Peacekeeper Academy (ICC) (Rated M)

[IceFyr1928]

"Ryan, it is time for you to awaken." Yaphaeral said to his sleeping companion, who groaned. Ryan sat up in bed, rubbing his eyes.

"Why?" He asked.

"Did you forget about the party tonight? It will start soon." Yaphaeral responded.

"I already told you. I'm not going. You can go have a blast, just let me stay here." Ryan said. He had stood up, and proceeded to pace.

"No. This time, you come with me. There are some people that I would like you to meet." He said.

"Really? You know how I feel about people."

"Not many people. Four people, not many. You need to conquer your fear." Yaphaeral said, and before he could respond, Yaphaeral steered Ryan out the door by his shoulder.

They soon arrived at the beach, where many people had gathered. Ryan cringed back, but Yaphaeral's grip didn't loosen. He led Ryan over to the two witches that he had encountered earlier.

"This is Ryan. Ryan these are two of the people that I wanted you to meet. Kazan, make sure he stays with you." Yaphaeral said, then wandered off to another area of the beach.

Ryan

Ryan gave up as Yaphaeral's hand clamped down on his shoulder. He allowed himself to be dragged out to the beach, and stood there when he was left with the two people that Yaphaeral had apparently met.

"Hi..." Ryan said to the two in front of him, slowly secluding back into himself.

[juniebug910]

Chikyu and Kazan

Chikyu smiled and bowed. "Thank you. I am performing a dance tonight in this, and Kazan will accompany it with a piano." Kazan nodded. "And we do indeed come from Japan, but when our parents heard of the acadamy, we all decided it would be the best for us. We are setting up a studio on the outskirts of the city."

Kazan then nodded when Yaphaeral left another person with him. Chikyu beamed. "I am Chikyu, an earth witch, and a dancer. This is my brother Kazan, a water wizard, and a piano player." Kazan bowed. "Hello."

[IceFyr1928]

"Ryan... Shadow..." He said before withdrawing again. The people kept coming.

C'mon. You are stronger than this. Ryan thought. He stood straighter, and ignored all the other people around him. He heard a band start playing rock in the background. He smiled as he imagined Yaphaeral in the front of the crowd, doing an air guitar.

"So, water and earth? Very complimentary." Ryan said to the two in front of him. "I think that I am going to add some light to this party."

He stepped back from the crowd, and began chanting a summoning spell. The nature of this one made him glow a bit, but he didn't mind. Soon, a void appeared in the sky, and a few Fire Imps flew out, landing in front of him.

"Okay, I want you to add a bit of entertainment to this party. Just fly around, controlling fireballs to give it a concert atmosphere. Dismissed." He said to the group of three winged, red imps, who nodded and flew off.

Soon, various combinations of fire began appearing in the sky. He cheered, glad that his plan had worked the way he had wanted. He then heard other students cheering as the emblem of the school formed in the sky above the stage. Thankfully, the Fire Imps had become invisible, as to not be discovered. With any luck, they would all think that a powerful fire type would be providing the entertainment.

[Khawill]

Clare and Kale
They played loud an energeticly, getting the crowd pumped up. "The amp is loud and we're playing loud." Clare was singing the lyrics to Loud Speaker, fairly basic since it was the first song they wrote. Kale sang back up, though there really was no need for it in this song so he had more solos. Overall they did well, some witch had started a fire show and no problems had arisen. "... The sound waves stopping, the noise going down." Clare had a powerfull voice, inspiring even.

They song ended and Clare spoke to the crowd, well yelled at the crowd, "You guys pumped yet!?" She listened as a wave of yeses roared through the group. "You want to hear another!?" Another wave of agreements and screaming began. "ONE, TWO, THRE, FOUR." Kale started Fate thread off, this one was a bit softer though still loud. "I'm hanging by my fingertips as I look below." Clare sang, Kale repeating the last word, "The string is coming loose, I feel like it will go." Kale gave a drawn oh, "I'm so powerless, the world is so ruthless." The tempo picked up, the chorus was starting. "I'm hanging by a fate thread! At any moment I could be dead, my friend fixing my bed! I'm hanging by a fate thread! Theres turmoil in my head as I look down and see my graaaa-Aave" A hard strum and the chorus ended. Overall the audience loved it, the crowd was louder this time than during Loud Speaker.

Their final song wasn't played due to an encore of Fate Thread, they stepped off the stage tired and breathing hard, Kale spoke up "I haven't played that hard since Toronto." Clare laughed, "You did well singing too, we really riled the crowd up."

Clare agreed,"I'm surprised we didn't mess up fate thread, you always mess up during the chorus." They packed up their guitars and safely put them backstage, then they started to mingle. They met Maggy and O who congratulated them, (Mostly Maggy, O wasn't a huge fan of rock.) and they met the psychic twins from earlier who also gave them a compliment, (though neither of them seemed to actually care.). O made a comment on a traditional dance that would be coming up that he was excited for.

They also met a small girl named Lucy and her Cat, she claimed they were both students but Clare and Kale figured she was really just pretending and pat her head. The next performance would be on soon and they figured it was the witches from earlier so they got front row seats (well stood at the front of the crowd, anyone in seats would be unable to see.

[IceFyr1928]

Ryan smiled as he conducted the acompanyment light show from the back. The crowd loved it. The band, don playing stepped off the stage. Ryan called back the Fire Imps.

"Good job. You can go now." He said to them, and they melted from the human realm for the time being.

Ryan went to go find Yaphaeral. He had a smile on his face, and walked lightly. He soon found Yaphaeral talking with the two rock musicians.

"Hey. I'm Ryan. It seems to me that you've already met Yaphaeral." Ryan said, offering a handshake.

[juniebug910]

Chikyu and Kazan

Curtains cut the audience's vision on the stage. Any helpers backstage were putting up cherry blossom decor, bridges, lakes, and a piano for Kazan. Chikyu opened her umbrella. She was ready.

Kazan sat down on the seat in front of the piano and sighed. "Ready, sis?" Chikyu nodded, then put the umbrella in front of her face for the opening pose. Kazan focused, then started to play the piano (song:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8FYh...feature=relmfu). The curtains then rose.

Chikyu uncovered her face, then began to dance. Left, right, right, left... she danced gracefully, the stars up above shining on her...

[Khawill]

Clare and Kale
Kale watched bewitched by the show dance was great, Clare was busy thinking over what the twins had said earlier, saying they owned a studio. She was thinking about how she would ask, their music was so peaceful and the songs they played we're loud. She reached out and shook Ryan's Han while thinking about and asked him, "Do you have any talents other than being a strong fighter?" Before he could answer Maggy interrupted, looking a bit grumpy.

"I was asked by O to see if you know any ballads." She said it monotonely as if she didnt care (she didn't), "If so can you please go up after this performance? We have an acoustic guitar backstage if needed."

Kale was still entranced and didn't answer, Clare asked Ryan to pardon her, "We can talk latter, sorry!" She turned to Maggy, "Yea I suppose we can, though for what reason, if I may ask?"

"Well O is enjoying the dancing to much." She rolled her eyes, "And he's pretty good with a guitar, we figured you can keep things slow."

Clare rubbed her chin, "Well then sure, it can't hurt our rep any. Summers! We're doing a ballad when they get done."

He didn't even turn around,"Yeah okay, which ones." Half listening.

"Only one Summers, we can do Universe."

"What's universe? The one we haven't named yet?" Clare answered yes, "Aw why is it called universe then, that's so lame." Clare turned him around so that he was facing her and she gave him a theatening look, "Uh oh universe yeah, I thought you said you knee verse, that would've been odd." She released him and he continued watching the show.

"There you have it, we can do a ballad." Maggy slumped off, clearly bored. Clare turned to Ryan, "Nice to meet you, I'm Clare and that is Kale Summers, we are the strongest human pair on campus." Inflating the truth a bit never hurt anyone Clare figured and she was definitely one to inflate her reputation.

[juniebug910]

Chikyu and Kazan

Chikyu finished the dance, Kazan the song, and the audience burst into applause. Chikyu bowed, Kazan standing up and doing the same. The curtain went down again, and all the decor was taken down. Chikyu sat down at the back, then looked up and noticed a monkey star pattern. First a dragon, then a rat, now a monkey. The zodiac?

Kazan noticed it as well, and had a similier idea. "Amazing..." Chikyu nodded, then got up. "I'm going to go back and change back to normal." Kazan nodded as he watched Chikyu walk off, then got up and went around the front to sit in the audience.

Back in the room, Chikyu changed back to her kimono, her mind on the star pictures. Why were they specifically in the order of the zodiac? Would that mean that she would see a pig picture next?

[IceFyr1928]

Ryan stood back when the senior witch came by, asking if the two rock musicians knew any ballads. Ryan knew quite a lot, and had come up with a few.

"Excuse me, but do you mind if I join you? I can go and get my harp." Ryan said to Claire. He hadn't performed to anyone but Yaphaeral, but he was quite skilled with the handheld instrument.

Ryan, not waiting for an answer, sprinted back to the dorm room. He bursted into his room, and grabbed the harp that was sitting just under his bed. He ran back out towards the party, hoping that they wouldn't start without him.

[Khawill]

Clare and Kale
"I guess but the ballad we do is only acoustic guitar." Clare tried to explain, but it was too late, he had already ran off, "Well I suppose a harp wouldn't hurt anything."

Kale looked cross, "But I was the strings guy." He huffed, much like a child who had just been told he couldn't have candy.

"Quit being such a baby, such a nice kid, I'm sure it would be okay if he plays a song with us, think of him like a fan!" Kale shrugged his shoulders, he didn't really care at this point, there was no changing Clare's mind so he just continued pouting. Kale set up backstage, finding the school's acoustic guitar and a stool, Clare went backstage as well but had met one of the witches from earlier.

"Uh, sorry to bother you but can I ask something of you? You mentioned a studio business, can me and my friend stay live there and work there? I mean we can do soft songs too, and Summers can certainly learn Japanese songs on his acoustic. Or we can work tables or something, I'm a great cook and cleaner."

[juniebug910]

((First instance of the two NOT being roleplayed at the same time! No chikyu till I decide something))

Kazan

Kazan heard the request clearly. "Why not? We need people for the studio anyway. Chikyu probably won't mind."

Chikyu's been gone for a while now...is she thinking about the star pictures?

Kazan then paused, then said "Have you noticed the stars tonight? Me and my sister saw first a dragon star chart, then a rat, then a monkey. Sounds like the order for the zodiac."

[Khawill]

Clare
Clare had no idea what a zodiac was so she just smile and nodded, "I honestly have never heard of a zodiac before, I spent most of my time on the streets and when I came to live with the Summers I was too old to actually go to school." She was pretty embarrassed, she felt so ignorant, "But Summers knows all about that stuff, he always came home and taught me things like that."

Kale called out, "I hope the boy Ryan hurries up, we need to be out right now!"

Clare turned to the boy, "Well um Kazan, thank you for the generous acceptance," she handed him her cell number and Kale's cell number, "Call either of us when we can come in." Clare turned toward the stage after giving a bow (she couldn't remember if that was the polite thing to do so she did it anyways.).

On stage Ryan was still not back, "We're going to have to stall, if we start without him it would be rude." Clare announced. She turned toward the mic, "Hey everyone, you guys remember me?" A large uproar from the crowd, Clare gave a confident laugh, "Okay, I'll take that as a yes. Well right now we aren't going to do a rock song." A wave of disappointed aws sprouted, "Now, now everyone no need for that." She laughed again, "What I'm going to do is a ballad, so grab that girl closest to you and it is your turn to dance." Many of the people paired up, some with their partners others with dates. "There you guys go! We are waiting for one last member and we can get this started."

Other Students
Maggy paired up with O, he had been teaching her how to dance for weeks now (much to her pleas to learn how to use his lab equipment). They practiced a bit while waiting for the music to start, like some other students who didn't have much experience. O lead the dance, tolerating when Maggy would mess up.

The psychic Kira backed out of the dance, she didn't like people and wouldn't dance with anyone. Her twin sister Sara on the other hand chose Elizabeth's brother Dux (though she wanted to dance with O). Dux was pretty bad at dancing so all the practicing Sara had done had gone to waste.

Lucy danced with Elizabeth, though they kind of light copied O and Maggy, just because it was fun and ended up doing something more of a jig than a slow dance.

The other students were getting ready, standing patiently, or looking for a girl to pair up with. Overall the tone of the party was pretty peaceful.

[IceFyr1928]

Ryan burst into the backstage room, small, golden harp in hand, and eased up when he saw his companions still waiting

"I... I'm back..." Ryan said through labored breaths. He gestured with the harp, as if signifying that he actually had it. Ryan then sat down and proceeded to tune it, playing the various riffs that he had committed to memory.

Ryan, then done with his practice, went over to the other two musicians, who were talking with Kazan the water wizard.

"Are we going to be starting soon?" He asked, slightly nervous.

[Khawill]

Beatkeepers!
Clare didn't yell the count, instead she just silently counted to herself. Kale began playing his acoustic guitar, giving a bit of time for Ryan to learn the tune. Instrument wise, the song was repetitive and there were times where the music just played, soothing as waves from the ocean.

"The world is turning out so bright, twenty four hours day and night. Nothing's feelt so grand, I think I'm out of the quicksand." She sang as soft as a breeze, surprising some of the audience. The beat was slow meaning a lot of people doing slow dances were having a good time but many of the louder fans just sat out, still enjoying the song. "When I look into the sky, it reminds me that I'm alive. the stars are bright as a spotlight, like I'm a performer of the universe." She swayed with the song, a flower on stage with a wind of peace. There was a pause in the singing, she let the flow of music ripple through the crowd.

She started the next part, "The entire world is my stage, as I sing to people known and strange, I let their happiness flow through my head as a if all my sadness had fled. I can thank the summers for my life, because even through all my strife I still was raised right." Clare had personally written this song, poured her emotions into it, originally as a thanks you to Kale's family. She sang the song with heart, and joy.

After the song, some of the audience was in tears, the majority clapped. Clare unplugged her microphone, and turned to Kale and Ryan, "You guys did very well!" She said politely and brightly, "I didn't think the harp would work, but I guess I got proved wrong." She laughed and pat Ryan on the back, "Maybe you'll get to play with us again."

[IceFyr1928]

Ryan closed his eyes, listening to the rythem for a moment before picking it up on his harp. He followed Kale for the most part, but occasionally added an extra note or two, which he found to sound very nice. After the song, Claire thanked him, and he walked backstage.

"Ah... Well, I think that I did reasonably well for my first time in concert." Ryan said to himself, not knowing or caring if anyone heard him. He walked outside, intent on finding Yaphaeral, but he was swarmed by a group of people patting his back, shaking his hand, or congratulating him. Instead of cringing like he used to, the compliments bolstered his confidence, and he soon got to Yaphaeral.

I have fans! People don't shun me because my best friend isn't human! Best! Day! Ever! Ryan thought as he looked back to his fans. Some were asking for a solo, And soon the entire crowd joined in. Ryan walked over to O, intending on asking him if he could.

"Excuse me, mister O. Request permission to play solo." Ryan said, looking up at him.

[Khawill]

O
O clapped his hand, finished dancing with Maggy. "So many great musicians this year, I love to hear great music." Speaking to Maggy.

"Yeah but can they fight? Would hate for dead musicians to appear all over the world with our symbol on them." Maggy said sarcastically.

"You're just grumpy because you know you dance like a lady." O teased, though it backfired because she punched him pretty hard in the arm. "Ow, dear god you still punch like a truck." He hunched over laughing, so did Maggy. The harp player walked up to them.

"Excuse me Mr. O. Request permission to play solo." O stood straight, rubbing his arm.

"Well no need to be so formal, I'm still a student just like you, just call me O." He shook the boy's hand, "What is your name lad?"

Maggy knew the answer, recognizing him from earlier, "That would be Ryan, Ryan Stark." Maggy yawned, "So far he is the only one to show grit at this school by doing a mission and he plays the harp."

"Don't listen to her, she is just grumpy because she can dance, speaking of which sure you can, I'd love another dance. All the rock music was fine and all but I just can't enjoy it as much." He shook Ryan's hand again.

Maggy protested, "I'm not dancing again, I hate it and it is so girly." O shrugged.

"If you don't want to you don't have to, I can't force ya." This was time for Sara to come up, "Well hey Sara how are you and your sister? Did you guys finish that mission in Africa?"

Sara became more serious, slightly nervous, "Yea we did, there were three husks in that town, not just one. It was so odd."

O was surprised, so was Maggy, "Three!? Just one is rare enough, how can there be three? Possibly triplets?" Sara shook her head at Maggy.

"No we checked with the local people, they said that the three people were tourists and likely didn't even know each other." O shook his head grimly.

"Well this is a party, not a place to talk about such things. We can send an investigation in tomorrow. Hey Sara are you a good dancer?" Sara glowed, nodding her head, "Well then, how about we dance this next song?" Over in the back, Dux seemed relieved to not have to look foolish again, Maggy made a face at O who made it right back.

Clare and Kale
Both of them heard about Ryan getting another song so they stuck around again to hear it. They assumed it was a slow dance so Ryan held out his hand. Clare curtsied, they had done this before and Kale's mom was strict on manners and ettiquet. "So after this party what mission should we do?" Clare asked.

Kale had looked over some of the missions, "Why don't we stop the planned heist in Boston?"

"That sounds awesome, can you drive?" Clare asked.

"Yeah, got plenty of experience." Clare nodded then, accepting the mission.

[IceFyr1928]

[OOC: Harp music can be found here; http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?v=rXDUj...%3DrXDUjA4vNnw

...and vocals here; http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?v=KD_YE...%3DKD_YEqWVm_M]

Ryan once again mounted the stage, this time alone. He heard some cheering, and he prepared the harp. Beginning with a full strum, he then began plucking one of his favorite songs, adding some small three-string strums for effect.

The crowd began swaying to the calming music that he played, and some were dancing in pairs. He couldn't see Yaphaeral, but Ryan knew that he was in the crowd. He then added his voice to the song, singing in an ancient language that Yaphaeral had taught him. There were a few murmurs about this, but the crowd just went with it. Ryan soon switched back to English, as he had yet to translate the rest of the song.

As he sang, various threads of light appeared seemingly out of nowhere, and began to form fantastic shapes, moving in time with the small instrument. He then finished his song, and walked off the stage, the threads fading back into the night.

[Khawill]

Clare and Kale
The two of them came backstage to congratulate Ryan, "Hey Ryan you did well, I liked the light show bro." Kale reached out to shook his hand, it was getting dark outside and many people were leaving. "I have to say, I didn't expect such a nice, radiant sound from a string instrument."

Clare didn't shake his hand, just slipping her hands in her pocket, "It was pretty nice, though Kale I think we should be going. It is pretty late outside and I don't want to do anymore songs." Kale understood and nodded, "Thanks for hanging with us Ryan we hope to see you again." She bowed a little bit to show respect and began to walk out of the party.

Before they could make it off the beach they were stopped by Lucy, the little girl who had been with O. "Hi there! I was told by O to remind you to visit his shop if you need anything," She looked at Kale then at her paper, "It says here you are in robotics and technology class, is that correct?"

"Yes it is." Kale replied.

"Well please take this card, it will provide discounts at his store." She held out a dark blue card.

Kale gratefully took the card, making sure to look thankful. "Why thank you! I will visit his shop soon." Lucy smiled, nodded and ran off. "What a polite little girl, I bet her parents must be proud. Wait, what classes are you taking?"

Clare sighed, "Core classes, hand-to-hand, and magic defense." Kale nodded and they continued walking, leaving the party behind them, "Should we find those twins?"

"You mean Kazan and Chikyu? No I think we shouldn't bother them tonight, anyways we are getting up bright and early for the bank mission, The info says that the heist is going down somewhere between 8am and 3pm." Clare set her phone to eastern time, putting an alarm at 5am.

"There we go, its so weird not being in the states." Clare laughed, as they walked into their room. "Oh wow, yeah so we aren't staying here." The room was fairly small, if Clare laid down and reached her arms, she would almost touch the other side. There were two doors, each going into similarly small rooms. There was a small kitchen, only big enough for one person to comfortably cook (though it did have many appliances, such as: a normal fridge, dual burner oven, and a dual sink. Even though it was small it looked nice, and was carpeted.

"Where are the beds?" Clare asked. Kale opened up a closet in one of the small rooms, revealing a rolled up sleeping mat, "That's not a mat, that's a thin blanket."

"Clare, in many countries this is all people sleep on, we don't need beds." Clare had slept on worse in the past, but she loved beds and tolerance for sleeping on anything but was lost when living with the Summers. Kale didn't mind, he slept on these when visiting his friend in Japan for the summer. "They aren't that bad after a few days, trust me."

Clare just sighed, "I hope we can live with those twins, if not I'm starting my own business with my own room and bed." She looked cross.

Kale laughed and offered her his mat, "If you stack them then it would be a little more like a real mattress, and we can always buy better ones." Clare smiled and rejected the offer.

"No need, I wouldn't make you sleep on the carpet just because I need a fancy mattress." Kale shrugged, set up her mattress and went to his room, "Night Summers."

"Night Clare, if you wake up before me make sure to wake me up. We can get some breakfast if we are early enough." He shut off all the lights and went to his room and fell asleep.

O and Maggy

The last few songs had really calmed the crowd, making it easier for Maggy and O to clean up, "Why are we doing these stupid parties when we have training to do, we are elite students not party animals." Maggy huffed.

"Yes, but we are still students and this is a way for us elite to show our support for normal students, so that they may also become elite." O picked up some plastic cups thrown on the ground, "Anyways you got to listen to some great music and dance."

"No you got to dance with Sara. I saw her getting all excited to dance with you and how you were showing off." Maggy kicked a can, popping it due to it not being open. "This is so stupid."

"I think you're jealous." O laughed, Maggy just stared threateningly at him but didn't say anything immediately. "You are aren't you, wow just when I thought you didn't have a feminine side to you!"

Maggy threw a punch right at his chest. He was much faster than her though and grabbed her arm, playfully forcing her into a dancing position, "I can make up the dance if you want." He jokingly said then released her.

"I let you stop me, and I wasn't jealous, but I think we should be training instead of dancing."

"Well I have a mission tomorrow, why don't you investigate that husk problem in Africa, I'm sure you'll get to bust a few heads. Bring Lucy and Will with you though, I'm sure they could use the experience."

"Now that's more like it!" They finished cleaning talking about other events, such as Maggy's first elite mission and which band was best.

[IceFyr1928]

Ryan thanked everyone, and left the stage. The party was dwindling in size, apparently over. Ryan walked over to Yaphaeral, who was fairly noticeable now that the crowd was much thinner.

"I'm heading back to the dorm, you coming?" He asked his demonic freind, who nodded.

"Yes. I follow." He responded in a groggy voice. He was obviously out of it.

"Did you... Did you have alcohol?" Ryan asked him with cocern when he tottered a bit.

"Yea, and? I'm old enough... Uh..." Yapaeral responded, and he almost fell. Ryan held out his arm to support him, but it was swatted away.

"Idonwantyohelp..." He said, and began taking small steps back to the dorm.

"How exactly did you get alcohol? I don't they would be serving it at a school full of minors." Ryan said. Yaphaeral gestured with his hand, mind reeling.

"One adem fire imps... They got me a few bottles..." He said, almost falling in the process.

Almost an hour later, they arrived at their dorm. Yaphaeral walked over to his bunk, and fell onto it, asleep before he hit the thin mattress. Ryan sat on his, and watched Yaphaeral as he slept. He reflected his day, and began smiling. He soon layed down, and fell asleep, the smile still on his face.

[Khawill]

Clare and Kale
They had been assigned Lucy and her cat as mentors, "Uh, is this some kind of joke?" Clare asked suspiciously, "Like are there some cameras waiting for my reaction?"

Lucy laughed, "Nope, since O was assigned to another mission, we have to take his place." She pulled the cat off her shoulders and held it in her arms, "This is Will." the cat made an annoyed meow sound. "Sorry, this is Sir William Roland, he is a human knight." Kale began to pet the cat excitedly, making cooing sounds, Clare rolled her eyes.

"Assuming you are our guide, you aren't even old enough to be a normal student, let alone an elite one. What protection could you possibly give us if we needed it?" Clare was now taunting the girl, trying to see if the real mentor would come and help her.

"If you don't believe me, why don't I challenge you to a fight in the Arena? Surely if you think we are so weak then you'll be able to beat us." The little girl looked Clare right in the eye, clearly confident she would win.

Clare didn't see this though, and she held her fist out to Lucy slightly angered, "Alright short stuff lets go at it. Good thing we got up early for this."

"I assume you know the rules for fighting in the arena?" Clare shook her head, never hearing of any rules other than fights could only happen there and nobody could die. "Well, there are no machines allowed in, weapons are fine but no guns. Attempting to sever limbs, appendages, or other body parts will result in a suspension of the fight and expulsion from school. Both partners must be present in a fight, unless it is between the two partners. Do you understand?" Clare nodded, "Very well, please follow us."

When they arrived at the arena, Clare and Kale placed their bags on the ground and put their weapons down. Lucy looked confusedly at them, "You're going to need those to stand a chance, why would you throw them down?"

"What did you say you little punk? I'm going to win this then beat up whoever our real mentor is." Clare seethed, "Who's your partner? Don't tell me it is the cat," the girl said nothing but smiled mischievously, "What a sick joke, let's win this fast Kale so we can get this mission done." She didn't bring her gloves, but Kale decided that bringing his sword was a safe bet.

They walked into a small room with a computer terminal, surprising to both Kale and Clare because the outside was bigger than a football stadium. The little girl typed something into the terminal and a holographic screen shot forward, showing different landscapes, "Please come up and select one."

Kale walked up politely, "Why thank you, how generous of you." He went through them all twice, "Wow who designed these? I mean Ive seen of reality domes before, but this one is way bigger than Boston has."

"They were designed by O, who had over one hundred years to plan and perfect the domes, thanks to magic from witches we made the dome a reality." Kale went through them, every biome on earth was there, then one that looked like the surface of the moon, and another that was just a flat stadium like in Rome. He chose that one, "Very good choice Mr Kale, there are few places to hide, garunteeing that there will be conflict." she was just about to press enter when she remembered, "Oh yes, I failed to mention that although one can not die, pain is still a real thing. Please do be careful." She pressed the button and both pairs were teleported to one side of the arena.

In an instant the little girl's cat was on the ground, growing larger. Eventually there was a man, clad in knight's armor standing in its place. Clare opulent hear him but could read his lips, she repeated what she saw out loud, "Did you really have to start a fight with them? Well I hate fighting children. Yes okay Ill end this fast, all that training with O and being half cat really does make a guy fell so nimble." He laughed and then, "Please hand me my sword." She handed him a sword, though Clare didn't remember her coming in with one. Suddenly the man disappeared, Clare could no longer see him, just as soon Lucy walked where he just stood, turned to Clare and waved happily.

"Summers lets move while the man isn't with her," Kale nodded, holding his sword. "You both have swords so I want you to take him, I'll get the girl then help you okay?"

The man was laying on a pillar when he yelled down, "What if the man wants to fight both of you at the same time? Then what's the plan?" Kale readied his sword, "You're the chap who stroked my fur, you sir are a good fellow with feminine hands. I wonder if you can actually use that sword."

Clare decided that fighting the man 2 on 1 would be fine, she could still see Lucy waving on the other side. "Well then, I guess we change the plan accordingly, She charged at him fists ready, jumping between two pillars and landing on the one next to his, she jumped toward him, about to slam her leg down on his body. He just rolled off though, like he was in bed and landed on the ground feet first. Clare shattered the pilar he was standing on, crashing down with the debris. "I guess things here aren't as strong as real life equivalents huh."

"Never said that it was supposed to be, though I must say excellent form, for a girl." Kale came up behind him and tried to impale the man through the back, the man just did a back flip landing behind Kale. Kale wasn't very surprised though, the man mentioned being trained by O, so he turned around and swung with the non-lethal side of his blade without pausing, he knew this man wasnt a force to be reckoned with. "Wow you fight with a single edged sword, quiet rare for a normal child indeed. Unfortunately I was given a double edge." He swung and their swords collided, "So I can't say that I can return the kindness."

Kale spoke up, "Come on then, I'll show you how I use this sword." He swung again, though the man was much stronger than he was, though Kale noticed not neccisarily stronger than a man of that age, "Tell me, what does half cat mean, why are you able to transform." He swung his sword to parry a swing from the man, he was just fast enough to be defensive but not to go on the offense.

Clare was digging out of the rubble, standing herself up when she saw Lucy. Lucy just smiled and said in a gangster voice, "Put yer dukes up." Then she spit on the ground and put a fake gangster face on while holding her fists up. "Cer'm on ya yankee." She threw an air punch, and Clare felt a blow to her stomach. "What's tha mattuh," Another air punch, Lucy laughed, this time Clare felt like her arm had been punched, "C'mon 's like ya ain't evin tryin."

Clare stood up and put up her hands, "Let's dance kid." Lucy threw another air punch, Clare dodged to the left, seeing if her prediction was correct. It was and there was no pain, "So you got some kind of magic in you huh. Well I can fist fight without magic so you better be ready." She couldn't see where the punches would come from, other than where she saw Lucy throw them, Clare kicked up some dust. It not only not showed Clare where the punches were coming from, but it also made it harder to see where the girl was.

"Ha yer tha first one ta try dat, I say you got spunk kid, but not so much smarts." She smiled evily, throwing punches like a boxer, backing up so Clare couldn't get close. "Why don't ya jus' give up, ya ain't gonna win dis fight."

"Why don't you give up that crappy accent," Clare went full sprint and managed to get close to Lucy. She threw a punch as hard as she could. Lucy just blocked with her arms with a sly smile. As Clare was stopped in her tracks, her punch doing virtually nothing. "Gah, I should've known, a shield." Clare went berserk, each punch was given as much strength as she could, trying to break the shield. Lucy seemed to be getting tired, as was Clare and one of the punches managed to break the shield and catch her right in the shoulder. Both of them fell back from exhaustion.

Kale was busy fighting the man named Will. "Well you see I was born in the time of dragons and knights, maybe you remember it?" Neither of them were going full strength. "I do, you see I was walking home one day when this unusual chap named O. He was going back to his time and I happened to bump into him. The time thing ripped my mind from my body which was quiet painful I must say. And placed me in his, he couldn't have me messing around in his mind so he asked Lucy to make me a new body." A parry again, but Will held his arm to his eyes, "Alas, it was too much for the young girl and very near killed her, fortunately Kira and Sara were able to transfer minds from O to the new body, which happens to be just magical enough to turn me into a cat. Also it caused me to form an unbreakable mental bond with Lucy." He disarmed Kale with one swing, not even looking at him, "Such a happy ending don't you agree." He held his sword to Kale's neck, "Checkmate lad." Kale nodded in defeat, Will helped him up.

"Why don't you stay human, and why do you speak modern English instead of old?"

"Well that is simple, I was asked to study a more modern language to blend in more, as for not being human. It tires me out to be human, taking more energy I'd much rather be carried around." He lifted Lucy who was passed out, "You're girlfriend must be one hell of a fighter. Guess it is my turn to carry Lucy for about an hour."

"Not my girlfriend," He lifted Clare by are arm and slung her over his shoulder. "Well lets get to the mission before these two go at it again." They walked toward the teleporters, still quiet early for the robery.

[IceFyr1928]

In the morning, Ryan was awoken by Yaphaeral moaning. He rolled out of bed, and stood. Yaphaeral was curled into ball, grabbing his head.

"How's it going?" He asked Yaphaeral, who shook his head.

"Well, how about you go recover in the Deamon Realm? That seems to work." Ryan continued. Yaphaeral shook his head again.

"Don't worry! I won't be doing anything while your gone! We've already finished our mission, and there isn't anything to do but classes, which I know you hate. I'll even summon another Deamon to watch over me while you're recovering!" Ryan said persuasively. Yaphaeral shook his head, then nodded after a moment's pause.

Ryan stepped back, and Yaphaeral melted away. Ryan walked outside, and walked around for a while, intent on finding somewhere to draw a pentagon, a more powerful circle. Finaly finding the practice hall, he walked in. He saw many students training, but no place for him to summon to an extensive degree. He walked over to two students who appeared to be twins. He tapped on one of their shoulders, and they both turned to him. He asked where he could summon, and they pointed to a door at the far end of the hall. Ryan thanked them, and entered.

What he saw amazed him. He was standing in a mid sized room with an extremely complex Pentagon in the center. He walked over to a grand bookcase that was along one wall, and could a book on various summoning spells. He soon came accross an extremely long spell, which would take a human body, summon a reasonably powerful Deamon, bind the Deamon to the body, and give Ryan complete control over it. When Ryan looked back to the top of the page, he saw that it was called a 'husk'. Deciding that it wouldn't be useful to him, Ryan began flipping through pages again. This time, a picture of a powerful Deamon stopped him. It said that it was one of the most powerful Deamon's in existence, and Ryan began reciting the long and complex spell. As he chanted, the room grew darker, and a blood red mist appeared in the center of the pentagon. He continued, and the candles around the pentagon went out. Eerie blue flames then took the place of those before it, and a shape formed in the mist.

"Who dares to summon me! Bow before the king of the Deamons!" The dark shape shouted after Ryan had finished. The mist dissipated to reveal a tall, thin, black humanoid with wings. A firey crown sat on his head, and he had large red claws. In one hand, he held a large battleax.

"I am Ryan, master summoner at the Peacekeeper's Academy! I hearby bind you to my service, to follow my every order!" He yelled shakily at the eight foot tall Deamon, who laughed heartily.

"You are the master summoner? You aren't old enough to control an imp!" The Deamon said in his deep tone. Ryan stood up straighter.

"If you don't listen, I'll, I'll..." Ryan said, his composure faltering with every word. His face turned white hen the Deamon King stepped out of the center of the pentagon.

"Y-y-you a-aren't supposed to be able to do that..." Ryan croaked before being picked up by the Deamon King. Ryan felt something move into his mind, and then he fainted.

Ryan awoke to someone moaning accross from him. Ryan rlled out of bed, and stood up.

"Yaphaeral? You okay?" Ryan said, rubbing his temples. He heard Yaphaeral get up, and stagger over to him.

"Glad you are awake. I was worried." Yaphaeral said, hugging Ryan.

"Why? What happened? It's only ten in the morning." Ryan said groggily. He walked over to the door, and Yaphaeral followed. They walked outside, and imediatley saw a crater directly next to the training hall.

"That is what happened. There was a large explosion. You were found under some of the wreckage. We still don't know what happened." Yaphaeral explained. Ryan stood in the same position, not remembering anything past the party. He turned back to Yaphaeral, intent on saying something, but passed out.

[Khawill]

Kale and Clare
Having arrived in the bank in Boston, they saw officers surrounding the building. Kale observed as much and commented, "I guess they got the same intel as us, now we play the waiting game."The planned robbery time was in one hour, though Clare knew how scum worked and nobody would try a heist with this many officers around.

"I doubt they are going to try to rob this bank, look how many officers are waiting for them, it was kind of stupid to leak something like the time unless..."

Kale interrupted, "It's a setup! They get as much attention at this bank as possible and then they rob another." Clare nodded in agreement, "So should we tell the police?

"But what if they want us to think that, just so we focus less on this bank? Then they would have an easier time robbing this one." Clare grabbed her head as she finished the sentence,"I hate paradoxes." Suddenly a truck came crashing down the street, pushing police cars away as it rampaged, crashing into the building. The truck must have been reinforced because there was a hole I. The building and the entire truck except the back was in. "That is odd, normally you'd want the back inside the bank so you can fill it with money afterward. Maybe this bank is being robbed by idiots. As soon as she said it, the truck's back part opened up.

Instead of boxes, crates, or furniture as would normally be in these trucks, there was a single person. He starred blankly at all of the officers who were pointing guns at him. Clare looked down at Lucy who had a terrified look on her face and was shaking. "Hey Lucy what's the matter, afraid of some bank robbers? Look that one isn't even armed!" Lucy shook her head, as if Clare was completely wrong. "I don't know what's got you all flustered, me and Summers here can easily take on this joker."

Lucy held Will tightly, "I-if that's what I think it is, then all of these men and woman are going to die." The person in the back of the truck covered their own head with their hands.

One of the officers yelled, "Don't move, I will shoot!" He wore the chiefs badge and was around the age of thirty. The person merely turned their head toward the chief confusedly.

"Maria?" It said in a manly voice, "My dear, please come back, I'm doing what the men told me you wanted." He walked toward the officer, who gave him two more warnings then shot. The man staggered, but there wasn't even a wound. This panicked the other officers, who also opened fire. "Gah! Insects, I must exterminate them, it must be clean for your arrival, just as the men said." He sprinted to the police chief, shrugging off bullets. He grabbed the chief by the neck and slammed him into a nearby police car, killing him instantly.

Clare had seen enough, this wasn't human, "Summers you know what this is?" He shook his head, "Lucy you seem to know, what is this thing?"

Lucy was shivering, "O told me stories about his and Maggy's fights with these, I've never seen one but from what I know from him, then that thing will be able to kill every single one of us and not even think twice." She shook her head, "This isn't good at all, I don't have the clearance to engage husks, I don't even have the clearence to be in a mission involving them." She set down Will, "We must abandon this mission and leave it to Maggy and O or any of their group to handle it."

This stunned both Kale and Clare, "But if we leave now those officers will be killed." Kale stuttered.

"We can't lose students on their second day, you are still kids. These men signed up knowing danger was involved, it is their job." Lucy was heartless in the comment, she only ever followed orders.

Kale unsheathed his sword, Clare slipped on her gloves and knuckledusters. Clare spoke, stretching her arm, "You can leave if you want, but I'm not letting him kill anymore officers, whether or not their job includes danger." Kale nodded in agreement, it was time for the show to get started.

Meanwhile officers were being picked up and thrown, or otherwise just beat to death by this humanoid demon. Kale sprinted up and swung his sword heavily at the man, but the blade bounced back, as if his skin was much to strong. The man turned to face his new assailant, there was no emotion in his eyes, he didn't express any form of anger, remorse, or even sadness. He threw a punch at Kale, who recovered from the recoil of his sword and quickly dodged it. The punch shattered the door of a car.

Clare tried a more blunt approach, dodging and punching the man in the chest, stomach, and head. It seemed to work slightly better, as the man staggered more and groaned. This told both of them that he could in fact still feel pain. A single punch would absolutely mean broken bones or worse for both of them, and since they didn't have magic or a psychic, there wasn't much they could do. "Summers I don't think we can beat this thing."

Kale swung again, both of them were going as hard as they could, "Don't say that, we just have to hold off until Lucy gets help." They continued punching and swinging, the officers had all fled, taking their fallen with them.

"We'll set up a perimeter so the robbers can't escape." One of the officers said.

The monster became progressively more violent, now swinging wildly and recklessly. "Yeah just go, we can handle this." Clare yelled, both of them were tired, "Where the hell is that girl." The monster swung hard at Clare, Kale pushed her out of the way, taking the blow. It sent him flying into a building, he fell on the ground. Clare couldn't check to see if he was okay but gave a squeal. She gained a boost of adrenaline, no longer playing just defense, she was bent on killing this man. "I'm the greatest fighter ever." She only hit his face and stomach, "I won't let something as monstrous as you prove otherwise." She picked up a crowbar from one of the cars and used it as a weapon, "You don't have anything." She was swinging rapidly and violently, the man staggered.

Her energy didn't last, her arms tired and she began to get slower. Again she could only dodge, there was no openings for attacks again. She tripped over a bumper on the ground, the man was ready to swing down. There was a blast in his chest and he was sent back, sparring Clare a moment. Standing over Clare was Kale with a shotgun from the truck, he was limping and clearly in pain, he sighed, "I think he broke a few ribs, I'm going to need a nurse visit after this." The man stood up slowly, there was nothing but holes in his clothes where the bullet hit. "Wow, I really don't think we will beat this fight. What kind of robbers have a monster like this."

"This isn't a robbery, it is a test." They heard the voice of someone familiar. "Someone is testing the school." Behind them stood O, much more serious than at the concert. "How many casualties?"

Kale spoke, "Four sir, and I'm injured."

"Well then both of you can rest, consider this a completed mission." He looked at the man, "This is a sad day, I must lay this poor man to rest." He pulled out a flask and uncapped it, instead of drinking it he poured the contents on the man. "Either of you have a light? No? Oh well," He punctured a gas tank with Kale's sword and allowed the gasoline to seep over the sidewalk covering the man's feet, he then struck the metal door, causing sparks then a fire. They watched as the man was set on fire, but not in pain. "As I suspected, this is the second one to have magic, how odd. You Clare can you do me a favor? Can you run?"
"Yeah, I'm not injured just a bit tired." O took a small device and placed it in her hand, he placed a bullet in a pistol.

"Take this and stab his neck or spine with this, it will get the magic shield off. Then I need you to run to cover." He handed Kale the gun from one of the officers, "Take this and shoot at him when I say. Then make sure to get in cover." He ripped a door off the car and propped it against some debris near Kale, "Sorry Clare but you'll need to find your own cover." He ran up to the flaming man and fought him. It was much different than the boxing style Clare used, he was a master of fighting. Clare snuck up behind the distracted man and jabbed the device in his neck, surprisingly puncturing his skin. She ran away. O also sprinted away, "Shoot now!" There was gunfire and an explosion.

The fight was over.

[IceFyr1928]

Ryan, done observing the wreckage, began walking back to the main hub of campus. He had seen that the school had a hand to hand training class, and had decided to take it. He walked into the classroom, and looked around the room. There were various styles of punching bags, and a section of workout equipment. Ryan decided to find the instructed before doing anything. He wandered around for a short time, and was soon stopped by a short, muscular man, who looked like he was in his mid-thirties.

"What are ya over here for? You know the routine! Warm ups first! Get going!" He yelled in a gruff voice. Ryan guessed that he was a retired army seargent. He had the general attitude, and the loud voice to match it.

"Excuse me sir, but this is my first time in this building. Perhaps you can show me the routine?" Ryan said. He was taller than the instructor, but Ryan knew that he was horribly outmatched.

"Not often we have fresh meat! Cawlin! Front and center!" The seargent yelled accross the gym. A tall, lean student soon appeared from within.

"Yessir?" He said in a strangely high pitch for his apparent age. The instructor gestured to Ryan with his right hand.

"Twig here needs to be broken in. You know what to do." He said sternly, walking away.

"Yessir! Twig, follow." Cawlin said, walking back towards the front of the room.

"My name isn't twig, it's Ryan. Ryan Stark. Nice to meet you." Ryan said when they stopped. Cawlin hesitated, and took a step back.

"On the ground, as many push-ups as you can." He said suddenly, and Ryan obeyed. A few minutes later, Ryan had completed sixty push-ups.

"Up. On the bench. Press as many as you can at one hundred pounds. Two minutes. Go." Cawlin said, getting out a stopwatch. Ryan began, and immediately found that he was weaker than he thought. He had only gotten through ten when Cawlin stopped him. This continued for the next hour, and when he was done, Ryan felt nauseated.

Ryan arrived in his dorm room a moment later, laying down. He was tired to the bone. Yaphaeral soon walked in, holding a few novels.

"You went to the library? Sure hope it was more eventful than my day so far... Some older student decided to overwork me in class today..." Ryan said. A wave of lightheadedness passed through him, and Ryan groaned.

"No. Your day was much more exciting. The library is too quiet." Yaphaeral said. Ryan nodded, then drifted off.

[Khawill]

Clare and Kale
Getting back to campus, they were taken to the campus hospital. O had helped with Kale's injuries as best as he could, but he still suggested a trip to the doctor. They entered the building, Kale relying heavily on the support of Clare, "Thanks again Clare, I know it must be pretty tiring to pretty much carry me over here."

Clare shook her head, "I don't think you can thank me ten times like that, especially since you saved my life." She shrugged her shoulders, they were getting tired, "Anyways we won and got to see the best student on campus fight." Clare actually didn't see him fight, but she did see how he handled the situation and admired that. She set a new goal to be as brave, calm, and as much a leader like O was.

"We didn't get to see him fight," Kale whined, "And we would've died if he wasn't there. I feel so weak knowing there are monsters like that out there." Kale was given pain killers for his broken ribs, so he wasn't in extreme pain, yet he was sore all over.

Both of them were a mess, Kale had bruises, scrapes, and his hair was messed up. His clothes were somewhat ripped, and he was covered in debris. Clare on the other hand was just as dirty, but she had few injuries, considering she dodged most of the time, but her hair was caked in dirt, rubble, and looked white from concrete. As they walked they couldn't both help but feel like scrubs.

"I know that beast, man, thing made us look weak, but I know we aren't and you know we aren't. I bet we are still better than most students, okay pal." She knew he was a bit down about the fight, she herself was, but she wasn't the one who had to go to the hospital, she wasn't the one who got up despite injuries to save someone. "I'm just glad we lived to prove ourself on another mission."

They requested an emergency room, the nurse nodded and made a call. In a few minutes doctors raced in with carts and laid Kale on it. They carted him off behind some doors. Clare waited, unsure about what to do, after about ten minutes the nurse came back, "We did a scan, your partner has four broken ribs, and a broken arm. We can replace the arm for free, but the ribs will have to be paid for."

"Wait bu-" Clare was about to protest but she heard a familiar voice from behind her.

"No need to worry, the bonus from unexpected complications will pay for the broken ribs. Oh and if you're wondering why the arm is free, it's because I do them personally." Clare turned to see O again, again saving them, albeit in a different way.

"What took you so long to get here?" Clare and Kale had been on the island well over an hour.

"I had to inform the families of the deceased." He solemnly looked down, and took a sigh, "Nobody expected a husk to arrive at such a location. But no need to worry yourself, though next week there will be a memorial service." He wrote a note, "This will excuse you from any class, please do attend it." Clare agreed, "I'll have your friend better by the end of the day, please do not wait here, as I am not allowed to let anyone in during procedures." He walked through the doors, nurse and Lucy in toll.

Clare went outside, unclear about what to do. It was still fairly early, only some students had classes so she felt pretty alone. I wish I knew someone to hang with... She noticed a poster with a "Did You Know" title, "Did you know that students who have a partner can make a group with two other student pairs to form a group. And that three groups together make a squad?" Clare read aloud. She wondered if O, Maggy, Lucy, and Will were all a group and wondered who would be on her group. She decided to wonder around, hoping to bump into someone she knew.

[IceFyr1928]

Ryan, tired out from his class, walked across the campus. He was glad that he had attended the class, as he now knew some hand to hand combat techniques. He was walking along when he saw a familiar face.

"Claire! How are you?" Ryan shouted. He walked up to her, waving as he did. He held his side, as his already exhausted muscles went under even more stress.

"Don't worry, I'm fine. I'm just exhausted from my class. Hand to hand.". Ryan explained. He came to a stop next to Claire. He decided to call Yaphaeral, and pulled out his small portable phone. It rang twice before Yaphaeral picked up.

"What?" His husky voice crackled a bit as he adjusted the phone.

"It's Ryan. You want any food?" He asked. Yaphaeral grunted an affirmative, and hung up.

"So Claire, you up for some lunch? I'll pay." He said. His belly was filled with butterflies as he said it, but he was able to keep his cool.

Here's to hoping this goes well.... Ryan thought as he waited for Claire's answer. Hopefully, she saw Kale as a brother, not a boyfriend.