[Other FULL] Ethersworn: The Vale Institute [M]

[Sweet Dreams]

Zane Emerson and Julie Nguyen

So Please, Please Don't Make Waves

​

It looked like something out of one of those advertisements on a giant billboard. Beautiful, confident-looking people in flattering swimsuits strolled around the beach, laughing together as they were gently carressed by soft fingers of sunlight. A few joyful squeals punctuated the air from those splashing in the waves. A game of what was probably some version of beach volleyball started up somewhere down the shore, though sometimes the ball appeared to catch on fire.

And then there was Julie. She sat by herself a short ways away from where the water lapped at the sand, hugging her knees to her chin and looking downright miserable. Her backpack sat on the sand next to her. Earlier she'd tried to distract herself by playing around on her phone, but she hadn't been able to concentrate at all, and she'd finally given up. Now she was absentmindedly scratching at her arms and letting her thoughts keep her company, since apparently nobody else would.

Zane had brought her here and summarily abandoned her, apologies falling from his lips and requesting that she wait for him to return. In true Julie fashion, she'd immediately begun to worry, hyperaware of everyone around her and what they must think about her being alone and so obviously miserable about it.

What if he never intended on coming back for her? Maybe she'd been a distraction, and now that they were here, he could go and spend time with more interesting people. It's possible he found the girl who'd originally stood him up and discovered it was all just a giant misunderstanding, and in the wake of the revelation Julie would be forgotten by the wayside. Or maybe he'd simply come to his senses after catching sight of all the people who he could be hanging out and having fun with. She'd had been called many things, but fun had certainly never been an adjective that she'd been associated with.

Perhaps she'd gotten on his nerves. It wouldn't have been the first time. No matter how well intentioned, people always stopped wanting her to hang out with them sooner or later. She chewed on her lip and wondered, as she often did, what she could do to make herself more likeable. A few people have told her she was a real stick-in-the-mud, and so she'd tried not to be, she really did. She just couldn't help but feel anxious when people broke rules in front of her. Rules were there for a reason. Staying silent felt like being an accomplice to a crime.

Julie has also been told before that she took things too seriously and needed to lighten up. For a while she'd tried that too, nervously laughing along with everybody else when people did things like put dead fish in her locker over the weekend. It lasted until they flushed one of her essays down the toilet and she'd accidentally skipped a few classes because she was crying too hard to be able to move. They'd rolled their eyes and said she didn't get the joke. Maybe this was just another joke she didn't understand.

Just as she was regretting having even stepped foot outside her room (and a part of her was insisting that she'd forgotten to lock the door even though she'd triple checked), something caught her eye. Even in the midst of her thoughts she had been watching the beach closely, keeping an eye out for Zane's return and just a bit paranoid that people might be staring or laughing at her. Those worries were, at least for now, replaced by a brand new set.

She was pretty sure she just saw someone fall off their surfboard.

Normal enough, except she didn't see him surface again. The slight furrow between Julie's brows became more prominent as time passed. She stood up and stepped closer to the water to get a better look. She was just about ready to scream for someone to help him when something huge burst out from the water.

Julie froze, rubbed her eyes, and stared at it again. When the image stubbornly refused to change, she festidiously wiped the lenses of her glasses on the sleeve of her jacket, just to be safe. Despite her best efforts, it was evident that that was an eldritch abomination rising out of the sea like a demon straight from hell. The squeals of joy were no more, replaced by yells and screams. Rather than running away from the... the thing, however, many students on the beach were actually running towards it in an almost militaristic fashion.

She yelped as cold water lapped at her toes, bringing her back to reality. Instinctively, she stepped back, face blanching in terror when the water crept back with her. In mere moments she was submerged up to her ankles. Her stomach sank in the split second between her realisation that she was going to be in very deep (ha!) trouble very soon, and the scream that ripped out of her throat as she felt a hard tug on her ankle yank her up into the air.

An air mage can scream quite loudly, given enough motivation.

The world spun, and her heart rose to her throat, defying everything that she knew about human anatomy. At some point, her glasses came loose and dropped into the water, though Julie barely noticed, too busy grappling with her own mortality. If she wasn't pretty sure her stomach had been displaced entirely, she would probably have thrown up.

Her eyesight gone and mind addled, she could hardly keep up with the frenetic movements of her subduer, only that she could feel herself being hoisted further into the air. At least, that's how it started. A sudden splash followed a whole new kind of sinking. Almost as quickly as she had been flung into the sky, she had started falling. The motion lasted only moments, but when she had come to a halt, instead of being greeted by a watery embrace, she was only welcomed by her recent companion and now savior. Although his face was still slightly blurry, she could tell that it was Zane who had caught her, and presumably saved her from whatever that… thing was that grabbed her.

"Picking a fight with that thing isn't exactly a good way to get my attention, but I guess it worked."

"Z-Zane?" she gasped out. Relief flooded her system, both because she was miraculously still alive, and because it looked as though she hadn't been wholly abandoned by him. It didn't last long. "How did--what do--what is that?!"

"If I had to guess, nothing good. Better question, what happened to your glasses?"

Julie reached up to touch her face, her expression somehow taking on an extra level of fear. "My glasses! I... I must have dropped them." She immediately hopped down from Zane's arms, panic obviously bubbling over. "I need to find--Ack!" The water here was about waist high, which would normally have been fine, but Julie had, of course, tripped over herself as she tried to wade away, and she fell face first into the ocean water.

Her sudden submersion did nothing to quell the panic that gripped her. Fortunately, she didn't have much time to even react before she was pulled up out of the water by Zane. She coughed up the water that she'd taken in, trying to catch her breath through the stinging in her lungs and airways.

"I get it, you really want to sell this whole damsel thing, make me feel like you need my protection, but…"

Before he could even finish his sentence, he was interrupted by another student's body skipping past them like a flat stone across a pond.

"That's why we should really find someplace safe."

She glanced back at the blurred shape of the... thing, her eyes wide and totally uncomprehending, before her gaze skittered past it to the waves surrounding them. "I need my glasses!" she gasped, failing to notice the worryingly rapid pace of her breath or the dizziness that accompanied it. She struck forward once more, seemingly heedless of the danger.

"Hey, are you sure about this? Do you even know where they fell?"

"I--I don't...!" She swung around to look back at Zane helplessly, her breaths coming shorter and shorter. Julie felt some of the water on her face warm, and a part of her realised that she was probably crying.

Four new water tentacles rose out of the water behind Julie, poised to attack the duo. Yet another distraction from trying to get a handle of the situation at hand. Julie turned towards the sound of spouting water to see the new collection of enemies, and two were already launching themselves at the pair. Julie was under submission once again, only this time she was restrained by her waist, extending forward into the ocean. She couldn't break free, and she could only imagine the other went after Zane. Even as she struggled, the other tentacles weren't attacking, instead, they appeared to be… aiming? Julie couldn't quite make out what the other tentacles were doing, but they loomed overhead, tilting towards her and, presumably, Zane. Out of nowhere, though, a sword of hardlight slammed into the tentacle restraining Julie, lodging itself into its aqueous hide.

"Hurry, it looks like it's about to attack!"

Julie stared at the sword as if it was going to turn around and bite her. For a moment her body would not move, but she forced her trembling hand to clutch at the sword and pull it free. There was a moment where she almost dropped it, her fingers numb and uncooperative. Her heart stopped and her head swam, but she managed to get a firmer grip on the handle. She closed her eyes against the dizzying vertigo and sliced almost blindly at the tentacle around her. Her stomach swooped as she began to fall once more, curling into herself and screaming.

She expected to fall into the water, but she was not so fortunate. A tendril of water whipped forward fast as a snake and grabbed her wrist, stopping her fall suddenly enough that pain exploded from her shoulder. She whimpered and colours popped behind her eyelids. Her hand fell limp, dropping the sword into the ocean below. She tried to reach up with her other arm to free herself, but her fingers merely slipped through the water.

Overcome with pain, she couldn't even recognize her capturer's diffusion. Once again caught in a freefall, there was no one to catch her this time, not Zane, not the creature. Instinctively, she knew that she wouldn't be able to handle plunging into the water from this height. Not with her right arm useless and aching and the distant roaring in her ears. She squeezed her eyes shut again and drew as much magic out of herself as she knew how. The air around and especially beneath her began to swirl, faster and faster, until her descent began to slow and angle less sharply downwards.

The air cushioned her just enough so that she landed gently, carrying her close enough to the shore that the water was only up to her knees. She took a few wobbly steps forward before her legs gave out entirely. Her face was a blank mask and white as a sheet as she stared unseeingly ahead.

"Hey, Julie, you okay? I tried to get rid of that thing, but it grabbed you before I could cut it down. Is your arm alright?"

The words sounded muted somehow, like they were coming from the end of an echoey tunnel. She blinked and looked at Zane as though she didn't understand the question.

He firmly gripped her good shoulder with one hand, looking her dead in the eyes. "Julie, we really need to get out of here. Now."

Her head cleared just a bit and she clutched at his words like a lifeline. She was disoriented and numb and there was a pain in her chest, and she could do nothing but trust that Zane knew what to do. Her good arm felt as heavy as lead and she had to struggle to lift it up towards him in a wordless plea for help.

Grasping her by her good wrist, he hoisted the addled air mage to her feet. It took her a few moments to regain her footing, but she managed to restore her balance, if just for a few seconds.

"Come on, let's go."

Julie managed to force her legs to cooperate for a short time. However, her numbness and the weird sense that she was floating outside of her body lead her to inevitably stumble on the uneven sand. She fell, bringing Zane to a halt as well where their hands were still connected. "S-sorry," she apologised, letting go and immediately struggling to try and get back on her feet.

The blonde in front of her let out a stifled sigh, before taking a place behind her. She expected him to aid her to her feet, just as he had done before. However, this time, instead of helping her stand up, she could feel him place his arms on her back and behind her knees. She would've been embarrassed at his touch if it wasn't for the quick motion that had her laying in his arms and biting back a wince at the flare of pain from her arm being lightly jostled. Now she was just shocked.

"Sorry, but I think this might be our best bet to get out of here quickly."

It was a surprisingly vulnerable position to be in; she could do nothing but throw her good arm over his shoulder to stabilise herself and watch him pick up his pace. She could still see the blurred shapes of other students battling the... thing, their yells carrying over on the wind. They didn't seem as though they were attracting its notice, which Julie was thankful for, since her limbs were feeling heavier with each passing second.

"I'm sorry," she said again, head swimming so badly she had to rest it against his shoulder. Even in her current state, she couldn't help but lament over how pathetic she was. As if to punctuate the sentiment, her shoulder throbbed painfully. She looked down at it and cringed. It looked... wrong. "I think... I think my shoulder's dislocated," she said faintly.

Julie's escort paused at her comment, clearly concerned about her condition. Still, the situation they found themselves in forced Zane to continue moving, albeit in a more careful manner.

"I'm not sure what to tell you. I don't know any healing magic and the only place that's safe right now is the school. At least we're close to the portal stone, so just hold on a little longer."

She tightened her arm around his neck and closed her eyes. "You saved me," she mumbled.

He picked up the pace, though not enough to jostle Julie around, eventually arriving at their destination. Several other students had the same idea, all hectically gathering around the one escape route. Shoving his way through, Zane managed to get them through the crowd. Once on the other side, it was only a matter of time. A nurse was already waiting, apparently on alert from another student.

"Sir, my friend hurt her shoulder. She thinks it might be dislocated."

Zane carefully placed Julie on the ground so that the nurse could check her injuries. He confirmed that Julie's shoulder was dislocated, and informed her that treatment would hurt, but that she would be okay. She looked away, feeling more ashamed of her own weakness than ever. Placing his hand on her shoulder, he initiated the spell. A sharp pain washed over Julie's shoulder, but even through that, she could feel her bones shift and her torn tendons mend. It was astonishing just how quickly the injury disappeared, but the sensation and, more importantly, the fatigue remained.

Gingerly, she moved her fingers. At the lack of pain, her eyes widened in amazement. "That's... incredible," she breathed. And then, remembering herself, she looked back at Zane. "I--I'm sorry I've been such a bother. I couldn't do anything at all." Her hands clenched together so hard that her knuckles turned white.

"I wouldn't worry about it. It's not like anyone was expecting it to happen. The only thing that matters is that you're safe."

Julie looked back down at her hands, suddenly feeling the inexplicable urge to cry. She swallowed it down and tried her best to ignore the knots in her stomach when she remembered that her glasses were still lost somewhere in the ocean. It would have to be dealt with later.

She took a breath and said, falteringly, "Is... is that the kind of thing that you fight on--on missions?" She looked up at him, tension in every line of her face and body, and whispered, "I really don't think I could handle that."

Zane punctuated Julie's words with an unnerved laugh. "Not the mission I was on. That thing seemed altogether different than what I fought a few days ago. Those things at least took damage when you attacked. That thing just kind of shook everything off."

Unconsciously, Julie reached up to touch the shoulder that had just been healed. "I couldn't do anything. I could have... I could have died." She was starting to feel like she couldn't get enough air again. "I can't do this," she reiterated, louder this time.

"You got an invitation here for a reason, right? Whether you realize it, they think you have what it takes to fight etherspawn."

"What if I don't want to fight etherspawn or monsters or whatever they are?!" Julie burst out. "I--I want to have a future, I have plans. I don't want to die here." She could barely speak coherently by the last sentence, her breathing was so ragged. Her body was now curled up into a ball in an attempt to take up as little space as possible, and her hands pulled at her hair. She felt a sense of doom; her only available path was inevitably carrying her to her own death. Pure terror clogged her throat and clawed at her insides, and she felt like she was suffocating even though she was practically gulping air. She would leave, run as far away as she could, but she didn't know where to go.

The nurse took the chance to step in, gesturing Zane to remain where he was.

"I think she needs a little space right now. Maybe give her some time to calm down? I'll talk to her, so don't worry. Your friend is in good hands, so you can leave. Please."

Zane just stood there for a moment, dejection showing on his face. A quick glance at Julie's writhing state and all he could follow up with was a muted "I'm sorry." Without so much as a goodbye, he left, going back to the Isles. The nurse let out a deep sigh at the young mage's decision to throw himself back into danger.

"Those are the kids that always get hurt the most."​

 

[Songbird]

Shion and Jack do basically nothing.

"I'll admit, I wasn't expecting a giant monster today." Shion waded out of the sea to retreive her towel and cardigan, Jack following nearby. She contemplated relaxing in the sand a little longer before she realized that others probably would have seen her as crazy, instead simply turning to her ol' buddy ol' pal and continuing, "Guess the fun's over. Wanna go get lunch?"

"Will everyone be okay without our help?" The worry was plain on his face.

"There's plenty of mages here, and I think he's just drunk. I gotta make a call anyway, so you comin'?" Regardless of his answer, she started heading home.

Jack followed after a moment's hesitation, casting nervous glances back at the chaotic beach front. "I guess so. Lunch it is, then."

The duo began their return as the vice president's rampage continued, and the beach was caught by a long swipe of the kraken's giant tentacles. Jack ducked to the sand, pulling a wall overhead, while Shion conjured a barrier just in front of her. Sprays of water fell all over, and after the attack subsided Shion took a peek at the other students. They made similar moves to protect themselves and each other, shields, walls and force fields absorbed, steamed and repelled the beast of the sea.

"Like I said," she noted, "they'll be fine."

"Guess you're right," he agreed, finally loosening up as Shion started scrolling through her phone's contacts. "Still hasn't really hit me that this is a school for only mages."

He tried continuing onto a new thought, adding, "I wanted to say so earlier..." but tapping the stone, Jack and Shion were enveloped in a blue light, and they unceremoniously landed back at the school. On the other side, some students had already made it home, and a few more were coming in. Getting herself and Jack out of the way, Shion raised her device to her ear, waiting on a response.

<Let me guess: starts with A, ends with "dumbass".> After Shion answered, there was a loud, annoyed sigh from the opposite end of the call. <I'll be out there in a second. Did you at least have some fun?>

"Yeah, I did. Alright, see you soon." She hung up and started moving again, asking Jack, "So, what'd you want to tell me?"

"Just wanted to say you look really nice today. Even more so than usual."

"Thanks." Shion wasn't going to respond with much else; she heard his voice fumble when he said it. In a way, she was thankful that Jack was so easy to read. Facing him before heading out, she finished, "I'm gonna get changed. See you at the cafeteria in fifteen?"

"Sounds good to me!"

 

[Geras]

Are All Mages Crazy, or Is It Just Vale?
Featuring Domingo Hernández and Anchorman

Domingo crawled out of the water and onto the sandy shore, surprisingly worn from laps he'd done. He remembered being pretty good at swimming when he was younger, always beating his siblings when they raced at the river near home. Though he hadn't actually gone swimming since he was nine. He wasn't sure if the difficulty came from being out of practice, having a completely different body shape, or the fact that he was trying to swim while wearing baggy jeans and an oversized hoodie. Whatever the case, he was done with it for the moment.

He rolled onto his back and closed his eyes, the cool waves still lapping at his bare feet. There under the sun he felt the stress from the past few days melt away. The warm sand underneath vibrated in a way only someone like him could notice, showing him just how lively the beach was. Students running around and playing or relaxing like him, or the aftereffects of various different spells as they hit the ground; he could feel it all. He was also able to feel the various things lying on the seafloor, now that he paid attention. He considered going down and seeing if he could fish up anything interesting later.

Eventually, Domingo decided it was time to get back to doing stuff and leapt to his feet only to receive a rough blow to the back that knocked him straight down again, face-first into the sand. His mind instantly went on full alert as he scrambled to his feet to see what hit him. To his surprise, the question turned out to be less what hit him and more who as he noticed a battered boy laying where he'd been moments ago.

"Shit, sorry man!" Called a voice before Domingo could even process what was happening. "Launched him a little farther than I thought!" His gaze snapped to the source, spotting another boy. He was pale-skinned with his dark brown hair in a crew cut, and he wasn't very tall. But despite his height, his body was packed with muscle; his arms in particular. And on top of it all, he was holding a giant fucking anchor way bigger than he was, a thick metal chain extending from the end of it and wrapping around his arm.

The other boy's cheerful demeanor helped diffuse Domingo's panic, which quickly gave way to frustration as the latter finally made sense of the situation. He scooped up the fallen student in one arm and threw him at anchor guy more forcefully than he probably should have. "I was enjoying the chance to finally relax after what a shitty fucking week it's been."

The anchor boy caught his victim easily and, undeterred by Domingo's attitude, was smiling. "You've got a pretty good arm there!" He paused, suddenly leaning closer to Domingo. "Hold on, I remember you!"

Domingo frowned, getting a bad feeling about this.

"Yeah," he continued excitedly. "You're all covered up now, but I saw you on the first day! Tats, scars, and lots of muscle. I was hoping to see you again so I could challenge you to a fight!" He tossed the poor student in his arm behind him like a ragdoll and pointed his anchor toward Domingo, handling it effortlessly even with its massive size. "So, how about it?"

"Fuck no!" Domingo refused, his mind already racing to find ways out of this situation. He was well aware of what mages were capable of, and there was no way he was going to risk fighting one. For both of their sakes. "The hell's your problem, anyway?"

Anchor boy chuckled, further upsetting Domingo. "What can I say? I love a good fight, and you're just the kinda guy I've been lookin' for."

"I don't give a fuck what you're lookin' for, I'm not fuckin' fighting you!"

The shorter boy sighed. He jabbed his anchor into the ground and leaned against it, making himself comfortable as he tried to convince Domingo. "Come on, man. Why not? You can just think of it as practice, or training, or whatever if you need."

Domingo was shocked. He started to wonder if everyone at this school was completely insane. His instincts told him to start using force to get his point across, but he had a feeling that wasn't the best choice against this lunatic. He took a deep breath in an attempt to regain his composure. "What if I just don't feel like getting shot or stabbed or fucking set on fire today?"

"Well, we're mages. It's not like that stuff's that big a deal for us anyway."

"Fucking what?"

"I mean, uh, how about tomorrow then?"

Domingo shook his head. At this point all the tension from before had gone, leaving only annoyance and disbelief. Without another word, he turned and walked away, ignoring the vocal disappointment of the boy he left behind.

As much as Domingo would have liked to get back to relaxing, it seemed the universe had other plans for him. During his encounter with the anchor boy he had somehow missed the fact that a colossal monster had risen from the sea and taken it upon itself to wreak havoc on the beach.

"Oh hell yeah! Now it's a party!" Domingo heard nearby as anchor boy charged past him to fight the creature. By contrast, Domingo froze, filling with dread. Memories of his mission floated to the fore of his mind, specifically the pain he suffered at the hands of the third knight. The monster in front of him was several times bigger, likely several times stronger, and definitely capable of killing him. Yet, while several of the more reasonable students ran away, a baffling number ran toward it, pulling out their weapons or firing magic at it. Hell, it looked like one idiot had already decided to climb the thing, flailing around and shouting obscenities atop it.

"Get back here Nels, I'm not done with you!" Another unexpectedly close voice shouted as its bearer chased after Anchor. Domingo did a double take as he recognized the speaker as anchor boy's unfortunate victim from before, now conscious and full of energy by the looks of it.

Domingo's subsiding anger flared back to life at the sight. The fact that a pasty, scrawny guy like that could charge into that chaos fresh out of a beating and without a second thought while he was practically shitting himself in fear really pissed him off. He knew he'd been through more than most of these spoiled motherfuckers would go through in their entire lives, so there was no way he was gonna let himself look weak in front of them. Or so he told himself. But it was enough, and with teeth and fists clenched tightly he was finally able to step forward.
​

 

[Songbird]

The End of the Beach Party

Where Nothing Happens

​

By now, most of the students had fled from Allan's monstrosity, and the ill-advised few who fought back were slowly realizing that their efforts were wasted, much to the amusement of the merry maestro. The kraken's many aqueous tentacles were more than effective enough to keep the kids distracted, as they grabbed and restrained students who weren't quick enough to defend themselves. Those who got too close to the beast were greeted with something akin to a water cannon, firing a heavy stream of water from its would-be mouth, suppressing those unlucky students like rioters.

"Is this all you can muster, puny freshmen? Where is the challenge for my beast? If this is all you have, then you should flee like the rest of your classmates! At least they had the sense to run away from a god among men!"

It was clear as day to Allan, even in his inebriated state, just how much the freshmen were opposed to his declaration. But that was the fun part. What would be the point of having a giant sea beast if its rider wasn't causing all sorts of havoc? So, naturally, it was his goal to polarize these kids, even if it meant scaring them half to death with the vice-president's powers. Gotta give 'em that real Vale beach party experience, you know? But now, his games were nearing the end. He was growing tired of his own fun, as they were providing even less of a challenge than expected. Of course, he couldn't just let them win, so, in his mind, the next best thing he could do would be to wipe them all out with a tidal wave and disappear back into the ocean, just like a natural disaster should.

The students cheered when the tentacles all disappeared, unaware of the fact that they were pulled back to fuel the final spell. Allan stood atop the beast's head, calling out that this would be his final attack and that all who stood in front of him would perish under the waves, but before he could finish his taunt, a terrifying sound rang in his ear.

"Allan Melville, what the hell are you doing?!"

The scream of an angered banshee. The singing of a dying walrus mixed with a unicorn that just got its wings clipped by a demented little girl who wants to call it Sugar Cube. The vengeful cry of a thousand souls perished in battle. The vocal spark only suited for stoking the fires of Hades—boy, was Allan lucky she couldn't read minds, too.

Was it his mother? Ha. He wished it was her.

"I asked you a question." The voice was right beside him, calm and composed. He dared not turn his head, in fear of seeing the face of a demon. "So let me ask again: What do you think you're doing?"

"Wo-would you believe me if I said I was giving the new students a day to remember?"

"Oh, really? If that's the case, I shouldn't have interrupted. They deserve to have an interesting introduction, after all."

"R-Really? You're not mad?"

"Not at all! Face me so I can apologize properly."

He did as he was told. In doing so, Allan caught a glimpse of smiling lips and amber eyes, loosely framed by long auburn locks. Beneath her feet were two small flaming orbs, keeping her aloft. And while she may have once had the nurturing gaze of a caring older sister, all Allan saw today was the hungry grin of a tiger who'd found its next meal. He was rarely afforded the time to take note of how good she looked, either, much less say anything about it to try to soften her up.

"I'm furious," she whispered, the kraken beneath Allan's feet igniting in a blaze of glory. The terrifying figure grabbed hold of Allan's cheeks, and pinched and pulled at his face like silly putty. "DID YOU REALLY THINK I'D BELIEVE SUCH A HALF-ASSED EXCUSE? I SWEAR TO GOD YOU ARE THE BIGGEST IDIOT ON THE PLANET! WHO EVEN GAVE YOU ALCOHOL, YOU KNOW YOU CAN'T HOLD A DRINK TO SAVE YOUR LIFE!..."

"Ahb sahhhryyy!" Allan tried to apologize in the midst of the tyrant's tirade. "Ahb sahry Diaba!"

"YOU'RE GONNA BE SORRY AFTER I'M DONE WITH YOU! DO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH TIME I WASTE HAVING TO BABYSIT YOU?!"

The ruthless redhead released his battered cheeks at last, next taking a firm hold of his left ear. A sparking blue barrier surrounded both of them, only to disappear entirely a moment later. Their departure equally hammered the nail in the coffin for the once feared Kraken, returning to the sea from whence it came in a long and drawn out descent.

 

[Sweet Dreams]

Julie Nguyen

Breathe the Pressure
(Psychosomatic, Addict, Insane)
​

Terror had lodged itself deep in Julie?s guts and she wanted nothing more than to run, run, run as far away from here as possible. But she couldn?t, and that just made her heart pound even harder and her breath come faster. She felt like she was going crazy. She felt like she was going to die. At that point, she honestly didn?t know which option she was more afraid of.

?Hey, hey, look at me, hon,? said the nurse soothingly, crouching down in front of her. She flit her gaze up at him, but the panic only intensified at the reminder that someone was there watching her fall to pieces and she could do absolutely nothing to stop it. She felt the complete lack of control she had on herself even more keenly, feeding into her fear.

?Okay,? said the nurse, taking the quick glance as a sign of acknowledgement. ?Hey, do you think you can tell me your name??

The words were difficult for Julie to focus on, beyond the burning of her lungs and the really dizzy feeling in her head. ?I?? was all she managed to gasp out. She felt like she couldn?t breathe, even though she was gulping down air, god, this was the worst thing she?d ever felt. Was she going to drown sitting here on dry land? She didn?t understand what was happening, she was so confused, everything hurt, she didn?t want to die?

?Whoa there, don?t worry, take your time. I?m here to help,? the nurse said reassuringly. His tone was still as calm and steady as ever, and Julie clung to that like a life-raft. ?Now let?s try again, okay??

It took her a bit, but she managed to gather enough breath to whisper, ?J-Julie.?

?Julie,? the nurse repeated with a smile. ?Good, you?re doing really well.?

It really didn?t feel like she was doing well at all, but the words of encouragement still managed to make Julie feel a little better.

?Okay Julie, we?re going to do a little exercise together, alright?? At the nurse?s expectant pause, Julie gave him a weak nod. ?Good. Now, please, can you name me five different things you can see right now??

Julie slowly raised her head and looked around, noticing their surroundings again for the first time in what felt like forever. She had to squint because everything was blurry, because she?d lost her glasses to a giant monster and oh god what was she going to tell her parents how was she going to get a replacement?

?Hey, Julie, it?s okay, just try to tell me what you can see. Anything.?

?You,? she managed. The nurse held up a finger. ?Stu?Students.? Another finger. He was keeping count. ?...Grass. Sky. School.?

?Good job, Julie,? said the nurse. ?Alright, next, can you name me four things you can touch??

She had to concentrate a bit for this one. ?Um? ground,? she said, feeling the solid earth beneath her. ?Swimsuit.? The one that made her look like a young boy. ?Skin,? she said, looking down and realising for the first time that in her blind panic she?d scratched herself so hard that she?d started bleeding in multiple places. Her scalp hurt too. ?Hair.?

?Very good. Can you tell me three things you can hear??

?People,? said Julie, finding it a little easier now, ?walking by. Talking.?

The nurse nodded. ?That?s really good. What else??

?Leaves? Rustling.? A slight breeze was sweeping through the area, brushing through the nearby trees. ?...Birds??

?Good, you?re doing an amazing job,? said the nurse. ?Now please tell me two things you can smell.?

Julie took a few sharp breaths through her nose. She still felt breathless and woozy, but she was regaining some measure of control over her breathing again. ?Sea water,? she said. She was actually shivering from the cold breeze, actually, given that she was still soaking wet. She sniffed a couple more times to see if she could smell anything else. ?More? grass. I think??

?Excellent. Lastly, I want you to tell me something you can taste.?

?Salt,? Julie said almost immediately. She had taken in quite a lot of ocean water during the ordeal.

?Good, you?re doing really great. And see? You?re safe right now, nothing is going to happen to you,? he said comfortingly. Julie nodded. Her heart was still beating hard in her chest, but it didn?t feel so much like it was going to explode.

?It looks like you?re still having some trouble breathing,? the nurse observed. ?So what I want you to do, Julie, is to try and breathe with me, okay??

Julie nodded, and the nurse explained that they were going to try to get her to breathe in through her nose for a count of four, and then breathe out of her mouth for a count of seven. It took a few minutes and a couple of scary coughing fits, but the nurse?s steady counting and persistent calm eventually managed to bring her back almost to normal.

Now much calmer and more in control of her faculties, Julie earnestly thanked the nurse who shook his head. ?It?s my job to help. Speaking of which, how about I take a look at those scratches for you?? he asked, nodding at her arms.

?Oh, um, yes please,? replied Julie, feeling embarrassed.

The nurse gently put a hand on her arm, and she felt a similar sensation as the one when he healed her shoulder, though it was much milder this time.

?Does that happen to you often?? asked the nurse.

She looked away in shame. ?...Sometimes. Not usually like today, though. Today was bad.?

The nurse watched her for a moment. ?Julie,? he said, ?I?m going to schedule an appointment for you with one of our school counsellors, okay? They?ll help you manage these panic attacks.?

She had begun shaking her head even before the nurse began talking, a look of horror on her face. ?I don?t need it,? she said. I?m not crazy, she thought desperately, even as a traitorous part of her mind whispered back, only crazy people freak out like you do.

The nurse must have seen something of it on her face as he then said, ?There?s nothing wrong with you. However, letting this go unmanaged can be incredibly unhealthy. Please, just talk to the counsellor and make some kind of action plan, at least.?

Julie wanted to retort that if there really was nothing wrong with her, then she wouldn?t need to see the counsellor. She managed to swallow it down, however, with almost practised ease. ?...Okay.?

He grinned at her. ?Great! We?ll let you know when you?re scheduled to see her.?

?Great,? she echoed with a wan smile.

The nurse spent some more time with her after that, patiently outlining a few ways she could try to mitigate the effects of her panic attacks while they occurred and information that she could give to any friends or family she had so that they could help her through them if they were around. ?Like the boy who carried you here,? the nurse had said, and Julie?s stomach tied itself up into knots from humiliation and regret. Just the thought of Zane and what he must think of her now was almost enough to send her spiralling right back into panic. She wasn?t sure how she could ever face him again.

As she left, the nurse made her promise again that she would make a good effort with the counselling, within earshot of enough people to make her flush tomato red. The whole way back to her room she felt like she had a ?HI, I?M CRAZY? sign stuck to her forehead and people were whispering to each other or laughing as she walked past.

When she finally made it back, Julie stopped dead at the sight of her bag sitting innocuously on her bed and stared at it with a mixture of relief and self-reproach. In the flurry of everything that had happened and her worries about her glasses, she?d almost completely forgotten the bag that she?d brought along and could have easily never seen again. Someone must have found it and checked inside for her wallet and sent it over. Good lord, her phone was in there too. If her parents found out she had lost her phone, they would go nuclear.

She should call them. They would worry.

It took a good solid ten minutes of her staring at her phone, her finger hovering over the call button, before she turned it off and put it aside. She threw herself into her bed, weariness seeping through her every bone. Her eyelids felt like lead. The rest of her body felt like even more lead. She lay there, fully intending to let herself be carried to blissful unconsciousness after the trying day? but she couldn?t. Guilt wormed its way through her, and she was just properly the burning in her throat and slight headache that had just been some irritating background noise until now.

She sat up, rubbing her eyes, and sighed. Perhaps there was no need to let this day be a complete wash. Even without her glasses, she could still study, she just needed to keep the books a bit closer to her face to see the text clearly. So much time had been wasted on the beach, after all.

And, well, she thought, glancing at the shape of her phone, she owed her parents at least this much.
​

 

[Colony]

Vale Institute of Magic
Monday, September 14th, 2015: On the Board!

​

"Good morning, everyone! This is your student body president welcoming you into the new week. Before I get to the rest of the morning announcement, I just wanted to apologize for the incident that occurred over the weekend. Believe me when I say that the instigator has been properly punished by our disciplinary chief.

"Back to the news at hand, now that everyone is getting settled in to the new school year, things should be picking up. Clubs are back in full swing, and freshmen are encouraged to check out any club that might interest them, be it sport, craft, or something else. Just check out one of the many club postings on our event boards for more details."

 

[Fen-Fen]

Iris Aldridge and Zane Emerson

Fight!

Thousands of books lined the shelves of Vale's library, ranging from the mundane to the intensely technical. Despite the library's range, the material was seriously lacking in a couple of topics; virtually none of the books stocked by the library had any detailed information on light and dark magic. Zane had found himself picking out whatever books he could find on the subject, though most of his findings were on the various theories of acquisition. As interesting as figuring out why he had light magic sounded, that wasn't related to his goal. No, he was more concerned with figuring out how he could break his current limits and whether there was a way to overcome the physical limitations some of his spells placed on him.

The light and darkness books weren't the only ones that interested Zane. Another book titled Shapeshifting for Dummies went into greater detail about the interactions that occurred during elemental breakdowns. He only had a general idea of what was happening during those moments, including some of repercussions of abusing the ability. At the very least, researching shapeshifting more couldn't hurt.

With four books in hand, he finally decided to check out with the librarian. A quick run through of his Student ID to confirm the transaction later and he had the four texts with him for the near future. Since he still had some time before class began, he figured he had nothing better to do than to go ahead and get a start on his new reading material. But before he could settle down and take a good look through the texts, he noticed a certain blonde sitting at the table. The girl in question was none other than the tyrant peasant herself. He walked up to the seat opposite of her, carefully dropping his books in front of her to incite a firm thud from the table. In the same moment, he noticed that she was reading an American history book.

"Leave it to the peasants to study the traditions of those less gifted."

Iris crossed her arms. "Who invited you here? Piss off."

"You know," he quipped, "for such a history nerd, it doesn't seem like you've gotten very far. There was this lovely little document created during the revolution that mentioned freedom. You might've heard of it."

The seated blonde rolled her eyes. "Har har. Very funny." She put the book up to her face, more determined to ignore the irritating mage.

"Judging by how you're still obsessed with the wrong things, I can only assume you didn't go to the beach party. Probably a good thing, though, seeing how you would've just been a walking victim. But anyone who saw what happened should've had a rude awakening about how weak we all are…" his voice trailed off for a brief moment as he stared through the girl in front of him, as if gazing into an imaginary void. "Even more so for the people like you who refuse to acknowledge their own inadequacy."

Iris narrowed her eyes. "I just happened to have been there, but I left early. I don't know what my supposed inadequacies have to do with this."

"Figures you wouldn't have seen it. Doesn't change the fact that people like you who don't take their magic seriously don't deserve to have it. It's not a game, and if you had seen what those upperclassmen could do, maybe you'd actually put forth some effort."

Iris scoffed. "I put in plenty of effort in my education."

The initial response was a flat sigh. He couldn't believe the girl in front of him was so narrow minded as to misplace magical studies with general education. "You really are hopeless, aren't you? How does knowing about petty dates and supposed events change the world? Half of our history was fake before magic was a thing, now it seems like it's all fabricated. And can you guess why? Magic. Those that excel in this world are the ones who have embraced it. Politics, industry, science, everyone at the top wouldn't be there without magic. Your studies won't do anything for you if you don't prioritize the one thing that makes you different. If you don't, you might not even survive long enough to graduate."

The blonde gripped her book tighter. "Who are you to tell me that I won't survive? I do in fact study actual magic. Many books and articles, in fact. I apply what I study in the field. I'd appreciate not hearing lectures on greatness from someone who hasn't had it guaranteed by their bank account and pedigree."

"A pedigree earned through more hard work and dedication than anything you could muster. The money only proves my point."

The shorter blonde huffed. "I work very hard. Not like you would know or care anyways."

"Prove it. Everyone here knows you're nothing. They may see some potential, but all I see is wasted talent. A person who can't and won't do what's needed to be better than what they're given."

It was getting evident that Zane was getting under her skin, with her tightened grip and steeled face, with a glint of something in her eyes. "Oh yeah? And what do you know of my life, Mr. Psychic, that you can say that I can't do better than things that have been tossed my way? I am more resilient than your spoiled ass could ever be, and I'm here, I'm a mage, and I will march on, regardless of what people like you have to say."

"I know you're squandering the opportunity Vale gave you for one. Any person with eyes can see that. While you sit here studying the ordinary, everyone else has already surpassed you. While you focus on useless information, those who recognize the chance they've been given are giving it their all to develop their magic. And no matter what you say, you aren't working harder than the people who actually care. You speak of resilience like you know what it means, but suffering at the abusive hand of some drunk isn't the same thing as actively throwing yourself at an insurmountable wall, breaking everything in yourself until you've climbed it. That's real resilience, and you'll never know that feeling as long as you stay the same as you are now."

Despite not really being on the mark, Iris was nonetheless made very upset. "You don't know s*** about me. You don't know, what it's like…" Crap. She said that aloud.

"Ugh, you're all the same. Filthy pieces of coal that somebody thinks they can turn into a diamond. Why they don't seem to understand that you can't fix something that wants to stay broken is beyond me. But that's what you are, aren't you? A broken toy that would rather stay in disrepair over being turned into something useful. And when someone does their best to make you realize the errors of your ways, you dig your head into the sand and spit meaningless remarks. It's not my fault I see through you, nor is it my fault that you won't change."

"I'm not broken! I don't need fixing, and I certainly don't need advice from the stuck up jerk!"

"Well aren't you convincing. Honestly, though, you're doing a wonderful job at proving my point. Do you hear yourself? 'I'm not broken' and 'I don't need fixing.' You basically screamed them at the top of your lungs like a crazy person. In a library, no less."

Indeed, Iris had screamed those words. Her cheeks were flushed, her teeth were clenched and breathing deeply. It was a simmering stew of emotions, finally starting to show. "F*** off." She put down her book, and shoved her book in her bag.

"Hey, if you really think I'm wrong, then prove it. Show me, and everyone else, that you aren't bad goods, that you aren't wasting the school's time being here."

Iris stopped. "Fine, want me to prove it? You, me, after school, the magic field. Then we'll see who's on top. I hope you don't like your pedestal too much."

"After school is a no go. I'm on mission duty today. But we still have plenty of time for me to put you right where you belong."

"Alright, so I guess we can do this now."

***​

Now that they were actually on the field, both mages were preparing for the fight. Iris, amongst other things, had her weapons. She strapped them on, and for the first time actually faced her soon-to-be opponent. She lead the way, masking her fear of actually facing a mage. Iris could only pray he didn't sense this fear.

He didn't, but that was because he was too busy planning his moves. This wasn't like any the sparring matches he had. This time he had a point to get across, and a few swords through the chest would be quite the demonstration. Instead of readying his weapon, he just took his place, carefully setting his bag off to the side.

"I'll be nice and not use my pistol. You better appreciate the handicap."

Iris sarcastically replied, "Thanks." She readied her shield, ready to use the earth at a moment's notice. She stood on the defensive, trying to scope her opponent out. Many strategies were whizzing by in her head, but sparring has no room for pontification.

And before she knew it, he was gone. The first sign of his reappearance was voice, "Wonderful thing about shield and spear users is that they're very stance-oriented. And that leaves an opening for someone like me." Before she could even turn, he fired off two shots into either shoulder blade. By the time she had turned, he was gone again, with two new wounds to prove it.

Iris screamed out in pain. "Aggggggh, son of a *****." The earth mage shifted the ground of the field, trying to get him off footing and to strike. However, neither her powers nor conventional weaponry skill (or relative lack thereof) could land a strike in time, finding he had disappeared yet again.

"Hey, aren't you gonna prove me wrong? Screaming out over something like that isn't a good start." While he was taunting her, Zane had already moved on to prepping his domain, crafting the constructs needed for his spell network.

"You a******!" Her mind was starting to lose focus, feeling at Zane for his douchebaggery and his taunts. "How about this?!" Iris used a carbon bomb for diamond netting. No strategy, no sense of combat, just off the cuff stuff Iris more or less learned from her mother.

"It's like you're begging me to show you up." He began by shooting the carbon bomb, and was only mildly surprised when it exploded into netting. Even though the trap still flew at Zane, all he had to do was blink away again. In his place were two more hedrons. In his new location, he was on Iris' spear side, a perfect spot to force an awkward reaction to his shots. He promptly fired off a few rounds with his right hand, aiming for her elbow on her spear arm.

To her chagrin, he blinked again. Fortunately, she had managed to just barely catch him with her peripherals. She whipped around to face him, but unfortunately could not translate instinct fast enough, and again was at a disadvantage.

Zane, however, was unconcerned about whether the shots hit, instead, he was too busy finishing the last piece of his Luminous Domain, and once it was finished, he threw up the telltale sphere of his ultimate spell, Radiant Fall. "You better block this with your shield, or else you might die," he said, pointing to the sky. A few moments later, the sphere shattered, raining hail of lightning quick hardlight.

Immediately, Iris managed to duck and summon a protective earthen layer to protect herself from the deadly hail. The impact was rapid fire, and very hard hitting as expected for light velocity projectiles.

But while she was distracted by the shower of light, Zane had closed in on her, two of his blades primed for an attack. When she noticed him, he had already tackled her to the ground. One blade was against her neck, the other hanging above her face, frantically twirling as if it waiting to be unleashed.

"Do you understand it now? This is the difference between us."

Pure panic was in Iris' eyes. Her bravado and confidence melted away in the face of being inches away from the other mage's weapons, defeated, humiliated, exposed for, as Zane put it, the broken toy that she was. Pathetic, unfit to be here, unable to respond to her opponent's words other than taking them in and letting them burn into her mind.

As if sensing the turmoil in her mind, Zane finally broke his serious act and let out a triumphant grin. He terminated his spell and got back up on his feet, leaving the girl sprawled on the ground, dazed and confused.

"Well, I guess we're done here. Later."

He retrieved his things and began walking towards the school's entrance. Before going in, he turned to his victim, "You might want to get the nurse to look at those wounds. Wouldn't want them to heal wrong, you know?"

Iris took several shaky breaths, trying to muster a response against Zane, but decided against it. Stupid, stupid, stupid. Here she was, accusing Zane of talking the big talk, and yet it was her that had to be humbled. The pain from the light bullets helped her understand where exactly she lied at this school's totem pole: the bottom. She stood up, making sure Zane was out of sight, and hobbled over towards the nurse's office, her mind swimming in all sorts of thoughts she really didn't want.

 

[Colony]

Vale Institute of Magic
Thursday, September 17th, 2015

​

F*** it, it?s Thursday now.

 

[disciplish]

Nychta DeMuere and Zane Emerson and also Jack Marrick as well as Emilia Tachibana

Since first discovering the beauty of his Spin Cycle, Nychta spent much of his time trying to figure out new ways to use it to the point where its application was becoming almost second nature. His clothes were being washed as soon as he got in the bath; a spinning stool of water and ice replaced the one he had at home, he used it to mix paints in probably the only fine arts class he'd taken, and at the moment he was mixing creamer into his coffee in a nearly empty cafeteria. Tasted good, but a kick of caffeine never saved anyone.

He ran over the names in his head. Zane, light mage. Got the chance to speak with him a little while back. Jack, earth mage from one of his classes, and a light mage named Emilia. The only one he hadn't seen personally, though when he asked about her all he found out was that she was basically a prepubescent girl. The thought of it both amused and worried him.

?I didn't come here to babysit,? Zane mentioned earlier in the week when he learned the same thing.

Nychta concerned himself with his makeshift team's state of affairs a little too much for his own good, so the rest of his free time was used to study up on seniors' journals and public combat reports in the library with anything labelled ?Whisper?. Even if he couldn't prepare anyone else, and some of the reports were probably inaccurate, he could at least do everything to ready himself.

?Nychta?? Buried nose-deep in a journal, he didn't originally notice his name being called, but a second time snapped him back to the cafeteria table he sat at. The snow-haired girl, introducing herself as Emilia, carried a light snack in her hands, and was very small. Barely any taller standing than he was sitting. She looked more like a middle schooler. He fought back the urge to ask if anyone was missing their daughter.

Still, not one to forgo standard courtesies, Nychta greeted his new teammate with a smile, encouraging her to sit next to him so they could talk. The two of them reviewed what info they could get out of the journal Nychta brought along while getting better acquainted with each other. Emilia was a studious girl, though Nychta knew that shouldn't have surprised him as much as it did. She picked up on the details quickly, and was happy to chat at the same time, showing him the bracelets she had that became her tools on the Isles.

Eventually, a ringing on Emilia's phone went off, and Nychta checked the clock above the cafeteria kitchen. The former silenced her alarm, then they both cleaned up their small mess before leaving for the front of the school.

Their other two teammates had long since beaten them to it, and weren't on very good terms judging by the space they gave each other. The skinny blond was on the far side of the giant rock they called their transportation, and the bulkier Jack only perked up when they finally arrived.

Losing a battle with her own curiosity, Emilia couldn't help but ask, ?What happened??

?Don't worry about it,? Zane answered first. ?We just had to come to an agreement.?

Jack followed up, stating, ?What he said. We'll be fine, this mission is gonna be a piece of cake.?

Emi feigned some satisfaction to their response, but she could see Nychta's lack of faith in their ability to work together. Their thoughts were interrupted when all four of their cell phones went off at once, receiving the same text.

Good afternoon, kiddies. My name is Ikaros.

Okay, not really, but feel free to call me that.

Glad to know you're all assembled on time.

But before we send you off to the fall wonderland we call your mission zone, will one of you please check out the top of the portal stone?

?Looks like our guide wants to do some kind of secret agent schtick,? Jack thought aloud. He conjured up a few floating slabs of stone from below to act as steps, climbing to find earpieces resting above the portal. ?One for each of us.?

After the freshmen properly equipped their new toys, a brief crackling came through, followed by a baritone, lackadaisical voice. ?How's it sound? Can you hear me alright?? Their supervising senior elaborated that the earpieces were going to be a necessity going into their task, as where they were going it was always conspicuously autumn. Magic powered mid-range transceivers were fitted into the hooks securing the earpieces in place, letting them talk without being drowned out by the crunching of leaves. He also filled Zane and Jack in with a few hints on the monster they were supposed to fight, as they evidently hadn't done any studying of their own.

?Any more questions, or we all good??

?Just one,? Nychta spoke up. ?Why aren't you here in person??

?I'm stretching my own magic,? he explained. A few feet beside the group, a floating drone flickered into view. Looking much like a mechanical eyeball, a red light peeked out of the ?pupil? at Nychta's face. Immediately following its appearance, it flickered away without any fanfare or countdown to spare. ?So, as long as nobody has any more objections, let's get this show on the road.?

Zane clearly intended to complain, but was cut off by Ikaros' insistence on moving along. Dropping any doubts in their quite secretive supervisor's abilities, as well, Jack looked happy to lead the charge, with Zane and Emi teleporting in last.

Nychta surveyed his surroundings as soon as he made his first steps onto the isle, feeling the leaves under him give slight leeway with the sound of a crunch. Looking down, he realized that what he stood on was a carpet of reds and yellows, hiding the brown dirt underneath. The trees didn?t tower over his group nearly as much as they did in the jungle, but they were still relatively large; looking up, he could see the leaves giving way, and a small breeze alone was enough to allow them to fall. The trees also seemed as if they would never run out of leaves, and the ground would never change. The sun was setting in the distance, and Nychta curiously suspended a few drops of water in the air in the sun?s general direction, watching how they refracted and reflected the sunlight shining on them. For a short moment, despite the fact that they were there on a mission and not for sightseeing, the isle was serene, and invitingly so. It felt like someone made a wish to make a day last forever.

But the fa?ade could only last so long. A gust swept through the woods after they'd travelled about a mile inward, swirling the falling leaves into a loose whirlwind of debris that trailed off towards a series of bushes in the distance. As the wind died down, the bushes came to life, violently breaking the peace of the environment before coming to a sudden stop.

?Well, there goes the element of surprise. If I were you guys I?d keep my eyes open, because your ears aren?t going to help.? Ikaros' last piece of advice was succeeded by the sound of shattering glass?his mechanical eyeball pierced by a set of sharp claws next to the team. Zane was first to react, disappearing into the branches of a tree so quickly that he heard the eye breaking a second time. Emi was close behind, landing in another with transformed chakrams in hand. Nychta and Jack, who didn't pull any Houdini tricks, resorted to defense, the former pulling up his giant hands of ice to protect him. The beast took a quick swipe at Jack, but found its claws buried in a metallic shield, and with his open arm he swung back, gathering a shortsword into his grasp.

The Whisper leapt back before Jack made contact; Zane and Emi caught a good look at it, but nothing about this silent-but-deadly wind looked any good. Its ears bloomed out like a caracal?s, black lines adorning the tan fur on its feline face. It stood on two legs, but the way it hunched over itself made it clearly prone to running on all fours. The way its front paws were designed was particularly grotesque: vicious, dagger-like claws, extending from appendages that could only be likened to human fingers. The Whisper let out a silent growl baring its teeth before whipping up a cloak of leaves, vanishing by the time the foliage dissipated.

?How the hell're we supposed to fight this thing?!? Nychta yelled. He thought the information dump from the seniors' records would have helped, but it obviously did not. Maybe they just weren't supposed to be prepared.

?I think I've got a plan,? Zane called to the others, fashioning something out of his hardlight from his place in the trees. Throwing it to the ground, he started making another. ?It can't hide if I just nuke it when it shows up. Emilia, you just hide behind Jack or something while they keep it busy.?

Emilia wasn't a big fan of how that idea sounded, biting back. ?I can fight! Why do you think I'm here!? In the meantime, Jack and Nychta taunted and clumsily countered the swipes of the Whisper's claws whenever it approached, using the noise they made to poorly mask the minutes-long argument and giving the light mages openings to repeatedly change locations. They were able to wear it down between Jack's sword swinging and Nychta's pair of crossbows, but they didn't have much real damage to speak of. While Zane fabricated his laser prisms, dropping them in the leaves, Emi gave the defending duo visual cues to tip them off to the monster's direction.

?This isn't kindergarten. We're in actual danger here, so just be a good girl and listen to your elders.?

?Zane, that's enough,? Jack piped up as the feral felid dived in on him. ?Worry about?gh! Worry about your plan, I think this thing's getting fed up with us and I'm running out of quips. Come on, fuzzball, my grandma's faster than you!?

?One or two more and I'm done. Get it somewhere with a clear shot.?

Nychta managed to catch the Whisper's ire, but for some reason couldn't find where it was coming from this time. ?Move!? a voice in his head screamed at him. Nychta dove forward, rolling into a sitting position with a distinctly fresh pain. He reached back and tapped his spine, wincing and feeling the tinge of warm blood on his fingers, as well as a ripped shirt. He liked that shirt. And whatever hit him, it didn't even feel solid. To remedy at least one of these pressing issues, Nychta pressed one of his glacier hands to his back, using the other to stop the beast's follow-up.

With their quarry invested in its prey, it didn't hear the ground crackling beneath it, and Jack's magic launched it skyward. ?Zane, target practice!? he shouted, running to Nychta's aid.

?Warn me in advance or something, will ya?!? Zane pitched the last of his prisms and yanked his gun out of its holster, pointing it at the Whisper and firing off every beam of light he could muster from the many prisms he left below the messy carpet of leaves. To his disappointment, a few of them missed. Instead of obliterating the thing from all directions, it was blasted farther into the woods, heavily injured but still alive and flailing on its way down. ?Dammit.?

Jack helped Nychta stand as Zane hopped down from the trees. ?You alright??

?Still stings, but I'll be fine. Where's Emilia?? Zane and Jack realized they hadn't heard anything out of her the last couple minutes, quickly becoming concerned and calling for her, and Jack chiding Zane for his insults earlier. They scoured the immediate area for another minute or two to no avail, the search coming to a grinding halt when five multicolored missiles zigzagged through the red, orange and yellow woods, decimating the area where the Whisper landed and fading entirely in the next instant. When the trio made it there, much of the ground was destroyed, and the Whisper was harmlessly trapped in an egg-shaped prison made of bars of rainbow light, sapped of whatever energy it had left.

??????

An angered, high-pitched sound in a language they didn't understand echoed through the woods and nearly burst their eardrums through the transceivers, preceding the magical hum of the portal stone's activation. Nychta soon voiced the conclusion that Emilia had gone back to school, relieved for her safety, and used the hand not holding Jack's shoulder to stick his crossbow in one of the cage's openings. A well-placed bolt to the chest froze the creature's body solid, the colorful cage falling apart and disappearing with its power source gone, and some anticlimactic blunt force trauma out of Jack shattered the furry icicle.

When its remains were taken care of, it managed to leave something behind, Jack moving to investigate it and leaving Nychta with Zane. He picked up a claw, a visceral knife, and try as they might neither of the three were able to break it down as they did in previous encounters. A matter of seconds later, their supervisor's now-characteristic mechanical eyeball showed itself in front of Jack's face. Accompanied by the sound of fanfare and a brief spray of glowing confetti that got in Jack's clothes, hair and mouth he declared, "Congratulations! You've found a Core! Enjoy this short mandatory tutorial.

?Cores are items that embody an etherspawn's unique abilities so strongly that their magic stabilizes like the equipment you got on your first day. Mister Fields or a senior shop student can embed these cores into your weapons or clothes to buff your own magic. You got something from the monster's front legs, so I doubt any of you can use it to its full effect. You always get something from using it, but maybe give it to a cute air mage you know.? The eyeball blinked, as if trying to imitate a wink, then Ikaros continued.

"If you have any questions, please refer to the manual that came with your game disc. Back to more important things, you've got injured. I don't want to see you guys sticking around long enough for a more dangerous monster to come in and take over the real estate you just freed up. Hurry on home for a good meal and a visit to the nurse."​

 

[Songbird]

Monday, September 21st through Friday, September 25th

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Students are settling into Vale (some better than others). However, as is normal for high schoolers, cliques were quick to stick. To better encourage working outside their comfort zone, room assignments have been made permanent for the remainder of the school year, barring outstanding circumstances; and while the following rule doesn't prohibit the students from going to the Isles with friends or people they prefer, they must work with new teammates regularly for their activities to be acknowledged by faculty.

Recap

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There was a beach party. Senior student and host Allan summoned a giant monster to terrorize the freshmen, but was dealt with relatively quickly by his babysitter.

Zane, hardstuck Gold, has gotten his butt kicked multiple times, and has taken his frustration out by curbstomping the Bronze-ranked Iris.

Jack, Nychta, Zane and Emilia defeated the felid Whisper; much more painful, but only slightly less dangerous than the common housecat.

Activities

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For the students still using just the tools provided by Mr. Fields during the orientation, the teacher in question is conducting a basic ethercrafting class in the workshop for those who want to customize their equipment. Joining him is fellow (slightly more competent) teacher and electromancer, Saroeung Hun.

Air mages interested in medical healing magic are recommended to stop by the nurse's office. A signup sheet can be found next to the door, and the class will take the place of Friday's afternoon periods.

Tasks

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☆ Hunt: Water Serpent

A suggested training mission for water and air mages, one serpent species of the Isles lives—you guessed it—underwater. Fire and earth mages are not excluded, but speak with Nurse Cox on methods to breathe underwater if one of your teammates cannot provide.

☆ Gather: Mandrakes

The nurse's office is always looking for students to bring in more supplies. More specifically, they're currently low on forest mandrake cores—their leaves, which make great painkillers. Nurse Cox is asking students to pick flowering mandrakes from forest isles. He also advises they bring earplugs or some other form of sound dampening.

☆ Survey: Floating Islands

A request to travel through a small chain of flying islands and write a report on the behaviors of inhabiting etherspawn, as well as environmental features of note. Though high in the air, they remain mostly stationary, and aren't connected by land or bridge. Creative transportation methods are required, as well as a method for taking notes. There may be other islands on the horizon or near sea level, but they are not part of the assignment.

☆ Hunt: Lions

Uncannily similar to the African lion, these beasts are as tall on four legs as a human, and are known as a type of Commander, able to summon smaller members of their species. Surviving subordinates go on to become commanders themselves. Fire variant lions have shown up in the Goliath Jungle, and territory disputes with the native creatures have left swaths of the isle ravaged. A team of four is recommended, but taking care of one lion per team is sufficient.

Miscellaneous

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Julie Nguyen and Domingo Hernández are requested to work together this week on their task.

Zane Emerson and Iris Aldridge are also requested to work together this week.

Saqr Al Aqsa has been called to the counselor's office due to excessive memeing.