Balin's gaze swept across the camp.
It paused.
"Iris."
The usually aloof mage looked up.
For the first time since entering the academy... A hint of surprise crossed her face.
"...Balin."
A quiet silence settled between them, neither seemed quite sure how to begin.
Finally...
Balin spoke.
"So."
"You made it."
A small nod.
"I did."
"You too."
"Yeah."
Another silence.
Finn looked between them.
"Do you two know each other?"
Before Balin could answer, Iris did.
"We grew up in the same town."
Balin added quietly,
"We used to train together."
Rhea blinked.
"Oh."
She looked between them again.
"That explains a lot."
"Does it?"
"No, I just wanted to looks smart."
Finn nodded.
"That's fair."
Balin shifted his greatsword onto his shoulder.
"I didn't think you'd make it this far."
"I could say the same."
"I nearly failed the first trial."
"I know."
"You know?"
"You've always been bad at dealing with yourself."
...
"That sounded less insulting in my head."
A tiny smile tugged at the corner of Iris's mouth.
It disappeared almost immediately.
Then...
Her eyes drifted past Balin.
Someone standing a few steps behind him caught her attention.
A fox beastkin girl, long black hair, golden eyes.
She had a lazy smile.
One ear twitched as she noticed Iris looking.
She gave an innocent little wave.
The fox girl laughed.
"My, what a warm greeting, I was hoping for a hug."
"You'll survive without one."
"I probably will."
Turning away before the fox could continue teasing her, Iris walked back toward her own group.
"Barry."
"Sup?"
"Yeah?"
Two voices answered simultaneously.
Everyone paused.
Barry blinked.
The other Barry blinked.
Iris closed her eyes.
"Our Barry."
"Oh."
Signaling the other they huddle up together, lowering her voice.
"We might have a problem."
Barry followed her gaze toward Balin's group.
"How bad?"
She counted quietly.
"Balin power is kinda complicated it's better to see it for yourself, tier one is all about manifestation, if I had to simplify it, it's a manifestation of one self, a clone to be exact, that perform a single action before disappearing."
"The fox."
"The shield bearer, He can use earth."
"The archer, this one wind."
"Barry, Uses Fire"
Finn frowned.
"
"They're not random applicants anymore, they're people we've known since childhood."
Barry nodded.
"True."
Barry followed her gaze toward Balin's team.
Despite eliminating twelve teams...
their own teamwork was, admittedly, held together by pure overwhelming force.
"Our teamwork, sucks."
Finn looked offended.
"What?, we've won twelve fights."
"We've won twelve ambushes."
Barry corrected.
"Different thing."
Rhea scratched her cheek.
"He's kinda right, we mostly just..."
She made an explosion gesture with both hands.
"Hit whoever he points at."
Dorian nodded once.
"Our coordination is... functional."
Finn looked between them.
"Should I be worried?"
"Probably."
Barry answered honestly.
He folded his arms.
"Fortunately, i have a terrible idea."
Finn groaned immediately.
"I don't like that sentence."
Barry ignored him.
"We do it like we always do."
Rhea grinned.
"Now you're speaking my language."
"We force one-on-one fights."
"Dorian keeps their defender busy."
"Rhea takes whoever looks strongest after Balin."
"Iris, just fight whoever you have beefs with.."
"Beefs?."
"Someone who you hate, weren't you planning on it?, Anyway finn..."
He looked at him.
"Do your best bud."
"That works for me"
Barry pointed toward Balin.
"And I'll drag him away."
"By yourself?"
"Mhm."
Iris frowned.
"You're certain?"
"I did tell you, I'd punch him in the face."
He spoke with the complete confidence of a man who had already accepted the outcome.
"Just-."
Iris hesitated.
"Actually beat his ass."
Barry gave a reassuring thumbs-up.
"Will do."
"Are you guys done?"
Balin chime in.
"I guess so... Thanks for waiting?."
"No problem."
Barry started walking.
After three steps...
He suddenly stopped.
"Actually."
He slowly turned back toward everyone.
A grin spread across his face.
"Oh no."
Finn whispered.
Barry cupped his hands around his mouth.
"THERE'S LOVE IN THE AIR!"
The entire clearing went silent.
He pointed dramatically between Balin and Iris.
"Balin and Iris!"
"Sitting in a tree!"
"K-I-S-S-I-N-G!"
Silence.
Absolute silence.
Balin froze mid-step.
Iris's face instantly flushed red.
The fox beastkin bent over laughing.
"I KNEW IT!"
Rhea shouted.
Dorian quietly rubbed his temple.
"I briefly believed... he possessed restraint."
Finn buried his face in both hands.
"No, he's just like this."
The fox beastkin wiped a tear from her eye before looking toward Iris.
"Is he always like this?"
Iris watched Barry happily strolling toward Balin as though he hadn't just publicly embarrassed both of them.
She sighed.
"I've only known him for a day and a half."
A pause.
"And I'm leaning to it being yes."
Barry moved first.
One moment he was standing with his hands in his pockets...
The next.
He was already in front of Balin.
Balin's expression sharpened.
The instant Barry stepped within reach.
A translucent teal figure burst into existence beside Balin.
It looked exactly like him.
Without a word, the phantom raised an identical zweihänder.
SLASH!
A massive downward arc split the air.
Barry's pupils narrowed.
He twisted sideways.
The spectral blade crashed into the earth with a deafening BOOM, sending stone fragments flying.
The clone dissolved into drifting teal light before it even touched the ground again.
One action, before disappearing.
Barry smiled.
"Neat."
Balin didn't answer.
The moment Barry's attention shifted to the fading construct.
He moved.
Not forward.
Backward.
He intended to regroup with his team.
Unfortunately.
Barry was faster.
A hand shot out.
His fingers caught the collar of Balin's shirt before he could escape.
"Got you."
Balin's eyes widened.
"What"
"Come with me."
Barry yanked.
Hard.
The two of them sprinted several steps toward the cliff's edge.
"Balin!"
The fox beastkin's ears shot upright.
She lunged.
The shield bearer slammed his tower shield into the ground, trying to intercept, with earth magic.
The fire mage launched a wave of flames.
Too late.
Barry planted one foot on the edge.
"Off we go."
"Wait-."
He threw Balin over the cliff.
Before jumping in himself.
For the briefest instant
Everyone froze.
Barry and Balin disappeared over the edge together.
"..."
"..."
"WHAT IN THE WORLD?!"
Finn's horrified scream echoed across the forest.
Silence lasted exactly half a second.
Then.
"After them!"
The fox beastkin shouted.
She took one step.
Before taking a step back, dodging a spear that blocked her path.
CLANG!
Dorian lowered its tip.
"I'm afraid..."
His stance settled.
"...our leader requested otherwise."
The shield bearer charged.
Dorian met him head-on.
Steel rang across the mountainside.
The fox clicked her tongue.
"Iris."
"Marie..."
"So we're finally doing this."
"It appears so."
Golden eyes met calm blue ones.
Mana stirred.
The air between them shimmered.
The fox grinned.
"I've been looking forward to this."
"I haven't."
Blue ribbons of water spiraled around Iris's fingers.
Across from her, black flames curled around the fox's claws like living tails.
Neither moved.
Then.
Both vanished.
Water and black fire collided in an explosion of steam.
Nearby
The armored defender with the same name as their leader, lowered his stance.
Rhea rolled her shoulders.
"Oh."
She flashed a grin.
"No giant sword guy?"
The knight pointed his shield toward her.
"I'll be enough."
"We'll see."
She hoisted her massive axe.
"Hope your shield has health insurance."
With a roar, she charged.
The impact shook the clearing.
The enemy fire mage raised his bow.
Scarlet mana ignited around it's tip.
Scarlet arrows shot toward Dorian, but was easily blocked.
Dorian smiled politely.
"This will be fun."
Meanwhile
Finn looked around at the battlefield that had somehow erupted into complete chaos in less than three seconds.
"..."
He pointed toward the cliff.
"They just..."
He looked at nobody in particular.
"...jumped."
A nearby tree creaked.
Another explosion echoed from somewhere below.
Finn pinched the bridge of his nose.
"I don't get paid enough for this."
Then he remembered.
"I'm not even getting paid."
.....
I drove the tip of my zweihänder into the cliff face.
SKRRRRAAAAPE!
Stone burst apart beneath the blade.
The impact tore a glowing scar through the rock as sparks scattered into the valley below.
My fall slowed.
The friction bled away what remained of my momentum until, with a sharp twist, I kicked away from the cliff and landed on a narrow ledge.
I looked up.
High above me...
Barry was still falling.
There wasn't even the slightest trace of panic on his face.
His hands remained tucked inside his pockets, as though plummeting off a mountain was nothing more than a minor inconvenience.
The wind carried his voice down to me.
"I'll be waiting."
A moment later, he reached out and caught a thick branch jutting from the cliffside.
It bent almost to the breaking point before snapping him sideways.
He used the recoil to redirect his fall.
Instead of smashing into the rocks below, he landed on a steep slope.
He rolled.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
Each tumble bled away another piece of momentum until he came to a complete stop.
Then...
He simply stood up.
Like he'd done this before.
I stared.
...
The sensible choice was obvious.
Climb back up.
Return to my team.
Fight alongside them.
That was what any competent leader would do.
...
A laugh escaped my throat.
"Hah."
I loosened my grip on the ledge.
The wind embraced me once more as I stepped into empty air.
My eyes never left the purple-haired idiot waiting below.
"That's exactly what I wanted."
The ground rushed toward me.
Mana surged through my body.
For a single instant, a translucent teal duplicate appeared beneath me.
The clone swung its zweihänder into the earth.
BOOM!
The impact shattered the landing, sending a shockwave rippling through the trees.
I landed in a crouch.
Dust drifted through the air.
When it cleared...
Barry was standing exactly where I'd left him.
Bat resting lazily across his shoulder.
A grin spread across his face.
"What a show-off."
I rested my zweihänder across my shoulder.
"Says the man who jumped off a cliff with his hands in his pockets."