’s hand to observe the amplifier closely.

“It’s said that the most powerful artifacts possess their own consciousness,” he continued to speculate. “That’s why their spells can work without our determination. But you need to learn to summon it, Niji. If you can call it whenever you want, that will be cool… and super imbalanced!”

Niji felt a parade of goosebumps on her back. Dammit might be playing a fool all around, but what he said and did showed he was far beyond the ordinary mage. A brilliant one, for sure.

“Well, that’s enough for today!” solemnly announced Harold James Mark Omnius the Forth with his careless grin back to action. “Guess we can make use of you, Niji. Whaddya say, Grumpy?”

“Uh-huh,” he mumbled without any enthusiasm.

“I’ll call you Flare then. So fervent and edgy… oh, how I love the Academy girls! So fit and gracious!”

“I have a question,” Niji turned to now-boiling-again Sunny, “You create the items out of thin air. But only Violets can do that.”

“I am clean as a whistle! Freyja just did really good amplifiers. If you’re suspicious, I can ask Chi to inspect me again. In case the dozen of previous tests were false.”

“By the way, you’re such a meanie, Yu-chan,” said Dammit slyly.

“Huuuuh?”

“You promised to give your all. But you played too much and as a result didn’t unleash your full power,” he smiled at the sight of Sunny’s cheeks flooded with intense red. “Fine, let’s go, Yu-chan. It was nice meeting you, Niji. May the Light guide you.”