Kots was almost overwhelmed by all the magic in the air.  Spells being flung almost carelessly; of course, he didn't have much time to appreciate this fresh aroma as he was currently dodging firebolts, sonic blasts, and death rays.  He was so glad to have his staff.  His staff was made of the Hungoir tree, a tree that was only found in his homeland.  It was the only tree found in his homeland.  Very much like their people, the tree was known for its ability to absorb the magic surrounding it, which was why it was the only tree that grew there, it sucked all the magic out of the air, just like weeds suck the nutrients from the soil, so nothing else could grow.  With his staff, he could absorb spells, just by touching then, just as if he were touching the spell itself.

He spun his staff and blocked an incoming weakening spell.  Ugh, I hate licorice... Kots thought.  He ran over to the attacking mage before he could get another spell, and used his absorbed spell power to draw the magical abilities of the mage he was dueling into himself.  His teammates were doing likewise to this guy's buddies.  Robbed of their spell power, the mages could do nothing now, but watch, and maybe attempt to whack them with their staves, but one flourish of Click's sword, and they all seemed pretty docile. 

Kots spoke up, "Thank you very much for your kind donations to Team Hungoir, your generosity will not be forgotten."  And with those words, he whacked the three on the back of the head, knocking them out.  An agonarch quickly appeared, looked at the bodies, grabbed them, and then teleported off the battle field.

"Well, let's see what we got from these guys," Click said.  Kots ran through the list of absorbed spells, and was surprised to find a lot of spells that would flat out kill someone, and they weren't weakened down to just knock someone out, like the rules for the competition stated.  He looked up at the others, and noticed that they, too, had similar expressions on their faces.  Apparently not everyone was here just for a good ol' fashioned magical brawl.  Someone wanted someone to die.

"What clan was that?"  Morgan had a small amount of worry in her voice.

"It was the Upcha clan.  They've been one of the more aggressive clans since the death of the Master Mage."  Kots didn't know how Click always knew this stuff, but he was glad that he did.  "They specialize in death magics, which makes sense now."

Kots was curious, "So what do we do with these spells?"

"Well," came Click's reply, "we really shouldn't have any trouble using them as long as we're in the duel area.  It's nearly impossible for anyone to die while inside its protective field."

"Then why order the mages to weaken death spells?"  Morgan asked the very question that Kots was thinking.

"It's not really necessary, but another step towards being safe, these fields aren't perfect."

Again, Kots was amazed at his leader's knowledge.  "Why don't we launch these death spells into the air and not use them, then, just to be safe, boss?"  Kots didn't like the idea of accidentally killing someone.

"Sure, just to be on the safe side."  They all three launched their various spells into the air.  All the spells looked like black vapor emitting from the hand. 

Kots shuddered, no wonder these spells tasted like things he didn't enjoy.

(Greetings all, this battle royale will continue on tomorrow! Yeah!  Anyway, please do vote on the top of my page at the poll, it lets me know where I'm doing a good job, and where I'm not.  Or if you notice anything that you like, please comment, and let me know, I promise you won't look like a fool.  I'm fool enough for this blog, you couldn't add any more to it, trust me ;)  Oh!  If you guys have any ideas for where you might think this story be going, let me know, I might just use your ideas (with your permissions of course).  Anyway, the time has come for me to help out around the house, TTY all laterz! Peace!)

[PS, figured out the lost word yet?]