An Earthling Earth Pony at Celestia's School of Magic: Year One

We all watched as the headmasters moved their table, and Newman drew a chalk border upon the floor. As she did, she would pause to move anything that was within the border out of It—a stool, a smaller table, a pair of large potted plants. She shifted these all to the back wall of the cafeteria, which had been largely vacant of any furniture, aside from a table that had a bust of some unicorn—which she shifted over slightly to make room for the various things that she was adding to the wall. She seemed to take an excessive amount of time adjusting this table in particular, moving it one inch one way before pulling it back a few centimeters. Perhaps she had some obsessive-compulsive disorder that demanded everything be just right. It seemed unlikely, given the state she preferred her office, but who knew.

The large open area did give her room to move around, so she could theoretically continue dodging blasts for some time. Cinch’s small area she was supposed to remain stationary in was a few feet outside Newman’s border and was a small square just big enough for Cinch to stand with her legs spread out if need be. It lined up evenly with the center of Newman’s area, meaning that she wasn’t any further away from anything on the right of the area than the left.

If I had to guess, I assumed Newman would stay towards the back of her drawn area, as that would give her more reaction time to any of Cinch’s blasts, but not all the way back, as she would need room to move backward in some cases. Humans were notoriously more nimble than ponies, but I wondered how nimble a woman as old as Newman was. She had to be at least reasonably nimble if she thought she could dodge Cinch’s blasts. I didn’t see any surfaces that would be conducive of ricocheting spells, so Cinch couldn’t get clever trying to do something like that. Cinch would have to aim directly at Newman. Cinch was currently sitting in her assigned area, watching Newman with intense attention. The old mare was probably trying to determine what Newman’s strategy was.

I was still confused. What did it prove if Newman did win? That Newman was quick on her feet? That was nice and all, but it didn’t seem that big a point, and didn’t seem to discredit Cinch’s insults in any way. What was the point of all of this?

Inkwell was chewing on her lip as she watched Newman set up the border.

Newman finished her outline of the area and walked towards the center of it, after first grabbing her grapes that she had left sitting on the unicorn bust table.

“I think the arrangements are now all in order. If the visiting leaders would be so gracious, they can act as referees to judge whether the rules laid out in my terms of engagement are being maintained,” Newman said.

The visiting school leaders, who’d all been shifted off far to the right along with their table, gave collective nods.

Newman looked at Sweetie Belle. “And if you would be so good as to keep time, that would be very helpful. Remember, exactly four minutes, beginning from the second the first shot is fired. Don’t give us running updates about the time, just announce when time is up.”

“So, are we finally ready to begin?” Cinch asked as she stood up.

Newman smiled. “Pick how you choose to stand and open fire.”

Cinch took a few seconds adjusting her standing position before suddenly lighting her horn and firing off a blast at Newman.

Newman casually stepped back and to the left, keeping her eyes on Cinch, and her arms crossed behind her back. The blast missed and connected with one of the potted plants behind the border, causing it to rock violently.

“Careful, you don’t want to make a mess,” Newman said, not seeming too concerned.

Cinch fired off another blast, immediately followed up by two more. Newman sidestepped once and was missed by all three.

“Predictable,” Newman taunted, laying on an exaggerated tone of disappointment.

Cinch frowned. “How did you know the trajectory of all three blasts?”

“Do you really expect me to tell you?” Newman asked, sounding amused. “I told you, you are predictable.”

Cinch snarled and fired off four blasts in rapid succession. Newman did two rapid steps, first backwards and then to her right. Nothing connected with her, but the potted plants behind her got pelted with blasts, and one potted plant fell over.

“So messy,” Newman chided.

Cinch unlit her horn. “I’ll give you this—your reaction time is impressive. You must have practiced. What prompted that? Do you have a lot of angry unicorns shooting at you? I wouldn’t be shocked.”

“Enough angry unicorns that I found it prudent to practice,” Newman surprisingly confirmed, she then started stepping to the side.

Another blast suddenly went straight at Newman at high speed, but missed completely before knocking over a chair. Cinch’s horn had never lit. What just happened? Had someone else fired? It seemed to have come from Cinch but her horn wasn’t glowing.

Newman laughed, never taking her eyes off the headmistress as Cinch starred in shock.

“Yellow Seal’s aura masking technique, how quaint,” Newman said mirthfully. “Students, take notes. This is a technique that hides the corona around your horn despite you actively holding your power at the ready. It also hides any runes for any spells you might be casting. It’s great for surprise attacks.”

Two more blasts went at Newman, but she dodged both with a single step as she tossed a grape at Cinch. The grape connected with Cinch’s horn and the headmistress hissed in pain, but didn’t leave her spot.

“There are some notable drawbacks,” Newman went on to explain as Cinch shook her head, likely trying to clear it after he sudden jolt of pain. “One, it dramatically slows down how fast you can cast spells, and, two, it makes your horn even more sensitive to impact than it normally would be. It was very impressive Cinch could cast two blasts in that quick succession while using that technique. Bravo to you, Cinch. That was a very impressive feat.”

“Is that a violation of the rules?” Arcane asked.

“No,” Gillmore answered. “Cinch is not allowed to cast any active spells, but that is a passive one, and it doesn’t impact the environment or Newman directly or indirectly. It is allowed.”

Cinch glared at Newman. “How?! How did you know the blasts were coming? You started moving before I even fully released the spell, and you shouldn’t have been able to see any sign I was casting.”

“Did you not hear me just explain to the students it slows your casting time? Did you not know this yourself?” Newman asked. “As for the rest, I stand by my previous statement—you are predictable.” She then quickly pelted Cinch’s horn with another grape, causing the headmistress to cry out in pain again.

“You might want to drop using that technique. It is giving you additional vulnerabilities and doesn’t seem to be helping,” Newman suggested. “If this keeps up, I will manage to stagger you, and that would cost you the duel. It is not my intention to win that way.”

Cinch rubbed her horn gently and looked at Sweetie Belle. “Can I get a time check?”

“You have just under two minutes remaining,” Sweetie Belle informed her.

Cunch lowered her head and started rubbing it. Newman threw another grape at her that struck the horn, causing Cinch to scream, but she braced herself so she wouldn’t move.

“Cute, you were going to try a surprise attack by trying to fire while pretending to rub away a headache, ignoring your continued vulnerability that aura masking is giving you. It may have worked against a lesser opponent, but you don’t seem to understand who you are facing,” Newman said.

Cinch looked up. “How are you doing this?! Even a skilled mage shouldn’t be able to predict with such precision when I am readying a spell. I am going out of my way to avoid giving away anything with body language.”

Newman tilted her head slightly. “Are you going to cry because you can’t beat the big bad human with your fancy magic? Please, don’t do that. You’ll embarrass yourself even further. Instead, just imagine what my actual spell casting students will be able to accomplish if I can do this.”

Cinch’s horn lit, and she fired, Newman stepped to the side. Cinch fired again, and again Newman stepped to the side. This continued for several more blasts, each never connecting.

Newman sighed. “You seem to be off on your aim.” She then patted her chest before putting her arms behind her back again. “I’m right here. You seem to be aiming at my legs and shoulders.”

Cinch then fired off three blasts. Newman didn’t even step to the side, she just turned her body slightly. All three blasts missed. It did seem that Cinch was aiming where Newman described. Why was she doing that? Newman even seemed to know Cinch wouldn’t take a shot at her torso. Why? Why not the torso?

“Try again?” Newman suggested.

Cinch fired off four more blasts and Newman turned her whole body, never taking her eyes off Cinch. The blasts went right by her and she returned to previous stance. Again, none of the blasts seemed to go near Newman’s torso. Why was Cinch avoiding that area? Newman would be forced to at least jump out of the way if that was targeted.

Cinch’s eyes went wide. She took several deep breaths then hung her head.

“I concede. Even if I did more to win, I would lose,” Cinch said bitterly.

“Precisely,” Newman said with satisfaction.

There was a heavy stunned and quiet awe throughout the cafeteria. How had Newman done it? None of us in the same position could have dodged and anticipated attacks like that. I was sure the adults couldn’t either, considering the looks on their faces.

“I’m sure you all wish an explanation of what just occurred, and this is a lesson,” Newman said, looking around at the cafeteria. She then turned and looked at the visiting leaders’ table. “Bob, you can start us off. You have my full permission to tell them how I was able to anticipate Cinch’s attacks. I’m sure that is the primary question on their mind. We will get to the others in a moment.”

Bob nodded and stood up. “I am very familiar with Charlotte Newman. Headmistress Cinch, you were operating under a failed assumption. Charlotte Newman may not be able to cast spells, but she is not without magic. She does not advertise this fact, but it is public record on Earth for anyone who chooses to investigate."

I blinked. This was interesting. I was sure I wasn’t the only one who assumed she had no magic. Why had she never mentioned it? Was it simply because we'd never asked? It couldn't be much magic, considering the artifact that measured magical power didn't seem to react to her.

“Charlotte Newman can see thaumic energy and runes,” Bob continued. “This isn’t an ability she turns on and off, but how she experiences the world. I am fairly positive that Yellow Seal’s aura masking technique did nothing to hide your spellcasting from her. All it did was give her more time to react. My experience with her is that she can recognize and analyze spells at an astounding speed. She always knew where the blast would go. Since she could see the runes, that included runes for trajectory. She quite literally could see everything you were doing and your intent, even if the rest of us could not. There is no casting a spell in secret around Newman—I'd advise never casting any spells that you wish to keep a trade secret when you are near her; she will learn them, even if she can't cast them."

"If she really was some sort of spy, that's some serious magical espionage potential," Hannah whispered in wonder. I had to agree.

Newman smiled and nodded. “Thank you, Bob. Now on to the next part—Jordan, can you suggest how Cinch could have counteracted me being able to anticipate her blasts? I'm sure Cinch considered this already, she isn’t as much a fool as I made her out to be, but we’ll get to why she didn’t take those actions in a moment. There was a reason, an important one, but first, identify the appropriate countermeasures to my dodging, whether I was able to tell where the blasts were going to go or not.”

Jordan stood. “That answer is simple enough. She could have simply used wider blasts that you could not as easily dodge. I’m confused about why she kept using such small pinpointed blasts. That made no sense, especially if you were showing a proficiency in dodging. Any student past the third year should be able to make a wider beam, and certainly the headmistress should. It is not that advanced a technique, far less advanced than the one she was using to hide her spellcasting. I also had no idea why she was avoiding your torso. Aiming at your extremities only made dodging easier. Tempest would have had me running laps as a foal if I kept aiming blasts at my opponent's extremities."

Arcane nodded agreement. “I was confused about how she continued dodging until Bob explained it, but I was equally confused why Cinch used such small blasts when it seemed obvious what to do to limit the effectiveness of your seeming precognition."

“I as well,” Obeah said. The others also nodded, including Bob.

Newman walked to the back wall of the cafeteria, stepping over a downed potted plant and next to the table that had the unicorn bust on it.

“For that answer, we will turn to the mare in question,” Newman replied. “Headmistress Cinch, can you explain to all those assembled here today exactly what this is that I'm standing next to? The item I took the time while setting up to ensure you saw?”

Wait...she was fiddling with that table for so long as part of her plan? It never seemed that important. She hadn't done anything other than adjust it back and forth in position.

Cinch continued to hang her head, only raising her eyes briefly to look. “It is a bust of the Headmaster Topaz Diamond, the third headmaster of the school.”

“And what is significant about it?” Newman prompted. "Does it possess some magic power?"

Cinch licked her lips. “No, it does not. It is important because it is the only surviving depiction of him. It is irreplaceable. It is an important part of our school history.”

“And what would have happened if you used a wider beam to try to fire at me?” Newman asked.

Cinch looked up, looking tired and defeated. “Has it not become clear to everypony here? Do I need to spell it out?”

“Then I will,” Newman answered. She looked at us. “If she had used a wider beam she may have hit me and won, but if I had attempted to sidestep then the remainder of that beam would have gone straight to what was behind me. I had strategically positioned myself to make sure of that, that is also why she never fired at my torso. A missed shot that was targeted there would have gone straight at the bust. She would have struck the table or the bust, potentially destroying it. In her eyes, that would have been too much of a loss, even for the sake of victory. Know your opponent, students, and prepare your strategy accordingly. I won as soon as I was allowed to define the area of engagement. I knew, even provoked, she would still restrain herself from doing anything to endanger this bust.”

I'd honestly never seen that bust before, and was fairly certain it hadn't been in the cafeteria before today.

Newman stepped towards Cinch and bent down so she was at Cinch’s eye level.

“Headmistress Cinch, you were faced with a scenario where there was no positive outcome and had to make a choice between whether winning was worth what you would lose to achieve victory or losing and preserving that which you valued. I think you made the right choice. Preserving tradition and history is a very important, and it is not worth merely winning a duel if you lose those things. Further, you did it under emotional and psychological strain from my constant verbal attacks and the physical pain I inflicted, yet you never lost control or lost sight of what could happen. You are a great mare,” Newman gently said.

“Why were we dismissed?” Cinch asked in a low voice that carried in the silence.

“This school’s current mission is not just to push the boundaries of magic, but to forge leaders and heroes who are capable of making hard choices, like the one you just made. Crystal Prep Academy is lucky to have you, because those students and faculty that were let go, while very talented, were not the ones that were capable of making those kinds of choices, and they need a leader who can. It was hard, painful even, having to judge each and every one of them, but the judgment had to be made," Newman answered looking downward.

"So, it was you who decided," Cinch said bitterly. "It was you who arbitrarily decided who had value and who did not."

Newman sighed. "I cannot say if I was always perfect in my judgment, I suspect I wasn’t, but I did the best I could in my recommendations. Your students and faculty still have value, even if they can’t make those hard decisions. Equestria needs skilled mages and experts like them, but it also needs those like we are trying to forge here. For a long time, Equestria has benefited from having heroes who could go and defeat any threat with friendship and rainbows, and it was wonderful that was the case. I wish it could have remained so. However, the world is changing, and friendship and rainbows are no longer going to be enough alone, and there are going to be many situations where there is no completely positive outcome to a situation, even in the best outcome. We need to prepare for the future. We shall do our part here, training those who will have to fight the hard battles and make the hard choices, and you shall do your part by continuing to train all those who keep Equestria working right in the meantime. I wish to apologize for some of the things I said to goad you. They were merely tools to push you. It was manipulative, and I’m sorry for that, but there were lessons to be taught.”

Cinch looked down at the floor and then stood. “I need some time alone. I am not accepting or refusing your apology, nor anything else you said. I am still too emotionally invested in what just occurred. I can’t trust my judgment one way or another until I have regained control of my emotions.”

“Understandable,” Newman said, standing up as well.

“The old teacher’s lounge is still available if you wish some privacy, headmistress,” Sweetie Belle was quick to chime in.

Cinch nodded and wordlessly walked towards the exit of the cafeteria..

“One last thing, headmistress,” Newman called out.

Cinch turned, ears flattened, to look at Newman.

Newman pointed at the bust. “While I forgive our students for not knowing, our school faculty seems to have a distressingly limited knowledge about the items of historical significance held at this school. I was able to walk that thing into the cafeteria earlier today without a single person raising an eyebrow, and not a single one of them picked up on why you were hesitating to use a wide attack. If I can confirm it is alright with our headmaster, would you be willing to take time from your busy schedule to give them an extended tour and explanation of all that is housed here?”

Cinch blinked and looked at our faculty. “It is indeed distressing. I will consider it, if the offer is made.” She then frowned at Newman. “Your point is made. Now, please get that bust somewhere safe before some klutzy student that hasn’t figured out how long their legs are knocks it over. I wondered why it was in here rather than housed somewhere it wasn’t at risk of being destroyed in a juvenile food fight.”

Newman nodded. “I shall attend to that immediately. My apologies for that as well, but it was part of the strategy from the start.”

Cinch nodded in return. “Understood.” She turned around and started walking again before pausing and looking back. “Remind me to never play chess against you.”

Newman smiled. “Only if you are eager to lose.”