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[Celestia's School] Examination Day (Bellosh101 & Mojo: PM to Join)


Bellosh

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Most of the time, Ingrid Marie didn’t relish her duties as an entrance examination proctor. Hundreds of unicorn youngsters each year applied for enrollment at Princess Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns each year; out of all those foals, typically less than a hundred met the School’s high requirements. All too often, parents encouraged their “special darlings” to enroll no matter how magically ungifted their children actually were. Others meanwhile may have had potential talents, but sorely lacked in maturity and the ability to handle failure. Naturally after each round of entrance exams, Counselor Marie would be the one left to diplomatically explain to irate guardians asking why their kid didn’t make it in.

This upcoming exam would be different, however. Unlike the usual scenario, it had been Ingrid herself who discovered the applicant and encouraged him to enroll. The colt’s name was Gold Standard, and he was a blank flanked orphan the counselor met while serving as a volunteer magic tutor over in Ponyville. Taking an interest in the colt’s potential, further one-on-one sessions revealed that Mr. Standard had in fact the amount the raw power possessed by a typical magic student. He may have not discovered his calling in life yet, but he showed immense dedication towards studying magic.

Convinced that Gold Standard would be a good fit for the School, Ingrid convinced the orphanage’s operator, her former pupil Piccafilly, to give the colt permission to apply for enrollment. Of course, he’d undergo the same basic evaluations as everypony else; thus Counselor Marie and three other of her fellow professors sat down in one of the large lecture halls and got their clipboards ready in preparation for the exam. Once all the various attendants wheeled in every cart (marked in alphabetical order) containing “testing materials” for the exam, Ingrid signaled for one attendant to head over to a smaller classroom and send for Gold Standard.....

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3baoIs.jpgPiccafilly

LMAjjs.jpgGold Standard

fScvss.jpgMisty Magic

[colour=#FF0000]"Try not to be so nervous," [/colour]Piccafilly said as she walked into Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns with Gold Standard, a orphaned unicorn foal with great magic potential. Walking with them is a petite yellow unicorn mare named Misty Magic, a volunteer assistant back at the orphanage.

[colour=#FF8C00]"I can't help it, Nanny! This could be the most important day of my whole life!" [/colour]Gold Standard neighed.

[colour=#800080]"Please calm down," [/colour]Misty Magic said softly. [colour=#800080]"Nanny and I are here for you."[/colour]

[colour=#FF8C00]"Thanks, Miss Magic. I really hope I can attend this school, like you did, Nanny!"[/colour]

[colour=#FF0000]"Right-O, here we are, let's give it a go, shall we?" [/colour]the smiling older unicorn said as the three entered the examination room. [colour=#FF0000]"Professor Marie! Lovely to see ya again!"[/colour]

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After a couple minutes of waiting, Gold Standard had arrived in the examination room accompanied by his guardian Piccafilly and Misty Magic to boot too. [colour=#008080]“Good to see you too again Piccafilly,”[/colour] Ingrid Marie politely greeted back; she didn’t say anymore as it was typically frowned upon for examiners to engage with too much chit-chat with applicants and their guardians.

[colour=#008080]“Thank you for coming here Gold Standard,”[/colour] the counselor dryly commenced the day’s proceedings; [colour=#008080]“Today young colt, we will determine your eligibility to become a student at Princess Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns, mmkay. You will be given a series of brief but comprehensive challenges that you must solve as part of your entrance examination. Feel free to use any means necessary to complete each test, just as long as you show good judgment and not put yourself or anypony else at risk. There will be no time limits for any task that we assign you. Finally, be aware that you will be evaluated on your overall character along with your aptitude for magic.”[/colour]

Finishing her standard introductory procedure, Counselor Marie asked; [colour=#008080]“Do you have any questions before we begin the exam, Mr. Standard?”[/colour]

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[colour=#FF8C00]"Ready to begin!" [/colour]Gold Standard shouted confidently as he walked into the center of the room.

[colour=#FF0000]"Good luck," [/colour]Piccafilly said as she and Misty Magic moved backwards towards the wall.

The young unicorn colt tried not to look overwhelmed, but he felt that way. Here it is, his big chance, one chance to get into the most prestigious school for foals in all of Equestria! He remembered all of Piccafilly's training, and felt he was ready for anything that the committee could throw at him.

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With Gold Standard indicating that he was ready, Ingrid Marie motioned for the remaining attendant in the room to roll Cart A in front of the colt. Laid down on the first cart was a random assortment of classroom supplies; things like notebooks, rulers, markers, and even a globe. The counselor then spoke up;[colour=#008080] “Your first task is to levitate all of the items in Cart A and have them revolve around the globe provided. You are to start by spinning the other objects around the globe at ten revolutions a minute. With each minute that passes by, your telekinetic orbit speed must increase by an additional five revolutions. This exercise will end when you either lose your hold on the objects or if you successfully spin them for a time period of sixty seconds at thirty revolutions a minute. You may begin when you’re ready.”[/colour]

As this was the first test, it was pretty basic by magic school standards. This exercise mainly served as a universal indicator of a unicorn’s “magic stamina” (since nearly all unicorns could use telekinesis) along with their ability to focus on a task. Most applicants who passed the entrance exam accomplish at least fifteen revolutions a minute before they give out or lose focus. Assuming that he had regularly practiced his levitation spells, Ingrid assumed that getting through at least the first sixty seconds would be a piece of cake for Mr. Standard.....

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[colour=#800080]"That sounds hard, I never got this far in my initial exam," [/colour]Misty Magic whispered to Piccafilly.

[colour=#FF0000]"Shhhh. Gold needs to concentrate," [/colour]the Nanny unicorn whispered back as the horn of Gold Standard began to glow. Confidently, the blank flank unicorn colt began to lift the 'Cart A' objects in the air and float them towards the globe. Grunting and closing his eyes, Gold Standard's magic slowly started spinning all of the objects. Two of the objects developed a slight 'wobble' that he quickly corrected before the spinning objects started circling the globe. The first complete orbit had the objects spinning at 10 rpm, the second, 15rpm, the third, 20rpm but during the fourth orbit, three of the objects began to wobble slightly. Now Gold Standard was straining, straining as hard as he could to keep it up. As the fifth orbit began, the three wobbling objects moved back in alignment as the speed increased to 25 rpm.

[colour=#DAA520]"Just, one, more..." [/colour]Gold Standard grunted as he strained even further. As Piccafilly and Misty Magic look on, the gold coated colt made the objects spin at 30 rpm for the sixth orbit. Now he stopped their orbital motion, spinning them in place. His eyes closed, he couldn't see a clock so he made the decision to spin them all at the required speed as long as he could. One by one, the spinning objects started to wobble slightly at the thirty second mark. Gold kept the rotations going, until finally all of the objects fell to the floor. Looking up at the clock, Piccafilly cheered with delight.

[colour=#FF0000]"One minute, four seconds at top speed! He did it!"[/colour]

[colour=#800080]"YES! He's a lead pipe cinch to pass now!" [/colour]Misty shouted as her horn glowed briefly and a hunk of lead pipe formed above her. Before she knew what was going on, the pipe fell and struck the petite yellow coated unicorn mare on the head.

[colour=#800080]"OWW!" [/colour]

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Telekinetically sending for her clipboard and paper, Ingrid Marie carefully observed Gold Subject and thoroughly wrote down notes about everything she saw:

  • Orbit 1 - 10 RPM, no strain or inability to focus
  • #2 - 15 RPM, still looks effortless to Gold
  • #3 - 20 RPM, remains the same too
  • #4 - no change in RPM, strain manifesting itself now
  • #5 - 25 RPM, wobble corrected
  • #6 – 30 RPM, colt really exerting himself
  • Now all objects wobbling
  • 30 RPM successfully held for a minute
  • Confirms that Gold has remarkable magic strength + focus for an applicant

Counselor Marie just finished writing her notes when she heard a “DONG!” come from the spectator area. Guessing her usual suspect was responsible, Ingrid looked over to find a lead pipe by Misty Magic’s hooves; [colour=#008080]“Miss Magic, please keep your emotions and figurative language in check while the examination is in progress.”[/colour] The last thing the counselor needed to deal with at the moment was Misty’s faulty magic.

With that taken care of, Ingrid signaled for Cart B to be unveiled. On top of this one was a petite cup of water;[colour=#008080] “For this next trial Mr. Standard, you must turn the water in the cup provided into a small cloud. Again, tell us at any time if you feel yourself unable to complete this task. You can start at any time.”[/colour] This next test served as a simple way to evaluate a foal’s grasp of magic manipulation at the molecular level. Any standard unicorn could levitate objects, but nopony was usually able to refine their talents without a grounding in science first. Cloud formation proved to be one of the easier molecular-based tasks for magicians, as all that was necessary was a relatively-simple temperature change. Now if only Gold Standard kept up with his science readings.....

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[colour=#FF0000]"Miss Magic," [/colour]Piccafilly said calmly, [colour=#FF0000]"perhaps you should go and visit the School's First Aid station about that bump on your head."[/colour]

[colour=#800080]"Ok, I'll do that," [/colour]the embarrassed yellow unicorn mare said quietly as she began to leave. [colour=#800080]"Thank you, Nanny. You're such a dear lady! You being here will be a real feather in your cap."[/colour]

As Misty Magic exited into the hallway, her horn did a quick glow. A 'CSGU' cap with a large feather in it appeared on Piccafilly's head. The stunned unicorn simply smiled and waved at Gold Standard, who was ready to proceed with his next test.

[colour=#FF8C00]"A transition spell," [/colour]the gold pelted colt said softly. [colour=#FF8C00]"I KNOW I can do this."[/colour]

Gold Standard cleared his mind, focusing exclusively on the task at hoof. His horn began to glow as the cup of water began to glow. He knew he had to be careful to do EXACTLY as Ingrid Marie asked, turn the WATER INSIDE THE CUP into a small cloud and NOT the cup itself. He closed his eyes.

[colour=#FF8C00]"Here goes.." [/colour]the blank flank colt muttered as a brilliant flash of light came from the cup. Floating above it, a small white cloud.

[colour=#FF0000]"Good work," [/colour]Piccafilly said softly to herself. [colour=#FF0000]"Gold's that much closer to entering the school."[/colour]

Misty returned to her seat, with her head partially wrapped in white gauze bandages.

[colour=#FF0000]"How did it go, Misty?"[/colour]

[colour=#800080]"It was just a bruise, Nanny. No problem at all, it was a piece of cake..."[/colour]

Instantly, her horn glowed briefly and two plates appeared in front of herself and Piccafilly.

[colour=#800080]"Oh, I'm so sorry!"[/colour]

[colour=#FF0000]"White layer cake with pink frosting? Thanks Misty, I could use a snack," [/colour]the red maned older unicorn said as she began to eat it from the floating plate.

[colour=#800080]"Er, you're welcome," [/colour]Misty timidly said as she started eating. [colour=#800080]"Nice cap Nanny, where did you get it from?"[/colour]

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Seeing that Misty Magic ignored her advice not to use figures of speech, Ingrid Marie simply shook her head and proceeded to jot down notes once more:

  • Gold chose more energy-intensive transition spell than simpler temp change spell
  • May run out of strength before exam’s end if he keeps using similar spells
  • How did Misty and Piccafilly get cake? It sure looks good

Once she removed visions of tasty desserts from her mind, Counselor Marie went on with the show. Since Gold Standard had aced the first two trials with relative ease, it was time to turn up the ante. Raw magic ability alone wouldn’t solve his next assessment, the materials to which were contained in the now-revealed Carts C and D; [colour=#008080]“Now young colt, the next two carts contain rocks of various shapes and sizes. Your job is to stack them together in one pile using telekinesis, but the rock pile must be able to stand up by itself without any assistance from magic whatsoever. When you’re ready, you may begin.”[/colour]

This test would be an interesting one to watch, thought the counselor. As it ascertained a potential student’s patience, it would take numerous attempts for Mr. Standard to get the rock pile perfectly balanced. On average it took a foal ten minutes to complete this exercise, assuming they didn’t give up from frustration that is.....

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As Piccafilly and Misty Magic continued enjoying their cake, Gold Standard took a careful look at the rocks for his next 'test.' At first, he had a look of relief on his face, thinking that this task would be quite easy. But then he took a closer look, replayed Ingrid Marie's instructions back in his mind, and realized that this would be more of a challenge than he had first thought.

[colour=#FF8C00]"Let's consider this step by step," [/colour]the blank flank colt thought to himself. [colour=#FF8C00]"These rocks must be stacked into one tall pile, perfectly balanced. There's no time limit on this task, so I don't have to act in haste. First, I should magically sort all the rocks by mass and size, so the heavier stones can be on the bottom of the tower. Then, I'll need to do the stacking. Ok, here goes..."[/colour]

Gold Standard's horn began to glow, casting his 'sorting' spell. All of the rocks levitated off their carts and then began to 'arrange' themselves in a straight row before they began 'switching places' in midair until the smallest rock was on one end and the largest on the other. But Gold realized that this was only part of the solution. The rocks must be 'stackable' so shape and surface also had to be considered when choosing which one to place upon another. He began to strain somewhat when he started to slowly rotate the larger rocks to examine them more carefully.

[colour=#FF8C00]"Ok, here goes," [/colour]he muttered outloud as he floated the first rock to the cart. It wasn't the biggest stone, but with it's flatter surface, it looked like a better chose for the base. One by one, slowly and carefully, Gold Standard levitated each rock into place. He realized that misplacing just a single rock could bring the entire tower down. Although it took considerable time, the determined colt completed the task. Once he completely released his magic from the rock tower, he was happy to see that the stack could stand on it's own. Piccafilly saw that Misty was about to shout a cheer, so she immediately used her magic to place a muzzle on her snout, realizing that even the slightly sound or vibration could tumble Gold Standard's tower of rocks. The red maned unicorn just smiled, knowing that Gold had passed this part of the test.

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As per standard proctoring procedure, Ingrid Marie wrote down notes along with her fellow colleagues as Gold Standard performed his next exercise:

  • Gold likely used automatic sorting spell; same results could have been achieved with less energy-costly observation + experimentation
  • Signs of overexertion now starting to appear
  • Took him 15 minutes to complete task; somewhat longer than average time for successful applicants
  • Gold would rather spend time perfecting something once rather than risk repeated trial + error
  • Still no sign as to how he reacts to failure

Finishing her note-taking, the counselor started to give Mr. Standard yet another task. [colour=#008080]“Alright, for your next-”[/colour] Ingrid didn’t get to finish, as her words caused Gold’s rock pile to dislodge itself. The beige unicorn facehoofed, having forgotten yet again just how sensitive those rock piles could be. Since the pile was far enough from everypony so that no one could possibly be injured, the proctors did nothing other than cover their ears as the rocks fell to the floor with deafening clangs.

But before the attendant could clear the mess away, Ingrid signaled for him to stay put; [colour=#008080]“I apologize for my carelessness Mr. Standard, I hope I didn’t startle you.”[/colour] Finishing her apology, the counselor suddenly deemed it time for some question improvisation... and maybe the counselor would see just how well the colt was practicing that favorite spell of his; [colour=#008080]“Now then, we ask you to stand up on your foreleg and levitate both the rocks and one of the empty carts up into the air.”[/colour]

Ignoring the glances the other professors were giving her, Ms. Marie continued; [colour=#008080]“You will only get one try to accomplish this task Mr. Standard, and you will be timed on how long you can both keep your balance and keep all the items in question afloat. As always, you may begin when ready, mmkay.”[/colour] Ingrid stifled a grin, curious to see if the boy could handle casting two spells at the same time. She guessed it would be somewhat hard for him now since he used up quite a bit of energy in his earlier trials.....

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As Piccafilly gasped and Misty Magic whined since her snout was still muzzled, Gold Standard breathed a nervous sigh. He had cast two spells at once successfully for fun and kicks, but THIS was going to be an entirely different situation. It took much of his magical energy to sort and balance the rocks previously, so he knew he had his work cut out for him.

[colour=#ff8c00]"Ok, here goes," [/colour]the golden pelted colt said as he raised up to his one fore-legged stand. He closed his eyes as his horn glowed. Each of the rocks quickly levitated upward, but then the foremost empty cart began to shake. It wasn't floating upward and Gold knew it. Giving an extra burst of determined energy, he managed to get the cart up about a foot in the air before it and all the rocks dropped to the floor. Opening his eyes and panting hard, the blank flank orphan realized he had failed. At first, he lowered his head in sadness but then lifted his head up with a look of determination on his face.

[colour=#ff8c00]"I'm sorry, Miss Marie. I didn't complete the task, but I won't give up. What's next?"[/colour]

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Another test, another series of notes:

  • Rocks floating upward, but not cart
  • Gold almost gets cart to float; everything falls afterwards
  • Took him 4 assessments before expressing total energy depletion
  • Appears to take failure in stride

Ingrid Marie was quite satisfied with how that last exercise turned out. Sure it might have been a bit coldhearted on the counselor’s part to improvise something that she guessed Gold Standard probably couldn’t do. Then again though, what was the point of an entrance examination if an applicant wasn’t pushed to his or her limits? On the whole though, the sight of Mr. Standard not letting his failure faze him encouraged Ingrid greatly. All magic students would face setbacks and disappointments at one point during their studies, so it was vital to ascertain just how they’d react to it.

Right now though, the applicant looked like he needed a breather. [colour=#008080]“We have reached the halfway point of this entrance examination Mr. Standard,”[/colour] announced Counselor Marie; [colour=#008080]“You have a few moments to take a break and recharge. When you feel ready, we shall resume the exam.”[/colour]

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[colour=#FF8C00]"Thank you, ma'am," [/colour]Gold Standard said as he trotted over to the waiting Piccafilly and the still muzzled Misty Magic.

[colour=#FF0000]"You're doing splendidly!" [/colour]the older red maned unicorn mare neighed. [colour=#FF0000]"Good show!"[/colour]

[colour=#FF8C00]"But I failed in the last test, Nanny," [/colour]he sighed. [colour=#FF8C00]"I just didn't have enough left in me to.."[/colour]

[colour=#FF0000]"Come now, Gold. Stiff upper lip, You don't have to be perfect on every test to pass. It's like when you took written tests back at the orphanage. Believe in yourself, young colt, believe in yourself as we believe in you. Isn't that right, Miss Magic?"[/colour]

Instantly, Piccafilly's horn flashed, making Misty's muzzle vanish.

[colour=#800080]"Yes Gold Standard, we KNOW you'll succeed!" [/colour]the petite yellow unicorn neighed proudly. [colour=#800080]"Easy as falling off a log... OH NO!"[/colour]

When Misty's horn flashed, a giant log materialized under her hooves before she began to fall downward. Fast action by Nanny produced a pile of pillows that the wayward mare landed on.

[colour=#FF0000]"Misty, you really need to watch using figures of speech like that."[/colour]

[colour=#FF8C00]"That's ok!" [/colour]Gold shouted as he burst into laughter. [colour=#FF8C00]"I needed a good laugh now! Thanks, Miss Magic!"[/colour]

[colour=#800080]"You're.. welcome?" [/colour]an embarrassed Misty said, rolling off the pile of pillows onto all four hooves, directly in front of Ingrid Marie. All the yellow unicorn mare could do is try to smile and not look too nervous. [colour=#800080]"Er.. Professor Marie... I can.. explain.. I think..."[/colour]

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As far as Ingrid Marie was concerned, it would be a long and difficult journey ahead for Misty Magic to get a hold on her powers. Okay, so maybe Miss Magic’s latest incident did manage to lessen the nerves of Gold Standard this time around, but who knew what result it would have next time around? Not wanting to derail the exam however, Ingrid flatly told the petite mare; [colour=#008080]“Yes, yes; old habits die hard Miss Magic. In the future though, please make more of an effort to think before you speak.”[/colour]

Now then; perhaps Gold was in good enough of a mood to begin the test once more; [colour=#008080]“So Mr. Standard, are you prepared to recommence the examination yet? Or do you need a little bit more time?”[/colour]

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[colour=#FF8C00]"Ready to start again, Professor Marie!" [/colour]Gold Standard proudly announced after he stopped laughing. Piccafilly quickly used her magic to make the huge log and pillows vanish, taking Misty Magic by surprise.

[colour=#800080]"I'll try, Professor Marie," [/colour]the petite unicorn mare said timidly.

[colour=#FF0000]"Let's return to the gallery, Miss Magic," [/colour]Piccafilly suggested.

[colour=#800080]"I'll be quiet, I promise! I'll be as quiet as a mouse! NO NO! I didn't mean to say..."[/colour]

Instantly, several mice appeared in random places in the gallery, causing a number of the mares in attendance to scream in fright, leap up on their chairs and prance on their hind legs.

[colour=#FF0000]"I've got this one," [/colour]the red maned unicorn mare announced, producing random blocks of cheese where the mice are. When each mouse bites the cheese, they and the cheese vanish. In less than a minute, all of the mice and cheese pieces are gone.

[colour=#800080]"I'm so sorry, I..."[/colour]

[colour=#FF0000]"No offense, dear, but say nothing more."[/colour]

Misty nodded quietly, following Piccafilly back to their seats in the gallery.

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[colour=#008080]~Ugggh; I don’t think that blasted mare ever listens to a word I say~[/colour]

There was only so much of Misty Magic’s dysfunctional spellcasting that Ingrid Marie could handle. Even though Misty knew precisely what triggered her magic by now, she appeared to have made absolutely no life-style adjustments in response. Right now, Counselor Marie contemplated whether she had been better showing Miss Magic the figurative door rather than offer her mentoring services to the petite mare.

Letting Piccafilly clean up Misty’s “mess”, Counselor Marie proceeded on with her proctoring duties; [colour=#008080]“Now that this examination is underway again Mr. Standard, we ask you to demonstrate to us what you deem to be your special magic ability. You will then explain how you think it can be used in the service of other ponies. If you must, take time to think over your response first.”[/colour] At this stage of the game, it was no longer heavily in doubt that Gold Standard possessed magic gifts that surpassed those of the common unicorn. It was now only a matter of determining the applicant’s maturity level and ability to learn. This particular exercise was designed to ascertain the student’s likely path of study should his application effort succeed.....

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Piccafilly could sense Ingrid Marie's frustrations with Misty Magic. She certainly didn't want to ruin Gold Standard's chances with anymore of the petite yellow mare's misfiring magic. Therefore, while Misty was looking away from her, Piccafilly quickly cast her own version of a failsafe spell she hoped would keep anymore 'accidents' from happening, as least for the rest of the test.

Now the young gold furred colt began to think outloud.

[colour=#FF8C00]"Well, there is this one spell I learned to cast quite a bit at the orphanage. As you know, Miss Marie, we often receive books for our library, but they are rarely presorted. So I developed a spell that automatically sorts them by title or by author. It's too bad there are no books here in this room or I could show you."[/colour]

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As Ingrid Marie heard Gold Standard describe how he made an automatic sorting spell for books, she telekinetically summoned a blank piece of paper and wrote down instructions to the attendant present. Sending the pony away in order to complete the mission, the counselor looked through her notes, remembering that she suspected the use of a sorting spell back during the rock tower trial.

While the proctors waited for the attendant to return, Counselor Marie bought some time and asked; [colour=#008080]“So I assume then that you can explain to us the principles behind how automatic sorting spells work?”[/colour] Magic didn’t just work in a vacuum; one needed to know all about scientific processes and how the natural world operates in general before they’re able to purposefully accomplish anything more than rudimentary levitation. Since Gold was competent in the use of the sorting spell, Ingrid was interested to know if he had the capability of explaining it to others.....

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Gold Standard swallowed nervously. He didn't think he'd be asking to EXPLAIN his magic, only to perform it. But since this was part of his testing, the gold pelted gold was determined to do his very best. Calming himself quickly, he began to explain.

[colour=#FF8C00]"It's really a spell with two elements in it. First, a levitation spell to keep the books floating while the second part of the spell, the sorting, interacts with them. The books are sorted primarily by author and then by title. That's the way we do the initial sorting until the head librarian comes to further sort by subject matter. My spell makes her job a lot easier."[/colour]

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Gold Standard’s answer wasn’t nearly as thorough as Ingrid Marie would have liked. Ideally, she wanted to hear the colt explain how the actual sorting worked, but perhaps his nerves were slightly getting to him. At any rate, the counselor saw no point in uncomfortably delving deeper into a question intended mainly to buy time.

Of course, more time was needed for the attendant to return. Instead, Ingird followed up with a more-softball question; [colour=#008080]“During the rock tower test earlier, did you use this same sorting spell to automatically arrange the rocks? Additionally, could this sorting spell be used on any other objects?”[/colour]

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As Piccafilly and Misty Magic watched anxiously from the gallery, the nervous gold furred colt began to answer the question.

[colour=#FF8C00]"Well ma'am. it was a variation of that sorting spell. Had to think on the fly to adjust the sorting criteria to mass and surface instead of author and title. Glad it worked..."[/colour]

Now the colt was really getting nervous. The waiting was now the hardest part. He thought to himself, [colour=#FF8C00]"what could be next? Why is she stalling? Is this a test of my patience? Am I being graded on this?"[/colour]

In the gallery, Misty Magic began to lose her cool.

[colour=#800080]"Why the long wait with the next task?" [/colour]the petite unicorn mare said in hushed tone to Piccafilly.

[colour=#FF0000]"Please be quiet, can't you see Gold's nervous enough as it is?"[/colour]

[colour=#800080]"But he needs to complete the next challenge. He need to get that monkey off his back and.." [/colour]Piccafilly gasped at Misty's words and the subsequent glowing of the yellow mare's horn. As the red maned unicorn feared, a small monkey appeared in the air above Gold Standard, but instead of landing on him, it flew over and landed on Misty's back! The stunned unicorn screamed as the small monkey held her neck tightly and resisted all efforts to kick out with hind-legs him off.

[colour=#FF0000]"Hold still Misty!" [/colour]Piccafilly called out. [colour=#FF0000]"I can't zap it away if I can't get a good aim!"[/colour]

As the other ponies in the gallery cleared out of the way, the still frantic Misty continued to kick out with hind-legs and scream. Taking careful aim, the red maned unicorn fired a spell beam that struck the monkey and made it vanish. Moments later, all eyes were on Misty.

[colour=#800080]"Er.. sorry everypony..."[/colour]

[colour=#FF0000]"We'll be lucky if we're not thrown out of the building for this one..." [/colour]Piccafilly muttered. Suddenly, she glanced over and saw Gold Standard rolling on the floor laughing his head off. [colour=#FF0000]"Well, at least this broke the tension in the room."[/colour]

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Two times now, Misty Magic had disrupted the proceedings with her faulty magic. This time, the petite unicorn had done so even though she had been warned to think about what to say first. Gold Standard may have thought this was all just a joke, but Ingrid Marie of course thought otherwise. Having taken upon herself to tutor Misty, Ingrid had to make sure she was making progress with controlling her magic outbursts... and she had no patience right now for the younger unicorn’s relapses. [colour=#008080]“Miss Magic,”[/colour] the counselor sternly warned; [colour=#008080]You will not say another word for the rest of the entrance examination or you will be thrown out of the room. Do I make myself clear?”[/colour]

With impeccable timing, the attendant finally arrived with a cart full of various books from the library along with a strip of white cloth. Finally, Counselor Marie could proceed; [colour=#008080]“Now that the testing materials have arrived Mr. Standard, you will demonstrate your sorting ability, mmkay.”[/colour] Levitating the cloth strip in front of Gold, Ingrid added; [colour=#008080]“We ask additionally that you are blindfolded during this exercise. As always, you may begin when ready.”[/colour] By blindfolding Gold Standard, Ingrid wanted to make sure his ability was genuine and not just him reading the book titles and sorting them like any other pony would.....

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After Ingrid Marie gave Misty her final warning, Piccafilly turned and gave the petite yellow unicorn a look so scary that she began to quake nervously.

[colour=#ff0000]"Gold Standard has worked hard to reach this point, and YOU WILL NOT RUIN IT FOR HIM!" [/colour]the older red maned unicorn neighed and with one glow of her own horn, a muzzle appeared on Misty's snout. [colour=#ff0000]"I am sorry I have to do this, but your actions leave me no choice. I will remove your restraint after Gold's test has ended."[/colour]

This move seemed to receive nods of approval from the other spectators as Piccafilly led Misty back to her seat. By this time, Gold Standard quickly shook off the incident and stood up, eager to receive his next task. When he heard his next set of instructions, the gold pelted colt swallowed nervously. He knew this was going to be a supreme test of his sorting magic and on top of this, he had to perform the task blindfolded. As he took control of the strip of cloth to secure his blindfold, he turned his back on the table.

[colour=#ff8c00]"I am ready!" [/colour]the colt said confidently as his horn glowed. Gold was comfortable with this test, because normally he would close his eyes to cast this spell (but he wouldn't tell Miss Marie about that). Within moments, every book on the cart was now floating in the air. The spell was cast, and now the spell began to do its work. 'Nanny' Piccafilly had taught him well. In helping him 'invent' the spell, Nanny suggested to use a technique she called 'bubble sorting'. where the spell would compare books in pairs, from the first then down the line. This method was slower than conventional means, but Nanny felt that as a foal, Gold needed to keep his spell simple so he could master it before attempting to streamline the method to improve speed. The spell did its work, with pairs of books 'switching places' in line with each 'pass.' These books were very much out of order, and on top of that, there was two copies of the same exact book in the stack, possibly in an attempt to see if the spell had provision for duplicate texts. Fortunately for Gold Standard. he had thought to place that into his initial sorting spell, so when the spell reached the two identical books, both books temporarily 'fused' together as one so as not to disrupt the flow of the spell. Within a matter of minutes, all of the sorting had been completed. The final act of the spell was to place each book one at a time on the cart. When the 'dual text' was placed, it immediately separated into two books and each was placed together on the cart. As last, the final sorted book was floated to the cart. Although Gold Standard could sense the spell was finished, he remained still, waiting for further instructions from Ingrid Marie.

"Bubble Search is a term used in Computer Science for programming a variable sorting program. It was the best way I could think of to describe how Gold's spell operates

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Ingrid Marie once again took down copious notes as Gold Standard performed what he deemed to be his signature spell;

  • Gold clearly unhindered by blindfold
  • Appears that colt had to individually compare items first to sort them
  • Is capable of fusing items; hopefully, no anomalies occur as result of defusing
  • Sorting method simple, but takes quite a while
  • Probably capable of learning more efficient spell

Mostly satisfied with Mr. Standard’s performance, Ingrid decided it was time to finally move on to the next question; [colour=#008080]“Very well Mr. Standard, we now ask you to tell us in your own words where exactly you see yourself when you graduate from our institution, and to tell us why you think so. Be as comprehensive as you can.”[/colour] In her mind, Counselor Marie jokingly called this part of the exam “career guidance time”. This would be where she finds out just how much of it Gold would need throughout his time as a student... and judging by Gold’s blank flank, Ingrid guessed that the colt would need quite a bit of it yet.....

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