The Raiyo Examinations, Part I: Rivalry Formed!!

"The Raiyo Examinations, Part I: Rivalry Formed!!" (ライヨン試験パート1競合するフォーム!, Raiyo no shiken, Zenpen: Kyōgō suru fōmu) is the second episode of the Awakening anime and the second episode of the first season.

Steph Endaras and Amos Arahm begin their first trial to prove their ability as warriors at the 56th Raiyo Examinations. Valsiyo member Kenamas Aláriso and Chieftain Garu Aotuyen watch on and decide who shall pass and make their way to being the leaders of the next generation in Lorhên.

Summary
In Lorhên, they are beginning the 56th Raiyo Examinations, in which the recently inaugurated Valsiyo will select three apprentices to join the ranks of the most elite warriors in all of Lorhên.

Kenamas arrives late to the opening ceremony, causing a delay. After taking his seat high up at the eastern wall of the arena alongside his fellow Valsiyo, the opening ceremony begins. First, the top five prospective candidates from each of the nine clans of the village are brought out, from Clan Remna down to Clan Alár.

The crowd buzzes about Clans Vthradas and Ilmîr, eager to see whom the top two Valsiyo, Râgian Vthradasio and Segîas Ilmîriso, will likely take under their wings. One of which is Inai Nodâra of Clan Ilmîr. When Clan Alár is announced, the crowd speculates about the rumored top prospective candidate of the entire examinations and why he comes from the clan of the weakest Valsiyo, Kenamas Alariso.

Finally, Amos and Steph enter the arena. The crowd erupts at the sight of Amos Arahm, the supposed strongest prospect in the pool, but no one reacts to his best friend, Steph, who follows closely behind him. In fact, no one has heard of him, as he didn't even place in the top five. He's one of the few who were willing to try their luck despite not being placed.

A few of the prospects start mumbling about a boy who's following behind the rest of the pack. Amos identifies him as "the Denai kid" and says he's an adopted orphan with the only blue hair in all of Lorhên. Carus bids farewell to his loving adoptive parents, who tell him how proud they are of him and "can't wait" to see how he'll do, and enters the arena, passing by Steph, who watches on in curiosity. Carus goes off on his own and starts stretching. Meanwhile, the prospects prepare themselves for the Chieftain of Lorhên's arrival.

The onlookers in the stands mumble about how "it's time". Then, Ragîan tells a guard to "send him in". All of the guards, former Raiyo themselves, form a defensive position and announce in unison: "Remain seated until the chieftain has completed his greeting. Anyone standing will be forced out of the arena." The Valsiyo put themselves on alert, scanning the arena for anything unusual. Garu arrives from the stairwell to the highest level of the arena, overlooking everything just above the Valsiyo's level.

Garu greets everyone from all over L'har and Alderia, welcoming them to Lorhên. He then greets the prospects, warning them that this is a test of skill and not a battle for blood and inflicting intentional serious injury will result in total disqualification and death will result in exile from Lorhên. He wishes them luck and seats himself in his throne.

Meanwhile, after the opening ceremony concludes, Steph boasts about his best friend's capability and how he will throttle the competition. Here, the duo meets the top tier of Clan Ilmîr, including child prodigy, Inai Nodâra, daughter of the finest hunter in Lorhên, Ari Tâlu, the dark horse fighter from a lower family, Jyra Vyn, and the prodigal son of the personal guards of the Chieftain of Lorhên, Dane Zereph.

The winners of the general examinations will be granted the title Maiyo, in which they will be recognized as among the finest soldiers in Lorhên. Each of the victors in the general examination advance to the finals. The winners of the finals will be made personal students of their respective clan's Valsiyo and formerly declared Raiyo. All of the families and teachers of the youths come to witness their family members and students partake in the examinations.

The first match is declared between Amos and a member of the lowly Denai Family, Carus. Carus is a non-magic user and prefers to use his martial arts instead. He uses enchanted gloves and garments to absorb fire and prevent against burns. Amos declares he will burn the fabric.

The battle begins. Carus puts up a strong offense, but cannot even so much as make a scratch on Amos. He uses a myriad of martial arts moves and tries to grab hold of Amos, but cannot. Amos does not fight back and merely defends against all of the oncoming melee attacks until Carus manages to land a hit on Amos' jaw. From this, Amos declares "enough of this child's play" and proceeds to increase his own speed, causing a Sonic Shockwave. From there, Carus is put on the defensive, trying helplessly to prevent the fire from touching his exposed face. At the end of the fight, Amos summons three Pillars of Fire and burns Carus' fabric, leading to his concession and subsequent defeat.

After the first fight, we see a handful of minor fights, including ones involving Ari and Jyra and their respective opponents, each from a major clan. The day culminates in Steph having to confront Inai. The duel starts as an onslaught of Inai against Steph, which puts him largely on the defensive. After some clobbering, Steph formulates a strategy by drawing out a particular attack of hers and feigning being caught off guard, only to follow up with a circle strife and a burn on the back of the neck. Before she can retaliate, he has back-flipped away. Inai ends up overwhelming him, but Steph manages to make several good plays against her, leaving her victory far less decisive as the crowd had expected.

After their fight, Inai congratulates Steph for being so smart on the battlefield and proving that brains can indeed overpower brawn, but that she has both, so he was doomed to lose. Inai, Jyra, and Ari all come together with Steph and Amos to chatter about the examinations. Amos admits he is intrigued by Carus. The five watch the end of Dane's fight, in which he loses. At the end of the fight, Garu calls the examinations to an end. However, before the victors can be called, Dane demands a fight with Kenamas Aláriso to prove his own worth. Kenamas agrees.

Their fight is very brief. Kenamas doesn't even bat an eye and Dane tries relentlessly to harm him in any way. Each time Dane tries to land a hit, he disappears and reappears elsewhere. Before long, Kenamas starts lobbing fire bolts from all over. Dane is overwhelmed and, after some time, Kenamas appears in front of Dane, shocking him, grabs him by the tunic, throws him on the ground, snaps his fingers, and his blade levitates above his throat, ending the fight and the episode. Steph is awestruck by the man. The others are celebrating. Amos is even amused.

Characters in Order of Appearance

 * 1) Râgian Vthradasio
 * 2) Segîas Ilmîriso
 * 3) Ulyraî Remnasio
 * 4) Erægâs Yrisio
 * 5) Grêa Gadarasio
 * 6) Dûirvast Wveniso
 * 7) Advêra Lamijiso
 * 8) Rûgal Rea’dasio
 * 9) Kenamas Aláriso
 * 10) Sora Gaien of Clan Remna
 * 11) Myden Shursh of Clan Remna
 * 12) Tsubal Gyo of Clan Remna
 * 13) Adari Tsokyumo of Clan Remna
 * 14) Hiroshi Ksama of Clan Remna
 * 15) Maine Luro of Clan Wven
 * 16) Iadi Lylic of Clan Wven
 * 17) Olari Yo of Clan Wven
 * 18) Jun Do of Clan Wven
 * 19) Mysan Tsuki of Clan Wven
 * 20) Trent Cassar of Clan Gadara
 * 21) Puji Shono of Clan Gadara
 * 22) Shai-Han Shono of Clan Gadara
 * 23) Mujifoto Sakazuki of Clan Gadara
 * 24) Olirei Fa of Clan Gadara
 * 25) Tomo Dei of Clan Lamij
 * 26) Dan Setzo of Clan Lamij
 * 27) Ro Fano of Clan Lamij
 * 28) Setsuki Ma of Clan Lamij
 * 29) Titan Dre of Clan Lamij
 * 30) Saktsu Gon of Clan Yris
 * 31) Inadei Kukio of Clan Yris
 * 32) Misandei Tsoko of Clan Yris
 * 33) Eisenwald Dematakari of Clan Yris
 * 34) Modo Osutseri of Clan Yris
 * 35) Oda Tsenketsama of Clan Rea'da
 * 36) Kishimoto "Kishi" Satama of Clan Rea'da
 * 37) Horikoshi "Koshi" Nakamara of Clan Rea'da
 * 38) Toriyama "Tory" Den of Clan Rea'da
 * 39) Arakawa "Romy" Romi of Clan Rea'da
 * 40) Han Mirugi of Clan Vthradas
 * 41) Mait Dao of Clan Vthradas
 * 42) Ru Enijo of Clan Vthradas
 * 43) Geldar Grant of Clan Vthradas
 * 44) Hu Mando of Clan Vthradas
 * 45) Inai Nodâra of Clan Ilmîr
 * 46) Jyra Vyn of Clan Ilmîr
 * 47) Ari Tâlu of Clan Ilmîr
 * 48) Maido Mashima of Clan Ilmîr
 * 49) Shamura Shasan of Clan Ilmîr
 * 50) Dane Zereph of Clan Alár
 * 51) Sakurai Edo of Clan Alár
 * 52) Togashi Shan of Clan Alár
 * 53) Amos Arahm of Clan Alár
 * 54) Steph Endaras of Clan Alár
 * 55) Carus Denai of Clan Alár
 * 56) Rhala Denai
 * 57) Aderi Denai
 * 58) Garu Aotuyen

Battles & Events

 * Amos v. Carus
 * Jyra v. Kishi
 * Ari v. Han
 * Steph v. Inai
 * Dane v. Sora
 * Dane v. Kenamas

Abilities Used
Fire Magic Enchantment Magic Alteration Magic Enhancement Magic Teleportation Magic Dissemination Magic
 * Sonic Shockwave
 * Pillars of Fire
 * Burning Light
 * Firebolt
 * Fireball
 * Flames
 * Elemental Silence Enchantment
 * Deflection
 * Speed Boost
 * Shadow Emergence
 * Fire Dispel

Trivia From the Author

 * This was designed to be a quick, episode-length "episode" but has since grown into what will likely have to be made into a multiple episode series given the sheer number of fights.
 * The strongest people on the battlefield, in order, are Han Mirugi, Amos Arahm, Inai Nodara, Oda Tsenketsama, Sora Gaien, Mait Dao, Carus Denai, Ru Enijo, Saktsu Gon, and Kishimoto Satama. The weakest of the top prospect from a major clan is Maine Luro. It's not her fault Wven is embarrassingly weak at this point. It's just odds.
 * This is supposed to be the precursor to a tournament arc, but this ended up being the most interesting part of the tournament arc. I still might make it a tournament arc.