The finals were set in for each grade by the end of the day, with a big huge surprise in terms of who would be left for the finals. Muhlhauser academy that had a team in the final four for all 10 years suddenly only had their first year team. Ghostrun Academy still had all three of their teams going into the finals and between Papolov and Ghostrun was a close race for first place now that one hundred points had been removed from Muhlhauser.
All of Muhlhauser's hopes and dreams of winning the prestigious Academy Egg, which was a trophy said to be a dormant dragon egg, were now riding on the one team they had left. The champion academy would all get one chance to meld with the egg if they had the ability to add another beast which first year students were incapable of. The youngest recorded to have a second that wasn't a twin beast was a fifth year who currently led the entire military might of the Kilthred kingdom.
The arrogance of the Muhlhauser Academy throughout the tournament was constantly palpable. The way they presented themselves at every turn was that of 'we are better than you will ever be'. The kind of arrogance that quickly evaporated when the finals were announced and suddenly they had one team left and it was going against the rumored rule changers of the tournament.
Since Arcanum never showed their faces in their team situations no one really knew who team Arcanum was besides the first years of Ghostrun Academy who knew exactly who we were. The best part was that the entire academy was behind us and not giving up who we were and wearing the t-shirts was just a nice side bonus. The one thing about being a first year is that you're up first when it comes to the events so you have a long day ahead of you when there are the rest of the ten years to get through in one day.
We purposely planned on wearing the t-shirts of team arcanum and we left the underground arena all going separate ways and we left at separate times. We knew there weren't many teams left so we didn't want to make targets on our backs by going in and out as a team of six. To be honest I would have never thought of it but Abby and Maddy had it down to a science which I guess is something royalty would know best.
I found it pretty fascinating that their lives had been so different yet we were now at the same school doing the same exact thing, fighting in a group tournament. How in the world did it come to this? How did I get so lucky, I felt like I was in the middle of something I wasn't supposed to be. The best feeling though was the fact that I finally found a group of people I enjoyed being around and I think they enjoyed me.
I couldn't say the same about the Muhlhauser Academy as the day wore on the worse their moods became as team after team lost. The area under the arena was no longer mostly red and gold as they cleared out not wanting to watch the finals since they wouldn't be participating in it. Basically halfway through the day the security increased in the under arena area to ensure that they would leave in orderly fashion as once a team lost their room would be cleaned out. History told the Academies that most of the issues happened in the last 24 hours of the tournament, especially now that it was sixes and not solos.
The downside was that the first year team was still alive and would be facing us the next day. This allowed for Adam's neighbors to still be present in the under arena area as one of them was on the team that we would be facing. The morning of the championship we were told that multiple attempts were thwarted to disturb us through the night. Our room had been put on high alert ever since the sleeping spell put on us.
Breakfast was weird that morning, we all ate it together but nothing was really spoken. We all were in our thoughts and to be honest it felt right, different but good. They say that true friends can be in each other's presence and not need to speak, we accomplished that, that meal and I wouldn't change it. We were the first fight and if we wouldn't have been lost in our thoughts we might have noticed all comments about our fight specifically.
As I stated earlier the events of Muhlhauser Academy putting our team to sleep cost them one hundred points, at the time not a big deal as they had a team in the final four of all ten years. Then the final four happened and suddenly Muhlhauser Academy was relying on one team. That one team had been winning in quick take outs as they had several powerful ranged beast masters.
If their first year team could win its championship battle then Muhlhauser Academy would win. If they lost, then Papolov and Ghostrun would be determined in the eight year championship. The buzz in the cafeteria was a constant arcanum this, arcanum that. I do remember hearing a table say "I wonder who the two arcane beast masters are, I want to meet them." Adam and I chuckled to ourselves and the table didn't notice us hearing them but we both heard it.
I still wonder to this day what it would have been like if we would have been allowed to be trifectas. Adam talks about it as his biggest moment at school that bothered him the most, that they changed the rules in our first year not allowing us to be the best they had seen in a century. There had been several trifectas in the history of Ghostrun Academy as well as the other academies but the kicker would have been two in the same year at the same academy.
We entered the arena before the start of our match in our usual formation. To say the pressure was immense was an understatement. To top it off the whole place suddenly went silent as Prince Austin and Prince Tanner entered the main viewing box. The fact that the princes were at the battle caused everyone to stop and stare then a rumble of comments being made about why would both be here for something that didn't seem to be that important.
Then Muhlhauser Academy's team named Shooters all took a bow to the princes in their booth. I could feel Maddy and Abby both tense up which at first I thought was because their fathers were in view, then Maddy informed us why they both had a physical reaction. 'Our fathers hate being bowed to, do not bow any of you!' The first time I was really happy the panda tribe spell was active so that what she just said wouldn't be transmitted to the arena.
Adam's nemesis, so to speak, who was the reason for all the issues we had faced with the random bullying from the third years was finally across the battlefield from us. The nemesis named Justin Fiend melded with a fire salamander, he also used a spear and was the only melee user for their team.
I thought he was the tank based on that but Adam told me that the lightning gryphon was the tank. The lightning gryphon beast master used a bow with lightning arrows that were quite powerful. They had an ice fox beast master who didn't use a weapon but fired ice spikes at range and only had attacked with that spell thus far in the entire tournament. Then a fire faery beast master who used a weird contraption that would be best described as a mini crossbow, or dartbow. The arrows fired though would be encased in fire and easily would one shot kill people in the arena.
Shooters weren't shy about having ranged attacks as the next beast master melded with a shadow hawk. The beast master used a bow and shadow arrows that appeared to slow down beast masters that it would hit. The healer of the team had a staff weapon and melded with a life faery similar to Maddy's. So thanks to Po we knew about all their different opening attacks that would typically remove most if not all of the opponents right away.