A Tail of Two Dragons (Part 2) by Astrodragon

Thulia, snuggled up to her partner, seeming a lot happier now she wouldn’t have to spend her time polishing gargoyles.

“So we now have splendid, polished and clean gargoyles?”

Thulia nodded. “Well, a lot of them, anyway. While I understand the effort was for my detention, I was slightly puzzled when I finished.”

“Oh?”

“The Imp was crouching on one muttering something about ‘beware she who hides in the darkness.”

She looked around in some puzzlement at the amused responses from the rest of the group. “I’m not getting another human thing, am I?

Yes the Bat Imp

Sun 4th December, 10 a.m., Morgana’s shared magic workroom

Thulia and Noelle watch Morgana at work on her combat outfit, great ideas for what to enchant the suit with. Grimes's suggestion should be a part of all combat outfits if the student can handle the enchanting. First draft, not for serious fighting, always good to test out a first draft of something like this in non-potentially deadly combat situations.

Noelle, learning how to make your own costume if you plan to work as a hero, villain, or even in just superpowered disaster relief is important. Never make a costume that is an obvious call-out to the nature of your powers if at all possible.

Padding for sensitive or embarrassing areas, Mrs. Ryan is a wise woman. Utility belt and one of the things she lists it holding is snacks, can't run low on energy in a fight. A nice color combination for her combat outfit. And doesn't restrict her movements, now that is a proper superhero costume. I wonder what Thulia will think of the combat finals.

Monday 5th December, evening, Crystal Hall

Aww, Thulia and Morgana finally get to snuggle together. Bwahaha, I knew Imp could do something like that with the gargoyles.

Vic asked about the room they found, Bianca had to take over the job on it because of Laura's absences. Registration still going through the system, yikes on the deep cleaning service taking so long, and everything should be ready by the start of the next term. For a room they just found that isn't bad. Up to 4K in total for the cost, eep. Hehe, it is a meeting room, but you know other students will call it M3's lair.

Monday 12th December, Whateley Arena

The area packed to watch the combat finals, I wonder what this year's will be like. M3 getting the good seats because people fear Bianca even though they shouldn't for that reason at least.

Crud, Morgana vs. Esquire up first, not him. Smart move, Morgana, irrelevant and misleading information so they won't dig for the stuff you don't want them to find, I wonder if other students did that.

Warning from Bianca about the creep and his vendetta against her, he better not try and hurt Morgana badly just because she is Bianca's friend and roommate. Sweet innocent frosh, yeah, right. Thulia doesn't know what a cage fight is, what kind of fights do they have on the plane of fire?

Ah, package retrieval and delivery, a good scenario for a combat final. The package is heat-sensitive, darn it! 20 minutes and good rules to follow in any combat final. Esquire acting like that, already has a double-cross planned, the coward. Eyeing Morgana's braid like that, I don't like that, long hair can be a weakness in a fight. I always wondered why the ANTs didn't freak out about the masks, now we know.

Bianca having to remind Thulia what happens in the combat finals stays in the combat finals. Tanya bet $100 on Morgana, and Bianca bet $250, I wonder what the odds are on Morgana.

Nice, Google Maps gets taken over the area software to show the 'city' they are in, great for navigation. Morgana, being in front of you won't stop a ferrokinetic from attacking you in the back. So I'm glad you have your magic forcefield up. A disreputable pawn shop, who designed this scenario?

Oh boy, a pawn ticket and a location, and the building is owned by the Outfit, Gunny designed this, didn't he? The Maltese Falcon, Gunny needs to update his movie catalog. Half a mile away, the tech they use to make the area seem bigger is impressive.

Those ANTs are programmed a little too realistically in their responses. The techies programming them need to get out and socialize more, and realize that kind of thing isn't appreciated by most females. Huh, Gideon's experience as a Bad Seed is coming in handy, always look for spotters in criminal territory. Nice sleep spell, always great to see non-lethal options used.

Dang, if Gideon wasn't a jerk to Bianca he could be a great ally. A ball bearing into a dangerous projectile. Then Morgana with the gravity spell, these two would be a dangerous pair if they could keep getting along.

Metal manipulation to open a locked door, nice. Two goons and the local boss I'm guessing. Yikes! Brutal attack using their own guns to knock them out, Gideon. Oh no, the boss' look screams 'brick' to Morgana, don't tell me Gunny has a mutant leader for them to deal with in the scenario.

An Aikido kick from Morgana and the guy only staggers back, yup, he's a brick alright. Esquire, I knew he would pull this, grabbing the statue and running for it, leaving Morgana to deal with the boss. One of Cherry's flash-bangs and the boss is disoriented for now.

Eep, the boss is already starting to shake off the flashbang and moves towards Morgana. Esquire locked her in with the boss, that creep! An alarm goes off, and the sound of more men coming, how will Morgana get out of this situation?

Ooo, goodie. Morgana can use her fire without the MacGuffin around. Nice use of Boyle's law and your fire aura, Morgana. Windows blown out, boss blown back, and time to book it. Jumping out the window, the parachute spell was a great investment. And the classic superhero pose upon landing is just perfect.

Staff Sergeant Wilson grinned. “She did indeed. She didn’t make the obligatory crater, though, so only half points for it. Nice try though.”

Aww, only half points, harsh, but fair.

Morgana closes in fast on Gideon, trying not to give him a chance to use his ranged attacks. Only a frosh, you will regret underestimating her, Gideon. Hurling random metal from the street at Morgana, he is trying to wear down her magical shield with constant bombardment. One of Cherry's smoke bombs, she makes some of the best toys.

Makeshift propeller to blow the smoke away, Gideon is at least clever with his power use. A flashbang from Gideon, but he didn't expect Morgana's protective goggles or earplugs, yay for being prepared. Rats, all the non-lethal area attacks can be blown away, Gideon with a large enough piece of straight metal can just blow it away.

The idiot grabbed her braid, and she sent fire into it, he should have seen that coming if he was as smart as he thinks he is. That jackass hurled a small car at her, if not for her magical forcefield he could have seriously hurt her. Bruised or broken rib for Morgana, I hope Gideon gets chewed out for that stunt.

Gideon underestimates her again, as Morgana switches on the backup PFF Laura made for her. He thinks her defenses are down and does an attack like that, trying to take her out, what part of no lethal attacks did you not hear! The PFF protects Morgana and she knocks Gideon flying onto his back with her ice wand, I love it when a foe gets hit by the unexpected.

Locked prone on a sheet of ice, Morgana, you did the right thing, a trip to Doyle due to injuries would be bad, but being defended this way will embarrass him. A light spell to blind him, then using his own jacket over his head so he can't see, Morgana fights smarter, not harder. Gideon, even your insults and cussing aren't creative, just give up. Love seeing Morgana win over the ass after she was willing to share the victory.

Staff Sergeant Wilson, I like him, no one likes Gideon's attitude. Nice breakdown of everything and lecture on noticing things like ambush positions and places to set up diversions. Oof, Gideon just did everything wrong from staying to fight Morgana instead of running to turn in the MacGuffin to almost everything he did in that fight. A C, I would have given a D+ at best considering he is a sophomore and faced a freshman.

Ah, the boss was a trap, good for Morgan in avoiding that fight. Several things weren't done well, but Morgana got a B+, a good grade for a freshman in her first combat final. Heh, of course, they noticed Morgana was trying to hide an injured rib.

Morgana with her friends, could tell she held back in the end. Ooo, what ideas do you have for Morgana's next combat final, Thulia? Healed and be careful for a day, if only Doyle level medical care was available to everyone and in our reality too. Shoot, I would have bet on you if I was there, Morgana. Esquire better be prepared if he comes after Bianca again because Morgana went easy on him this time.

Esquire with the Bad Seeds, complaining to AJ that he didn't warn him Morgana was tough. Icejack laughs when he mentions her holdouts, if he had gone to the Weapons Fair like the other Bad Seeds he would have known she had holdouts at least. AJ bet on Morgana, I should have known.

A.J. grinned as Smokey blew a derisory smoke ring. “She’s a lab partner. She’s a lot more devious than she looks.”

Esquire growled at his ‘friend’. “NOW you tell me...”

Hey, you never asked, it is your own fault.

Wednesday 14th December, London, England

Nephandus and his father saw footage of Morgana's combat final and now she is the target their client is after. Hexmaster knows not to mess with Morgana either at Whateley or when she is with her family as either is suicide. Tong of the Black Madonna, wiped from the face of the Earth for going after Toni and Molly's families, only fools or the truly arrogant mess with Whateley students and their families.

Well, you located her, let the idiots do what they want now and suffer the fallout.

“ Olrun isn’t going to be happy, but he answers to their council. Now if we were to point out the consequences of any retrieval action, and the likely effect on their order, they might be prepared to cancel the operation.”

Yeah, no, I think the Order is too arrogant and believes itself more powerful than any non-magical organization to just cancel the operation now. It is good to know Nephandus remembers the lesson of what happens to those who mess with Whateley students and their families so well.

Prequel – some 10 days before Frosh Combat finals,
Ranges briefing room

Ah, the group who plans the combat finals. Wilson, Tolman, and others. Dracaina, this girl got into a fight with supervillains in Canada on her way to Whateley, dang. Dracaina has more experience in magic than a normal frosh, so, of course, they are putting her in a scenario where the setting works against her. The incident in Phoenix, hhm.

Dennon is concerned about her magic's effect on the arena, and she isn't Sims-certified yet, rats. Mage and flier who likes setting things on fire, Ito says to set it in a sewer with patches of Methane, you sadistic midget! Fireproof, but not explosion-proof, Ito, you can be so cruel sometimes. Gouyasse, ack, now you have gone too far, that creep might hit on her if she is attractive. Great, a Junior like that and you are putting a Freshman up against him, if she ends up in Doyle with severe injuries this is on you, Ito. Oh, I hope Dracaina wins this Crash, I want to see Gouyasse taken down a few pegs.

Friday Dec 16th, the Arena

Whoa, Dracaina has a great power mix, mid-range EX so not squishy magic, EN for offense so she doesn't have to worry about essence as much, and even a Gag-2 can make some good holdouts. Gouyasse is a bit scary with his stronger form being fueled by alcohol. Ouch, the allergic reaction that they thought would be minor, I don't like the guy but I wouldn't wish that on anyone.

If he doesn't have holdouts to compensate for his weaknesses including one to give him a ranged attack then he has learned little in his time at Whateley. Agree to cooperate, Erica, you sweet summer child.

Emil Duval sitting with the Outstanding Dudes, that group is still around, oh brother. High Gear doesn't know much about Dracaina either, Emil is in for a tougher fight than he expects. Hehe, idiots, thinking all mages don't like to get up close and do hand-to-hand like Morgana is the only exception to that. Ugh, leers at her picture on High Gear's laptop, Emil, you creep me out. All of the Outstanding Dudes are a bunch of creeps.

Scenario briefing room.

Well, at least they were warned about the Methane gas pockets and the penalty for blowing the whole scenario up. Shoot, I forgot Thulia's codename is Dracaina until just now, so rarely comes up. Emil, you are a true human pig. No real lighting and they have to use trackers to find the package, great, Emil will probably try to break Thulia's tracker the first chance he gets.

A spell to put her face in permanent shadows, now that is a great disguise. No fire or lightning-based spells, no fire hair, boy, they really want Thulia to learn how to deal with a hostile environment.

6:1 for Thulia, those bookies have no idea what they have done, Morgana, with $200 on Thulia is going to make a killing.

Yes, having a strong sense of smell in a sewer would be horrible. This description of the sewers is why I consider sewers large enough for humans to go in to be modern-day dungeons. Ooo, nice spell, reminds me of the arrow on mini-maps in video games. Boy, the rats in this sewer are big and a lot more aggressive than expected.

Gouyasse, the sewers seen in American zombie movies tend to be filmed in large American sewers on sight if possible. You are seriously underestimating Thulia, Emil. No problems for now, you'll be sorry, you just tempted fate with that thought.

Large rats and now a zombie, oh brother, the techies made this a horror scenario in the sewers. Several attacks and Thulia knows to aim for the head now, wondering if decapitation would work as well. They have got to show Thulia some more movies and media of Earth.

Emil dealing with the same issues, rats and a zombie, plus the methane makes his eyes water it seems. Another zombie and he is heading towards a space of some sort the tunnels lead into.

Thulia seeing the passage opens into a large vaulted chamber. A raised area in the center, a giant rat in a lab coat on a bench, what the. And it has a weapon that is aimed at Thulia!

Emil shows up to find Thulia facing the giant rat, and Thulia avoids fire from the gun the rat has. And he goes to attack Thulia with a ball bearing while she is fighting the rat, a coward through and through.

The Lab Rat has 3 more zombies appear behind him, and Thulia takes them out with a gravity spell. Thulia is forced to deal with both and plans to take out the Rat first, I doubt she can reason with Emil. The Rat has a strange weapon and aims at Emil who has tripped over one of the zombies, but Thulia shields him using her magical forcefield.

A lightning gun took out Thulia's forcefield but didn't set off the methane, which means Thulia can use lightning spells in here. Huh, I guess the lightning gun was a one-shot deal. Emil, you scumbag, she saved you, you think that about her, and now you are going to attack her. A highly illegal vibroblade, that could kill Thulia! He tried to stab her in the spine and got her in the kidney, he is a murderous monster.

He goes to strike again, but a spell triggered from her bracelet saves Thulia and traps Emil in crimson tentacles. Instant-healing spell in a ring to blunt the worst of her injury and now Emil is about to see her wrath. Thulia takes on her combat form minus her wings, he is going to Doyle for trying to murder her.

Ooo, bit the hand that had the blade in it, mangling it and removing some of Emil's fingers. Claw slashes to his body, then her tail slams into his groin and mangles his genitals. Thulia spits on Emil after he passes out from the pain, then sees the Rat running off. Scenario aborted and to wait for a rescue, Thulia is going to be in Doyle too with the injury Emil inflicted. If they try to punish her for injuring him back after his attempted murder I will be pissed.

And the audience gasps first at the backstab by Emil, then Thulia's attacks, this is why you never pull something like what Emil did in the combat finals.

Wilson curses, they know it was a kidney shot, and lucky not to be a spine hit, they saw the minor healing spell. The kidney is still ripped, he nearly killed her. And yes, Emil is going to need Doyle, but he earned that retaliation.

M3 has to restrain Morgana from trying to get inside to get to Thulia, Vic green around the gills after what he just saw. Tavi is speechless, you know things are dire when Tavi is speechless.

Brita thinks the groin shot was dramatic even by Amazon standards, huh. Ugh, thinking of Morgana as a ladyboy, you are a bigot. Oh, you are going to try and separate Morgana and Thulia, you must have a death wish, Brita.

Thulia is in bad shape and needs a place to do more powerful and complicated healing magic to repair her kidney.

“Pastel, give him the minimum healing you can to stabilise him. Fast and dirty is fine.”

Pastel looked a bit concerned. “You don’t want something better? After that hit he took to the balls...”

The Sergeant shook his head. “It’s not the first time he’s tried to injure someone. After what he did today... well, let's just say that being in Doyle for a few weeks is to help drive it home to him that actions have consequences. And as soon as you have dealt with him, Dracaina has some serious injuries.”

I like Sergeant Joshua. It is about time Emil learned this harsh lesson.

I hope it isn't too much for Pastel to handle. Minutes to deal with the damage that Emil did to Thulia, Pastel is a great healer.

"There you go, I've fixed the worst damage and the little stuff will heal pretty soon. Just take it easy for a couple of days unless you want me groping you again."

Oof, at least she isn't in danger anymore. And Pastel, when Thulia says she owns you one she takes it seriously. She will repay this debt to you somehow in the future.

Only soreness in her back now, miracle workers. The smell and disgusting slime are gone. Smoke and mirrors, KY jelly for the only 'real' slime, and someone manifesting ectoplasm and another controlling smells to follow Thulia around, now that is clever.

Dennon, Ito, and Sergeant Wilson there waiting for her, uh oh. Good, they are going to take care of the matter of the illegal vibroblade and Emil not declaring it before the fight later, I hope he is in detention for the rest of the school year in the sewers. Hehe, Thulia's reasoning for her final attack on Emil, I would have done it too. A- thanks to Dennon's glare, thank you, Ms. Dennon.

Evening, in the Doyle Medical complex.

Sergeant Wilson, Ms. Dennon, and Ito are there to see Emil as he lies in Doyle. Wilson suppressing his emotions, I would have to hold back from saying he is expelled for his stunt at trying to cripple another student and almost killing her. An F and only because there isn't a lower score, aww, invent new lower scores just for him, please.

4 weeks of detention when he gets out of Doyle.

"You're the luckiest person on this planet right now - someone unnamed managed to convince the Headmaster that there was a tiny possibility that you MIGHT be salvageable as a human being, though most of us don't believe it." Dennon glared at the boy for a few long seconds, barely restraining a snarl of disgust. "He was a 'send' button away from having the MCO come here to arrest you for attempted murder." Dennon watched as his eyes widened. If the headmaster was ready to INVITE the MCO on campus... "You're on such thin ice right now that if you so much as roll your eyes sarcastically at a staff member for the rest of the year, a LOT of staff members are going to urge him to push that 'send' button. I know he's keeping the draft e-mail - just in case."

Push the button, push the button.

On the way to Doyle

Ouch, Morgana and Thulia are quiet on the walk to Doyle, they are both so messed up by Thulia almost dying. Morgana trembling, starts to cry, and Morgana knows what Emil tried to do, not knowing if she could go on living without Thulia, now I'm worried. Morgana, you aren't a burden on Thulia, you are the reason she wanted to come to Whateley. I think they should put advanced scanners that all students have to go through which can detect illegal weapons and such before going into a combat final, especially after this incident. I fear for anyone who dares to try and harm Thulia now, Morgana will remember this and might go lethal in trying to defend her.

Friday Dec 16th, afternoon after the Combat Finals end, the Arena

Two boys who are a rapt audience for the Combat Finals, talks of revising plans.

“I figured that splitting her up from a girl wouldn’t be too hard, but after seeing what she did in her final, do you want to get in her way if she gets annoyed?”

Shades, Beatdown, leave Morgana and Thulia alone, or else.

Monday 19th December Bianca and Morgan’s room, early morning.

Morgana is right, academic scores are more important than the combat finals, despite what some might think. Practicals for Magic, this is going to be fun. Ouch, just how many languages are you planning on learning while at Whateley, Morgana?