Archangels of War

"So, what exactly made you two think that launching grade A spells in such as small enclosure, near so many people, would be in any way, okay?" The student council President asked from her seat across the room from us. Me and Erika stood in the student council room, side by side, facing the reprimand of Suijin. After the clash of our abilities, a large explosion rung out, so strong it shook the entire engineering wing, and it could even be felt in the council room itself. Of course, security came rushing to the spot, and when they found a group of kids standing in front of the dueling room window, I'm sure they sighed in relief, but also annoyance. 

"I mean, at least no one was hurt, right?" Erika proposed a flimsy excuse, that Suijin shot down without a second thought. 

"That is not my argument, and you know it. And secondly, both of you could have been hurt in that explosion." Suijin's tone was completely serious. She was staring down at us with a stern look in her eyes. Erika nodded, not even bothering to try and give any sort of argument. There's no way she actually managed to tame the fire. I didn't have time to ponder over how impressive what Suijin had did was for any longer however, because she then turned her piercing gaze to me. "And you Raiden." 

I felt literal chills down my spine as she said my name. "Yes?" 

"I have to say, I'm more than a bit disappointed. If there was anyone who would have done something to diffuse the situation, I thought it would have been you." Despite the fact that she talked about being disappointed, I picked up on the humor in her tone. That did not stop me from still wanting to protest that I tried to handle things calmly, however my attempt at that was stopped by some third-party. 

Third party? Could it have been the same person as in the luncheon?

It was actually the most likely possibility. It was not every day that you came across someone that was able to completely cancel out spells. That was because the process was more than just a little bit difficult to grasp. It involved using the mana that you could exude from your body, or your aura, to literally disrupt the forming of the magic sequence. 

"Do you two have anything to say for yourselves?" Suijin asked. 

Erika shook her head no. Suijin turned her gaze to me. 

"I guess that I'd like to say, I believe that me and Erika are two very smart and skillful magicians. No matter what, I have absolute confidence that neither of us would have actually been hurt by the attacks, even without the intervention of the magic nullifying machines. That being said, I do understand why you aren't happy about what me did. So, sorry." I bowed my head. 

Erika looked at me with a more than confused expression. And then she smirked to herself. "And here I was thinking you wouldn't dream of openly opposing the student council president herself." 

Suijin simply shook her head. "Remember what I told you on the first day Raiden? We all are equal, meaning that you don't have to bow to anybody." 

"I know." Was all I said as I raised my head once more.

"And Erika! Same thing to you. If students have a disagreement with anything, then they are allowed to voice it, no matter if it goes against what I think; as long as it's done respectfully." Suijin yawned as she said this. The longer this conversation went on, the more I realized it. 

Suijin looked tired. 

Not like the tired you are after a fairly long day of school, or oversleeping. She was tired to the bone. She looked like she had skipped out on many nights of sleep. It seemed like a struggle for her to keep the smile on her face, and I noticed the same eyebags I had the other day. Only this time they were darker and deeper. Behind her, the sun was being blocked out by the clouds, seemingly mirroring Suijin's mood.

It was light. Slowly being blocked by the creeping darkness of fatigue. 

I made this observation without saying a single thing. I didn't know how exactly I would even approach that kind of topic, especially with someone I didn't know that much. Which made me feel, a bit worthless. What does it matter if I can see it, if I can't do anything to actually help. 

"That being said, I still have to levy out a punishment." Suijin's words, and Erika's grown of disappointment snapped me out of train of thought. I looked up at Suijin who was smiling back at us. Even smiling she looked tired. "So, how about this?" Suijin paused for a few seconds, as she thought up what our punishment should be. Finally, she came to a conclusion. "Seeing as you two obviously have the magic energy to spare, and are itching to use it, how about you help clear out the excess debris from the latest magical engineering test!" 

*** 

"Test? What kind of test obliterates an entire 3 fucking rooms!" Erika exclaimed as we were standing in front of the 'test' area. I had to agree with her as well. We were in the extracurricular section of the magic academy. According to what Suijin had said, the culture festival planning committee had been running tests on what sort of fireworks would have the best impact. Mistakes were made, and this was the result. We were tasked with clearing out the debris from the explosion, to make the job of cleaning and reconstructing the rooms, easier. Suijin had said we should make use of any methods that we liked. 

"TODAYS LESSON, WERE GOING TO GO OVER A VERY IMPORTANT PART OF ANY REFINED MAGIC KNIGHT, WHICH IS NAMING YOUR ATTACKS!" I could tell it was Himitsu from the tone of the voice, as well as the unbridled energy it gave off. 

"Sounds like we're missing out on some very fun stuff." I commented as I picked up a rock and analyzed it. From the leftover mana residue, I could tell that it was destroyed by series of small explosions, that slowly burned away at the rock. Looking at others, I could see that they were destroyed and chipped all at once, by one big explosion. Seems like they were testing more than one type of firework in here. 

"You bet it." Erika said as she kicked a destroyed piece of the wall with such force that it embedded itself straight into ceiling. She seemed to be thinking about something. 

"I heard that the reason why magic knights name their abilities, was because doing so made them stronger. Can you believe that?" I spoke.

"Huh? Oh, yeah, I guess that's a bit crazy. But It kind of makes sense. You definitely do get all pumped up and hype when you name drop a strong ability." She was distracted as she answered my question. 

I looked down at the wand that was in my hands. Suijin had let us bring them. "If I ask what your think-" I used my sword to bat away the rocks that were being thrown at my head. I guess that's a known. I really didn't know how exactly to handle things like this. throughout all of our past conversations, Erika had been the main driver, pushing forward. Now that she was silent, I really didn't know how to continue. 

If Kami was put in the same situation, she would be able to succeed. 

I shook my head. 

You only have one purpose, never forget. A voice that I recognized all too well in the back of my head said. 

I won't forget. I could never forget. Because, 

My own voice, and the voice in my head said at the same time, 

Because should you ever forget, then that means you've lost the purpose for your pitiful existence. 

"Seeing how she let us keep our wands, do you want to burn things?" I suggested. 

Erika smirked a little. "For sure." 

And so, we used our wands to burn away the debris. And I tried to burn away my thoughts. Of guilt, and of inferiority. 

I really am pathetic.