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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?"  

Chris stood up as the monster did, and so was able to shift his position until he was at the crown of its head. He considered doing a leaping stab into it again (inasmuch as anyone could consider anything while in his situation, stupid as it was), but the crawler was dealing with the shifting terrain much better than he was -- there wasn’t much time to waste on an attack that would do “some damage” but probably not “enough.” At the same time, there wasn’t much else he could be doing. There weren’t any more directions to run. Either he could fight a losing battle against the crawler, or he could run (in any direction) off of the side of the colossus and fall all the way to the ground. Neither seemed appealing. He hadn’t lost hope, though. He could keep fighting. He had that capacity still in him. All those promises he’d made, and he was still so young! Just because he hadn’t found a way out of the predicament he’d put himself in just yet didn’t mean he wasn’t going to. Chris let his arms fall to his sides, and relaxed his stance. He kept an eye on the thing crawling towards him, but his focus was elsewhere. Down below, Ziun was keeping the other monsters at bay, while Lana had run off in pursuit of light he could barely see as high up as he was. There was nothing for it. He had done what he could up here, and hopefully been enough of a nuisance where it mattered, but, somehow, he needed to join his teammates in the fight below. Chris sheathed his sword and took out a dagger. He could climb down, but this was a different sort of climb, and the smaller blade size did matter in this case. Just as the crawling monster started to catch up to him, Chris shuffled to the side, and scrambled down towards where one of the larger monster’s ears might be. He leaned against the slope as it increased, and, when it got too much to bear, he put his dagger against the monster to help break his fall. The monster’s skin did not give easily, and he knew he had to be careful to not jam it in too deep and get stuck, but Chris somehow managed to at least land on the monster’s shoulder no worse for wear. Chris looked at the ground, significantly further away than the fall he had just taken. “Really glad I’m not scared of heights,” he said. There wasn’t time for second-guessing. Even just an errant shrug would have displaced him at that point. Chris leaned over the side of the shoulder, adjusted his dagger, and slid. Despite his best efforts, Chris still hit the ground hard enough to collapse him to his back, though, thankfully, besides the pain, still no worse for wear. He could get up quickly enough, and good thing, too. Ziun had been distracting some of the shadow monsters with illusions, but it was clear they wouldn’t be distracted for much longer.

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...