Just Like You Imagined It

The soft and tan hands of Taylor made him feel some type of way. The touch of a foreign body…

The ref ran to Elijah and expressed her gratitude. "Thank you for catching her, and very well done. That fight may have been short, but I can already tell you will be a top candidate, even with a water affinity."

Elijah replied with thanks, and gave her the reins to Taylor. She quickly woke up, and began crying. Shock and pain, that was it. The emotions of Elijah were high on the way back to the transition room. It felt like a moment of laughter would burst out of his mouth. Breathing was difficult, and his smile could not be controlled. 

Ecstasy is one hell of a drug.

 From the view of Elijah, this looked exactly like a football field, without the grass of course, and had eight entrances where the players could come out of instead of two. Rows and rows of wooden seats that were not foldable lined the bottom sections, with private balcony seating areas higher up. Most likely meant for nobles.

Not a single familiar person was in sight, especially his brother or the older siblings of Novius and Alexia. Elijah became entranced in the obviously orange core battles. Casting speeds were quicker, spells were more destructive, and most importantly, the shapes the spells could take were more advanced. With every spell sent, the wind from the impact slightly blew my hair to the side. 

There he was, the underdog. Elijah walked into the transition room while handing his sword back to the attendant, and receiving the small leather identification piece in return. Not many people saw his fight, but his friends sure did. They were practically stacked on top of each other while peering behind the board that was hanging from the ceiling.

"I wish I could say I was impressed, Elijah, but the fight was so quick!" Theon said as he lightly pushed his shoulder.

Niko gave a simple nod with a smile.

The day was quickly passed as large amounts of seating arrangement were brought into the transition room. Couches, tables, simple chairs, and even stretching mats. One thing the organizers apologized for was the lack of comfort.

Author's Note: All character fights will be expressed, but only the ones that matter. Alexia, Novius, Theon, Raylen, Niko, and even Emery. That's if I decide they should have a fight that is expressed. :)

Novius had easily won his fight with speed. Alexia struggled, but in the end won against a fire mage by using their fire against them. Theon and Raylen had both easily won. While Niko had gone overboard and received a warning from the ref.

A quick and silent conversation between Elijah and Niko was held with a few head nods and hand gestures.

Emery walked past Elijah while pointing his hand at him. His arm was dripping with water which meant he had been healed, but without any words Elijah knew what he meant.

"Elijah! Your name is on the board again!" Alexia was nervous, and therefore sent her gaze to the board quite frequently.

Laughs were heard from his friends, but quickly shifted to good luck charms. What were true friends if they didn't tease or belittle you once in a while.

Fenris. Black hair, earth affinity, and on the taller side. Simple black clothing which probably meant he was a commoner. Meanwhile, Elijah was wearing quite sophisticated black and gray clothing. Thin high quality fur, small hints of leather protection over the shoulders and stomach, and small silver tidbits that slightly shine in the light.

Unlike his last match, Fenris walked towards Elijah for a display of sportsmanship. "I understand you have a water affinity, but I will not be going easy. I wish you good luck!"

"Thank you very much! I think you are a very good person and I wish you the best in life even past this tournament!" Elijah's response stopped him in his tracks.

Fenris ran up to Elijah, and shook his hand with a smile. "I think we could be great friends!"

The ref was getting annoyed as they would be here the entire day watching the lowest of the low mages fight against each other. "GO!"

Both parties stayed away from conjuring magic until they neared each other. In Elijah's hand, was a ball of water expanding with every millisecond. A path of water left behind his body. Imitating an earthquake, Fenris placed his hands on the floor and split the ground while slightly raising the ground below him with every step. The tension was rising as not a single attack had been thrown yet.

A ball of water the size of Elijah's entire body slammed against a wall Fenris had erected. Simply because of the amount of water, Fenris had to raise himself to buy time while he wiped the water away from his eyes.

In his previous fight, he noticed Taylor was easily blinded by the water — partly from a natural reaction and partly from a physical reaction. This gave him an idea to use this to his advantage until people had adapted. A disadvantage in strength, without using his space affinity in combination, turned into an advantage in trickery only if not all of the water was blocked. The same could be true with wind and fire, but the effect wouldn't be as large as they naturally dissipate into the air without mana.

Giving his opponent an idea of his strength, Elijah waved his hands to let loose a water blade that barely scratched the dirt and stone pillar Fenris had just jumped off from. This was a massive mistake. Fenris had already been planning his next move, and with Elijah directly in front of the earthen barrier, he unexpectedly took a big hit to the chest from a projectile Fenris had created from the other side of the wall.

The ground was filled with sharp rocks, and Elijah's hands began bleeding as he picked himself back off his ass. With every shallow breath, Elijah felt a cracking noise in one of his upper ribs.

A divided face. Pain and confidence.

The palm of Elijah opened to face the sky, and a teardrop mixed with his blood. Water began rushing thinly all over his body, and when Fenris saw this sight, he winced and began running at full speed.

Again, beneath Elijah's feet, was a torrent of water quickly flowing towards his target. His mana stayed within the water, and with a single thought, Elijah's body sped forward in the formation of an arc. It was as if the king of seahorses created a domain to freely and elegantly travel across the water, because even with Fenris' earthen barriers and projectiles, nothing was able to stop its target from closing in.

"I GOT YOU!!"

Fenris was beside himself in joy for only three seconds. Elijah's water had stopped flowing from his feet, and therefore his speed drastically reduced. 

Of course Elijah had a plan.

A blade of water with what looks like specks of light were sent straight through the thin wall Fenris had created. Following that, was a dense ball of water with a force that packed a punch. 

What truly caught Fenris, and solidified his defeat, was not the unexpected wall that slammed into his face, but instead a sword that rattled against the floor to the left of where Fenris was standing. A simple distraction that made absolutely zero sense. A distraction that caused him to hesitate for just a single second as half of the earthen wall he created himself slammed into his face. From Elijah's point of view, it felt like time slowed down. A chain of events replayed in his mind, and with the imagination of an age no one in this kingdom had reached, everything came to reality.