Young Writers Society

Walter Rogers/Testing Arena:

It was pandemonium, utter pandemonium- people running around and screaming trying to fight the beast and getting their asses kicked. Out of the corner of my eye I saw the girl- Aurora I think her name was get thrown, she looked like a ragdoll and I ran over- I couldn't catch her before she hit the ground but I caught her a second later as her body bounced with the force of impact.

“Are you alright?!” I gasp= carrying her I run to the perimeter of the field- she says something but her words are slurred, I set her down gently, “Well be Careful.” and I run back to the Center. Dust and bodies were flying- I felt sick, this was horrible- I didn't know THIS was going to happen. I tried to get some idea of what the hell the creature we were faced with was made of- it looked like stone-

“Look out!” Someone shouted and I dodged a stone fist just in time- I rolled and came up again- I got a good look at the creature as it faced someone else,

we have to bring it down! Get it on the ground we might have a chance....

“West!” I shout- trying to locate him in the dust and noise, a flash zips by me then stops.

“What?! You okay Walt?” I nod quickly- grabbing his shoulder,

“We have to bring it down- It looks top heavy- if we can tip it- can you help me distract it?” He nods, “Now hang on- I... where's that- Miss Tahl!” I drag West after me to where Tahl and her brother were,

“Walter wha-” West begins,

“Tahl you and your brother can control water right? Think you can help up topple that thing? West and I are going to distract it- draw it's attention- think you can use your water to push it or push up the ground with it? Something- we have to knock it down.. I think that's what they want.”

Tahl stares for a moment then nods slowly.

“Sure, we can try.”

“Great- okay West on three- we rush it, try to get it to focus on us- but DON'T let it get you.. it hits like the hulk I think....”

West and I then dart in, I'm stunned with how fast he is- like the flash, it's amazing, the beast turns and swipes at him but misses by a mile, I rush and ram my shoulder into it's leg, the stone about its knee grinds and I though it moved a little bit- it's joints are it's weak spots!

I turn to look at Tahl and her brother.

“The joi-”

“Walter lookout!” I turned in time to see a massive fist connect with my stomach and the impact lifted me off the ground- the inertia kept me glued to the fist as the thing round housed his arm and brought it down to the ground- sandwiching me between it's fist and the floor of the arena. I couldn't breathe and I tasted blood as everything went black.

Ruby | Arena

It's unbeatable, my dad had told me, But you still try your damn hardest to beat it.

Frost damage deteriorates stone! The girl had said, hadn't she?

Scanning the ground, I noticed the pools of water the girl was leaving behind each time the Golem broke free of its trap. We have to bring it down someone had just said, hadn't they?

"I can bring it down!" I yelled to the others as one of the boys fought the Golem.

"ezeerF" I chanted, freezing the water to the ground and creating a slick surface.

The boy people called Walter went flying when the Golem's fist made contact with his body.

"Hey you!" I called to a boy with brown hair who, from the looks of it, was shaking in his boots, "Can I ask a favor?"

"I don't want it to..." He started, but I cut him off as the Golem turned its attention towards us.

"I won't let it hurt you. Just SCREAM!"

The boy didn't have to be asked twice - he let out an ear splitting scream, drawing the attention of the Golem and sending it charging. It lost its footing, however, when it came to the ice and began to stumble forward.

Eyes widening, I leapt towards the boy to push him out of the way, yelling, "Watch out!" as the Golem fell on top of me.

All air was crushed out of my lungs and there was a cracking sound that I was either coming from the Golem, the ice, or my bones.

Gritting my teeth, I remembered what my father had taught me - always stand back up. I swear I tried.

Tahl
Walt ran off, leaving Tahl and her brother to figure out where to get the water they were supposed to be using to beat this thing.

/Pipes, / she said. /Close enough we can drag it up her. /

Jorah nodded and they both dropped to their knees to concentrate on the ground. He offered his hand to his sister, but she shook her head.

/No. This is a test. I am not doing the Wondertwin thing with you on a stupid test. It’s embarrassing. /

He seemed unconvinced, but he was already trying to focus on making water do what it didn't want to, and neither of them had much mental space to use on other things. Tahl hunched beside him, managing to ignore the people running and shouting and her nose starting to bleed from the pressure without breaking concentration…But not someone shouting a name that was actually familiar.

She looked up in time to see Walter get knocked flat, cursed and struggled to get to her feet as the robot prepared to change targets. It moved to someone else, but that was looking just as futile…They were running out of time.

Frustrated, Tahl gave in and grabbed her brother’s hand. Abruptly the water they were working on started breaking through, flooding the field around their opponent and hopefully not making it worse for the kid still trapped underneath it…

“Should take a bit for that to stop,” Jorah said allowed, probably because thinking to hard was hurting him too.

“Together then?”

He nodded, and then both rushed forth to see how much damage they could inflict before they both passed out.

Katarina | Arena

Students swarmed the arena, each taking their turn to deal a blow at the Golem. It was chaos and everyone who tried to rush at the thing got blown back out of commission.

Arms crossed over her chest, Kat stood amid the chaos, dancing between flailing students and swinging rock-fists. It was bad enough she'd been warped out of her dorm room in her sports bra and spandex shorts - though luckily she hadn't made it to the shower before this impromptu training exercise - but now each of her fellow students were clearly disregarding the obvious point of the assignment.

Teamwork.

Kat suppressed a groan as another student got flung back, but she couldn't stop the flinch when Walt fell with a heavy thud and failed to get back up again.

She surveyed her remaining teammates. Several of the heavy hitters were completely unconscious, and many of the rest seemed more interested in showing off than showing this thing up. That's when she spotted Jessa, her hulking roommate, sulking along the edge of the arena. As far as Kat could tell, no one conscious was "out" of the training, so she supposed it was fair enough game.

"Jessa!" Kat called, locking eyes with her magnificently huge roomie. "I need you to run at that thing as fast as you can!"

Jessa only stared back. "I'm not exactly light on my feet," she shouted, clearly confused.

"Just do it!" Kat shouted at her, though her attention was already on the remaining teammates. Several meters away there was a broody-looking dude shooting fire balls from his hands at the Golem. "Hey, flame guy," Kat called. "Back me up, alright?"

Jessa trucked past Kat, going at least fast enough to blow her hair in her face. The Golem now had it's full attention on the equally mountainous individual sprinting toward it. Kat gave her a few seconds head start before rushing straight behind her. "Now, Jessa, stop!"

"What?" she asked, though she still froze in place. Kat pushed off the ground just as her roommate began to turn. She landed with one foot on Jessa's shoulder and used the momentum to throw herself into the air above the Golem. Mid-air she suspiciously produced a handful of small throwing knives, took the briefest of milliseconds to aim, and flung them at the joints connecting its limbs to its body.

"Get it, flame guy!" she shouted, but the firebender was two steps ahead of her. His flames superheated the knives, slicing them through the Golem's stone limbs like butter.

Unfortunately, the flame-retardant hilts of the knives didn't get quite as hot as the blades and stuck in the Golem's joints rather than breaking them apart. Even more unfortunately, the only place Kat had to land was directly on the Golem's shoulders.

And most unfortunately, he did not seem to enjoy it.

Victor Shang | The Arena with the Giant Rock Thingy

Though he was absolutely sure Wonder Woman was a good person, Victor still didn't like the idea of this golem thingy. It was gigantic, using its strength both for shock-and-awe and actual damage. Already, Victor had watched several kids fall prey to its attacks.

As he stood frozen on one side of the arena, a girl suddenly called out to him. Victor flinched.

"Hey you! Can I ask you a favor?"

Victor stammered some incomprehensible half-sentence before she cut him off.

"I won't let it hurt you, just scream."

Oh, finally. Someone who understood his fear of--oh. He understood what she wanted him to do. Letting his un-matured vocal chords take care of the work, Victor screamed as shrilly as he possibly could.

The Golem turned towards them, its huge frame shaking the ground with every step. Maybe it was Victor's imagination, but he swore someone in the stands had started a broadcast of 'Another One Bites the Dust'. Such a cheerful song, really. Perfect for the occasion.

In his momentary stupor, the golem had reached him and the girl. She shoved him, hard, before the golem's head crashed down so close to her that the vibrations alone sent her flying to the ground, unconscious. Ice crunched under the golem's weight, breaking under Victor's feet and sending him sliding onto its head. He tried to scramble away, but the golem was already pushing itself off the ground.

Having no plan of action already plotted out, Victor pulled himself onto the golem's rocky head. He found it difficult,and rather wished he'd taken PE in school instead of opting for foreign languages and band. Maybe then he'd have some muscle for when stuff like this happened.

Suddenly, the head beneath Victor's feet jerked sideways. He nearly slid off, but just barely kept his footing. When the golem gave up shaking him to pursue the science club members over in the far corner though, Victor suddenly heard his own voice shouting.

"I'm up here!" he yelled. He wasn't sure why, but he sounded very, very loud. "Up here! On your head!"

The golem turned its head around, searching for the noise source. Down below, kids were doing the same thing. Why? Shouldn't they try attacking the golem? Well, he supposed all that water flooding the field would be hard to move in.

"I said I'm up here! Are you listening to me, great giant rock thingy?" Victor noted with great satisfaction that 'Another One Bites the Dust' was no longer playing from the stands. In fact, the entire stadium had gone silent.

"Ha ha!" Victor boomed. Whatever made his voice so loud and omnipotent-sounding, he liked it. Maybe it had something to do with a radio-based sound system? "You'll never get--"

Something gripped the back of his shirt. Oh crap. The head beneath Victor's feet floated away. Before Victor could even register what had happened, he heard a giant smack. Ah, that was him hitting the water at a very wrong angle.

Mia | The Arena

Mia and Bubbles ran around the edge of the arena, which had been turned into a frozen and swampy wasteland. Mia jumped lightly over fallen students, her eyes locked on the rocky golem rampaging closer to the center. She ducked as a student- Victor, she'd heard someone say? - sailed overhead, landing in a particularly deep puddle.

Another student was also brushed off the golem's shoulders, landing in the mud underfoot. Mia watched her roll desperately from beneath the golem's rocky feet, suddenly glad that she wasn't a close ranged fighter.

"What's with that thing, dood? And why aren't you fighting, dood?"

"It's obviously a scripted loss, Bubbles. It won't be over, even if I don't do a thing."

"But dood! You haven't shown off what you can do, dood, and so many people are watching!"

Mia slid to a halt. "You're right, Bubbles. A hero never gives up, not even in the face of certain defeat!"

"That's not what I said, dood."

Mia ignored him, drawing her staff from somewhere between nowhere and somewhere. "Let's be Badasses."

She raised her staff, spread her wings and posed, and a burst of magic fire erupted in a rough square beneath the golem's feet. A few of the closest students had to jump back to avoid it. "Whoops."

The golem, though, didn't seem to be too phased. Steam billowed from the wet ground and the golem's feet, but it kept moving, swinging wildly at the nearest student.

Mia took a few steps forward. "Fine, let's try... this!"

Mia threw her hands forward, balancing on her heels. A giant tome appeared before her, flicking through pages quickly. It stopped on a particular page, and three orbs of pink light rose from the paper, launching themselves at the golem. They struck the golem solidly, leaving glowing spots on the rock's face, but it still didn't seem to notice.

"Ugh. Bubbles, Magichange!"

"D-d-d-do I have to, dood?

"Yes!"

Bubbles sighed, and raised onto one foot in a signature prinny- pirouette. A glow surrounded him, collapsed, and moved into Mia's hands, where it reshaped into a mid-range, prinny-themed blaster pistol.

"Alright!" Mia ran forward, shooting. Her pink hair was flowing in the wind, her wings were spread, and she was leaving splashes of muddy water behind her as she sprinted. She only hit the golem about 30% of the time, but that was a minor detail. She looked awesome.

Right up until the golem finally noticed, and paused in its assault to throw a rock casually in her direction. It hit her square in the gut, driving her straight to the ground with a oof. The blaster span out of her hand, changing back into a more recognizable Bubbles-shape as it landed in the mud.

Mia squinted over at Bubbles. "Are you okay?"

"D-doood?" The prinny was exhausted- both from barfing blaster-rounds and magichange itself.

"Leave it to me, Bubbles." Mia's voice was strangled as she gasped for air. "I'll save us-"

Mia was interrupted by a large shadow falling over them both. She rolled over and stared straight into the golem's...uh, crystal-thingy.

"Game o-over, dood."

Isaac | Room 202- Boswer's Hall | Arena:

The naked chick who was apparently his cousin had left, which meant Isaac could probably, maybe relax now. He just had to agree to the siren's deal, didn't he? Unfortunately for her, that meant that he could ask any favour of her, and yeah. He had a few ideas. Lucky for him--or not so lucky, really--he was still fully clothed in his dark jeans, dark shirt and thigh-length black coat. The downside, though, was that he was now not in his room in Bowser's Hall. Somehow, he had been transported into what looked like an arena--complete with a stone wall and--was that a Golem?

Isaac shook his head, hanging back from the action and watching as kid after kid went down. He snorted, glancing about. A fair few of his fellow students had already tried to take the giant rock monster out, and pretty much all of them had failed so far, getting thrown to the ground or into the side of the arena, or even crushed under the Golem's weight.

Off to his left, there were a group of kids talking. Sounded like science talk to him. It caught his attention, so Isaac turned towards it.

"This is your fault," one green-haired kid hissed at the other. A blonde boy, who seemed to be staring at the Golem in a mix of awe, determination and excitment. "So your fault."

"Isn't it amazing? So awesome!" The blonde kid bounced on his feet, waving an arm towards the Golem. "Isn't it bea-ut-i-ful?"

"You're an idiot."

The blonde kid swung aronud to face the green-haired kid. Isaac snorted, rolling his eyes at the pair before moving to insert himself smoothly into the conversation. "Idiot or not," he said, cutting the blonde boy off. "This is obviously a test, and clearly, judging by how our classmates are getting thrown about, not something we can beat." He gave the Golem a meaningful look, not caring if the pair beside him followed his gaze or not. "And judging by the Headmistress's unimpressed look, it's clearly not going how she'd like." Isaac turned to fix the pair with an assessing look. "I suggest teamwork. Do you agree?"

The pair exchanged a loaded look. The green-haired kid sighed, while the blonde gave him a determined look. "Do I look like someone you can order around?"

"Yes," Isaac said, turning away. "Blondie, Greenie. I need you to distract it. Think you can do that?"

There was a exclamation that sounded a lot like a "what" but was smothered by the sudden noise of a rock being thrown in the side of the arena and someone screaming loudly into a microphone. Isaac blinked, focusing on the Golem. He watched as it went down and the screaming stopped, and then just got right back up. Isaac sighed. This was not going to be fun at all.

"Just distract it, will you?" he snapped, and clicked his fingers. To Blondie and Greenie, he seemed to disappear from in front of them and reappear in several different place, but really. Isaac was just playing with illusions. He started jogging towards the Golem, scowling a little bit. This was ridiculous.

He was almost on it when his illusions flickered a couple times and then abruptly disappear, revealing the real him to everyone, and incidentally, the Golem. It focused it's non-face on him and seemed to pause for a second. Isaac slide to a stop a couple of metres from on of its feet. He stare up at it as it swung its arm and sent him flying. Right into the stone wall of the arena. The last thing Isaac saw was the Golem turning away and someone crouching in front of him, blurred and blue.

Ryou Shiki - Arena
It was rather amusing to watch the others being tossed around like ragdolls, and interesting to see them all show off their powers willingly, without anyone having to ask. I should be taking notes. While they fought I was standing somewhere in the back, at a safe distance. The thing didn't have any blood, so I couldn't use my bloodbending, and judging by how little damage the ones who attacked with blades or other weapons did to it, I doubted I could do anything by shaping my blood into blades. I could probably use my blood to tie it up for a moment or two, but that wouldn't matter either if none of the others could do any real harm to it. With that in mind I stood still and watched, taking careful note of anyone whose powers I found interesting.

The first one to pick my interest was the girl who had asked me what that thing was. I had simply shrugged, since I knew what it was just as little as she did, and had then fully intended to forget about her until I saw her heal her own leg. I had been looking for a healer.. Someone who I could drink as much as I wanted from without the person getting hurt or dying. She was like that. I'll have to talk to her later, and act charming and all that.

The second one I noticed was another healer, this one a girl as well. She had some aura thing going on, and even though I never actually saw her heal herself I knew it was more than possible that she could, so she was worth taking a note on as well.

Third and last one was another girl. Not a healer, but to my great surprise a waterbender. I couldn't help but feel a pang of jealousy as I saw her bend and freeze the water she had brought with her. I knew the technique behind it, like I knew most techniques for waterbending, but I couldn't actually use anything other than bloodbending. I put her on the list of people to talk to as well.

After just watching for a few more minutes I realized someone was staring at me, and when I looked up towards the crowd on the bleachers I realized the principal was glaring at me. Oh.. That probably meant that I would need to do something, anything, if I wanted to pass this test and be able to even attend the other classes. Go figure. But there was nothing I could do.. Nothing that would have any effect, at least.

"I think I could take out a leg, if I got close enough." The voice was so silent among all the ruckus that I thought I had imagined it at first, but then I turned my head to the side to notice that a girl with purple hair standing next to me, staring at her hands. I probably wouldn't have heard it at all if it hadn't been for the fresh blood in my system.

"What was that?" I asked, just barely loud enough for her to hear me. "How?"

She looked up at me like I had somehow startled her. Maybe she didn't want anyone to hear her. "I-if I got close enough I could take out its leg.. Maybe. If I can use my powers."

I sighed. It didn't sound very convincing, but I needed to at least pretend that I had put some effort into this, and making her do the dangerous things for me would probably earn me some extra points for teamwork, or whatnot. "Alright then. I'll use my powers to hold it and you'll get to the leg?"

She looked absolutely terrified, staring at me first and then the stone thingy, and then back again, her face paling more and more by the second. "A-alright," she finally said, nodding once.

I started walking towards the thing, making sure she stuck close behind me, and then waited for it to be distracted by someone else so that it had its back turned towards me. I bit down on both my wrists, taking control of my blood and making it flow out in thin threads, circling around and around the stone thingy and then tightening and solidifying so that it couldn't move. The first thing I realized was that it was far stronger than I had first imagined, which forced me to make those strings thicker and wrap around it more times, and the second thing I realized was that using so much blood to bind it made me weaker. I wasn't sure how long I could hold it.

"Hurry up and attack it, you idiots!" I used plural, since I wasn't just talking to the girl, but to everyone. If they wanted to get the perfect hit in, now was the chance, because after this I was done. I wasn't keen on doing any more than I needed to to pass the test.

Ten seconds. I should be able to hold it for ten seconds. Hopefully.


Amandine Mercator - The Arena
I watched as the guy used his own blood to tie the thing up, half creeped out and half in awe. He was so strong.. Everyone here was so incredibly strong and fearless. I wasn't like that, not even close. Just the though of going anywhere near it had terrified me, and by now my heart was beating so hard I could barely even hear my thoughts, and I could actually feel my knees shaking under me.

"Hurry up and attack it, you idiots!"

Once again his voice startled me, but it got me moving. I didn't know if I could do anything to it, or if I could even make my powers work, but I was going to try my best. It might hurt, but the principal is not going to let you get killed, nor hurt anyone else. I focused on that thought as I reached the golem, hesitating for a moment before putting my hands on its leg and focusing on ripping it apart.

At first, nothing happened. The others were attacking an doing damage, but I couldn't remove a single electron from it. I could feel my breathing picking up, becoming irregular as the fear was starting to take over. No, I can't do this now. I need to focus. I need to do something.

The guy who was holding it still was starting to yell that the others should pull away, but I couldn't. I couldn't move. I tried to move but my body refused to listen. The sudden sound, like glass shattering, made me look up just in time to see the sanguine bindings shatter in pieces and rain down over me, and at the same time the material under my hands seemed to disappear, my powers finally doing something.


Ryou Shiki - The Arena
Eleven seconds, then I couldn't hold it anymore. It broke loose, but instead of running towards someone and attacking them it seemed to lose its balance and almost topple over. The girl had actually managed to take it's leg off, or at least a big part of it. I used my bloodbending to pull her away from there before she could get hit, and then smiled a bit at the principal. She wasn't looking at me anymore, so I guess I was done for the night.

I stepped back, letting the others take over again and instead assessing the damage. I felt weak again, even weaker than before. The bites on my wrists weren't healing, meaning I had used up all of the fresh blood from before, and I felt dizzy. More or less by instinct I looked around for the demigod, wondering if she would let me have some more blood later.. It was kind of urgent this time.

Kya - Arena

I was enjoying seeing everyone's powers, having healed the few abrasions on my arms and now holding a make-shift ice pack to my head. That is, until I saw the blood bender. My breath caught in my throat. He had to be a descendent from a water bender....but he was using his own blood. He had to be a mix of some sort. When he finished his little trick and came back over I got a pretty good idea of what he was mixed with - he had bitten in to his own wrists, which were now left open an bloodied.

Biting on my bottom lip, I liquified the ice pack and put the water back in its bag. Aunt Latara had always said blood bending was cruel and so were those who used it. But if that boy was here he was a hero, right? Or at least a recovering villain?

Coming to a stand, I approached him slowly. If he was blood bending he was part water bender, and water benders have to stick together.

Stealing a glance at his wrists, I offered, "I can close that up for you if you'd like."

He looked over to me in surprise, so I explained, "I can heal with my bending. But you know that, don't you? You're descended from a water bender - I saw that little...trick you did out there. I can heal your wrists for you."

Dyre | the little kitchen (and other places)
*

She felt unusually weak. Not enough for it to show or to affect her powers, but enough to make her uncomfortable. Having your blood sucked out probably tends to have that effect.
She shoved the thoughts away, trying not to wonder if she'd be able to split again anytime soon, and opened her mouth to ask the guy what he could do, as she noticed the figure lurking in the background.
A familiar figure, and not a welcome one. Dyre frowned.

"Isi? What are you doing here?"

"None of your business." Her cousin stepped closer, looking between them. "Why, did you two already turn this into your love nest?"

The other student's eyes narrowed slightly and Dyre smirked.
"Meet Isi," she said. "The, ah, estranged daughter of Thor." Her smirk faded away. "Also my cousin."

"...daughter of Thor," he repeated. "Right.." He turned to Dyre. "We should talk another time."

She nearly smiled - the fact he didn't want to do anything in front of anyone else was for some reason comfortably amusing - but instead just nodded, standing still until he turned and left.

"Drop the 'daughter of Thor' crap," Isi snapped as they were left alone. "He's my father only by name."

This time, Dyre did smirk. "Is that jealousy I hear, or just abandonment issues?"

Isi laughed shortly, less than mirthfully, shaking her head. "You are certainly the last person I'd be jealous of."
Giving Dyre another look seemingly full of some meaning Dyre didn't care about, she turned and left the kitchen as well.
*

She waited another moment before splitting again. It was time for her to go into her room - and for him to go to his. It's surprising how tiring it can get thinking like this, although I should be used to it by now.

Dy didn't look too good - paler than usually, with two little dots on his neck telling of what had just happened. He stood very close, and hugged her after a few seconds, and she could feel that he wanted to go back.
"It's okay, we'll heal soon," she said, stroking his hair. My hair.. "We can sleep now, and merge again tomorrow." She smiled at him, and he smiled back, although he still looked tired.
*

Dyre | Room 101

All she hoped for as she walked to the room she shared with Tahl, was that her roommate won't be around. She wanted peace and silence, and maybe to hide some of Tahl's things and create illusions of them for when she returned - instead, she didn't even walk into a room with Tahl's things. She walked straight into her bedroom at home.

"What.." She frowned. That was impossible. If this is some sort of weird trap..

"Do you not recognise my style after just one day?"

Dyre turned, finding a familiar - although unexpected - figure sitting on her bed. "..Dad? What are you doing here?"

"I'm not exactly here." He tapped the bed next to him, and observed her as she carefully sat down. Dad's illusions.. Mine could never be this good. I could never make them cross worlds and communicate with others... She looked at him as he smiled slightly. "How are you?"

"Fine.." She frowned. "Isi is here.. Your brother's daughter."

"That's not surprising," he muttered. "Dyre.. I came to tell you something." She just raised her eyebrows and he continued, unusually serious. "I considered not telling you, but figured you'd find out anyway, and it's better if you find out from me."

"What's--"

"My father allowed my brother to lead a war against another world," he said, in a casual voice, as if talking about going to visit a friend.

Dyre's smile disappeared. "You're at war?" She stood up. "I'll go back. I need to, I can't just stay here now.. Why are you looking at me like that?"

He smiled. "You're not coming home. Now more than ever, it's important you stay here." He stood up too, taking her hand. "I don't doubt your powers, Dyre, but I don't want you to fight a war either. Wars aren't your style."

"They aren't your style either," she noticed.

He shrugged slightly. "Some wars are." His eyes narrowed slightly. "You have no reason to worry about me."

"You can be killed."

"Not very easily."

"But you can--"

"I won't be killed." He let go of her hand, wiping a tear from her cheek with his finger. She wasn't even aware of it, her eyes locked on something on his chest. "I need to go. Dyre." she looked up. "Promise me you won't try to get home - or anywhere - until I talk to you again."

She sighed and looked away, suddenly wanting to be as far as possible from every living being. "Fine. I promise.. Don't take any risks."

He flashed her a grin. "You know I never take risks, that's my big brother's style." He frowned slightly. "We both need to go. Myself to attend a meeting, and you to do whatever it is you need to do with that thing outside."

She watched him disappear slowly, as his illusions always did, taking away her room as well and leaving her in the one she shared with Tahl. It took Dyre a few moments to sort her thoughts, still hearing her father's words in her head.

"..what thing outside?"
*

| the Arena

She didn't need to wait too long to get her answer - and it was more than clear why her father called it the thing.
In any other circumstances, Dyre would find it fascinating - from as much as she could see, watching from a safe distance, it was nearly impossible to defeat - but she knew well enough that she couldn't stay an observer forever.

"Merging back?"

She turned to Dy as she heard his voice. He was still pale, paler than her, and still looked more tired than she'd like to feel. She nodded slightly, closing her eyes for a while and feeling the familiar warmth of the process.

As she opened her eyes, she found the thing looking at her.

If something without proper eyes can be looking at anything.
She raised her hand hesitantly. Yeah, wave to it, that will surely do it.
"..hello." What do I do with that?

The thing didn't reply, instead just turning fully towards her and taking a step forward. She didn't take a step back - not because she didn't have the space, but because her body somehow refused to listen to her.
She has been in battles and duels before - but it was different, it was back at home where everyone knew her and where she had gods to help her. She had no one around now, and she couldn't help but wonder if that's how she'd feel all the time if her father didn't come back.

Don't think about that. You're strong enough to fight this thing. You're Dyre of Asgard, you-- The ground shook as the thing moved closer. You need a catchphrase. But also to run.

She jumped to a side as one of the thing's hands dived towards her, and split again in the process. Splitting made her more tired - but it also, hopefully, made it harder for the thing. Try following us both at once.

If it had a face, it might've looked confused - instead it just looked discouragingly untouched by her trick.
Well great.

On the other side of the thing, Dy was slowly approaching it, but he didn't look any better than she felt. If I could make it keep its attention on me.. She licked her lips.

"Come on, then. Let's see what you got." Frowning at the thing, she watched it listen to her, and focused on making herself intangible. One of her father's favourite powers, which she was really good with as a child. But her powers came and went, sometimes disappearing for years on end, and she had no idea if she'd even be able to pull it off.
Of course you will. Stop doubting yourself.

The thing's hand passed through her.

Ha. See, you could do it. Maybe--
Its fingers slapped her side, throwing her off her feet.

Crap.. She pulled herself into a somewhat sitting position, trying to spot Dy, as she suddenly felt the ground beneath her getting further. Oh this can't be good. She tried to make herself intangible again, failing with a style and finding herself in its hand a moment later, her arms pressed to her sides and the thing's fingers gripping her far too tight for comfort.

"Let go of me.." She struggled, and it squeezed her tighter. Isn't this thing supposed to stop at some point? I don't have any more powers I could fail at, thank you very much. She couldn't breathe, fixing her eyes on Dy - who managed to climb up on the thing and was now standing on its shoulder, if that part could've been called so, trying to get to her.
No wonder your father didn't want you in a war. What good could you possibly do anyway?

The thing shrugged slightly, as if it wanted to make a fly go away, and then reached to his shoulder, grabbing Dy's leg and bringing him close to Dyre.
She caught his eyes, wishing - not for the first time - that she was able to choose which body to merge into. He reached for her, and disappeared as they turned into one again.

Now let me go. She focused again, squirming and managing to place her palms against the thing's fingers from inside of its fist. I broke that glass when I was talking to the vampire dude.. I should be able to do it again.
She did her best to ignore her inner voice, the one who spoke the truth and warned her she did that by complete accident, surprising herself as much as the guy she talked to.

She gave up after a few seconds of nothing happening, focusing on intangibility again, as something else suddenly crossed her mind.
Illusions.. I don't even need to fight it. If I just find someone strong enough to take it down, and make that person think it's attacking them.. It was a long shot. Maybe impossible. Not like I have a choice. I'll end up as a squashed bug if I try to take it down myself.

Dyre locked her eyes on the audience, focusing on a group of upperclassmen, trying to make an illusion just for them - she turned intangible again instead, falling through the thing's hand and landing on her side less than gently. Damn.. I wonder if my own arm just broke my rib.

"Do you know who I am?" She muttered, turning to her back to look at the thing again, finding its fingers too close. Well done, Dyre. You should just give up--

She only got to see sparks before her eyes, before her whole body tensed, hit by something she hasn't encountered ever before, leaving her shaking like a leaf in the wind. It didn't hurt - at first.

When she was finally able to catch a breath again - after what felt like hours, but nothing seemed to change much - there was something strange. A warmth, but not like the merging kind. Not like any kind she'd felt before. It felt powerful, but not the amusing kind - more like she really wanted to get it out of her system.
Perhaps now I can make that illusion. And then go to bed..

She wasn't sure she could get on her feet, instead just looking up, focusing on her upperclassmen targets in the crowd. A grin crept on her face as she saw them stir, a part of her wondering if she could affect someone's brain more. Her head hurt at the thought. Typically idiotic, Dyre. Even when you CAN control a power for once, you wish you could do something else.

She could see the upperclassmen suddenly getting up, seeming alarmed as each of them saw the thing turning to attack them. Dyre allowed herself a moment to relax.
They'll take care of it now, instead of you.. Well done.
She closed her eyes for a moment. For some reason, she was pretty sure the others wouldn't see the illusion for long - maybe only for a few minutes, or until they manage to hurt the thing somehow. She was equally sure it would all disappear if she gave in to the sudden tiredness and fainted, and she had no idea what the actual thing would do - but it had to work. She could stay awake for that long.

"Wait, no!"

A shout - somewhere from the audience, but not one of the guys she targeted.

Dyre turned around, her eyes widening; everyone looked alerted, including her classmates who already had their turns. Everyone looked like they saw it attacking them, and it was more than clear some of them couldn't fight it. I don't ever want to use this power again without Dad right next to me.

She didn't know if these illusions were able to hurt people. And even worse, no matter how much she focused, she had no way of undoing it.

At least I'm getting expelled with style.
*

West | Arena

“‘Who will fight next?” Ms. Prince called. It was down to the last of the kids, just West and Evatt waiting in the stands. Evatt did not seem to keen to hop into the fray, which was fine by West. Patience was not a natural trait for him, and anything Evatt did probably wouldn’t tip the scale too much. West raised his hand. Ms Prince rose an eyebrow, surprised by the casual demeanor. “Most are a more cautious after seeing such ferocity, are you quite sure you are prepared?”

“Oh, I’m ready, I’m more than ready.” West rolled his shoulders, his hair blowing as he came to a halt, TJ towering over him from across the field. “I'm gonna win.” West grabbed a pair of goggles out of his pocket, the rims glowing a fluorescent blue as he snapped them into place. Breathe “I wonder if picturing it in underwear would help.”

TJ shuddered awake, it’s joints realigning before taking a hefty, ominous step toward West. One hundred yards stood between them, but West advanced it in the blink of an eye. West closed in under the golem taking a jab, his fist colliding with an exposed crystal joint, but TJ took it, and bucked back at West, crystal sparking as he swung. West spun back, dodging the hit and using the momentum to get behind TJ taking another jab at an elbow joint. The arm bucked back, knocking West a few, painful, steps backwards. “Is that it? I’ve written essays that hit harder!” West coughed, a bit of blood mixed into his spit. It was a good thing TJ couldn't call his bluffs. One more hit, two if he was lucky, and he wouldn’t see outside the nurse’s office for a year.

Crystal flashed, TJ slamming a fist into the ground, as if West was some roach to be squashed. Which, considering the situation, was not an unfair assessment. Sparks flew out, a few catching West as he circled around. Not slowed down by the miss, TJ whipped it’s other arm at West, who slid backwards, taking the chance to retreat to safer distance.

West stared down his opponent, feeling helpless as he saw just how undamaged it was. “If nothing else I can probably win for longest.” West’s stamina was waning though, mostly do to his show offish start, it took a lot out of someone to nearly teleport across a field. It didn’t help that the golem never stopped, West’s retreat marginally less intense than actually fighting, hopping around to try and keep a safe distance from the thing. There wasn’t even time to quip between all the heavy breathes.

The arena rang with the clangs of metal, West darting backwards as TJ tried to clamp him down, the arms only slamming each other as he wove through the attack. West slipping back into attack, banging his hands into the knee joints, knocking away the sparks protecting them before zipping back out. TJ spun, but West spun faster, looping back around and pressing his hands firmly to each knee joint. His hands quivered, energy pulsing through them channeling his speeds into a vibration.

“I usually save this trick for a special someone, but considering I’ve already seen you plateless...it only seems fair, TJ.” The crystals screeched against their sockets, the metal around it groaning as TJ’s weight pushed onto itself, the vibrations slowing TJ to a halt.

West dug his feet into the ground, the crystals starting to raise into the air, shaking its way through the forcefield that held it in. “A bit more.” West grunted, his body falling into mid-push up as he elbows buckled. Breathe Another grunt, West's chest tensing as air forced it's way down. His elbows buckled, body falling forward before his arms caved out in front of him. The crystals slammed back into place, a burst of energy coming with them, sending West skidding back across the field.

“Okay, maybe slightly more than I thought.” West let out a tired laugh, frowning as his arms wouldn't raise to wipe his brow. His entire body ached, aftershocks of pain buzzing through his body. Arms were a no go, numb to all movement, bones like nerve filled jell-o. TJ was far more lucky, or at least better engineered, it’s body quickly readjusting back into normal position, the only change being a higher intensity on the electricity that danced around it’s arms.

“I’m going to need a word with the health and safety committee.” West glanced back at the arena’s waiting seats, where Evatt was studying the field. “Oh hell, what have I got to lose? Hey Evatt! Got any ideas, I could really use a hand,or two arms, whatever you have. I’m not picky, I can’t even pick things up really right now."

Evatt Elric

Evatt clenched his fists, boots digging into the loose ground beneath him. The monster golem was stronger than anything Evatt had ever sensed in his entire life in Amestris. “Wade!” Evatt shouted, tossing his coat into the wind, “I need you to keep him moving!”

Wade ambled to his feet, groggy from his golem-knocks. His head spun as the golem’s fist slammed into the ground where he’d been standing just a split second before. “You...sure thing, buddy.” Wade dashed between the golem’s legs, sending it spinning in an attempt to re-target the hyper target.

Evatt ran onto the field and clasped his hands together, drawing an iron staff out of the earth below. Without a moment to spare, he began to run in the opposite direction of the golem and Wade, dragging the spearhead through the loose soil, leaving a singular trail behind him.

Wade’s chest heaved with unsteady breaths as he ran up the golem’s arms, down its back, sending it in all directions to follow him. Evatt looked up from his work in the dirt just as Wade missed a step on the Golem’s head; the monstrosity slammed a fist across Wade, sending his body flying. The golem raised an arm and flashed with blue energy before mercilessly zapping Wade’s unmoving body with a thunderbolt.

Evatt shook in his boots with fear and dropped his weapon to the earth below. The golem locked onto him and turned--

Evatt took a step back--

--the golem charged--

and within seconds, the golem stood against Evatt, thrusting a twisting fist down on the boy’s body.

There was a gasp from the arena. Evatt closed his eyes and threw out his right fist. He thought of how short his time had been in the Academy; he thought of his new friends; he thought of how angry Aunt Winry would be when his--

Evatt’s eyes widened as he realized he was alive. His shirt had been shredded in the Golem’s twisting steel lightning fist, but Evatt stood, perfectly squared, with an automail arm holding the golem at arm’s length. They both were shaking beneath the pressure of energy between them. The ground buckled slightly beneath Evatt, but he dug his heels into the earth and bore his teeth together, releasing a rallying cry of pain. With a boyish roar, he threw his other hand against his automail wrist, sending a burst of alchemical energy out through his fist, knocking the golem back.

Evatt had to act quickly. His automail was ruined, but his trap was perfectly in place.

“It’s time to finish this!” he yelled, and clapped his hands together, activating the transmutation circle around the golem. Spears of earth shot from the trap, impaling each of the golem’s crystal joints and crippling its ability to move.

Evatt’s chest heaved with labored breaths. He leaned down and picked up the spear he’d drawn from the ground before, but dropped it almost instantly, his body falling limp to the arena floor.

There was a pause as the spectators turned to Headmaster Diana. After a moment of silent stillness, she nodded, her face projected on the screens all around the arena.



An hour later, Evatt sat in the engineering lab where Brianna Stark, one of the RAs, repaired his mechanical arm. "It's a shame you had to go and bust up such a great piece of machinery, kid."

Evatt nodded, eyes closed. "My aunt made it custom--just for me. I lost my real arm in a car crash when I was just a kid, and my dad said it would be easier if I just didn't tell people about it here."

Stark scoffed. "Well, your secrecy cost us both our chance at going to the after-parties tonight, and I had it on good word that Dimitri was going to ask out this cute Junior-year girl who can turn air into explosive gas just by snapping her fingers." The girl looked up from her work on his arm and narrowed her eyes at his face, not that he could see. "So thanks for robbing me of that unique experience."

"Rasputin comma Dimitri, capable of changing his body's composition to that of steel; the man who also has lots of difficulty controlling his power." Evatt recalled nothing else important on the file. "Everyone here has such exotic powers. I feel overwhelmed, to be honest."

Bri jerked a wrench to the left and shook her head. "I had my scouter active during your fight with the golem. You showed just as much potential as any of the others." Brianna shrugged. "One odd thing about your freshman class is that you're chock full of people who don't know how to fight beyond controlling other people. Headmaster Diana said they were going to be educated in a special way in addition to their classes. Armed combat, melee lessons...things like that."

"You're talking about the girl who got the students in the stands to distract the golem while she ran away, aren't you?"

Briana nodded and tucked a wired muscle into its place.

"I saw the senior boys rescue those students. It must be awful to have your mind controlled."

"It's majorly against the rules in this school, to be frank." Briana closed the muscle plate and sat back, admiring her work. "The girl who did it, Dyre, is meeting with Diana as we speak."

Evatt slowly sat up and flexed his arm, maneuvering his joints to their max. It felt better than ever.

"You're not allowed to exert yourself for the next forty-eight hours." She took off her gloves and looked at the boy standing across from her, running his fingers along the scar tissue where his metal gear met his skin and bone. "That should give you plenty of time to recover, though, before the Student Council arrive."

Evatt looked up quizzically. "Why would I need to be recovered for The Student Council?"

Bri grinned and laughed to herself. "You'll find out in a few days." She packed up her gear and tossed her bag over her shoulder. "Until then, watch your back."

Dyre | the Principal's Office

"Sit down, please."

Dyre didn't listen, feeling herself shake from the inside, hoping it didn't show. She felt weak - but more than that, she was angry. At the fact she couldn't control her powers, at her father, at the thing which nearly killed her, at the students who realised it was an illusion and helped the others, at the Headmistress who called her to her office in front of everyone.

Ms Price sighed. "You do know why you're here, don't you?" Dyre stayed silent, glaring at the desk, so the Principal continued. "What you did there was dangerous, and not only that. Mind control is--"

"It wasn't mind control," Dyre muttered. "It was just an illusion.."

"An illusion which was made by affecting people's minds." She leaned against her desk, observing Dyre with a somewhat worried expression. "The students could've hurt each other, or themselves. Someone could've gotten killed. Do you understand what I'm telling you?"

Dyre frowned, refusing to look at her. "I broke the rules, I get it."

"You did, yes. But that's not the only reason why you're here. You do realise where the problem is, don't you?"

Dyre shrugged. "I used other people to fight my battle. I didn't mean for it to happen like that, but I couldn't control it. And I didn't run," she added, "I just got up.. I wanted to try and regain control. I wanted to fix it, okay? It ended up well in the end."

"Not thanks to you." The Principal's voice was surprisingly cold. There's something that reminds me of my grandparents in her. But not in a very good way. "Dyre.. I understand that you grew up in a different kind of environment, but you need to learn how to live with other people... other mortals, now. Other young people, like yourself."

How diplomatic of you to not call us kids. Dyre crossed her arms. "Can I go to my room, or whatever place you want me to be in detention at?"

"For disrespecting rules like that, students could get expelled." She was silent for a bit. "..You don't want to be here, do you?"

"I really don't," Dyre admitted, then looking away. But I have no choice. "But I promised I'd stay, and I can't go home." She bit her lip. "..I don't know what I'd do if I did get expelled now."

Go back to Asgard. Find the world Dad is in and try to be useful.. She couldn't see herself doing that. She knew she could get to Asgard safely, and maybe to whichever realm they were fighting the war in, but with powers acting the way hers did, all she could do was get her family vulnerable by standing in the way.

"You're not getting expelled," Wonder Woman said. "Your father is right, you're safer here, and I think it'd do you good to--"

"You know about what's happening there?"

"I know a lot of things." She smiled, but Dyre stayed serious. "You're worried, aren't you? Scared?"

"Worried.. distracted, yes." I'm not scared.. I refuse to be scared. She hesitated, now meeting the Principal's eyes, for a long moment before looking away - and words just seemed to spill over her lips. "Of course I'm worried. My father-- my family is fighting a war with some other world, and I can't be with them because I can't control my powers and I'm not strong enough. And then I find I maybe could be strong enough, if I somehow learned to control that, and at the place where I'm supposed to be learning about my powers, you forbid me from using it!"

There was a long silence - long enough for Dyre to feel like she overstepped it, walk around the chair and sit in it before the older woman spoke again.

"I can't allow you to put everyone at risk again. You can stay, but I want you to promise me. You can still learn, and focus on smaller things - things you're sure you can handle, for your own good and good of those around you." She waited a bit. "You'll be attending additional classes along with your regular ones. Martial arts and alike."

She didn't make it sound like a question, but seemed to be looking at Dyre for answer anyway.

"...Sure." She got up again, playing with buttons on her shirt and staring at her hands, suddenly very interested in the way they moved. "I promise." She glanced up, but only for a second. "I didn't mean to affect everyone, and I didn't expect to be unable to stop it." I don't understand the values you're trying to teach me here. She let her hands fall down the sides of her body again. "Was anyone hurt?"

"Not majorly, no."

Dyre nodded, turning to the window. There was unwelcome stinging in the corners of her eyes, like tears knocking on the door. "Can I leave now? ..Please?"

"Mm.." Wonder Woman gave her a small smile. "There's an after-party organised for everyone on your year."

"I think I want to be alone," Dyre muttered. Or alone with myself, that works too. She wasn't sure if she cared what the others might think about her now, and she had a feeling she should care, and that she should be troubled by it.

"That could be a good idea." The Principal's voice was much softer now, but Dyre was fairly sure she'd be closely watched from now on. "Oh, and.. Well. Congratulations on passing the test."

Dyre said nothing - just nodded and left, ignoring all the sounds and smells from other hallways and heading out of the building. She hated it - and she hated herself for feeling and acting like a child, but she couldn't help it. A part of her wanted those powers. A part of her wanted much more; all the power she could possibly have, and to be able to do anything to anyone.

Finding a tree, she sank down on the ground, leaning on it and splitting in the next moment. She didn't say anything, and neither did Dy, as she just leaned her head on his shoulder and kept her eyes on the Academy.
*

Jessa Grimm |Luigi's, Room 101

"We did pretty good out there, huh?" Katarina said, shaking her hair out after washing it.

"Yeah." Jessa found herself smiling. "You're a fast thinker. And faster on your feet than me."

Katarina shrugged. "I have to be. I don't have any powers. I have to be able to make people work together and use their powers to keep myself alive."

There was a knock on their door. One of the upperclassmen walked in, toe to heel like a ballerina. Jessa recognised her as the tiny black girl who was standing on her hands during the trial.

"Hey girls! Good job today! Bri's busy so I said I would take over her duties for the evening. And my duties are to make sure you guys have a good tiiiiiime."

"Who are you?" Jessa asked, not impolitely.

"Oh, I'm Addy Ellis! I live on your floor. I'm a senior. Or at least, I think I am. I could have sworn this place was a college when I started but you kids get younger every year." She looked up at Jessa. "And you look so familiar, I don't know why." She pursed her lips and cocked her head, staring straight up at Jessa. "Anyway! What are you guys wearing tonight?"

Kat pulled out something black and leathery. Addy rolled her eyes. "How about you gurrl?" Jessa showed her the homemade hot pink skater dress with little gold beads on the straps. Addy Ellis grinned. "I like it! I love pink."

"Are all the upper classes okay after what happened?" Kat asked Addy.

"They're okay. I mean, some of them are a bit shaken by the mind control or whatever that was. But I guess, we've all been trained to tackle that kind of thing. Just a pity it had to happen in the Academy. But you guys will get used to it - adjusting to the Bowsers' people is always a big change."

"I didn't think any villain could get better," Jessa muttered.

"You'll see! Try and make friends with one tonight. Besides, you'll probably have a few on your team. So: the party. It's down in the basement in what we like to call The Rave Room. It got discovered sometime last year. There's some food and punch and listen, if you guys want tequila, I can get you some, but don't unless you feel like you're ready to make questionable life choices."

Kat and Jessa exchanged a glance. "Considering it's the first night, I think that we better lay off the tequila," said Kat.

"I approve. Okay, I will see you guys down there! Dimitri is going to be asking out a junior, I can't wait!"

| The Rave Room

There were so many coloured lights, but everything else was black.

"Why does a room like this even exist in a school?" Jessa asked Kat, amazed. This was like, the coolest place she'd ever been.

"Rumour is, The Doctor had it full of spare bunk beds, and when Ms Price took over she decided this was a better idea," said a voice behind them. Jessa turned to see the Abercrombie model from earlier.

"Hey!" Kat said with a grin.

"Hi, we haven't been properly introduced yet," he said to Jessa, shaking her hand. "My name is Walter Rogers."

"Jessica Grimm. It's nice to meet you. Good job today."

"You too!" he said with a winning smile.

"Kat!" a voice shouted and a girl ran towards Katarina. Kat rolled her eyes. "Everybody, this is my little sister, Astasia."

"I'm not little," Astasia complained. "Just younger."

"You seem little to me," Jessa said dryly and to her amazement, everybody laughed at the joke.

The speakers started to blast out some generic upbeat indie anthem. Jessa recognised the tune and all she wanted to do was throw her hands up in the air and dance.

So that is exactly what she did, dragging the others into the centre of the dancefloor. The sisters didn't seem too impressed but they smiled, and Walt threw his head back laughing. Maybe it was the sight of her being so happy, or maybe it was the vibrations that her dancing sent through the floor, but around her she could sense that people were joining in.

Afterparties. What a great idea. Maybe she would go and talk to a villain later on, see what made them tick. Maybe it could be a cute boy villain - but it didn't really matter. Everybody here had been pretty pleasant, and that was reassuring.

And Jessa realised, she could get used to this school.