Jace the Elemental

"There's a reason I've made him my partner," Aurora said flatly, her tone leaving no room for debate. "We think similarly. Now, since we have all ten of our members, let's review our skills and introduce ourselves."

Jace was frozen in place. Partner? He knew Aurora considered him useful, but he hadn't realized she saw him as an equal. A strange feeling of accomplishment washed over him, being acknowledged by someone who had been training for literally her entire life wasn't something he took lightly. He glanced at her, but her expression was as unreadable as ever.

"I'll go first," Aurora said, placing a hand on her chest. "I'm Aurora Dusk. I specialize in Void and Earth magics." Her introduction was quick and precise, leaving no room for elaboration.

The group fell silent for a moment, the weight of her words settling over them. Jace cleared his throat, stepping forward. "I guess I'll go next," he said. "I'm Jace Carter. My primary elements are Ice for offense and Earth for defense, but I also have Fire and Water." He finished with a slight bow, more out of habit than formality.

Ethan raised his hand, grinning awkwardly. "I'm Ethan Hayes. I'm a Lightning specialist, focusing on offensive power." He gave a cringy thumbs-up, which earned a few chuckles from the group.

"Um since Aurora said I'll be normally paired with Ethan I'll go next." Selene said, taking a breath to soothe her nerves. "My name is Selene Veyne, I'm primarily a defensive and utility caster who uses Shadow, Earth and Wood." She gave a deep bow, her tone steady despite her initial hesitation.

"We'll go next," a woman spoke up. She had jet black hair with a silver streak running through it, and Jace thought she looked wiry and resourceful. "I'm Astra Vexthorne, and this is my twin brother, Elias Vexthorne," she said, gesturing to the man beside her. His dark brown hair also had silver streaks that made Jace think that it ran in the family. Unlike his sister, Elias looked quite athletic.. "He uses Dark and Acid magic, and I have Water, Ice, and Metal magics." Astra added, her introduction was cheerful and kind,

"Lyra, Wind, Crystal, Fire and Wood." Lyra said quickly, her tone sharp and to the point.

The shorter man with ash brown hair took a step forward. "Lucian Edevane, I use Light magic focusing entirely on defensive barriers." Jace was drawn to his eyes, their pale gray/blue color seemed to have lost any luster they once had.

"My turn." A man with copper red hair said, quickly raising his hand. " Orion Lysander! Resident genius of creative spells and occasional disaster zone! I use Water, Fire, Wind, Earth, and Wood." He explained, constantly talking with his hands. "My magic is about keeping people guessing. I know I'm not the smartest, but I'm confident in my creativity." 

Finally the last man took a step forward, his almost porcelain like skin drawing everyone's attention. "Felix Verren, I specialize in field control magic, using Earth, Wood, Metal, and Lava magics." he pushed his basic glasses up as he spoke, revealing his cold steel looking eyes. Jace couldn't help but notice his slender build, which made it seem like he had never done any physical training.

As the group started lightly chatting amongst themselves, Jace took a moment to himself. It felt like their group was strong—on paper, at least. Now, it was just a matter of how well they meshed as a team. He glanced around at the others, noting their varied personalities and abilities.

After a few minutes of discussing future plans and abilities, it appeared that everyone had formed their ten-person groups. Lord Severian stood from his chair again, his presence commanding immediate silence.

"Alright, everyone," he said, clapping to gather their attention. "Now that it seems you all have your teams, allow me to announce the format for your first contest." His purple magic shimmered in the air behind him, writing out the format in glowing letters. "Like I said before, this will be a three round contest. You'll earn one point per round that your team wins, meaning if you lose all three rounds, you'll score zero points." His words carried a slight warning, a reminder that every round would count.

"Round one is for five people," he continued, his voice echoing across the room. "You'll be running through a gauntlet, where the first team to finish wins. Rounds two and three are much simpler. Round two is a one on one duel, while round three is a two on two duel." Lord Severian gestured toward the glowing purple writing, which now displayed the details of each round in clear, elegant script.

"I'll give you ten minutes to choose who will be representing your team for each round." Lord Severian added before sitting back down on his wooden chair. He pulled out a notebook, ready to record everything.

Jace turned and looked at Aurora, a fire burning in his eyes. "Don't worry Jace," Aurora said, slightly shaking her head at his intense expression. "The one on one duel is yours." She couldn't hide the ever so tiny smirk that tugged at the corner of her mouth.