Alura's 16th birthday and three months before the magic academy exam.

*****

River walked into the open field. During the time since his 14th birthday he had grown bigger and stronger. The daily training had made his muscles prominent for his age. He stood 5'8 and a solid 160 lbs. While he was strong, he made sure to focus on his quickness and agility the most, so he would be able to dodge magic spells. He took his fighting stance.

Alura stood confidently in her stance. She stood 5'4 and 130 lbs. Her curves had become more noticeable in the last 2 years. Her green eyes had the same color at the fertile grass. Back when she and River first met it would be easily to mistake her for a boy. Now it would be impossible. She had become more deadly but also more beautiful.

She ran at Lee and attacked holding nothing bad. Her punches landed heavily on Lee's arms. He blocked them but was still amazed by how much force she could generate. She closed distance and tried to use her elbows and knees. Lee backed away managing to block and dodge every attack. He would rather dodge than block those heavy hits, but it was all he could do to keep from letting one get through his guard.

Lee tried to go for a hold but she jumped back. Over the last year she had learned it was a bad idea to get into grappling range with Lee. He had simply become too strong. She ducked down and tried to sweep him at the knees. Lee dodged only by a hair and then closed. He threw straights at her body and forced her to block them. He was not putting his entire force in the punches anymore.

Ever since a little over a year ago when he started to see the bruises form on her arms. It was then he had decided to hold back on his power a bit. He struck with an open fist until he could grab her wrist. Once he got her, he pulled her to him. She shifted her weight with the quickness of lightning and got her hand on on his wrist; grabbing the hand that grabbed her and used the hold to try to get him on the ground and get his back. He needed to follow her throw or his wrist may break.

Without him noticing she managed to used her leg to kick his foot out from under him, causing him to lose his balance a he tried to control his landing. He used the momentum of the fall and the strength of the grip he still had on her to pull her with him and they both went down together. She couldn't get to his back like she wanted to. Both were on the ground but Alura had the better position. She tried to get up but he kept her in the dirt with him.

When she couldn't get up she tried to user her superior position to win by getting an arm bar. She found his arm had no give. She felt herself was actually the one starting to give. He was using his other hand and and leg to try to get her on her back. She knew this was going badly for her and in a last ditch effort she let go of her hold on him entirely and tried to used all her strength to jump away. She thought she might have done it but then she felt his hand re-establish it grip.

In a matter of a few seconds after that it was over. Lee had her in an inescapable hold. She scoffed at her predicament and said “fine, I give up”. She hated how use she had gotten to saying that these days.

She remembered the first time he'd won when he was 14. It wasn't until next month that he managed to win again. It continued to happen more and more as the year went on. By the end of that year winning had became a rare event for her. Once Lee turned 15 she had managed to beat him only 1 time and that was when he had just recently turned 15. It now had been a year since she had won a match with him and it kept seeming more like she would never be able to again.

Lee let go and sat down on the grass to rest. Even when he won his matches with her it was still exhausting. Alura sat up but stayed on the ground next to him. Lee said “you know, you really should incorporate more magic attacks into your fighting style.”

She answered back “I incorporate it enough. Besides, didn't you say we shouldn't use magic in our sparring matches?”

Lee said “Yes, but only because I don't want to do too much damage to the surrounding area. I've taught you everything about magic that I know. We use it more often when we fight from now on and you should be more confident in your magic skills”.

Alura answered “I suppose I’m okay at it, but I can't even duel cast yet. I'm not some sort of magic freak like who puts in hours of work in every night”. She laid back down on the ground as they shared silence. “You really have gotten strong Lee, I think the old wizard would be proud of you. Any update on when he's coming back?”

Lee said “hopefully sometime today, but it could be later. In the letter he sent he also mentioned the Zero Province Magic Academy will have an acceptance exam in about 3 months and that is where he thinks I should go”.

Alura asked “Did he say why it should be that school?”

Lee answered “He said he would tell me more when he get's here. But it sounds like it might be the best out of all of them in Province Zero from what I've heard”.

Alura said “The best huh? How strong do you think the other wizards are that go there?”

Lee said “I've no idea, the old man is the only wizard I have ever trained with unless I also count you.. I bet they're probably pretty strong though. When I get there I suppose I'll just have to feel it out”. Lee turned to her and asked “Are you sure you don't want to come too? You could at least try to get in”.

Alura said “No, I like magic, but being a wizard isn't for me. I think I'll just learn at my own pace and stick with martial arts. Maybe I'll join the elite core of guards in a few years”.

She turned to Lee and said “Hey, do you remember when we were 8? You were a funny kid. You use to think mothers and fathers where just friends who got married so they could see each other every day”. She giggled a bit remembering the memory.

Lee said “don't remind me. I said a lot of dumb stuff as a kid”

Alura continued “and you asked me if I wanted to marry you so we could play together every day”.

Lee said “And I told my mother and father. They had a good laugh about it. They explained it to me and for a whole month whenever I was going to see you they would say 'so you're off to see your finance?”

Alura answered “yeah, finance...” She was thinking of saying more for a moment but decided against it. After a while she asked “so if you get into the school how long till we'll see other other again?”

Lee said “Well, I guess it won't be for almost a year. We get the summer season off so I suppose I'll be home for that. Besides the summer break, if there's a long enough break for me to get here and back then I'll definitely come here to see you, my parents and the old man”.

Alura stood up and said “well, lets at least enjoy the next 3 months! I've got to go for now but I'll see you tomorrow my dear finance!” she laughed as she left.

As she left Lee yelled “don't say that! People will get the wrong idea!” She didn't even turn around to his complaint. River sighed and then said to himself “well, I guess I may as well go home. I have farm work and some magic practice I could do”.

When the old man left he gave River full access to his house and library of books. River continued to read. He found the inner workings of magic endlessly fascinating and could tell learning all of this was just as important as strengthening his magic.

He couldn't wait till the old man saw him. Over the past 2 years he had gotten over twice as strong. The fundamentals that were built within allowed for him to enter a period of fast growth. When Alura was in the mood they could duel with magic to practice. She wasn't as interested in it as him and he often had to hold back a good deal but it still was good practice.

Mostly, he had to practice alone in the forest so he wouldn't hurt anyone. As he'd gotten to the door of his house he heard lively conversation within. He opened it to see his parents sitting down around the table having lunch with the old man. Lee's mother said “Lee, look who just came into town!”

After Lee's excitement subsided, which including jumping and a hug that was a bit too strong, he sat down at the table and joined them for lunch. The old man talked a lot about his journey around the continent and some of the interesting things he had seen, but not about his actual mission. Lee had told him not to worry his parents about it until he knew for sure if anything was going on.

After eating, the old man asked if he could borrow Lee for a few hours to catch up. Lee's parents agreed of course. They needed to get back to their daily work anyway. The two talked casually as they walked to the old man' house. The old wizard said “Look how much you've grown Lee. Maybe if you keep eating healthy you'll be almost as tall as me”.

Lee said “I doubt that, but I think we may almost weigh the same as this point seeing how skinny as you are”.

The old man laughed “I have more muscle on me than it looks like I do”.

Lee had to admit, the old man did move around well and never seemed to show signs of being tired. They talked more as they got to the old man's house. He was happy to see Lee kept it in good shape for him while he was gone.

The old man said “well Lee, I’m sure you have a lot of questions, but first things first. I want to see how far you have come in your training. We're going to have a little duel, if you're up for it”.

Lee answered “that's fine by me. Just be careful. I have gotten a lot stronger these last 2 years”.

The old man answered “Lee, I very much hope that's true”.

They stepped out into the forest and away from the house before they begun. The old man started casting a few spells in rapid succession. Lee managed to dodge almost all of them with the use of his wind magic and natural agility. The few he couldn't dodge were easily blocked. After he dodged the last attack he immediately fired wind magic behind him to launch himself forward and close the gap between them.

The old wizard said “you're learning well. But that's too simple an approach”. The old man with a cast speed faster than Lee had ever seen before shot a few balls of water magic to intercept Lee. Lee used his other hand to maneuver to the left and away from them. The old man summoned an earth wall there which Lee ran into with a loud thud.

“You have quick reactions and really improved your duel casting. But, to be honest, I was expecting a bit more. Is this as far as you've come?” The old man was intentionally trying to bait Lee to use everything he had. It was working.

Lee in his anger said “be ready to be impressed!” He moved away from the wall and used wind magic to blow dirt up in the air around the old man which blocked his view. The old man blew the dirt and dust away with wind only to see a large ball of wind magic coming towards him. He blocked it with water magic of his own. Lee seemed to have vanished. The old man couldn't see him anywhere.

The old man sensed a large amount of magic coming directly from above. A dozen winds arrows controlled by Lee fired downward towards him. The old man smiled “not bad, surely most normal wizards would be confused by this and left open”. He ignored the arrows from above and shot a large amount of water magic at the earth wall he had built. As he suspected, Lee was hiding behind it readying a spell to use for when the old man blocked the arrows, believing that would leave an opening.

“You have become very adapt at hiding your presence when you want to”. The old man said this casually while raising his hand above and casting magic to block the arrows coming downward towards him.

As he said this Lee answered “you've left yourself open!” From the woods came a quick, small, ball of wind energy. Lee launched himself directly at the old man and prepared his own attack. He had placed the magic in the woods in the short time the old man's vision was obscured by the dirt in the air. Preparing for this one moment.

The old wizard smiled and wrapped his own wind spell around Lee's incoming attack from behind. He diverted it just slightly enough to miss him, while at the same time speeding it up and aiming it to hit Lee who was but a few yards away now. Lee was knocked back to the ground . The old man said “well done Lee, you've grown even more than I hoped. Let's end the sparring for today. I've much to tell you”.

The old man offered Lee a hand to help him up. Lee took it feeling a strong pain in his ribs and used healing magic on it while they walked back to the old man's house. Lee thought he had gotten stronger but it seemed like it was was not enough to do anything by mildly amuse the old man. That is all his duels have ever been to him. Just how strong was he? Lee asked “so you said I’ve grown, do you think I'll be able to get into that magic academy you told me about?”

The old wizard laughed “well Lee, let's just say I have confidence in my student. It'll work out somehow. But that written exam though could be an issue...”

Lee was shocked “why? I studied every day!”

The old man said “Don't worry about it. Keep doing your studies as you have been and don't worry about their test. There's a tournament for the exams as well and I think you're likely to do enough in that to get in.” The old man thought for a moment and then added “Oh Lee, I want you to remember, if they test your magic power, please only use just enough to pass”.

The old man sat in his chair and motioned for Lee to sit across from him. The old man said “well, I’ll get right down to business Lee. I spent about 2 years checking on the barrier and I have some news. To make a long story short, over the last 20 years it has weakened”.

Lee said “well that's a good thing right? Then provinces 8 and 9 can rejoin the continent and families can be reunited”.

The old man said “I hope that is the case, but I have a suspicion that it will not be so simple. Lee, it's time I told you a little more about me. It won't be everything, but it'll be enough to explain what I think the situation is and the very important role I want you to play in my plans”.

Lee was silent, he had hoped to hear more about the old man and what he was doing but this was sudden. The old wizard said “for now, I don't want you to repeat anything I'm telling you to anyone. It may be too dangerous. You must promise”. Lee promised.

The old man continued “you have suspected for a while now that I'm the wizard from the story you heard about, correct?” Lee nodded it was so. The old wizard said “well, your suspicion is correct. I am that wizard. I'm the one who helped the human continent push back the demon continent in the great war.

After that, as you know, I wandered around the continent being offered positions and jobs by all the provinces. They tried to use my power to strengthen themselves and gain influence over the other provinces. It was just like the bickering they were doing before the demon invasion that made them too weak to defend it the first time. The fools had learned nothing”. The old man showed anger on his face over this. He continued.

“Well, in the end I decided that if I gave the secrets of magic that I've learned to the outside world that it wouldn't solve anything. It would only make conflicts more deadly and cause more damage. So I decided instead of that to pass my knowledge on to a small number of students. I journeyed around the entire continent finding a students who I thought were good hearted and wanted to learn.

Their parents were happy to let me teach them. Who wouldn't want their child to learn magic from the greatest wizard who ever lived? So I taught them. They lived with me the majority of the year. The ones who had families went home to see them at times but a few were orphans and stayed with me year round. I thought of these students like my own adopted children. I never had any of my own.

Perhaps it was cause I got too close that I couldn't see the deception happening in front of me. I constantly think, if I somehow could have done more to teach right from wrong, if things could've been different then maybe I could've stopped in all from happening. In any case, when it looked like me and the rest of my students were about to die one of my best students sacrificed himself and created the barrier.

The wasn't the plan of course, but it was the only option left. If that evil scheme had succeeded and we all died then there would have been no one left to stop the ambitions of... Well, it would have been an even worse outcome. However, the price was not just the life of my student but it left about 1/3rd of the total population of the continent sealed off. Just as they now couldn't get to us, neither could we get to them.

It's my personal hope that the wizards and people in those provinces managed to fight and resist. Deep in my heart, I don't believe that is what happened. When that barrier went up, the power of that one student in particular was not all that far behind my own. Their genius may even surpass mine.

What I think happened is, knowing their resourcefulness, power and ambition, is that they eventually managed to take over the provinces and reshaped them in their image. If that barrier comes down, I'm unsure of what we'll face. But we need to be ready”.

The old man looked to Lee and said “I blame myself for the death of my student and the barrier that went up. I swore to never teach again as I believed it proved I was not fit to teach anyone. That is why I was so against teaching you Lee. I can not tell you the joy it has given me to raise such a fine student. I'm glad the last one I shall teach is you”.

Lee was touched by the old man's words and silent for a time. After being silent for a moment Lee asked “if that is the case, what should we do about all this? How do we get ready?”

The old man said “that is why I want you to go to that school. I want you to get a sense for how strong the wizards and students are there. If you make some trusted friends who can help you then all the better. Mostly, I want to see if you can find disciples of any of my students still in the continent. If possible, I'd like to see them and talk about the barrier.

Besides myself, they should be the strongest wizards in the continent and together we can perhaps do something to strengthen the barrier and stop any more holes from forming in it”.

Lee asked “holes formed in the barrier?”

The old man said “Yes, it would be more accurate to say they were made from wizards inside the barrier. From my examination, they only lasted a short while and each time perhaps only 1 or maybe 2 people could be sent through. Over the last two years I sensed 5 such events, but it's possible a few more escaped my attention. They have started to happen in shorter intervals as the barrier has weakened”.

River asked “do you think your student is outside the barrier now?”

The old man pondered and answered “no, I would sense my own students, I think, if they were to use such magic . Besides, they are sly. Even being strong, they wouldn't put themselves in the open like that to face me, my students and all of the rest of the 8 provinces with only a few solders. They would only directly confront us if they were sure of their victory.”

The old man stood up and said “Between now and the next 3 months, we'll train and make sure you're as strong as possible. Keep in mind, the people who have escaped the barrier are likely their agents, looking for myself, my students or any disciples we have. For your safety and that of your family, you shouldn't let anyone know about you. I would expect anyone they sent would be very powerful. So you need to be careful. Very careful.”

Over the next 3 months Lee trained with the old man and Alura. His parents managed to save up 3 gold coins for his journey to the magic academy. They couldn't afford a carriage to take him but they would be sure he would have enough money to eat. The old man brushed it off insisting he would be fine and any trouble he met along the way should be scared of him and not the other way around.

On the day Lee left he received a very emotional goodbye from his parents. They told him how proud they've become and they were confident he would be able to become a great wizard and have the life they wished for him. That they would hope to see him very soon when he was on break. Not surprisingly, his mother was in tears.

What was surprising was Alure. For perhaps only the 2nd time, Lee saw Alura was in tears. She gave him a strong tight hug and whispered so softly he could barely hear “you know, I would be if you asked”. When Lee asked what she said Alura didn't answer. She just said “be sure to write! If you forget me I'll never forgive you!”

Lee promised to write his parents, the old man and Alura. The he set off on his journey with nothing but the clothes on his back, the good clothes in his bag and 3 gold coins.

*****

Present day

Lee had just finished his first training practice with Mary. He expected she would be pretty intense as he had seen her in matches but he was not expecting this level of desperate training. He asked her “Mary, I understand you want to get strong, but there is no rush. We have 3 years till we graduate after all. We can go at a steadier pace. You have no chance of failing the year end test”.

Mary gave him an angry look and said “I'm not worried about 3 years from now. That fight against 'The Shame of the House of Sun' made me realize how far I have to go. Most of all I want to be strong enough so I can get to fight in the school continent tournament and test myself against all the other young wizards.”

Lee asked “What the heck is the school continent tournament?”