Years of Lies [IC] [Best Veteran Q2 '12]

[Skymin]

(OOC: omg i'm going crazy i HAVE to write a post. I haven't RP'd in DAYS. i'm sorry if this is unethical or unrealistic but omg i need to lol)

Kerin blearily sat up, his hand moving to his throat immediately to scratch it. Goddammit, his thirst was almost unbearable. He had hoped he would last through the night and just get something for breakfast but that didn't seem like the case. If he didn't get something now, he would probably suck on his own arm or worse, on somebody else's. His eyes drifted over to the sleeping Marisa on his shoulder. He did not want to hurt her or anyone else for that matter. He could only imagine what would happen if he skipped breakfast or something; if a single drop of blood was dropped, he would probably either need to leave the room (and run for at least a mile) immediately or he would proceed to licking up what was left of the person. It wasn't a good though and Kerin never liked to think about what he was, but it was a grim truth that he would have to accept one day. One day.

He slowly shifted Marisa off his chest, placing her head comfortably on the pillow. She was sleeping so soundly, waking her up would be stupid. She needed to sleep so she could be rested for tomorrow. What about Kerin? He knew that he wouldn't be capable of learning much. Magic had not come to him in the 3 years it should have and he knew how to wield a gun or whatever. Pull the trigger? Swords and such would be no use to him when he could just use his fists. He was strong, Kerin was confident he could probably break a gun into pieces if he wanted. He could break a person if he wanted. Though, that wasn't something he was about to try.

He tip toed outside thought the dark, feeling around a little and trying to find his way to the door. He eventually got there, stubbing his toes silently on a few innocent tables. There was a light on outside so finding the elevator was definitely not as hard as maneuvering through a dark room. Still groggy, he punched the button next to his name. The elevator moved fast and soon, he was outside his own floor, one of which he had not stepped foot in. He changed that as he walked through, turned on the lights way down low and wandered through his floor, finding some things he needed.

First off; clean clothes. He stripped out of his dirty clothes and searched around for some similar substitutes; a singlet top, a pair of tracksuit pants, fresh socks and fresh underwear. Something comfortable to sleep in. After he had lazily thrown it all on, he dragged himself back to the elevator, using his tongue to scratch the back of his throat. Nrgh, it was getting extremely uncomfortable. He punched another button, not even sure where and away the elevator went.

He stepped out of the elevator and it wasn't until he had walked a good three meters that he realised this was the wrong floor. This was the place they had been when they came, a foyer of somesort. He turned around and four elevators stared back at him. Oh boy. One to each district's tower, right? He was far too tired and far too thirsty to logically pick the one that he had come out of (he couldn't remember anyway) so he just chose one at random. He rubbed his eyes and leaned in closer to the buttons, trying to read them. That one said... kitchen, right? Food? Dining? By the time he had pressed the button, he realised that the buttons above those, the ones with the names and the player floors, none of them said Kerin. Crap, he picked the wrong elevator. Oh well, surely everyone had gone to sleep and the dining room was empty.

And nope. As soon as the elevator opened, his eyes snapped to Bernkastel and Ryuu, who seemed to be in conversation (like Kerin could hear or really cared what they were talking about). Great. This was the demon floor. And not only that, Kerin was standing there in pyjamas. As he inhaled though, that's when he truly regretted stopping at the floor. He could smell it; remnants of blood from meat. It smelled so good, it really did. And it was everywhere. He let out a moan and moved his hand to cover his mouth and nose but it was no use. His thirst was disgustingly unbearable. He clenched his teeth together, avoiding his own skin. Though his own blood really did nothing for him, he would probably suck himself dry like a crazy person. He was at a kitchen though, which had been his overall objection. It might not be the right one, but moving himself back to the vampire district's kitchen seemed too far of a journey, despite how fast the elevators moved. He strode over to the kitchens, trying to avoid disrupting the two demons' conversation and quickly found a servant.

"A really, really, really rare steak. Raw. Please," Kerin coughed out, his nose catching the whiffs of the kitchen. Ugh, the meat, he could smell it from a mile away. "Quickly, please!" The servant moved at lightning speed and returned with a lump of bloody meat. Kerin didn't even thank the guy but nodded and held his breath as he moved back to the elevator, away from the demons. He sat next to the elevator doors, released his hand from his nose and almost shoved the whole steak in his mouth and sucked. Oh... oh god. The effect was almost instantaneous. His thirst was instantly subdued, but it didn't stop him from sucking the steak dry. And taking another from the servant who had taken the initiative of bringing him another two. He sucked on the second one just as fast, like how a child sucks the orange juice from and orange, leaving the inside pulp intact. The servant brought him another two as he started to suck on the third.

"That'll be enough, thanks," Kerin said with a mouthful of steak. True, he felt a little embarrassed. Sitting on the ground in dingy clothes, sucking on steaks. Like he was a homeless guy who had severe allergies or something. Whatever. As long as it would keep him from making a terrible mistake, he didn't really care.

[Social Kibbles]

"A-ah... O-okay...".

Shizuka grew excited but made sure to hold back his emotion, he needed to appear confident in everything he did from this point on, he knew he was a skilled fighter and would be able to hold his own against everyone in the competition. His odds of winning weren't as clear in his mind though, that was the only reason he was silently afraid. But Amelia is a smart girl who says she is weak and has done nothing but provide evidence to support so, but deep down he felt she was lying; she wasn't as frail as she was letting people on to believe. He was quite sure he had her pegged so that's why he pushed as much as he did.

"I-if she isn't in h-her room, w-we'll wait there u-until she returns," Amelia interrupted suddenly. Good now she was becoming more and more interested in the idea of seeing Bern. If she was still as frightened as she claimed to be in the sound of her voice, she wouldn't have made the suggestion of remaining in Bernkastel's room if she wasn't there. Amelia stood and begun motioning towards the elevators to begin our mission to seek out the demon witch, Shizuka grabbed one last grape and plopped it into his mouth and then followed his companion. The elevator ride down was silent, neither of them making really any noises with the exception of breathing; the elevator itself didn't even have that tacky music everyone despises listening too anymore. The elevator came to a stop and the doors opened to a rush of air that smelled of mass amounts of gore and bloodshed came crashing in; Shizuka was caught off guard and then his eyes caught up with his nose and he saw the scene before him. The room before them was the aftermath of a battle scene with broken walls and furniture, blood splatters and puddles everywhere, as well as one person at the far end of the room mopping up a small lake of blood. Lucky for them it was Natruo.

Oh great. Just what we need. Almighty God jerk who was already giving Amelia a hard time. And lets not forget to mention how he kicked my ass by grazing me. Yes! Best Day Ever.

As Shizuka thought to himself, every thought dripped in sarcasm about seeing the god. He remembered quite clearly the before hand and aftermath of their last encounter on the helicopter. Amelia tensed up herself but slowly began moving forward and motioning sliently to move as quick as possible. The closer they got the more distressed Amelia appeared to be, Shizuka just watched for any movement so he could retaliate if needed. Suddenly Amelia slipped on some blood, but before Shizuka could react Natruo already had his arm around her and stopping her mid fall. His attention had not turned away from his prior mopping, that was until he turned his gaze to Amelia and stared her directly in the eyes. Amelia suddenly jolted out of the gods arms and she flew into the elevator, Shizuka didn't hesitate and just rushed passed Natruo himself; Amelia slammed her finger on the button to our destination until the doors finally closed.

"Th-that isn't Natruo... Natruo didn't f-fight Ryuu." Shizuka raised an eyebrow of confusion at her sudden statement. "R-ryuu f-fought Lucifier, I th-think," she followed with. "And what exactly does that mean" Shizuka asked puzzled. Whatever it did mean they would have to bring it up with Bernkastel because he was still focused on getting more information out of her. He knew he had claim to seeing her when he wanted, she did 'take notice of him' as she as said.

[Supervegeta]

"Yes, I do realize you are the f*cking rhyno, Either way, if you go by that...." I gaze down at the new tattoo which has formed on my hand. A wing. "Even with us not messing with eachother, you'll be dead within twenty hours. I can tell you that right now. You are in it for physical fights where you can see your opponent and do massive damage. It doesn't work that way, Ryuu. You won't be seeing the traps laid out. You won't realize the mine underneath you. Boom."

As Ryuu continued to speak, Bern finished up his last sentence for him.


"Plan. Don't even bother covering up, Ryuu... I already knew before this conversation that you plan. You may not have realized it at the time, but you made a mistake in the helicopter that only I noticed. However, make no mistake. I am not the tattling type, and I will not tell of this conversation or that you're actually smart. If I somehow do, feel free to think of it as an invitation for you to hit me."

Ryuu casually accepted everything that Bern had said. She was absolutely right. If Ryuu had learned anything from his conversation and battle with Natruo, it was that physical strength wouldn't be enough to win. Of course, he wouldn't say so out loud. He had too much pride for that. Besides, he figured it was better that Bern assumed Ryuu wouldn't care, and wouldn't take her advice, when in reality, he understood. He had already planned a particularly effective long-range weapon he would be using, and had some kind of way to defeat most of the others, should he run into them again, probably even Bern. But there was another reason he had agreed to this deal of 'non-aggression'. It was because he wasn't sure if it was full-proof yet. He had to observe some...irregularities first, and once they had added up, then he'd kill her. For now, and probably a good way into the Reaping, he would settle with the deal.

But Ryuu's stopping of his conversation wasn't because he didn't want to know that he planned. Every fighter did, even one who charged, whether to the extreme, or not. What he did want to stop himself from saying is that he planned well. Still, he felt he should respond to her last statement.

"If you tell anyone ANYTHING that you think you know, I'm not going to hit you, Bernkastel. I'm going to kill you."

[Eeveemaster9]

Chapter 3 - Bernkastel Vermillia - Demon District

"If you tell anyone ANYTHING that you think you know, I'm not going to hit you, Bernkastel. I'm going to kill you."

Laughable. First word that came to mind after hearing that statement. Neither of us really payed any attention to Kerin, as he ordered some bloody meat. He was gone quickly, so that was good enough. Had he stayed, I would have been forced to be harsh with him. 'Just don't come back in here,' I thought to myself. I focused back on Ryuu.

"Ryuu, I do not spread things I think." Which was very true. I didn't talk about people behind their backs. I didn't spread lies that would get me into situations. And I certainly didn't make assumptions on a person, and then tell another. "You won't even hear me utter your name... Oh, and it's difficult to kill someone whose already dead. Didn't I already say this at one point...?" My eyes flashed red momentarily.

'Miss Bernkastel... Two angels just boarded the elevator,' Came the low voice inside my head. Ah. Lucifier. I closed my eyes for a moment, and took a sip of the remaining alchohol. 'Allow them entry. I am finishing up.' I answered back. Right then... I better do that. Two angels... Probably Amelia and Shizu. Hm. Seemed that I didn't get much rest in terms of talking with people. This must have been what it felt like for popular people at school. Good thing she never had to deal with that. It was hard enough going around the city in the demon district without being mobbed. Some wanting to fight. Some fans. Some angry. Some happy. The latter. I opened my eyes, and stood up from the table.

"In any case, a deal is a deal. Ceasefire until nessesary. My silence about you... I will take my leave, now. I have things to do." Politely, I set my dirty dishes into a neat pile, tucked my chair back in, and nodded.

"The person you killed on the helicopter is still alive," I commented at random. Before he could react, I swiftly moved on my feet, grabbed the back of Kerin's collar, and literally carried him up the stairs to the entertainment room. He had a sickening, bloody smell to him thanks to the steaks he was still sucking on. Calmly, I watched the lights above the elevator stop at my floor, before beginning it's descend back down. The angels were now in her room.

"Swift, Kerin." I pushed him into the elevator, and pressed the ground-level button. The second we were stopped, I shoved him out and jammed my floor. "Please be more careful," I warned, before the doors closed again. Thank God Ryuu didn't attack him... Poor vampire...

Within seconds, I had stopped at my floor. I left the elevator, but I didn't enter my room right away. Instead, I hesitated. I would have to watch myself. No contact with Amelia. Alliances weren't a problem for me. Alliances just meant they couldn't hurt me, and I couldn't hurt them. It didn't mean that say, Kerin couldn't attack Xavier or something. So really... If it came out like last year...

Putting on the most bored expression in history, I entered my room.

(OOC: Bern's mind: A² + B² = C²)

Chapter 3 - Mammon - Underworld

I watched silently, as Raike raised his hand, and plunged into the boy's temple. He was dead before you could say his name. He didn't even flinch. He just continued laying there as if nothing had happened. But I noticed the difference. The rise and fall of his chest eruptly stopped. Strangely enough, I felt a small amount of pity for Fausto. No idea why, I just did. Within seconds, the color of his skin changed dramatically. Pale. Atleast Raike made it virtually painless...

I kept myself in the dagger form, until we were back in the elevator. Only then, did I change back to my humanoid form. I leaned against Raike's shoulder. It was weird how emotionless he was about it. He killed somebody, and he waltzed away like he just came out of a serious lecture. I decided to tease him.

"Aw~ Raike is so cute when he's an assassin~" I chirped, mocking Alice. "Is it bad if I imagined you brutally slaughtering him?" I laughed. The elevator stopped at his floor, and the two of us made our way inside. I didn't take much notice of the surroundings, and instead plopped down on his bed. It was rather soft, and her butt immediately sank in.

"The contract will be in full effect after you sleep. You hungry?" I didn't wait for a response. With the snap of my fingers, a huge plate appeared on my lap with our supper. A huge pizza with lots of melted cheese and pepperoni. It smelt delicious~! Yes. Demon servants actually ate normal food. Well... We could taste it and stuff, but it went right through us. We didn't need food or water to live. We were immortal all the way. Gingerly, I pulled out a piece from the circle, and began eating. I held out the plate for Raike.

"I'll be teaching you how to use my powers after the group training. Because you need to learn how to control them. Manifestation is dangerous. And in order to make those wings of yours, you'll need more than just power. You'll need knowledge and experience. Unless you wanna dress up as some extra crispy bacon!"

Chapter 3 - Amelia Kunjui - Angel District

(To Be Editted)

[Skymin]

"Mmph?" Was all Kerin could muster with a steak in his mouth when Bernkastel pulled him by the collar (or edge of shirt? He was wearing a singlet afterall) and up the stairs. He hadn't even started his fifth steak, though luckily it was in his hand when she grabbed him. He couldn't stop it from dripping all over the floor though. She shoved him in the elevator, joined him and pushed the ground floor, almost dumping off when it arrived.

"Please be more careful," she said before the doors closed again, leaving Kerin alone. The steak still in his mouth, he stood there for a little bit. Careful of what? Ryuu? Why? It wasn't like... well, he probably would attack Kerin, with a temper like Ryuu's. Kerin wasn't worried though. With blood in his system, it wouldn't have been hard to dodge the Rhino's attacks and come with a counterattack at least. At least Bern was nice enough to care about him. He appreciated that.

Finishing off the steak in his mouth, he got started on the last one. Now that his sense weren't quite so dulled thanks to the lack of blood, Kerin could really taste how bad the steaks were compared to other things. True, these were top quality, but nothing beat fresh meat. He could taste the age in the steaks and taste the animal. He needed this though, and would have to grin and bare it.

[SkyisUmbreon]

-I didn't pay much attention to the teasing comment she had made inside of the elevator. Frankly I wasn't mad at myself for what I had just done, but I preferred to just not think about it, and it was already in the back of my mind. They say that when you kill someone, it only gets easier to do it, which I guessed would benefit me in the arena by a long shot, and I wouldn't be the idiot who stands there with the hand on his sword shaking as if he were scared out of his wits, while the enemy on the ground was busy pulling out a dagger. When the doors opened to my room, I didn't smile, but inside I was pleased; the wallpaper looked like the rising and falling of the bars in the tiny screen on a boombox. My bed was pretty cool too, having a red bedding and a black comforter with black pillows, it kinda looked like draculas bed... or coffin... or whatever he would sleep in.

The demon girl was on my bed before I could sit down, but I didn't care much because I was tired, and covered myself on the opposite side of the bed, ignoring her little plate of pizza. I wasn't exactly in the mood for her jokes and teasing.-

"I'm already full" I said, already falling into the world of dreams as my head sunk into my pillow, muffling my voice. "and have my own type of magic too, watch." I said as I held up my fingers and snapped them, causing the lights in the room to automatically shut off, bathing the room in darkness. I guessed I would go to the regular training session anyway, just so I wouldn't raise any suspicion and no one would come to check up on me, if they cared. I also hoped no one was too hungry at breakfast, because I was going to devour all the food they had in that place.-

[Eeveemaster9]

Chapter 3 - Amelia Kunjui - Angel District

I was mute. That's what came to mind when my mouth opened up, and no voice could be heard from my throat. I kept my back flat against the elevator wall. I felt us moving upwards through the shaft... To me, even though this was the fastest elevator I had ever been on, it wasn't fast enough. I needed to get to Bern's room. I needed to lengthen the distance between Lucifier and myself. To dim the shock of what I saw in relation to him. Thise gruesome images... My knees buckled, and I sat down in astonishment. My entire body shivered in some sort of dance. Everything I touched felt cold to the bone. Freezing. The center of my stomach tightened as if I had just been stabbed in the gut. That's the feeling I got.A sharp pain that shook through my spine. I was still alive, wasn't I? That had been possibly the worst experience I've had with my Sense Feeling ability. It was like I had jumped inside of him. The cold I had once welcomed was a biter enemy. All peace and kindness slipped through my grasp, and was replaced with a horrible feeling of murder and evil. Senseless destruction. When Shizuka spoke to me, I immediately scrambled to stand. Looking at his face, my skin crawled into a tone of white. That brief second I felt a pang of dread. I had suddenly wanted to hurt him. What was wrong wiith me?! I would never... I would never do that to anyone! My eyes drifted up to the ceiling, and that was when I knew how to explain this rush of experience. Lucifier didn't just destroy buildings and land. He brought destruction to people as well. This sensation had been like someone had flipped me inside out. a mirror image of me. A person whose goal was to hurt others. To kill without reason.

"Hah..." I closed my eyes before I could shed tears. I needed to answer Shizuka. I needed to prove that I could handle a simple touch from someone. If I couldn't do that, I was absolutely useless to him. I took an unsteady breath, and looked up at him to answer.

I couldn't do it. I stared at him for a moment; my words caught on my tongue, and unwilling to break free. I was terrified. Ryuu, Bernkastel, Natruo, and even Shizu... They all scared me to death. They could all kill me.

I found myself wrapping my arms around Shizuka. What was I doing? Well... He was the only person who had been nice to me. He tried to protect me on the helicopter... And he told me we were allies. I didn't care if his wings were black, white, or multi-colored. I didn't care if he was handsome or ugly. If he treated me well... I would too. I nestled my head to lay against his shoulder. I was such a wimp... Crying on the shoulder of a person I had only met today... And he probably didn't understand how horrified I was. He probably thought I was delusional. I didn't make any sound as I cried. Tears rolled down my cheeks, and landed onto him. This was so embarrassing... I wished that Bern had also been her. I would have rather cried on her shoulder. Because, atleast I had met her before, and she was a girl. She would understand, right? She wouldn't judge me. More or less, she would go stiff. Emotionless and silent as always. I was so weak compared to everyone else. I was clumsy and useless. Sure, I knew a few secrets, but once I told them, there would be nothing to stop anyone from killing me.

"I-I'm sorry," I managed to sniffle out. My voice cracked as I hesitantly slid away. God... It was going to be so much more awkward between us. Thanks to me. "It m-means that r-rest of her servants a-are around... I s-saw someone k-kill Fausto." Finally I answered him. Fausto was dead, and his death was linked to Lucifier and/or the servants. I couldn't see who had done it, though.

And with one sentence, I summed up what 95% of the participants wanted.

"I want to go home..."

Chapter 3 - Mammon - Underworld

I clicked my tongue against the top of my mouth, and allowed the manifested pizza to disintergrate into nothingness. There was no point. He was just human, after all. And today HAD been rather tiring. Fate sealed to participate in a fight to the death. Deal with Ryuu. Eavesdrop on Bernkastel and Xavier. Train in the Underworld. And the kicker; killed a cutter. Although, he was pretty cool to not be insane by this point.

"Alright, suit yourself..." I hopped off the bed and stretched out my muscles. It was gonna be a long night... Carefully, I slid myself underneath the blankets with a blank expression. I made sure to stay on the opposite end so I didn't touch him. Icckk. If he asked, I'd just say that I needed to be close to you for the contract to be sealed. Which, was technecially true. I made myself as comfortable as a demon with wings could get, and closed my eyes. I wouldn't be sleeping, though. I would be concentrating on the contract all night. And man was I gonna be grumpy when he woke up.

"Good night,"

Chapter 3 - Shiro (Daxity) - Vampire District

"....."

Her body laid against the door-frame like some sort of doll. Her eyes, gazing up at the clear night sky. The view was beautiful from here... A crown of sparkling light across the horizon like a drape. The God's District. Would she be able to go there? Probably not. She would be stuck in the Victors District because of her... Stability.

(To Be Editted OTL)

[Supervegeta]

Ryuu ignored the comment about her being dead. He didn't understand, and really didn't want to understand. But he never forgot when she said that. It didn't make sense, but something told him he would figure it out eventually.

"In any case, a deal is a deal. Ceasefire until nessesary. My silence about you... I will take my leave, now. I have things to do." Ryuu remained seating as she got up and left. Ryuu quickly went on to finish his steaks. Bernkastel made one final remark before she left.

"The person you killed on the helicopter is still alive," Ryuu looked at her as she departed, then smiled as he spoke out loud, partially to himself, and partially to her as she departed.

"I dunno, are you sure he's not dead either, or is that just you?" He said, in his voice can be told that he was partially mocking her. Ryuu turned back around and finished eating.

When he was done, he got up, flipped the table over, and threw it outside, just for the heck of it. He smiled, pleased as he heard the table crash onto the ground below. He left without another word, taking the empty bottle of wine with him, and went straight to his room. He was tired, and wanted some sleep.

[Eeveemaster9]

Chapter 3.5 - Marisa Ryunatta - Vampire District

"......!!"

THUD.

I laid there for a moment; eyes wide and half-awake. What...? Where? The first thing that came to mind when I realized I was on the floor, was that I had just woken up from the usual nightmare at the orphanage, and my roommate kicked me off the bed. Slowly, I rolled onto my back, and sat up stiffly. I could already hear the insults she was going to say about me. How clumsy I was, and all that. Instead, it never came. Blinking, I looked around in confusion. Ah... Right. No roommate. No orphanage... My golden eyes gazed upon the empty bed, and everything hit my gut. Which place was worse.... Here, or there? Surely, here.

Where I was being prepared to die in an arena.

But something was wrong. That was what the back of my mind kept telling me. My eyes couldn't rip away from the bed, until I could remember. That's... It. I was supposed to have a roommate. A kind roommate who would never push me off the bed. Who would never hurt me. My eyes softened, as I felt my hands over the blankets.

"Not here..." I whimpered. In a panic, my head whipped around the full dimension of the room. Not here. Not here. He wasn't here...! I scrambled to the closet and peeled clothing off of me. I didn't even bother to undo buttons or anything. I heard the pajamas rip, but I didn't become more gentle. I didn't own the clothing, and they wouldn't mind. Within two minutes, I was in a long summer dress with little flower imprints at the base. I grabbed my roommate's parka from where I had left it the previous night, and stumbled out of my room.

'Maybe he's in the dining room,' I told myself. Where else would he be? Once inside the elevator, I stabbed the button with my little finger. I was panicking. Where was he? Where had he gone?" A choked voice came from my throat. What if something happened to him, that I didn't see? Had he been kidnapped? Was he fighting someone? Was he... Dead? When the elevator doors began to open again, I squeezed myself through; not even bothering to wait a second for them to open fully.

The room had changed significantly from last night. Light, warm colors. A table was set off to the side, with what appeared to be our breakfast. Fresh, too. Different types of fruits were in a huge glass bowl. Oranges and apples and bananas... Some I couldn't even recognize, but looked delicious anyhow. Several plates were dedicated to pancakes and waffles. Huge stacks of perfect pancakes, with maple syrup jars beside. There was more. Omelettes of every type of ingredient. Scrambled eggs. Bacon! It was enough to make even Bernkastel's mouth water. Freshly squeezed fruit juice was at the end. Orange and peach and lemonade... It was all so overwhelming. Quickly, I gathered up a plate, two pairs of utensils, and dished up two of everything. I drank down some orange juice, and hurried back into the elevator. He hadn't been there, either. He wouldn't be in Fang's room. Definitely not Shiro's.... The training center! I repeated the process of attacking the 'floor 1' button with my finger.

'Please be there and okay...!' That thought spammed my mind until I felt dizzy.

When the elevator doors opened again, I was in shock. It was like the world as I had known it, had changed overnight. Everything. The once boring, cement-ridden room was now a paradise. A true training center. To my left, over on the space between two elevators, was a forest-like space. Real trees had grown out. Grass covering that section as though it was a natural occurance. Bushes and flowers and bird noises. Up ahead, were three tables. Each, were filled with weapons. Weapons that were obviously swords and knives and bows. Some I couldn't seem to comprehend. Just beside that, was a shooting gallery, complete with dummies. That entire section had a shimmering barrier around it. Well... I guess they didn't want anyone fooling with sharp objects beforehand. All across the room were more and more stations. Plants and camoflauge and physical combat. Rope tying and swimming lessons. And according to a sign, there was flying manuver training outside on the roof.

My attention turned to the only other person in the room. A boy who was passed out at the camoflauge station. My heart jumped, and I immediately ran over there; being mindful not to spill breakfast. I set the plate off to the side, and sat him up. Ooof. He was heavy. I looked at his lips, which were smeared with a red liquid. And according to my nose, it was blood. Animal blood. I breathed out slowly. My hand reached for a napkin, and I wiped it away. I propped his back against the nearest wall, and I shook him gently.

"K-kerin-onii-sama...! Wake up..! Breakfast!"

[雷影 イチロ]

Akira Tsukuda - Somewhere Between Heaven and Hell

They came for Akira sometime in the early hours of the evening while his parents were still out and he was sprawled out on his bed. He heard the knocks on the door from the far reaches of his sleep but chose to ignore them, waiting for the strangers to leave.

They didn’t.

Bleary eyed and disorientated they dragged him from the comforts of his bed and out the door; lucky for him Akira had slept in his clothes. As soon as the evening rain splattered in his face, Akira became fully conscious and aware of what was happening.

He had been chosen.

Akira stood upright, his wings kept close against his back, as they transported him from his home to a waiting helicopter. At first thought, Akira believed that they were after him following an incident he was involved in several weeks ago, but as soon as he hopped into the helicopter and noticed the difference in clothes that the officials wore, he realised that he was about to take part in the Population Games. Akira focussed upon the ragged city that flew by below him, wondering if he was the only one who would be brought fresh into the Population Games and whom had died before him.

“They must have been weak,” he muttered to himself as the helicopter touched down at a building situated somewhere between the city and where the Population games were to be help. As far as he knew, it was only Day Two of the Population Games, people who had died this early, probably didn’t deserve to have continued living at all. As soon as he exited, more like was pushed, out of the helicopter, it took off, leaving him alone on the launch pad, and open terrain surrounded the solitary building that stood tall.

Akira was to last to arrive, or so he thought. Four other contestants had already arrived ahead of him and unlike him, weren’t soaked from the precipitation outside. To his amazement the building was more elegant inside than it was outside, seeming to him like they were trying to give the contestants a nice farewell before they died at the hands of another.

“So sadistic,” he muttered again as he surveyed the surroundings and his competition. To one side a human female leaned against the wall, trying to look relaxed, Akira sized her up, something about her put Akira off; even though she was human, he would be reluctant to side with her. He saw two of what he guessed to be vampires cuddling each other, “how cute,” he said under his voice. The female one said something about them winning the Population Games together making Akira chuckle a bit; they didn’t look like they would last long. Akira quickly sized up his other competition before relaxing on a couch that sat up against the wall; protecting his back.

Akira paid no attention to the television, he was never the kind of person to watch mind numbing programs, and instead he decided to watch his competition; find out what he could about them. Real life was much more dramatic and interesting that anything television could offer.

[Skymin]

"K-kerin-onii-sama...! Wake up..! Breakfast!"

Kerin mumbled a little then snapped his eyes open as he felt a pair of small hands gently shook him awake. He looked back at those big, golden eyes of Marisa and blinked once, twice, three times. What? Where was he? He rubbed his own eyes and yawned, stretching his arms out and pulled his shoulders back until he heard a small snap. Well, that wasn't a bad sleep though he could have gone for longer. What time was it anyways? He quickly scanned the area as he cleaned his mouth out with his tongue; his eyes told him he had wandered to some kind of tropical area. He had gone outside? He didn't remember opening a door except an elevator one.

"Where a--" his eyes went to the grassy floor around him. There were dry steaks next to him and dry blood on his hands (and two plates of food to the side?) Oh, yeah. That's what happened last night. He got thirsty. So he must have fallen asleep. Hah. That wasn't all that surprising; he was definitely exhausted. That still didn't answer his question. "Where are we?"

The haze in his mind disappeared and he suddenly realised what he had done and who was standing over him. He wiped his face and hands on his now dingy singlet (which had its fair share of blood on it), shuffled himself up, coughed a few times and threw the dry steaks into the trees around him with a flick of his wrist. Marisa, Marisa was standing over him! She didn't need to see this, though she was probably one of the three other people who understood his need for it (though he didn't think she understood why he chose to kind of shy away in the first place).

"Marisa! Marisa, hi," he let out a little laugh.

[Eeveemaster9]

Chapter 3.5 - Paris Junibe - Demon District

Don't you just hate it when, in the best dream ever, something happens that wakes you? 'Sunlight. Ooh, how I loathe you,' I groaned mentally. Honestly... I didn't get much sleep, and I woke up annoyed. Stress is not a part of beauty! Anyone who cared about appearance would know this! A thousand scrunches of the face, was one wrinkle! Wrinkle!! Wrinkles were NOT beautiful. It was made so that displeased people were ugly and older-looking faster. As for sleep, there really was 'beauty sleep'. A perfect amount of hours and minutes which would remove bags under the eyes, cleanse your facial features, and allowed the brain to work at its full potential. I had gotten eight hours, twenty three minutes. Definitely not enough. My beauty sleep mark was ten hours, fifteen minutes. Ugh.... That two hour difference was going to screw me over.

Carefully, I slid out from bed, and adjusted my hair. Stupid Population Games.... Couldn't I just give the Government my pocket change and go back home? This was all such a pain. Beautiful people shouldn't be obliged to participate. The word was short-handed, as it was. How about people who didn't do anything? Tch...

My eyes shifted to the one other person in the room. A boy. My lips curled up into a deliberate smile. Xavier was a smart boy. He must know about the sciences of beauty, because he was drop-dead handsome. Best non-celebrity i've seen in YEARS. Since he didn't express much emotion, that meant less scrunching of the face. Thus, less wrinkles. And, overall, longer beauty. He seemed to be someone who knew the importance of sleep. 'Mmm~' I licked my lips. It took everything I had not to jump him in his weak form. 'I am SO hooking up with you after this, sexy.' I moved off the bed, and pulled my hair back.

'Stupid sun,' I jerked the curtains leading to the balcony shut, as so the sun would not disturb Xavier as it had me. Well... Better go clean up before stupid training... Whatev. Sighing, and with no belongings to take, I opened the door to leave. That was when I stopped, and looked at the square piece of white taped to the red-wood finish. "....." Paper. Gingerly, I peeled it off with the tips of my fingers like it was some disgusting dead thing. Unfolding, I read the words.

'Good night,' it said. The words were a sort of fancy handwriting that even I couldn't achieve. But it was familiar. The idiotic stalker...! Well, of course I was talking about Bernkastel. Who else? She was a true WITCH. Creepy and murderous. Xavier didn't NEED to see such a stupid message from HER. Crumbling the paper inside my palm, I jerked my hand back to throw it away. I missed the garbage can, and I cursed silently. Whatever. Like Xavier would read it. Turning my head, I shut his door behind me, and headed for the elevator.

[Supervegeta]

Ryuu opened his eyes and sat up on his bed instantly. Like many nights before, he was dreamless. One second, he lay in his bed, and the next, he lay awake. He didn't mind not having dreams, but it got a bit old for him. He wished he could dream about something, even if it was a nightmare. It really begged the question: Is it better to dream a bad dream, or to not dream at all?

Ryuu got out of his sleeping attire quickly, dressing up in an outfit he had on that was similar to the night before; dark pants with a coat reaching down to his ankles. The sleeves, however, were ripped off, revealing his well-toned muscles. If he wanted to, he could probably break almost any of the contestants in half like they were toothpicks.

Ryuu made his way out of his room, responding to his now grumbling stomach as it yearns for food. Ryuu would oblige it. He made his way to the dining hall, the room a bit different than last night. A table stood in the corner with all manner of goodies to enjoy. Ryuu looked over it carefully. In all honesty, he didn't know what to get first. Should he make himself an omelette? Perhaps a few pancakes? Really, any of them would be good choices. But Ryuu wanted a bit of everything, so instead of getting anything particular, he grabbed at the edges of the table, and lifted it, up, moving the entire thing, with all of its contents to the far side of the room, close to where he was the night before. Grabbing a chair, he sat down, and dug in.

[Eeveemaster9]

Chapter 3.5 - Marisa Ryunatta - Vampire District

“Where a----“….. “Where are we?”….. “Marisa! Marisa, hi”

‘Kerin is so funny!’ I realized with a giggle. It was entertaining; just watching him self-consciously clean himself up. We were both vampires…! Though, maybe it was because, according to Fang, that Kerin was originally human. Anyways, I understood that he needed to drink blood. It was normal for our species, and it didn’t bother me all that much. I had a high tolerance for the smell, not to mention I didn’t need much due to my age. Though, soon enough, I would need to feed more than once a day, and the pills in my pocket would not be able to curb my hunger. It was a scary thought, yes, but it was believed to be a milestone for our culture. It was a right of passing to turn sixteen, and to gain our utmost abilities which were like a fingerprint to us. All vampires had something unique. Not just in their appearance and personality, but deep within; their best manipulation. It could be a certain element like fire or earth or void. Or, it could be a material. Our best factories were filled with vampires who could manipulate the materials in use. Like iron. The possibilities were endless.

I wonder… Was my ability to see the written and unwritten history, my manipulation? Was I going to be known as a fortune-teller, like the Mayans we talked about in class? I didn’t yet know what I wanted to do with my life. I loved my violin, but I wouldn’t be able to make it my profession. Not against vampires who manipulated instruments as a born talent… So what, then? I liked animals. Maybe I could be a doctor for familiars. Though, not very many people had familiars these days. No zoos, either. All animals were kept outside the districts, besides the summoned familiars. These familiars mostly belonged to government officials or the rich. I didn’t want to work with either…

My eyes shifted to the forest-like patch in the training center, where Kerin had thrown the remains of his steaks. I then cocked my head to the side curiously; blinking my golden-blonde lashes.

“Uu, we’re in the training place! Kerin was silly and fell asleep here! Sleep walking is bad.” I dragged out ‘bad’ and giggled happily. “They…. Re…Renovated!” I beamed widely, and took Kerin by the wrist; only because he would probably be uncomfortable with me touching the dried blood on his hands. It was fine with me, though. Because Kerin was Kerin, and Kerin was a nice person! It was better that I found him with dried steaks, than with a living person. Trust me; I’ve seen vampires passed out with another after sucking their blood. Not pretty.

“We’re gonna clean Kerin up! Here!” I grabbed his plate, and carefully gave it to him. “Eat, Kerin-sama!”

Chapter 3.5 - Mammon - Underworld

"....."

Real demons did not dream. That was the first difference between us. We rarely slept. Slept only after extensive use of our powers, or, in this case, to finish up a contract. At this point, it wasn't a dream, but could be classified as one since I was 'sleeping'. No. When a real demon slept alongside a person after they had fullfilled a contract quota, something interesting happened. It was a sense of reality, with the dreamy blur of something unreal. There was nothing, yet everything. Everything flashed through our minds like some sort of amazing historical timeline. Everything in existance. Everything I could manifest to the great of my abilities. This would be come to be known as Vision Telepathy, since there was no two words which could better title it. It was a point in time where the contractee and contractor envisioned a set list of things. In my case, anything and everything I could manifest at some point. That was me. I was made up of every sort of code out in what we call our Universe of Space. A complicated set of numbers which could create one thing even with a total of zero.

I reached my arms out into this vast plain of everything-ness. It colored me. Shaped me. Took form inside my palms. It was a dark light, if that made any sense. It was brighter than anything possible, yet it was dyed the color of black. The darkness enveloped my whole. Carressed it like a mother's warmth. I could only imagine what it would feel like, though. Real demons did not have a one creator. They came into being by a sort of chemical base that could simply not be comprehended. A manifestation without a single owner. So, was I owned? Was I owned by every existance, due to my nature being born from existance itself? If a man fell into the bush, and nobody was around to help him, did the man exist?

I awoke with a sense that I had only closed my eyes briefly. I didn't stretch or yawn. I did not feel the side effects of awakening. It was like I was in an eternal state of mind, in which I could not fall into unconsciousness. I blinked up at the light which had drifted up onto the high ceiling; casting the shadows of objects to loom over. Instinctively, I rose from the bed, and looked down at the boy. My eyes, lowered down almost in pity, gazed down at the exposed skin of his palm. A symbol made of a crimson red, was engraved into the human's skin. The same symbol which was now swirling uncontrollably on my left pupil. We were bound by matter. A contract which could not be broken. I would stay with Raike until the end of his life, or until I was no longer in working condition. My hand, like some sort of alien abductor, reached out within inches of the demonic symbol. That too, began to spin. It hurt my brain to move the marking elsewhere, but it was nessesary. We could not afford to throw out the information that I, Mammon, had made a contract with a Human. Keeping the same distance, I trailed my close, almost-touch right up to the space over his heart. At that point, the marking disappeared. If I checked his chest now, I would be able to see it.

"Raike," Though all my own power was stored inside me, all he really had to do, was give a single order, and I would give him the energy to create whatever he desired. In this case, flame wings, it seemed. I backed away to give my contractor some room to awaken. Though, he may not need it. My contractors had the tendency to wake up with a searing pain as though they were on fire. However, Raike was a fire mage. He controlled heat; even unconsciously. He was a human sun, and, if he wanted to be, he could be just as radiant.

[Skymin]

"Training place..." Kerin looked around. Indeed, it seemed a lot different than what he remembered from last night. It was a forest now, a little dense if he looked into it. Why a forest then? Ugh, was the gods planning on a game of hide and seek or something? Because that would not be fun. At all. Though, it would most likely be less fun if it was the actual game, since everyone would be trying to kill everyone. Hopefully, all of the players would be on speaking terms and not try and kill eachother. Hopefully. Though, knowing Ryuu, that wasn't likely. Bleaugh.

Marisa grabbed him by the arm and yanked at him. Kerin followed and got to his feet and took the plate the thrust at him with a "Thank-you". Ooh, bacon! Pancakes! And fruit! Boy, Kerin felt pretty damn hungry. Not thirsty, thank god. Well, his neck twinged, but it always did that. He wouldn't need anything to drink until at least tomorrow. Depending on what he did that day. Since it was training, Kerin would probably burn off the blood quickly, which wasn't a good thing for him. But he would have to hack it. He had to.

In any case, he pulled his hand out of Marisa's grip and used his hands to eat what was on his plate as Marisa led him away from his 'bed' and towards the elevators. He needed to shower, he needed to change. Though, if Marisa wished, he could just grab some clothes from his room and shower up in hers if she felt like she needed him there.

"Need some clothes," Kerin mumbled through a full mouth, stabbing his floor with a greasy thumb.

[SkyisUmbreon]

-I felt the sinking, then rising of my bed as if someone was getting up. The thing that was weird was that I didn't remember allowing anyone to sleep in my bed, let alone in my room! Normally I probably would have been a bit more pissed, but hey, I had just woken up... and I was still temporarily tired. Inside, I could feel the normal warmth that indicated my own fire abilities, but then there was something else, something abnormal. For some reason, it seemed that my flames were growing on their own, gradually exceeding the boundaries I had put in place in order to keep me from glowing like the sun, and burning my cloths.

The gradual pace of the flames picked up, and knowing that I would not be able to prevent it, I did what I could and rolled off of the bed, hardly feeling the impact of hitting the ground on my left arm, and jumped away from the bed. A few seconds later, I released the boundaries, allowing the flame through, but not before putting some restrictions on it, lest it burn the whole building down. Instead of the blast incinerating everything in the vicinity, it only released a golden flash of blinding light, very briefly. When the light subsided, I still glowed slightly, but I felt a stronger heat, somewhere on my chest. I lifted my right hand to touch the place where the heat was originating from, which was on my chest just above my heart, and squinted at the demon standing on the other side of the bed.

Dropping my hand I held up the base of my coat which I had left on when I fell asleep, and growled slightly when I saw that it was singed; It was my favorite jacket and not only because I thought it looked cool, but because it was made from a special type of material most adept fire users wore. This material was known to be very resistant to fire, and since more fire wizards couldn't completely control their power, this material cut down on clothing costs. These cloths in particular were made from a very high grade form of that thread, making it more resistant than usual, and now it was burnt. I rolled my neck a few times, then sat on the bed and closed my eyes.-

"It's done now isn't it? The contract? A bit of a warning would have been nice, but I guess these arena people will have a way of restoring my jacket. Anyway, its morning, I'm hungry, and... yeah, I'm hungry, so I'm gonna go eat something." I said, walking towards my door, already having put on my boots and a new coat. My gloves seemed to have a new sheen about them also. " You should probably get back to Bernkastel before she gets suspicious, we can go over the details of this thing later; don't miss me too much." And with that, I was out the door, already pushing the button for the dining hall, and trying to calm my raging stomach.

[Skymin]

(OOC: it seems to be working again!!)

Kerin blinked a few times as Marisa pushed him back, forth and around his room. Waah, not so early in the morning! Kerin was barely awake, let alone conscious enough to be wandering backwards and forwards trying to find suitable clothes. Marisa had already picked out something for him though; a tan parka, a light blue shirt with a bird on it and a pair of jeans. Kerin had just enough time to grab appropriate underwear (he was glad Marisa did not pick that. A pair of white and red boxers with hearts adorning them lay close to the top and Kerin would rather be dead than wearing those) before Marisa pulled him into the bathroom with a gleeful smile.

"Shower!" she exclaimed at him, throwing him his clothes and towel. Without any time to object, she closed the door on him, leaving Kerin to himself. He sighed. What an enthusiastic girl. Kerin took a few moments to wash his face, to wake himself up before turning the shower on. There, that was better. At least he had some sense in him now.

His shower was fairly brief and he pulled on his clothes quite quickly. Sure, his shirt wasn't entirely to his liking but whatever, a shirt was a shirt. It was comfortable and it did the job of covering his torso. He then spent a minute or two inspecting the alchemy rock things that Bern have given him last night. He hadn't taken them off and didn't want to either; the feeling that burned in his gut when he thought about his past was gone and he liked it better that way. When he was done, he exited the bathroom, only to find Marisa gone. Oh, right, she was going to shower in her room. Grabbing his wallet and phone he had left on a bench the night before during his search for food, he left his room and took the elevator up to Marisa's.

"Marisa? Are you here?" he called out, opening her front door slowly. She didn't want to walk on the poor girl if she had forgotten something and wandered out of the shower butt naked. But, it's not like Kerin hadn't seen any of it before; he had other sister he had dressed before, it was no big deal.

[Supervegeta]

Ryuu was more than full. He had always been a big eater, and would often eat almost anything. Almost. Some things were just to unbearable to bring himself to eat. There was once a time back in the demon district, for example, where...never mind, a tale for a different time.

Ryuu stood up slowly, wiping his mouth with his arm, and casually began to walk out of the room...before he grabbed the table with the food on in and tossed it out of the window. Shattered glass littered the floor, and crashes of plates and food fell towards the ground. The shattering of the plates and all other objects from the table with the food on in falling was like a symphony of music in Ryuu's mind. He closed his eyes and listened, as if composing the piece of chaos.

When everything was quiet again, Ryuu walked out of the room. It was time he got some training in, and what better place than the training room.

Ryuu proceeded there, his thoughts bent on the coming competition, the Reaping. He had been denied years after years of participation before. Actually being here was, in a way, supposed to be like a dream for Ryuu. But ever since he got here, things haven't always been as they appeared. All it was filled with was fine foods, casual rides, and luxurious settings. If Ryuu wanted all that garbage, he could have stayed in his mansion in the Demon District. He was here for the fight, the killing, the action. Although the fight with Natruo was nice, it didn't do much but whet his appetite. So much more could be done here. He was eager to get started, and he'd start with a bit of training.

Now, when Ryuu says a bit, it must always be understood that his "bit" would be taken way out of proportion from an ordinary reasonable person. Ryuu certainly is not ordinary (and he sure as hell ain't reasonable).

Ryuu finally reached the training ground. The room looked a lot different than it did the night before, a forrest littering the area.

"What the f***?" Ryuu exclaimed out loud. He looked around it, wondering what it was all about. He shrugged, and stretched as he spoke to himself.

"Well, it'll do." A second later, he positioned himself, squared up, and charged the tree. It took one blow from a full-fledged charge of the Rhino to snap the tree in half, and bring it down in a large crash.

[Eeveemaster9]

*Chapter 3.5 - Marisa Ryunatta - Vampire District

As soon as I had Kerin all ready in the shower, I hopped myself out and made my way to my room. Training... Well, according to the way the room was set up, there were going to be stations, and everyone could freely move around to train at them. Which meant.... Ryuu would be there. With about three-dozen different weapons and things that couldn't possibly be weapons. Like a pencil, maybe. Basically, the best place for him to go on a rampage before the games began. 'And to think... I'll be chained to him during the games...' A light whimper came out from my throat as I entered into my room. He was gigantic in comparison to Bernkastel. Me? I was the smallest and weakest out of everyone here. And with Kerin or Fang or Bern present...? What would that mean for me?

Getting ready to take a shower was all a haze to me. I knew what I had to do, and my body did as such. However, my thoughts were elsewhere. Only when I felt the cold splatter of ice-water against my bare skin, did I snap out into reality and yelp. I hopped from both of my feet to avoid the sensor-activated streams, and I jammed my fingers into several of the buttons on the side of the shower. I was immediately doused with hot water, a foamy soap, and other products I hoped were not permanent. Scrapping an orange-scented glue substance from my limbs, I finally was able to fix the settings and have a somewhat normal shower. Hopping out, I realized that my skin was a bright pink from the brush I had been pain-stakingly rubbing against my skin. Oops. Raw like a chicken, I stepped out onto the mat and was bombarded with a blast of hot air. I humored myself with the thought of a chicken being roasted.

When the bathroom was done torturing me, I grabbed the nearest towel, and looked myself over in the mirror. Well.. Atleast my skin was turning pale again... My hair was a glossy waterfall of blonde, and I smelled thickly of orange. It would have to do. Wrapping the large towel over the entirety of my body, I stumbled out into my room. What I was not expecting, was that Kerin would be there to greet me. I sighed in relief, and gently opened the door for him.

"Kerin-onii-sama! The shower was bullying me!" I cried out; throwing myself into his legs.

Chapter 3.5 - Mammon - Underworld

I blinked several times at Raike, who had come from being a cute sleeping human, to an irritated, slightly smoking wizard of fire. I rolled my eyes away as a bright flash of light came from him. Good Lord... Human flashlight! When he finally dimmed down, I looked him over again. His coat was slightly burnt, yes, but nothing I couldn't fix.

"It's done now isn't it? The contract? A bit of a warning would have been nice, but I guess these arena people will have a way of restoring my jacket. Anyway, its morning, I'm hungry, and... yeah, I'm hungry, so I'm gonna go eat something."

"Um. Hello. Mammon of manifestation, here. How may I help you?" I muttered. "Manifestation is the creation of things out of nothing, or the repair of a three-dimentional object. I think your jacket counts, Raike." He now shared the power of a million-year-old demon servant of the Demon Lord, and the first thing he utters is a complaint about his jacket. Jeez. Well. Atleast he didn't burn down the building.... Taking the smoked jacket in my grasp, I snapped my fingers. That's how easy it was for me. A snap of my fingers, and the jacket seemed to be fresh out of a store. I then teleported myself beside the no-rest-more-eating boy, and hung it over his shoulder.

"There you are... And don't worry about Bernkastel. She doesn't need me 24/7 like you do. She favors Vergil, anyhow. The main problem is if that is what happens when you wake up, I'd hate to not be there when you turn into a human torch over that Ryuu child." I smirked, and slid myself into the elevator before Raike had a chance to close it on me.

I smiled softly. "Don't think you can get rid of me so easily."

Chapter 3.5 - Scarlet Uiromo - Vampire District

I clicked my tongue as I felt two pairs of strange eyes slide onto me and him. Hmph... I stuck out my tongue naturally, and pouted. They didn't know anything. They were all pawns, and they were all going to die. This was all just an easy way for the government to take care of all their problems. And me. Us! We were the ones who were designed to win this. No objections. No nothing. Wheither they deserved to know it or not, we had a contract which SAID the God government was personally going to make sure we won. And there would be no survivors besides us.

And that sat perfectly fine with me.

The room had lightened up since our arrival and, looking outside, I could see why. Just across the horizon, the sky was becoming a tropical camoflauge. Oranges and yellows and light blue. Purple and red... It was rather breathtaking. However, all of that was soon pulled away when a limo pulled up to the glass doors of the hotel. Oh... Who could this be? Another victim?

This was Natruo. Natruo the gamemaker. His well-sculpted body slid out of the passenger seat with ease, and his eyes flickered to the four pairs of eyes looking outside from inside. He smirked, and knocked on the glass. "Hey. Ready to train?" Even though I was going to win the Poppy Games, I was still rather cautious of this man. He was basically the middle-man between the government and us. And he was the one overseeing all the deaths in the arena.

So to make my first impression as clear as daylight, I stuck out my tongue and said, "Well, who said all the Gods were beautiful?"

Chapter 3.5 - Natruo - God District

"No sir, you will not be driving,"

I clicked my tongue in annoyance. This sleek beauty of a limo was mine anyhow. And I had the money to repair any damages taken to it. As for the several people I was to pick up, it honestly didn't matter what kind of condition they were in when they came for training. Why couldn't I drive something that belonged to me? I basically had government status, yet a mere servant was able to tell me what I could, or could not do. Apparently, according to him, I couldn't drive two blocks without running someone over with the side of the car. Don't ask if that is even possible, just take my word for it.

I was standing outside Venius Cloud's residence, and with each waking second, it was becoming closer to morning, and closer to the time I was designated to pick up the extras. I was going to be late, yet this servant was standing in my way. Crossing my arms, I looked down at the scrawny, silver-haired boy.

"I will be driving," I lowered my voice down.

He still did not waver, and he actually took my shoulder and pushed me in the direction of the passenger seat. Well then.

"Fine then, but if the extras want me to drive, I will be." The servant swallowed hard at this, but slowly managed to nod his head. He was more terrified of my driving, than my status as Game Designer. So would all these participants if they spent two minutes in a car with me. Sliding myself on the hood, I rolled around and popped myself into the seat beside the driver. The servant was calm, and took every safety measure possible even though there was nothing to really hit. But Venius said these exact words:

"If you were in a desert with absolutely no animals to hit, you would still hit something, Natruo."

Wheither it was my lack of driving skills, or the servant was actually gifted at the sort of thing, I was impressed overall that he didn't so much as allow a bug to splatter the windshield. These servants were amazing. High-class, you could say.

Pulling up to the marked hotel the group was apparently in, I straightened up the clothing I had changed into. Overtop my regular tank, I had on a light autumn jacket. My clean-cut jeans were damaged horribly, but it wasn't like I was going to a wedding reception. Sliding out of my seat and into the semi-morning air, the effect was immediate. Eyes trained on me, and through the glass of the doors and windows, I could see that they all recognized me. Who didn't? I was infamous to them. A sort of blood-lust celebrity who killed teenagers for the entertainment of the general public. Why, hello there~

"Well, who said all the Gods were beautiful?"

That was the first thing I heard when I stepped inside the building. My eyes automatically scanned for the voice who said the comment, and they landed upon a girl in a black dress. A vampire. I narrowed my eyes calmly at her, and crossed my arms over eachother. This girl had guts.

"And who said you were any better, sweetheart?" I cooed. I removed my attention from her, to the taller boy at her side. Another vampire...? Or perhaps a demon. Whatever. I looked at the other... Three? Weren't there only supposed to be two? Whatever. Not my business.

The first on the list was someone by the name of Umi. She didn't really interest me much overall, so I allowed her impression to slip off of me. Really, the only interesting demons out of these entirety of the participants, were Ryuu and Bernkastel. The other girl was Mi... Miharu. She too was a little boring. The final extra was also the second male. Akira something-or-other. Eh. He was alright.

"Alright. Hopefully you all know what's up. Now, let's take you all to training," I paused half-way out the door with a slight, mischevious smile. "Who wants me to drive?"

[Skymin]

The door opened, only to have an almost-naked Marisa in a towel grab Kerin by the legs. Oh boy.

"Kerin-onii-sama! The shower was bullying me!"

"M-Marisa!" Kerin let out a nervous laugh. Okay, so she was totally okay with just running around in a towel. Kerin was okay with it... kind of. It was just a little awkward, but Kerin was enough of a big brother to pull her back and guide her back to her bedroom, where all her clothes were.

"I'm sure if you treat it with kindness, it will return the favour to you?" Kerin pulled her wardrobe open and kind of ogled at it for a second. It very much full of clothes, much like Kerin's was, though the clothes were much smaller and consisted mostly of dresses and bright colours. She needed something more suitable for training, right? So maybe she should wear jeans or something flexible. In saying that, dresses were pretty easy, only that she would be showing her undies everytime she did a roll or something.

"What did you want to wear?" he asked her, pointing at one of the many colossal stacks of clothes.

[Eeveemaster9]

Chapter 3.5 - Marisa Ryunatta - Vampire District

"Hau au... Okay, Kerin-onii-sama..."

Pouting slightly, due to my assault with the shower options, I followed Kerin over to my closet where he seemed to understand I couldn't wear just a normal summer dress. I may look and act like a child, but I still had problems with people seeing my underwear. Not to mention, the Gods. They were extreme sadists to have this sort of event happen each year...! To have teenagers slaughtered for their own amusement on live television, and mark it as a sort of way to lower the population...! The population was just fine, now! They already wiped out half the population on Earth!

Taking a deep breath, I shimmied myself inside and began paging through the articles of clothing. When I came back out, I had what appeared to be a huge bundle. Spreading it out on my bed, I asked for Kerin's opinion on it. This attire consisted of a knee-high blue dress with a white ribbon at the front. This dress had sleeves, but that didn't change the fact that my lower part would be exposed. I had that covered, as well. They weren't exactly jeans, but they would work. White pants which were just slightly on the long side for my ankles. Beaming up at Kerin, I patted the outfit.

"This!"

When he did confirm I could wear it, I scrambled to bunch it all up, and then I threw myself into the bathroom to change quickly. Coming out, I glomped Kerin again.

"Let's go, let's go!"

[The_Original_Raitan]

"......Toro?" Xavier blinked. His bed felt entirely different. There wasn't that one spot where the spring made itself more known anywhere. And it was too big. One foot wasn't sticking out over the edge. In fact, when Xavier stretched, it didn't even feel like it was close to the edge. He called out for his dog again before opening his eyes. His hair had fell to the side from sleeping, and he could see as clear as day he wasn't at his home. Xavier remembered that he wasn't home. He was at the training center. But where was Paris...? He raised his head, looking around the room before giving up. Not like he looked hard, or even at average for that matter. Well... It didn't really matter to him at this point in time. Xavier's hands went up into his messy, somewhat greasy hair. All he really wanted at the moment, was a shower.

Once he was up and off the bed, it took Xavier a few minutes just to find the washroom. Yeah, turns out in this place the washrooms are connected directly to the bedroom. Weird. But he guessed all rich people lived different. He didn't know any rich people. He's seen some of the residential zones by the market area. Two floors. And a basement from what he's heard from other demons. Well, he didn't exactly hear it from them. It was more like passive eavesdropping, but oh well. He even came across Bernkastel's house one time in one of his rare visits to civilization. At least that's what he believed. Because who else's father in the Demon District is an exorcist? None that he could bring up from memory. Which is weird since he was married to an angel... Which is what should make him infamous, but for whatever reason, whether Bern was his daughter for one, he was famous. "......" Basically, on one of the rare occasions Xavier came to civilization, he noticed the exorcist's house starting to flood with people. And that just happened to be only hours after the end of the Sixth Population Games. The very first games that Bernkastel Vermilia had participated in. Coincidence? Maybe, but Xavier didn't think so.

Xavier blinked, bringing himself out of that parade of thoughts. He tended to daze out when he had free time, the only thing knocking himself out of his cloud of thoughts being himself. Okay, he was going to take a shower. Right. Nodding to himself, Xavier went over to pick a pairing of clothing for today's training. At first, the wardrobe seemed to be a little familiar, it wasn't obnoxiously large like most of the things in this room. But then... Xavier looked inside. It was as if everything in the room had heard his obnoxious comment somehow, and somehow made the inside of the wardrobe full with pairs upon pairs of clothes. How did all of those articles of clothing even fit in there?! He hadn't seen that much in his life! Xavier pulled out one of the white, button-up T-shirts. He looked at the sides of the sleeves. An omega on both sides, one red, one blue, just like his average clothes. Did they come into his home to check his wardrobe? Oh, how thoughtful... Xavier rolled his eyes, taking black jeans with the T-shirt into the washroom.

Xavier stripped his clothes, and he carefully placed one of his hands under the faucet to test the temperature of the water. Once he had aquired his desired heat, he stepped in under the warm embrace of running water. And look at all of the different body washes they had~ Mango, orange, all different kinds of scents! A lot more than he had in the Demon District, that was for sure! Applying a wad of shampoo into his hand, he slowly massaged the substance into his scalp. It felt softer already. Xavier ended up deciding on the orange scented wad of body wash, and as soon as he applyed the gel-like substance onto his body, he washed himself off and stepped out. That was extremely refreshing!

"...~!" With a small & content smile on his face, not that there would be one if someone else was here, Xavier stepped out into the room. He felt really good! His hair was super soft, and his skin felt great! It was awesome to be able to finally have a shower where he hadn't needed to wipe himself down with a plant! "..." Xavier blinked as he stared at a crumpled paper on the floor. And by how it sat right next to the trashcan, somebody probably shot it and missed. Paris, most likely being the perpatrator. Well... It wouldn't hurt to take a peak. Calmly, Xavier reached down and picked up the wrinkled piece of paper, reading it swiftly. 'Good night,' it read. It was calligraphy. Fine calligraphy. Xavier tried to piece together who this was, thinking Bernkastel for a few minutes, but ultimately dismissing it as a servant's work. Everyone probably got one... Xavier put on his blank mask again as he walked out the door, quickly making his way to the dining hall.

[雷影 イチロ]

Akira couldn’t help but laughing as the ‘little’ girl stuck her tongue out at him in a very immature gesture. “I’m sure doing that is going to win you the Population Games,” he retorted when he finished. He wasn’t scared of her, all she was, was a scary vampire from fairy tales, nothing more than a myth extrapolated by human fear. ”stupid humans” he thought to himself. He settled back into the sofa, regarding the rest of his competition with disdain.

As dawn fast approached, Akira watched from his position as the windows lit up from the morning glow, spreading light and warmth across the room. It was then that he realised that his parent’s did not know where he was or where he had been taken, but he figured that the government would have told them some dramatic story about how he had been chosen. Snapping back to reality, he noticed the light creeping closer to the vampire couple.

“Watch out,” he spoke, “the light is going make you burn.” He finished by laughing in hysterics at his own joke. Not overly funny, but Akira regarded other races as mere inferior organisms than himself. Vampires were just bloodthirsty humans and demons were crazed monsters. Meanwhile humans… they were human after all, so filled with flaw and weakness. Angels were the supreme beings.

The light was nearly at the vampire couple when it cut out and was replaced by a long shadow that stretched across the room. Akira got up from the sofa and made his way over to the door; a long, sleek black limousine stretched in front of the building, and shielding his eyes, Akira watched as a tall figure emerged from the car. Akira help a breath in as the Game Designer stepped from the car, his body sculpted like a god’s. He sidled up to the door and knocked on it like they were some sort of animals in a zoo; as far as Akira was concerned, the others were. “Hey. Ready to train?” he spoke, smiling afterwards. The immature vampire girl retorted; “Well, who said all Gods were beautiful?” sticking her tongue out in the process.

Akira laughed; this girl sure had a set on her, sarcasm at a god meant that she was gutsy, something that would probably get her killed in the arena, but would provide Akira with a laugh during his death sentence. Natruo was a very dangerous man; Akira doubted that she would live long if she was going to be sarcastic to him.

Natruo retaliated before looking at them all in turn. When his eyes fell on Akira, Akira shivered all over. There was something about this guy that set Akira on edge. Those eyes seemed to drill into his mind; and although Akira thought himself above everyone else in this room, Natruo was the only person present who actually made him feel inferior; something that scared Akira.

"Alright. Hopefully you all know what's up. Now, let's take you all to training," he paused to smile at us before continuing, "Who wants me to drive?"

Akira wanted so much to retort right now but something inside his head told him to shut up and not draw attention to himself; especially from this guy. For once, Akira was actually afraid of someone aside from himself. Nodding his head he stepped forward, “feel free, I’m keen. Anyone else?” he said turning around to face the others; his arms out in a wide gesture and his wings stretched slightly behind him casting a shadow against the other group as he walked backwards to stand next to Natruo.

“Nice to meet you finally, Natruo-sama” he said taking a small bow of gratitude.

[Skymin]

"Looks great!" Kerin said with a smile. He was quite glad she went with a more pant-sy approach, and hopefully she would do so for the rest of their time here. And perhaps after their time here. He knew they could make it through the Poppy Games, he knew they could both make it and live together. And they would need Bernkastel's help for that. But yeah, they had a few more things to worry about right now.

"Let's go, let's go!" Marisa gave him a hug then grabbed his arm and pulled him to the elevator. Where were they going? Probably training, right? Kerin stabbed his thumb to the appropriate floor and waited briefly before the doors opened and revealed where Kerin had slept the night, only now it had a foreign user in it. Ryuu had taken the liberty of destroying a few trees, leaving them in pieces all over the place. Kerin gave him a funny look. Oh, he had been talking to Bernkastel last night? Kerin blinked, but thought not much of it; he couldn't hear what they were saying then anyways, since he had been a little too preoccupied.

"Should we go somewhere else?" he whispered to Marisa. He knew she was quite afraid of the guy, but should they stand up to their fear or show the Rhino that they were indeed scared of him and his stupid attitude. Well, Kerin wans't scared, just wary that if the guy ran and headbutted him like he had tried to do to Bernkastel on the helicopter, Kerin would have a very sore stomach indeed. But, if he could try and plan everything, Kerin could take him out. To protect Marisa, yeah.

[Eeveemaster9]

Chapter 3.5 - Bernkastel Vermillia - Demon District

Have you ever wondered what I have thought about sleep? Of course you haven't. Sleeping is something you hardly think about in this kind of world, so why would I ever think about it? Well, I do. A lot. Some may say it is insomnia, while others would say it is the end result of me being dead. I am scared to sleep. Both unable to, and unwilling to allow myself to rest my head down and close my eyes. Oh, but you need sleep, don't you? Sleep is energy, right? Sleep is what helps you grow, and keep your memory and concentration strong... Right? I could care less what the human professionals have said. I am living proof this is all unreal. When was the last time I slept....? I cannot remember. And no, it isn't because my memory is all messed up. It was a period so long ago, I would never be able to place a specific date. Sleep is, and will always be, unimportant to me. It just gets in the way of what I can accomplish. Most, if not all teenagers, sleep away half of the day, before getting up to do something productive. Why waste that much time doing that, when you could be learning? Learning about things a twenty year-old wouldn't be able to touch until their thirties. Sleeping is a heavy weakness to all, but not to me. And then you may wonder... Where are the bags under my eyes? Why am I not dead, or collapsing all over? It's all about the science of humanoid beauty. All demons, vampires, angels and gods are born with a gene that enables them to become eye-catching. Unique, yet a beauty that humans could only achieve with their starved models and photoshop. Our bodies are made to heal imperfections when we desire a fix in them. So if you had a cool battle scar on your cheek, you could potentially keep it forever, if you didn't mentally wish for it to disappear.

“Lady Bernkastel, what are you doing…?”

I remove my gaze from the pieces of glass on the floor, to the door that hadjust opened. Two startled servants are looking at me curiously, with a longtable in their arms. Judging from the hole portrayed in the balcony window, itwas made by a large object of sorts, being thrown out. This must have been thatlarge object. It’s a miracle the table itself appears unharmed, but I do notexpect things made by the Gods to be as easy to break, anyhow. Standing back upand removing my gloves, I look at them calmly.

“I was cleaning up,” The two servants, one with brown eyesand hair and the other with black hair and gold eyes, hurry themselves into theroom, and fix the table back into place. Then they’re apologizing. Apologizingfor the mess, and not being here to cater to my needs. I resist the urge tosmile, and keep the blank calmness on my face instead. They act as though theyhad broken a jillion rules which were punishable by death. Before they couldcontinue, I raise my hand out. They shut up immediately.
“You were doing your job, and you went to get the table Ryuuthrew out. You are not at fault.” This soothes down their expression, when theyget this reassurance. For the rest of the clean-up, we are silent. The servantsreplace the glass door, while I go down on my hands and knees to pick up thesplinters of glass. One would think this to be insulting, but I find it to benot. I am simply showing a kindness by lowering myself down. The servants don’teven object outwardly.

And this was when Xavier came in; with servants still scrambling around toreplace the breakfast lost to Ryuu’s gesture, and me throwing a handful ofglass away into the disposal. I straighten my hat out, and look him overcarefully. I can immediately tell the difference between a clean Xavier, andthe Xavier from last night. Moving closer to greet, I can also notice hisscent. Much more appropriate for one in the God’s Land.

“Good morning, Xavier.” My smooth voice says. If I had any expressionpreviously, it is gone now. “Ryuu decided to throw breakfast out the window. As per usual,” I explain when I see his eyes trail to the servants. “How about we serve ourselves and have breakfast?