This is my entry for this writing contest by Muggle Worthy.


I sprinted down the halls, with a group of guards close on my tail. I saw a window up ahead, tightened my grip around the satchel I was holding, leaped through the window, shattering the panes. As I was in the air, I turned around and saluted to them before my friend riding a griffon caught me.

"Did you see that?!?" I excitedly asked Jaid (I know it's a bizarre name, so don't bring it up).

"Yes I did, but the plan was to get on at the top of the building... undetected!" he retorted.

"I was found out on the way up, so I had to think fast and improvise." I countered.

"But, if I hadn't seen you, you would've become a decoration on the road below!" he snapped at me.

"I knew you would though, you usually catch stuff like that." I replied.

"I know, but now we got a new problem... we got some of them following us." he stated.

Then a bolt of energy shot past us and exploded, destroying a church steeple. We flew to the side to avoid the rubble from the blast. I look back and see a royal mage flying towards us and catching up.

"ah... perfect! Just perfect! We got a royal mage too, but he doesn't look like a master yet, so I'll take care of him and you take the satchel back to base." I tell him.

"Don't die this time. But, good luck man." he replied.

"Hey! Who do you think I am? I ain't that reckless." I retorted.

"You tried to solo a dragon a week ago! But yeah, you aren't THAT reckless." he stated sarcastically.

"I-... I guess you're right, I'll be careful." I relented.

"Hmm... really nice conversation that distracted you from the fact that I caught up to you." The royal mage interjected.

"Welp... we made a mistake." I stated.

"Yeah..." Jaid agreed.

I jumped around and threw my dagger at him, he used a simple spell and deflected it to the side, I lunged at him, he flew to the side, I sailed past him, turned around and threw a rope that tied itself into a knot around his ankle and grabbed the other end. He looked at me, then the rope and brought out a knife to cut it, I drew a rune on the rope and it shot for the ground, bringing the mage down as I climbed the rope. I reached him and turned him to face the ground with me on top of him, we went though a building then hit the ground with as thud as I heard a few cracks. He lay still as I took his robe and staff, put on the robe and held the staff in my hand as I limped out of the building.

Right before I got out the mage stood back up and started chanting something I couldn't understand, till I looked down and saw that I was sinking into a portal and he said 'Maglidon Academy, Ignis Branch' and I sunk the rest of the way in. When I opened my eyes, I stood on a teleport pad in the accursed academy that supplied the kingdom with its fire mages that burned cities to the ground if they resisted one of the tyrant's commands.

"Well... I may be over my head, better get to a safe place to call Jaid and tell him the situation." I said to myself.

"Hey! Is that you Apprentice Bayoles?" someone behind me asked as I tensed up.

"N-No, I am new here." I replied.

"Then why do you have his robe?" she inquired.

"Because I... uh... um... I won it, yeah, I won it." I replied nervously.

"But where is Apprentice Bayoles?" she asked.

I turned to her, and said with a gloomy look, "He's dead..." I paused seeing her change from suspicion to shock and continued, "I saw it happen as I was headed to the teleport pads, thought I'd bring his stuff to his friends and tell them."

She took a step back and another, then tripped over her own feet. I walked closer to her.

"You want his stuff? Or no?" I asked her.

"N-No, I'll take them." she responded.

"Let me first change myself, then I'll give them to you. And do you know where the bathrooms are?" I told her.

"Follow me, I'll take you there." she instructed me.

"Okay, lead away!" I replied.

She starts walking off and I follow her, close on her heels. When we arrive at the bathrooms, she steps aside and motions for me to enter them.

"Here you are, go in and give me his items when you're done." she stated.

"Thanks, I'll only be gone a few minutes." I told her.

She nods as I walk into the bathroom, I take off the robe and staff and lay them against the wall as I hide all my weapons and the like inside my clothes so that she doesn't see any. Then I bring out a whispering stone and retell all that has happened, where I am and to send backup quickly, and then I sent it to my base. I finish tidying myself up and used a potion to dull the pain and walk out of the bathrooms, to be greeted by three Junior Fire Mages and her with a stern expression on her face.

"Uh... is something wrong?" I asked tentatively.

"Only two things. One, your story contradicted itself, you said you won the robe and staff, but later you said you took it from him. Two, we just received word Bayoles is alive, just that the one that the one that attacked him took his robe and staff, then vanished. Now who do we know that meets those qualifications I wonder?" she asked rhetorically.

"It uh... could be a coincidence?" I offered as a reason.

"I highly doubt that." she responded.

"Guess diplomacy is out the window." I said.

I bring out a knife and jab at one of the Junior Mages and hit him in the shoulder, as he stumbled backwards I ran past them and for a window, I jumped out the window, grabbed the ledge of the window and swing into the floor below and break into a sprint for the exit. I duck and weave between the apprentices, Junior and Senior Mages as I run for the exit, but I am stopped before I reach there by a Master Mage.

I skid to a stop in front of him and throw a knife at him, he sidesteps it and shoots a bolt of lightning at me, it hits me and throws me backwards, I hit the floor and slide along it. I get back up and run at him, but get knocked back down by a fireball, I get up a third time and throw a rock at him, which he grabs and melts in his hand.

"Thought that'd catch you off guard as it was so random." I stated.

"I am a master Mage! I am trained to keep an eye on many things at once." he replied.

He uses chains made of lightning to keep me down as the others arrive.

"Master Borrin, I see you've found the criminal. We can take him now, unless you wish to." that girl said.

"No, take him away. Although, I would like to speak with him privately later." he answered.

But then a portal opened up below me and I fell through it, and when I thought all was well I saw 'Master Borrin' following after me. I landed on the other end and began running away from it.

"A Master Royal Mage is right behind me! Get in cover!" I shout back as I run.

The Royal Mage lands in front of the portal and takes on the five wizards that had come to stop him, I duck behind a box full of knives and watch the battle. Three wizards stand back working on something, as the other two attack him with ice projectiles, but he jumps and spins between all of the projectiles, not being hit by a single one of them. He throws a fireball at one of the wizards in front of him and he hits him, he turns to the second one and lobs a lightning bolt at him and he goes down.

"Disappointing and Abysmal, are these really the powerful rivals that were causing so much trouble?" the mage Queried.

I ran when I saw that he only swiped to the side and sent out a wall of fire that severely burned the last three wizards who tried to use a spell to block it, I ran for the armory and grabbed a suit of plate armor and shield that was enchanted with fire resistance and an Icebane sword. I ran back to confront the Royal Mage, he shot a fireball at me, which I blocked with the shield.

"I see you got gear to fight me, but you forgot that the ground doesn't have the same protections." he stated as he touched the ground with his hand and it melted, making me sink into it.

"Just because it melted, doesn't mean I can't move in it still." I replied as I started wading through it.

The ground then hardened as he pulled his hand away, making me stuck in the ground no matter how hard I tried to move.

"Coward! Trapping me instead of fighting me!" I shouted to him.

"It will hold you till my allies arrive." he stated.

"A-Allies? What do you mean? You're bringing more people here?" I asked.

"Only a few, which area at. Maglidon Academy, Terra Branch, Maglidon Academy, Ventus Branch, Maglidon Academy, Aqua Branch." he replied as three portals opened and three female Master Royal Mages walked through them, one in brown, one in blue and one in purple.

"Is this the one the beat Bayoles?" the one in brown asked.

"Yes he is." the one in red replied.

"I'll take him back then, you three play nice and burn this place to the ground." the one in brown told them.

She chanted something and the stone around me lifted up and I went through the portal she came through and found myself in a different part of the academy.

"Great... I'm back here again." I said to no one in particular.
"And, you will stay here till we get that item back." she stated.

"What item?" I replied acting dumb.

"The one that you stole that Bayoles was guarding." she replied.

"No idea what you're talking about." I told her.

"THAT ARTIFACT!!" she shouted at me.

"Ah, that one, the one in the base you just destroyed?" I asked her.

"Then I will be right back." she stated as she ran off.

"Now then... how do I get out of this?" I asked myself.