Final Burning Spirit! (IC/PG-16/Still Accepting! Co-Hosted by Yui)

[Saikazo]

OP: Honest Eyes

♩ Almost Heaven, West Virginia ♩

With a growl, Mr. Principale shut off his radio. He remembered a time he liked the song. How it was a comfort during his hectic reassignment. Such a calming song, about the beauty that would surround him in Mountainguard. Now, it was just a reminder that the state was a dead end. It was so insignificant that even the most famous song about it couldn't even get the basic facts right. 

The Blue Ridge Mountains were not in West Virginia. The Shenandoah River didn't flow through the land. And there was no heaven in West Virginia. 

The mountains loomed over the town of Mountainguard, surrounding it like it was an old guard of sentinels keeping watch. They contained the cool fall breeze that blew next to the cold river that cut the town in half. To some people, this was comforting, a lifelong home that they would never leave. 

To Mr. Principale, it was like being sealed inside of a cardboard box. 

He tried to keep his bad mood down to a minimum as he drove to the edges of town. It was a new year. Maybe this year would be better than the last. He choose to ignore the roads becoming rougher, the buildings becoming more rundown, and the grass littered with trash. The trees grew taller and thicker along the road as his car drove away from the last pockets of civilizations and into what seemed like a thick forest. Only the road cutting straight through it let people know civilaization's reach still made it here.  

The road didn't curve, didn't bend. The longest stretch of road, aptly called Speedway, lead to his destination. The road lead to a large plot of land cleared out in the forest. In the center of it all stood Dead End Academy. 

The name was sadly perfect for the school. The four stories of the building were old and rundown, almost looking like a haunted mansion in the forest. However, the architecture was far too uniform and dour to be a mansion for the rich. Some people would think it a den of villany before they thought of it as a school. And they wouldn't be completely wrong.

Principal Principale pulled into the parking lot, sitting quietly inside his car as he let the engine shut off. He didn't have too much time to spare, but he didn't want to get moving either. Another year in this damn school. How much longer could he deal with it?

With a sigh, he finally got out of the car and headed towards his school. However, he wasn't going inside. Instead, he went around the large building, walking towards the back of it. Behind the school was a wide field, obviously set up for sports. However, the beachers had long been removed. They didn't have a sports team, and the benches kept getting destroyed during fights. 

A small stage was set up with nothing more than a speaker system and a podium on it. In front of the stage was a bunch of kids sitting in foldable metal chairs. He could already see people using those as weapons, but at this point, there was nothing they could do about it. He only hoped these kids were well behaved. 

With a grunt of effort, Principal Principale pulled himself up on the stage. He walked over to the podium as he dusted off his shoulders. A high pitch whine came from the speakers as he leaned closer to the mic. Before speaking, he looked over the freshmen class. There were less people than he was expecting. That was technically a good sign, but he couldn't bring himself to feel hope.

"Alright, listen up!" He called out, looking over the freshmen class. "I'm sure you all are used to people bullshitting you, trying to placate you into listening, but I don't have the time for that," He took a deep breath before continuing. "You all might think you're the biggest, baddest people around. Well, allow me to shake that unwarrented confidence! You are a small fish taken from the ocean and tossed into a small pond. And there are fish much bigger than you lurking around at the bottom of this pond," It was a standard warning he gave out every year, and every year it was ignored. "I won't lie and say that you all will turn out to be good people who will get great jobs after your time in Dead End. In fact, statistically, most of you are going to end up dead before you turn 30. However, to those who might listen to my words, if you keep your heads down and actually try to learn, maybe you'll have a better life than what you'd get otherwise."

He paused a moment, letting his words sink into the crowd. He didn't have high hopes for this class. He was sure that no one would listen to his next words. Still, he had a job to do. 

"Now, school doesn't start for the freshmen today," He explained. "No, today, you all will do a short tour of the school. Afterwards, you'll get situated in your dorms. Tomorrow, school really begins. Dismissed!" 

With that, Principal Principale walked off the stage, headed for the inside of the school. To say he had given a speech would be stretching the definition. It barely took him 30 seconds to deliver his words. And yet everyone in that crowd knew he spoke nothing but his truth.

There was a moment of awkward silence as the principal left. It was obvious that there was supposed to be a teacher here that would gather them up and take them on the tour. Except no one came. 

"Yeah, fuck this," A voice shouted after a minute of silence. A tall, tanned boy walked out of the crowd of students. A large scar marred his face, going from cheek to cheek, right through his nose. "A school is a school! You've seen one, you've seen them all! I'm heading into town! If you dumbasses had any sense, you'd do the same!" He threw his hand in the air as he walked around the school. It was unclear if this was a sign of dismissal or him beckoning others to follow him. 

The students now had a choice. Would they play hooky, or would they attempt to be good students and wait?

---

OOC

Spoiler

Well, it's been a while since I last did one of these. Well, feel free to be as long winded or as brisk in your intros. Just by the end of your post, make sure you pick either playing hooky or staying in school. Both lead to different storylines, so don't think you'll miss out if you choose one or the other!

 

[LordCowCow]

Catherine was sitting perfectly still on a chair as people began piling in. She had been dropped off, quite literally as the elderly couple that had grabbed her from the back of their truck and deposited her in front of the school, a couple hours ago and had been sitting there ever since.

While her body didn't move she did flick her eyes back and forth now and then to watch as people came in. Some of them gave her strange looks, and she wondered what was so weird about a beautiful young lady such as herself sitting on a chair, but many more just passed her by.

There were certainly some odd looking folk here. Catherine hadn't realized that human beings could come in some of the shapes and sizes she saw. Some of them clearly didn't get along and she wondered if a fight was going to break out. Through it all she sat still and looked ahead at the podium.

Something was going to happen. She just knew it. Call it a sixth sense, or wishful thinking, or simple delusions but Catherine was certain that if she waited long enough an interesting event was bound to occur.

She got her first taste of this when an old man, who seemed much different than her own old people, came onto stage to call them fish. Before she could question his eyesight he was suddenly gone.

It seemed they were to take a tour of the school. Which, if the brochures she had read that her old people kept around to convince her to leave and explore the world were right, usually meant someone who knew the school would take them around.

Catherine had waited this long for something fun so she was certainly capable of waiting longer. It seemed, however, that some did not have her patience.

"A school is a school! You've seen one, you've seen them all! I'm heading into town! If you dumbasses had any sense, you'd do the same!"

And what if someone had not seen one? It seemed to her that this boy was the dumb one to not think about that. She found this so foolish in fact that she finally decided to move. The girl, who had been basically motionless this entire time, turned her head towards the person seated next to her. Her neck made a slight creaking sound as the material that made her body protested the movement after such a long rest. In a loud, clear, voice, Catherine spoke up, "pretty stupid to wait all this time and then just run away before anything happens, huh?"

[Chaos Sonic]

Phase 1 - Bad Moon Rising

The room was silent… bone chillingly silent at that. Those that just entered it simply looked in the direction of the one at the very front of the room, keeping within the shadows, avoiding the city lights coming from the windows. A series of noises broke the darkness, the sounds of armored feet clanking along the floor. “So, this is where you've been hiding.” the voice sounded… disappointed?

“...so… of course they'd send five…” the voice from the shadows responded, almost seeming tired. “I take it the other seven may be on their way to my location now? Or perhaps… you wished to face me all on your own?” The deafening silence was all the answer that was received, but it seemed the latter was indeed the answer. “...I figured as much. I would've preferred it not to be you to be the one to find me… to figure it out. I have a lot of respect for you… despite the rivalry I wanted for us, you were like a friend to me.”

The sounds of shuffling came from the shadows, it unnerved the one standing in the middle of the room, the city lights showing off the familiar red scarf the armored individual wore. “Try as I might… I don't understand the reason why? You owe at least that.” he sighed, his fists tightening slightly. “Why eliminate the number one?”

Silence once again filled the room, before a heavy sigh echoed. “Pay it forward… help however you can… be someone else's hero… back then, that was my reasoning. To strive to be that kind of hero, like the one who saved me that day. However… it all became a contradiction to me when I hit it big…” The sounds of footsteps from the shadows began. “...the rank of number one… the ability to inspire hundreds… thousands… the amount of good done in this regard just from having that title alone. A higher audience is given with that… so why wouldn't I take that opportunity?” The steps grew louder… before one foot started to cross into the light… a red boot. “I chose to shake things up by removing that slouch… to spread that message that I've held onto so dear for my whole life from his position.” The rest of the body soon was in the light… the red and black suit wearing figure stood there, his own red scarf waving behind him. “I won't stop here… I will become number one… Feel free to attempt to stop me, but we both know… I'm the unstoppable force… I am the immovable object… and my inertia knows no bounds.”

---

That was the big reveal? It didn't seem like that big of a surprise, though. It was written on the wall from the beginning… least, from what he could tell. After all, some of the characters here had suspicions from the start, and even during that small gala, the one that showed up moments after him had something squish under his feet on the red carpet, that sticky feeling anyway. It was a good fake out with the whole “maybe it was gum” aspect. Even still… the character played his part in this story and feigned ignorance up till it finally was revealed, but for the reader, yeah it was obv-...

BGM

“...today, you all will do a short tour of the school. Afterwards, you'll get situated in your dorms. Tomorrow, school really begins. Dismissed!”

Blake paused, just remembering where he was and what was going on. He had been so engrossed in this chapter that he barely registered the principal's opening ceremony speech. …IF you wanted to even call it that. Best he could tell… it was thirty seconds, if that. Closing his book, he watched as the principal simply walked away after delivering his riveting speech… almost seemed rehearsed, like he said that exact thing to each and every Freshman class. But rehearsed or not… it was clear that he meant it.

Not surprising… it's called DEAD END for a reason. he thought, closing his book slightly before shoving it back in his bag. It wouldn't be a wonder that he meant every word he said. Doesn't sound like he really believes in anyone gathered here… not that I blame him. He leaned back in the chair, exhaling slowly. But this school is just a means to an end for me… so he can take that and shove it up his-...

"Yeah, fuck this! A school is a school! You've seen one, you've seen them all! I'm heading into town! If you dumbasses had any sense, you'd do the same!"

Blake sat up slightly from his lounge state in the chair, glancing in the direction of this person who just spoke out like this. He seemed like the arrogant sort, but then again, first impressions weren't much to go by for him. Still, he had to admire the brazen boldness to simply say that like this. And it wasn't like any teacher was available at this present time to do this new student orientation bull… perhaps this arrogant peer of his was right.

"pretty stupid to wait all this time and then just run away before anything happens, huh?”

Another voice cut through, this one, a young girl… she looked like the definition of “cutesy”... like a porcelain doll, which might've been her make-up and complexion, Blake wasn't sure… he didn't know much about make-up. Nevertheless, she spoke loud and clear, rivaling her peer's viewpoint of this current situation. Not to say it wasn't a valid one, the principal just said they'd be going through a tour, not his fault that said teacher wasn't here yet. That said…

He slowly stood up, stretching as he yawned loudly. "Truth be told, he does have a slight point. This is a school, albeit the... 'last school you'll ever go to'..." Blake scoffed, waving his fingers in a manner some would think to signify creepy. "The worst they can do is write us up for not being around... not like some of us haven't gone through that rigmarole before. I, for one, am agreeing with our hot-headed... friend... eh, too early to call him my friend or anything. Either way, I'm heading out." He slung his bag over his shoulder, gave everyone the two finger salute before turning on his heel and walked on off after the arrogant one. Plus... this is an excellent opportunity to look around... get acquainted with the locale... then... then I'll find my answers. Only a matter of time before the wolf goes on the prowl...

[Mr. Hyde]

Today was an orientation of sorts.  Since arriving at Dead End Academy, Flynn had been awaiting this moment on the edge of his wits.  It was a beautiful day for a gathering of the students he'd be sharing his time with.  The locale was breathtaking, as the mountains that rose in the backdrop beckoned him to climb it's rocky face.  The weather in West Virginia was colder than the usual climate he had been accustomed to his whole life.  The air was crisp, and fresh, and filled him full of life with every inhale.  This place would be the perfect place to enhance his skills...and hopefully find some clues about his brother.  

All in due time.  Now it was time for the Dead End Academy assembly.  This school really was filled with all sorts of characters.  Looking around, he could clearly see that this place really was a breeding ground for the strange and lost.  He wondered if others gazed upon him with the same thought process, seeing as he hadn't taken his Luchador mask off since he had arrived.  Was it rude to assume that everyone here was some poor unfortunate soul who needed help?  That's what this place was advertised as, but were they all really at the end of their ropes.  Flynn had come to this academy of his own volition, so maybe some other students had as well.  Regardless, he would do his best to be friendly.  He had made his way to the assembly and found a seat, waiting for their Principal to address them all.

"Alright, listen up! I'm sure you all are used to people bullshitting you, trying to placate you into listening, but I don't have the time for that.  You all might think you're the biggest, baddest people around. Well, allow me to shake that unwarranted confidence! You are a small fish taken from the ocean and tossed into a small pond. And there are fish much bigger than you lurking around at the bottom of this pond.  I won't lie and say that you all will turn out to be good people who will get great jobs after your time in Dead End. In fact, statistically, most of you are going to end up dead before you turn 30. However, to those who might listen to my words, if you keep your heads down and actually try to learn, maybe you'll have a better life than what you'd get otherwise."

He didn't like the statistic thrown in there.  Were the futures really so dim for the students here?

"Now, school doesn't start for the freshmen today.  No, today, you all will do a short tour of the school. Afterwards, you'll get situated in your dorms. Tomorrow, school really begins. Dismissed!" 

 A tour was something he was super excited for!  He couldn't wait to get a good look at all the facilities this place had to offer.  Hopefully there was a good spot to spar with his fellow Dead Enders.

"Yeah, fuck this! A school is a school! You've seen one, you've seen them all! I'm heading into town! If you dumbasses had any sense, you'd do the same!"  The harsh voice rang out through the class of freshman, coming from a rather rugged looking individual.  Flynn could only sigh.  This sucker was already off to becoming one of those bleak statistics the Principal was talking about.  

"Pretty stupid to wait all this time and then just run away before anything happens, huh?”  A young lady responded...at least she looked like a young lady.  The joints of each of her appendages looked similar to an action figure.  Was she a human, or something different?  Flynn hadn't really come across anything...inhuman in his life, so seeing something this strange and up close was sort of a shock to him.  He thought about keeping his distance from the girl...thing...but didn't want to appear rude.  He'd have to get used to these types if he was going to attend this school.  

"Truth be told, he does have a slight point. This is a school, albeit the... 'last school you'll ever go to'.  The worst they can do is write us up for not being around... not like some of us haven't gone through that rigmarole before. I, for one, am agreeing with our hot-headed... friend... eh, too early to call him my friend or anything. Either way, I'm heading out."

Flynn decided to act.  His sense of justice really couldn't allot a nihilistic infection spreading like this.  He walked ahead of the two young men to try and stop their advance.  

"Hear me out, my friends," his tone was stern, but still friendly, "I implore that you go on the tour with us.  Don't you want to see what this place has to offer!  Look around you!"  Flynn motioned to the masses of students around them, "Isn't this place amazing?  Do you not believe this place has amazing things to offer amazing young people like you?"  He crossed his arms against your chest.  "I would rather everyone here get off to a good start.  There's no use for you to be here if you aren't willing to do it straight...this is a fresh start for all of us...I plead you do not waste it."  Flynn walked past the two, standing out of their way.  "I will not stop you from leaving, I just thought that I would plead this school's case."  He flashed the two a thumbs up.  "My name is Flynn Guerrero!  The Fly Boy!  I hope you reconsider your attempt at hooky, and attend the tour with me!"  Flynn gave a nervous glance to the well dressed lady who had spoken up earlier.  "With us..." His voice was shaky, as the nerves at looking at her hadn't shaken, "right?"  

[vivi_]

Beautiful West Virginia! The land of... that one song? They had trees, and mountains! Lots of wilderness, which Theo appreciated. As much as she loved some good old 21st-century convenience, her upbringing with a coven of witches did leave her with a fondness for the deep wilderness where only the brave or foolish dared to tread. The little town of Mountainguard had that sort of "superstitious smalltown" vibe in her opinion, which she was all about. When she and her mothers did some research on the institute she was being forced to attend, most of the coven came to the same conclusion.

This was the perfect school for an aspiring young witch, and being sent here felt more like a reward for her than a punishment.

The school was literally called Dead End Academy! Most students who got sent here were sent for poor behavior, or simply because nowhere else was equipped to handle them, or whatever else. It was isolated, underfunded, and its graduates seldom went far in life. Which meant this place was bound to be a gathering hub for the miserable, lonely, and depressed. Exactly the sorts of people who needed a bit of witchcraft brought into their life, and Theodora was more than happy to use her talents on their behalf. She'd even gotten business cards printed in the days leading up to her departure to Mountainguard. Some of the coven thought it was a bit tacky, but Theo had made her case quite clear. The word-of-mouth "marketing" witches used to rely on just wasn't as effective these days, especially when she hadn't even established herself in her destination yet. Hand out business cards, make deals, profit. And then word of mouth.

Which was how Theo had found herself spending much of her early-start day so far keeping an eye on those around her. Anyone who looked especially vulnerable or desperate was ripe for the picking, and she made sure her card found its way into their possession, whether it was by handing it straight to them, slipping it in their bags, or using a bit of witchery to ensure it would turn up when they least expected it. When met with the sight of the principal, she determined he wasn't someone who would request her services. Keeping him in the dark was going to be impossible with her aggressive marketing tactics, but she certainly wasn't about to try to strike a deal with the principal.

"Alright, listen up!" He called out, looking over the freshmen class. "I'm sure you all are used to people bullshitting you, trying to placate you into listening, but I don't have the time for that,. You all might think you're the biggest, baddest people around. Well, allow me to shake that unwarrented confidence! You are a small fish taken from the ocean and tossed into a small pond. And there are fish much bigger than you lurking around at the bottom of this pond. I won't lie and say that you all will turn out to be good people who will get great jobs after your time in Dead End. In fact, statistically, most of you are going to end up dead before you turn 30. However, to those who might listen to my words, if you keep your heads down and actually try to learn, maybe you'll have a better life than what you'd get otherwise."

Dead before 30, eh? That was bound to scare a few people into something stupid. What the hell was Theo supposed to charge for life extension, though? She'd have to circle back to that one later.

"Yeah, fuck this," A voice shouted after a minute of silence. Tall, big scar on his face, angry attitude. He was probably the "do everything through my efforts" type. Theo hated those sorts of people. This boy wouldn't be getting a card just yet. "A school is a school! You've seen one, you've seen them all! I'm heading into town! If you dumbasses had any sense, you'd do the same!"

What, and miss out on all these potential customers? No, thanks!

"Pretty stupid to wait all this time and then just run away before anything happens, huh?"

"Truth be told, he does have a slight point. This is a school, albeit the... 'last school you'll ever go to'... The worst they can do is write us up for not being around... not like some of us haven't gone through that rigmarole before. I, for one, am agreeing with our hot-headed... friend... eh, too early to call him my friend or anything. Either way, I'm heading out."

The boy... he had a definite edge to him. Maybe, just maybe, she could get something out of him. Theo reached into her bag, and pulled out a business card placed between her fingers, with her index finger on one side, and her middle finger & thumb lined up on the other. She pointed the card at the bag, and with a snap of her thumb across card and fingers both, the business card in her disappeared. That would be a little surprise for the boy to find in his bag later, on top of all his other stuff. The girl on the other hand, was obviously a doll that could move and talk like a person. Creepy, but somehow she doubted going up to the doll girl like "don't you wanna be a real girl?" would be very effective. Maybe she could win her over with some smaller spells first, then go for something big like that later.

"Hear me out, my friends, I implore that you go on the tour with us."

Theodora turned in her seat to watch how this big guy's attempt to stop the other two was going to unfold. He was muscular, seemed to have a good head on his shoulders... no way he'd take a mystical shortcut. However, there was one thing about Flynn's - as he later introduced himself - attempt to defend Dead End Academy that prompted the witch to speak up.

"Dunno if I'd call it amazing," she answered, getting up from her seat to approach the gathering herself, leaving another card behind in her seat, trying her best to make it look like she'd dropped it on accident. Whether her ruse was successful was anyone's call, though. "I grew up in a hut in the woods, and it was still more impressive than this place. Like it or not though, we are gonna be here for a while. A tour wouldn't be a bad idea, to get familiar with our new home." Then she leaned in a bit closer, speaking in a more hushed tone to keep anyone but the three boys from hearing her. "And hey, if you boys take the tour and decide you're not about to waste four years of your life here, I think I can help you slip away." From her bag, she procured another one of her cards, holding it out for any interested party. "That's what I do. I help unfortunate folks, like yourselves, with nobody else to turn to."

She made a point to face the card upward, such that any of the boys could read it clearly.

Theodora West, witch for hire
Spells, potions, hexes
Flexible pricing
For more information, contact the number below

Edited February 26 by vivi_

[Doggo]

While far from the only distracted new student during Mr. Principale's presentation, Ori assumed their exact predicament to be unique. The dragon, as they preferred over being called a person, really wanted to reserve their energy for first day of school proper. Listening to the lecture on their limited opportunities and likely early demise would require them to really have to sit and think about a host of different paths and what mattered right now was a curse was off. Ori sat engrossed with their phone scanning through emails they had sent themself in the past week trying to figure out why the shade of pink on the scales covering the left side of their face felt off today.

"It's fine, you're just nervous." Ori tried to tell themself but several other thoughts rose in succession to drown out the more reasonable assumption that they were just hyper-focused on their first public appearance in some months. And this was the exact spiraling they had wanted to avoid. Now came thoughts of the cops coming back to arrest them, a curse going wrong and getting them hospitalized, what on earth would they look like at thirty when they were going to die that felt so far away what if they didn't age well like this? All unhelpful and ultimately useless as they found the unoffending passage. There was in fact nothing off in their array and they were simply being extra critical of their appearance. It was hardly Ori's fault the various police cells and homes they'd been placed in for the last few months almost never gave them a mirror like they'd constantly asked. Or maybe they did, none of that was really worth remembering.

"Wait how long have I-" Ori mumbled upon looking up and realizing the principal's presentation had concluded and they'd gleaned almost no information from it. That had been the initial plan but somehow it didn't help their nerves settle in the moment. A more decisive voice was helpful in that endeavor as it called for a skipping of the proposed tour Ori had definitely heard something about and instead advocated for going into town. Others around Ori rose to join the conversation falling in on either side. Some felt it pointless to skip at this point, others pleaded for everyone to consider their future. Those against the tour felt it was impossible to really punish them further, this was Dead End Academy after all. 

Normally this would have been where Ori spent ten minutes in their head again wondering what might happen to them if they left campus now. But despite the police's efforts they did still have several bank accounts they could access. Add to this the rather limited wardrobe they'd been operating with for some time now in constant transition from holding cell to testing facility to some kind of basement bunker and so on and a shopping spree first thing suddenly became all the more appealing. Enough so that any concern was pushed aside for the moment. With a stretch of their wings Ori stood to join the away team, not that there was any united effort there, only for Theodora's display to capture their attention more powerfully than any who had spoken yet. And not for any argument she'd made but rather the fact she was advertising magic.

"Ooooo a neat little card." Ori spoke their voice distorted in ways many modern shows and movies did to voice actors playing dragons. It made pinning their voice as masculine or feminine difficult and was of course by design. With a simple motion the dragon walked past Theo and yoinked the upheld business card with two fingers of their own. "Not doing the tour but I like this. Will need to swap notes later. If you're any good anyway. Magic sucks sometimes so no shame if you suck too." They spoke calmly. Though they paused at looking at Theodora's contact information provided before handing the card back to her.

"I think I go back to jail if I knowingly obtain anyone's email or phone number. Just remember some cop yelling at me for a few hours about it anyway. Cute design though and I do wanna talk magic later girl!" Ori spoke enthusiastically even as they began trotting away from those better behaved students intending to attend the tour. It was time to start cycling through bank apps to see what hadn't been frozen yet or hitting what town there was here wasn't going to be very eventful.

[FourEyesIsAFish]

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

BGM

The seas were quiet that night.

Nalu sat at the water's edge, toes melting into the surf and sand, tail wagging in the wind. Gentle waves lapped against the edges of volcanic rocks, cradling them in seafoam and triggering a pale blue glow in the sea. These sorts of nights were rare, but the sight was mesmerizing. The twinkling stars in the sky were just as breathtaking.

It was almost enough to get her mind off the move.

For most of her life, this is all she knew. The wind. The sea. The black rocks. The sand. And now... now she was gonna leave it all behind. And she still wasn't entirely sure what to think about it. She should be happy, for the chance to get out there, to meet people, to learn how to be human. But some matrix approximating a hear inside her ached for the carefree days of yesterday, snatching fish from reefs and chasing her makuahine around the la-

"Nalu? What're you doing out there?"

Speak of the kiapolō...

Nalu's mom sat down next to her on the beach, and wrapped her prosthetic arm around what approximation Nalu had made for shoulders tonight.

"...enjoying the bioluminescence, kiddo? That's not something you see every day."

"...I am, māmā. It's really pretty. Almost like that old projector we..." Nalu trailed off after a minute, awash in memory.

It took a minute for either to press past the unease hanging in the air.

"Ku'u keiki, it's okay if you're nervous about all of this. Aʻole loa, I definitely am."

"B-but I shouldn't be, right? I-I-" Liquid started streaming down her "cheeks" unprompted, like she had seen mother do after her rampage, after all of her pain and the arm and-

"Kiddo..." Lani wrapped her child into a hug, letting the sea monster-turned-girl's tears soak the woman's short sleeves. "Kiddo, come here. You're not broken , you're just feeling some heartache, ok?"

"I d-don't have heart..." is all Nalu could blubber out before descending into full on sobs. 

"It's all gonna be ok, ipo. How about we just sit here in our slippahs for a while? Watch the sea for a while"

Nalu nodded and gradually, the two turned back to the sea and the stars.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

BGM

First days can be stressful for most people, but Naluea Kainoa is anything but typical. Here she was quarter-way round the world sitting legs criss-crossed on a field of green grass (having not so gently put the foldable chair aside), getting ready to actually get to go to school. She had been dreaming of this for years, for a chance to actually experience personhood school life like humans her peers. She was frantically fidgeting with her hawaiian shirt, feeling the fishnet fabric her mom had used to patch it up as her pixie-cut hair swiveled a bit of its own accord. 

That's the problem with being an amorphous sea monster - every part of you has somewhat of a mind of its own, and all of them have relentless energy that has to come out. And so fidget she must, lest a tail pop out of her back or her limbs melt or some other form meltdown she didn't need right now.

Soon the principal (wasn't his name literally Mr. Principal or something?) went up to speak with... to be frank one of the most targeted speeches she's ever heard (she thinks? maybe it's just an expression...), which she mostly tunes out by accident upon smelling a familiar scent. 

Iron. Smoke. Gunpowder. Blood. A pumped shotgun targeted straight for her flank. An arm in one of her mouths, broken off by accident in frenzy. Violence movie-monster style, with high violence and horror stings and so, so much gore-

She snaps out of the flashbacks when she hears the principal mention a tour. Oooh, that sounds exciting, a chance to 'acclimate to her environment' like māmā always said in those notes of hers. Besides, it would be a good opportunity to meet people, and cod she wanted to meet people. And then she hears him. She can tell instantly - her nose doesn't lie on stuff like this. It's the same smell of smoke, blood, and violence. 

"Yeah, fuck this! A school is a school! You've seen one, you've seen them all! I'm heading into town! If you dumbasses had any sense, you'd do the same!"

Nalu finds herself convinced by the statement for an instant, despite the mistrust in her gut. She's probably wrong, he's probably totally fine, her rival-sensing instincts are probably keyed wrong against humans, she shouldn't trust authority -

And then another voice rung out, coming from a... wait, is that a luchador? Like the one mom used to watch all of the time?

"Hear me out, my friends, I implore that you go on the tour with us."

Oh yeah, she could absolutely trust this guy.

As soon as he was done, Nalu ran up behind him and called out "Aloha kakahiaka!" (Good morning!)

The wrestler's demeanor softened immediately from his prior posturing. "Oh!  Aloha too you too!"

She's grinning from ear to ear at this. Finally! A friend! Someone to talk to! Oh she's been so so excited about this oh yeah-

"I liked your speech! Really convinced me but... honestly that's not saying much, given me. Hehe."

"Easy to convince eh?  Sort of going with the flow?  Is that what lead you to Dead End?"

"That and the fact I have no moral code, because māmā thinks that's important or something. I'm not really that sure, you know?"  

The wrestler scratched the back of his head. "Mi madre tends to think morals are pretty important.  My dad was the one who beat them into me!  Haha!"  He stuck his hand out to Nalu. Offering something, maybe?  "I am Flynn Guerrero.  What may I call you?"

Nalu took the hand and shook like her mā had taught her... albeit a little too hard. "Call me Nalu! Nice to meet ya, Flynn. I can call you Flynn, right?"

"Flynn?  Fly Boy?  Next World Heavyweight Champion?  Whatever rolls off your tongue right.  I think we'll be good friends Nalu!  Maybe you can learn a thing or two about morals from me."  Nalu was still not fully sure what morals were useful for, but she didn't want to disappoint her māmā, so learning more about them...

"I would like that a lot!" she replied enthusiastically. 

The scent hit her again.

"...that one guy's a jerk though, right? Got... rather bad vibes off of him."

"That guy with the sharp lookin teeth?  Nah he's harmless.  Just probably looking for some attention and comraderie!  I cannot judge him too harshly though.  It is not my place."  Flynn put a hand on Nalu's shoulder as she shuddered slightly.  "I can only hope to change his mind for the better."

"Hopefully..." Nalu said, more hesitantly. She knew that feeling. She did not like it one bit. Part of her wanted to go over him and rend him to chum already. The other part wanted to stay as far away as she could.

"Cheer up friend!  We've got a whole school year ahead of us together!  Let's you and me go on that tour and really have a blast!"

The enthusiasm was contagious for her, helping her shake it off relatively quickly. "Yeah! The tour's gonna be so fun. My first time in a school..." She looked over to the haunted mansion of a school with a massive, predatory grin. Oh, the places they'll go...

Edited February 17 by FourEyesIsAFish

[Saikazo]

"Pretty stupid to wait all this time and then just run away before anything happens, huh?" a voice called out to Reno. He stopped in place, turning his head to look over his shoulder. The boy considered her words before firing back.

“Yeah, well I didn’t get into this school for my genius intelligence. If something happens, you let me know and I’ll eat my own shoe, how about that?” He snarked. He continued his walk until his path was blocked by a… bird man? 

Wait no, that was a mask. Right? Probably.

"Hear me out, my friends," the birdman’s tone reminded Reno of one too many teachers trying to be kind but authoritative. "I implore that you go on the tour with us.  Don't you want to see what this place has to offer!  Look around you!"  the birdman motioned to the masses of students around them, "Isn't this place amazing?  Do you not believe this place has amazing things to offer amazing young people like you?" 

Reno’s eyes drifted around. He saw a lot of trees… a rundown building… some crazy looking people. Okay, the birdman wasn’t wrong, this place was kind of amazing, but…

"I would rather everyone here get off to a good start. There's no use for you to be here if you aren't willing to do it straight...this is a fresh start for all of us...I plead you do not waste it."  Flynn walked past the two, standing out of their way.  "I will not stop you from leaving, I just thought that I would plead this school's case."  He flashed the two a thumbs up.  "My name is Flynn Guerrero!  The Fly Boy!  I hope you reconsider your attempt at hooky, and attend the tour with me!"

“I like your guts, Bird Boy, but you’re wrong about one thing. This isn’t a fresh start. This is just the latest stop. Enjoy the school tour or whatever. I’m outta here.” Reno waved off Flynn as he continued to walk away from the group. 

A pink haired girl walked out of the school group, following Reno, Blake, and Ori’s lead. She smiled at Flynn as she passed by him. 

“You’re a good guy, Flynn. But I think I’m gonna follow them. Might as well make sure they don’t cause too much trouble.” She stated with a confident smile. 

There was only one road to town from Dead End Academy, so the four naturally found themselves walking down that road together. The cool wind nipped at them as they walked down the road. There was hardly a sound beyond the sound of their own footsteps walking the poorly paved road. 

“So, what are you gonna do when you get into town?” Reno asked Blake. His eyes kept drifting over to Ori, but each time, he forced himself to focus back on Blake. It was obvious he wanted to ask Ori things but was holding back. “I’m thinkin’ of hitting up the park myself. Seems like a good place to get a workout, if you know what I mean.”

Whatever reservations Reno might have had with questioning Ori, the pink haired girl didn’t share. She leaned over as she walked, staring directly at Ori’s eyes. Ori could see that the girl’s eyes had a star pattern right in the center of them. 

“You look really cool!” She stated as bluntly as a baseball bat. “My name is Destiny! What’s yours?” Instead of letting Ori answer, she followed up with a barrage of questions. “What does something like you eat? Oh, your hair looks so soft, can I pet you? Isn’t it hard to sleep on your back with wings like that?”

Her barrage of questions ended with one final question.

“Hey, are you strong?”

Ori could see a smile slowly grow on Destiny’s face. Something about it seemed… off. Her eyes stared too intensely, her friendly smile felt hostile. Like if Ori answered wrong, they would have to defend themselves right away. The atmosphere grew heavier as Destiny waited for an answer.

However, the need to answer never came. They group heard the sound of a car horn beeping at them, breaking the tension instantly. A beat up looking red pickup truck pulled up to them, coming to a stop by them. The window rolled down to reveal…

A tyrannosaurus head on top of a muscular body. 

“Yo, you all need a ride to town?” the dinosaur asked, leaning out the window to better talk to the group. “You got a few miles before you hit the outskirts.”

“Yeah, my parents told me never to talk to strangers.” Reno quipped.

“They probably told ya not to skip school either, but here you all are.” was the expert counter. “I’m the school gym teacher!”

“Really? Shouldn’t you be telling us to go back to school then?” Destiny asked. 

“Eh, you guys don’t technically have school, and frankly, I think trying to force you all ain’t a good idea.” He motioned to the back end of the pickup truck. “I’m headed into town to pick up some gym supplies. You all can hitch a ride with me. Turn an hour and a half walk into a ten minute ride.”

“Well, I’m convinced,” Reno jumped into the bed of the truck, finding a comfortable spot and settling in. “You all coming or what?”

Those who stayed behind would find that still no one had come yet. A blonde haired girl sighed loudly as she waited. She looked around, trying to find any sort of sign that a teacher was coming. Instead, she saw a bunch of nothing. Her eyes drifted as she listened to the people yammering off in the background.

Until her eyes noticed something off. 

“What… the hell is that thing…?” she muttered, pointing towards the edge of the forest that grew behind the school. 

At the very edge of the forest stood something. It lumbered towards the schoolyard slowly. The thing’s seven foot tall black body seemed almost like a charcoal drawing come to life, something that closely mimicked reality yet was obviously fake. Or perhaps more fittingly, this was something that seemed fake yet was so obviously real. 

Its whole being seemed to be fuzzy. As if everyone was viewing it through an unfocused camera, or maybe as if it was living static. The only thing people could make out for sure were two large orbs of brilliant ruby red sitting where one would assume eyes would be. They seemed to look directly into everyone’s eyes at once, despite how impossible that was. 

It suddenly stopped walking, standing still in the middle of the field, a good fifty feet away from the students. It raised what one could assume was an arm and pointed at the gathered group. It remained silent and unmoving, as if it had become a statue. 

And then, it was gone. It vanished from everyone’s sight, as if it was never there in the first place. As if it never existed at all. 

A sudden blood curdling scream shattered the silence. The group of ten or so delinquents surrounded the freshmen. Some were hunched over, some looked as if they were struggling to stand. They were twitching as they stood there, as if they were trying to intimidate the freshman.

“Oy, what’s you guys’ problems?” the blonde hair girl half asked, half taunted the delinquents. 

There was no answer.

Instead one of the girls ran forward, faster than the blonde haired girl could process. The delinquent threw a punch, hitting the girl right across the face. The blonde hair girl flew back into the crowd, landing right next to Catherine.

“What the hell is your—” The girl tried to sit up. Her lip was busted and bleeding. Before she could even completely get up, the assaulting delinquent leapt on top of her, pinning her to the ground. Without another word, she opened her mouth and bit straight into the blonde haired girl’s shoulder. “ARRRGH! WHAT THE BLOODY—?!” She struggled to get the delinquent off her, but no matter how she struggled, she just couldn’t do it. 

She looked over to Catherine. “Hey, help me would you?!” She pleaded. 

At that moment, the other delinquents attacked. 

One attempted to jump on Catherine’s back and bit into her shoulder.

Two rushed at Flynn. One threw a wild haymaker at the man’s beak while the other attempted to tackle him.

One leapt at Theo, trying to swipe at her throat with their nails. 

A rather big man roared and attempted to slam both of his hands on top of Nalu’s skull.

And the rest attacked the rest of the freshman. It was an all out brawl, a tumultuous throw down!  

---

OOC
 

Spoiler

Okay, so those in the truck. If you want some conversation, feel free to DM me, I'll do my best to respond fast and get you an interesting conversation.

To those fighting, feel free to style on these bozos. They're all swinging wildly, no ounce of skill or even thought behind theirs moves. The only thing some of you might notice is that they seem stronger than their body types might suggest.

 

[LordCowCow]

“Yeah, well I didn’t get into this school for my genius intelligence. If something happens, you let me know and I’ll eat my own shoe, how about that?”

While the girl's literal doll-face had limited capacity for emotion when the boy said that it was clear that the idea was one that interested her. "Okay, I'll hold you to that!" she responded, waving him an exaggerated goodbye. Humming to herself she stood up and looked around to see if there was anyone else worth poking at of those who stayed behind. 

The large one with a large voice came to mind. He certainly stood out. He was currently talking to another strange human. Catherine put a finger to her lips as she looked between the two and tried to think of the best way to introduce herself. She continued to watch the two, staring openly if they were to look her way, for a bit as she considered taunting them about a perceived romance.

Which was when she saw the...fuzzy person. She watched it as it watched them. Wondering if it was about to do something fun to liven up this place. And then it vanished just like that. "Huh. Humans sure come in all shapes and sizes." Catherine said out loud. She had never seen a person that looked like that but, then again, it wasn't until recently that she saw many others besides her old people.

She was about to see even more of them up close and personal real soon.

It happened incredibly quick considering how long they had been waiting with nothing going on. Her head craned down to look at the girl who had just been knocked through the air and was now beside her.

“ARRRGH! WHAT THE BLOODY—?!”

"Oh my. Did you skip breakfast?" Catherine asked the person who had just bitten the girl. Hm, no, something certainly seemed weird about all of this. What could it be.... "She probably doesn't taste very good you know...or...does she?" Catherine tilted her head and stared at the blonde girl.

“Hey, help me would you?!"

"Why?"

But then the rest attacked. And one of them had jumped onto her back and, much like with the blonde girl, bit her shoulder. It took her a moment to register the attack and when she did she let out an unconvincing "Ow."

Then she reached back and grabbed onto the person biting her and yanked them off. She held them up above her head and tried to ask what they wanted to no avail.

Catherine then glanced back at the struggling blonde and, with a shrug, swung the delinquent she was holding like a bat at the one on top of the girl and knocked them off.

She then proceeded to chuck the one that attacked her off into the distance before bending over to grab the other one by the leg and flinging them in the same direction.

The doll turned towards the blonde girl and offered her a jointed hand. "Wow, you're really weak huh?" She said.

The blonde took her hand and Catherine pulled her up to her feet. "I'm working on it!" the girl snapped and, noticing that the delinquent's teeth had broken skin, tried to stop her bleeding.

"Oh. Well. Good luck." Catherine looked the girl up and down. "You look like you'll need it. A lot of it."

[Mr. Hyde]

“I like your guts, Bird Boy, but you’re wrong about one thing. This isn’t a fresh start. This is just the latest stop. Enjoy the school tour or whatever. I’m outta here.”

Somehow, in his heart, he knew the boys' mind was already made up.  He was glad he had at least spoke up and attempted to dissuade him, even if the effort was in vain.  Flynn nodded towards the boy, acknowledging his decision.  A girl with vivid pink hair appeared, following behind them.

“You’re a good guy, Flynn. But I think I’m gonna follow them. Might as well make sure they don’t cause too much trouble.”

"Stay safe out there."  Flynn gave her a thumbs up, hoping nothing would go awry.  Sadly, the girl hadn't introduced herself, so he would have to ask for her name on her safe return.  In the meantime, Idle chit chat hung all around them as they waited for the tour to begin.  People from all walks of life just trying to break the ice, as awkwardly as kids at this age did.  However, a murmur in the crowd caught his attention, as a girl with blonde hair pointed towards something far away.

“What… the hell is that thing…?”

Looking to where her finger lead his vision, a blurry figure was approaching them from beyond the forest line.  Flynn couldn't make the thing out.  The harder he tried to focus, the fuzzier it seemed.  If there was one thing he could tell, it was rather large.  It's fierce, red eyes looked as if they were peering directly into his very fiber of being.  He didn't flinch while it approached, but once it had vanished from sight, he couldn't help but almost jump out of his skin.  When that soul shattering scream rang out, Flynn assumed his wrestling pose purely on instinct.  His hands, now pouring with sweat, were ready to grab whatever approached him.  He took a deep breath to relax himself.  He hadn't necessarily used his wrestling in street brawls like this before, and he hadn't assumed he was going to need to, but whatever this thing was warranted him to put up his guard.  Nothing had ever make him feel like that in his life.  Suddenly, a group of what he could only assume were tweakers were converging on the group.  They convulsed and twitched, as if they were under some sort of influence, most likely whatever lied beyond those woods.  One of them launched towards Flynn, packing their fist up and launching it towards his mask.  

"Ain't no way, brother!"  Flynn, with the reflexes of some sort of big cat, swayed back to avoid the punch.  In turn, he raised his left leg and wound it tight, ultimately launching his foot directly into the lower region of the punks abdomen.  Holding back something fierce, the delinquent was still launched across the courtyard like a missile.  He hadn't noticed the second scallywag until his tackle connected, but Flynn refused to sell that weak attempt at a spear.  Without budging an inch, Flynn raised a single finger in the air.  

"Now this one is for all those Fly Boy fans out in the crowd!  I know you're out there!  Let me hear you say, 'BOOYAH!'"  He used one hand and grabbed the grunt by the waist, and used the other to grip the grimy goon tightly.  Flynn raised the ragamuffin into the air, parallel to his own body, and fell back, performing his famous Birdbrain Buster!  The opponent was slammed onto the ground, as Flynn's giant body pressed into them further.  The two tough guys were out cold, and Flynn hadn't even broken a sweat.  Those around him were clapping and cheering him on, as he struck a flexing pose, pumping his bicep fiercely.  

Snapping out of his celebration, he made his way to at least attempt to help someone else.  Nalu was faced with a rather large foe, so his first instinct was to help her.  

"Nalu, get out of the way, I can take him!"  

Edited March 1 by Mr. Hyde

[Chaos Sonic]

"Hear me out, my friends, I implore that you go on the tour with us.  Don't you want to see what this place has to offer!  Look around you! Isn't this place amazing?  Do you not believe this place has amazing things to offer amazing young people like you? I would rather everyone here get off to a good start. There's no use for you to be here if you aren't willing to do it straight...this is a fresh start for all of us...I plead you do not waste it. I will not stop you from leaving, I just thought that I would plead this school's case.. My name is Flynn Guerrero!  The Fly Boy!  I hope you reconsider your attempt at hooky, and attend the tour with me!"

Despite the protests of the birdman, The Fly Boy - Flynn Guerrero… which Blake thought he recognized, must've been the whole wrestler visage he had going on… regardless, despite the protests, he went on with the snarky one and a strange creature… that didn't look like a mascot costume, like one would've assumed with the Fly Boy, no this seemed like flesh and blood… er… fur and blood? Blake already had a headache forming just from this alone. But despite this, a pink haired girl joined the ranks… so the trio of students playing hooky had increased to four.

“So, what are you gonna do when you get into town? I’m thinkin’ of hitting up the park myself. Seems like a good place to get a workout, if you know what I mean.”

“I hear you there…” Blake adjusted his bag on his shoulder. “Honestly, I'm here to take the sights in…cause we're gonna be here for a while… may as well get acquainted with the surroundings, ya know? And hopefully, I'll find a thread of what I'm looking for.” He knew that sounded ominous, but right now, Blake didn't want to involve anyone else in his personal mission. ...not presently, anyway... I know good and well that people will get involved... just as long as no one gets in my way, we'll be perfectly fine.

He also couldn't help but hear the tail end of the conversation that the pink haired girl, Destiny, was having with the furred one. The way she asked if this creature was strong… it was unnerving, like immensely so. Blake now had to worry about this one specifically just from that alone. From what he could tell, at least from that one specific line and bit of dialogue to the furred one, she seemed like the kind of girl that would be labeled as someone's little monster... she seemed THAT psychotic. It almost made Blake want to reach in his bag and grab his special gimmick tool and prepare to defend. Though it's not like he could retort as much as he wanted… not when a car horn beeped their way and… an individual with a tyrannosaurus rex head popped up. …what was with this place???

“Yo, you all need a ride to town? You got a few miles before you hit the outskirts.”

“Yeah, my parents told me never to talk to strangers.” 

“They probably told ya not to skip school either, but here you all are. I’m the school gym teacher!”

Busted… Blake couldn't help but question the timing of this… it was almost comedic in the whole grand scheme of it. But he relented on thinking about it more… at least this time. Namely cause this gym teacher of theirs... actually seemed to not want to immediately ship them all back with the others. Now that seemed good...

“Really? Shouldn’t you be telling us to go back to school then?”

“Eh, you guys don’t technically have school, and frankly, I think trying to force you all ain’t a good idea. I’m headed into town to pick up some gym supplies. You all can hitch a ride with me. Turn an hour and a half walk into a ten minute ride.”

“Well, I’m convinced. You all coming or what?”

That was all the convincing that Blake needed. He hopped in after the snarky one, giving a slight relaxed sigh. “Well, this does beat walkin’... thanks mister…?”

"Terry! Terry Tyranno!" The man gave a thumbs up at Blake. "So, is there anywhere in town you were all looking to go?"

"Honestly, I'm trying to just get a feel for the area..." Blake shrugged. "I know the snarky guy here was thinking of the park... uh... shit, what's your name? I'd prefer not to call you 'the snarky one' the whole time." Annnnnnd he just said that to him... smooth Howard... smooth...

"It's Reno," The snarky one commented. There was a slight paused before he asked "What's yours?"

"Blake Howard." he introduced himself, to the now named Reno. "But yeah, Reno here was talkin' about seeing the park... aside from that, not sure what else you guys have here in this backwater town... no offense."

"Well, if you're interested, I can show you all the community rec center. It's still being fixed up, but you could at least lift weights. Maybe swim if you can buy some trunks,"

A rec center? Now that sounded slightly promising... especially with the fact that this could definitely be a spot to hear any and all information around the town. After all, Blake knew people loved to talk around in either a rec center, if they happen to be mingling and hanging out. If he could find out any leads or who may have information in regards NORNIR... then all this bullshit would be worth it. He ran a hand through his bag, feeling that cold steel of that device right along his fingertips, though he felt something else... right next to his book. Fishing it out, he noticed it was a business card of sorts... Theodora West... Witch For Hire... Blake blinked at this strange card he didn't remember packing up... but at the same time, perhaps this was destiny at play here. They had themselves a witch here... perhaps some divination could be in order as a last resort. Noted... duly noted...

"Well, park... rec center, either way... sounds like we might be in for a bit of a fun time for sure. Kinda feel bad for 'the Fly-Boy' and the rest... they'll probably miss all the action." he gave a snicker... though he couldn't shake the feeling that he might've misspoken here... couldn't understand why however. Maybe just something he was imagining.

[vivi_]

If someone was supposed to show up and give the students the tour, they sure weren't showing up. Maybe the tour wasn't guided? Theo thought about going to explore the campus on her own if someone didn't show up soon. But then, someone did show up. Or, rather, something.

“What… the hell is that thing…?”

The witch turned her gaze toward... what the hell was that thing? No matter how she adjusted her eyes, it was somehow always out of focus. Its entire body was solid black, like some sort of charcoal drawing, except for its bright red eyes that seemed to stare at her and everyone else assembled outside all at the same time. It pointed ominously at seemingly nothing, then... when Theo blinked her eyes, it was gone. Whatever that was all about. Shortly after its departure though, something else happened. A bloodcurdling scream, and soon after that? Violence.

Whatever the hell was these kids' problem, one of them had chosen to make it Theodora's problem. Being fairly in-shape was practically a requirement for witchcraft, but even so, the element of surprise had let them nick her neck with their nails. Whatever the hell their problem was, they were going to learn today.

Among the many rules in witch society, two of the most important were separated only by context. Never leave a debt unpaid, and never leave a grudge unresolved. Whatever inspired this delinquent to attack Theodora, it definitely had earned a grudge, and she wasn't about to leave it unresolved. Unfortunately, Theo had left her aptly-named "bag of tricks" on her seat when she got up to address the boys. And it wasn't like she'd have time to stir something up in a cauldron, never mind the fact there wasn't one near her. This meant that all she had to work with was her own two hands, and what little tricks she could do without any prep time or special tools. However, witchcraft had many uses, and its power could be used in surprising ways.

When the mad delinquent ran at Theo for a second swipe, she was ready this time. She stepped out of the way, plucking a single hair off their head as they stumbled past her. Hair was a very powerful tool for spells meant to work on one specific person. Anything containing the target's DNA, really, but hair was the most accessible. With a wave of her other hand over her prize, the hair began to glow. Only for her to drop it to the ground, ducking down to the ground as her assailant charged in for a third strike. Not getting hit again was nice and all, but being low to the ground for this next part was what Theo really needed. She put her hands over the grass, combing it down over the hair she'd placed down. As she did, the blades she touched glowed a sickly pale purple, and the grass beneath the delinquent's feet did the same. Only for that grass to then shoot up like vines, wrapping itself tight around their wrists and ankles, then dragging them down to the ground, where they thrashed and flailed in an attempt to break free.

That wasn't going to happen as long as Theo kept the spell going. And she had no intention of getting up from her spot on the ground just yet.

"Well, I'd say that's witchcraft: one, brute force: zero."

That said, she didn't want to stay here forever. She could fix up a more semi-permanent solution for her assailant, but it required things from her bag. And going to get those things meant moving away from where she was currently doing her thing, and the spell would probably break in the time it took her to get the bag herself. So, she glanced around the crowd, looking for anyone who looked to still be sane and not currently occupied.

"You there, could you be a peach and get my bag? It's over there hanging from that chair, the one with the rabbit pins on it."

[Saikazo]

Destiny and Ori followed the two boys into the truck's bed. The group had to shuffle around a bit to make sure Ori had enough space to sit, but they made it work. After confirming they were all comfortable, Terry drove off.

He did his best to keep the ride smooth, but there were plenty of bumps and pot holes he had to avoid. The pungent scent of diesel was mixed with the the cool wind that whipped through through the students' hair.

"Sorry about the bumps, kids!" Terry called out. "There should be some marshmallows back there. Help yourselves! Ain't much, but should help past the time!"

Looking down, Reno quickly spotted the unopened bag of marshmallows. 

"Ah, nice," With a hum, he picked up up the bad and tore it open in one smooth motion. He reached in, putting one marshmallow in each hand. A light orange flame ignited around the fingers that held the marshmellows, cooking them. The smell of toasting marshmallows overwhelmed the diesel smell, and the sounds of the crackling of fire filled the air. After a few seconds, he had two perfectly toasted marshmellows. He popped one in without hesitation. "Not bad. I shoulda burned it more though," He shrugged. "Anyone want thi---"

Destiny's hand lashed out like a whip, snatching the marshmallow out of Reno's hand. She munched at it daintly. She probably would have been considered cute if it wasn't for her manic question not even a few minutes ago. 

Reno reached back into the bag, once again grabbing two marshmallows and cooking them again. He looked to Blake and Ori, holding out a toasted treat for both of them. "Well, do you guys want one?" 

Whether they took one or not, the truck still kept rolling. The road eventually smoothed out, and the forest gave way to civilization. The forests were replaced by beaten up, dirty houses. Those houses were quickly replaced by cleaner houses and buildings. Though many were empty, it did look like a small town. 

The truck came to a halt at a traffic light. As they waited for the lights, a police car pulled up next to the truck. Of course, having people in the bed of the truck was very dangerous. In the event of a wreck, the students could get extremely hurt, or even killed. In most places, that wouldn't fly. 

The cops didn't even look up at them. 

The light turned green, and Terry took a right, driving across a bridge. The water below was so far down that the students couldn’t even hear the water rushing downstream. 
After crossing the bridge, it only took a few more minutes of driving before the truck pulled into a large parking lot. There were a few cars scattered around the parking lot, all looking a little beat up. Some construction equipment was in the far corner of the parking lot, likely to help finish building the place. 

“Well, here we are, kids,” Terry commented as he parked the truck. “Feel free to do whatever. If you want a ride back to school, I’ll be heading back in like…” He paused, rubbing his chin. “Actually, no, you’d only get like an hour or two if we did that. I’ll tell you what, how about at sunset, I’ll pick you all up here, alright?”

From there, he headed into the community rec center. The four were free to go where they wanted. 

Looking out from the parking lot, they could see what appeared to be a small shopping center. About six small stores were situated around a corner. They seemed to range from ice cream shops, to specialty foods, and a game store. 

A little further down, they could see a movie theater. If they had the money, they could catch a movie for sure.

And beyond that, there was a Malwart Supercenter.

If they followed Terry inside, then they would find themselves in a lobby. Looking around, they could easily spot the way to the locker rooms, and the way to an indoor running track, a weight room, and a pool. 

They would also see several unfinished rooms, taped off and still being constructed. However, they would also notice a strange man slipping past the tape. No one seemed to notice him, and by now, Terry had disappeared to a different part of the building. 

In the end, the students were left to their own devices. Their choices will form their own story.

Two gigantic fists slammed down on top of Nalu. The approaching Flynn could see Nalu’s head splatter, blobs of liquid being thrown around. However… she seemed fine. The place when the man had slammed was now a blob of aqueous material. 

The large man let out a growl of confusion. He slammed down again. And again. And again! Like a hammer, the man’s fists tried to bury Nalu into the earth. 

But Nalu wasn’t a nail. No, she was water. The man’s fists simply sent ripples through Nalu’s half melted body. It didn’t seem as if she even felt a single blow. 

Feeling frustrated, the man opened his mouth and went right for Nalu’s neck, trying to bite her! 

Meanwhile, the blonde haired girl ripped off one of her sleeves, wrapping it around the point the crazy delinquent had bit her. What the hell was all that?

"You there, could you be a peach and get my bag? It's over there hanging from that chair, the one with the rabbit pins on it." 

The blonde haired girl looked over to Theodora, blinking in confusion. She quickly scanned over the chairs and found the bag. 

“Yeah, you got it,” The girl grabbed the bag, slinging it over her shoulder. She then grabbed the chair, folding it up and holding it like a weapon. Gritting her teeth, she ran over to Theodore.

A delinquent ran right at the blonde haired girl to attack her, but this time she was ready. She swung the metal chair with all her might, nailing the delinquent right in the face. A loud metallic clang rang out, and a face shaped dent was left in the chair. 

Despite this great blow, the delinquent was not knocked out. However, they did fall over long enough for the girl to reach Theodore. 

“There! What do you need this for anyways?” she asked.

The delinquent Theodore had wrapped up thrashed wildly, almost foaming at the mouth with rage. If the two looked closely, they’d see a trait shared among all the other attacking delinquents. 

Bloodshot eyes with red irises. 

Catherine would see the delinquent she used as a weapon slowly getting up off the ground. Their body looked as if it would give out at any moment, and yet they managed to get back up. Their movements were stiff and jerky, like a puppet played by an amatuer.

As they stood up, they grabbed the other delinquent by the collar. They twisted their entire body, raising their unconscious ally over their head. Space itself felt like it contorted as the delinquent drew back like a bow. With power far exceeding that of a normal person, they threw their ally with all their might at Catherine. The delinquent arrow shot straight for Catherine’s head.

Flynn would feel two arms attempting to wrap around him. The delinquent  that tried to punch his mask was back! He managed to cross the distance Flynn had sent him in the short time between that and Flynn attempting to help Nalu. 

That seemed way too fast for a normal person. 

With his years of experience, Flynn could easily deduce what his opponent wanted. They were going for the classic German Suplex!

As these battles raged on, it seemed the school finally noticed. An older man began to approach the group from the back doors of the school. However, it was obvious he would not get there in time to stop anything. 

Perhaps sometimes never was better than late. 
 

---

OOC
 

Spoiler

Honestly guys, second verse, same as the first.
Don't be afraid to DM me if you need things. Especially those that went into town. Explore whatever you want, I will feed you some info to fill out your post. 
Fights will wrap up next host posts. Once again, feel free to style on people. 

 

Edited Saturday at 15:38 by Saikazo

[LordCowCow]

Catherine watched with amusement at the delinquent's jerky movements. "So humans DO move like that. I don't know what they were talking about." she said mostly to herself. When she had first begun to move she moved a lot like that too and the old people had made sure she learned how to move "properly".

Her head tilted to one side as the delinquent threw another one at her. "Oooh you're learning new tricks, good doggie." she said with feign sweetness.

The arrow-delinquent soared through the air and reached her quickly. Catherine pulled back and swung her hand and delivered a good hard slap right across their face. This stopped them short mid-air for a moment before the reverse momentum took over and they soared off to the left. Body spinning like a windmill as they passed by several other people locked in combat.

A second later she felt another delinquent jump onto her back. Followed by another on their back. And yet another on THEIR back. She would normally be able to carry such weight but the sudden pressure pushed her onto the ground, buried under the pile of bodies.

She lay there a moment. Perhaps she could push them off if she tried but the awkward way she landed made it hard to get any sort of leverage.

With a sigh she decided to close her eyes and cease moving.

What she saw next was the entire scene from up above. Everything was grey except for the people which each faintly glowed with various colors.

Catherine, unseen to anyone else slipped through the crowd and found a knocked over chair. When she touched it she now could see more or less like normal again. The chair began to float up in the air and it flung itself across the air towards Catherine's body. Catherine moved the chair so that the largest surface area slammed into the pile of bodies on her body and knocked two of them clear off.

The last clung on with an almost desperate strength and so Catherine began to repeatedly bash them across the back with the chair. Over and over again with enough force that the chair began getting bent out of shape. Finally the delinquent loosened their grip and the chair clattered to the ground and Catherine stood up and tossed the delinquent off her body.

She walked over to the two others and grabbed them both by one leg. She then lifted them up and slammed them into the ground. Once, twice, a third time for good measure before letting go and turning in a full circle. "Huh, so this is what school is? How exciting!"

[Mr. Hyde]

Flynn wasn't quick enough to make it to Nalu in time, as the delinquent's fists came hammering down upon her head.  He watched as the girls head shattered apart...or splattered apart.  Nalu seemed to be entirely comprised of liquid.  He head squished it's shape, and she seemed unphased.  The display was another shock for Flynn, as the girl he had just been conversing rather friendly with was just an amorphous blob, not that there was anything wrong with that of course.  Her assailant had become rather feral, flailing around in a vein attempt to try and damage her.  Even though the girl seemed to be able to handle him, Flynn still made an attempt to go and assist her.  

He was stopped in his tracks when the kid he had sent flying prior was now grabbing at his waist.  Flynn went to try and rip the thug's grip apart, but it proved to be more difficult than he initially thought.  Flynn was hoisted into the air by his middle.  This technique was familiar to a grappler such as himself!  He was about to take the brunt of a German Supplex.  Smiling beneath his mask, Flynn tucked his chin into his chest, and protected his neck with clasped hands.  Flynn crashed into the ground harder than he had on any wrestling mat before, and let out a loud grunt as he did so.  It was probably the third of fourth hardest bump he had taken in his life up until this point.  His opponent had dropped the hold on his waist, as Flynn writhed and wriggled in agony on the ground.  The crowd that had been watching their fight specifically had begun to gasp, almost reaching out for the Luchador.  He couldn't help but give a faint smile through the pain.  Everybody liked their hero on the backfoot...it would make their cheering all the more sweeter in a moment.  The delinquent stood up, rather clumsily, and proceeded to jump into the air above Flynn.  They stuck out their leg so that it would act as a guillotine over Flynn's neck.  

Flynn gave up the act of the amount of pain he was in, noticing the amateur's move.

"An Atomic Leg Drop!?  Impressive!"  Flynn instantly bounced off of his back, and onto his feet, crouched like some sort of wild cat.  "You're not so bad, rookie.  I'll show you something cool!"  With an explosion from his quadriceps, he launched himself into the air, intercepting the fledgling luchador in the making.  The two of them soared at least thirty feet into the air, before Flynn rotated the delinquent one-hundred and eighty degrees with ease.  He grabbed their legs underneath his arms, their wrists with his hands, shoving his knees underneath their arms.  With a twist, the two of them began their descent with a rapid twirling motion.  He laughed as the two rapidly plummeted towards earth, the delinquents head poised to crash into the ground at top speed.  "What do you think, eh!?  You are about to take on one of my experimental finishers!  I don't even have a name for it yet!  HAHAHA!"  This would have never flown for a real show, none of the wrestlers in his realm would be able to take this bump without serious injury, but this brute could take it...right?

No...this guy was obviously under the influence of something...and Flynn didn't want to inflict serious harm onto someone who wasn't in control of their own actions.

Before the last seconds before impact, Flynn changed his position into that of a mid-air pile driver.  He legs would provide more cushion to the blow, but not all of it.  The delinquents back collided with the ground, as it cratered beneath the two.  When the dust settled, Flynn brushed his hands together, and stuck his fists into the air, each pointing with one finger to the sky.

"MY FANS, NEW AND OLD!!!  THIS IS LUCHA!!  THIS IS MI VIDA!!!"  

 A roar erupted from the crowd that was watching him at the awesome display.  His legs were shaky, the impact of the piledriver still coursed through them.  The pain mixed with his nerves was really putting them through the ringer.  He had never put on such an impromptu show before, but he was proud of himself.  He looked to the rest of the battlefield, and noticed the blonde girl from before being chased as she handed a bag towards Theodore.  Flynn dashed off once more, and leapt into a dropkick in an attempt to intercept him.