[System]
Gender: Male

Age: 16

Appearance:

Background: Hal comes from a well-to-do family, his father a successful writer and his mother a lawyer. Naturally, Hal was exposed heavily to philosophy as a child, but tries to escape his parents' shadow. Instead of making well-educated decisions, Hal likes to plunge headlong into the unknown, constantly testing his limits. He knows where he stands with his parents, and tries not to overstep them too much, but is nevertheless very impulsive and intelligent.

Relations: TBD

Power:

[User]
Thursday March 21st, 2016

Richard coughed, almost choking on the last bite of his sandwich and sputtered for a moment, his face getting beet red in moments. Whether it was from embarrassment or the bits of food lodged in his esophagus was anyone's guess.

"Sophia!" He whined." That was one time and tou were in a giant cook pot surrounded by goblins and monsters." He coughed a few more times and glared at her when she laughed at him. He couldn't glare for long though and before they'd traveled another block he was smiling, a crooked half grin.

"Come on, chuckles," he grumbled lightly and grabbed her arm. He started jogging, pulling Sophia along with him. "We're really gonna be late at this point."

They got to school with just enough time for him to grab his backpack from hisblocker, left there the day before, and for Sophia to change her clothes. First class of the day went by quickly enough, AP English with Sophia throwing small wads of paper at him throughout the class. Thy managed to avoid getting detention but Richard had small bits of notebook paper stuck in his hair by the time they started walking to their second class, Chemistry.

"I hate tests," he muttered. I hate tests,I hate tests, I hate tests." They took their seats, roughly in the middle of the room and he looked around to see that girl Mina sitting toward the front of the class and perfect Alden in a seat near her. Just before the bell, Largent slouched his way into the room, angry scowl permanently etched on his sharp features and Richard did his best not to glare at the guy. He did NOT like Largent.

The door opened a moment later and a new guy walked in. It took Richard a moment to realize it wasn't a student but a new teacher.

"My name is Tristan Thorne," he said, writing his name on the board. "But you may call me Om. I will be substituting for your regular teacher for the next few days so let's try to get along and not burn the school down, capiche?"

He had the square jaw and rugged features of a comic book superhero and despite a fun seeming attitude toward teaching, Richard immediately disliked him as nearly every girl in the class started making moon eyes at the new teacher.

Richard slumped down in his chair and groaned quietly, head cushioned on his crossed arms on the table in front of him. "It's gonna be a long day," he muttered.

@Thundercrash@Ally610

[Assistant]
Hal bolted upright in his bed.

"Aww, crap! Not again!" His bedside clock glowed nearly eight. He scrambled to his dresser, yanking out clothes and throwing things on. He jammed books into his schoolbag, ran downstairs, and set the toaster, moving through his morning routine at lightning pace. The toaster popped, and Hal grabbed his breakfast and hurdled out the door, nearly forgetting to lock it. Of course no one had woken him. No one was home. His father was at a convention in Chicago, and his mother left early for the office. Forgetting to set the alarm clock was an all-too-common mistake.

Hal took off down the street, as fast as his legs could carry him. The bell rang as he arrived, much to his dismay. He slid sheepishly into class taking one of the seats closest to the door. He, hoped no one would notice.

"But they will... They always do..." Hal muttered to himself defeatedly. He let his head drop to the desk, making a muffled 'thump' as he hit.

"Stupid alarm clock..."

[User]
Thursday March 21st, 2016
8:25 AM

Mina looked up, startled, as The Boy With the Book talked to her. She never knew he was in her class, and it was already March!

"Thanks," she said, in reply to his compliment of her pens and pencils. She was surprised when he asked her if they could do the partnership project together.Ms. Longing Stare... She felt her heart starting to beat faster, but she squeezed her hands. Keep yourself together. Mina went through her head, trying to figure out if he was smart or not. She usually didn't care about other people, so she didn't even know this boy's name, let alone his intelligence. This was when she realized her face was close to the boy's face. So close. Extremely close. She quickly turned her head to face the front. She would have blushed, but it was long after she abandoned such emotions.

"Sure," Mina said, coolly.

Right then, the teacher announced that the project was going to be on the Renaissance, and that this project will end right before the year-end exams. Oh, god... Does this mean I have to spend the rest of the year with this boy? I guess it won't be that bad...

"We'll start the project now, so everyone please sit next to their partners," the teacher continued.

[Assistant]
Hal perked up at the sound of a substitute. No teacher meant he was off the hook. He had never seen this sub before, but it didn't bother him. Hal was just glad not to be marked up again.

He pulled out his Chemistry books and notebook, realizing he'd left papers on his desk at home. The morning had been too rushed, and he'd forgotten them.

"Aww, crap," Hal muttered to himself. He just kept it to himself and focused on the new sub, Om.

[User]
The hallways of the high school were slowly diminishing in population as students hurried to their respected classrooms. A boy stood off to one side of the hallway starring at his books in his right hand, a History text book and a Math text book. The two textbooks he needed for his next two classes. His name was Micky Young. Micky moved through th hallway getting to his first class History. Although his locker was a fair ditance away from the classroom, he still managed to make it there a few mintues before the bell rang. This was his gifted ability to move through the hallways at break neck speeds while still being under the teachers radar.

As his classroom came in sight, he heard a teacher from a different classroom holler his name, "Micky! No running in the halls!" Micky didn't reply to the teacher, nor did he look back. Micky went from a jogging speed to walking in seconds.

He walked into the classroom with his head high, this was his confidence stance. Everytime he was feeling a bit nervous or apprehensive about something, he would assume a confident stance. It worked for Micky like an attitude adjuster. He walked into the class room and took a seat by the windows, letting the sun shine through and land on his desk. After a few minutes of organizing his station, the bell rang and the class officially began.

Micky opened up his homework binder, opening up to the page that was dated 'Wednesday, March 20 2016'. The previous night, Micky didn't have a whole bunch of time to do his homework, and unlike some other students, he didn't really feel that strongly about it. Instead, Micky spent the previous day tweaking and performing a new exercise routine. A routine that pushed his out of shape body while still being reasonably doable. Now, Micky is left with a half completed sheet of homework. He browsed through his the work he had done, noticing some of the errors and mistakes he'd made.

"Damn, should've paid more attention!" Micky whispered to himself.

Being lost in thought, Micky didn't even hear the teacher introduce the class, or the assignment. Luckily Micky did catch the ending, as he finally tuned in he heard the teacher say something about the project ending before the years final exams. The only thought that ran through his mildly empty head was,  What project? How big is it? Whats it about?

It was at that moment the teacher spoke again, instructing the student to sit by there partners. Micky felt the pressure in his chest building, not only was he totally caught of guard by this project, but now he has to do it with a partner? Micky wasn't the most popular kid, so he didn't want to just walk up to someone random and have them reject his proposal. Instead he decided he'd sit in his seat and wait for someone to ask him, and if no-one asks him, then he'll just wait for the teacher to randomly select him his partner. I'll play it off all cool and stuff, act like i wasn't listening or pay attention or something...yeah, that'll work !

[Assistant]
Sophia studied the sub through her eyelashes, feet propped up on her desk as he ran through the class attendance. Mmmh, he's kinda cute. Funnier than Old Sterman too. Their regular teacher didn't know a joke if it had bit him. Tossing a small ball of paper back and forth, she mulled over his proffered names. Tristan, Tristan. Nah, doesn't suit him. Thorne…. Blegh. No. Om… Om… Ooommm… She giggled to herself. Sorry, but that name's taken by my favourite animator. Her eyes roamed up and down his body. Hmm, Tristan Thorne. T T. Tic-Tac it is. Flicking the wad of paper at Richard, she grinned as she signed. He's got a nice ass, but he's a little old for my taste.

"And you're a little young for mine. Feet down please."

She blinked, turning to meet the amused smile of the sub. "Let me guess, you are…" he glanced at the attendance sheet on his desk, "Ms. Callahan, correct? Your reputation precedes you, and yes, I know sign language."

A few of her classmates snickered, and Sophia herself let out a long, impressed whistle as she dropped her feet to the floor. She could have some fun with this one. Pulling her phone from her pocket, she opened up Speaker, and her thumb blurred over the touchscreen. "I'LL MAKE SURE TO KEEP MY HANDS WHERE YOU CAN SEE THEM THEN."

Tristan smirked as he leaned against his desk. "You do that. I'm also going to have to see you after class." Sophia rolled her eyes as the class gave a collective 'oooh', which allowed her to catch one or two jealous glares. "Now, with that out of the way, I understand that you guys have a test today." He shook his head at the long groan he was given. "I know, I know, I've never liked them either. So, let's just get through this, and then we can move on to something more interesting."

[User]
Thursday March 21st, 2016

---

---

Alden stood there, waiting for a reply. While he did notice her being a bit more proactive, it seems like she tried to hold back something, he wasn't sure of what exactly but that's whats interesting. She certainly kinda reminded him of himself. Alden's observation skills are notable, for years he watched, albeit mostly himself, other people and took note of their behavior. So he did notice the hand squeeze, but rose an eyebrow because he couldn't pinpoint why exactly.

"Thanks." and "Sure." were the few words she muttered, he had heard that the ice queen spoke to no one, and a smirk etched on his face as those words were proven untrue, it somewhat highlighted that rumors weren't all true, and although Alden knew this, a confirmation made him a bit happy. Before he moved his own table and placed it next to hair, he noticed a piece of loose hair on the clothing of the girl. Glancing at it for a second, he nonchalantly touched the area near her neck and pulled it out. Alden really didn't know of social etiquette.

He now moved his table and rucksack next to her, looking at the symmetry of the table to find it almost perfect. He looked back at the girl, now facing forward. Alden had forgotten "I don't know actually know you're name, Ms. Longing Stare." he said, now holding out a hand to her with a face full of smiles, "I'm Alden Sebastian."

Alden could literally feel the stares from the room, was it because the odd duo of the 'eccentric, perfectionist weirdo' and 'ice queen'?

[Assistant]
Hal moaned with the rest of the class. Sure, he was a great test-taker, but that didn't mean he enjoyed it.

He slid the books he'd just pulled out back under his desk, waiting for the test to come around. At least he's studied last night. It had been one of his soda-fueled reading and drawing binges, and he'd churned out product last night. Thankfully he'd thrown the Chemistry in after he was done with his YA novel and comic books. It was his primary comfort at home, considering his father was a YA novelist. At least that had worked out in his favor.

Hal scribbled chemical equations onto the lines, carefully measuring the balance mentally. He may be a bit of a rebel at home, but he recognized the importance of good grades and tried not to come off as a delinquent. The clock ticked as time went on, Hal completely oblivious to it, truly 'in the zone,' as it were.


[System]
Race
Half-Harpy

Age
20

Appearance
Spindly with many sharp features, Willo appears very outwardly human, with few if any notable, visible traits denoting her heritage. She's just below average height, with short-chopped black hair (which bears a crimson streak running the side) and wide, green eyes that hold far more innocence than one in her profession deserves.

Her outfit is fairly standard for a hunter, with a few personal touches added over time. Her coat is bound tight at the waist by a sash, and upon the garment as a whole are a very faint series of words that one might strain to see in anything less than bright light. They have no correlation with each other, and generally seem nonsensical, forming no sentences. She actively refuses to discuss their meaning.

Perhaps the most important thing to note about Willo is that she drew the short end of the genetic stick, so to speak. While not showing any outward signs of her Harpy blood, the truth is she has very avian bones. Lacking the density of a human's (though not quite hollow and brittle), she is featherlike as a result, and cannot sustain much trauma compared to others.

Biography
Willo was born in Straneyeth to human parents, who themselves had Harpy elders in their genepool. Her mother had brilliant wings, while her father had sharp talons, and so when she was born they were both surprised to see no traces of their ancestry at all. It did not take long for them to realize the frail nature of their daughter, and so they sheltered. Never allowed outside, never allowed to roughhouse, never allowed to get too hyper in fear of the danger she might cause.

This worked for roughly nine years, at which point the girl had developed quite the devilish personality. One night she ran from home, and her parents spent a good hour chasing their surprisingly swift daughter. When they caught her, it became apparent that, while frail, she was not weak.

From then on, her hunter father and alchemist mother expanded her teachings to far more interesting things. She learned to craft a myriad of poultices and salves, and how to wield a weapon in such a way that it's weight and momentum could be used as a benefit (though the star-metal later removed that risk). By the time she was budding on womanhood, the girl was a practiced fighter, prided by both her parents and the town in which she lived.

It was also during this time that the plague struck her home.

What happened in this brief blotch in history is unknown, but in the end only Willo and her father emerged. The latter quickly went into seclusion, a veritable hermit by current times, but Willo turned her focus almost immediately to the guild, an unsettling conviction driving her.

Personality
Outgoing and generally cheerful, Willo believes that if she keeps a smile on her face it will make it easier for others to smile too. Happiness to her is an unfortunately rare commodity in the plague-times, but that doesn't stop her from making light of nearly every situation, and this goes to a fault. She's used to people telling her to shut up when she makes an ill-timed joke, though it's quite hard to hurt her feelings, and she understands that sometimes laughter isn't the best medicine.

That said, it's rare to catch Willo in a serious mood, mostly because she hates being the downer. The flipside to being the cheerful creature she is, is that it's quite an easy tell when something's amiss with her: just look for the absence of a smile.

Lastly, while not explicitly hateful towards the people of Kiruth, a traditional Straneyeth upbringing has left her somewhat cynical of their abilities. Of course this normally just comes off as playful ribbing, and she doesn't think she could ever hate someone simply because of where they're from.

Strengths
Willo has two major things going for her: she's very fast, and very agile. In combat her fighting style focuses almost entirely around close-range skirmishing, striking when optimal and dodging instead of blocking whenever possible. She's fond of using the environment to her advantage, and can often be seen scaling walls/buildings/anything taller than her because if it didn't want to be climbed on it shouldn't have been tall. As well, a pension for utilizing this technique on larger opponents, and a general gutsy up-close style lead to some viewing her as fearless. The connotations of this come in a variety of good and bad colors.

Weaknesses
What Willo has in speed, she severely lacks in strength. Due to the reduced density of her bones, most if not all of her strikes lack a necessary "oomph" to get the intended job done. While the "assisting" abilities of her weapon help to cover this weakness a bit, should she be disarmed there is little she can do besides avoid her opponent.

Weapons
~Cinderwill~

A fairly basic design, the standard form consists of a long, curved handle and blade. Upon twisting a segment of the handle, it extends to staff-length, while the blade snaps down to form a long axe.

Due to Willo's lack of physical strength, she often has trouble slicing far into or through beasts on her own. To compensate, the edges of the blade have been inlaid with a highly flammable, slow to burn substance that, upon ignition, effectively super-heats the metal and allows for her to carve through flesh and bone with standard and relative ease. On the pommel of the weapon's handle is a trigger, which must be struck (i.e. on the ground/wall/etc…") to heat the blade.

While there is no active fire emanating outward, the edges are red-hot, and sparks/flares can emit from contact with hard surfaces.

When not in active use, Cinderwill is kept in a fat, rectangular sheathe on her back, and in cases where she fears she might lose hold of it, there is a thin link she can bind to her wrist from the handle. While not a full-proof plan, it's better than potentially being disarmed and effectively useless.

Vitae Spells
--Flitter--
The edges of Willo's form become obscured, and her movements –particularly dashes—are done in quick wisps of black smoke. This effectively makes her intangible in brief blinks of time, which cannot be extended by any means. The spell uses minimal mana, meant to be fired off in multiple bursts, however the cost goes up exponentially over time.

Exicus Runes
--Turn Familiar--
Willo's familiar, a crow with a sharp iron guard affixed to its beak. Popla is a free spirit and Willo tries not to tether her much. If the bird wishes to be around, she's welcome, and when she wants to go off and explore, she's free to do so. When needed, Willo sends Popla off on scouting expeditions, or has her deliver messages via parchment, and in certain situations the crow's sharp talons and steel beak can come in handy.

Additional Notes
Yes actually she fucking loves spaghetti nomph nomph nomph

[User]
"Okay okay, one down…I think?" she mumbled, then went to retrieve the discarded 'Darkness' tile. No sooner did she lift it however was there an ungodly roar from unnervingly not too far away, and Willo didn't realize until a moment later that she'd shrieked in surprise with it.

Hastily she scrambled to replace the 'Light' tile with 'Darkness', but didn't wait around to see what the effect would be. Instead she made for the rack of weapons, looking from one to the next with increasing dread. Swords she couldn't cut with, maces she couldn't wield with any degree of skill, and glaives that, while likely her best bet, would still struggle to do any real work with her lack of strength. Still, she grabbed it and the bladed crossbow, even if she had no experience with archery, and there was no way she'd be able to reload the thing, one shot could buy her a few more moments she wouldn't have otherwise.

Weapons in hand, she made her way back out into the hall to await either the barrier falling, or the arrival of…whatever was coming.

[Assistant]
"You've got your new weapons. And we obviously need to take it down. I suggest you start your training with them." Joshua responded to Alex while he approached a collapsed Imgor.

Imgor kept staring at where the wyvern had collapsed into the ground just as a claw clasped the edge of the hole. The claw was covered in black sludge like liquid with a similarly black vapor emanating from it. Soon the entire creature pulled itself out.

"That's impossible! The plague does not progress so quickly!" Joshua blurted out.

The creature had lost large portions of its wings. It had become black and its flesh looked like it melted away for the most part, while the bones that used to form the rib-cage of the creature were now protruding upwards through its back in an unnatural fashion.

At the same time a distinct scythe made a thud as it hit ground and right after, Sapphire followed suit as she fell to her knees letting out a yelp not of fear but of pain as she clutched her abdomen. Dark markings began spreading over her entire body, which came to the attention of the others present as they reached her neck and then covered half her face.

Her yelp obviously did not go unnoticed, and before anyone could even react, the now plagued creature lunged at her. A black mist formed around Sapphire which converged into an arced solid structure that now sat between her and the lunging beast.

The plagued wyvern pummeled into it, breaking it apart and knocking Sapphire out in the process, however not before spikes of similar material to the wall that formed from the black mist shot up through the ground and impaled the wyvern.

A howl resounded through the forest, the creature clearly still alive yet immobilized for the time being, struggling to come free.

---

The fact that Jonathan, unlike the rest of the people who gathered around, rode to the scene attracted the attention of the veteran hunter among the two. The younger one was just about to take action against Jonathan as he focused his on him instead of the crowd and approached him with furious steps, obviously not pleased with him striding in without a care in the world.

"Hey, you th-", Before he could continue the older one stepped next to the young one and raised his hand in front of him, stopping him in his tracks. This incited the crowed even more, furiously protesting at the fact that he was allowed to approach.

The younger one gave Jonathan a rather sour look, however he seemed rather obedient to the veteran as he went back to his attempts at calming the near-revolt.

"Yes, I've heard of the House of Gulderland. Regardless of your nobility however, unless you're a hunter, I can't allow you to step any closer." The other one spoke.

---

The door creaked open and Willo stepped out of the room and back into the main hall. The door to which the blood trail led was open. It was previously closed. That spelled trouble.

"Willo!" Lazarus yelled from behind the barrier yet still somehow maintaining a stern voice. Just after he yelled her name a black gooey liquid dripped onto her shoulder.

Just above her, suspended over the door-frame, an entity observed her. The being vaguely resembled the shape of a human, yet it was clearly anything but. Bones were sticking out of its limbs, its flesh was dark green in its appearance as if partly decomposed, with a black bile seeping out through cuts and openings in the skin. Its head was nearly featureless with a mere pair of perfectly black eyes and what Willo identified as its arms and feet ended in sharp bony claws.

Usually the plague affects every living thing it infects differently. Some might even be confused with normal animals if the plague progresses slowly enough. However, there were tell-tale signs of infection such as greenish or black secretions and blackened eyes.

Lazarus had taught Willo and her team how to recognize these signs of infection. It obviously didn't take long for Willo to deduce what she was facing in this case.

Despite it not appearing to have much strength in its atrophied limbs, it pounced with considerable speed at Willo.

[User] Well two down, two left. If you counted Joshua who seemed surprised but also to have no intent of helping. One then. A wyvern was hard enough to kill on its own, much less when it was plagued. Still it was trapped for the moment, by whatever the hell was going on with Sapphire, which gave Alexander what was most likely a once in a fight chance. He'd already begun moving towards the creature when it had burst out of the ruined building towards Sapphire. Going for the most direct route of attack Alexander was next to the creature's head in a flash and his weapon was plunged into the creature's eye. Without a moment to recover Larion leapt on the monster's neck, securing himself with all of his legs and gripped in his jaws, shaking it savagely. To compile upon it Alexander activated his weapon and the blade burst into metal shards that blasted into the creature's skull. It was dead. Hopefully. Or else he had a feeling those foul looking claws would find a new sheath in his body.

[Assistant] "Unless you are a hunter"... Apparently Jonathans name had preceded him before his reputation. You seem to be mistaken as to my intent my good man. He took something hanging off the back of his saddle, it looked like a coil of razor wire at first glance, but it had the unmistakable sheen of star-metal. You see, I do not approach you as a passer-by, or some useless noble who watches idly as the land and the people are scoured by the blight. He flicked the coil, and it unwrapped to its full length, a glistening snaking whip soared through the sky, and with another flick of jonathans wrist, it retracted in length, each segment clicking together into a massive shaft. I approach you as a fellow hunter... Jonathan proudly held his lance pointed skyward. So... Do you still wish to simply dismiss me as some incompetent? He asked the question while staring directly at the veteran hunter, as if challenging him to say yes.

[User]
"Ew--aw gross what..."

Willo looked up and froze, eyes going wide at the sight of the infected beast above her. It wasn't the first she'd seen, nor was it by any stretch the most gruesome, but that didn't make its malformed body any less disturbing. For the moment it seemed to be as interested in her as she was it, and very carefully, she affirmed her grip on the crossbow.

"Alright big guy..." she whispered. "Let's play."

It moved first, lunging before Willo could take aim, and so she leapt back defensively. With a slight space created between them, she blindly fired the crossbow at it before discarding the unwieldy weapon in favor of the glaive she'd taken from the rack. Whether the bolt connected or not she hardly paid attention to, she didn't expect one hit to fell this monstrosity, but any advantage she could get, she'd take, because god knew she'd need it.


[System]
Age: 15
Element: Wind
Appearance:

Personality:
Hot-tempered, strong-headed, and proud; those three words perfectly define her. She also has a strong sense of justice, which coupled with her pride, meant that she would rarely, if ever, bow down to someone or something she deemed wrong. Thanks to her upbringing, she has quite a bad opinion on non-elementalists, thinking of them as a bunch of ignorant molasses who hated something they knew nothing about. She is also somewhat of an introvert, but not the shy kind. She doesn't really value friendship that much, preferring to spend her free time reading over socializing with others.

History:
Born from an elementalist family, she took great pride in the fact that she was one, so much so that she would be instantly hostile to anyone who viewed her kind badly. Age didn't deter her strong-headedness in this matter. She wouldn't even hesitate to use her power against a non-elementalist, if they offended her so badly. Of course, this led to her and her family having to move around all the time when she "exploded" at her bullies. They didn't really mind that much though, as they loved their daughter and knew that she did nothing wrong, especially her mother, who was just as hot-tempered as her. They eventually sent her to the academy to nurture her power, which she gladly went along with, as she was quite tired with the non-elemental buffoons surrounding her.

Equipment:
She is often seen with a little book on her hand. A pocketbook that she could carry around everywhere, so she could read whenever she wants.

[User]
While waiting for Lyra to think of an answer, Vera glanced back at the violin, which had started playing by itself once again.

"Yes... I do believe that it's you who's doing that," she muttered, right before her companion apologized and spoke about flying, though, Lyra cut herself short when she looked up at the sky and gasped in surprise.

Curious, Vera followed her gaze and spotted what she did - an adult woman gliding through the air right above them, literally flying. From that, Vera deduced that she was a Wind Elementalist. What a coincidence it was for her to show up just as Lyra mentioned flying. Vera imagined that it would be loads of fun to be able to do that. Smiling at the woman, she extended an arm up and gave her an enthusiastic wave.

"She's probably a staff member," Vera then said in reply to Lyra.

"Oh, thank you Ma'am," Vera chirped, right after the woman landed in front of them and welcomed them to the academy. She was rather impressed that this teacher knew her students well enough to identify her and Lyra as first-years. "My friend here is a Wind Elementalist as well."

She then turned to Lyra, wondering if she was going to ask something about flying, or playing her violin with wind.

Stygian @Stern Algorithm

---

Xavier was glad that the morning was over. He often shared his students' sentiments, and he was sure that most of the new students would rather spend the day making friends, checking out the academy facilities, or experimenting with their elemental powers. That last one was one of the reasons why the teachers had to be on patrol, wasn't it? In case some knuckle-headed kid decided to try something they shouldn't, though, sometimes accidents just happened even without any rash decisions made. Well, that brings back memories...

Speaking of accidents, Xavier's thoughts were interrupted when he suddenly felt a force charge right into him, causing him to stumble back slightly. He looked down at the teenage girl, who quickly apologized and introduced herself.

He raised an eyebrow at 'Hailee', whom he assumed to be a student. There were few students he actually remembered, these were the ones who made a sufficiently big impression on him, regardless of whether it was a positive or negative one. "You have an appointment with the Headmaster? He's probably making his rounds, so I'm not too sure either. If you're late, he might have left wherever you were supposed to meet him, thinking you weren't going to show."

Wondering how urgent this meeting was, he continued. "Would it be possible to wait at his office until he returns? Though, if it's really critical that you see him as soon as possible... hmm, let me see how I can help you, kiddo... oh, if you're keen on running around, try the other staff rooms or offices. If it's none of those, you might catch him at spots where many students are gathered."

[Assistant]
Some parts of Lyra's brain was working twice, three times faster. A person, flying, without being supported by anything? How does that work? A human body weigh quite a lot; it couldn't possibly be simple aerodynamic. Why isn't gravity doing anything to stop it? And look at the way she gracefully made her way down! It was almost like the air was an extension of her body, or perhaps she became an extension of the air?

Her violin played, quietly, almost imperciptibly, an orderly musical scale. Just as before, it stopped as soon as she noticed.

"Ah, uhh." Lyra stared dumbly for a while. "Oh, ma'am. Sorry, I'm just wondering how did you manage to do... that. Flying. It looks so," it took her an uncertain second before she found the word, "improbable?"

Algorithm @Raptra

[User]
Professor Manilow. Got it. Kanako made sure to drill his face and name to her head.

"I see," she replied to his explanation. "Thank you very much for the explanation, Professor Manilow." She bowed at him once more. "And I believe my ability at speech writing is quite good. I would happily be willing to help if you request it, professor."

Kanako thought there wasn't any harm in helping a teacher. It would make a good impression for sure and it wasn't like she had anything else to do. She intended to really live the school life in this academy after all, now that she was away from all those nagging non-elementals.

She did hope she would get a nice dorm partner though. The headmaster was supposedly the one deciding who would get who so she could only trust in his judgment.

[Assistant]
Jordan was pleasantly surprised at Kanako's acquiescence, and without a word further, he gestured to his office and went inside, indicating that she should follow. Jordan kicked aside some cricket gear, shifted a stack of dusty papers, and chucked a box of "stuff" to the other side of the room. He couldn't help but cough, because the amount of dust that filled his designated work space was otherworldly. Some of it was the result of the pranks of former students, sent on Kano's orders no doubt, and some of it was in fact intentional. Jordan would never say he was paranoid per se.... But it was good to have plenty of his element semi-discreetly on hand.

"Sorry for the mess Kanako, I'm not really an indoors person most of the year, so the clutter really adds up. I'm like a water elementalist in a desert, when I'm in the office, that is." Actually, being in a desert wouldn't be too bad in my case, Jordan reflected, climbing over a half-broken filing cabinet to his desk, the only uncluttered space in the entire room. He sighed and dug around for a folding chair, and plopped it down next to his own in front of the computer. Then, having created a workspace, if you could call it that, he reached up behind them and pulled a cord with all his strength. The blinds slid up and let in a whisper of light, through layers of dust and grime on the window. "Damn it all..."

Jordan took his keys off his belt, found the proper one, and unlocked the window. Immediately, there was a rush of fresh air and true sunlight that poured into the room. He could practically feel the ghosts rushing past him into the outside world, and as he propped the window open with his staff, Jordan felt a bit sunnier. He turned to Kanako, the room now filled with fresh air and sun, and exclaimed dramatically; "NOW KANAKO, LET'S WRITE THIS SPEECH!"

---

When Kanako looks at the computer, she will she that Professor Manilow has a word program open, and that the following has been written in size 12 Times New Roman font;

Dear Staff, Students, and Associated Members of the Academy,

It is my humble honour, and duty to inform you all, that the school year, has begun! Also there are quesadillas to be had at lunch tomorrow! Oh, and there's a certain Headmaster who should be informing you all soon enough of where you'll be sleeping. Which of you are in my class? Raise your hand!

Oh I almost forgot, if any of you even think of investigating what's in my shed, you'll die a horrible death. So yeah, have a great evening, and enjoy a new year of Elementalism, Education, and new Experiences!

|...

[User]
Zafiriel

Through her fingers, Zafiriel saw the teacher read her note in utter disbelief. His brows were bent in a beautiful curve of complete bafflement. He eyed the boy and her, apparently contemplating something. It took Firiel a while to realise another note had fallen out of her pocket. Her eyes widened in shock. She had given him the wrong paper slip! Before she was able to take the initiative to clear the situation, a girl showed up and greeted the teacher. She had long navy blue locks, and she was wearing a school uniform.

"Young lady, how good are you at speech writing?"

"I believe my ability at speech writing is quite good. I would happily be willing to help if you request it, professor."

Mr. Manilow smiled in agreement, and, without so much as a wave to the girl to follow him, the two disappeared to his office. Firiel raised an arm to catch his attention, all in vain. As the door closed with a gentle thud, she sighed. She bonked her head in the wall behind her three times, as if to wake herself up from a bad dream.

Dear Mr. Paolini… Where are you now? What might you be thinking? Why did you send me here? What am I supposed to do? I miss you so dearly…

"Come on, you can't just say something like that and then run away. Not only that, you still haven't told what's wrong!"

As Firiel felt a gentle nudge from her side, she almost sprung on her feet. The touch left a tingling sensation in her arm. She shifted uncomfortably. The only person who had ever touched her was her foster grandfather. He had slapped her on both cheeks. But it had hurt, which meant Grandfather Paolini had not meant well. What if the touch didn't hurt but tickled? She touched her forehead in deep thought. She wasn't aware that the boy was till around, even sitting right beside her.

"Look maybe I was being a bit too harsh a second ago. My name's Silas, and you are?"

"Je m'appelle Zafiriel Marie Louise de Grantaine. Heureux de faire votre connaissance – wait. No."

Zafiriel stopped for a moment. She glanced at the boy beside her. He looked somewhat concerned. A wave of heat crashed through her body, causing steam puff out of her ears. She felt the heat tingle her whole body. Soon her while body was as hot as a stove, so hot you could have boiled water in a kettle on her forehead.

She was not in a prestigious family meeting in Grandfather's villa in Paris. She had been so immersed in the unpleasant memory that she had spoken without second thoughts. How did one present themselves again? You had to say something else beside your own name. 'Happy to see your face?' No. It had nothing to do with a person's face. 'I call myself Zafiriel de Grantaine. Feel free to address me as such.' That did not sound genuine. Communicating with people was like math. Zafiriel had to combine words and then contemplate the possible outcome.
After a few minutes, Firiel had come to a conclusion.

"Zafi", she said, nodding reassuringly, her face void of emotion. "Don't worry. I am not broken."

As she said that, another puff of smoke escaped through her ear, straight to Silas's face.

"Ahh. I'm sorry. I think I might be broken after all", she said, hiding her ear behind her hand, completely forgetting she had complimented his eyes a moment ago.

---

[Assistant]
Zeke rubbed his shoulder. This boy was too loud and annoying. It almost irritated him enough to leave him to his crumbs and plants. But then he would have missed the plant. It was amazing, watching the seed bloom and die. The colours changed so rapidly. He even started when the boy's stomach rumbled. "Everything you do is loud," Zeke said, having forgotten to take a picture of the plant. "Loud and weird."

He turned to the girl. "Hey, you want to see something cool?" He flipped back to the stone drawing photo, showing it to her, but not letting go of his camera. "I was up there," He pointed to the second storey of a tower almost hidden from view by the rest of the Academy, "and I saw the rock on the mountain. It looks like pepper, doesn't it? Pepper on concrete, or in concrete."

Amsterdam@Kalleth

[User]
Kanako followed the professor into his office, and what she saw there almost made her jaw drop. Everything, almost everything in there was messy. She could smell the scent of dust right away, like it was some abandoned house instead of an actual teacher's office. She couldn't imagine staying there for a minute, let alone for how many hours he spent in this place.

"Sorry for the mess Kanako, I'm not really an indoors person most of the year, so the clutter really adds up. I'm like a water elementalist in a desert, when I'm in the office, that is."

Still, that's no excuse to be this messy, Kanako thought to herself. She couldn't very well say that to a teacher after all. She could only watch as he paved the way to his computer like an explorer cutting through tall grass. At least he had the sense to open the windows, allowing fresh air to enter the room.

"NOW KANAKO, LET'S WRITE THIS SPEECH!" he exclaimed dramatically, which almost made her jump.

"Y-yes, let's," she responded. She was certainly uncomfortable dealing with this professor's... explosive temperament.

She took her seat before looking at the Word document open in the computer. Let's see here... it started just fine, until the end where he threatened death to any students investigating what's in his shed... wait what?!

She looked up at the professor, only to find his confident grin, like he had written nothing odd at all.

"Umm... maybe it would be better if you tell the new students about what it means to be an elementalist? And I'm not so sure about the whole "dying a horrible death" thing..." she suggested to him as politely as she could.


[System]
Gender: Female

Age: 16

Appearance:

"Which one of us is the mask?"
Arcana: Temperance

Personality:
On the surface, Shizuka may be the stereotypical "ojou-sama" (young mistress), from her formal speech to her delicate mannerisms with a blend of shy and soft spoken side, but do not let that deceive you as the class dismissal bell rings and Shizuka's part time hour begins, the counterpart she created for herself, Shizu-chan, takes the spotlight with her lively demeanor, friendly smiles, and undying passion of being an otaku.

Equipment/Skills:
Twirling Baton (Cosplay prop, can be upgraded to Rod weapons)
Sewing, professional make up, baton twirling, which were all gained from her experience with cosplay.

Background:
Being a balanced student with an appropriate amount of intellect and proper physical fitness, one would say Shizuka is an average high schooler if it weren't for the fact that her family was of a higher class compared to that of an average student. Like most children coming from a wealthy family, Shizuka was left alone most of the time, with the exception of servants, by her parents in their mansion with no one to play or interact with. Not necessarily neglected, but she didn't mind either way as she was an obedient child and she understood that both her parents were flooded with work which needed to be taken care of.

This is why she sought out a hobby to preoccupy herself with. Flipping through the channels as a curious child, she abruptly stopped when an animated female character on the screen magically transforms, with all the colorful lights and sparkles, and shouts, "In the name of the moon, I will punish you!" Eyes widened in amazement, Shizuka could not take her gaze away from the television screen while her thoughts were of how exciting whatever this was and how she wanted to become like them, hues of hair she's never seen before, costumes of different variety and color, and the dynamic personalities each one had.

Years had passed since then, but her love and excitement for anime never wavered. What remained though was her calm, delicate nature she presented towards her fellow classmates, friends, and parents. Her passion for anime (and now manga) was to not leave the four corners of her room. Shizuka would occasionally show hints of interest when her classmates discussed about them but no one, and she means NO ONE, should ever find out about how "otaku" she was.

Keeping all of this within her had limits and before she was about to breakdown, someone on the hallway of the school uttered the word, "cosplay". It took quite awhile for her to learn the meaning and to take enough courage to disguise herself in the colorful costumes and hair she once saw years ago, to find people of similar interests without them ever finding out her true self.

With the positive reactions given by the people she has met, Shizuka continued to create more disguises by her own hands, to the point where she landed at her current part time job at the cosplay cafe as Shizu-chan, the persona she presented to the people of the otaku world.

Persona: Inari Ōkami

Appearance: Illustrated by: Sho Minazuki

Abilities:
Twin Slash - 2 light Slash attacks. (1 enemy)
Tarukaja - Increases 1 ally's Attack.
Tarunda - Decreases 1 foe's Attack.

[User]
???
6/7/2015 - Monday
@Vulkan

TRACK: Aria of the Soul

As their vision returned to them, they beheld a long dining room. The first thing they would notice is the decor, blue all over, in different tasteful shades and high class furnishings. Paintings along the wall depicting some rather specific events. In front of them on the table was a carving depicting a particular number and card, for Jun, it was "The Devil", while for Katsuro, it was "The Justice". As they looked down they noticed that their clothes were different too. Katsuro wore a simple suit under a dark blue hood with gold trimmings and a side cape, while Jun wore a three piece suit, fully done up in proper.

"Welcome, to the Velvet Room", they heard a voice, they looked to the end of the table to see a man with a long nose and wide, piercing eyes. It was certainly a strange person they were looking at.

"A place between mind and matter, dream, and reality. I, am Igor, only those who have signed a contract may enter this place, and it appears we've finally filled every seat at this table too", they looked around to the other seats. It was true, every other table had a silhouette sitting at it, but some of them were recognizable.

"And this is Henrietta, she will be helping you along your journey", he motioned to the long haired woman next to him.

"Now then... You have drawn, the Devil Arcana. Impulse and sin are nothing new to you, but impulse and sin no matter the reason, is still a mere distraction. It appears you have overcome this and come to realize what you truly want", he began.

"And now... You, have drawn, the Justice Arcana. One must seek guidance amidst a time of crisis, for a long time you have gone into disarray, as there was no one you could refer to, but that will have changed now, perhaps these new friends you have made, will be there to fill the gap", it was a personal topic, but more importantly... How did this man know about all this? When either would try and ask, they would find no voice left their mouth.

"For now...", Igor clicked his fingers and Henrietta left, shortly to return with two keys on a cushion, that she would begin to walk around the table and hand to both Jun and Katsuro.

"These are keys you may use to access this room again, you will return here later of your own accord, or of requirement, but until then... Farewell", and with that, they lost consciousness.

[Assistant]
Kotori Shirohane - Sapphire Inn: Royal Suite Main Room | Sunday, July 5 2015

In the opening wrought by Akane's assault, Sato managed to deliver the decisive blow - his arrow loosened the large Shadow's grip on its sword further yet and the follow-up wind blast finally struck it clean out of its hand. With the knights stunned from the heavy bombardement, everyone was quick to realise that this was their opportunity - and thus all attention was focused on the main opponent. Momentarily unable to strike back, the attacks poured in from all sides - magical and physical, the Shadow came under heavy fire until it was reeling. It attempted to fight back even as its princess was slain, a certain distress audible even through its twisted voice - until a choice arrow fired by Sato finally breaking its desperate defense - and making the fatal opening which allowed him get a clean hit with Chronos' wind magic. He seized the opportunity to lay down a final follow-up together with his Persona to put the Shadow down for good.

Kotori, meanwhile, kept an eye out throughout it all - ever wary for any would-be surprises from either the Shadow or its knights - but also doing what she could to aid the assault with her Kikuri-Hime's help, lending her lightning strikes to the assault. It was only when the Shadow finally began to flicker and disperse that Kotori gave a sigh of relief - and the fatigue of the fight made itself known in full, even as the armour surrounding the knights began to dissolve in flakes and gave way to the unconscious prisoners therein. Kotori took a moment to catch her breath - even as she felt the almost familiar uncomfortable feeling as the shadow, now in its original form, began to speak.

As ever, it unashamedly spoke of the feelings that had been suppressed and locked away - a look at another person's inner thought which was no doubt embarassing for them, but also for Kotori who still didn't know how to balance wanting to help the conflicted kidnapees and also respecting their privacy in such moments. As such, there was little choice but to listen though - even as Jun stepped out from the protective circle that had been formed around her by the party and confronted her shadow. Kotori didn't recognise the girl - at best, she was vaguely familiar much in the vein of other schoolmates whom she might have seen but never talked to before.

Much like the times before, she couldn't help but feel some measure of worry about what might happen if Jun didn't accept this turn of events and denied her other side - but much to Kotori's relief, this did not come to pass. Instead, Jun acknowledged that, though she may not like it, she was acting in a manner that she herself no longer knew the real reason for - and instead chose to live her life according to her own choices and on her own merits. A small smile came across Kotori's face at those words - which in turn marked the transformation of the shadow; a bright light cast across the entire room as a new figure took its place: Mordred, Jun's persona.

The girl turned to face the group, evidently full of questions about what had just happened - but those would have to be answered at a later time as the tell-tale signs of fatigue made themselves known; forcing Jun to sit herself down lest she fall - which immediately preceded the loss of consciousness. Though she'd seen this pattern repeat several times now, Kotori still couldn't help but worry that everything was alright; even as everyone else started to get ready to leave the mirror world behind with Jun being carried and headed for the hospital. Having used the brief exchange as an opportunity to catch her breath, Kotori accompanied the others - at least until everyone went their separate ways from the warehouse that marked their entrance to the mirror realm.

It would be with no small amount of relief that Kotori arrived arrive at home - both knowing that another kidnapping victim was safe but also to be able to lay down to rest; even if it didn't last too long before she recalled that the finals were coming up soon and she still had some studying to do for the day.

Kotori Shirohane - Warakuma High School: Classroom 2-2 | Monday, July 6 2015 - Morning

This time around, it seemed that the usual rumour mill surrounding the kidnappings was quite a bit quieter - which didn't come as too much of a surprise, seeing as the events had occured over the weekend and thus couldn't cause quite as much of a commotion as some of the previous incidents when the victims didn't show up for class. Still, Kotori still heard her fair share of stories being murmured on her way to her classroom - and not few of them were quite clearly being told as second-hand accounts or worse, seeing as there would have to have been at least a dozen kidnappings all over town for all the things she heard to be true.

Stymying the usual spread too were the not upcoming finals which hung over the whole school - some seemed to have already given up hope, others were just putting things off until whilst Kotori couldn't help but feel the usual pre-exam worries, even before the immediate tests began. In fact, she felt even more thereof as she had to regretfully decline multiple requests from other students that she helped them study - between her own studying, helping out at home, occasional forays into the mirror world and club meetings, she wouldn't have much of a reliable schedule; not even taking into account the fact that just imagining herself somehow trying to teach others made her nervous at the prospect.

Taking her seat in the classroom toward the front, Kotori gave a small sigh - but this time because she had inadvertantly reminded herself of the Agriculture Club meeting that was to take place later today. Whilst the colourful sight of the many flowers was always welcome, the same could not be said for the strange mood that hung between her fellow members, Shizuka and Matthew. Both seeing them as they were and also not knowing whether or how to help would do ittle to raise her mood for the rest of the day - which she already wasn't looking forward to, as she'd have to be paying a visit to the hospital later.

[User]
Shizuka Otonashi || Agriculture Club Garden (Courtyard) || July 6 MON: After School

Shizuka simply stared at the saplings she was watering, deep in thought all the while. Not only was she unable to continue with the venturing into the depths of the dungeon, she had to ask Matt, the upperclassman, to take her place in the dungeon party. While the student felt awfully guilty for having someone else be in danger in her place, Shizuka wondered if she could be of any use to the team in the future. "I must have been given these powers for a reason... It's only right to assist people in need with them...!"

Lips parted to release a sigh. There was something else clouding her mind and it was the reason she would only visit the garden and not the actual agriculture club room nowadays. Matthew Harvester. In an attempt to recollect her thoughts of that fateful day, to why they were in such a state, Shizuka wondered if she were the one in wrong. Did she really do this for his sake? Was it some kind of repentance? Maybe she just didn't feel worthy of him anymore after her inner thoughts were revealed. But even then... wasn't Matt willing to accept her then?

Shaking her head off of those thoughts, the freshman proceeded to put on a pair of gardening gloves to pull out the weeds which had taken residence along the plot of land. It felt like it was just yesterday when the club members worked on this garden when it was freshly plowed for the club. Then there were times where the upperclassman would find the younger student here, just to help her take care of their plants. Smiling thoughtfully at the fondful memories, a teardrop ran along her cheek. "Huh...?"

Before it went out of control, Shizuka wiped away the tears with the gloved hand, unknowingly smudging soil upon her cheek slightly. Shizuka admitted, with tears as proof of this, she dearly missed the carefree days she had with Matthew.


[System]
---

Arcane Archer Fighter 20Save the world... redeem myself.

[User]
Vale Detherwood

---

Vale quickly finished the book she was reading. There was an invitation to join everyone for dinner, though that mattered little to the halfling. She would join up, but no sense keeping herself from finishing this last book. There wasn't that much left anyway. The rest of the party had left the room by the time she closed the book. She wasn't far behind, but she wasn't in any rush. As long as they didn't start with dessert first, that is. Happily she skipped along, eyeing the comfortable decor as she searched for the feast.

It wasn't that hard to find, though it seemed she wasn't going to be the latest one. Rather than sitting down immediately, Vale circled the table eyeing the meal that was prepared. It looked wonderful. It almost made her mouth water, but there wasn't anything out that truly interested her; opting not to grab any of the food laid out. Finding an open vacant seat, she hopped in her now claimed chair and began humming to herself. Shame that her dress wasn't made yet. It would've looked lovely at a dinner like this. "Well then. Sorry I'm late, though it doesn't seem like I missed too much. Just finishing looking at some of the books. Anyone find anything on the giants up north? If not, is fine; I plan on studying the night away if our host would be so permitting. I can also round out searching for topics any of us might needed extra time on. Oh, and do tell me if you visit the gardens of Carnessa. I found a book, written in one of those infernal languages of course; but it looked like the most beautiful places. Much better than the forest I lived in for most of my life."

[Assistant]
Janine  Fawkes
Scrapmouse

Scrapmouse was generally bored by the small talk that Ava and the others participated in, but the magic items that Ava produced certainly caught her attention. An earstone of communication was good. An orb of mind reading? Damn, too bad she had a lot of stuff attuned to her already. And the deck of illu--wait, that wasn't a deck of illusions! That was a Deck of Many Things! Was that Lady Ava dumb or crazy?! Before she could warn the group, one of them decided to draw a card and he lost all of his items and clothes. The tinkerer gnome couldn't help but hold her stomach and point at him as she laughed and fell to the ground.

It was only after she calmed down that she warned the other heroes, "Guys, that ain't a Deck of Illusions. That's a Deck of Many Things! You'd have to be really desperate to draw from there! There's more cards that'll bring a Fate worse than Death than there are Good cards in there," She didn't know whether anyone heard her, but she continued to the library regardless.

The first hour was spent tinkering, if anything to keep her mind of the potential future of a Battle Royale. Her tinkering produced another little Firestarter. She lost the last one she had, and who knows? Maybe she can use it to make future explosives explode in the near future? Hehe.

The second and third hours were spent studying on Dragons and Giants, considering she was going to go there. Maybe she'll read up on the undead too, just in case? That'll be a topic for later. But regardless, she studied up and learned at least the basics. While she read and adjusted her goggles, Sparky laid nearby, acting like a normal cat, waiting patiently for its master to finish or move. Despite how crazy and twitchy Scrapmouse seemed on the outside, her quiet and diligent studying came to the surface. Sometimes muttering could be heard under her breath as she committed the important facts to memory.

Her head snapped upwards and she lifted her goggles up when Vincente poked his head in, and let everyone know that there was a feast. Sparky mimicked her reaction by lifting his head and gazing towards Vincent. The gnome cheered "Haha! Heck yeah! I'm starving!" Pass out on a free meal? Who would be crazy enough to do that? Besides she needed to share her findings and start planning a strategy.

She made her way to where the feast was and she grabbed her own plate of food. She listened carefully to what everyone else had to offer in regards to information. A circle of teleportation from the cleric, and the half-orc can ask his god for anything in regards to anything needing to be affirmed or denied. The bard clearly asked around, only to end up with little to no information.

After everyone seemed to finish sharing their information, she spoke up, her shrill voice showing excitement and eccentricity,

"Alright! I've got a lot of information to share wit' ya! I did some digging on Dragons and Giants in general. Can't go in assuming we know everythin' already! The information I found may be useful for any strategies! So, listen up!"

After taking another bite of bread and swallowing she continued,

"The Dragon is a white dragon, which means that it's a cold based dragon. Yesyesyes, I know. Obvious! OBVIOUS! But-But--! This is good! White dragons, see, are not very smart. Very bestial! But still dangerous, especially if it's an ancient. Unfortunately, there's no real weaknesses to exploit. They do not have a weakness to fire, no they do not!"

A gulp of water to wet her throat to keep the information coming,

"The Dragon is strongest in their lair, and they know it! It's a bad, bad, bad idea to fight them in their lair. WORST IDEA EVER! ...But probably unavoidable. Trying to lure the dragon out might not work! But if we have to fight in the lair, we can use fire to melt stuff in there, and lessen the dragon's strength,"

Another gulp of water,

"Now giants...There are many different kinds! But despite their differences, they see each other as kin. They have their own caste system called the Ordning! Each giant has a social rank and knows who is superior or inferior to it. The place in the Ordning is determined by analyzing a different combination of skills or qualities. Excelling in these skills or qualities is the purpose of a giant's life. The races of giants follow this system. The highest at the Caste are the Storm Giants. Then there's the Cloud giants, Fire giants, Frost Giants, Stone Giants, Hill Giants, and then the giant kin like...ogres, fomorians, and ettins. If a giant were to disrespect or betray a giant of another type, is just considered rude, not evil."

Downed the entire goblet of water,

"So, in conclusion..."

She raised her fingers and counted as she spoke,

"One: We may be dealing with Storm Giants if they've somehow got an Ancient White Dragon to join forces with them.
Two: Best way to beat the dragon is to lure it out of the lair, but...it's not dumb enough to be simply lured out.
Three: Can't turn the giants against each other.
And Four...!"

She paused and then commented

"We're in for one heckuva fight! We need to get a strategy started!"

She then mumbled to herself "I wonder if there are any previous accounts of dragons and giants working together...?"

[User]
E . .ʟ . .ʟ . .ᴇ . .ɴ . .ᴀ . .ʀ . .A  A. . ɴ. . ɴ ' . ʟ. . ᴇ. . ᴀ. . H ...
______________________________________________________________________________________
The Lady Mavros was swept away. Long, hair-like wisps of visible air trailed far behind her as the wind carried the inebriated noble through her city streets and into her home. Ellenara's elemental form tossled the young elf's hair as she offered swift passage. Soon, the dining room doors swung open with a brief, forceful gust. The guests were treated to the sight of one of their hosts in the cradling arms of a strangely ethereal being of mist, only for Ada to be placed gently to her feet beside an empty seat. The swirling body beside her condensed and colored until Elle emerged, propping Ada up beneath the girl's shoulder. "Well, I'd say she enjoyed herself," said Elle, helping Ada to sit, "She doesn't get out much, does she?

After seating Ada at the table, Elle made her way around and joined with the others. "Oh, food. I knew the night was missing something!" she proclaimed, gathering up pieces of the meal and assembling them before her onto the table, without a plate. Seemingly ignorant of manners, she started to pull the food to her with her hands and eating from her fingers, with teeth gnashing like an animal. While not particularly violent with the meal, she didn't mind or notice the occasional slurp or slop as she ate.

"So," she said, the words slightly garbled by the half-chewed chicken tucked into her cheek, "As long as we're sharing, I should probably tell what we found out in the city." After declaring this, she finished the bite she had already taken, only to take on another and continue.

"Our dragon lurks on a mountain to the south of Vael Turog, somewhere that I can probably find. The dragon is indeed quite ancient by the sound of it, or at least that's the account of the last man to see the giants that withheld it and survive. He said they guarded it, and that they were led by a much greater giant. Hraesvelgr was the giant's name."

She looked to the others for a moment of pause, before turning in her seat to open the pouch at her hip. Before reaching in, she cleaned off the residual food from her fingers by drawing them into her mouth briefly. With her hands still glistening, she plunged most of her arm into the small pouch and retrieved the pristine crystal globe. "I know where to look, so I might be able to find more with this," she declared, holding the artefact in the air for the party to see, "Perhaps someone could do me the kindness of looking into this figure for me as I seek them out?"

[Assistant]
"I suppose I can. Hrasvelger was his name you said? I'll go look into it here in a moment." James takes a gulp of the ale savorying the dark amber brew. "Anything else I should look for?"

He noted that it seemed that these two had had plenty to drink as well. He also noticed that Vincent and Titans Bane had yet to walk in. "It seems we are still missing two of our party. Has anyone seen them recently?

[User]
The former duchess had a difficult time not only walking, but forming any coherent thought. This wood elf lady that helped her along certainly was a boon, but Ada was a duchess! She could stand in her own two... nope. Maybe she had just a little too much to drink after all.

Even in her inebriated state, she could see the fumes coming off her brother. He probably was pretty angry that Ada would go get herself into such a state, but the Seeker seemed trustworthy from her research. Mostly. At least nothing bad had happened. That duke needed to learn to let go once in a while and relax. Of course, Ada had been just as uptight as him for several years now.

Oh great, the duke was speaking now. Something about "blah blah, she's not normally like this, blah blah." She didn't need Vicente to apologize for her. She was finally free: a normal citizen of Mavros. To think that a mere decade earlier, she would have killed to be the ruler of the city, but now she was almost relieved to be rid of the responsibility. Almost.

After the duke was finished talking, Ada pulled herself to her feet, steadying the swaying room with a hand on the magical table before her. "Thanks, Vinnie," she began, definitely not slurring in the least. "We prolly oughta get some sleep 'fore the giants come. Or whaddever." Another scoff from her brother. What did she ever do to him? Oh... right.

"The staff'll get yer rooms set and stuff," Ada continued, waving in the general direction of one of the maids who seemed to have a concerned and bewildered look on her face. "We can talk about more stuff later... and stuff. Tomorrow." With an unnecessary flourish, Ada pushed away from the table, nearly collapsing before a half-elf girl caught her, helping her down the hall. Ada could be heard lauding the maid for always being a good friend as she was led away, to the disapproving sighs of the Duke of Mavros.

"Well, that certainly wasn't an embarrassment," Vicente muttered. "As Ada mentioned, rooms have been set aside for each of you. I suggest retiring sooner rather than later, as it is already quite late. If you need anything, someone will be posted outside your door to answer your beck and call." As Vicente stood, the table before the party began to shrink, finally condensing into a dull grey sphere, as if it were a burnt-out gemstone, which the Duke collected. "Please have a pleasant evening."

---

All who was present for the entire duration of the feast and consumed food from it are under the effect of the Heroes' Feast spell: "A creature that partakes of the feast gains several benefits. The creature is cured of all Diseases and poison, becomes immune to poison and being Frightened, and makes all Wisdom saving throws with advantage. Its hit point maximum also increases by 2d10, and it gains the same number of hit points. These benefits last for 24 hours." The HP increase is 6 for everyone.

I will allow a week for people to post their nighttime activities / conversations or to pass on a post. Once everyone has posted or passed (or a week has gone by), we will move on. If you do not post, I will assume you went straight to bed.


[System]
Scientific Name: Spatiobacillea Loquebatur Colloniam

Threat Level: 0 (higher if given guns)

Height: 2 µm

Length: 2 µm

Weight: 5.8 x 10^−10 g

Description:
A species of microorganisms that display higher-level sentience in colonies. Much like other hive-mind species these creatures form a collective mind through a process of shared experience, with each individual member functioning as a neuron in a larger brain through constant chemical interaction between adjacent cells. While even small colonies can develop a thought process large colonies can become astoundingly intelligent, with the largest colonies possessing computing power comparable to supercomputers. Much like in Slime Molds these cells can combine into a single semi-permanent 'organism' that can disassemble at will, the difference being that the complexity and intelligence of the Loquebatur is far greater. When combined cells set aside their usual function to form makeshift locomotion, allowing the colony as a whole to propagate, and can even be used to break down larger multi-celled organisms. Although these makeshift organs are generally less efficient than the more specialised multi-cellular organisms the ability to break down and recreate itself gives these creatures an immense advantage, turning them into the most prominent species on their homeworld.

Initial communication between the Loquebatur (Loqi for short) and humans was difficult due to the immense difference between the two species. Originally they were classified as a foreign contaminant, then as a nonsentient species of mobile fungus, and then as a planetary environmental hazard. Because large multi-cellular life is completely alien to the Loqi, and attempting to communicate with a human's cells doesn't work, it took quite a while for the two species to even recognize one another as sentient. However, the Loqi appear to wish peace with humanity, and are highly interested in humanity's technology. Despite the species' vast intelligence as a collective it failed to go through the technological advancements humanity did. This is believed to be because of a thought process based on intercellular interaction, rather than interaction on a larger scale.
Species: Loqi Colony

Age: impossible to determine, but it has been 6 years since he separated from the main Loqi colony.

Gender: 31

Height: 2m

Weight: 120 kg

Personality:
Bob is fascinated by humans, and attempts to learn as much as he can about them. His alien mind often has trouble comprehending concepts that make complete sense for a human, although his extended exposure has made him far more human than the greater Loqi hive mind. He dreams of absorbing as much of human culture and the multi-cellular experience as possible before returning to the hive mind with this information, once more melting away into the larger Loqi awareness. He acts in a cheery and optimistic manner under all circumstances, which can be both charming and disconcerting. Due to his lack of individuality he feels no real sense of self-preservation, beyond his recognition of the importance of the information he carries. This also applies to others, as to Loqi the value of an individual's life is his value to society as a whole, or potentially whatever 'faction' they're a part of. Concepts such as selfishness are completely alien to him, and he simply cannot understand them.

History:
Created by the Loqi hive mind as an ambassador to the human species, Bob was named for the scientists who witnessed the event. He spent the first five years of his life interacting with scientists, who designed machines that transformed the chemical communication of the Loqi cells into vocal communication. As Bob is a smaller colony his intelligence is more similar to that of a human, which was necessary in order to even begin comprehending humans. While not the first 'ambassador' and certainly not the last Bob was the most successful, as the Loqi had managed to trade with the humans for a technologically advanced suit which would allow Bob to interact with other humans as if he himself were also a human. For the entirety of his existence as a separate colony Bob has been working on integrating himself into human society and understanding humans better. Now he functions as an alien hunter in an attempt to understand human individuality, self-preservation, and to expose themselves to a larger variety of alien species.

Weapons/Supplies:
Bob himself is nestled into a suit of 'power armour' which surrounds the colony itself. This power armour contains the necessary machinery to allow the Loqi colony to communicate vocally, and sends constant sensory data to the Loqi colony. This allows Bob to interact with the world in a fashion similar to how humans do it, which he finds profoundly strange. This suit is stronger than a human body, as well as being significantly more durable, although it is not faster. And Bob is far from agile, having trouble even conceptualising 3d movement on a macro scale. The suit is equipped with extendable blades on it's forearms and scanning equipment, granting it sensory abilities beyond those of a normal human. In the hands of a more capable 'pilot' it would be a far more dangerous weapon, but even as Bob's 'body' it is quite dangerous.

Misc: decided to make an astoundingly weird character.

[User]
Aboard a ship flying through space. It was a familiar environment for the woman. She'd made plenty of trips in the galaxy and this should be like home by now. But it wasn't and it didn't feel like it. This was the conflicting signals between her mind and body.

Mentally she knew that this was all normal and that they were headed to a station like it was any other day. Nothing odd was about this process. Her body on the other hand was taking issue with the artificial environment. It craved real ground beneath her feet, the gravitational pull of a planet, and the breathing of other vegetation. Being in a room with nothing but CO2 breathers was messing with her own respiration. Perhaps it was all in her head but she could swear that her body was working overtime to compensate for those around her. Which was odd because as far as she could understand planets usually produced less oxygen when in presence of CO2 was higher.

Confusing physiology aside the trip was not that eventful. It was still interesting though, there were many different species that she'd never seen before. Probably one of the more curious to her was the fish woman. Not that she was surprised that one existed, but more that one would be on a ship walking around with mechanical limbs.

There was also the annoyingly loud human woman that was leaving her comm open for all to hear. Though to be honest it didn't compare to the numbing conversations with the scientists that would talk to her about things that were way over her head. That and spending two years alone Harriet was almost glad to be hearing another human talk about something as normal as a pet, she presumed it was a pet. To be fair she hadn'd been paying 100% attention to the conversation.

Oh yeah and there was a giant spider on board that had someone wrapped up. No one else seemed to be worried about that and when they were told to get off the man was taken down and strode off like it was just another day so she figured it wasn't big deal. The universe was weird and she was a perfect example. Falling in line she proceeded with the others following Quinn.

[Assistant]
Dare

The young woman had spent the majority of the trip fiddling with her equipment-- examining a magazine, sharpening her knife on her armor, calibrating the sensitivity of the radiation detector in her helmet. Perhaps it would be worth the time to try and install an e-reader in the computer... Izumi mused quietly. It might not work, but at least trying to figure everything out would keep me occupied. She'd stayed in full armor for the trip, partly for convenience, and partly because the reflective, gold visor kept people guessing about who and what she was. The last thing she wanted right now was some hotshot young hunter trying to get into her pants before even arriving at their destination.

Once they arrived, she did as ordered, hefting the two large duffel bags she'd brought. One had her personal effects-- clothing and the like-- while the other had several cases containing her weapons and ammunition. She kept her pistol holstered at her waist, but all of her heavier weaponry were nice and snug in their custom cases. Looking around now she could see the variety of races represented in their small group. However she would keep to herself unless talked to... and only respectfully to anyone of, say, Quinn's standing.

[User]
Phoebe Quinn

As soon as everyone got out of the ship, they walked towards the southern entrance at the end of the hangar bay. A few rooms down the hallway and they turn to an elevator shaft. Quinn presses the call button from the holographic projector, and after a few minutes of waiting, the elevator finally shows up. As everyone piles into the elevator, the Commander presses button 33 as they fly up to level 33 from level 12. Within the large elevator, it became very clear to her how many hunters she had with her. And what an assortment of faces as well! While she had a few human faces, she also sees a few alien types around her as well. From a large red Ogaris yokai (Oni) who still seemed a little out of it, a Syreni chondrichthyes (Aquarian) who took up almost half of the entire elevator, and surprisingly a being that was made up of various little microscopic creatures. This new team is going to be pretty interesting, or at least she thinks.

It would be a rather longish elevator trip, but eventually they reach the designated floor after a minute or two waiting. Quinn would have the rest of the recruits follow her down the hall to his right, curving towards their left...

Room 661... Room 663... 665...

Finally they reached GAHL's Office Room. Room 671. Quinn then activates a holopad from the entrance and enters the passcode to open the door in an effortless manner. The pad blinks twice in a flash of green as the doors slide open automatically to reveal the entrance.

The waiting room of the office was relatively large compared to the room they were in, yet it was also rather cozy. Instead of the traditional white boring walls of the rest of the offices, it simulated dark glossy wooden walls of an mid-2010s Earthling Log-cabin, with the floors also covered in the same material. Of course, this wasn't actually wood, as it would cost too much money to replace the white floors, but the holopads made a very convincing image of actual wood, both in looks and even the design and feel. Even the counters and tables were mostly made of wood, but also had nice stone-carvings within them. The seats were mostly sitting and lounging sofas, with a rugs looking rather generic but still had its purpose. A stone fire place is even seen to the far right, with a Holo-TV above the warm fire, along with several trophy-skulls of some creatures. Dangling lights illuminated the room and bookcases flanked each other farther inwards.

The room did indeed stimulate the feeling of a modern hunting lodge, which seemed quite fitting. As they continued walking in however, the President of GAHL, Richard Malkovich, finally stepped forward from behind the front desk with a friendly smile.

"Ah! Welcome fellow hunters. I'm Richard Malkovich, president of the Galactic Adventure Hunting Lodge. I'll be ready to debrief you on your first mission in a bit... just setting things up in the Meeting Room. For the meantime, please, just relax and get comfy. I'll let one of my security droids let you in once I'm ready. Give me, eh... 3 minutes please."

With that, Malkovich quickly heads back to the meeting room to make the last preparations before everyone can enter. Quinn simply drops her bag on top of a hangar near the bar, filled with a whole collection of different alcohol and wines from various planets, as they wait for Malkovich to finally call them in.

[Assistant]
Bob of the Loqi -

The main hunter, the lead entity, Phoebe Quinn, lead the 'group' to where they would be 'debriefed'. It was a fascinating experience. So was this how other races formed 'groups'? It seemed that at this size they weren't capable of properly linking up, and instead moved around in these makeshift unions. A single lead entity who gave orders, which would then be processed on a more detailed level by each individual entity. He would call it sad, but perhaps there was some merit in this system. After all, they were capable of passing on these orders at a distance, and had even invented this technology to vastly increase that distance. For entities on different sides of the planet to form a single group, even if it was such a rudimentary group, was an astounding concept.

Despite all their disadvantages and inabilities these strange beings, who existed like small planets isolated from one another, had managed to test and understand the laws of the universe itself. Bending such great and powerful forces to their will and using their immense physical strength and communication abilities, it seemed they had managed to conquer even the stars, while the Loqi had remained on their own world. In that way it was the Loqi who formed an isolated entity, when all these other races had met up. And in their own strange way they had formed their own 'group', a group composed of billions of smaller groups interlocking with one another. A system that spanned the stars, far more complex than the individual entity and yet defined by the complexity of each individual entity. In his time here he had already managed to learn so much about these strange creatures, this strange way of living, that he could scarcely believe. But now he would learn another fascinating thing: how they treated those who were excluded from the group. Entities incapable of communication were not allowed to exist within the group, and instead were purged from the system using these 'hunters'. Elimination of competition on such a macro scale.... the colony known as Bob could not contain it's excitement.

Of course he was having some trouble keeping up with the situation. Movement through this macro space, the concept of an elevator... these things in and of itself were astounding new ideas. To propagate by manipulating the surface that supported you, that was the sort of thinking that only made sense at such a macro level. When you ignored the mundane and looked at the total, the big picture formed by hundreds of thousands of cells... and yet the others were also speaking. At the best of days it took Bob a little bit to keep up with the speech of these creatures, translating it to chemical signals he understood. And not just the medium but the execution also differed, the idea of communicating such complex ideas in such a manner.... it was all very hard to understand. But from what he could tell they were about to be given their orders from a unit higher in the hierarchy. Seemingly all of the various entities within this room were all variations on the same basic template, and yet many came from different 'species'. Altered versions of that template, designed with far different capabilities in mind. Adapted limbs for different situations. And yet it seemed as if these different 'species' also had their own hierarchy, which was somehow connected to the other hierarchies, and yet some were more important than others. And even two entities of the same 'species' are not the same, as they have attached different objects to themselves. Specialised 'technology' that allows them to act in different physics-defying ways, to bend the laws of nature to their will.

Waiting for the president to return to the room Bob vibrated lightly, making a sound slightly too high for human hearing. Waiting was more of a breather for him, as he did his best to process everything that had happened, the concepts he was being asked to swallow. Even in theory the Loqi had never considered such fascinating things!


[System]
Alias: Crimson Reaper, The Blood Crusader
Age: 20
Gender: Female
Occupation: Assassin, Thief, Bounty Hunter.
Demeanor: Ruby is somewhat of a sadist while on the job, but she manages to direct her sadism to her enemies, and not the people she cares about.

Basic Appearance

Hair: Crimson (dyed), Black (natural)
Facial Hair: None. Because she's a lady.
Eyes: Green.
Build: Slim, sleek.
Height: 5'1"
Weight: 110 lb.
Special Features: Tattoo of a skull on her left shoulder.

Combat Credentials

Combat Style: Traditional boxing, Viper Kachin Bando, dagger and sword fighting, bojutsu, Krav Maga, and Judo. Ruby was a prodigy of many martial arts at a young age. As such, she was sought after as an assassin, bounty hunter, and thief.

Abilities
Stealth-Ruby can move silently, and (almost) hide in plain sight.

Trained Reflexes- Ruby is trained to react to situations at twice the normal human level.

Burglary- Ruby, through her years as a thief, has learned how to break into buildings, from a skyscraper to a bank vault. Also, she has learned how pick locks and open most anything.

Eidetic Memory- Ruby can remember almost anything, in near perfect recall, with very little exposure.

Gear

- Twin Curved Assassin Knives: These two knives are perfectly matched, about five inches on the blade, curved inwards, made for slicing flesh. One is black, and one is silver. Their names are Kasai and Aisu.

- Telescoping Bo Staff: When collapsed, it is about 11 inches long. When extended, it is 4'11". It is made of aluminum, for strength in lightness.

- Tactical HUD: An eyepiece that Ruby stole off of a soldier, that allows her to mark targets, scan the inside of buildings, see thermal imaging, and view images at 30x zoom.

- Climbing gear: Gear meant for climbing any surface, from buildings to rocks and trees.

- Rapid Glass Cutter: A device that rapidly and silently cuts a circle 2 feet in diameter.

- Piton Gun: A loud, but effective wrist-mounted piton gun that allows Ruby to get around quickly.

- Smokebombs: A bit cliche, but these allow Ruby to back out of dangerous situations. A 4-foot diameter, 6-foot height smoke cloud explodes from the impact bombs.

Bio:
Ruby was born with the inheritance of a crippled, alcoholic, pathetic ex-MMA fighter. However, the pathetic SOB in question loved his daughter very much. He trained her to fight like a champion, and like a champion she did fight. Quickly becoming a star in the MMA scene, Ruby became the first champion under the age of 18.

Soon, however, the prize money ran out, and Ruby had to turn to more... unscrupulous methods to get cash. Making her way through the ranks of a group of assassins-for hire, Ruby became one of the leading members of the group. However, she was betrayed, stabbed in the back, so she went freelance. She now works by herself, and her father acts as her handler.

[User]
Ruby, you there? The gruff voice came over the female assassin's earpiece.

Climbing the cliffside was no easy feat, and utilizing climbing spikes on the feet, and climbing axes made it a little easier, but Ruby scaled the cliff quickly. The target was in the dojo at the top, and she had to move quickly, else he move on to another location. Pausing, she pushed the button in the earpiece. "Yes, dad. What do you want? I'm almost there."

With a smoker's cough, her father spoke. Kid, be careful. I've heard a lot about this guy, none of it good. I don't want to lose you to some jungle fighter.

Rolling her eyes, Ruby said, before moving back up, "Relax, Dad. I'll do what I'm paid to do. This man is going down, no matter how good he is." Shutting off the comm with a shake of her head, Ruby arrived at the dojo, and turned on the thermal imaging scanner in the HUD piece that she had over her eye.

Wherever this guy was, he couldn't hide from her scanner.

[Assistant] As Ruby arrived a dark shape would pass beneath the pale moon, a brief, eerie squawk trilling overhead. Were Ruby to glance up, she'd be able to see a large black vulture circling high above her. Upon looking across the dojo with her thermal scanner, the thief might be surprised to find the red glowing shape of a figure staring right back at her, squatting less than twenty yards away in plain sight. Somehow the target had known she was coming. No insects chirped, no wind blew, no wood creaked. The venue had become shrouded in a heavy, unnatural silence.

[User]
Ruby ignored the bird, sparing it but one glance, to see what kind it was. A vulture. Big deal. What interested her was the thermal signature of the man, who was staring directly at her. Swearing under her breath, she ducked down behind a paper wall, out of sight. Aside from the howling of the wind blowing through the holes in the paper walls of the dojo, the building was silent. The man probably knew she was there, so she began to move silently along the corridor of the dojo, avoiding wooden floor boards that would squeak, or cause her to trip.

Keeping a close watch on his thermal signature, she crept around the dojo's hallways, trying to get behind him.

[Assistant] The figure remained where it was. If Ruby paid close attention, she'd be able to notice smaller thermal signatures tumbling from... Oh. He was taking a shit on the floor.

[User] Wrinkling her nose, Ruby cringed in distaste. Was he... crapping in the middle of the dojo's yard? Disgusting. Still, it might allow her to catch him off guard. Pulling the piton gun out of its holster, she leveled the launcher at the savage, and taking a deep breath in, fired. The firing of a grappling device at a target reminded her of Batman, except... Batman's grappling hook wasn't as... pointy as the piton. Hopefully it would hit, so Ruby held on tight, so she would be ready to pull herself forward.

[Assistant]
No doubt Ruby had entered the decrepit halls of the dojo to avoid being seen. However, the headhunter's spotter was a creature of many talents. Vultures have not only sight that is among the best in the animal kingdom, but a sense of smell without equal. A mature one can detect a scent in concentrations as tiny as a few parts per billion in the air. Contrary to popular belief, the famous circling of vultures was not a result of them waiting for prey to die. They circle to determine the exact location of food.

Zande's vulture would drift lazily down in tightening rings above the location where the most obvious threat to its master hid, just as it had been trained to passively do. The initial squawk had alerted the headhunter, and now he knew to keep the corner of his eye focused upon where his pet hovered.

Another animal fact. Many predators, when engaged in open combat, would void their bowels to reduce body weight. Fighting bears shat themselves. Big cats too. Zande had done so for the same reason. A glimmer, a pop. A fast moving object had entered his peripheral vision. A giant arrow? A silent cannonball? Not enough time to evade. He had to block. He twisted his back in the direction of where the vulture had singled out its target, the grappling hook banging harshly against the thick blades of the axes harnessed to Zande's back.

Assuming it didn't explode or anything, the cannibal would shoot out from his crouch and sprint in the direction of the rope with blistering impetus, the long claws of his boots gouging grooves in the floor. The sound of his top speed was comparable to several kitchen knives being repeatedly dashed against a wall. He knew what it was in a fraction of a second. He had seen grappling hooks before, used to scale castle walls. In a moment he would have been able to close half the distance, aiming to get as close as possible before swooping low and whisking a wicked skinning knife from his belt to ram through the rope of the grappling hook and deep into the ground as it began to contract. He knew that if it were of metal cord, he'd have to stab it rather than slice it. And besides, this way it wouldn't hit him in the back of the head.

[User] The savage's reaction time was remarkable. Stabbing the knife through the metal cord of the piton launcher's cable, and into the ground, he caused Ruby to be pulled forward, as the piton gun began to retract. As she ripped through the rotting paper wall, she kicked off the floorboards, leaping into the air, above the savage. Letting go of the piton, and letting it retract, Ruby pulled her telescoping Bo staff from its cylindrical sheath on her lower back, and whipped it out, instantly forming a solid Bo. With the same motion, she swung downwards, an experimental strike, to test the man's defenses.

[Assistant] The wild Zande was not one to be tested. He did not mess around. As Tanya burst into view, his left hand darted over his shoulder and seized upon the handle of the monstrous axe known as Hot Steppa, nearly seven pounds of razor-ridged metal. It slipped free of its sheath as if it were greased, whizzing forth in a ghoulish arch set to cleave through the woman's right arm and into her breast, just beside the shoulder. He threw his entire momentum into the blow, leaning his weight upon the attack and chambering his right fist by his side. He cared little for what she did with her bo staff. He was still able to reposition since he had at least one foot on the ground. He would choose to lean or sway at the last moment and let her strike him across the right shoulder, possibly breaking the clavicle or dislocating the arm if she remained dedicated to her attack. No, Zande cared only that his opponent was in the air, unable to move out of the space she was occupying and in the midst of an attack that left her vulnerable. If Hot Steppa struck home, her life would surely be forfeit as her body was slung unceremoniously to the floor in a bouncing, blood soaked heap, subclavian and brachial arteries torn apart and the left lung ruptured. At the point of no return whereupon both blows might land, the headhunter would unleash a lunatic, stentorian scream.

[User] Ruby's eyes widened, and pupils dilated, as she saw the scene unfold. If she followed through with the strike, she would surely die. So, she aborted the strike, and rather than aim to strike, Ruby thrust the Bo down at the ground, and using the staff as a focal point, twisted away from the savage. Letting go of the staff, Ruby grabbed a smokebomb from the pocket attached to her belt, and in one fluid motion, threw it down at the ground, making sure to hold her breath. As it impacted, filling the dojo's yard with smoke, Ruby unsheathed her knives, and sidestepped quietly to the right, so the blind swings of the savage, if it attempted any, wouldn't hit her.

[Assistant] Zande may have been unable to see his opponent, but he made up for it in audacity. As Ruby let go of her staff, the headhunter would drop his axe and reach out to snatch the bo staff with both hands before it could fall. He'd then whirl around as the smoke enveloped them, swinging the length of metal in a wide sweep at the level of where he figured the thief's center mass would be. Sidestepping wouldn't help in this situation. It had more reach than either of his axes, yet could still deliver bone smashing force. Trying to block it with a set of five inch knives would go just about as well as one would imagine, if one were meant to stop the enraged swing of a baseball bat in the hands of a major league hitter.

[User]
Ruby watched on the thermal view as the savage grabbed her Bo, and began to swing it at her, level to where her ribs were. While the metal staff had a heat signature almost equal to the dojo's air, she could see the man's hands, grasping her staff, and she knew how long the weapon was while extended, so she could approximate where the end of the Bo was.

As the staff almost hit her, Ruby did not dodge. Rather, she used the hilts of the knives as a barrier between her hands and the metal rod, catching it, and twisting it around, attempting to disarm the savage. However, if the maneuver succeeded, she would again, drop the staff, and dash towards the savage in a serpentine manner, and perform a low cut aimed at his midsection.

If the force with which the man struck was too much, then Ruby would roll with the blow, allowing herself to get pushed back, so she didn't drop her knives, or get knocked off balance.

[Assistant] Zande didn't fight like a reasonable man. He threw everything he had into a life or death assault, completely without physical or mental restraint. The staff would impact the daggers with a desperate, reverberating pressure which might actually damage her wrists from the shock. Were she to be pushed back, Zande would hop back and hurl the metal rod at her knees. Whilst she was dealing with that he'd scoop up his fallen axe once more, wielding it in his left hand and using his right to reach around behind his head. If given the opportunity, he would pull the terrible visage of a thick, black steel tribal mask down over his face, which had been hanging on the back of his neck. What was to come after that would make the first few minutes of the fight seem like a sweet dream.

[User] Ruby was in fact pushed back, but she was also trained in seven different martial arts. She didn't get to where she was without toughening up. The shock caused her arms to vibrate, and she was pushed back even more, feet skidding through the dirt. When the Bo was thrown at her knees, she quickly sheathed her knife, and, as the rod was about four inches from her knees, kicked it up with her right foot, and caught it in both hands. The savage had the brutal-looking ax in his hand, and he was reaching for something behind his head, a mask. The smoke was already beginning to dissipate, so Ruby grabbed two smokebombs, and threw one at the man's face. It wasn't fast enough to prevent him from putting on the armor, but if it hit, it would cover his head with smoke. Regardless of whether it hit or not, Ruby would throw a smokebomb on the ground between them, and fall back silently into the halls of the dojo. The man had too wide of a swing. Fighting him in the open was a disadvantage. In the dojo, while the rotting walls were merely paper, the beams of the broken building would hamper wide swings.