Alia wasn't joking when she told me Teachers would set up fights as an event. Once classes were over, I was escorted over to the arena, which looked like an Olympic Colosseum. I then realized that the teacher escorting me was Miss Blair.

“Couldn't stay out of trouble, could you kid?” She asked with a light sigh, “It's only been a day and you've already picked a fight with someone far beyond you. Are you desperate to prove yourself or something?”

“I'm sorry ma'am,” I began, “But no, that's not my reason to challenge Kat…”

“Oh?” She asked, “Then why?”

“She hurt a friend,” I said, “I can't just ignore that.”

“Well then, good luck.” She suddenly said, not seeming angry now.

“Huh?” I asked, confused.

“If you were just trying to prove yourself you’d be helpless in these circumstances.” Miss Blair began, “But if you have a real reason to fight her, whatever it is, it'll help you fight better. We teachers have been trying to discipline Kat to make her better as a person, but if she gets shown up by someone weaker than her, it may just be the reality check she needs. I'll be rooting for you kid.” I smiled a bit at her support as we went in. I went into the arena, where Kat was waiting for me in the center. All around us in the stands were the students and teachers from all over the school.

“It's a shame,” Kat sighed, “I was hoping I wouldn't have to mess up that cute face of yours so soon, but I guess it can't be helped.” She held out her hand, magically summoning a whip, which she cracked at the ground. I got into a stance, summoning my sword at my side. A white energy began to rise up from several parts of the arena. The energy took shape and formed buildings. I knew what was happening, since Alia explained to me how the arena works earlier.

“The Arena exists to test just how powerful its combatants are. To see just how much raw power they have, the arena will magically create a fake environment. It could be a city, a forest, or even a series of volcanoes. But cities are the common choice to see how much collateral damage a god could cause.” Alia’s explanation echoed in my mind as the arena finished transforming into a city, similar to New York.

Kat and I exchanged glares. I was trying to think of some kind of battle plan. I knew Kat was better than me in pretty much every way, so if I had any chance of beating her, I'd have to try and find a weakness.

Kat obviously wasn't trying to analyze me to the same extent I was trying to analyze her, as she cracked her whip at me. I dodged, then ran at her. I quickly pulled out my sword and swung, but she dodged, jumping and landing a kick to my chest, making me stumble back. She then ran up, grabbing me by the face and slamming me through a building wall. I groaned, getting up. She cracked her whip, striking me in the chest and leaving a tear in my shirt as the pain made it hard to breath for a moment. Another strike from her whip knocked me flat on my back.

“Oh, I get it now,” Kat smirked as she walked up and stepped on my throat, making it hard to breath, “You like getting pummeled by me, don't you? You didn't have to challenge me, you could've just asked.”

Being unable to speak, I couldn't cast magic, but at this moment I didn't need it since my sword was still in my hand. I quickly slashed, aiming at her face, forcing her to quickly jump back.

“You jerk!” she exclaimed as I got back up, “How dare you try to damage my beautiful face?!”

“Fire!” I exclaimed, sending a fireball her way. She easily blocked, running at me. “Lightning!” I blasted electricity at her, but she dodged, and landed a kick across my face, making me stumble back. “Lightning, enhance!” I groaned, my sword being coated in lightning. I ran at her and swung, but she dodged and kneed me in the stomach. I groaned in pain, falling on my hands and knees.

“You forgot,” Kat smiled, looking down at me, “I've seen the way you fight. I know you exhaust your magic too quickly when your little sword isn't enough.” she then grabbed my face and made me look her in the eyes, “You lost. Let's get you that maid’s uniform.”

She'd dropped her guard, giving me a golden chance. I lunged forward, headbutting her in the face as hard as I could. She stumbled back, a hand on her mouth as a bit of blood came out of her lip and her nose.

“You son of a…!” she groaned in pain.

“You can beat me to a pulp…” I began, “But I will get you to take your spell off Lex’s boyfriend!” As I shouted that, everyone in the arena went quiet, like they did when I challenged Kat.

“... Heh… Heheh,” Kat suddenly grinned as the minor damage I'd inflicted healed quickly, “You idiot!” She then whipped me, leaving another tear in my shirt as the impact made me scream with pain. She then wrapped the whip around my throat, dragging me to the ground and pulling me to her as I struggled. “I'll let you in on a little secret,” Kat began, pulling me up by my hair and whispering into my ear, “I took my spell off him months ago. He's still with me because he knows how much better I am than that whale.”

“Shut up…!” I groaned, “You're lying!”

“Everyone in the school knows it, it's the truth.” Kat smirked, “Just ask them. It never mattered if you won because in the end, I was the only one of us that had anything to gain from this fight.” She then released her whip from my throat and kicked me in the chest. I was sent tumbling through what felt like two or three walls. I could barely move, and my vision was dimming. “Don't worry,” Kat grinned, “We'll work on making you prettier when you wake up newbie!” she then cracked her whip at me one last time. I closed my eyes as I heard the thunderous sound of the whip cracking. But for some reason, I didn't feel pain this time. Maybe my body had just gone numb by now? I opened my eyes to see, Kat's attack was blocked by a wall of water, which vanished as Lex appeared between me and Kat.

“Lex…?” I managed to ask.

“What are you doing here?” Kat hissed.

“Was that the condition of your bet…?” Lex began slowly, “That if Nano won, you'd free… him, from your spell.”

“Hmph, and if it was?” Kat crossed her arms.

“And you neglected to tell him that you took the spell off a while ago…?!” Lex clenched her fists.

“Oh come now, that would be no fun.” Kat smiled, “It's not like he ever had a chance of winning anyway. Now he'll be my personal maid for a month~”

“No he won't!” Lex exclaimed, “I challenge you to a duel!”

At those words the air grew thick with tension, and now that I'd seen some of their power I knew why.

“And why should I accept?” Kat inquired, “This is the eighth time you've challenged me, but none of your conditions for what the winner gets has ever interested me.”

“If I win, you call off your bet with Nano and stop messing with him.” Lex stated, “And if you win…” She looked down, “If you win, I'll deplete most of my magic and let you use your love magic to control me…”

Kat's eyes widened in surprise. Clearly, of all the things she could expect to hear, this wasn't something she expected.

“You'd… Really let me control you for this boy's sake?” She rose an eyebrow.

“Only if you beat me.” Lex glared. Kat's surprised expression changed, forming a demented grin.

“Alright, I accept.” She smiled, “After I beat you into the ground I'll make you and your little boyfriend here my maids.”

“Wha…?” I blushed a bit at her calling me her boyfriend.

“I can't wait to stomp that smug face of yours into mush!” Lex said in either anger or excitement, I couldn't really tell. The tension in the air was thick before, but now the tension was so thick you could see what looked like auras of energy coming from Lex and Kat, the auras clashing.

Over the next hour or so, Alia used healing magic to help me recover while the teachers and Lex and Kat prepared for the upcoming battle.

“... Is it true?” I asked Alia, “Is Lex’s boyfriend really released from the spell?”

“... Yes.” Alia nodded, “To put it simply, he's a victim of Stockholm Syndrome. Kat kept him as her slave for so long, he actually began to believe he loved her. So when she eventually got bored of using him to mess with Lex, she freed him but he chose to stay with her. And since then their relationship has served as a constant slap in the face for Lex.”

“Oh man…” I sighed, “No wonder Lex wants to beat her so badly…”

“Yeah.” Alia nodded, “But I'm worried for her…”

“Huh?” I asked.

“In terms of power, Lex and Kat are practically equals.” Alia explained, “But Kat has been here longer than Lex, and has more experience. There's a chance Lex might lose…”

I looked downward a little, “... No. I believe Lex can beat her. Even if they are equals, I know Lex won't let herself lose.” Alia looked at me, then smiled.

“You're right Nano.” she nodded.

“So, you're Nano, huh?” a new voice caught my attention. I turned to see a guy about my age, with short dark brown hair, brown eyes, and a pair of glasses on.

“Uh, yeah.” I began, “Why?”

“My name is John.” He said, “I saw you stand up to Kat. It was pretty cool.”

“Cool?” I asked, raising an eyebrow, “But I got my butt kicked all over the place. Any longer and she'd probably be forcing me to lick the dirt off her shoes…”

“But you still had the guts to fight her.” John said, “No other new student ever had the guts to do that. It shows you have a lot of potential.”

“Well, thanks.” I shrugged, “So… What are you the god of?”

“Speed.” He smirked, “Once I've mastered my powers, nothing will be faster than me.”

“Oh that's cool.” I smiled.

“It looks like the fight's about to start.” Alia stated, causing John and I to turn to her. The three of us took seats in the spectator stands, watching as the Arena took on the form of a small town. Lex and Kat were at the center, ready for battle.

Kat walked up to Lex, then back handed her across the face. Kat aimed a follow up punch, but Lex grabbed her wrist, then hit Kat with a punch that knocked her flat on her back. Lex walked up to Kat, who then hit Lex with a kick that sent her flying through a building. Lex groaned as she got up. Kat summoned her whip as Lex summoned a pair of chained sickles. Kat hovered her hand over her whip, and suddenly the leather whip was made of blades with enhancement magic. The two weapons clashed several times before both jumped back. Kat shot a fireball at Lex. Suddenly, water sprouted up from the ground and blocked it.

“Where'd that water come from?” John asked, “Don't you need a source of water in order to use water magic?”

“Usually that's the case.” Alia nodded, “But Lex is different. As the goddess of water, her Specialty allows her to magically create her own water out of thin air. And that's just one of the many things her Specialty lets her do.”

Lex’s water shield turned into ice and Lex smashed it, sending ice shards at her opponent. Kat jumped over the attack and sent her whip at Lex. Water sprouted from the ground and blocked the attack. Kat attacked several times, but the water kept moving to block. Kat then sent a freezing spell that turned Lex's water to ice. Kat ran up and whipped her back.

“You're mine!” Kat yelled, charging at Lex to attack again.

“Yeah… no.” Lex smirked. In only a second, water sprouted from the ground, coated Kat's body, then froze solid, basically turning Kat into an ice sculpture with an almost goofy expression of surprise on her face. I couldn't help but chuckle, then the crowd erupted at Lex's victory.

“Yeah!” Alia cheered, jumping up from her seat.

The frozen Kat was wheeled out of the area by teachers as Lex was smirking at her victory. After a bit she rejoined our group.

“That was awesome!” I welcomed her, “You seriously kicked her-” Suddenly I felt Lex's fist impact against my head.

“You idiot!” She scolded as I doubled over with my hands on my head, “What the heck were you thinking, picking a fight with someone leagues stronger than you?! You're lucky I don't freeze you too!”

I chuckled nervously, holding up my hands defensively, “Please don't…”

“Whatever.” Lex sighed, “At least that should shut Kat up for a few days… and thanks…”

“Huh?” I inquired.

“For wanting to help my ex.” She said, “There's nothing you can do for him, but it's kind that you tried.”

“Oh, uh no problem.” I smiled a little.

“Well, we should all head to our dorms.” Alia began, “It's been a busy day.”

“Yeah, you're right.” I nodded, “Though I'll probably get something to eat later.”

“Same here.” Lex agreed, “Later.”

So we all went back to our rooms, where the next few hours passed in silence. I stared at the ceiling thinking. I was still amazed by what I could do, use magic, summon weapons, and survive getting knocked through a building. What was crazier was that I was still nothing compared to people like Lex and Brian.

My thoughts were abruptly interrupted by a banging on my door. I got up and answered. To my surprise I saw Kat there, frowning at me and shivering. Evidently she was still cold from Lex freezing her.

“Kat?” I asked.

“I came here to let you know you got lucky today.” she began, “And it's your fault that whale humiliated me so bad.”

“Hey, you're the one doing messed up things.” I argued, “She just put you in your place.” That clearly made Kat angry.

“Listen.” she hissed, “This isn't over. Just wait, that walking fish won't always be around to protect you. Later loser.” she then left.

“That's ominous...” I said to myself.

The next day I actually paid attention in my classes… mostly. So I saw it's not too different from normal schools. There were different classes throughout the day, each one teaching something different. One class taught about both science and magic, a confusing combination, but at least it's cool. One class was basically P.E. as it focused on exercises and combat training. One class taught about the history of humans and gods, and one taught about mythical creatures that only gods can see. And according to Alia there were other optional classes about things like curses and other forms of magic. It was all pretty weird, but this school was a lot more interesting than my old school.

I was walking to P.E. with John and Alia near the end of the school day.

“Hey where's Lex?” I asked, “I haven't seen her all day.”

“She's on a mission.” Alia answered.

“Mission?” I inquired.

“Yes,” Alia began, “As gods, once we get strong enough, we start getting sent out on missions to take care of our godly duties. Most of the time it's about hunting a demon or other kind of monster causing trouble for humans. Lex is currently out hunting demons.”

“Huh,” John said, “So getting on missions gets you out of classes?”

“Yep.” Alia smiled, “If you two keep growing in your strength and magic, soon you'll start doing missions too.”

“Sounds… interesting.” I shrugged. We were suddenly stopped by two large students, each of them a few feet taller than us. They stood in front of us, blocking our path.

“So, you like hitting pretty girls huh?” one asked looking at me.

“Uh, what?” I asked.

“You hit lady Kat.” the other growled at me, “No one does that without us twisting ‘em into a pretzel!”

“An odd threat…” I said to myself, a little scared by their tough appearance.

“Fighting isn't allowed outside the arena…” John said.

“Don't worry,” The first guy cracked his knuckles, “It won't be a fight.”

“I'll deal with this…” Alia said, standing in front of them. She held up her hand and a white magic circle appeared over her palm. She tightened her fist, crushing the circle. Suddenly the two guys went completely stiff and fell face down on the ground.

“What the…?!” I gasped.

“Paralysis.” Alia said, lifting her foot and stepping on one of the guy's heads, “I don't usually like using my spells on other students, but I also don't wanna see a friend get hurt by these thugs.”

“Who are they?” John asked.

“My guess,’” Alia began, “They're probably part of Kat's gang.”

“Gang?” I echoed, “Kat has a gang?!”

“More like, she's part of a gang of bullies.” Alia explained, “They like to mess with other students, especially new ones, and Kat's basically the second in command. They must've tried sending these guys after you now since Lex is away.”

“Wonderful…” I groaned.

“It's probably nothing to worry about.” Alia said, “Even if they do make a move, the bullies here aren't much worse than the bullies at human schools.”

“Still not a very fun idea.” I sighed.

“Well then you'd better get stronger and more magically adept.” Alia shrugged, “Most bullies won't mess with someone that can fight back.”

“Yeah, I guess.” I nodded.

“Let's just get to class.” Alia said.

“Right.” John and I nodded.

The rest of the day was uneventful. Our last class was just training, and later on Lex came back. For the next few days I went through the classes, learning magic and getting stronger. It wouldn't be until about two weeks after first coming here that something big would happen.