Chapter 7: Are You a Wizard? Let’s Play Field Combat With a Hockey Stick

His feet were drenched and feeling raw. It was the first time, since landing on the Demon Prince's lap, that he realized he was only wearing socks. It was just as well he had a habit of sleeping in jeans and t-shirt.

However, he didn't raise a fuss as he followed Genie down the stone path, just in case the man had ideas of feeding him to the Shriekers like his brother. To cope, he diverted his thoughts to what the harem would be like as he fidgeted with his Holy Mother Cross pendant.

"To think harems exist in the same way on this world as they would on Earth?" He thought, lapsing into a frown. "But some ancient Earth harems have been known to capture slaves and can be cruel to women and children."

He was uncomfortable with any culture misusing women and children for nefarious gains. It would pain him to see his mother and grandmother harmed in a place like an Ottoman Harem, where politics was a fierce game played to the death.

"Never mind. I'm not granted permission to step foot in that place anyway. And who am I to judge over nothing I know about. I'm overreacting." He mumbled to himself.

Genie kept a watchful eye on Kairo and his reactions. The Earthun was an interesting character. It wasn't the first time one had landed on Lux, his planet, but it had been eons since. He had studied a lot about Earthuns from the Chronicles of Sol the last wizard had left behind.

"So..." Genie started a conversation, drawing Kairo's mind back to the present. "How good are you at fighting?"

"Not good. Unless you're being mugged, no one fights," Kairo straightforwardly answered.

Genie frowned. "And you've been mugged? How did you handle that?"

"I haven't. Never been mugged. Never made a punch."

Genie was finding this fact unrealistic. No fighting? It wasn't possible for a person to survive without showing fists to protect what was theirs. Not that random fist-fights were common in the Palace of Princes, unlike other areas of Misculanious, but to not know combat was a peculiar thing. Is my brother certain he's a wizard? All wizards had been master warriors in their worlds. He looks like a demon just like the rest of us, yet...

He looked Kairo up and down taking in his wizard's cross pendant and clothes and noticed the man's grubby-looking feet in wet socks.

"Are your feet wet?"

Kairo looked down to his soaked socks. "Yeah, they have been for a while."

"It doesn't bother you?"

"It does, but I've been putting up with it. Thanks for taking notice."

Genie's frown lifted to one of bemusement. "Oh. Why didn't you say anything before?"

"Didn't want to be Shrieker food."

Kairo's deadpan manner caused Genie's guard to relax around him.

This piece of fact gave Genie both new insight and respect for the man. Not able to fight but resilient: the man was turning out to be a treat.

"You certainly can't do a wizard test with soaked feet." Genie grinned and clicked his fingers in a pattern to make the space between them glow with white light. The light solidified into lines that drew a hexagon patterned symbol midair.

Kairo's eyes widened at the magic being displayed before him. It looked uncannily like the magic symbols from those anime shows.

Genie put his hand into the stationary symbol and yanked out a pair of sturdy dark leather boots with a stylish arrangement of buckles and straps running the length of one side. The heel shimmered with an oily sheen and the same blueish-silver metal that was on the cell's walls. He also pulled out a towel and tossed it at Kairo's face.

"Dry your feet and put these on."

Kairo caught the towel and nodded with gratitude then did as suggested, examining his new footwear with awe. They were a perfect fit and felt snug against his feet and calves.

"How did you know my size?"

Genie smugly answered, "All-size boots. They adjust to the feet's size and shape when you put them on."

"That's a handy use of magic." Kairo's mind began thinking about mass production of these back on his planet. All the profits from the patents alone would earn him enough to buy an island.

Genie used magic to move the towel and toss it back into the symbol, and clicked his fingers again to make the symbol blink out of sight. He slung an arm over the man's shoulder to drag him into a brisk walk.

Kairo was led past a lush array of healthy plum and peach trees that smelt fragrant, with an inviting fresh fruit aroma opening a bottle of freshly squeezed juice would bring. An unusual yet pretty sight of gold and rainbow-colored small birds flew about the trees. He looked down and saw the moonstone path he walked was lined with bright and colorful small flowers. The path diverged into various directions that led toward a white stone building in the far distance.

Their direction was for a pantheon-like structure with a domed shaped roof rather than the triangular ones of the Roman era. It was a pleasing sight for Kairo.

"What is that building?" He blurted like a wide-eyed kid.

Genie chuckled and glanced at him with a wry expression. "The Chamber of Petitions. It's where all important matters are handled, where we judge all demons and beastkind, and torture wizards."

Kairo's excitement dropped, and his mood became sober.

Genie bellowed with laughter. "Come on. It's not that scary. Besides, you've already visited the place that time you landed on my brother's lap. Your ballsy entrance I approve." He gave Kairo a thumbs up.

Kairo sighed and decided to keep his questions and thoughts to himself as he followed him to the building and around the side where they eventually arrived before a narrow and long stone bridge, which connected to a set of large, solid gates and circular building on an island at the far end.

He gulped and heart raced when he looked down and saw choppy ripples on dark oily waters surrounding the bridge and island. It didn't take him much to guess what was causing the water's movements.

"Come." Genie gestured toward the building.

Kairo followed his lead. They stopped before the two guards on either end of the doors. They wore hard helmets that matched their red and black leather armor bearing blueish-silver symbols of a crescent moon and star on their shoulder pauldrons. It must be the royal seal.

"Here for the Wizard Trials." Genie soberly addressed the sentry as he handed them an embellished badge with the royal seal shining at its center.

The guards nodded and wielded their longswords in what looked like a fight, but their clashing was forming a magic symbol in the air. The symbol flashed over the doors to make them open.

Kairo continued to follow Genie's lead. Their way down red velvet lined floors on polished white marble surfaces eventually ended at the sight of what looked like a sports field stadium. Genie led him to the central grass area, which was surrounded by many bench tiers.

"Wait! They're not going to ask me to compete in an Olympic event?!"

"This is where your Wizard Trials will be held."

"Genie. Why do I need these trials?"

"If you want to keep existing in this world, you need to be a wizard. Failure to be a wizard means that all you're good for is fodder for the Shriekers."

The stern tones to Genie's words made Kairo take this advice seriously.

"Right. So how many trials will there be?"

Genie nodded and gave him an overview. Kairo had to prove himself on three tests. The first was combat.

"You can fight in whatever method and means suit you. The arena will read your will and intentions, and gather the appropriate challengers."

Kairo glanced up and around the stadium's benches and saw a crowd of people in various quality robes, armor and cloaks filed into rows.

"Um, what is with the audience?"

Genie cast a look of indifference across the gathering crowds, which were slowly making a full house. "Oh, them? They're either here for the show or on standby to be your challenger."

And added with a pat to the man's shoulder and smirk. "It's not every day a demon gets to see a wizard make a play! So do your best to put on a great show."

Kairo looked worryingly over the hundreds of people crammed onto a bench.

"What are the other tests?"

"Second is more boring, involving strategy games. If you're good at gribble board games, you might do well with this one."

"And the final one?"

Genie betrayed a devious smile and expression. "Magic."

"Magic." Kairo repeated the word, swallowing a nervous gulp. He didn't have magic, so how would it be possible to pass this test?

"Do your best to not die, or at least too quickly. My brother took a liking to you, so you'll get the best tests to put on a good show! It's a great honor." Genie energetically stated with aims to cheer up Kairo's spirit. Naturally, it did the opposite. But Kairo saw it was pointless to complain, so began thinking on how to tackle the first test.

Genie clicked his fingers to disappear from his sight. He saw the man seated on one of the front benches next to Jan, Lady Bluesteed and a few other important looking people.

Three gongs rebounded across the space to stir silence among the crowds. Kairo stood at the field's center, bracing himself for whatever would materialize to fight him.

He closed his eyes and fell into a memory of the only type of activity he could think of that was close to combat for him. The memories stirred up old competitive feelings he had long laid to rest after an ultimate defeat. When he opened his mind, he felt empowered with energy.

"Combat chosen. Please prepare for the fight." A woman's voice announced to the stadium.

A whirling vortex of greenish energy appeared before Kairo.

"Enter the preparation space."

Kairo took a deep breath and stepped inside. The crowd waited with buzz and anticipation for his return.

Inside, Kairo saw a gym locker room appear around him. It was the same type he had used at his old high school. His mind lapsed into a memory of his old hockey team, bolstering their bravado and competitive ego with arrogant pep talks.

"Winners win, losers lose! We're winners!" His old captain used to shout before the start of every match to stir up the team's morale.

"Yeah. Winners win." Kairo repeated the fact and something he absolutely must achieve to stay alive.

He opened the locker that used to be his. He figured if the room was drawn out of his memory, it would replicate everything to be the same.

Sure enough, his locker contained his uniform, stick and lucky item. The last one he had used that easily secured the team's win was a Heyo Cat white kitten plush doll.

He changed into a familiar uniform of white and blue striped short-sleeved nylon shirt, blue shorts, white knee-high socks with shin guards and dark spiked boots. He slipped on his mouth guard and sweat bands then pepped himself for the match. He didn't know how this would work as hockey required a team of eleven players on the pitch.

"I'll probably have to carry the whole team on my own." Oddly, he felt confident he could do this. Back in the day he was both the Center-fielder and Playmaker for the team. Naturally, back then, he felt so invincible that he boasted he could win the matches by himself. Of course, no one took him seriously. If anything, they had appreciated his show of self-assurance.

"It's why our final match's loss hit me hard. And why I never played again." But this time his eyes narrowed with a renewed determination. Now was the chance to make up for that ultimate defeat and move past it, even if what he was about to do wasn't a real match, and he had to fight on his own. If anything, this win had more meaning to give him a greater will for the fight.

Feeling confident he was ready, he made his move.

The whirling vortex swelled with intense energy when Kairo returned to the pitch, geared up with his hockey stick in one hand and his lucky item balanced on the other.

"Choice of combat selected by player. A one-on-one goal match. The goal is for the player to put the ball into their challenger's goal net. No auxiliary tools are allowed. The ball must not fly higher than one meter or leave the pitch boundaries. Should these rules be broken, the game is forfeit, the player loses, and the challenger will face severe punishment. All other methods are allowed to achieve the goal. The challenger is permitted to use all combative means possible to stop the player's ball from entering the challenger's goal more than 10 times. There is a time limit." A woman's voice resounded around the stadium.

Kairo placed the doll down and stepped onto the playing field to take his spot at the center near the halfway line.

The woman's voice began a countdown.

The challenger materialized before Kairo. It was one of the guards but had his helmet off to show his scruffy and mean looking face with two deep scars on his left cheek. His hair was shaved low in a buzz cut, which made his face appear larger and the angles of his squarish chin sharper. He held a shiny blueish hook stick that looked more like a skinny saber. He noticed his own stick had a larger hook than typical.

"Hmm, I guess full contact is allowed." His mouth stretched wide a devious grin at the thought.

The guard licked his chops with a maniacal squint in his gray eyes.

"Fresh meat for the slaughter."

Now, normally at any other time Kairo would be cowering before this chad, who looked like he was about to do a number on him. But this was field hockey! And he was a devil with a stick on the field.

"Bring it on, beefcakes." He fired back his back-talk that had the man bellowing with excitement.

"Great! Let's have a bloody fight." The challenger raised his stick to the light to make it glint with his killer intent. "I'll make sure your death is slow and not too miserable."

Kairo scoffed and stood tall as he tossed the ball into the air.

The crowd fell into a hush and leaned forward. The ball landed on the pitch with a thud, and the match began.