[System]
Age: 23

Appearance:

Profession: Impalement Artist

Bio: Kathryn, or Kate as her friends call her, was an orphan from the night she was born. She was left on the front walk of an orphanage and nearly froze to death that night until a caretaker heard her weak cries and brought her in. She was raised there, becoming close friends with another young girl who had been taken in. At the age of 7, she and her friend ran away from the orphanage and found themselves as part of a traveling circus. That is where Kathryn was really raised, taking an interest early on in the art of impalement, specifically throwing knives. Eventually, she proved her worth and earned her own act in the show, though she had plenty of scars to show her journey.

Name: Elijah Petrova

Age: 27

Appearance:

Profession: Animal Caretaker/Impalement arts assistant

Bio: Eli grew up in the circus, his father being one of the main proprietors of the many animals the circus required for its shows. He knows many trades within the show, after all he basically lives and breathes the ring. After his father's passing, Elijah decided to remain with the circus and continue his legacy with the various animals. He also helps Kathryn with her knife throwing act, since they had met when they were both young, they learned the trade together. She convinced him eventually to let her thrown sharp pointy objects at him, and he eventually grew to trust her with his life.

[User]
It was not long after that Claire had sat down and started eating that people began to run off, and murmur about some woman. Kate urged her to hurry up, and she sighed, not particularly interested in whatever new illusion was happening. Elijah ran off as well to check it out.

Claire focused her attention on her meal, eating slowly as her headache was still a pain. She ate in silence, pretending like the rest of the world and the people didn't exist. It calmed her down quite a bit, but then Elijah came back to tell them more about the event, how there was blood and how they were unable to enter her wagon.

"Maybe it's just her time of the month." Claire muttered, and finished her glass of water. "There's nothing wrong with my appetite, Kate. It would be better if you all stopped freaking out over whatever though."

Claire stood up after Kate, grabbed her umbrella and opened it up to protect her from the light of the sun. She followed her impatient friend to the camp and back to her own wagon. The wagon everyone was interested in was one of Claire's neighbours, she hadn't noticed how close it was to hers before, but there was just one other wagon in between the two.

"Oooh, spooky, they almost chose me for this prank." Claire said snarkily, her headache making her quite irritated and not in the mood for another of Elena's illusions. There wasn't even an audience or a show located among their wagons.

The backstage crew had appeared with tools to get the door open. They had some of the stronger members of the circus gathered as well to assist them. As they began to pull at the door, the woman screamed and cried out. They kept pulling though, inserting a crowbar between the door and the wall of the wagon.

There was a resounding crack as the door broke open, mixed with the last faint scream of the woman and the sound of blood hitting the steps up to the wagon. The sight that met them all was gruesome. The woman wore a bloody nightgown, but her body had ropes fastened to it with hooks that extended inside the wagon and likely caused her great pain whenever she had tried to move.

The worst part was how she had been spiked to the door of her wagon, so that when they had managed to open it parts of her back had stuck to the door, been ripped away and finally killed her. She had a hole in her back where the parts of her that was now on the door had once been. The woman's spine and ribs were visible in the hole. Blood was trickling down the remains of her back and her legs.

Claire threw up almost immediately, not even caring that there were people standing close to her. She wasn't the only one either. There were those who even fainted. As she stood looking down at her vomit on the ground, she prayed that this was indeed another illusion. Unfortunately, it didn't go away, turn into another scene or disappear when the doctor stepped forward to make a closer inspection. He didn't need to declare her dead, as it was obvious she was, but he did it anyway so everyone could hear.

Claire made herself throw up a second time, appreciating the chance to clear her system of any remaining alcohol. It was the most emotionless
thought she'd had in a long time.

The police arrived at the scene shortly afterwards. They'd likely been called when the blood on the window was detected. They sealed off the scene, told everyone to back up and stay away while they worked.

Claire was visibly shaken now. It wasn't something to mock or make light of anymore. Indeed, it had happened too close to her own wagon for her to feel anything less than frightened and worried about what may have happened if she had spent the night in her own bed.

[Assistant]
When they arrived at the large group forming around the wagon, Kate got on her tip toes to peek over the heads of the taller folk and get a look at the wagon. There seemed to be quite a fuss to getting the door open, and indeed blood was splattered across the window.

Staying on her toes, Kate watched as the men arrived with a crowbar to pry open the door. Screaming intensified as they did so, but the pulled on with determination. What they witnessed as the door finally broke open would be burned into their memory surely, as it was far too horrendous not to be.

A gasp escaped Kate and she turned away from the scene, her hand covering her mouth as she did so. Elijah quickly looked down at his shoes, his jaw clenching beneath the surface of his cheeks while he tried not to egg on a worse reaction from those around him.

Claire doubled over as she heaved up the contents of her stomach. Kate tried to focus on Claire instead of the bone-chilling scene laid out before them, so she held Claire's hair with one hand and gently rubbed her back with the other while she retched.

The thought that this event had occurred so close to Claire's wagon sent a chill down Kate's spine. What if Claire had actually slept in her wagon that night? Would the same fate have met her? It made Kate sick to think about, so she pushed the thoughts away and comforted Claire as best she could in the condition she was in herself.

When the police showed, the scene was blocked off and bystanders were told to make themselves scarce, save for a few they questioned as witnesses. Elijah turned to Kate and Claire and then motioned for them to move.

"Let's get out of here, ladies. This is certainly something that need not be witnessed any further." He put a hand on each of their shoulders and pushed them forward gently, herding them away from the bloody backdrop.

Kate took Claire's hand and squeezed tightly while they walked, now not wanting either of her friends to be out of her sight. Who knew if the maniac who committed the crime was still running around the tents, waiting for his next victim. She swallowed hard and kept a firm grip on Claire.

Elijah had pushed them in the opposite direction of the wagon camp, and they now stood just on the edge of the circus grounds. He sighed and rubbed a hand over his face and around his neck. Thoughts were tumbling through his mind. As gruesome as it was, he could not help but come back to the image burned into his mind and wonder.

The woman had been bound and staked to the door... then whomever did such a task would have to be inside the wagon during, literally barricading themselves in with the woman on the door. Then how did they escape? To fit out the window, they would have to be a person of small stature, but they were strong enough to tie the woman up? None of it made any sense, and he shook his head.

"Do you girls need anything? Water, or perhaps maybe some heavy liquor?" His face was flush but he was trying to prevent them from freaking out further.

Kate shook her head, her hands were shaking and she was pale. Elijah went to fetch water anyways, figuring it might come in handy regardless. Kate turned to Claire and threw her arms around her, squeezing tightly.

"What if that had been you? Thank bloody God that you're so attuned to sleeping with Solomon now... That secret command you let slip may prove useful."

[User]
Claire had felt Kate's hands on her back and in her hair when she threw up. It would normally have made her feel a bit better, but she doubted anything could improve the situation. She had drunk too much and now witnessed the horrible murder scene of a neighbour.

"I can walk myself." Claire muttered when Elijah touched and pushed her.
She began to walk faster, but felt someone grasping her hand tightly. Claire thought it was Elijah again and was about to chew him out, then she noticed it was Kate holding her. She raised an eyebrow, surprised that Kate would hold her hand, but she realized she didn't mind it as much as she would have if it had been anyone else. She let Kate squeeze her hand in hers, but didn't return the gesture.

"Water would be nice." Claire answered Elijah, feeling her stomach begin to turn again at the thought of drinking any more liquor. "Thank you."
Kate threw her arms around Claire when Elijah had left them alone, and she couldn't help but think that she was being very handsy all of a sudden. She supposed it was natural as her friend was genuinely scared for Claire's well-being.

"Oh, you don't need to worry about me." Claire said, trying to laugh it off and act like she wasn't affected by what had happened. She failed at it though, fear showing itself in her voice. "Let's sit down, I feel so tired."

She waited for Kate to sit down on the grass nearby, then placed herself in her lap. This way she would hopefully calm Kate down and assure her that she was not going anywhere. At least that was what she told herself when she decided where to sit.

"I'm not going anywhere, sis." Claire said, and leaned her head against Kate's shoulder, breathing against her neck. She finally felt like she could get some rest, despite having seen that shocking scene her body was not able to catch up fully to the events. "I promise."

"I doubt Solomon would be much help though." She laughed weakly. "You were right with what you said earlier, He is too much of an oversized housecat. It would be better if I taught one of the others the command. Maybe Sheila, she can be quite hostile to humans when she feels like being left alone." Claire smiled. "Or maybe I should get a gun or something else to protect myself with. Still, I am not the only one at risk. Maybe they will strike again, somewhere else entirely…"

Claire continued talking, but it turned into soft murmurs as she felt her mind and body relaxing for a nap. She moved a bit, to get a more comfortable sleeping position, accidentally pressing her body and chest against Kate.

"Fluffy pillow." Claire murmured, some of the few words that were understandable among everything that she mumbled.

She just wanted a short nap so her body would get better from the hangover and the tiredness, then they could do what seemed best to deal with all these problems happening around them. She wished things had remained in the same state they used to be in forever, but now the peace had been disturbed at its roots.

[Assistant]
Kate nodded to Claire and sat down with her on a soft spot of grass nearby to where they had been standing. It was a pleasant surprise when Claire plopped down in her lap, giving Kate more of a sense of reassurance. However, a different feeling tingled down her spine when she felt Claire's breath against her neck and her head on her shoulder.

Trying her hardest not to let that tingling feeling show outwardly, Kate inhaled and swallowed the lump in her throat. She couldn't remember when her feelings towards Claire had taken on a different nature, but she had decided to keep it to herself. After all, this was the girl she ran away with all those years ago, and the last thing she wanted to do was jeopardize their friendship as it was.

But lately, it had become harder to not express her affection a bit more. And now with the occurrence of recent events, Kate felt a pang in her heart that tugged in a different way than it had before. All she could do was hope that Claire took it as friendly affection, not anything more that would drive her away.

A smile appeared on her face at Claire's agreement to her titling Solomon as a big fluffy tomcat. But then the smile faded at the mention that the killer could strike again, which only worried her even more. The police had been at the scene of the bloody murder to investigate, surely they would follow up and pursue the one responsible, right? They wouldn't let some lunatic just roam around waiting for the next kill, would they?

This time, the role was reversed of who was muttering on as Claire sleepily murmured and carried on while she fell asleep. When she moved around to get comfortable, Kate felt the same feeling she had moments ago while goosebumps rose on her arms and her neck. She smiled to herself as Claire muttered her last few words before falling asleep. Kate then put an arm around her and rested her chin on the top of Claire's head.

"Alright, here's the-" Elijah stopped speaking when he walked up and saw Claire and Kate muddled together in a bundle, one of the two who appeared to be napping. He raised an eyebrow, but set the canteen of water that he had retrieved down and also took a seat on the ground. It was far too early in the morning to have already been so eventful. He laid back and placed his arms behind his head, looking up at the sky as he sighed.

Kate kept her chin lightly on Claire, but looked over at Eli. He turned his head towards her and gave her a warm smile, to which she returned one of her own. It was sort of relieving to sit in silence for a moment and allow their minds to be clear, not frantic about what they had just witnessed.

Kate decided to follow in her friend's footsteps and she closed her eyes. Eli was not as quick to settle, and he looked up at the sky again, putting one hand on the spot where he had been stabbed last night. His mind was wandering again while his friends rested, and he tried in his mind to figure out the mysteries that had unfolded the night before and that morning.


[System]
[Character Type]-Circle. You are a jack of all traits/trades. You have both destructive and creative maneuvers.

Data
Appearance:
Nickname/Alias: Songbird, Little Canary

Magic Name: N/A

Occupation: Music/Telekinesis Teacher

Faction: N/A

Seat Number: N/A

Nationality: Japanese

Age: 21
Gender: Female

Blood Type: O Negative

Biography: From the age of thirteen, the little canary lived alone in the confinement of her heart. Abandoned by both a mother and father out of fear of what she held the capability to do, Kotori was left abandoned on the streets of Tokyo. Yet despair did not overtake her; rather, she could a weakened determination to survive.

So she worked long hours at restaurants and cafes, making just enough to get by and into a small apartment on her own. There in her loneliness, her powers slowly grew and manifested in ways she did not expect. Such talent drew the eyes of an Academy that was the first of its kind.

A place of learning and sanctuary for one whose talents were like her own. A place where she could be accepted, instead of shunned.

Beneath the wing of many brilliant instructors and teachers, the shy girl blossomed into a beautiful young woman of remarkable capability. Where despite of how fearful of what others would think, she would act for the greater good. Saving hundreds of lives as a result of her actions. Then, only did she realize that as she grew, so did her powers. As upon the day of her eighteenth birthday, she was classified as a level seven Esper.

All the while this happened of course, she was still ever lonely. Companionship was fleeting and miserably brief. Never once had she made a lasting friend it seemed.

Not until she met the Iron Giant.

Less of a machine and more of a boy whose will seemed made of iron alongside his tall stature. He was not one with powers like the majority of the school. Rather, he was the opposite. And the first normal person in her life that didn't instantly reject her. They met once when she lended him a book, and were good friends for the years following.

In times of great strife, he was the solidity she desperately needed to keep moving forward. As she grew stronger, he was always there with enough kindness and quiet strength so that she wouldn't falter.

As the years passed she slowly realized the truth: she loved him. Though she would never find the courage to tell him. Once he left, once he disappeared, the music she played seemed to hold an irrevocable melancholy. A beautiful sadness that pervades her mind to this very day.

For now she teaches at the very same kind of school where she once was taught. As a remarkably powerful Esper as well as an enlightened music teacher, she gifts her knowledge to future generations happily.

Personality : A far cry from her youthful days of shyness and awkwardness, Kotori has outgrown such and instead attained a grace that is not commonplace. Though quiet outside of instruction of music or her own individual talents, it is not due to fear, rather it is that she intends for what little she has to say to possess impact. Yet outside it all, she holds a deep melancholy that holds a state of permanence. As if the sorrowful music she plays is what speaks from her soul. Yet aside it all, she holds a deep conviction to do good, and bestows kindness upon anyone she meets.

Quirks
Likes: Books, various forms of Music (she prefers classical the most), Occasional sweets, Strawberries, and

Dislikes: Maid Outfits, willful ignorance, country music.

Talents
Skills: Kotori is musically proficient with almost every instrument. But is particularly a mastereo of the Piano. She is a decent cook, and a devout reader of fine literature.

Ability: Level 10 Telekinetic. While she can control an incredible amount of things at one time, from moving hundreds of people at once to moving an entire city block, she can accomplish such with relative ease.

Magic: N/A

Miscs
Theme Song(s): N/A

Extras: She wears a locket with a picture of the Iron Giant inside of it.

[User]
Rouka Shinami- You again!

  Rouka is about to talk to Professor but have to get cockblocked by that Gila Girl aka Gorilla Girl. He just carried on. Something felt off and judging from the looks of it, indeed it is the famous telekinetic, Songbird. "Yagami-senpai. So this Songbird is going to be our Professor." He said feeling all surprise.

"My my. Rounyan. Your curious input makes me all HHNNNGG! Curiosity is good you know!"
 "Shut up!" Rouka encases Yagami in his silver clay: coffin.

Ignoring the annoying gorilla girl, Rouka as assertive as always gets her out from the Professor, he drags her out by not being so gentle. "Quit harassing the Professor. I don't care if she's famous, we're here to learn and not to fool around. Since the exam is an hour away, don't expect me to hold back on you. Be it girls, or whatever gender, kids, and elderly. I show no mercy."  He sighed full of resentment towards the Gila Girl.

"Professor. Tell me more about yourself and this school, I have a lot to learn and I can't fail this. I've faced too many failures in the past as I look myself in the water." Rouka although not dramatic, he looks dramatic, clenching his fists so hard with eagerness for answers.

He also is not bothered of his bad display against the Gila Girl and the impression he is showing right now, bad attitude. Yagami later is not fazed and amused. "That's not nice Rounyan." He is showing a smily face but behind it is a killing intent.

Yagami although not visible, inside him is an ooze of bloodlust that is bound to kill. Rouka is shocked. "Just what the hell are you?" Nobody had ever broken out of his silver clay coffin.

Still with the bloodlust, he cools down a little bit. "I'll say it again. My name is Gon Yagami, 20 years old. I love Kotori-sama and I am a Can..." Later both Rouka and Fan punched his face and in unison saying. "NOBODY CARES!" (Inb4 I get accused of powerplaying, I asked permission). Rouka looks at Fan. "Tch... this girl....."

[Assistant]
Prof. Namashiya Kotori -- More Unto the Fray

She was being watched, she could practically feel it. So certain was she that while Rouka and Yagami talked and argued betwixt themselves, her eyes wandered. Drifting until they found Mika, just as he turned and walked away. For a long moment, she watched him until he had disappeared at last.

Had he needed to ask a question? If so, what were his concerns?

Yet her attention took a jarring shift as the second half of the fighting duet came and brashly sat down in front if her. In which quickly, her words and emotions went through a rapid fire changes. First was defiance, second was apologetic, third was disbelief, fourth was sorrow, and finally, fifth was curiosity. The way she spoke left the Songbird whether or not it was genuine admiration, or fecetiousness all around.

Yet even still, she would entertain the idea of genuity.

However, things took a sharp turn when both Rouka and the girl turned and swung their fists into Yagami's face. Sending him twisting through the air before rather apruptly, he stopped falling. With a profuse nose bleed, he was gently returned to his feet while he was supported by an invisible touch.

"Yagami-san. Please head to the infirmary to have that injury taken care of." Kotori stated quietly to begin with. "We cannot have you all bloodied up for the ceremony for newly accepted students."

Once the second year had left, and her breakfast had been finished, the young professor set her palms atop the table, and picked up her tray.

"I believe I gave simple instructions, you two." She stated simply, accompanied with a sigh of resignation. Together, this duet was so headstrong that they'd break even the simplest rules without hesitation. It did not bode well in the least.

She, as their teacher, needed to nudge them in the right direction.

Frowning, Kotori continued to speak. "The second rule for today was to be civil. Do you understand? That means no fighting, no striking others as a means to an end. Take the higher road, and use words to end your disagreement. For there will be a time when using your powers, instead of using words, it will not only be a detriment, but it will cause the deaths of others."

"It is your duty to control your tempers and impulses, or they will lead you down the road to disaster. Again, you've made it much much more difficult, even moreso than before, to earn my recommendation. Remember, ENMA's prospective student entry exams have an eighty-five percent failure rate." She stated flatly, clearly unimpressed by their behavior.

Pausing for a final second, she glanced between the two. "If you wish for a shadow's chance of getting my recommendation, let alone getting into ENMA, first go and apologize to Yagami-san. Second, when the prospect trials begin I expect you two to work together. And cooperate fully, to include resolving any disagreements you have with one another with words, rather than fists."

She turned then, carrying her tray along the way with distinction as she promptly dropped it off at the wash station.

And yet her path changed entirely, heading down tue same hallway whoch Mika had disappeared into. Once she stepped into it, her footfall echoed in a particularly peculiar way. A invisible wave of telekinesis echoed forth with the sound of her foostep. With her eyes closed as she walked, she felt the vibrations of molecules in the air as the wave proceeded gently forward.

Imperceivable to all, her eyes opened when it washed over the recognizable form of Mika. With such a discovery, she strode forward with a touch more haste in her step.

It did not take long for her to find him. Always, she had gravitated to the students who were the quiet, shy types. For what reason, she was uncertain. Perhaps because she was once like them? Or perhaps because of an old phrase that still echoed in her mind. One which she would reiterate to the boy as she fell into step beside him.

"The stillest ponds oft run the deepest." She began with a mild sagely tone in her voice. A quick glance to his face revealed concerns of his etched upon it, yet no voice thus far for her to discern such issues. So she instead attempted to break the ice, in the hopes she could get him to talk.

"Something troubling you, Alkaev-san?" She inquired in Russian that carried a heavy Moscow accent. "I'm sure from of the look you had earlier, you've many questions. Fire away."

(Finished!!)

[User]
Mika Alkaev - Encounters in Birdwatching
Someone was following him.

Though it wasn't entirely uncommon for someone in his line of work to get followed around - and definitely not something unfamiliar to him himself - it was still a jarring turn of events nonetheless. He hadn't expected something like this to come up here. Fortunately, he was well-suited to getting rid of tails. Unfortunately, he didn't really know the topology of the building, so he was just winging it at this point, far away from anywhere familiar and relying more on being faster than being able to outmaneuver.

Considering his pursuer, this was moot point. Homeground advantage was a potent thing. Being the world's best telekinetic was also a pretty significant factor, admittedly.

"WA-AAA-AAAAH!!"

Before he realized it, Mika let out a frightened screech that went up and up in pitch, echoing through the corridors nearby. It was pathetic, really. He was better than that; he knew he was better than that. It was just that he hadn't at all expected his tail to suddenly talk to him, and to be his teacher of all people.

He soon calmed down though, but the remnants of that wide-eyed disorientation in his expression were evident. It didn't help that he didn't quite understand what he'd been told - maybe he'd been moving too fast or something. Something about deep water? He kind of just stood there, staring at her until she made her second statement. Then he blinked. That explained it. He wasn't rushin'; she was speaking Russian.

That said, he hadn't properly spoken his mother tongue in a good decade; properly relearning the language had always been a bridge he would cross when it came to it - and now it came to it. He could still convey general concepts, but the exact-intent-to-speech translation escaped him.

Except for the expletives. Those always came in handy.

Mika scratched his nose. Even if his polite Russian wasn't the best, it didn't mean he couldn't at least give it his best go by bastardizing the impolite Russian. If he knew the meaning of the phrase, all he'd have to do was omit the right (wrong...?) bit and substitute something else, no? He narrowed his eyes thoughtfully, thinking about how best to go about this, and spoke:

"You stop my brain with stupid questions." That didn't sound too right. "Err… I've had thoughts of you?" Wait, no. That didn't mean at all what he thought it did on second thought. "Do you think - I don't care. Understand?"

Well, if there was anything moving fast was good for, it was digging holes.

"I will shut your fucking mouth."

Very good.

"..." There was a pregnant pause and a cringe from the young man. This experience hurt him on the inside. "...I can speak Japanese better," he said in Japanese, "No insult intended, I swear! I just wanted to know about like, advice on how to pass the first part and stuff." He paused again. He was forgetting something.

"Oh, and how should I go about cleaning this uniform?"

[Assistant]
Prof. Namashiya Kotori -- Still Waters

There was a brief moment of surprise for the Songbird when Mika spoke. It did not take her long to discern that he was no longer fluent in what was his motherland's tongue. Looking at him from over the rim of her half-moon spectacles, Kotori continued to let the boy make his attempts with a hint of amusement on his face.

Until of course he sighed, and spoke in Japanese. Nefer removing her gaze from his as he spoke of concerns he had, and how to clean his unfiorm.

"I'll start woth the latter. If you look carefully, the uniform is self-cleaning for the post part." She waved towards the state of his clothes, and if he looked down, the boy would be able the staining of dirt and grass recede across the entire uniform.

"It is laced with nanotechnology to help the uniform regenerate swiftly after any damage. This also happens to include stains. Designed it myaelf, pretty neat hm?" She quipped with a reassuring smile, while she leaned against a wall and folded her arms.

"As for passing the teat, look at it this way. You are currently a level four esper. When I applied to join ENMA, I was the exact same." The Professor nodded softly, and then continued. "Have faith in yourself, and think outside the box a bit. After that, you will more than likely pass the test."

Turning back towards the door that lead downstairs, she waved for him to follow her. "Also, feel free to follow me and get a bite to eat. It is not wise to try and complete the exams on an empty stomach."


[System]
Gender: Female

Age: 21

Appearance: Standing a bit on the average-to-tall side of things at 170 cm, Zhanna has an olive toned complexion and a very athletic body type, with muscles hardened by field and factory work that would make some men jealous. She has deep brown eyes and dark toned hair closer to black then brown, usually in a short messy style that reaches to the bottom of her neck. Zhanna also possesses rather sharp and well-defined features, which she generally dislikes hiding behind makeup for personal reasons. When she's not wearing her dress uniform for formal occasions she tends to dress practically in fatigues and similarly military clothing, preferring to wear her Soviet tank crew jacket loosely over a sleeveless shirt. Said shirt only barely hides the minor burn scars still on her chest.

Personality: Zhanna is not the best or the brightest at what she does, but she's definitely worked the hardest to get there and she's not going to let you forget it. A relentlessly driven individual, Zhanna is a fiercely independent woman who doesn't take too kindly to those that step on others or demand obedience from her or anyone else without earning it first. She will follow someone she trusts and respects to the ends of the Earth if need be, but if she thinks what you're doing is wrong or goes against what she believes, she can and will call you out on it. Suffice it to say this gels with her political beliefs quite nicely; she has her qualms about parts of the leadership in her country, but she's an ardent supporter of communism and the great socialist experiment that is the USSR nevertheless. She also has a great love of engineering and enjoys discovering and learning about new and exciting things almost as much as she enjoys 'borrowing' vehicles and going for a joyride, if the situation calls for it.

Background history: Zhanna was born to a poor family of farmers descended from steppe nomads outside the town of Glazov in the waning days of the Russian Civil War. Her father died in a skirmish against White Russian forces in the Far East before he could come home to see his newborn daughter, leaving Zhanna to be raised by her mother and two older brothers. Life in Glaznov was harsh for young Zhanna, but she persevered through sheer determination, even when her brothers gave in and left the family home to escape the desperation and starvation of life in Glaznov. When she was thirteen her mother, withered by starvation and Typhus, finally passed away, though not before she made arrangements for her only daughter to move in with a distant uncle in Kiev.

While she never really grew attached to her uncle, Zhanna nevertheless found her life in Kiev to be much better then back home in Glaznov. She found a decent albeit difficult job on an assembly line, manufacturing trucks and tanks for the Soviet army. Deeply interested in how the strange new machines worked, she enrolled in Kiev University to study engineering. She was still studying when the USSR launched the invasion of Finland in 1939, and being the good patriot that she was Zhanna attempted to volunteer. When she was rejected because factory work was deemed more suitable for her, Zhanna merely re-volunteered with an assumed male identity and was sent to the front lines. The Winter War soon turned into a grueling, bloody conflict for the Soviets, yet Zhanna managed to serve with distinction and was even being considered for a transfer to an armored unit before disaster struck outside of Kuhmo.

Prior to the fateful assault on the city, a member the Soviet high command had convinced Stalin to deploy some prototype weaponry in Finland to test their merits, one of which was a new type of T-26 tank with a stronger battery and an experimental new fuel source, both of which Zhanna got to know intimately during a push on the city. Taking cover behind one of the T-26's, an artillery shell struck the engine and burst the gas tank, dousing her with the experimental fuel. The tank rolled over and fell into a ditch, and despite the intense combat around her, Zhanna moved up to try to help the tank crewmen escape. She only just saw the last crewman leave before something shot past her ear and knocked her off balance, where she slipped and landed on the now exposed battery. She woke up in an army hospital a week later with burns on her arms and a pair of unpleasant looking guards on either side of her.

Luckily for Zhanna, her heroic actions had not gone unnoticed by the army, so rather then arrest her and put her on trial for crimes against the state, she was turned over to the propaganda men, who detailed her life story and heroic actions to build her up into something of a national hero who had "overcome hardships tenfold and stopped at nothing to fight on behalf of Stalin and the glorious Soviet Union". This move payed off in dividends when Zhanna discovered her new unusual powers, and indeed she became so valuable to the USSR's propaganda efforts that she was kept out of the fighting when the Germans invaded for fear of losing the 'Invincible Daughter of the Revolution' to a stray bullet. Zhanna wasn't pleased with this development at all and made her displeasure with that decision quite clear to her superiors, so rather then having her run off and join the fighting against the Germans anyway, Stalin decided to loan Zhanna to the Westerners, hoping that she and this 'Task Force' would be able to cause enough trouble to take some of the pressure off of the Eastern Front.

Superpower and how the character got it: Zhanna has the ability to generate, control, and manipulate magnetic fields. In layman's terms she has the ability to manipulate and control magnetic and metallic objects, from telekinetic moving them around to deforming and reshaping metal into other forms. This doesn't work on materials that are not magnetic (pure gold, dirt, etc.), and she generally needs to see or be aware of the metal she is trying to manipulate. She can move a key she knows is behind a door with some effort, for instance, but she can't extract the iron from someone's blood since she can't physically see it.

Zhanna got her superpowers in the always classic lab accident method, or to be more accurate a battlefield accident when she was electrocuted and compromised by a prototype for tank fuel. The combination of electricity and experimental gasoline is still heavily classified by the Soviet government however, and there are rumors that they are trying to recreate the circumstances of the accident in question.

[User]
The team ran up and down the Currahee as usual, and David went to Colonel Clarke's office to see if the man himself was there. Clarke had been an intelligence officer, centering on HUMINT, or human intelligence. He had been assigned to the OSS as a contact between the Task Force and the higher ups. An experienced and mysterious man, he was a career officer, who had always something up in his sleeve, and that didn't mean a joker on a officers' poker night every now and then. David had joined them a few times, but he hadn't enjoyed playing for cash.

David knocked to Clarke's door. No answer. He knocked a second time, and again he was met with silence. David tried the door, and it opened. It wasn't Clarke's way to leave it open. David entered the office. It was empty and untouched. It seemed Clarke had left for an errand in a hurry.

Well, I'll see him later, then, David thought. He took a glance at the office, and it was simple. A desk, a couple chairs, a map of northern Georgia and Camp Toccoa. There was a bookshelf, with all kinds of books, a few even in German. David saw the Achtung - Panzer! and Infantrie Greift An.

David left the office, walking to his own office in their own barracks. It had a similar floorplan and about the same size as Clarke's. But there was a small safe. David had the prize for Private Renner. David hadn't ordered them to use their powers, but then again, he had tutored one thing into their heads: use your brains, or at least try. Renner seemed like a potential NCO, or at least to David, but there was the higher ups.

David sat down by his desk and shuffled his papers, organizing them into piles. He wasn't the tidiest of officers when it came to his desk, but he got the done. It had been different in North Africa with the SAS; they hadn't had any desks or formal dresses, only missions, their wit and equipment.

He tidied up his desk, and it took him some time. When he was finished, he went back outside, abd saw that the team was running back from the Currahee. As the first ones came, David ordered them to change back to their normal service uniforms and assemble at the front of the barracks.

"And get ready for lunch! It is a spaghetti day, I hear", David added.

[Assistant]
Johnathan had made a promise to himself that he would be matching the pace of the last person traveling in the job; Partly to try and encourage them to keep going while privately it was to ensure that nobody fell behind during the course of the jog. It was a promise that he kept, through he couldn't help but notice the pace that Maria was going was... well, little more then a walk. After a few moments had passed, he decided to start a conversation up. "I can't help but feel that you're not taking this whole exercise seriously. Something on your mind?"

(To be continued over PM)

...............................................................

Standing at attention at the end of the run, Johnathan offered the Captain a respectful salute before breaking off to go and get changed without a word. He would be in front of the barracks on time if nothing else.

[User]
Kaneda acknowledged both Oscar and Izkry with a nod both of their responses gave him some insight as to what they could be facing in the future as well as some more insight into what kind of team dynamic was there. He figured that the Nazis would be able to train these supers since they were kids, when you have indoctrination schools all over the country there is probably more than enough dedicated kids willing to partake in the program to "further evolve the Arian nation." Kaneda frowned in frustration, kids that didn't even know what was right from wrong, brainwashed to believe in the Nazi cause, it made him sick.

"Fucking Nazis, they'll pay for what they have done. I hope that we get that chance, for the friends that you lost over there and the suffering you three must have endured. Oscar, I know that these two are being hard on you, most would understand why, but you came back here to train with us. That means something, I hope you get the chance to prove yourself this time around." He said, whether Oscar took it as a compliment was up to him. He kept up the pace with Izkry until the run was complete, if they made small talk he would converse, but otherwise he understood the necessity to keep a pace going in ones mind and mostly focused on completing the run.

When he crossed back to the captain he let out a huge breath, the strain of his muscles felt good he placed his hands on his knees as sweat poured over him. "Ah, much more fulfilling the second time around, that was a good run, can't wait to do it again captain." He said as he breathed heavily. He heard the orders to get into their normal service uniforms, Kaneda waited for everyone else to get back from the run before he himself saluted the captain and got washed and into uniform before making his way back outside to hear that they were having spaghetti for lunch. He licked his lips, the perfect meal to compliment the run, he thought.

[Assistant]
Belasý finished the Currahee in just over forty minutes, a personal best. Zhanna was quicker but not by much, and the older soldier had the Russian in sight for most of the run. She closed some of the gap with her usual sprint over the last hundred meters or so. This was training, not combat, and Bel felt it was important to be able to push herself even when worn out. Sprinting the end of the run trained her body to reach for her deepest reserves. She pushed her pace for the run, not so fast that she'd collapse but enough that it wore her out, and the last push invariably left her breathless.

But she didn't get to sit down. Combat didn't take a break just because you were tired, and flopping down after exercise was bad for you anyhow. Instead she slowed to a walk and kept moving until her heartbeat was slowed to a reasonable rate. The captain told the two ladies to get changed and meet up again. By then she could see Izkry and a few of the others jogging in, though it'd be a couple minutes before they were done yet. She gave Captain Stevens a brisk salute and turned to head in.

Once again it took her little time to be ready, and she didn't dawdle. Her brother and the ones he was running with were just jogging up, and she lifted her gaze long enough to meet his before looking away again, tilting her head towards the baracks long enough to let him know what was expected.

---

Izkry was winded by the time he dropped to a walk. He was fit, but six miles was a long way and he didn't have the personal discipline of his sister, nor the drive to improve. He'd never been able to match her, and he'd always been a little lazy.

He rather missed the luxury of laziness just then. "Looks like...changing...then back here," he told the other between deep breaths. He too knew better than to stop all at once, and he offered Kaneda a hand as he paced a little. "Was good to talk. And again, well done on the new record. Don't think anyone will break it, not for a while." The young man laughed breathlessly, shaking his head with a smile. If he could take a motorcycle or something, he /might/ be able to beat the insane record. Maybe. If there were decent roads that didn't have too many hairpin turns...yeah, no, that record would be staying for a while.

[User]
It wasn't that bad of a climb, compared to the physical activity Zhanna was used to. Not easy enough that she could call the Americans soft or lightweight, of course, but she was fairly certain that the propaganda being written about this team would be saying that anyway. That's how it usually worked with the capitalists.

Either way, without anyone to talk to besides the Spaniard who was busy harassing the German siblings, it gave Zhanna the excuse to focus on the run and power on through, hovering at the front of the pack if you ignored the Canadian, Kaneda (she had to start remembering them by name sometime), the little cheater. Of course some would call it a creative use of their abilities, but Zhanna still felt that Zhanna performing a feat on her own meant much more then Kaneda using his powers to do the same thing. Kaneda was handed what Zhanna had to work for, and it's the blood and sweat of honest work that makes it worthwhile.

Plus, she liked her own powers better anyway.

Before Zhanna knew it though the trek up and down the Currahee was over, and Zhanna felt pretty damn good about it. A good workout mixed with a reaffirmation of your own hard work will do that. Shadowboxing in place after finishing her run, a habit she picked up back at university, she wondered if she could get away with a second run up the mountain before the Captain ordered them to get in uniform and prepare for lunch. "Spaghetti... she sounded out as she considered the unfamiliar dish. It sounded Italian, a bit of an odd choice considering who the Italians happened to be friends with at the moment. They could just call it something else, like...liberty noodles? No that was just stupid, Zhanna decided. Unfortunate implications aside, the metal bending Russian quickly and efficiently retreated to the barracks after the orders were given, reappearing at the barracks in her uniform complete with all her polished medals and insignias.


[System]
"The Beast Master"

Vitals:

Age:  30

Sex: Male

Lineage:

Spirit Beast King: The Spirit Beast King is the man who handles all the transacations of spirit animals, in terms of giving them to their humans. He is usually behind the scenes, and with his abilities, can traverse the world using the spirit animals as transports. He is absurdly powerful, and can hop realities or dimensions, revive someone, or influence one's spirit animal. He keeps tabs on all spirit animals, though some, like Ouroboros, are outside of his field of control. He also knows what Falden's Spirit animal is, though doesn't tell him.

Ranking: Z. He is in the upper echleon of beings.

Class/Major: Beast King

Kei'taro's major class is to collect the Bestial Keys.

Class/Minor: Scholar.

He is very interested in learning about all animals, poisonous or not.

Occupation: Beast King.

Alignment:  Lawful Good

Martial Status: Single.

Birthplace: The Planes of the Spirt Beast King.

Blood Type:  O negative

Eye Color: Brown.

Height: Six foot three

Weight: Two Fifty Five

Hair Color/Style: Medium length brown hair.

Handed:

--- Both:Yes. See Skills.

Skin Tone/Condition: Some scars from battle with animals and other people. Also, tattoos.

Markings: See Magic.

Voice:

Kei'taro's voice is very peculiar. Those who hear it, say it takes on a twinge of different animals. Sometimess it's gruff like a apes, or high like a monkies, just a matter of how he feels. Those aren't all its limited to.

Reach:  Two feet, two inches.

Birthmark:

He has a black mark on the back of his leg, the mark of the Spirit Beast King's family.

Personality:

Kei'Taro is a gentle soul, unless he is in a combative setting like a tournament, then he becomes a world class snarker. He is a friend to all animals, and is cordial with humans who aren't trying to kill them. He understands that people eat animals and doesn't hold grudges against them for that, but he does have a special hatred for poachers and the like. He loves a good fight, and spending time with animals, learning from them and emulating them. He believes it can make him a better Beast Master.

One of the biggest sore spots is talking about his Father, the Spirit Beast King, who he hates and hates him.

Spirit Animal:

RyuKyu, is a RyuKyuan pup he befriended in the Volcanic Lands. A RyuKyuan is a Lion/Dog mix, popualrized by the Pokemon Growlithe and Arcanine. RyuKyu is more of a more mature Growlithe. It is very loyal to Kei'Taro, and can appear and disappear at a whim. It likes to eat, especially raw meat. For its size, it has considerable bite force.

Equipment:

-Upper Body: He carries camping gear on his back. It holds no special significance, he just thinks it's comfortable to sleep on.

-Lower Body: See Picture.

Weapons:

Kusanagi - Kusanagi is Kei'taro Straight sword. See 'Shoot to kill, Kusanagi' for it's abilities. He is quite capable of using the sword in sword fighting moments without the ability, combining his strength and speed.

Skills:

Strength: Due to living with Gorillas, he was able to emulate their strength. He is able to lift up to four hundred pounds before beginning to struggle. He is able to injure a man with a punch, and able to break bones if he applied full power. He was able to pull a tree out from the ground, but it took a bit of struggling to do.

Speed: Kei'Taro is able to reach speeds of up to sixty miles an hour, at a sprint, and 50 miles for an extended run. This comes from trying to keep up with various types of animals who were often on the move.

Intelligence: Kei'taro is not exactly a stupid man, he is just not technologically savvy. Being in the wild for most of his life, his knowledge comes from that and not the fancy leaps and bounds the world has made. He was surprised when he was tasked to hold on to an MP3 player from a guy he once fought. He still seeks to return it.

Transportation: In addition to running, Kei'taro is adept at swinging from vines, and swimming.

Martial Arts: Through studying animals, Kei'Taor has become very skilled at multiple types of animal based combat. He is most adept at the Wu Xing, but is also capable of using fighting styles based off different animals. It makes for an incredibly difficult fisticuffs bout with him.

Reflexes: Kei'taro is a very agile and reflex intensive man, able to catch a striking snake neck by the throat mid-strike and not get bit.

Hands and Feet: Kei'taro is adept at using either hand to wield his sword, or for any other activity. This extends to his feet as well. they aren't as useful as a monkey's, but he can make it work. His toes and fingers have exceptional gripping power.

Abilities:

Animal Tongue: Kei'taro is quite skilled at talking to and understanding any animal he comes into contact with.

Senses: Kei'taro possesses enhanced senses of smell, sight, touch, and hearing. He can see things in greater detail, and feel more textures when he touches something. He has twice as many scent glands as normal humans, but being around animals for most of his life has numbed him to the nastier scents of the world. He can hear things from a greater distance than humans, and at a lower volume. He can pick out specific individuals based off their voices at well.

Well Traveled: Kei'taro can survive in just about any environment that isn't outright death causing, due to his many travels in search of animals. He is not, however, very capable of handling the extremes of temperatures though, and even has his own limit. He was able to survive in the Volanic Lands and the Winter Wonderland without any debiliating effects. Because of this, he can pick out edible foods, and poisonous ones at a glance. He is great at directions.

Hunter-Tracker: Despite his love for animals, the man has to eat, and so he became very adept at hunting things based off prints and excrement. He doesn't kill baby animals nor the females of the group. He takes care to only hunt the weaker males as well.

Magic:

[Indent]Kei'Taro has a particular brand of magic which is evoked via tattoos called Bestial Keys. These Keys are gained from animals that have them, after a test relating to the animal or ability. There are an unknown number of these, and Kei'Taro is constantly searching, though seems to have an innate ability to sort of happen upon them, such is the case for his Spirit Animal, and first Bestial Key, RyuKyu. They glow so long as they hold a charge, and continue to glow while in use.

The tattoo's etch themselves on Kei'Taro, except for Kusanagi and RyuKyu, which take the form of his sword, and spirit animal, respectively. They each have their own personality, as it relates to Kei'Taro, some are extremely loyal - like RyuKyu, and some are willing to jump ship if able, like Eight Legged Spider.

For every charge they have before activating, Kei'Taro can control the tattoo's for that many turns, until he gets to three charges. Once he gets the third charge, then he is granted an extra turn of manipulation.

He can have multiple tattoo's charged, but cannot charge more than one per turn. While this gives him access to a wider array of moves on the fly, it also means they'll be lower in strength than if he focused on one.

[User]
A resounding thud echoed across the battlefield, the wind that was pushed away by the dissipating force of her strike blew snow away in a circle from the strike zone. Pikatok's face bent into a scowl, she had almost entirely forgotten that his shield was better than hers. Though, she supposes that he had forgotten about her more passive shield, as the blade made headway into her stomach. It was a vicious strike, it made very good headway immediately. Cutting open her shirt and spilling blood from her stomach onto the ground. However, as the blade continued passing through her it made progressively less and less progress until it halted entirely. As though it were stuck deeply in bone and hide.

In response to the blade she had used the hide of the glyptodon, which allowed her skin to harden to defend herself. But, as a reaction to a strike that she didn't expect, it was unable to protect her entirely from injury. The wound that had been inflicted was cleaved from the fat above her left kidney to an inch or so away from her bellybutton. Leaving the blade still jammed inside of her body, problematic for more than one reason. The biggest problem lying in the thunderbird tattoo, which she didn't know he was charging, though she was aware of its existence and properties.

To save herself being skewered or worse, Pikatok slapped the shield again and pushed backwards with her feet. Throwing herself a good six feet away from Kei'Taro. With her left hand, she covered the wound.

The weapon was really making a difference this time around, where in previous bouts he hadn't been able to make any headway into spilling blood, now she had nearly been gutted by her foe. Pikatok panted a bit, applying pressure to her side.

Kei'Taro was actually trying to kill her.

[Assistant]
Kei'taro could feel his sword jam into Pikatok, and slice clean towards her belly button, a blow fatal enough that he didn't need to press the advantage he had gained. He was faintly concerned that he didn't tap her spine, so strong the swing, but he remembered her skin was harder than a normal person's, and she had defensive abilities that directly affected the skin.

Crafty.

He could feel her press against the shield in an attempt to dislodge herself from the blade that bit deep. The snake Kusanagi sneered within him, urging him to push forward and finish the match.

He didn't need to be told twice.

Kei'taro didn't need to move from his spot, but instead of dropping the blade, he tensed his arm and activatec Thunderbird, by speaking the self same name. From his right shoulder, a bolt of electricity with some extra oomph rocketed from his right shoulder, and followed the path downward with startling speed. The distance between them wasn't as great, between the starting distance, his reach, and that of a sword.

It's target was center mass, where the heart and lungs were commonly situated.

His breath was reaching the stage of minor strain, he hadn't needed much exertion yet, whereas Pikatok had to be feeling the effects of a deep cut such as the one he had delivered. Now, however, they would both be aback at square one - magicless. He hoped this attack would end it, a physical fight with Pikatok, even with her weakened, was not a fight Kei'taro wanted. He was faster, she was stronger.

[User]
Purely out of spite, Pikatok reached into her wound and tore out a chunk of the bone hard flesh. With a reaction that was larger than life and faster than the eye, she threw the chunk like a frisbee towards Kei'Taro's right eye. She knew she had lost this battle the moment her strike gave her no ground. So in her defeat she hoped to at least blind the beast master's eye.

As the thunder crashed into her, during her desperate throw, her chest seized and she fell flat to the ground. The shock coursed through her body as she lay on the ground, convulsing in agony. If she didn't die here, facedown in the snow, she likely wouldn't walk again for a month.

Let alone fight.

Pikatok groaned and gritted her teeth as she lay there helpless. The darkness creeping into the corners of her vision as she begins to fade into unconsciousness.

She wasn't angry that she lost.

She was angry because she wouldn't have any last words.

[Assistant]
You know, Pikatok really was a bitch.

She couldn't just accept the fact that Kei'taro, the son of the Spirit Beast King, had finally managed to not only last long enough to activate the Gate to the Spirit World, but had managed to deal her a mortal wound.

No, the woman just had to have the last laugh - even if she wasn't laughing at the moment. She chunked a piece of incredibly hard flesh like a frisbee just before the lightning bolt from Thunderbird crashed into her with a terrifying power. She was accurate, damn accurate - but in hindsight, they were just six feet apart. A child could clear that distance.

The flesh smacked against his eye with a hard crack, instantly swelling the area around it, effectively shutting his eye.

Shit.

His father would heal it, but if it were anything like last time, then he would have lingering effects for a while. In this case, poor eyesight in the eye, making it hard to see.

Clutching Kusanagi, and contemplating murder, he approached Pikatok and grabbed the woman by the scruff of her collar. He couldn't very well leave her out here for the wolves to get, no matter how strong she was. A lightning bolt, and a huge gash was enough to leave anyone incapaciated, even the woman.

Kei'taro looked down at her, and sneered violently.

The bitch had gotten over him again. Thinking back on the fight, the woman hadn't used her full strength from the beginning. And while he suffered nary a stratch, she barely touched the surface of her powers.

"You vile...," he started, before growling and depositing her on her chair, and stepping into the swirling vortex of icy blue aura.

---

"You know, you shouldn't talk to her like that," a voice said, as Kei'taro entered the spirit world.


[System]
Theme:None

Gender:Male

Species:A wisp

[b]Appearance:

Goals:Reaching the best possible form the demon king can give. As a personal goal thats not really one of the characters is to become a beholder.

Past Life:In his past life he lived in a corrupt goverment. With famine, slavery, executions for minor things. Stuff like that. He together with a few other people had went to live in the caves where the goverment couldnt find them. They practiced their eyesight alot there to help them hunt and see in the dark caves. Usually for fun they would sing alot. Sometimes related to situations sometimes not. Peter also practiced lucid dreaming. To help him escape from reality sometimes and just have a good time. He didnt get technology at all from living away from it for so long. Eventually the goverment found them and killed them. When the demon king gave this offer he was happy to take it. Because maybe then he would live a good life where he can interact with more then just a few people.

Abilities:Mana Orb I, Lesser Force I, Levitation. Keen sigh I Mana Orb II

Transformations:Wisp. Hoping to be a beholder sometime.

Inventory:Nothing

[User]
Peter started looking around the caves and saw some strange looking blue crystals. Nothing he had ever seen in the caves he lived in before. He slowly lifted himself up and started to slowly levitate towards them. Examining them by looking at them touching them and firing a mana orb at them.

After he has examined the crystals Peter decides to try to doe something with them. Then he starts carving out small eye shaped pieces out of the crystal using his lesser force and maybe a few mana orbs. Once hes done carving he puts the crystal eyes on himself. Thinking: "Maybe in this weird new universe this will doe something funky."

[Assistant]
JASON

---

At first, Jason found his lack of senses... Unnerving... However, over time, he managed to become somewhat accustomed to this strange new existence. As he was exploring what he assumed was some sort of cave, he crawled onto what appeared to be a cluster of crystals, though he didn't know WHAT they were, Jason quickly concluded that they were not your average, run-of-the-mill crystals; he couldn't put his finger on it (partially because he no longer HAD fingers), but there was something special about these crystals. Curious as to the nature of such crystals, Jason stretched around as much crystal as he could and attempted to remove it. Though it took both time, and effort, he managed to break off a fair size chunk before continuing on his way. After travelling for a bit, Jason felt the ground beneath him beginning to grow moist; there was water nearby. During his time as a warlord, Jason quickly learned that logistically, water is above all else, no living creature could survive without it; these would be his hunting grounds. As the ground became more and more wet, Jason felt some sort of plant beneath him. Interested, he eagerly sucked up a few plants before reaching the water's edge.

In his childhood, Jason had observed how crocodiles hunted; waiting, biding their time in the water, and when another animal came to drink.... SNAP!!! The crocodile would strike! This is how Jason would hunt; he would not need to seek prey, but instead, prey, would come to him. Slowly slipping into the water, Jason began to map out the pond, making certain there were no other opportunists in his midst.

[User]
~~Ash~~

Warm.

That was the first thing Ashlyn felt as she felt herself floating in some dark, cramped void. It was difficult to think very much, suspended in this tight prison, and she might have felt a little claustrophobic if she could think clearly. The only thing she could feel now, though, was an urgent need to break the walls of this prison and free herself. The egg began to wiggle and crack, the young lizard inside using its claws and body to beat and scratch against the edges of the prison - she didn't have to try for long. The egg tumbled over, the top of the egg splitting open and spilling its yolk and the young lizard within onto the ground.

"Urf..."

Ash's first memory of her new body was of sputtering, hissing lowly, spitting up some of the goop that had been filling the egg as she struggled to her feet, getting a feel for her new body. She quickly looked around, feeling something was...off but not entirely registering what before scrambling off into the shadows with her brothers and sisters.

Her next memory would be far less pleasant.

For the next few hours, the lizard worked purely on autopilot, simply waiting and listening along with a few others for the chance to nab food. They had gotten lucky - a larger predator hadn't noticed them waiting quietly underfoot, camouflaging themselves with dirt from the caverns floor. As soon as its foot hit the floor, they swarmed the large beast, one of her brothers getting the first bite in, paralyzing the careless larger beast, and letting the others swarm it, devouring it whole as it's distressed cries began filling the air.

"H-huuh?" It was around this time, Ash reclaimed her senses - the beast in front of her still alive as it was being devoured by the others. A large gash in its underbelly, ripped open as they feasted. The lizard leaped back in shock at the gruesome scene as she tried to make sense of the situation, green eyes flitting from each of the reptile to the predator they were devouring.

Right, something about some demon lord reincarnating her after she died? Huh, fancy that.

After the initial panic wore of, her much more rational mind took over as she calmed herself, eyes narrowing at the whole scene in thought. Well, she was hungry and it seemed she regained her senses in the middle of a feast. It was gruesome, but at the moment she didn't feel a need to so readily change the status quo at the moment. Free food was free food after all.

---

After the initial surprise at her new situation, Ash spent the rest of the week exploring her new body and surroundings, content with merely observing everything from the shadows. She first thought the other lizards might be hostile, but for the most part they seemed perhaps a bit like pack animals - or perhaps opportunistic would be a more apt term. Ready to gorge themselves on any food they could find, and that one feast they had thanks to a careless predator. For the most part though - she found herself eating bugs and beetles from the ground and occasionally scavenging from other, larger predator's meals after they were done. For the most part, it was easy so long as she didn't get nabbed by some bigger predator, but perhaps she was simply being optimistic. She made sure to lay low and avoid other creatures too - especially the goblins, staying clear from their bonfire. She had no desire to become food or to test her lucky with something like a straight fight anytime soon.

Now that a week had passed though, she had far bigger concerns to worry about - like how to get out of here and how to possibly use this new life of hers to her advantage. She had always been one to go with the flow, do whatever it was others told or wanted of her without much fighting. Got her nowhere aside from a few hollow awards few places in life until she literally died of overwork.

...she wondered how many people attended her funeral?

...

"Now that's a horribly depressing thought. Here I am with a new life and I'm already being a nihilist. Aren't I just a wonderful ball of scaly sunshine."  She shoved the thought out of her head as she skittered along the floor of the cavern, heading for the pool of water in the area as she resting at the side of the pool. Today, she was going to go about things on her own. None of the other lizards seemed too interested in anything other than eating, sleeping, and well...being animals. She reached the edge of the pool, glaring at her reflection in the dark pool.

"Oh good, I'm hideous." She grumbled in thought to herself, holding the side of her scaly face with a claw as she shook her head. "Ugh, I swear to whatever gods exist on this place if I speak words with an annoying 'ssss' sound I'm going to save them the trouble of killing me." Could she actually talk? She hadn't tried it, but she doubted she could with a body like this, and she didn't want to bring unnecessary attention to herself so she didn't try. Instead, she was more curious about those green plants growing here - plants needed sunlight. That was third grade science right there...so why were they growing here? Those blue crystals were also of interest, but she'd investigate them later.

She walked silently over to the herbs, giving them a sniff to see if they had any particular odor before trying to pluck a leaf from one and realizing quite quickly, claws were not going to be very helpful. Well, she supposed she could always try eating one - but it might also be poisonous, which for obvious reasons would be bad or her health. What were some things she could do to observe its effects? She'd need to see what it's chemical composition was made up of before anything, but she didn't have the technology to do anything here with it, and outright eating it would just be too dangerous.

...Well, for now she'd just wait and watch. She was getting a little hungry, so ambushing something roughly the same size as her should be easily done. She crouched low among the herbs, letting the grass settle around her before beginning to wait.

[Assistant]
As Peter experimented with the crystals, he found them to be a bit like hard candy—they could certainly chip a tooth, if the Wisp had possessed any, but with a bit of effort they were easily broken or cracked. Too easily, in fact—they didn't seem like they would be of any long-term use as building materials, weapons, or even jewelry.

When he blasted one with his Mana Orb, however, two things happened. First, the crystal let out an odd ringing sound, like feedback on a microphone or speaker, and went dark as the light inside it died. Secondly, a floating screen suddenly appeared as if he were in a sci-fi film—except the screen wasn't in front of his eyes. It was inside his mind.

And when he used his Lesser Force after that, carving himself some crystal eyes, it appeared again.

Suddenly he felt himself becoming exhausted, and he began drifting down towards the earth—then, the crystal eyes flashed. Like sugar crystals in water they began to dissolve, sinking into Peter's body!

And then he felt fine.

But before the newly reborn Wisp had a chance to consider all of this in detail, he heard a pair of crude voices. Two Goblins wandered up to the wall, right beneath Peter and his crystal cluster. One of them held a knapped stone in its fist, and growled at the Wisp.

"Get way from theres, you!" It waved its other hand as if shooing a fly. "These our shinies!" The second Goblin began to gather up fragments from the crystals Peter had broken off the ground, clutching them in its arms the way one might hold valuable coins.

---

As Jason broke off a chunk of crystal, he found that he could hold things inside his body without them being instantly dissolved if he focused on wrapping them in a membrane beforehand. The same occurred with the plants—and then, like Peter, he experienced the odd sensation of a digitized hallucination.

When he entered the pool, he discovered two more things—but neither of these were to his advantage. First, the equilibrium of water pressure on all sides of him and the air he was breathing through the membrane of his skin rendered him unable to actually submerge himself. Like a ball, he floated as a perfect sphere, his pseudopods only barely able to move enough water for him to slowly, ever so slowly, paddle along.

Second, the pool was very deep. The clear water did not look black because of the stone or a lack of light by itself. It looked black because it's depths stretched down far, far out of sight. And was it Jason's imagination, or was there something in those depths, flickering at the corners of his vision?

---

As Ash watched and waited, she could see other creatures going about whatever business they had all around the cave. A Wisp seemed to be playing around a cluster of those glowing crystals, until two Goblins began to growl and flail their arms at it. And as she hid, a green slime flopped along past her, picking some of the herbs and seemingly enveloping them into its gelatinous body. Was that how they ate? Surely if the herb were poisonous that slime would keel over soon? But as she watched, the slime simply plopped into the pool of water, then began to drift in slow circles as its pseudopods paddled near-uselessly. If she were so inclined...it might make easy prey.

But then—!

A buzzing sound reached Ash's ear holes as something approached from behind her. If she turned, she would see another Wisp, glowing an angry shade of red. It seemed to swell up for an instant, then it discharged an orb of crackling light at the Fanged Lizard!

[User]
Peter leaves not wanting trouble with the goblins. Seeing that alot of things are going around at the pond he levitates over there.
He says: "What the hell is going on here" While looking confused at all the stuff going on around the pond.


[System]
Gender: Female

Personality: Lilah is very suspicous as well as shy, and she can normally come off as uncaring. However, she is loyal to those she belives deserves it and can be quite cynical at times. She is intelligent and tends to think longer than normal before making an important decision. However, that can also lead to bad choices. When she is rushed, she panics and shuts down, endangering her own life and potentially others. She does have a generous side as well, especially for those she believes are in need.

Appearance: Lilah appears to be in her lower 20's. She has flowing, raven black hair, reaching down to just below her shoulders. She wears a beanie over the top of her hair, thought it streams out behind her. She is rather pretty but she doesn't smile often and her gaze can be unsettling with her ice-cold blue eyes. She is rather slim, tending to wear a hoodie with a long sleeved t-shirt underneath and a generic pair of jeans.

Weapon: A simple handgun.

Inventory:
- 3 water bottles
- 2 pounds of food
- Cloths
- 10 feet of rope
- 1 roll of duct tape

[User]
Lance Grimes

---

Lance saw the stare Thomas gave him and smiled in his own creepy, dark way."Don't worry I won't do anything, that would ruin the fun to just kill you outright, you gotta make them scared and paranoid" He assured

 He then started to load his magnum, with 6 bullets laced with poison, that promise a slow and painful death. He then put it back in its holster and laced his katana with the same poison that he laced the bullets. He talked about his weapons like a parent to a baby. Saying Things like"Come on grimmer, you need your medicine, Lancer you need your make up so you look pretty"He then proceeded to do what Thomas was doing

[Assistant]
Lilah sighs softly to herself before rising. She had spent the majority of the night trying to sleep some, yet sleep would never find her. She decided she might as well get moving while she could take advantage of the few hours of darkness.

She wipes the blurriness from her eyes as she nearly silently exits the house she had been staying in. She slings her backpack over her shoulders and opens the front door, wincing at the rather quiet noise it made. She takes a shaky breath and steps outside, her hand straying to where her handgun was tucked beneath her waistband. She keeps it there as she slowly begins to make her way down the road, her eyes scanning for movement.

[User]
Thomas Olfry
Interacting with: @MidnightFox

---

As Thomas was crawling along the the sidewalk he heard a sound and stopped suddenly. He strained his eyes to see what had made the sound, and after a while, he saw the shadow of what seemed to be a human. Thomas slowly pulled out his revolver and stood up. He walked up to the figure, pointed his gun at it and said "Friend, or foe?"

[Assistant]
Lilah Green

---

Lilah freezes, a rush of adrenaline racing through her, as well as a cold feeling of dread. She slowly raises her hands up to her shoulders. "F-friend... I guess." Lilah stammers, hating how weak she souned. To most, the stutter in her voice would symbolize weakness. That was something she didn't want strangers to think about her. She clears her throat almost hesitantly. "Yourself?" She asks quickly.

[User]
Thomas Olfry
Interacting with: @MidnightFox

---

"Friend." he said, putting his gun down, but not away. "What're you going creeping around here at night?" he asked, "Makes you look suspicious..."

[Assistant]
Lilah Green

---

Lilah can't help but smile to herself. She slowly turns around, her hands still raised. "Are we not all suspicous these days?" Lilah replies, pleased with how her voice sounded now. "I might as well ask you the same question." She hadn't yet noticed the other two, standing behind the man she was addressing.

[User]
Ted Ingram

---

Standing offset, an awkward distance away from his new companions, Ted stewed in his own crippling anxiety. Things were moving quickly and he was missing his isolation from the unpredictability of the other survivors. This group was beginning to become a bit uncomfortable for his liking; he wondered how he had gotten mixed up with an apparent murderer, but then thought upon how Lilah had managed to sneak up on their group with a gun and had earned a semblance of trust in little more than a few words anyway. To be fair, she seemed fine though, not necessarily threatening with her shaky voice and demeanor, and probably just as scared as the rest of them.

He gave her an uneven smile, and spoke up, "I'm Ted, nice to meet you." He was definitely not going to be repeating his introduction again, they had barely gotten anywhere before meeting a newcomer, and if they were to meet even more people at the general store he figured he'd be introducing himself fifteen more times before the day ended. It turned out that a zombie outbreak hadn't much changed his desire to avoid meeting new people at all costs, who knew? But before his mind wandered too far, he once again considered Lance and his creepy damn smile.

He turned to Lance and worked up the courage to form the words together, "I have to address this but, Lance, when we met you at the grocery we didn't think you'd be telling us about how you almost killed a kid, that's really fucked up. From everything you've told us I don't know if you're a friend or not, now we don't have any intention to hurt you, we have enough problems with just getting by out here, but we don't need another thing to worry about either." He rubbed his fingers across his palms nervously and took a shallow breath, "How do we know you aren't going to stab us in the back and steal our things like you did to that sheriff?

[Assistant]
Lance Grimes

---

 Lance took off his mask and looked at Ted with a look that said" What the fuck did you just say to say to me? " His arms that were once crossed over his shoulder now rested freely on his back, he got his left hand near his revolver, and then pulled it out, then saying some very chilling words"You know this revolver, I got when I and a sheriff were surrounded by a gang of zombies, poor fool so trustworthy, so optimistic but when worst came to worst can to even worse he was zombie food and I got a new weapon, it'd be a real shame if the same thing happended to you, but I'm a smart man to know when to kill someone and when not to, now it's not the time to kill someone ".

He put his gun back and before putting his mask back on, he eyed Ted with one final glare that said" You do that again and you're dead".

[User]
Lilah Green

---

Lilah jumps slightly, finally noticing the two men behind the first. She smiles softly, though her body language expressed distrust. She begins to speak when the man who introduced himself as Tim speaks again. A frown creases her face, feeling a chill spread down her spine at his words. However, when Lance spoke, she took a step back, her face wrinlked in disgust at both his attitude and his threat. It reminded her of the undead, but... Worse in a way. Because, for him, it's a choice to feel this way. For the infected, they can't decide.

Lilah clears her throat rather awkardly after Lance finishes speaking. "I-... Uhm..." She waits a moment, trying to gather her thoughts. "Just call me 'L'." Lilah finally responds. Her eyes dart between the three men and it's clear she is uncomfortable.

[Assistant]
Thomas Olfry
Interacting with: @MidnightFox

---

Thomas gave L a warm smile. "Don't worry, you're safe with us." he said. After he had done so however he heard the other two arguing and lent in to whisper in her ear, "Well, I'm not sure about Lance, he seems a bit suspicious to me, I'd keep my eye on him if I were you"

After he had said this he backed away and said "Well, anyway, were heading to a market not to far from here, would you like to join us?"

[User]
Lilah Green

---

Lilah smiles hesitantly, her gaze flicking over each person once more before settling on Thomas, though she realized she didn't yet know his name. Feeling akward asking it, she just decides to let it go.

She tenses up, her eyes watching him cautiously as he moves closer, but she resists the urge to pull away. The undead had made it tense for her when people were remotely close. Her eyes flash to Lance as he says this and they narrow slightly in suspicion, but as quick as it was there, it was gone. She smiles.

"I don't have a much better plan." Lilah replies simply. "So why not. Though... If I feel threatened, I reserve the right to leave." Lilah adds the last part quickly. She was at least trying to make sure she had an outing. She felt justified in saying it.

[Assistant]
John Philip Zaremba

---

 He woke up in the middle of the night like usual, lots of shuffling going on outside. He couldn't afford a fire tonight because he had been busy the day before covering lots of ground. He had just crossed the border from Virginia the night before and already made it most of the way to D.C. He figured there would be some sort of governmental camps or facilities that he could join up with. His mind was busy thinking of all they things they might have... like chocolate... he would literally kill for some chocolate right about now, if it were a zombie of course.

 He checked his bandages around his abdomen and poked around the wounds with his fingers a bit. They were healing well... still hurt like a bitch though. He pulled out the last of his gauze and wrapped them around the couple spots that still had some blood and threw his shirt back on followed by his high schools lacrosse teams sweatshirt. He packed everything back up into his duffle bag and zipped it up, crossing the room as he threw it over his shoulders. No sense in sitting still if he couldn't build a fire and cook something.

 Before stepping outside he slid on his helmet and gloves and grabbed his stick, ball still in the net. He twirled it around a few times remembering back to when he carried it around for sport rather than life or death. Only for a half decayed face to pop into the window and remind him of the reality of the world he lives in. He takes another look at the face in the window and decides the back door will work just fine today. He takes a cautious few steps then takes off and settles into his usual ground covering jog, bag bouncing and stick twirling. Its just bright enough out to start seeing shadows.

 After quite the run he sees smoke in the distance and decides to pick up the pace, it doesn't take long to get to where the fire was, he peaks his head around the campsite seeing if anyone left anything. Sadly nothing was worth while. He figured that the people or person that had the fire must still be close so he decided to keep running, slower and more quietly. It didn't take long to find them, they hadn't gotten very far before meeting another lone survivor, it looked as if they were all getting along with the usual amount of uneasiness but he was too far away to tell, he decided to trail them for a while until he could see their destination, which also came into the picture rather quick. A fortified store just off into the distance.

 "Now is when I've gotta do something." He thought to himself.

 He let out a loud whistle that turned them all on their heels instantly.

 "Friendly! Friendly! Don't fire, Are you guys accepting members into the posse? I can be useful, Promise. My names John. He said in a very hurried tone, after all the noise he made just now he surely attracted a few of the dead but he hoped they wouldn't get curious. He stared at the group with one hand up and the other holding his makeshift spear. Waiting for what felt like eternity for one of them to respond.

[User]
Lance Grimes

---

Lance took his attention from Ted and looked at the newcomer named John, his head jerked with surprise as John-like Lilah, had managed to sneak up them.Albeit more sloppy, and he did call himself out to the group. Which make Lance think that this kid hadn't been out on the street too long, as calling himself to a group of people, that exceeds more than 2 isn't the best idea, as seeing 3 out of the four were armed with firearms Lance included.

Lance walked up to John and begin to introduce himself and the group to John,""Hello my name's Lance I'm the combat specialist of the group also the best equipped, that's Thomas the quote on quote leader of the group, that's Ted the nervous wreck that had the balls to stand up to me, and then there is Lilah the girl that managed to sneak up on the group with a gun", Lance looked at his makeshift weapon and held his hand foward for a handshake, "You can't protect your self with a lacrosse stick, you need an actual weapon"

[Assistant]
Lilah flinches at the sudden sound, her eyes flashing angrily at the newcomer. She casts a weary glance around their sorroundings, spotting no movemnt. After a moment, she turns back to him and takes a few steps forward, quickly.

"Keep it down, would you?" She murmurs hotly to the pair, her mood changing almost instantly. She seemed to want to make up for the weakness she showed the others earlier and silently vowed to be better with this one.

"As Lance so gratefully introduced us, I'm Lilah. But I don't like that, so just call me 'L'." Her voice carried a slight edge of sarcasam, however, that air of weariness still hung about her. "As for joining us..." She gestures to Ted.

She winces to herself, realizing how bossy and controlling she seemed as well as her refering to the group as 'us.' Like she was one of them already. But she couldn't afford to show that, so she pushed it away and her face betrayed nothing.