93021 RAA The Fish Wizard R1 LR Proof

2nd Printing Copyright © S. Berggren, 2024 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

Let’s review.

SIR, YES SIR!

Law of Sum moning.

Conjur ation requires both mastery of the summon’s prim al magic and mental concentration on the summon’s true form.

Law of primal magic.

Primal magic is twice as powerful as wizard magic, and produces half as much lingering energy.

Law of Fourths.

One fourth of a spell’s energy lingers

after casting. the next spell to use that energy will be four times as power ful...

Fischer residence?

Jin , go cover the dig!

hello.

13 Years Ago

You two are Archeologists ? Dangerous work.

yes?

Lieutenant Hans Guese. May I?

It keeps us busy . Lots of travelling .

yes

it’s been quite the challenge to track you down.

A pity it’s over, really. I was having such fun.

choose wisely.

do you know why I’m here?

um- Our digging permits are--

--You have something of the empire’s .

Help me , and I’ll leave you-

-and your work-

alone.

... In their room.

!

Really…

A gwagon!

dragon!

dr

er- you must be Simon .

my That’s some spell. What’s it supposed to be?

It’s not vewy good yet, only five parts.

that’s quite advanced, espe- cially without a wand ... The em- pire has good use for a Wizard like you.

Is there no way we could

All students to car 12! Pick up uniforms and papers before boarding!

Extra!

Military colleges prepare for surge of new students! Emperor declares war on northern territo ries!

Extra!

given we’ve missed the most formative years, Simon will strug gle to fit in with the other kids.

But…I don’t want to go!

state wizards gather to lead the front !

Get your scrolls here! Fresh from the wand !

Oh my baby !

But they’re quite the wizard. They’re certain to matriculate into univer sity .

Simon, I’m so sorry .

You’re so much more than just a Wizard

Look at me.

Stay out of trouble , and perhaps Simon will visit.

you’re a scholar , Simon.

if they survive , of course.

just like your parents.

Don’t let them take that.

w-Will I ever see you again?

Here. We want you to have this.

Make us proud .

to… remember us by…

keep it safe .

SIMON!

Kurnebaug Universi - Gro outh College of Wizardry: the present.

Ah, so fish do have ears.

Oh! I mean, yes , head master, sir!

Are you able to solve this spell, or do you need another nap first?

Huh?

Yes , sir, or er- No sir. Um

Oops!

Oh?

Then you’re sleep ing because you find this class too easy . Come down.

I’ve already solved it sir.

Careful, fish .

Shut it, forscythe!

To duplicate Summoning spell x with energy E --

Hmm.

Very good. Now, demon strate .

--requires catalyzing the primal magic spell of the summons , v --

Oh, um- I uh

--with Gilfoyle's “Simplified Summoning” component, S --

--which becomes directly

soluble with an illusion of the sum mons , y, given y connects E with x .

Feel free to use the Mana concen

trate here.

App rentice

Pardon,

Head master Pidgol,

Tch. Four spells a day gone by noon. Sir, my

Forscythe Gallows?

but…

other class

I can’t.

I’m out of spells for the day.

Sit down, fish.

...It’s

fisch er.

Par don?! Display your wand.

Ah, yes. Best of luck, captain.

‘bit green about the gills? I know a great wake-up spell you could --oh, wait.

Rebecca Song, perhaps you can duplicate this foul thing for the class.

I can’t, sir, I have a game tonight.

I’m sure you’ll make house sang uinore proud.

Don’t you have a stick to put between your legs, captain?

hm? got somethin’

to say? The dueling pitch is right there. Unless you’re scared.

It's completely unfair !

three classes before Pidgol’s, but Forscythe gets off because his dad bought him into the Hodsfield team.

Later, in the library...

competing isn’t

every thing .

I should never have joined house sanguinore. How am I suppost to compete against wizards like him?

I don’t know.

What?! How is that even legal ?

Thanks, Jar. I feel so much better.

speaking of competing-- I might finally

keyword: might .

the emperor declared dragons

win at this stupid card game.

and stupid ?! you’re the one who got me into it.

heret ical--

yeah, and the entire old-world.

Was it real?

are you real?

ahem.

I summon Sharkan Dragon .

I’m kidding! I’m--

You can’t tell, but I'm raising my eyebrow.

OW!

Whatcha’ working on, simon?

Oh, it’s a, uh… passion project. A spell I’ve been strug gling with for, uh, a little while.

let me see.

What’s this, Slime-on?

Don't see enough fossils, so now you’re reading them?

leave them alone, Forsc yth!

I don’t--

in My father’s library--

cram it, wurm lock.

Watch your tongue, bottom feeder , or-

tch, whatev er.

–or what? I should challenge you to a duel?

--I’m not in the mood , gallows. Find someone else to brag

if you’re so eager you do it.

about your dad’s money to.

I can’t be both ered.

SIMON FISCHER ! I CHALLENGE YOU TO A WIZARD’S DUEL!

Fine. if I win, you’ll give up your seat in house sanguinore, okay?

when I win, I’ll use you as target practice

Deal.

I’ll tell the necro mancers not to wait up.

for a year!

oh n..o.

Let’s go! Three years of school, and you all go soft?!

Fischer! Get it togeth er!

The Next Day

Need a hand?

Those books won’t help you back on the battle field!

Sounds like he

Thanks.

couldn’t resist showing off the Gallows’ family summons.

Have you seen Forscy the?

He finished

a while ago, moved on to sparring.

The Ember claw...

FISCHER!

What are you, a wizard-- or a worm?!

Maybe accepting that duel was a mistake …

Get back in line!

Slimoire Type: Slime

Billiblade Type: Oil Class: B Abili : Rapid Bone Growth

Class: C Abili : Spell Mimicry

Tom orrow, you’ll have four spells against Forscythe’s twenty three .

If you block , that spell energy dissipates . You need to turn it back on him.

I know, I know.

Oh no, WAIT !

C’THOG FHTUL AMON, GROG NACHT LESHOS

Thank you, professor Fowler!

DAMNIT, JARRETH! I said SPAR!

oops, sorry Si.

I said sorry!

I summoned the Slimoire so I could test the spells I

Lets just go again! I’ll play defen sively!

and now! I still need to research what summons I’m actually going to use!

You two have helped enough!

Wait, you’re going to use a new sum mons?!

can’t cast!

I only have one spell left before tomo rrow.

I’ve been teaching spells to that summons for two years becuase of my- my

let me go a round.

I…

…I’ll be in the library.

OW!

hey! It was an accident!

The Emberclaw is quite the ferocious opponent.

uh, yes , sir. Especially since it went ex tinct.

It’s unfortunate that the Gallows’ summoning monopoly makes research of the beast so… expen sive.

wouldn’t you say, simon?

Head master Pidgol!

I want a good show tomorrow. there will be many important guests attending. don’t disappoint.

You know, I often enjoy walking the older wings of the library.

There’s much to learn from even out dated books…

Head master, sir!

…I see.

im portant... guests?

um, Does it have something to do with what... happened back there?

Hey.

hey…

DRAGONS ARE REAL?!

My mom gave it to me, when I was en listed.

what’s that?

Jar reth!

It’s a juvenile dragon tooth.

from where I was born...

Simon, this is…

Stop trying to be

broken . I can’t get it to work. Just another show of my great wizardry.

a wizard. start being your self .

come on, let’s get out of here.

Again !

Father , they’re just a fish !

a fish who can end six genera tions of tradition!

The gallows have always been Sanguinites.

But if the heir to

if you lose , it will taint the very name gallows.

the strongest financial family in the empire fails…

sir, the members of the board have arrived!

demotion to that

pathetic house Hrathenag you use to whimper about will be the least of your worries.

Fine .

I won't lose!

tch.

This is Grim & Co duel cast , 105.4 fm crystal orb...

Undef eated heir of house Gallows , Forscythe II , goes up against underdog Simon “fish” Fischer.

--your go-to for all things college dueling. Today I’m joined by student announ cer Georg Peck.

thanks, Grimsley . The Grotmouth

arena is packed today, as students and visitors alike swarm in for

what is already being called the duel of the year.

Fischer is only K.U.’s fourth ever fish wizard and the first to attend grotmouth .

this is unreal…

Given their unusually low spell limits, it’s been widely considered a waste to educate a fish in place of an able wizard.

Several high empire officials have ‘ported in.

today the world will see if that risk has paid off.

If simon wins , it could mean accepting more fish wizards into the military.

What began as a simple feud between peers has

quickly become a reflec tion of a decades-long political conflict.

Referee Jacque-al prepares the duelists...

and the crowd erupts as Gallows takes the pitch!

oh, simon...

The referee is leaving the field!

The duelists are at their marks ...

AND THE DUEL BEGINS!

wow, that’s hot!

What's that ?

AND Gallows WASTES NO TIME, JUMPING DIRECTLY INTO A DEVASTATING HAYMAKER AGAINST FISCHER!

It was outside my

door this morn ing. The card says Simon checked it out…

it looks like this may be another quick and decisive victory for gallows!

Fischer counters while Gallows is distrac ted!

With all the left over mana

from Gallows’ attack, Fischer easily tripled the strength of their spell!

Whatever Fischer is planning, they must want as much time as possible to do it.

While their opponent is busy , it looks like Simon is repositioning to the wooded quadrant.

catalyze with fifth component --

fourth component--

--two parts--

--Four parts oil--

--blood.

hey--two, please.

Where is that damn fish?! I’ll kill him!

This is the moment everyone has been waiting for! Forscythe summons the EMBER CLAW!

This is it!

it seems fischer has summoned some thing

Wait ! Something is wrong ! it seems Forscythe is having trouble directing his summons !

it’s a silk tail !

what is... Does the book say some thing?

What?! No! Ignore the stupid Rabbit and get that FISH !

Apparently , Silk-tails were irresistible for wild Ember claws.

when the silk reaches a high enough temperature , it releases

only emberclaws have digestive systems hot enough to make it.

a kind of opiate .

Incred ible ! With just two spells, Fischer has Gallows tied up in webs and

running in circles !

Stop running, you coward!

*huff*

*huff*

--twelth component--

--mix with Gil foyle’s chimeric fusion--

*huff*

fine , you wanna dance ? lets see you run from this .

-- dilute with illusion base.

With two ember claws, the silktail is finally caught!

uh-oh

But with two high-power

summons, can gallows still find the con centration for an attack?

I’m going to enjoy cooking you alive, you scum-suck ing bottom feeder!

ugh.

I guess this is it.

There you are!

I don’t believe it!

He’s lost focus on the ember claws!

Simon’s trapped Forscythe with the webs!

wait - some

thing is wrong!

My wand… . I- I cant

thats quite advanced, especially without a wand ...

My name, is Simon Fischer--

You’re so much more than just a Wizard

AND I AM A SCHOLAR!

is that--

A DRAGON?!

Simon! oh my little archeologist!

They did it…

fuck!

Holy emper or!!

t-the dragon rears for an a- attack . But …

w- where is Forscythe?

beau tiful...

I-- I did it! I--

C’thog fhtul Amon, Grog nacht leshos

careful, simon.

What happen ed ?

We don't know- The displace ment from the Dragon made it hard to see .

The ref declared Forscythe the winner. He killed you, but we don't know how .

Strange . I don't remember

hearing a spell…

You’re lucky . A real Gallows would never come so close to defeat .

If the fish had gone for the kill , I may have paid off the necromancer to not revive your pathetic life.

You know , for

Guys…

someone who won , he sure looks like he lost .

I’m so sorry, I--

I should have

never--

We know.

next time you can kill me when I’m preparing for the most important duel of the year.

Simon, you have to tell me how you solved it!

That was…

very impressive.

oh please.

Simon Fischer.

that has to be the highest level spell

I expect to see the completed Spellcraft on my desk by Monday.

cast on campus!

maybe ever!

um, of course! Sir.

to be honest, I wasn’t sure it would work.

We should do some research on wands --

It looks like we will have a very interesting senior year.

a three finned

lets see Forscythe compete with THAT!

kharcharodon. I never thought I’d live to see the day-- yes… the empire

will find great use for such a thing... and for you.

our... military...

what have I done...

to think- the things our military could do...

END