[System]
Gender: Male
Appearance: Skubli is remarkably small, even among goblin folk. Standing at a pathetic 3 foot 5 inches, Skubli is smaller than most goblins you'll meet. He possesses a hunched posture and and sleek shape. Skubli's skin is a shadowy green shade, contrasted sharply by his piercing yellow eyes. His lack of hair persists throughout his entire body, even across his scalp. The small goblin wears the typical dark loincloth, however he differs in the fact that he wears a small mantle of black cloth over his shoulders.
Physically, this goblish creature is rather fragile. His hands possess sharp nails and flexible fingers. His nose hooks downwards over his mouth, giving him a sleek form.
Personality: Skubli is not a particularly warm creature. While his loyalty is undying, his trust is a hard thing to come by. Skulbi won't cause you trouble if you leave him alone, however the little guy can be surprisingly spiteful if you cross him; however, due to his size, Skubli tends to ere on the side of timidity and not anger the big fish in the pond. He finds his anchor in familiarity, such as the black mantle he wears. The surrounding grasp of the cloth brings him comfort. If the goblin can lend you a hand without causing himself too much trouble, he'll usually do it, however Skubli will always try to get something out of it.
While he is known to think for himself, Skubli is not a cruel creature. He despises senseless pain, however he has learned that it is simply a fact of life.
Past Life History: Skubli's human life had everything that he needed to survive, but not much more. He grew up in the slums of Detroit. He kept his head down and did his best to avoid trouble. His parents weren't the best, however they were always there for him. His mother was a bit of a drunk and his father had an issue with anger, but they raised him as best they could. He never had any siblings to look out for him, so he grew up learning how to take a hit and how to stay out of serious trouble. Skubli always knew that unsuspected acts of violence always happened, but he had become so accustomed to being able to avoid trouble that he never considered he could be a victim. One wrong look at the wrong guy ended up with him living his last few minutes in the corner of an ally, slashed up and bleeding out his last pint of blood.
Skill: Skubli's small form, sharp claws for climbing, and dark skin/mantle let him be pretty sneaky. Nothing too astounding, but it takes a pretty sharp goblin to catch him.
Other: The mantle he wears is basically his comfort blanket. It keeps him warm and hides him from other people. Without it, he loses a lot of his vitality.
Additionally, he's so small that he will probably never be the mightiest goblin.

[User]
Zectoll

---

Day 4:Duel of Goblins, continued

Zectoll's muscled pumped with blood, bulging under the strain of throwing his opponent over his shoulder. He watched as Lomen hit the ground, rolling roughly upon the ground before springing back up, a small bit of blood leaking from his back. Zectoll watched as he brother touched the small wound, licking up the blood. For a brief moment his mind receded out to memories of his fateful dream, of being bathed in blood. The thought passed as quickly as it came and Zectoll slipped back into his predatory trance, fixated once again on the duel.

Throwing Lomen had winded Zectoll slightly, so in the brief moments of Lomen recovering from the throw, Zectoll breathed deeply out of his nose taking a moment to recover himself. His muscles were still pumped as he watched Lomen go on the offense. Zectoll expected another heavy blow and began to dodge, not anticipating a quick short jab to the body. The jab caught him squarely in the side. Zectoll gritted his teeth as he took the blow that was lighter than he expected, and immediately countered with a left right jab combination aimed at Lomen's upper torso and head, this time performing the attacks as fast as he was able.

4 winds@Jangel13

[Assistant]
Lomen
@El Noche

---

 With the hit Lomen had anticipated the attacks but still got hit squarely in the chest with the first jab, barely able to step back and dodge the right jab. It appeared that even with his ability to dodge it only went so far against speed. This was an invaluable lesson for Lomen in that he couldn't only rely on his skills to pull him through a fight unscathed. With that in mind Lomen backed up so that he was a bit further than before, attempting to stay just outside Zectoll's reach and inside his own. Since he was already moving the punch didn't damage him too much but it was a hit that could add up faster than Lomen wanted to take.

 Lomen stepped forwards with his left leg and drew his right hand back, seeming to go for another big swing. What he would actually aim for would be a jab with his left using Heavy strike. Lomen was attempting a feint.

 After he would crouch down and use the momentum from the punch to try a leg sweeping move with his right leg, using the left leg as a pivot and his hands as stabilizers to help him dash back a bit if the attack was successful. Either way this was an interesting bout as blood pulsed through his body, making a small growl escape as he was crouched down. Lomen was still vigilant and kept his eyes on Zectoll's movements, trying to find attacks that he could replicate later on and how to best avoid them.

[User]
Zectoll

---

Day 4:Duel of Goblins, continued

His left fist hit squarely into Lomen's chest, resounding off as his right fist flew forward, barely missing as Lomen evaded the blow out . Zectoll could feel the rhythm of the fight intensifying, and he would not let the beat fall in tempo. He began to press Lomen, aggressively moving in. He could see that Lomen was going for another heavy hit, but Zectoll pressed on, his guard up ready to take the blow in order to get inside Lomen's guard. Zectoll began to attempt to access the stream of consciousness that had flowed within him earlier in the day, gifting him the knowledge of unarmed fighting, his mind praying to whatever higher power he subconsciously felt he was connected with. Lomen's heavy strike flew, not from the right, but from the left. Fully anticipating to take the strike, the blow landed against Zectoll's guard heavily, stopping his advancement. The force of the blow flowed through him, breaking his guard.

Unable to continue forward and reeling from the heavy strike Zectoll barely glimpsed the sweeping of Lomen's legs just in time to tuck his own legs underneath him, rolling to the side, feigning as if he had truly been tripped, using the maneuver and momentum of the heavy strike to deftly roll springing up behind Lomen and using the force of the roll to perform a side kick aimed at Lomen's midsection. The kick was a mirror of what Lomen had done, only aimed higher up on the body.

4 winds@Jangel13

[Assistant]
Lomen
@El Noche

---

 Lomen felt the impact and snapped his eyes on Zectol as he felt nothing but the air greet his attempt at a leg sweep. With the lack of impact Lomen was cautious as Zectoll rolled and was rewarded with seeing a kick incoming with momentum. Lomen was able to use his hands and left leg to jump back but his left forearm was hit by the blow. It was a strong blow and threw off Lomen's balance, causing him to skid and tumble on the ground. The rocks were not kind to the other cuts, increasing their number, along with tearing open the cuts on Lomen's back, now gently bleeding. Again Lomen touched his back and felt a slight increase in pain than last time, licking the blood off of his fingers as he stood up.

 This was a good bout but Lomen felt that he couldn't say it was in his favor. He seemed to be outclassed in speed and that last hit made his left arm feel a bit numb, so it would need a few moments to recover. Moments he wouldn't have. He also had a nagging feeling that he was on the edge of learning something and must push on. Keeping Zectoll in sight was paramount as Lomen focused, taking a few deep breaths to clear his head and he slightly crouched a bit. He lifted his hands in front him to be able to judge how far his fists could truly reach and bounced on the balls of his feet. A few bounces made him feel as if he was a heart pulsing blood through his body, although it made him feel the small tinge of pain on his back from the open scratches.

 Cautiously he made his way forward, keeping Zectoll in vision as to not lose him. A few feet of slowly approaching, Lomen would try to quickly approach with a zig-zag pattern, much like he did with against the Alpha Horned Rabbit on his first hunt. As he got close, he would dash to the left and try a quick right knee at Zectoll's midsection using Heavy Strike. It would be using Lomen's full body weight behind it. In order to pull the knee back, Lomen would then twist his body to throw a left hook aiming at Zectoll's right shoulder. It was a risky move, but Lomen was more interested in how Zectoll would react that what would happen to himself.

[User]
Zectoll

---

Day 4:Duel of Goblins, continued

Zectoll felt his foot collide with Lomen's arm, the blow throwing his brother off balance, sending him tumbling away once again. His dexterity and speed had proved to be critical in this bout, he landed lightly on his feet after delivering the kick. Zectoll used this brief moment of separation to recover as well, reforming his guard and readying his stance. He eyed Lomen intensely, preparing for the next onslaught his brother would bring to bare. Lomen began to charge at him, darting from left to right. It seemed that Lomen was going for an all out attack. A wide grin appeared on Zectoll's face, as he realized that Lomen's fighting spirit was much like his own. Zectoll was prepared, his stance and guard ready, he would accept Lomen's fighting spirit. He would not run from Lomen's risky attack, he would meet it with his own, two fighting spirits colliding.

As Lomen dashed towards him, right knee outstretched, Zectoll threw a powerful jab, putting as much speed and power into the blow as he could muster. The reach of his arm was longer than Lomen's knee, and with Lomen committing his full body-weight to the attack, Zectoll doubted his brother would be able to change course in time to dodge the blow. Excitement coursed through him as his fist flew, a look of intensity on his face, a low growl escaping his lips, confident that his jab would land true preventing Lomen's knee attack from landing with full force. Though he felt that Lomen's endurance was very great, he imagined that the force of his jab combined with the momentum of Lomen's dash would be enough to end the bout.

4 winds@Jangel13

[Assistant]
Lomen
@El Noche

---

 Lomen knew this would be bad going in and was ready to face the consequences. It seemed to happen in slow motion as he left the ground, smiling back at Zectoll's grin. The motion as Zectoll threw the jab, using a slight swinging motion in order to place more weight behind the blow and to strike true in Lomen's exposed midsection. Lomen could do nothing but feel the impact crash into his body, shocking him to the core, causing some of his breath to escape him as the shock ravaged through him. Even so Zectoll had shown bravery in fighting him head on so Lomen did not regret his hasty decision.

 Although he still had to follow through to the end, even with no breath left in him, his body reeling in shock from the impact, Lomen still had something left to give. With his last strength, he let out a rallying roar, using the last of his breath to revitalize himself enough to turn his body and attempt a last left hook at Zectoll's midsection. Afterwards Lomen knew he would likely crash to the ground, with little strength left, but was happy that he could give it his all. This would be his last strike and he knew that after this he would not be able to get up for some time. It would be a bit painful to not be able to stand without help, but the bout was worth that consequence and he would accept his defeat.

[User]
Luz

Luz heard that there was going to be a mock hunt between goblins Lomen and Kishi, and to be honested the idea of watching such an event sound awesome; Sadly Luz didn't have the time to watch such an event for she was one of the only goblins without a skill yet. In her mind to fall so far behind the other goblins was a disgrace. So the prideful goblin when into a quiet yet well-lit area to train alone. Once she found a place to train Luz took the spear off makeshift spear off her back and begin practicing on thrusting her spear for tomorrow's hunt.

*woosh woosh woosh*

The female goblin has been practicing thrust her weapon for about 5 minutes. her skin was drench in sweat. Her new body wasn't used yet used to the practice as her old was, that was something she had to fix. So she used her shame of falling behind as a drive to push her body past its limits. She wanted to perform about 20 more good thrust before she took a break, any thrust without the effort put behind it wouldn't count.

[Assistant]
Skubli spent a few more minutes attempting to remove a couple more of the odd rocks from the walls, however, it was a fruitless effort. They remained fused inside the wall, unwilling to relent from their position within in the stone.

The small goblin collected the three rocks he had managed to remove from the wall and moved over towards the larger room of the alcove. Skubli slid one of the rocks into a crevice in the wall, hiding it securely. He took the other two with him outside of the alcove, intending to keep one and show the other to Grandpa.

The main room of the cave was live with activity; brothers Zectoll and Lomen battled ferociously in their "mock hunt" as many other goblins watched from the sidelines. A goblin with an odd form that Skubli didn't recognize dueled with an invisible opponent, thrusting their staff into the air again and again in a stabbing motion.

Intimidated by the conflict, Skubli hugged the cave wall, passing by the crowds undetected, slowly sneaking up behind Grandpa. The runt reached out and tugged gently on the older Goblin's cloak, gaining his attention as he offered up the odd rock he had found in the wall.

"Grandpa, I found this strange rock," He stated, unwilling to reveal the location of where he had discovered it for fear of the other Goblins wanting into his alcove. "It's very hard, maybe unbreakable. What is it?"


[System]
Age: 47
Gender: female

Earth/Metal bender

Physical description
Statuesque - that's the word one often hears when talking about Yun Song. Standing taller than most men, with an elegant bone structure and a prominent gaze, she is one of those who can draw up their height and bring it to bear in any conversation. With sheer presence alone, she has dominated numerous political maneuvering. Her eyes are a deep green and copious silver strands are beginning to show in her black hair.

But the first thing anyone ever notices upon meeting Yun Song is her metal arm. During the Transformation process that changed the authoritarian monarchical Earth nation into a union of autonomous states under a parliament, several towns revolted. There were too many skirmishes to call it a mere revolt, but none of the revolting states found a common leader to unite under, considering King Wu himself gave his blessings for the Transformation. But they went on for so long that even King Wu's successor has to still deal with them. Yun Song proved her worth first in these never-ending battles, and also lost her left arm to a Lava bender. She later used her metal bending to construct an arm for herself, one that was far more versatile than what nature had given her. She spent years training to bend with her metal arm. The arm can extend to longer than its normal length, and has a couple of nasty surprises.

Backstory
Yun Song was the only daughter of a wealthy merchant couple in Zaofu. She was quite the spoiled brat growing up, and her parents would only rush to please her, no matter the outrageous nature of her childish demands. While not exactly the lap of luxury, she had had a comfortable upbringing. As soon as it was discovered that she could metal bend, she enrolled in the Beifong Academy and was a middling student.

But all that changed when her father lost the shares to his company on a stupid Probending bet. Rather than renege on a bet and save his family, her father chose to save his honour. Right up to the point when he took his own life. The board was not cruel. Mother and daughter were given a modest stipend and a house to stay in. But Yun's demands were no longer being fulfilled. She grew adamant. She wanted more from life than a simple peasant's existence. Her thirst for finer things shaped her into a competitive and fierce young woman. She wanted a life untouched by the random vagaries of existence - one where her comfort was guaranteed.

She pushed herself to excel. She knew Bending would get her to the life she desired. She worked at it like a woman possessed. She became the youngest cadet in the Earth Union's prestigious Commando unit. During the Transformation, when the Union was beginning to consolidate rebel states, she lost her arm and gained a reputation. She was decorated as a War hero and was given a choice. A generous early retirement package owing to her injury, or a desk job in the fledgling Committee for Union Security. But Yun had not had enough. She needed more. She was 30, single, and did not like the prospect of settling down in a farm somewhere.

One-armed and ambitious, Yun chose the desk job. In retrospective, it turned out to be the right move. The Committee was woefully understaffed, and anyone with half a brain could get promoted. Within a couple of years, she found herself advising the Prime Minister on security matters. She single-handedly (literally) formed the Secret Service, a group of elite Lava and Metal benders who are responsible for the Prime Minister's security. Along the way, she also built herself a metal arm, with parts intricate enough to put a Futuron satomobile to shame.

She is now, officially, the Chief of Security - a position created for her, as the bureaucrats were finding it difficult to assign her a salary. Unofficially, she is called the Enforcer. No one dare call her that to her face, of course. But everyone knows she is the Prime Minister's muscle.

As the official protector of the man who led the Earth Union, which currently happened to be the detestable Lee Beifong, it was her job to make sure nothing happened to threaten that man. Recent reports, however, were beginning to trouble her. Korra's death put all plans out of whack. The White Lotus seemed to have gone underground, with no word as to whether they have any clue about the next Avatar's location. Considering Korra was a Water bender first, it made sense that the next Avatar would have already born somewhere in the vast Earth Union. And considering the White Lotus were there when Korra died, it was quite possible they knew exactly where. She had to find them, and figure out a way to use this to the Union's benefit. Surely, having the Avatar grow up under the watchful and protective eye of the Earth Union wouldn't be a bad thing!

It was because of this little side mission of hers that she found herself in Republic City, chasing down a very important lead. She had friends in high places here, making it easier for her to run this down rather than some underling. Staying at the fashionable Four Elements hotel, she now awaits her meeting with the Chief of Police of Republic City.

[User]
The young man in the cage took deep breaths as he drowned out the cheering crowd. Most contenders made a show of their victories, waving or egging the crowd on, or other such theatrics. But Shu wasn't here for theatrics. He wasn't here for the audience's sake, in fact he might even insist that he wasn't here for the glory either. He was here for the fight itself. Something about it was just... therapeutic to him. Being able to beat an opponent senseless, unleash all his pent up rage and frustration with the world and putting it all into strikes against poor unsuspecting opponents. His sharp, angry glare never left Shu's face even as he Earthbent a short pillar in front of himself.

The usual rules of the Cage was to fight until you drop, a sort of King-of-the-Hill competition where the Cage was the "hill" and whoever was left standing was it's current king. Right now, that meant Shu, and so he waited for whoever was going to come out next. He passed the time in his usual way, by striking at the pillar of earth he had erected for himself, using it as a training dummy. There was something to be said for someone who would, without hesitation, repeatedly punch rock and stone with their otherwise bare fists. And these were regular strikes. too, no Earthbending involved. That of course meant his knuckles, forearms, and legs were impacting the pillar no differently than those of a non-bender. Suddenly he heard someone calling him, and whatever trance-like state Shu had been in was broken. He stopped striking the pillar of rock and turned to the source of the voice.

"Some nutcase rookie wants to challenge you, offered good money for a chance to fight you on the spot. It's not our usual rules, but we can't ignore the money. It's your choice, but the boss has authorized me to offer you a cut of the bet if you make the rookie run home screaming. So what say you?"

The Master... he rarely left his post in the Red Room. So this had to be a pretty unusual circumstance. His words didn't mean much to Shu. The money would surely go to good use of course, but he also made it no secret that he didn't really do this for the money. He also wasn't as stupid as most people took him for either. Most arena fighters were thought to be brainless muscle, unable to figure out when something was suspicious. Well, Shu was far from that image. Whoever this challenger was he obviously had some other agenda. As for what that actually was, well, Shu would just have to ask him... using his fists of course.

"You should know me by now, Master." Shu responded, his tone even and without hesitation, "I'm here to fight, don't much care against who. If he wants to get hurt so bad, then let him. No skin off my back." he didn't say anything else, instead returning his focus to the pillar he had erected earlier. The Master must have walked away to inform the officials, because within moments the voice of Zhou thundered on the loudspeaker.

"Stop the presses, folks! Some newbie thinks he can conquer our beloved Beast!" the crowd seemed to be split on this, half of them cheering and the other half booing and hissing, "So let's bring him out see if he can walk the walk or if he's all bark!"

The more he waited, the more furiously Shu struck at his stone pillar. By the time his challenger would enter the Cage, Shu's pillar was starting to form cracks on it until he finally gave it one last mighty blow to shatter the pillar into pebbles and gravel. Then Shu's angry eyes, filled with rage and fury, shot a threatening glare at his next opponent.

[Assistant]
@Exit

"Kid wants to fight," the Master replied as he walked back from the Cage. "Don't know if that's good news or bad."

"It is good news for you," Shiban replied, checking the makeshift cloth bandage he had wrapped around his left forearm to hide his tattoo while he had waited. There was no point flaunting his allegiance in front of a large crowd. He then made a move towards the entrance to the cage, but stopped as the Master laid his hand on him. He turned irritably.

"Now, look here Mister whatever your name is," the Master began, his features hardening. "I don't know why you are doing this crazy thing. It's your life. But if you try anything funny in there, I will stop you. Provided the Beast doesn't finish you off first."

Shiban raised an eyebrow in amusement. This old Master threatening him was the funniest thing he had heard in recent times.

"So what do we call you anyway?" the Master continued. "The Destroyer or something?"

Shiban grinned. Something nudged his memory, and he remembered a name from long ago. Why not, he thought. He controlled his manic laughter as he said, "Call me Sparky Sparky Boom Man."

His shoulders were still shaking with mirth as he entered the cage, while the Master scratched his head in bewilderment.

Shiban stepped into the glare of the cage. He couldn't see few feet beyond the cage as the floodlights momentarily flashed in his eyes. He pulled his probending cap lower on his forehead and approached the lone fighter standing there, having just smashed a block of rock to pieces.

"And here he is, folks!" the announcer was screaming. "The craaaazy fighter who wants to take on the Beast! My, look at the size of him! Well, as they say, the bigger they are, the harder they fall. But let's not count our pig-chickens just yet. He might still pack a mean punch."

Shiban stared at Xun, the Beast. He was just a young man. But in the cage, he seemed much larger. Shiban nodded to himself. The prophecy seemed to be true. But he needed to test this kid to know his true mettle.

"Greetings, Beast," he called out from where he was standing. His legs were spread to imitate a solid stance. But he was light on his feet, ready to pounce away the moment the earth shifted under him. "It will be my honor to fight you."

He never broke eye contact with Xun as he stood his ground. Somewhere in the arena, a bell rang. It was time to fight.

[User]
Maika looked at him as if she was seeing a ghost. Or a miracle. Was this just an act he was putting on? But no, he seemed genuine. He sounded sincere. Maika turned around to face him.

"What gave it away was your kindness. No inhabitant of this city ever spared so much time for the poor and the weak. You know, if I had met you even a month earlier, I would have said you are a fake. Or I would have laughed in your face for your naivete. But... but something happened. Something that made faith meaningful. I wanted to see proof of the strength of hope. And now... I see you." She gave him one of her rare smiles. Not the flirty one she used on her marks. She felt genuine warmth emanating from him.

"The name is Maika," she said, offering her gloved hand to him. "And you and I are not all that different. I try to help the less fortunate. 'Try' being the operative word." She sighed. Why should good things be so difficult to do, while crime came easy?

"You know... there is a great ice cream place around the corner. The owner is a friend. She gives free ice creams to poor children once all the customers are gone. And she always needs more hands to help." She raised a questioning eyebrow at him. "There is a free raspberry smoothie in it for you. Or any other flavor really," she added with a small laugh.

[Assistant]
"The moon is brightest at night. And so are you," said Old Man Wu, chuckling to himself. If his dear Mili had been alive to hear him flirt with a girl his granddaughter's age, she would have chased him around the block, creaking knees and all.

"And don't you get me in trouble again, young lady," he wagged his finger at her. "Last time I told you probending stories, the boss man wanted to fire me for wasting your time. Hmph!"

He made sure to mop while he talked, taking care to get the dirt between the floor tiles. The gym could have long since fired him. Or let him go in a dignified manner. But his wife Mili's death changed everything. He did not want to spend his final years stuck in the lonely house full of memories of her. He wanted to work for as long as he could. The work was therapeutic to him, something to focus his mind. The owners of the gym were kind enough to let him stay.

"But... I do have something to tell." He was uncharacteristically subdued as he broached what was weighing his heart down. "Eska, I don't know why I want to tell it to you. But... it will help me if you listen."

He was a bit anxious. Eska had always been nice to him, consoling his grief in those rare moments he thought of his family. Sometimes, he would imagine his son alive, married to someone like Eska. But he didn't, anymore. There were too many dead people in his memories these days.

He motioned to a row of chairs set against the wall by the large windows. Moonlight was streaming in through the windows, giving the place an ethereal lighting.

"Perhaps we could sit down and chat?"


[System]
Age: 18
Birthday: 21st of May
Year level: 12
Sexuality: Hetero
Club (if any): Student Council

Disabilities (if any): Burns to the right side of his face, although skin grafts have made them almost unnoticeable. His right eye is completely ruined, and he chooses to wear an eyepatch to make up for it. He is also missing his little finger and ring finger on his right hand, This doesn't faze him very much. He learned to write with his left anyway. He has a slight limp in his left leg as well. They don't affect his daily life much, although they do cause him to be quite clumsy at times. He doesn't particularly care about that either.

Job/occupation (if any): N/A (although hes looking to change that)

Appearance: A boy of approximately 6'2, with jet black hair that is cropped short. His remaining eye is a vivid purple colour. The skin grafts on the right side of his face are ever so slightly paler than the rest of his face, although they are not visible unless they are observed closely. He also has several small scars on the right side of is face, but they, again, are hard to distinguish. He wears a black eyepatch over his ruined eye. His right arm and hand have skin grafts too, although the scarring is considerably more prominent there. He is fairly thin and dounst have a great deal of muscle on his body, with his features being somewhat sharp.

Personality: Katsuro is the sort of person you just cant dislike. He is always cheerful, polite and helpful to just about anyone he meets. Unfortunately, he isn't very good at the being helpful part. He has only been at the school for about a year and a half, but he has already gained a reputation as someone as someone who you should not share your problems with, as he will end up making them worse with his "Help". He is secretly and painfully aware of this, but puts on a normal face to hide it. Hes also quite a avid shipper in the school, which, with the aforementioned skills, goes about as well as you expect. He is cheerfully oblivious to the fact that people might not want to end up together, having a very black and white view of romance. Despite this, most people consider him a delight to be around, despite the fact he doesn't have any good friends.
Hes never had a girlfriend either, although he does have a fair few admirers for his cheerfulness and the fact that he wears an eyepatch for actual medical reasons instead of just wanting to look mysterious.

 His main hobbies include reading, playing video games and eating sweet things. He also likes to write short stories, although he keeps the last hobby secret from other people due to being slightly embarrassed about their quality. Hes also quite a good cook, despite only bothering to make desserts. His diet composes of sugar, meat and not much else.
He also has a extreme dislike of hospitals and other medical environments. He can go inside them, but he quickly becomes jumpy and generally starts to make stupid excuses for leaving within the first ten minutes. After thirty, he becomes rather stressed and even snappish.

Backstory: Katsuro's backstory...is not a happy one.

He was born to a turbulent household, with his mother and father in an unhappy marriage even before his birth, of which his arrival into the world did not help. His first four years of life are remembered as little more than a unpleasant haze. He has no idea what they argued about, and has decided that it is best if he never does find out. The only happy memories he can remember was when he learned to read at age three.

Two weeks before his sixth birthday, his mother left, allowing custody to pass to his father without any opposition. He distinctly remembers his father breaking the news to him over a round of chocolate milkshakes. His father then raised him on his own despite having a low paying job. It was this time that he devloped a taste for sweet things, as treats were a luxury that he could rarely afford. However, his father managed to get a higher paying job at an insurance firm, and things began to look up.

Unfortunately, it didn't. When he was thirteen, a gas leak in his housing block resulted in an explosion, killing four people, his father included. Katsuro was burned over his face and torso, with a splinter damaging his right eye and two of his fingers being burned very badly. When he finally woke up in hospital, the medics had removed his damaged fingers and eye after infection began to set in, leaving him alone, half blind and scared.

Since then, he has been passed between foster families and orphanages, with several families looking to adopt him, but none following through. His mother remarried and doesn't want anything to do with him.

He was sent to the academy a year and a half ago once it was decided he needed a good education, and has loved every minute of it. He cant understand why some people might not like being at the academy. He hasnt got any good friends, but most of the people he knows like him anyway for his cheerful attitude.

Notes: He is completely fine with people mentioning his missing eye and scars, and actively encourages people to say whatever they like about them. However, mention the limp in his leg makes him go extremely quiet, and can even get incredibly angry if the subject is pressed. When hes sad, he eats ice cream. Lots of it.

[User]
A light beat played in the background of Kiyoshi's mind as he slowly woke up and his eyes began to flutter open. Where was that sound coming from? "...Ah, the speakers." Looking over he saw one of several speakers that adorned his room, this one was specifically on his night stand, his phone attached to it via auxiliary cable. The song protruding from it was Riders on the Storm not the original, but still just as good. Picking up the phone and quickly pressing a button, the screen lit up causing Kiyoshi to squint his eyes as he looked at the time; just after 6.

Pressing the lock button again on his phone, he rubbed his eyes and returned his attention back to the ceiling, much darker now since the light assaulted his eyes. Allowing the music to fill his mind, he went over the day's itinerary. "First day back to class...haven't received the roster yet...I think we're supposed to be getting those at this morning's assembly...yea, like I'm really going to that." Yawning he slowly propped his body upward, running a hand through his shaggy brown hair and clicked on the lamp next to him.

Squinting from the second assault, he allowed his eyes to adjust this time as he scanned his room. Kiyoshi's room was always fairly neat and organized, clothing put away, carpet cleaned, furniture dusted, even the posters hanging on the wall felt 'neat'. Only one spot in his room contrasted this almost oppressive order; his desk. Sitting atop it was his computer monitor and dozens of other technological bits and bobs, including, but not limited to, circuit boards, wires, casings, screws, tools and a soldering tool he really should have put away last night. Among this mess also laid papers, both homework and music sheets, a few empty cans, and a box of mostly finished pizza. Next to this mess of a desk sat his PC tower, his keyboard, set up next to the desk at a 90 degree angle and his guitar gently resting in its stand.

Pulling the covers off of himself, Kiyoshi made his way over to his closet to start gathering his school clothing and prepping himself for the day. Next was the restroom, in the shower he could take as much time as he needed in order to think, think on what exactly? Everything and Anything, but there were some pretty important matters to deal with, such as, how was he going to get his class roster without attending the morning assembly.

He made his way into the showers, starting up the water and allowing the steaming heat to run down his back as Kiyoshi's eyes closed and his thoughts began to gear up. "Now how can I get a hold of that roster? I doubt the principal himself would be handing them out and I doubt he'd want the staff to deal with tedious work like that...that just leaves the student council." If there was one thing he learned about school, the staff always gives the student council the crap paperwork that they don't want to deal with, meaning, they're probably tasked with handing out the class rosters towards the end of the ceremony. "hm...Takuma is on the council...maybe I can convince him to give it to me somehow...probably not, but its better than nothing, I already tried faking being deaf last year and that didn't go over so well..."

Kiyoshi opened his eyes, Takuma's room was just a few doors down the hall from his own, perhaps after his shower he'd pay him a visit.

[Assistant]
Katsumi stared at the ceiling. She'd been staring for an hour already.
beep-beep-beep
Her alarm was finally going off, and a wave of relief and dread mixed together washed through her body. But still, she stared. The alarm grew louder, crescendo-ing into it's most annoying pitch as she had programmed it to the day earlier. She knew she needed to turn it off, if only out of common courtesy to the person in the room next to her, but her arms felt like heavy concrete blocks under the blanket she was smothered in. In her half awake state, a panicky thought darted through her mind.
"What if these blankets are trapping me here?!"
But reason soon returned to her sleepy mind, and to prove herself wrong she moved her ghost-like arm out beneath the blankets and turned off the alarm.
And then stared.
Another panicky thought entered her brain, but this one was logical. The ever present, all important question to Katsumi.
"What did I eat last night?"
Night time was binge time, it was when the little buggers inside her brain that thought they were keeping her alive took over. Way back when she was eating 300 calories a day, these late night snacks probably WERE keeping her alive. Now that she was eating 1700, these were terrifying. Did she gain weight? How much, and what of it was water weight? WHAT DID SHE EAT LAST NIGHT?
 Her panic rose higher, rising like the beeping of her alarm minutes earlier, but her brain, hindered by sleep and now panic, was blank to the answer. Flinging the sheets off herself when only a little before she thought she'd never get up, Katsumi raced over to the mirror and scale that sat in the corner of her dorm. Her skin crawled, her stomach felt sick, her muscles jumped around in her skin like crazy little tic tacs being shaken inside their box. She paused in front of the square that ruled her life.
 She entered an eerie calm, the kind you can only achieve on the edge of panic.
She stripped every article of clothing.
She lifted her foot.
She placed it on the scale.
She stepped on.
Plus one.
Crouching down slowly, she wrapped her translucent arms around her knees. Why was this happening? She'd done this.
"Failure. Disgusting. Friendless. Dying. Broken."
...
FAT.

She looked up, still crouched down into the mirror. Folds, fat, imperfections and lines made before her time. She straightened up, went to her dresser and found her pressed uniform hanging next to it. She pulled the shirt on and stepped into the skirt.
This needed a hoodie. She found her baggiest one laying on the floor and pulled it on. If anyone asked, she was cold. They couldn't yell at her for being cold, could they? Not with her medical history at least.
Pulling her hair into a sloppy ponytail, she gave one last worrying glance into the mirror, put her head down and hurried out the door and headed to the cafeteria. She was significantly late and if she saw anyone, she didn't pay attention.
She never did.

[User]
Beep.
"Tired…"
Beep.
"Go away…"
Beep.

"Don't want to!" said a voice from under a blanket, flicking his hand out to turn the clock off, but instead, his three fingers knocked it aside to the floor, knocking the battery out of the back. The slight exertion managed to put his senses back within the vicinity of his head, and slowly, a figure in a pair of pyjama shorts and an eyepatch crawled from under the sheets. He sat on the side of his bed, shaking his head from side to side to try and wake up more. After about a minute of it, he got up, suddenly regretting said shaking as he had now replaced tiredness with dizziness.

It was that point that he looked at the clock, and saw what time it was.
"Oh crap!" said Takuma, getting up and running to his wardrobe to try and find something to wear. After finding a uniform that wasn't used, he ran around, wondering what he needed to do next before he loaded a load of things into his bag, hoping that some of it would actually need to be used that day.

"What day is it…damn, I can't remember what I'm doing today…"
Pausing, he grabbed a chocolate bar from his desk, forced it down his throat like a headache pill, and ran out the door, dragging his bag behind him. He didn't notice that he was wearing his shoes on the wrong feet, he had odd socks, and he hadn't buttoned the top three buttons on his shirt. None of this bothered him as he ran out of the door, making his way towards the main building.

In his rush, it never dawned on him that, in his dizzy state, he had accidentally mixed the minute and hour hands on his clock.


[System]
Age: 18

Gender: Female

Appearance: Standing at a height of a metre eighty, Sonoda Yuka is surprisingly tall for a woman of Japanese descent, and combined with her powerful, athletic build, she cuts a figure of great intimidation. Indeed, her expressions merely serve to reinforce this image, with the taut muscles, unimpressed thin mouth and scowling golden eyes proving that she is very willing to fight anyone who dares to obstruct her path of justice. Her hair is cut short, the fuzzy brown-black locks flowing down towards her neck, fringe hiding away her forehead. In all, she exudes an aura of power but also reliability, her very appearance seeming to tell others that she is one to always keep her promises, and one that messing with would be unwise.

When not fighting crime in her identity of Metallica Weapon, Yuka works as part-time intern at an office building, and is dressed in garb fitting of her occupation; a combination of a light blue dress shirt and either a dark pencil skirt or trousers is her standard clothing, though when performing leisurely activities, her outfits can change far dramatically and will depend upon the weather. However, her grey combat boots, a permanent fixture of her outfit, show that she is always prepared for conflict, along with the leather motorcycle gloves that she for some reason dons frequently despite not actually owning a motorbike. She is also especially fond of a tattered yellow scarf that she has owned since her youth.

As the powerful hero of justice, Metallica Weapon, the "suit" that completely envelops her body is grey and nondescript, exuding sleek professionalism and power through its androgynous form. Nothing on the "armour" can be considered especially defining or revealing, as if its wearer is not truly a human but a mere copy of one. It is a threatening visage to ponder upon, as the only major aspects of the suit are the four emerald lines that run down her arms, and simple black v-fin that sits between its ominous, pale-red eyes.

Powers: A partially cybernetic human, the experiments that were performed on Sonoda Yuka to unlock her true potential have converted much of her bones, muscles and ligaments to "Solid Photonic Energy" equivalents that provide her with immense durability and strength, and the two miniaturised cold fusion reactors that are safely encapsulated within the area where she once possessed lungs replace her need for respiration, giving her near-limitless stamina and the ability to function in locations usually impossible for the normal human. However, her ultimate ability is to transform into a steely heroic warrior, a state that provides her with the ability to manipulate gases.

Weapons: Though a competent hand-to-hand fighter, Yuka possesses remarkable skill with a glaive, which she utilises to its maximum effect when transformed into the Metallica Weapon.

Personality: A seemingly stoic figure upon first glance, the superheroic Yuka is quite calm in the face of danger, dealing with whatever problem that befouls her with nary an emotion and supreme grace. Her comments usually show little spirit, though at times it seems there is a certain grandness to her words. However, underneath the surface is her boiling blood, fiery emotions that fuel her every action. She is relentless and driven, absolutely devoted to bringing about justice wherever she goes, even if from a skin-deep view she seems almost bored of her duties. Indeed, she will stubbornly fight for what she believes in what's right, and will crush all in her path to saving others.

She has her own eccentricities as well (though not incredibly obvious to others), the most prominent being her tendency to narrate in her own head, frequently delving into inner monologues about whatever crosses her mind at the time. These monologues are quite eloquent and poetic in comparison to her usual succinct (though nevertheless still sophisticated) speech. She is also a literary fan, and will make reference to notable works from time to time.

As Metallica Weapon, she is brutal and quick in her fights, aiming to incapacitate as rapidly as possible. She is also somewhat wordier than usual when in the midst of combat, but they usually simply carry through the zeal that envelops her as she fights to serve justice.

History: A native of Neo-Tokyo, Yuka was once a normal Japanese high school student in a normal Japanese high school, sharing a class with a group of supernatural warrior hunters fighting a secret guerilla war against the forces of evil. It was a rather peaceful life, albeit a life filled with higher school fees in order to repair the collateral damage brought about the powerful entities that resided at her facility of education, but it was not one filled with superheroics and drama for her.

Then came Cerebral Intelligentsia.

A shadowy organisation responsible for a spate of monster attacks, it kidnapped her and many others to be experimented on to create an ultimate army that would conquer Japan and then the world. Through these horrific tortures, in which her body was converted with cybernetics, her latent powers were activated, influencing Cerebral Intelligentsia to craft her into the first of their elite shock troopers, the "Weapons". Under their scientific machinations, she became a transforming cyborg warrior completely devoted to the mysterious cause, fighting in the shadows under the banner of CI.

However, sympathetic scientists would break her free of the reprogramming at the cost of her memories, faking her death and throwing her out of the secretive CI facilities and into the relative safety of the world. Lost and confused, with only the name "Weapon" to guide her, the teenage girl found her way back to Neo-Tokyo, subconsciously avoiding Cerebral Intelligentsia's forces as she tried to find her place. It would be during these struggling journeys that she met the original Sonoda Yuka, an ill, hospitalised girl whose dreams inspired her to become the hero "Metallica Weapon".

And when the original Yuka died of illness, the cyborg warrior took upon the name in tribute, using it in her secret civilian identity at a local high school until she would finally recover her own memories.

Weakness: Despite her superior physical prowess, Yuka is utterly lacking in range and mobility, having been described as a "masked runner" whose ability to achieve her ends is limited by her lack of vehicular transport (thereby preventing her from moving distances), nonexistent access to weapons or powers that could provide her the ability to consistently strike at aerial opponents (for any manoeuvres performed above solid ground are temporary at best), and in essence the mobile capabilities of the average human (she can walk, run, and float a bit with gas manipulation, but that's about it). Her fighting style is also quite rough and unorthodox, belying the fact that she isn't exactly the most skilled at martial arts.

Other:
* Theme Song: Hagane no Messiah
* Voice Actor: Romi Paku (JP); Michelle Ruff (ENG)

[User]
Bright Elementary School

The storm of bloody droplets rang out across the quadrangle, going wide and covering a large amount of area with a miniscule amount of paradoxically-sharp droplets of blood. As it turns out, it takes a lot more than a few dozen liters of liquid to cover the span of a city block in precipitation. The end result was a short, sharp shower of needles scattered across a mostly-uninhabited expanse of concrete. A number of hits were scored, to some effect.

 One of the officers suffered an extremely-painful injury from a droplet falling through his shoulder. A cop car's chassis and front seat was imperceptibly damaged, and would annoy the driver for weeks to come. Far off on the other end of the quadrangle, an eleven-year-old child was skewered from crown to groin by a droplet, and immediately went into shock, to the horror of her classmates.

---

Thoroughly nonplussed, Kenji watched as Yukoshi fled the area. Hundreds of witnesses, from policemen to students to SDF soldiers, had seen what she did, what she looks like, and what direction she was headed towards. Now that they had several confirmed murders instead of a number of assaults on police officers, they had all the justification needed to assault Yukoshi and her extreme burden. How they would respond was currently unknown, but one thing was certain: it would not be pleasant for anybody.

The police, apparently occupied by the sight of this unbelievable murderer attempting to make an escape, rushed into their cars and started them up. Sirens blaring and engines roaring, the police were off on hot pursuit, leaving only six officers, a firetruck, and two ambulances hastily offloading stretchers and paramedics.

When the sound of the stricken eleven-year-old reached Kenji, he reacted quickly. He gripped Hachirou by the shoulder, and teleported into the of the quadrangle. Taking care not to step on the dessicated corpses of the innocent police officers Yukoshi and her cohort had so blithely murdered, he took his hand off Hachirou and calmly jogged over to the group of children and teachers.

Kenji spoke slowly, calmly, and loudly. He hadn't had much time to recover from seeing Yukoshi and Friend's pitiless slaughter and the destruction of the Stock Exchange, but, as a Yakuza, he was fully prepared to put on a brave facade. Kenji smiled nervously, and did his level best to block the view of Sakura's unabashed butchery from the children present.

"Please come with me, everyone-- it should be safe now. The terrorists have fled. Hachirou and I have come to help you all out!"

[Assistant]
Tomoyuki Harushima

Deflected! Tomo's palm blast were deflected off the metal body's leg as it swung the blast away like a bat to a baseball. A pretty cool feat of skill for one person to have. The Sentry then floats several meters away from the standing figure as he holds his left arm at it.

"Sir, I do not wish to hurt you!" he calls to the person, "But you did not heed to my calls for you to stop. Who are you and what is your goal here? If you don't answer, I'll be forced to take you in."

[User]
Sonoda Yuka - Metallica Weapon

Metallica Weapon's only response seemed to be only a flash of her ominous, pale-red eyes, the luminescent globes embedded into the helm of the warrior staring across the short expanse between her and the relentless robot with a cold and unfeeling gaze. All was quiet, the only sound that whistled through their ears being that of the wind itself. It was in this position that the amnesiac hero stayed in for a single beat, as if pondering upon a suitable reply to the prying questions of the strange, zealous automaton that had pursued her for so long. Her feet shifted against the concrete.

>>In order to ensure the safety of this just cause and my own identity, I am afraid I shall not be capable of following the directives of this machine. The citizenship must be protected, and I cannot do so in the company of this hostile entity. Cerebral Intelligentsia continues to lie in wait with their horrid monstrosities!

A pebble cracked.

That was the only warning her pursuer was given before a wave of air compressed in front of Metallica Weapon, blowing through dust and leaves to completely obscure the heroic warrior from view. She immediately turned and sprinted away, counting down the seconds in which she could continue to exert her own influence over the great winds of the Earth. The barrier she had formed of particulate matter and foliage had become solid, the molecules of air having pressed together to create a miniature storm that protected her from sight. It would not last, but she had already known of its temporary status! To put distance between her and the hostile entity that was the robot, and to bring her closer to the schemes of Cerebral Intelligentsia, she needed to move as uninhibitedly as she could!

The wall dissipated, matter dropping from the sky and down onto the concrete. But Metallica Weapon had already covered a great distance with her powerful strides, running as fast as she could towards where she knew now that Cerebral Intelligentsia had sent its weekly monster, but also as far as she could from the robotic menace that had chased her for so long.

But there was one message, left in the cloud that had descended from her wall.

A single:

"NO."


[System]
Age: 17
Deck Theme: Lightsworn
Ace Monster: Michael Arch-Lightsworn
Summon Method: Synchro Summon
Features:
Information: Akira has always been a fan of the Duel monsters game and Ever since he can remember he has played with both his friends and his parents. He often laughs while playing and while it seems like he is being mean he really is juat having so much fun that he cant contain his laughter. Akira's father built his deck for him and only through some minor tweaking has Akira made it his own.

[User] "That was a close match." Keio said. "I guess I'll buy dinner."

[Assistant]
~Three days later~
Xavier sat up hard, bringing his head to the bottom of the bunk above him. Keio snorted as the impact hit his back, then also jolted awake.

"Huh? Xavier, something up?" Keio asked, leaning over the bunk to look at the older boy.

"Uhhh, no. Just a bad dream," Xavier responded as he got out of the bed and walked outside onto the porch on the second floor of the boy's dorms, Keio followed, "Ya know, I've been having this reoccurring nightmare of this girl who is running from some group, at the end everything goes white, then fades to black."

"Huh, sounds strange. You recognize her?" Questioned the other boy.

"Not at all," came the disappointing reply.

[User] Moros yawned and lazily hit his alarm clock silencing the incessant ringing. First thing was breakfast, he got made his bed and ate his cereal quickly, washing the bowl out for convenient future use. Living by himself had a been a strange experience for the first few weeks but he was used to it by now. Well mostly, he still got his calendar mixed up sometimes, he couldn't even remember if he had to go to school today...

[Assistant]
Alexander opened his eyes, then grabbed his phone to check the time. Time to get up, Alexander thought as he removed his blankets and put on his glasses, then moved on to get breakfast.

---

Megumi groaned, not wanting to wake up. She rubbed her eyes, then reached under her pillow to grab her deck holder. Pulling out 'Destiny HERO - Plasma', she smiled, then placed it back into her deck holder and began to get ready for the day.

[User] Moros quickly finished getting dressed, grabbed his duel disk, his head phones, and made his way out. Luckily the school provided free breakfast so he always got doubles on it. Besides the school always had food like scrambled eggs, pancakes, sausages. Mhmmm. He made his way down to the cafeteria and loaded up on food wolfing it down. People always complained about school food for some reason but he liked it.

[Assistant] Akira shot out of bed getting dressed and running his fingers through his messy hair before grabbing his deck and duel disk and headding off to go eat with the rest of his class mates.

[User] Alexander got dressed and grabbed his Duel Disk, then left his room to head to the cafeteria for some breakfast. He had no problems with school food, unlike some. Entering the line for the food, Alexander heard a familiar female voice say, "Good morning, Alex." Alexander turned around to see Megumi standing behind him in line. "Good morning to you too," Alexander said, then turned back around. After getting their food, they found an empty spot and sat down, eating their breakfast.

[Assistant]
Together they finally walked into the cafeteria. It had been a couple weeks since they'd been at school. Proudly they had left for a tournament back in their home town in France, and the siblings of course had won for yet another victory back home.Now it was time to return to school and cause more havoc, or at least that was what ran through the young Cécile's mind. As usual she had her cap on, and ready to duel at a moments notice.

As she scanned the cafeteria for her next victim. The word victim for Cécile meant she would torment someone psychologically whether it was purposefully doing something that bothered them or made them uncomfortable, or just toying with them in a duel if she wanted. As she thought and scanned she suddenly licked her lips slightly as her eyes found her next target. The always dull Alexander! The guy was almost never happy, or really anything. Thus Cécile took any chance to put some kind of emotion into the guy. Of course his oh so faithful companion was there too, but that made it even better!

Slowly walking up behind him as he was sitting Cécile leaned over and wrapped her arms around Alexander leaning in to whisper into his ear teasingly. "I hope you all had fun while we were away..." She teased as she flipped a card around in her fingers stopping with it showing to Alexander, showing him 'Cyber Twin Dragon' card she had won at her tournament. Her spoils of war as one might say. Her brother of course took the 'Cyber End Dragon' but it was more his style anyway, and this was hers, though the chances of them making decks for these new cards was slim considering their dedication to the Red-Eyes Black Dragon, but who knew.

[User]
Alexander had been calmly finishing his food and wiping his mouth with a napkin when someone suddenly wrapped her arms around him and whispered things in his ear. Alexander showed a brief moment of surprise before resuming his calm demeanor and took a moment to analyze the situation. He recognized this behavior belonging to a certain someone in this school. It had been a while, but he never forgot it. Well I certainly didn't miss this, Alexander thought.

Out loud, Alexander sighed and greeted Cécile, "Hello, Cécile. I see you won that tournament of yours, if this 'Cyber Twin Dragon' is anything to go by." Alexander then grasped her arms and said, "Now then, if you would be so kind as to release me."

Megumi had also been happily enjoying her meal before the unexpected intrusion appeared. Instantly her cheerful mood plummeted, and Megumi grimaced at the sight of Cécile and Alexander together like that. Setting aside her tray, Megumi stood up, absolutely livid, and exclaimed, "You take your hands off him, you filthy she-devil!" Megumi was not going to let this girl take away her childhood friend Alex, no matter what. Sure, Megumi never won against Cécile in a Duel, but that was then and this was now.

[Assistant] Moros turned to look at the source of aggressive yelling to find Alexander and Megumi talking to the two students that had left to participate in a tournament. Kinda of maybe eavesdropping he listened to hear that Cecile had managed to win her tournament and was showing off her card. He finished his meal and walked over eager to share, "O hey Cecile, guess what?" he said quickly contiuneing without bothering to listen for an answer, "I won a tournament toooo, and I got this card. I guess that makes you me as good as you." Moros said proudly displaying his Flash Phase Shift card that he had won. He waved at Adrien, "Hey I guess that means you won a card as well. Can I see it?" Moros asked curiously.

[User]
Giggling endlessly at Megumi, Cécile slowly slid her arms off of Alexander, very slowly, just to torture Megumi more. "You know Megumi...You're kinda cute when you're jealous, too bad you don't have the skill to back it up though..." She through that last bit in there to bug Megumi even more. Sadly though her fun was cut short when Moros, who she admittedly found very attractive, had the audacity to suggest he might be at her level? Cécile turned her head and giggled softly before responding to Moros. "Careful now Moros," She giggled one more time before continuing. "I might hold you to that..." She teased almost clearly challenging him.

On the other hand Adrien had walked up behind Cécile but hadn't said a word. He knew his sister wanted to have her fun, and sometimes he had the opportunity to leech off of her chaos to start a duel. In this case though he could tell she wanted to probably start one for herself, and found the whole situation rather amusing. As usual Megumi stirred up some attention which drew Moros over to the crowd. Adriend had never personally thought much about the guy honestly though. He was chill and fun to talk with, but he wasn't a huge deal like some of the other people at the school. Still he probably considered the guy a friend, or maybe an associate at the very least. Adrien did frown for a moment though when Moros mentioned winning a tournament in town. If Cécile hadn't wanted to detour slightly on the way back they probably could have made it for this tournament and at least one of them would have won, or at least according to the probabilities.

Moros suggested he was at the same level as his sister which also made him laugh internally. Out of the two of them Cécile might have pretended to be the more innocent one of the Allaire siblings, but even though everyone thought that Adrien was vastly superior to his sister, and maybe one of the top duelists around and that Cécile was just in his shadow. The reality was even Adrien wasn't sure who was better. He may be better at behaving properly in public, but that was the only for sure thing. Finally he slipped a card out of his pocket and revealed it to Moros though, letting him gaze upon the 'Cyber End Dragon' he had won in France. "He was definitely worth the effort, though knowing me I'll probably stake him in a duel to try and get a better card for my deck, after all, there's always room for improvement."

[Assistant]
Akira smiled seeing a bunch of others chatting around Megumi and Alexander and decided to get up and join them having finished his food. As he approached he caught sight of the Cyber End Dragon and immediately felt floored.
"Wait you worked hard to get that and yet you'd just risk it in a duel like it was nothing?" Akira asked barging into the conversation. "What the hell is wrong with you? Those cards should be prized especially if you won them." he added getting a little heated at the thought


[System]
Rank (If applicable): Commander

Species: Sangheili

Appearance (for his armor, at least):
Height: 7'10"

Skills:Vael bears the title of a blademaster, and with good reason. He also has general combat experience befitting his many years of experience, and has a long history of leadership.

Preferred Weapons/Equipment:
* Type-1 energy sword
* Type-25 plasma rifle
* Type-57 carbine
* Active Camouflage

Background: Vael 'Virisusai is an old and experienced warrior, having already held the rank of major at the start of the Human-Covenant war. For him, the war had been an opportunity both to strive for the honor and glory of victory, and to serve the will of the gods. Early in his career, there was nothing that had set him apart from other ambitious Sangheili warriors. He did not have any particularly exceptional skills, nor an enlightened strategic mind. What he did have was the ability to survive, and to learn every lesson he could take in from every battle and skirmish.

Over the course of the war, every facet of Vael's skill as a warrior was honed to a fine edge. From simple aim, to his ability to keep a calm mind in the chaos of battle, Vael became a more and more deadly presence on any battlefield. Victories, and especially defeats, shaped his judgment and leadership ability just as much as his personal combat skills. Like many of his kind, he preferred to kill in close quarters, especially with a blade. In both fighting against the Humans and countless hours of training and sparring among other Sangheili, he learned the intricacies of using a blade in a variety of contexts, and against different opponents. Given his people's respect for swordsmanship, it was this accomplishment, perhaps more than the others, that most helped him to ascend the ranks of the Covenant. In the end, it was not accident, nor fate, nor genetics bestowing natural talent that created the warrior Vael became. It was pure, earned experience.

In the closing years of the Human-Covenant war Vael had ascended all the way up to the rank of Zealot, and in the final months, he had remained on High Charity after accepting an even more honored position. He was present when High Charity arrived at Installation 05…and present when the San'Shyuum wholly betrayed the Sangheili. Being stationed on the Covenant Holy City, he was a part of some of the thickest of fighting against Jiralhanae-led Covenant forces, then later the Flood as it infected the city. Ultimately, he did escape the parasite and went on to join the Fleet of Retribution to cleanse Earth of the Flood. From there, he took part in the Battle of the Ark, which finally put an end to Truth's Covenant.

Following the end of the war, many Sangheili returned to their homes, to their clans. Many of those allied with one faction or another, but Vael did not do so immediately. His life had been one of honor and war, but most of all service to a faith he now knew to be a lie. Shortly after the Battle of the Ark, he secured a small ship and simply…left. He was not seen in Swords of Sanghelios space, nor that of the UNSC. With the exception of a single re-fueling run on Squala, it was as if he had vanished from civilized space.

Then, after a year's absence, Vael suddenly returned to Sanghelios itself. He pledged his service and loyalty to the Swords of Sanghelios. Given his history, he rose quickly through the ranks. However, those who knew him before the war would have saw some changes in him. He was more reserved, both in terms of speech, and in a more cautious, calculated style of leadership. Perhaps the most notieable change is that, while he still kills his enemies without hesitation, he no longer shows the same eagerness to take glory in battle. He no longer demonstrates his pride in his kills, nor intentionally seeks the most challenging of foes. Despite all of this, his effectiveness has not diminished. He continues to be an honored warrior among the Sangheili, but for those who knew him before, one cannot help but to wonder what else has changed within him. Despite this, he has been chosen for the Aegis Team as a Sangheili warrior with enough skill and experience to be comparable to a Spartan.

[User]
Vael 'Virisusai and Shih

---

Vael, on his part, agreed with Aviza's decision. While it was more exposed, nothing they had observed so far suggested that the phantom patrols would range that far from the structure. Moving closer would only worsen the risk of detection. As for actually reaching the mesa, it was not an entirely easy climb, but it was nothing the team could not handle. There was no path leading to the top, but there was a steep, but traversable, hill that led most of the way up. They would only need to climb the very last section up to the flat up of the mesa. For Vael, he tossed his sentinel beam up ahead of him so he could get a firm grip on the rocks for the final climb.

Vael did not need an order to follow Aviza's lead. He kept himself low to avoid silhouetting too much against the sky, laying prone to observe the structure in the distance. His HUD did allow him to zoom in on objects in the distance, though it could not compete with the many specialized sensors built into Aviza's armor. It was those that Shih was making the greatest use of to scan the area.

Even without such sensors, Vael could still see the activity around the structure, and it was, unfortunately, not encouraging. It was not just Jiralhanae occupying the structure, but he could see Humans as well. Far more of them than Jiralhanae, in fact. Most of the Brutes Vael could see seemed to be moving closed crates to and from the interior of the structure. This was the insurrectionist base, and the Jiralhanae they were dealing with were holding directly above it. Together, the two factions would present far more forces than Aegis team ever expected to face at once. The structure itself was a fairly large compound, with multiple buildings and other obstacles that would slow any approach to the central tower. He did not see any way for them to reach the center before Jiralhanae reinforcements could overwhelm them. Not alone, at least.

"The Jiralhanae are holding too close to the rebels. They will be able to assist them should we attack. I believe we will need reinforcements to deal with them. Perhaps then we can surround the central tower and prevent their leader's escape." Vael suggested.

Shih soon chimed in over the team's radios. "I'm afraid it might not be even that simple. Now that we're close enough, I'm getting better readings on the structure. I'm detecting evidence of an underground tunnel system beneath the central tower, leading away from the compound and into Sarcophagus' superstructure. I can only begin to guess at the purpose of the tunnels, but the point is that the rebels may have an underground escape route planned in the event of an attack. If we want to stop them here, we'll have to get into that tower quickly."

As she was giving her explanation, the AI highlighted the relevant sections of the compound on their respective HUDs, though she soon also highlighted the Brute cruisers above them. "Luckily, I don't think the Brute ships are going to give us much trouble. Based on everything I can get on sensors, their ships are in pretty poor shape. I'm not even picking up shields on anything but the corvette. I guess the Brutes haven't had access to proper maintenance these last few years. If we call in the battle group, they should mop the floor with them."

[Assistant]
Spartan Lucas Ryker

Having moved with the rest of the team to the plateau, Lucas scoped up on the structure, or structures, as it had turned out, and watched the movements of those below. The Jiralhanae were definitely patrolling the outer area of the crater-like area but the interior was being patrolled by the Insurrectionists, which provided the team a potent advantage. "Before we do that, myself and a couple other members of the team are outfitted with active camo. If Grikgar is outfitted with enough ordinance, and I brought some grenades that we can jerry rig some charges out of, we can sabotage some things before calling in the battle group, particularly things that Shih marks as important. And while the rest of the team pushes in at lightning speed to take advantage of the confusion, we can sneak in and find the URF leader."

Granted, they were still a fairly small team to split up in such a way, but if things played out right, then they could maybe even get the two groups to turn on each other. "Let's face it, these are greater numbers than we were expecting and we don't necessarily have the time to come up with too many more ideas. Plus, maybe the two groups will turn on each other when there are plasma charges destroying critical URF infrastructure at this base."

[User]
Ben-E218

Ben had followed the rest of the group to the plateau. He saw Grikgar following him, and turned to the Unggoy briefly when he heard the reason he was following so close.

"Shadow if you want, but be careful." He listened to Ryker's speech, then realized something rather embarrassing. He turned off the coms on his suit for a moment as he quickly conversed with his AI.

"Phong, does this suit come with active camo?"

"Yes, it most certainly does. Don't tell me you forgot about it."

"I haven't actually used it in- never mind. Can you create a shortcut command for it so that I can activate it on eye contact with the symbol in my HUD?"

"Processing request. Compiling program. Rendering icon. Done." No sooner than Phong had spoken did an active camouflage symbol appear on his helmet's screen:

"Thanks." Ben reactivated his coms, knowing that too long of a gap in communications might give cause for an inquiry. Unexplained outages in communication could serve as cover for and a sign of unauthorized contacts with rebels and enemies, after all. If there was no cause to hide one's discourse, why turn off the mic? Fortunately, Ben knew the cutoff point after which the UNSC would find such a thing to be suspicious; one minute and seventeen seconds exactly. Anything less could be seen as a hardware failure or a momentary software glitch.

"Sounds like a good plan. What type of infrastructure are we talking about?"

[Assistant]
Tar 'Mdalak
The Kel 'Darsam - off Paxopolis Broadwalk

---

Tar chuckled and patted her comrade affectionately on the back. "If the Humans gave you poison, would you eat that too?" She enjoyed the regular meetings and light hearted banter with Kryu more than she probably let on. It provided temporary solace for her, especially as her deployment to Sarcophagus stretched from weeks into months.

Kryu shrugged. "I am not convinced that was not their intention. It was sweet at first, but the aftertaste was horrid. I still feel that I can taste it. The last time they gave me something of theirs to eat, it was most acceptable. Pleasant, even. Perhaps they were attempting to earn my trust?" He said with a short grunt.

Their food came quickly - popular dishes were pre-prepared and kept hot for the breakfast rush which was due in 10 minutes or so. Tar devoured hers, foregoing utensils over holding the bowl up and grabbing food with her tongue and mandibles.
"So, I had an...interesting simulation...with some fresh recruits just now." Tar ventured in between mouthfuls. "Such an array of characters - three sessions in and they're still as diverse as the seasons. It seems ONI doesn't like making things easy for me! How was your training exercise yesterday?"

Kryu huffed, shaking his head slightly before pausing to take a drink. "All but one of my recruits have never so much as used a thruster pack before, but that is fine. The ones that have never flown do not know what they are doing, so they listen to me. It's the one with experience that gives me trouble. He has his own technique, and does not wish to stray from it. So, yesterday, he comes in too quickly for his landing, does a poor job of handling the impact, and breaks his leg. The last I saw him, he was arguing with the medics."

"We're certainly a stubborn kind, aren't we?" Tar slurped her shake. "So many returning from war with rushed, incomplete training. They now hide behind hero status, claiming imaginary feats of valour. Tar heard herself speak and realised she had assumed an overly negative tone.
She had feats of valour too, despite not serving in the war. Her Keep had been attacked by surprise, and she'd fought them off with her own soldiers. But she seldom felt comfortable talking about those feats. She had failed her father by allowing him to be captured. The shame still threatened to overwhelm her years later. She'd only managed to hint to Kryu what had transpired, so it was no wonder blurting it out in front of the recruits had shaken her.

Even if she had wanted to gloat, she would've needed to embellish some of it. Much of that battle was clouded by a red haze in her mind, preventing her from recalling some details. The clearest memory she had was tentatively asking her trusted lieutenant about what he'd seen several days after. She would never forget the look on his face. Raw fear, of her.

Tar decided to change the subject. "Have you heard any more whispers of an actual mission, outside Paxopolis?"

Again, Kryu shook his head. "I haven't heard anything specific. I know our commanders have put the garrison on alert, but no one is saying what we are on alert against. I am wondering if we are simply being tested? I believe many of the recruits sent here are chosen based on how well they will get along with former enemies. Perhaps they want to see if we still have the skill and discipline necessary to defend this place?" He reasoned.

"Shaking down the base would put everyone in their place, whether that is at the barricades or on the next shuttle back to Sanghelios." Tar agreed, thoughtfully tasting the last strips of meat in her bowl.

After a short pause to have some of his breakfast, Kryu gave Tar a curious look. "You are still wanting to be reassigned from here, aren't you." He asked, though he still did not know the exact reason why she had been looking to leave.

[User]
Vael hummed to himself, taking a moment to observe the defenses and other points of interest that Shih was highlighting in the compound. Walls and other fortifications, turrets, clusters of soldiers, there were plenty of obstacles for them to get through to reach the center.

"There is some possibility that these two groups will turn on each other in the confusion, but we should not rely on it. And if they have an escape plan prepared, I do believe these cowardly rebels will try to go to ground no matter who they think is attacking them. As soon as they are alerted to an attack, we need to reach the central structure quickly if we are to catch them." Vael reasoned. He gave another look at the defenses, particularly what appeared to be an anti-aircraft turret on the near side of the compound. "The battle group can land reinforcements when they arrive, while we move to pursue their leader. But not all of us are equipped to sneak through such heavy defenses. I suggest we move forward with Spartan Ryker's plan to sneak in, for those of us who are able, and sabotage that anti-aircraft turret. That will clear a path for a dropship to insert the rest of the team directly onto the central structure."


[System]
Username: RainDash
Age: 24 (Is about 200)
Gender: Female
Human Appearance:

Dragon Appearance:

Personality:
Dazenth, Daz for short, is very unassuming when people talk to her. She's tries to appear as not a threat to those that would imprison her. Don't let her fool you. She's very capable of lying to you and escaping while her rider is looking the other way. Her track record is escaping four times from rider custody. She seems to look for the thrill of fooling people and dragons alike. It's all a game to her, and through sheer force of will she hasn't yet been broken by the humans. It's very likely that she never will.

Short Biography:
Daz was born and promptly abandoned in a nest of other dragons. She survived by her wits and strength alone. She left as soon as she thought she would survive on her own. She hung around small human settlements, taking things that wouldn't be missed and avoiding notice. It was about a month later that she was caught and made into a mount for her rider. She waited until she could find a way out of it, and manipulated her rider into letting down their guard. She escaped in a whirl of teeth and claws, and found the thrill enticing. As time went on she continued to allow herself to be captured when she was hungry or was feeling lazy. Not all her masters were kind enough to feed her, so she would escape sooner than later by pretending to be dead.

Abilities:
Play Dead- For thirty minutes she can look and act dead. Unless you are aware she can do this, it is unlikely for anyone to know she is faking it.
Slip Scales- She can make her scales slick, allowing her to slip through smaller spaces and also to escape chains or collars with ease.

Rider: @taistelusopuli's character, Nathair

Other:
Very food motivated.
"Catch me if you can. Spoiler alert: you can't."

[User]
Nathair looked at the saddle and then at Cedric@Athoriel. "To the dome, you say?" He looked again at the ornamented saddle, smiled and grabbed the saddle to lift it. "This for Guildmaster's new dragon?"

Nathair was not the strongest of men in the Guild but he had enough to lift this saddle with someone else. He did admire the craft that had been employed to make the beautiful saddle. He didn't consider the decor necessary but it was impossible not to admire the work. He preferred saddles that were lighter to carry, that were practical and did what they were designed to do. That was just him though.

[Assistant]
So the White Doves had more than one goal, then. It offended her that she could not know them. They had taken her from her home, and for some reason, the Guildmaster did not want to tell her what he planned. There was a lack of trust between the two, but honestly, she didn't expect much for their first meeting. The dark-scaled dragoness snarled deeply as she prowled after her rider, who led her deeper into the dome-like structure. Nyx didn't know what Sigil was planning. She had thought that he would try to get her let him mount her, but she would do no such thing. Well, at least for the moment. The thought of someone being on her back sent shivers down her spine as they approached a windowless building. She did not know what it was; perhaps it was some sort of place where they kept equipment and weapons?

Sigil had said something about tests. She did not know what she was going to be tested on. Would she be tested on her strength or agility? Or maybe he would want to see how fast she flew? Nyx blinked-- for once, curiosity was getting the best of her. Would there be some feral beast he wanted her to fight against? There were various exotic creatures in Athea... maybe they had some in the humans' homeland as well?

The human male pushed aside a heavy gate leading into the building, and from within shone a pair of gleaming eyes. A green dragon shot forth from its enclosure, vomiting flames and screaming as it yanked against its chains. Nyx's eyes became large as she heard the command. Was this man joking? Was he serious? Did she really think... that she would go so far as to kill one of her own? The beastress swung her head around, glaring at the Guildmaster and the new arrival.

'You must not be sane if you think I would kill such a piteous creature,' Nyx hissed, spitting smoke in her rage. 'You are the ones that caused the poor thing to be like this! It has suffered in that reclusive structure for who knows how long! It has not seen daylight for an eternity, and it looks like it'd eat its own tail off in its hunger.'

Nyx was enraged. She towered above the two males, letting out an ear-piercing shriek. A much fiercer flame was burning in her gaze, and embers were beginning to drift from her nostrils and maw amidst a cloud of dark smoke. How could they do this? She did not know the creature, but they were mistreating it, denying it freedom, starving it... 'You are all filth! Dirty things that shouldn't be allowed to live! If I did not have a brain, I would have roasted you right here without hesitation! My patience is near its end!' The dragoness snarled again, dipping her head roughly unto her face was less than a foot from Sigil's. Her eyes burned into his.

 'Hear me now, peasant. I will not kill this dragon, but I will kill something else if you do not set it free.'

Doctor

[User]
Cedric stared placidly out of his visor at the ground, as he gave a heave to lift his end of the saddle, his eyes like orbs of ice seemingly glowed from within the helm as they tracked their way up to meet the recruits.

"That remains to be seen." He answered, something adding an almost sorrowful tone to his words, something that almost sounded like remorse. He gave a quick grunt as the recruit lifted his end, shifting the weight onto his shoulder before giving a nod to show he was ready, and within a moment they began their slow and steady march toward the exit. Memories skittered on the edge of Cedric's mind, putting ripples in the water of his usually calm demeanor, memories of those whom had proven unworthy of that which they carried.

"Alright, just take a left up here, through those doors." He said, gesturing with a sharp nod. "We'll place this on the back of the cart and then you'll be free to pursue your training for the day. Oh, and make sure to stop by the kitchens for a quick meal." He added, as they rotated left, the cart appearing before them. Placed close for convenience sake. An old mule stood at it's head munching away contently at the turf beneath it, the old beast brayed and shifted in its harness as the weight of the saddle jerked the cart a little, but Cedric was quick to move around to the front to soothe him. He picked up the stray beet he had left on the carts edge, holding it in the open palm of his hand for the mule to eat as he ran his other hand through its mane.

"There, there, old boy." He muttered in calming tones, gently grabbing a hold on its reins as it finished its reward, making sure he was ready to lead it as it hauled the saddle to the dome for him.

"You're dismissed." He said over his shoulder to the recruit. "But before you leave, your name?" He asked just seconds later, making a conscious effort to look the recruit in the face as he did so. He felt it would be improper for them to part without him knowing as much.

[Assistant]
SIGIL CLOUDFURY

 Sig's brow deepened with his impatience. Nyx's first stage of training had to be done before nightfall; he meant to mobilize the guild in the coming days. She was crucial to his plans, though he dared not let that thought slip into the telepathic stream between them. One way or another, she would cooperate by the end of the day.

 The dragoness threatened him, and Sig reacted instinctively as she approached. He stepped aside, twirling the grapple off his belt in a smooth motion. He threw the rope in a high arc, circling the bone at the front of Nyx's wing, and the two blades at its tip hooked down and penetrated the wing's membrane. Sig tightened the rope, letting the dragoness savor the celelyrium bite. It was a basic dragon-slaying technique - the wings were fragile, and the more they struggled against the hook, the greater the tear would become, eventually inhibiting flight. Sig did his best to stay under the wing and away from Nyx's mouth - though the rope was made of rockwool and would not burn, dragonfire would melt it with enough time.

 "Where is your pity!?" Sig yelled. "Its mind is broken, it is just an animal now, a wild beast. Put it out of its misery and be done with this."

 Alongside the words, he sent thoughts at Nyx. This is your duty, now. Many foes will hunt us, both man and dragon. If a dragon sought to kill you, would you not defend yourself? If a dragonrider came to slay your family, would you not protect them? Sig tightened his hold on the grapple, hoping the pain was enough to motivate the dragoness. If you cannot kill, you cannot survive this world.

[User]
Daz was not amused by the shushing from the human instead of a reply. Had he replied she probably would have just gone on her way to somewhere else. Now it was going to be her gods given mission to find out this guy's problem. She loudly sat down next to him and watched the proceedings. The dragon was now upset by the appearance of the feral dragon. Sigil probably wanted his new dragon to kill it to prove its loyalty. Daz chuffed at the dragon's pride.

"That's funny," Daz said to her newest 'playmate'. "He's trying to force it to cooperate. Won't work though. This one's too stupid to try and just obey. I bet a chicken leg it dies in a week because it won't fight the others of its kind. Two if Sigil kills it himself. Although... he is a big softie. Never mind on the second bet." Daz laid down, resting her head on her forelegs and curling her tail around herself. She wasn't going anywhere, not even if the guy decided to use that knife. "You're obviously not drunk so what was that falling down thing from earlier? If the humans blame me for that I'd like to not get punished."

Doctor

[Assistant]
"Nathair-Sgiathach Marcach", Nathair paused, "from the North Coast." He looked the man @Athoriel in the armor with the loyal mule and was somewhat taken back by the sudden inquiry of his name. Then he looked at the First Sword into eyes and nodded, "I will be training by the gates shortly if I am needed again." Nathair then turned around and headed towards the kitchen for a quick meal.

In stead of going back in through the armory, Nathair took a short detour to go through the front door in hopes to see Daz @RainDash somewhere. She was never in one place for too long. That is at least how it seemed for him and that made it difficult to keep track of her. Nathair looked around hoping to see Daz somewhere nearby and there she was talking to Avanir @Crazy Doctor by the dome. He started heading that way.

That was when the horrific shriek sounded from the dome. Nathair stopped that instant and staired towards the dome. He had not heard a shriek like that since that winter. He picked up his speed and paced to the dome. "Dragons don't make that sound often. When they do, they are..." Nathair pushed the thought away.

"...not to get punished." Nathair heard Daz endin her sentece when he arrived. "Wha- ...", he cut short when his eyes turned towards the sight in the dome. He saw two dragons and Sigil@Tancuras. His eyes turned to the suffering, weak and deprived being that struggled in celelyrium chains. Nathair's face went dark and his pulse began to rise slightly. That was not the way to treat a dragon for him. When he saw Sigil draw his whip out and start subjecting the new dragon he clenched his fist so hard that it began to turn white. He had not been in the Guild for long and this was the first time he anything like this.

"Daz", Nathair kept his eyes at the sight in Dome, "let's go. We have things to do."

[User]
---

Zoran smirked to himself. Thora had made it bearable to be around her, bearable to be around a dragon because she was so genuine. He could sense the truth in her actions and that made trusting her a lot easier. He turned back to his mostly empty foil plate, dipping the last of his bread in the juices of the meat before gobbling it down.

He wiped his mouth with a small tissue. Flying with her was pretty fun, something he enjoyed immensely to be honest. With a halting hand, he grabbed the random bowl from her.  "Your manners are atrocious," he jested with a smile.  "You have no idea whose food this was. Let's get you something on the way out instead."

He got up from the table and noticed an untouched plate that Freya dropped off. When he got it, he lifted up towards her.  "Let's go, the quicker you eat. The quicker we can soar."

[Assistant]
Her companion wasn't being very entertaining, and she snorted at him to hope for him to do something even mildly interesting. She half hoped he'd fall over again. When nothing happened she turned back to the action in the dome. The dragon was still being stubborn, and Daz's tail started to swish back and forth in irritation. Just get it over with, she thought to no one in particular. It was then that Nathair showed up and started walking towards the both of them.

She raised her head from her forelegs to see her rider. He'd probably try to order her around again, so she placed her head back down to see into the Dome. Nathair looked the way he did when stupid, empathetic thoughts ran through his head so Daz stood up and stretched her wings. She'd meant to find him later, she told herself, this just saved time.

She walked over to him, and after seeing his face, tried to console him somewhat. Don't worry about that. Happens when they need to prove loyalty. Nothing left of that feral thing anyway. Stupid thing probably tried to escape through brute force. Don't be squeamish about the dragons, get used to sights like this, you moron. She bit his sleeve and tried to drag him away from the Dome. Come on, you're the one that wanted to do stuff so let's go flying.