^^ DuBois' Scroll (sorta?) ^^

--- Oscar Hidden ---

The girl I'd met in the undercroft on my first day stepped forward at the calling of her name, clutching a thick wooden scroll made in what looked like the Asian slatted fashion.

"The Elders of this Council call for a display of your magical knowledge, prowess, and progress. Do you wish to accept the Council's Challenge, and begin the Exam?" He asked calmly.

"Y-yes Elder." She said nervously.

"Good. First, let us see your spell. You have prepared one on a scroll, I see? Explain it's inner workings to me. No need for worry, it's just another day in the Cardinal Room, studying with me, Elder Bacchus." He said soothingly.

She breathed deeply, and nodded. "Alright. My spell is a Plant-Magic spell, specifically designed to grow the Wild Apple Tree of Eastern-Central Asia, but one I've spliced with a seedless red Grape, to create what I call the Seedless Red Grapple Tree." She grinned widely.

He blinked. "Ahhh, I remember something about this... interesting. And what is the specific nomenclature of the Apple Tree, exactly? The unaltered one?" He asked.

"Kingdom: Plantae,
Clade: Angiosperms,
Clade: Eudicots,
Clade: Rosids,
Order: Rosales,
Family: Rosaceae,
Genus: Malus,
Species: M. sieversii." She answered off the top of her head.

"Well done. Would the elders like to ask her some more questions, or see the spell?" He asked the two other elders.

The Asian Elder nodded slowly. "What was the purpose you sought, creating a new Apple?"

"Well... I make wine, Ma'am. That's what my family does, it's our business. DuBois Wines are famous, worldwide... I wanted to make a new flavor of wine. A new Sect, so to speak. And I have succeeded!" She grinned confidently.

"Ahh. I see. Wine is a very tricky business, very difficult to master. So you believe you have succeeded in creating a new flavor profile for wine?" The elder asked, setting her chin on her left hand.

"I do. I-i mean, I have. I think..." She stuttered in response.

"Hmm... elder Van Halen?"

"I can honestly say that I don't drink wine, so I have no knowledge of it. But apples... that is something I am rather familiar with. How did you splice Apples and Grapes? What was your process?" He asked DuBois.

"I actually mulched two pounds of each seed, melted them, and then grew a new tree from the liquid." She responded.

"So the first tree was artificial?"

"Yes, but I planted a dozen more, from the first fruits, and they're growing well." She nodded.

"And the trees, what shape do they take?"

"Actually the tree is the same shape, but the apples grow in Bushels, like grapes, and they grow much quicker." She hummed.

"I see... a healthy tree, then? No natural parasites yet?"

"One or two, but I keep some of the more deadly ones away, for now. A healthy amount of bugs keeps a tree healthy and inoculated. Too much..." she shrugged.

"And a dead tree is all you have... yes. Alright, well, I'm satisfied she has a decent knowledge of plants, but what about Plant Magic? What sequences did you use for all of this?" He asked.

She held up her scroll. "I planned to do it all when you asked me for my scroll." She answered.

Elder Bacchus nodded. "I see... begin, then."

She breathed deeply, spreading out her scroll to show three different spells, tied together rather well.

The first was a spell with nine sequences, set in stages, with four catalysts.

She added the seeds from her pocket, and the spell shredded them, restructured them as one seed, shaped like a donut.

Next, she poured water from a small flask on her belt into the hole in the middle of the seed, and the next sequence started, sucking the water into the seed.

The last catalyst was apparently a bag of dirt from her pocket, which she poured over and under the seed, directly on her magic circle.

The next three sequences sped up the growth of the seed, turning it into a tiny sapling, like a bonsai tree.

She carefully transplanted the tree into a glass planter that the third magic circle created from air with a clever transmutation spell that had the Elders nodding, impressed.

Then she sat that planter on the third circle, which held a rudimentary solved version of the Cardinal Equation for Time, which had the Elders smiling openly.

The plant grew swiftly, and soon bore tiny clusters of Grapples.

She leaned back, sweating bullets, and wheezed for breath slowly, then heavily asked permission to use her Amulet to recover, which was given when they knew she was done.

She carried the planter to their bench, and rolled up her scroll.

Elder Van Halen hummed, feeling the leaves gently. "That spell... would work for splicing any plants, wouldn't it? A general use?" He asked.

She nodded. "I created it so that I could test splices of different types of fruits, without waiting a full six months to a year to know whether they would work or not."

Elder Lee-Hwan chuckled. "Industrious of you. I approve."

"Yes... very impressive, Madame DuBois. This is not your first Exam, is it?" Bacchus asked.

"No, elder. I'm a Third Year, technically, but I've been here four years. This is my thirteenth Exam." She sighed.

"I see... well, I would like to say, before we do the last phase of the test, and then judge, that the use of Two Cardinal Equations was rather ingenious, and I am happy that my teaching has reached, practically, into other types of magic." He smiled.

"Indeed impressive. Now let us begin the final phase of your exam. Attempt to open the Mana Vault, dear." Elder Van Halen gestured to the Hexagonal Log that had been brought in from the Cardinal Room.

She nodded and placed her hands on the ends, breathing deeply, then exerted her mana on the box. It filled to the fifth ring before she ran out of mana.

They deliberated quietly, and quickly reached a consensus. "Very good... Amelia DuBois, the Council grants you the rank of 10th Tier Sorceress, and welcomes you officially to the Upper Ranks of the Mage Guild." Elder Bacchus said gravely.

She shouted out a victorious laugh, and then cleared her throat, bowing. "Thank you, Elders."

"May I keep this bonsai, by the way? It's rather interesting." Elder Van Halen asked.

She grinned. "Of course, Elder Van Halen."

"Thank you, dear. And of course, we will immediately submit your Personal Spell to the Index of Magical Understanding." He winked.

"If it was possible for her to get any happier, I think she would explode." I muttered to Russo.

He grinned. "I think you're right. I see steam coming from her ears already!"

She sat down, hugging her scroll, and waved at her family frantically for a moment, then calmed herself marginally.

"Madame Amelia, you are dismissed, your Exam is over. You may stay and witness the rest of the Exam, but you should remove yourself from the Examinee Seating." Elder Bacchus said simply.

She nodded and jogged over to her family, and he called the next name.
-
"Emil Russo." Elder Bacchus called when there were only five people left in the Examinee seating.

Russo grinned and stood, striding over while lugging his massive duffel. "Present, sir!" He chuckled, setting it down carefully.

"Alright, Emil, what have you got for us today?" Bacchus asked.

"You'll either love this or hate it, but either way, you'll still be massively impressed." Emil smirked, and opened his bag, pulling out the parts for a smaller version of his creation, the Teslan Magic Conduit.

As he began building it, Elder Van Halen stiffened. "Is that a Teslan? A Conduit?" He asked.

"My own design! I used Tungsten, and it makes magic lose most of its Identity, so no more of that nonsense about mages blowing themselves up by using other mages' mana!" He answered brightly, tightening a bolt.

The mage relaxed a bit, still uneasy. "I see... inventive, yes, and intelligent... but perhaps not wise."

Elder Bacchus nodded. "Agreed... Emil, why don't you tel us why you built this?"

"Alright..." Russo set down his wrench. "Well, you're aware of the Cooperative Laboratory, the Undercroft, correct, Elder Bacchus?"

He nodded slowly. "I am."

"Well, you should come see what it's like now, after my upgrades. Now, magic is shared equally, and the Conduit, a much bigger version of this one, even feeds the plants and crystals that people grow down there. The magic is sent through a Lazarus Fork, even, to held the mages who are studying medicine." He explained.

Elder Bacchus hummed. "I see... and you're sure it works perfectly?"

"Well, nothing is perfect. I've recently learned that the coils can be overloaded, which leads to a blackout, but the amount of magic required is close to Grand-Wizard level, so I don't think it'll ever be a problem." Russo said honestly.

Elder Lee-Hwan frowned. "You're aware of the dangers this technology poses?"

"Only if misused, and my research is kept under tight security. The best in the entire Kingdom." He nodded.

She nodded, mollified. "True. Knowledge for knowledge's sake isn't inherently dangerous, only if that knowledge is misused does it then become dangerous."

Elder Bacchus sighed. "Well, I suppose we'll need proof it works? Fire it up, Emil, but if it explodes, I'm giving you detention for the rest of the semester." He said sternly.

"Aye, cap'n!" Russo grinned, and fired up the Conduit. Then he turned to me and Tilda, two of the only four people left in the Examinee Seating. "Care to juice her up? Just be careful, Oscar. I don't want to overdose it."

I shrugged and walked up, pressing a hand to the conduit, and giving it a good spark, then stepping away, and allowing Tilda to take a turn. We kept going until it was full, and then sat down again.

As he fiddled with a small device in his duffel, I took the time to organize my scrolls and papers.

I had 13 layers of Cardinal Equations, plus another 26 layers of environmental control, then 11 layers of Subatomic Control, all layered backwards and forwards, and they would make much more sense when properly organized.
-
I looked up from the freshly rolled scrolls to see what was happening, and grinned at the sight of Russo spreading a scroll.

"Russo? I see a Cardinal Equation in that, are you sure you want to try to cast that, even with the Conduit?" Elder Bacchus asked warily.

"I've got it, Cap'n!" He grinned, and then cast his lightning spell, but... altered.

His father, who had been mostly quiet until now, shot to his feet, and growled savagely. "You reckless child!"

The Lightning struck Russo squarely, but instead of hurting him, actually channeled Tilda's and my magic into him, and then spread to his palms, which he placed on the Mana Vault.

I chuckled in awe. "You sly bastard!"

The mana burned through him, igniting the ends of his blonde hair, and slowly but surely opened the mana vault.

It creaked open, and he collapsed, the Lightning ceasing as he fell off the scroll.

A healer rushed to him, and performed first aid on his many burns, and then sighed at the state of his mana Meridians, which were wrecked.

"That'll take weeks and a leprechauns stolen luck to heal properly, but damned if he didn't actually manage it." Elder Bacchus grimaced, grudgingly impressed.

Russo weakly reached into the mana vault, and pulled out an Elder Scroll, clutching it to his chest. "I did it, Pops..." he muttered, and passed out.

Russo Sr. picked him up, and looked at the Elders. "Your Assessment?" He asked clearly.

They spoke quietly, and Elder Bacchus nodded. "It is the judgement of the Council that Emil Russo Jr., Age 11, has attained the Rank of 1st-Tier Warlock, Mid-Level Mage of the Mage Guild."

Russo Sr. grinned widely. "Thank you, Sir."

"Don't thank me. He still has detention until the end of the semester, as punishment for nearly killing himself, and possibly irrevocably damaging his Mana Circuits and Meridians." Elder Bacchus said dryly.

"Understood, sir. I will make sure he attends properly." He bowed his head, and then walked back into the stands, as Russo Jr. didn't need any further medical attention, for now.

"Alright then... next,-"