A Friendly Scuffle

"Welcome." (Colt)

Colt held out his hands. His palms facing eachother. Praying to the sky.

The white gym was empty. No equipment, no snacks, water, benches, mirrors. Only a blank white space of nothingness.

And in the center of this space, floated a black cube. A cube with ancient writing and scriptures burned onto its rigid metal frame.

Yaku and Jack both stood silently. No door, no exit, no entrance. They were trapped.

"What are we doing here?" (Yaku)

Colt stepped forward. His arms pointed toward Yaku and Jack.

"Just a little get to know party before your next mission. I wanted to see my little trainees in action. A little sparring." (Colt)

Yaku turned to the box in the middle of the room. He knew exactly what it was at one glance.

"And why is there a Chance Box here?" (Yaku)

Jack walked up to the floating cube in the center.

"What's a chance box?" (Jack)

"A chance box is-" (Yaku)

Colt interrupted, grabbing the Chance Box from Jack's sight and tossing it to the other side of the room.

"A-a-a-a-a-ahahaha! Hey! Let me explain... A Chance Box is what the big higher uppies give to us sorcerers as rewards for killing big boys. You get all types of goodies. Sometimes garbage, sometimes garbage. But sometimes you get big expensive stuff. Got the gist. Ok, now let's-" (Colt)

Yaku looked close at its design. It was irregular, not like any Chance Box he had seen before.

"What class is this one?" (Yaku)

"Ahh... It's A-Class. Rare. Ok now lets start-" (Colt)

"Why is it here?" (Jack)

Colt sighed. He held out his praying hands.

"Enough chit chat. If yall can impress me, then it's all yours." (Colt)

Jack's eyes sparked up. He immediately switched from questioning mode to fighting mode.

"Let's go!" (Jack)

Colt jumped back. His feet off the ground. His body floating in the air.

Yaku stepped to the side.

"I'll let you two duke it out for now." (Yaku)

Jack looked up at Colt. His floating body. His feet hovering inches off the ground.

"Yin and Yang!" (Jack)

White and black. The two orbs appeared above Jack. His hands ready to fight. Ready to attack.

Colt noticed something interesting with Jack's magic.

"No hand signs? Haha! You expect to beat me with half-ass Magic like that?" (Colt)

Jack stepped up. He grabbed his black orb.

"If my magic is half-assed. Then yours is nothing." (Jack)

Colt pointed his pray toward him.

"Hahaha! Your cocky Jack. Very very cocky. So how about I teach you a lesson as we fight." (Colt)

It happened instantaneously. Colt flung across the room. His body perfectly still in the air, not a single movement by his arms, legs, head, chest, feet. he moved across the room without any resistance, as if he was falling vertically toward Jack.

Jack couldn't keep up with his eyes.

Yaku jumped to the side as Colt's blurred speed blazed past.

"Your Magic is limited Jack. You know the name, but not the feeling." (Colt)

He stopped in front of Jack. All his momentum gone in an instant, all his momentum turned into his fist. Into a powerful gravity in his arm. He pointed it toward one point.

"I'm sure you have been told this a couple of times before. But you don't really know your real magic yet. You are only a weasel in a cage of gold." (Colt)

"What-" (Jack)

Jack tried to move faster, move his orbs faster than Colt. But Colt was faster. Way faster. Too much faster.

SLAM!

He hit him in the stomach, sending him flying at high speeds across the white space. His body hitting the plain walls. A humbling thump and smack as Jack's body ragdolled to the ground below. He groaned out.

"Owwww!" (Jack)

He held his stomach tight, rolling over to his side. His two orbs slowly disappeared from thin air.

Colt turned to Yaku.

"Don't look at me. I'm not interfering in your one v one." (Yaku)

Colt turned around. He jumped up and down. Readied himself.

"Who said this was a one v one." (Colt)

"What-" (Yaku)

He slapped his hands together. Pointed at Yaku.

Yaku stepped back, he looked around him, for anything to use as a weapon, for any hole to use his magic on. But there was nothing, no options.

"Monsters don't do one v one's. You either fight or die." (Colt)

He flung across the room. Faster than fast. Yaku couldn't keep up with his gravity defining movements.

Colt stopped abruptly. He held out his arm. Using the same attack, that he used on Jack.

But Yaku was ready. He tucked in his arms, preparing to be hit, ready to counter attack.

Colt punched.

Tap...

Yaku looked up. He felt Colt's hand tap him on the forehead.

Colt turned away. He walked across the room.

"You're not going to-" (Yaku)

"Don't let your guard down." (Colt)

Colt slapped his hands together. He prayed toward the wall.

Yaku suddenly got lifted off his feet. His world turning upside down. He flung to the wall Colt was pointing at.

Colt moved his hands up and down, down and up. Yaku hit every wall, every direction. Up and down, he fell across the room, smacking, sliding, hitting, grinding, around and around.

He realized his palms. Yaku fell to the ground with a thump. Covered in scratches and bruises.

Colt turned around with a dramatic spin. He swiped his white jacket like a pompous winner. Letting it fall like an action hero who just took out the main villain.

"Are we already done? Is that all you boys can do? I haven't even seen you boys pull out that all famous magic. Not one..." (Colt)

He turned around.

"Or are you guys so weak you can't summon your magic-" (Colt)

They were standing. Their faces blocked by deep silhouettes, their fierce eyes glistening in the dark rays.

Jack stepped up.

"Yin and Yang!" (Jack)

He held out his black orb, pointing it right at Colt.

"That punch... Was weaker than any monster I've faced before." (Jack)

Yaku took off his black uniform jacket. He laid it across the ground tieing it up into a small pouch-like-bag.

He placed his hand inside.

"Spotless Forever!" (Yaku)

A purple portal formed inside the jacket bag. He pulled out a long glowing green glaive. It's dark blade and hard staff standing out in the room of all white, against his enemy who stood in all white. He pointed its hooked edge out.

Jack grabbed his white orb with his other hand. He kicked it toward the ceiling and started counting down in his head.

"Yaku, remember what we talked about?" (Jack)

"Yeah. I'm on it. Just focus on that attack." (Yaku)

Their eyes filled with determination.

Colt grinned ten times.

"That's more like it. That's more like it! I've been waiting for you two! Two Sorcerers worthy!" (Colt)

He held out his hands. He pointed at Yaku.

"That weapon. It's your other power isn't it? It looks strong, mighty strong. But like an old man once said, a weapon is as strong as the one who wields it." (Colt)

"Then it's ten times stronger." (Yaku)

"Ha! That's the attitude." (Colt)

Yaku swung Dolos across the air. It's pointed guillotine-like blade swinging like a helicopter around the tight squeeze of the narrow gymnasium.

Around and around it went. Hitting the floor, the walls, the everything. Scratching up the plain white surface, sparks flying in all directions.

Colt flew across the room. His praying hands moved up and down. His body floated up and down, around the room he went, watching for the glaives range, making sure the attack wouldn't hit, would touch him.

He circled the range of Yaku.

"Your attacking is odd. You're confident. But you're not aiming for the hit. It looks more like your aiming for the..." (Colt)

Colt turned to Jack. He turned his hands toward Jack.

"You're the mastermind." (Colt)

In a split-second decision, Jack jumped back. His body in the air, his hands pointed out. He could only see Colt for a few frames. His body moving like a blur in the pitch white room. So with only a single black orb, Jack fell back to the ground below.

In that split second Colt saw the fierceness in Jack. He saw the confidence in his abilities. But he also saw the weakness in his magic. He saw the slowness in Jack. So without knowing anything of Jack's actual magic abilities he leapt forward. All his power into his fists.

Jack landed on his left leg. Colt punched. The force and sound in Jack's landing leg disappeared. Colt flinched. Jack held out his back orb.

"When did you-" (Colt)

He looked to the ground. He saw a white orb underneath his foot. His weight off balance. Jack released only a small amount of force through his black orb. He launched himself away, dodging Colt in a split second.

"That's your ma-" (Colt)

Yaku gave him no time to speak. He swung Dolos.

"Dolos Cloud!" (Yaku)

A green cloud filled with puss and goop exploded from the hook of the glaive. Colt immediately pointed his hands to the ceiling.

Flip.

He flipped his body upside down. His feet planted on the ceiling, his white and black-tipped hair flowing on his face like gravity was normal up there.

"Yikes. I need a quick breather. That was a lot. Jack I have to commend you for that. Quick thinking with your magic. Very smart." (Colt)

Jack and Yaku both stared up at Colt with their exhausted sweating faces.

"Yaku, your magic staff blade weapon thingy is very annoying. I have to commend you on being able to hold back my advances. And attacking when I was confused. Very very cool. I like it you two. Your magics are very strange. Especially your's Jack. You can move forces between your orbs. But they are just too slow. You had to use the art of surprise to confuse me. But still, very commendable." (Colt)

Jack kicked his white orb into the sky. He mouthed out thirty, twenty-nine, twenty-eight... Yaku reached into his jacket bag portal. He pulled out Hermes.

"Colt... You are still underestimating us. If that is all your magic can do then you stand no chance." (Yaku)

"Ohhh no-no-no-no. Yaku, you don't understand the real Epitome of magic. If you have been listening closely, you probably would have noticed that I haven't used a single voice command yet. Only hand commands." (Colt)

"What?!" (Jack)

Colt released and slapped his palms back together. He flipped back to normal. His legs pointing to the floor.

He slowly floated.

"Magic can be limited by what you say or do. Restraints and conditions increase magic and restrict magic." (Colt)

"What are yous saying? That Magic can be changed?" (Yaku)

"No-no-no. Silly fools..." (Colt)

He released his pray. He fell to the ground with a thump He stood in between the two fighters.

"Magic is change!" (Colt)

Yaku tossed his Hermes dagger into the sky.

"It's been two minutes!" (Jack)

"On it!" (Yaku)

"What are you two-" (Colt)

Colt put his two hands together again. His prayer to the sky, to the unknown being above. He jumped up. Floating once again.

Yaku crossed his arms and fingers into an X.

"Hermes Flash!" (Yaku)

Jack tossed out his black orb. Colt jump over it. His praying hands pointed at Jack.

"Throwing your only weapon is a death wish." (Colt)

In a blur of speed.

"Time is up!" (Jack)

The white orb in the sky vanished. Two minutes of force and magic channeled into one orb, into one point.

"You underestimated us." (Yaku)

Yaku channeled all his remaining magic into Hermes. The lightning blade turning supersonic. It hit Jack's slowly floating black orb.

Two powerful forces against each other. Like Yin and Yang. One can't exist without the other. Living in harmony for all existence. But what happens when that peace is broken.

It happened so fast that not even Colt could see it.

Colt was flying toward Jack. His palms together. He felt a sudden change in frequency. The room turned dense. A single point behind him had suddenly and magically increased in power.

Hermes had hit the black orb at the exact moment Jack released his saved up force. The two collided at the same exact point, creating a short and small burst of power.

This power was comparable to a bomb going off in a small box.

Flash!

The black orb shot out like a beam of godly speed. It pierced through the thick layers of white concrete and steel. It went layers deep, going right through the building and outside into the fresh Tokyo air.

Jack and Yaku both fell back exhausted by how much power they had put out. They looked up to see if they hit Colt.

He was missing.

They turned to the other side of the room. He was leaning on the wall with a grinning face.

"How did you-" (Jack)

They looked at his hands. They saw his praying technique, his slapped together palms pointing out toward the sky. But something was off, there was something different with his finger arrangements. All but his two pointer fingers were pointing out. He had two of his fingers tucked in.

"You changed your hand sign?" (Yaku)

"Hahahahaha. You boys noticed. I had to use my first finger technique. I'm very disappointed in myself. But not with you boys. You two have truly... Sniff sniff." (Colt)

He began to pretend cry.

"You two have exceeded my expectations. I'll have to give you the ok. And the prize." (Colt)

"Are you sure? You look like you haven't even broken a sweat yet?" (Jack)

"Yeah yeah, you two can have the box. I was gonna sell it off anyway." (Colt)

Colt released his prayer. He put his hands in his pockets. He walked over and knocked on the hidden door.

Jack and Yaku both laid back exhausted and beaten.

"Open up Bob. Were done." (Colt)

The door swung open. Bob stood on the other side with his silly round serious face.

"You already done, Master?" (Bob)

"Yes, and this time it was actually worth it." (Colt)

Before leaving he turned around for the last time.

"Jack, Yaku. You two have more potential than anyone I've seen before. Especially when working together. I'm sending yall on a mission tomorrow, so when you're done, call me up. I'd be down to train ya." (Colt)

He left.

---

Colt and Bob walked across the building. They reached Colt's office. Colt entered looking at the stack of papers and letters. He looked down at the pile. He saw a singular letter in all red, with the words Emergency written all over it.

"Master Colt. That doesn't look so good." (Bob)

"It definitely doesn't. Read it for me." (Colt)

Bob opened up the letter and read it out loud.

"On the Sixth of December. A Black Level A Rift appeared in Meguro City, Tokyo, Japan." (Bob)

"Sixth of December. That's today?" (Colt)

"There's more Master Colt... First-Class Captain Yua has requested the backup of the Special Magic Squad." (Bob)

Colt sat down in his comfy swivel chair. He looked out his small window. He looked at the sunset across Tokyo.

"Funny. So that's why Yua put us in Tokyo. That sneaky redhead. Always using me. But..." (Colt)

He fell further into thought.

"But the Grand Masters probably not going to be happy with it. After my last big shit show, with a Rift. He'd be pissed if I took one step outside. (Colt)

Bob suddenly turned ill. He looked at the last sentences of the paper. Colt turned worried and confused.

"What is it Bob, spit it out you hungry-hungry hippo." (Colt)

"Master Colt... About what you just said. The Grand Sorcerer is... He's... It says he's coming here... That he's on his way here as we speak." (Bob)

A pause.

"Shit." (Colt)