Little Feather
Little Feather gripped Lion’s mane as the darkness swallowed them, her heart was beating so fast it felt as if it might burst free of her chest at any second. She flinched away from Leroy as he seemed to display his inner turmoil with abrasive language, Lion growled flicking his tail uncertainly. Shall I...help him? Lion grumbled looking up at Little Feather who was physically shaking her breathing rather labored. I don’t like the dark, I don’t want to go back... Little Feather lifted a shaking hand gripping a flute that materialized in the air, with a quivering breath she placed the flute to her lips, inwardly bracing herself. ...bring back the light She blew into the flute, her fingers gliding fluently along the width of the instrument, blurting out a low melodic tone that lasted all of 3 seconds.

Little Feather lowered her pipe anxiety wrapping its dark tendrils around her mind as she waited patiently for a response. Just as her faith faltered a bright light appeared above her head bathing the small crowd of students in its rays, the light zipped back and forth before eventually taking the form of a dragonfly the size of a pigeon! Little Feather lifted her hand into the air, smiling as Dragonfly ran his belly along her fingertips before hovering above them giving the room enough light that everyone within the direct vicinity of Little Feather could at least see a few feet in front of them, Dragonfly’s light spread across only half of the room giving a limited amount of light but at the same time probably enough. Little Feather didn't release Lion's mane with her other hand but felt her fear subside as she looked over at the other students.

She jumped as Zivon screamed next to her before crumpling to the floor, giving Liam a stern look she dropped to her knees next to Zivon. "Hey..." Her voice was calm unlike those around them. "It's ok" She murmured, gently laying a hand on Zivon's shoulder in an attempt to comfort him she heard him sniffle but pretended she wasn't aware he was crying. "We're going to be ok, I'm sure someone will explain everything" She murmured giving his arm a reassuring rub, she smiled at Zivon warmly trying her best to calm him.

Zivon

He had heard someone, Crash probably trying to explain what was happening but he was too frighten to listen. He had felt someone laying their hand on his shoulders, he didn't even look at the person. The voice sounded familiar but continue to cry. "We're going to be ok, I'm sure someone will explain everything." The voice was calm and it helped him a bit he didn't bother to even look at the person. He felt his arm getting a rub, he guessed trying to calm him down.

"Mm nmn...uuhh..." He tried his best calm himself down but it seemed like nothing was helping him stop crying. He curled slightly into a ball, where he covered his face with his legs, slightly rocking back and fourth. "Ca-lm...d-ow-n...bre-eath...ju..st..."

Seven

He had watched Matt turn into a bird and fly of somewhere where he heard a boy trying to explain things. "Okay...do not eat your friend..." He controlled himself from trying to eat his friend...probably. He looked at the girl who was behind Matt earlier and gave a nod. "Things are going out of hand, we should watch ourselves. I am afraid we might fight something, too bad I can"t fight at all!" He joked, even know it was no time to do that it seemed that was the case. It was fight or flight and he was afraid to fight and flight at all.

Dendus and Isse
"Well, we got in. What should we talk?" Isse laid down on Dendus's bed, sighing in slight boredom. He was bad at starting up conversations, but he is good at going along them. He looked like an antisocial at first, but once someone begins to have a talk with the dark-haired boy, everything will run smoothly.

"I could tell you, life back then outside was lively. All the feasts, all the immoral and moral things, drinking, working, in a world run by both righteous and corrupt men and women. Your face, it reminds me of a beggar couple i've invited to have a drink and stay at my adult friends' apartments. I've seen something special in them, and they deserve a life livelier than they had."

Isse then took his time to speak after he had finished.

"Well, it reminds me of my parents back then. Lost their property in a false defamation case against them that they lost. I've been living with my uncle for the past years, waiting for the time the-"

A knock on the door interrupted the two's conversation, and although it was a bit rude to interrupt someone's moment, Dendus answered and walked towards the door. "They'll come, hurry up and get to the room!" He dragged inside quickly whoever was knocking, a cheery, flamboyant looking boy. "Sorry for taking an outsider, by the way. He's an acquaintance of mine."

[urlhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ax68rWI4Tuk][/url]Current Track on the Darwin iPod

Darwin
Darwin's iPod was playing fullblast without the headphones in when suddenly a guy burst out of the door and dragged the smiling purple haired boy in. Darwin grinned at the two occupants in his bright flourescent orange tuxedo. His bucket of chicken wings were still tucked under his arm like it was his baby. He grinned at the two boys. "Hey!" He pointed at Dendus. "You must be my roomy! It's alright, I'm fine with outsiders, always good to have guests, right? Oh where are my manners, by now my father would've been looking at me funny. My name's Darwin Rainbows, since thats what my dad says my last name is." he took a breath as he smiled at them again. "Why so scared? Is it because of my manga, I know I should've tidied them up. So......who's they?"

– Leroy

Swearing again, Leroy was pretty tempted to just kick the guy (Zivon) crying like a little kid. It was annoying, and not something he wanted to deal with at the moment. “Shut up!” In all honesty, be didn’t have the right to reprimand anyone about panicking since he was doing it too but… Like he cared about such things. Between his fear and anger, he didn’t even hear the red-haired guy giving another speech to all of them.

He really was on the verge of going on a panic-induced rampage, when another source of light suddenly appeared nearby. The strangely-dressed girl (Little Feather) with a lion (Lion) he had invited along from the cafeteria had a dragonfly on her hand that was glowing with light. “I’m gonna buy a stupid keychain flashlight or something after this…” He growled, beginning to calm down. Leroy took a few deep breaths and wiped the sweat off his brows. Then realizing his hands were clammy as well, he wiped his palms on the sides of his pants.

Walking closer to the light source, he finally got a good look at the one who was crying like a baby on the floor. Leroy took the 3 small bottles of ink out of his pocket and narrowed his eyes at the boy (Zivon). Confirming the colour of each bottle, he snapped, “Shut up, or I’ll give you something to really cry about.” Selecting the yellow one, he poured some of the liquid onto his left hand. He briefly rubbed his fingers over his palm to spread the ink onto his entire hand, then he momentarily placed the hand on the boy’s shoulder. ‘Joy.’ Lifting his hand, everyone nearby could see a yellow handprint on the boy (Zivon). Contrary to his threat, he was helping to calm the boy down. It would probably need a few minutes before the boy actually felt happy, but hopefully it would help him stop panicking.

---

– Kathy

“I’m alright!” Straining her voice, Kathy replied back when she heard Crash call her name. It was actually fairly unlikely he could hear her over the chaos, so she gave up on that and focused on getting down from the ceiling. She breathed a sigh of relief when she felt another surface with her outstretched hand. Her eyes had pretty much adjusted to the darkness too and she could see there was a good crowd of students gathered in the auditorium. ‘Good thing I didn’t choose to just jump down and see how it went.’ Giving herself a pat on the back, she took a look around while she still had a good vantage point. She clicked her tongue in annoyance when she heard Crash’s speech. ‘Sounds to me like you know more than you’re letting on.’ She thought, narrowing her eyes at him. ‘I’d never feel the need to suddenly prepare to fight from that weird pulse, but you seem awfully sure that’s what we need to prepare for don’t you Crash?’

Able to see well-enough now with the dim lights and her adjusted eyes, she crossed over to the wall and sprinted down. “Heads!” Giving just a short warning, about halfway down the wall she jumped down onto a small patch of clear ground among the students. Landing on both her feet and one hand (the other occupied from holding a shoe), she gritted her teeth slightly from the impact. It hurt, but nothing she hadn’t done before. Straightening back up, she looked for the guy with his hair lit on fire since he was easy to locate and had been near Crash when she last checked. A glowing dragonfly distracted her for a moment, but she pushed her way through the students to Crash and the guy with his hair fire. ‘That’s… He’s not screaming in pain, so I’m sure it’s part of his power right?’ She frowned a little as she realized it was something that would normally worry her, but quickly assumed it was normal.

Tapping Crash on the shoulder to get his attention, she held her good hand out to him with her palm facing upward. “I’m going to need my shoe back.” She said in a flat tone. Then seeing his fangs and the sweat on his forehead, Kathy faltered a bit and asked with a worried expression, “That… Happened at the party too, didn’t it? Crash, what’s wrong?”

Dendus and Isse
Silence filled the room for five seconds as the flamboyant boy made his words. The two stared at each other, nodding as if they were agreeing on something while Isse made a bit of a worried face at the last second. Once they have finished, Dendus turned back to this Darwin Rainbows guy and gave off a simple salute, uttering only these words: "Uh well... mhmm, hello. Just some dangerous someone outside, go on and stay safe.". The Limbus returned back to Isse, whispering something in his ear.

"Suspicious?" Dendus asked, a bit creeped out by how that guy looked and acted.

"Yes, suspicious. Not harmful-looking, though. Just suspiciously... freaky. Reminds me of that Ryuu guy."

"Can he hear us from here?"

"I hope not, i hope not, oh dear God and Satan i hope not. For the love of God, the wrath of the Devil, and whoever rules over Limbo and the Purgatory, please no." Isse made a slight frown of concern.

Maria With Lily - Standing Her Ground

She didn't flinch when the demon jumped into sight, creating a rather large crater around himself. She watched with a stone cold expression as he ate a bird and otherwise showed off. If one were really looking, one could see a slight shake of her hands for just a split second. But that was all it was. She stared at the man, her head held high.

"Apologies? You didn't mean to? Oh, well, of course. Of course, you didn't mean to step foot inside my school's grounds. Of course Lucifer hasn't broken his treaty with us. Of course not." She spoke, her irritation clearly showing. "Now, if you would kindly go back to where you came from. I'd rather not have spilled blood on these grounds. You treat them mockingly as if they are holy but to me, they are. Sacred Cross Family Grounds and I will not sit by and watch as they are trampled on by the likes of you." She continued, her voice calm and measured.

She took one simple step toward the mad man, glaring at him. "I'm not willing to back down." She spoke, her words rich and full. She added on a few more words and placed Lily on the ground near a tree gently. A strong sturdy barrier appeared around her, sealing her in a bubble next to the tree. The barrier shone a brilliant blue and then disappeared. It was still there, just invisible to the naked eye. If he were to try and get close to Lily, he'd have a hard time of it, as the spell was and is designed to attack anyone that tries to go near it save for the owner and what is on the inside.

She stood again and turned to face the man. "Tell me. What is your name?" She asked, honestly curious.

Criston - Dorm Room

He stood in his room, pouting on the balcony. He could hear the siren going off in his room. His mother had hit the alarm, the alarm that would only go off in his room. Something was after the school and getting closer. Still, it irritated him. Here he was, minding his own business in his room, when some asshole has to come and ruin it for him. They always did. With a frustrated sigh, he turned and was about to head out the door when he heard it. A loud bellowing roar.

Lucifer? Heh... Dealing with big boys now, eh?

Criston shook his head chuckling and walked out the door, never-mind the dark. He simply whispered a small spell that enhanced his night vision. He walked along the corridors, heading for the sounds of a crowd. Soon, he found himself at the auditorium, watching with an amused look as the people scrambled around.

Yeah, that's the way to do it. Panic. That always works.

He shook his head again and walked over to the back, headed for the boy with the red hair, Crash, right? A smile grew on his face as he saw the boy seemingly taking charge, a few people standing around him.

Well, it seems he's got this under control.

With a wide, toothy grin, Criston walked over to Crash and stood next to him, watching the others as they spoke. One boy had his hair lit on fire and there was a strange dragonfly thing in the sky. He had to give it to them, they were creative.

"Ready and willing to fight, sir." Criston spoke, his tone a bit playful and he smiled up at Crash. "Relax, it'll be fine. Just... Do what you can." He spoke a bit softer, words meant for Crash's ears alone.

---

Brako still stood at the back of the room, watching. He eyed the Crash boy carefully, smiling slightly. At least one of them had the guts to stand up and take charge and for once it wasn't Criston.

Darwin
The colourful boy just beamed at the two. He couldn't actually hear them, he presumed they were besties and were talking bout some kind of secret. "Oh? dangerous people? Nonsense, I was just out there nobody dangerous out there." He chuckled almost sinisterly and walked over to his stash of amazing stuff. He pulled out a cleaver to help with the chicken. "wait....did you say Ryuu?" he said, his eyes lighting up, almost looking like the eyes of evil. "Cos I've been looking for him..." he chuckled again and started up his laptop thanks to his rainbows batteries. He turned back to the couple with the knife swaying wildly in his hands. "So, how are you guys?"

Carmen had fled to the auditorium, sure. She was afraid, sure. However, she wasn't really panicking, and when Crash started to speak it was like she remembered she wasn't a normal person. She had abilities and could use them. Could her untrained abilities stand up to hellspawn? Eh...probably not. But she could help.

As long as people actually get it together, she thought, annoyed. The commotion was ridiculous. Justified for normal humans, sure. But not a group of people who ALL had supernatural abilities. She almost wanted to hit them with a trumpet kick to shut them up, but knew that wouldn't help anything. Instead, she merely walked up to Crash and that guy from the opening ceremony and simply said "Ready." Not in a heroic, brave tone...nor a frightened one. Just a soft one - barely audible over the commotion. With her trumpet by her side she almost looked like a spearman at attention before a battle.

Apophis cackled.

And laughed.

And snickered.

Laughed.

Giggle.

Laugh.

Laugh.

Laugh.

Apophis finally stopped laughing before touching what was left of his face. His brother's remains were still intact, much to his pleasant surprise. He then smiled at the sight of Lily being firmly shielded underneath a tree. The hollow deity shook his head, his hands making a gesture as if he were confused on what was going on in the first place.

"You imply that there are people like me," Apophis said, his eyes closed loosely. The man took several steps toward the woman in front of him as he continued, "You say that the likes of me should not step on your grounds."

The man stopped walking.

A frightening mix of anger and joy spread across his ruined face,

"Why would you humans hate me if this is how you made me?"

Apophis began to walk toward the woman again, his eyes reflecting fires that burned hotter than Hell's flames. He was just barely preventing himself from lashing out at this woman. It would be bad to have some fried humans for dinner and have Lucifer punish him.

"Yet, you seem to be... different, as I like to see it. You're... a little stronger than some of the so-calleed angels that barely left a scratch. Heh heh.... Hehehe."

"And a fine woman, as well."

The hollow man's neck snapped again due to an erratic twitch.

"My name is Apophis. My brother, Ma'at, that looney-bin that babbled about Order and Light, no longer watches over you all. Actually, he technically is, though he is quite... a part of me, now. After all, wearing your brother is like an undeniable family reunion. Yesssssssssssssssssssssss...."

Apophis remembered tearing his brother apart that fatede day... Oh, how many consequences and joys he received that day. And here, there was yet another person who thought that they can actually handle even one-fourth of his potential!

His eyes suddenly shot out bolts of corrupted energy, his mouth bleeding a waterfall of black blood, as his hands began to crackle demented power.

"Witness it!" He cried, as if he were in between pure ecstasy and blind madness. "And comprehend the might of our lord and savior, Lucifer! Embrace it!"

Apophis slowly directed his focus on the academy. He intended on destroying just a little bit of the place. Mustering up his energy within a fairly fast pace, he roared.

He smashed his hands together, and a small orb remained floating im where Apophis activated the ability. It then sent out a thin beam toward the academy.

It apparently hit something- probably the ground, since there were no fireworks of blood.

Satisfied, the man quickly turned around to face the woman, as if he had been standing there idly for hours.

"So what's your name, missus? And why do you protect the girl so much? Just some questions I have wanted to ask. Do not worry; I haven't attacked yet, and I won't for today."

He put his hands behind his back, waiting for an answer.

---

Ryuu sneezed.

He had begun to move with Anedine for the auditorium, but for some reason, he could tell that someone was talking jack about him. He simply had that stupid blessing.

The otaku was too focused on bringing Anedine to safety first. Something about this entire situation was disturbing. Not only was the power off, but no one seemed to be around the school grounds. With that said, he wondered just where the heck the auditorium was.

Just when he thought he had seen it, however, he felt something coming toward them at an extremely fast speed. His eyes widening, he let go and pushed Anedine away, generating a compressed plasma blade out of his lightsaber, before turning around as fast as he could.

Something struck the blade, instantly sending him flying away. As he flew, he reached out for the ground, skidding to an abrupt halt as he barely stood with a knee on the hard ground beneath him.

"What the f-ck?!" Ryuu whispered. "That was definitely not caused by a power outage!"

Needless to say, he was quite a toughie for barely blocking the random projectile. He quickly killed the plasma blade he carried, instead recreating the orb of light he had earlier. The otaku went over to Anedine, grabbed her hand again, before limping to the auditorium.

They arrived quite quickly, as it was right around the corner. Ryuu panted, then felt aggravated, when he saw how many students there were.

"Ah, sh-t!" He muttered, not letting go of Anedine as he took a look at his right leg. It was bleeding, much to his unfortunate surprise. With the red light still in his hand, he turned to the white-haired girl with an exhausted look,

"We made it! And there's a butt-ton of peeps, here, too! Looks like we should stick with these... guys..."

Ryuu managed to make a grin. He was sure a nurse would be around here. The student, after all, did not want Anedine to tire herself out again.

Crash

Crash pinched the bridge of his nose as Matt jumped into the air shifting into a bird and flying over to him, he looked at the boy with a frown as he spoke very directly and to the point. The idea had been playing on his mind...Argh! I'm not made for this, where is Mercy when I need her? "But it would put everyone in the open if we took all of them outside, with no plan they'll divide and flee, where would that leave us?" Crash mused, he suddenly clicked his fingers. "We need someone capable of influencing emotional surges, any ideas?" Crash asked, wiping at his forehead he wasn't looking so good his face was pale and damp with sweat. Maybe we should just get everyone outside...I can't stay in here much longer...still

He covered his eyes with his hand as a blinding beam of light filled the room "Well that solves that problem" Crash pointed out, the light illuminated his damp face making his eyes glow as the pressure in his chest grew, why was he doing this? This negativity was bad he had to get away from it. "Look we need someone to keep these people safe, to direct them whilst the rest of us sort out the problem. Maybe they're safer staying in here whilst some of us attract the attention of the demons out there away from them. We just need to get together and get a plan formulated, now are you going to help me?" He asked Matt. He looked up as a familiar white haired boy appeared; he was actually relieved to see Criston. He even managed a grin at the quip from the other guy, uncertainty crossing his face at what was whispered to him.

He took a deep breath, lifting his eyes to view the crowd at least they were clumping together over by the light source now, still fairly uneasy but all together and to the side. He blinked in surprise as someone tapped his shoulder turning to see Kathy a pulse of guilt shot through him, he’d let his attention drift...he looked a little blank as she held her hand out to him palm up, until she spoke he looked down at his own hand realizing he was still clinging to her shoe. “Oh! Sorry...” He murmured, clearly distracted. Why am I apologizing...she threw it at me.... He was careful to keep that under wraps, he could feel she was still pissed at him for some reason.

He lifted a hand to his face wiping away another layer of sweat as she adopted a worried expression, he knew he was on dangerous ground here...the last time he’d tried to brush it off she’d slapped him and hurt herself in the process. “Yes it did, it’s just...just a defect if I get stressed out. I’m ok at the moment, I’ve got it under wraps” He explained vaguely. Tearing his attention away from her he looked around the auditorium, checking to see who had approached him so far it seemed to be Matt, Criston, Kathy and...He heard a small voice say ready behind him turning to see a girl holding a trumpet rather like a spear man preparing for battle. Crash nodded at her with a smile, flinching as a lion plonked its butt down in front of him grumbling something.

“Glad to have you all aboard...I think” He grinned directing his last comment to the lion at his feet “Right first things first, there are demons here if you hadn’t already felt them I don’t know why they’re here or what they want. I don’t even know what they look like or what type of demons they are...I don't know as much as it seems ok, I just promised someone I'd try to get everyone together and try to get them prepared. She's the one that told me about this, she said she could feel them that they were taking away her power, causing her pain. I finding her may help but we can't just leave everyone here in utter chaos we need to protect everyone as best as we can and we need a plan of action" He explained to the group that had gathered by him. “I just think we need to know who can go all out and who can back us up. If these things are powerful they could have had years of training to back it up, and if we’re flailing around without a strategy we’ll get pummeled for lack of a better word” He spoke as clearly as he could glad the volume had decreased to whimpers and hushed voices by now. His thoughts were becoming rather jumbled with the added pressure of his anxiety, though he didn’t feel quite as panicked now Kathy was on the floor and close by...he wasn’t sure why that effected him so much No time to think about that now... “Ideas people?” He asked for their input, knowing a fresh approach was needed now they knew what was going on.

-44%-

Little Feather

Little Feather wasn’t sure what Leroy was on about as he spoke of ‘keychains’ and ‘flash lights’, she looked up at Dragonfly who hung above them quite happily if he got tired he would come down and probably rest on someone’s head. She wasn’t sure what to do for the boy now rocking back and forth in front of her, he seemed so wrapped up in his fear he was unreachable. She flicked her gaze up to Leroy as he snapped angrily at Zivon, a brow raising at the 3 pots of ink he had in his hands, she watched him curiously as he poured yellow ink onto his palm and moved forward pressing his hand onto Zivon’s shoulder, her eyes glued to the yellow hand print left there as the boy withdrew his hand. “What did you do to him?” She asked, getting to her feet uncertainly, she wasn’t familiar with his form of body painting...for starters did he realize the paint was touching the crying boys clothes not his skin...maybe there was a reason for that.

She waited a while for him to answer in this time she noticed Lion had disappeared, she spun on the spot feeling a certain amount of dread hit her stomach as she looked for him in the crowd. “Lion?” She whispered, getting onto her hands and knees to look for him she crawled a whole circle around Leroy and Zivon before she got back up, looking in the direction of red haired boy from earlier, she oculd have sworn she’d seen her companion move over there. “Are you guys staying here? I’m just going to go get my lion...” She murmured to Leroy, not really sure it mattered where she was or what she was doing but she told him all the same.

Liam enjoying all of it

The boy got down reacted like she wanted to and saw him going down to the floor "Couldn't expect less." She looked over to Dani and gave him a small but bright smile. "Sorry but I didn't get your name yet and mine is Liam by the way" A sudden "Shut up" came from the boy next to her as he painted on the clothes of Zivon. She was almost about to burst out in laughing but before she could someone said that anyone that would be prepared to fight must join them. Liam became somewhat intrested as she focused back on Dani. "You can fight, right?" She put on her hood as she walked away over to the voice that asked her to come to fight, leaving her hands in the pockets of her hoodie.

– Kathy

Glad to have the full set again, Kathy slipped her shoes back on as both familiar and unfamiliar faces began to appear around them. Frowning at his explanation of his condition she murmured, “… Just don’t overdo it.” In reality she just wanted him to drop it and stop stressing himself out, but she didn’t feel that was exactly an option. Besides, the last time she tried to ‘help’ she ended up regretting her actions and hurting both of them.

“Lion!” Happy to see him again, she stopped for a moment to crouch over and give him a pat on the head. Then looking around she asked, “Where’s Little Feather? That’s not good, something dangerous seems to be happening so this is the time when you should really stay by her side.” Kathy wondered how well Lion could fight. ‘… I hope he only lost against broom-wielding bus riders because he didn’t want to hurt civilians.’

Straightening back up, she listened to Crash’s… Lack of a plan. ‘She? Who is he talking about?’ Kathy wondered, momentarily distracted. Then sighing, she quickly shook the train of thought away. ‘Not the time for that.’ When Crash finished, she hesitated for a moment before speaking up. “For now… We need to get the other students away from the doors and windows. If something’s coming, that’s where the attack’s likely to start so if we don’t want them to get hurt by surprise, we need to drag them away from those spots. Even if we need to force them to move.”

She momentarily looked up at the windows and added, “I think it’ll probably be better to stay here. Trying to move now or acting as bait when we don’t even know the numbers sounds risky. People who can fight should stay here to protect everyone and… People who are fairly confident at running or defending themselves should help scout the enemy ahead of time.” Kathy chewed her lower lip. She was no battle specialist, but it seemed logical enough to her. “If they take us by surprise then there’ll be an even bigger panic than this one. I can keep a look-out around the hallway leading here. What do you all think?”

Matt - Fight Fire with Fire
“Ideas people?” Crash asked the very small group that, bit by bit, was getting less small.
"I suggest we go two teams. The first team needs to be built up of people who are brave and a lot less likely to start crying like babies. The second team would involve people who are willing to fight, but are a little less brave. Team A would go outside and fight the strait on attacks, while Team B stays here and protects the students who can't fight." Matt replied. "Each team would need at least two leaders, to keep up morale."

Meanwhile, he was wondering about the "she". The way he mentioned her made it sound like he was talking about Lily. Were there more people with problems like that here in the academy?

Dani - Fightless Ghost
Zivon dropped to the floor in fear after Liam blew in his ear.
"What did you do that for?" he asked Liam partially angry, and partially surprised. Leroy wasn't one bit happy at Zivon's rolling on the floor crying.
“Shut up, or I’ll give you something to really cry about.” snapped Leroy, slapping the boy. Everybody was being a jerk to poor Zivon. Luckily, a girl who looked like she had come from some play popped in and tried to help. She calmed him down a little bit, so Zivon was just muttering to himself again. When Dani looked down at him again, the place Leroy slapped him was yellow, as if painted. For some reason it made Dani a bit happy inside, even though Dani tried to block it out. He thought he was being happy from his friend being scared to death.
It's not funny, it's not funny. You shouldn't laugh at your friend! Dani repeated in his mind.
"Sorry but I didn't get your name yet and mine is Liam by the way" Liam told him.
"I'm Dani, nice to meet you, Liam." Dani replied automatically.
"You can fight, right?" Liam asked, then headed towards the stage.
"Not... Really..." Dani said quietly to nobody. He kneeled down by Zivon.
"It's alright, friend, there's nothing to be afraid of." he said.

– Leroy

Leroy looked at the girl (Little Feather) with a slight look of dissatisfaction. He didn’t like telling people about his powers. However, he decided to make an exception in case she became worried enough to wipe the handprint off or something. “I’m helping him calm down.” He explained, attempting to keep things as vague as possible. “He was panicking, so I thought I should do something about it with my ability. If you’re worried you can try experiencing it for yourself.” Shrugging, he held the ink-covered hand out to her. “Just shake my hand and you’ll see what I mean.”

After giving her a chance to respond and listen to her words he replied with a sour expression, “If you’re going, leave that light source of yours here. Otherwise I need to follow you.” Then looking at Dani he said, “If you can’t fight I don’t suggest you go up to those people. Sounds like that’s going to be our army or something. In fact, I'm not so sure I want to even stay here anymore.” Then seeming to realize something he added, "By the way, nice to see you again. I probably should've greeted you first or something. Hah."

Zivon

Zivon couldn’t stop crying, what made it worst is that someone said or shouted to him. “Shut up, or I’ll give you something to really cry about.” He literally flinched over that and cried a bit more. “uhhh…mmnn….” He really tried but he couldn’t then he felt a hand on his shoulder, he didn’t look at it but he felt something odd. The texture seemed off in a way like wet. After a few moments well like minutes of crying and trying to calm himself down he felt somewhat…better…"It's alright, friend, there's nothing to be afraid of." Dani said, as Zivon was able to look up. Dani was kneeling in front of him, probably trying to relax him. He rubbed his teary eyes and gave a smile. He didn’t know why, earlier he was panicking and crying like a child but now he was smiling. Zivon looked at his shoulder.

“When did this get here?” He asked but very happily. He wasn’t stuttering like usual and it seemed like he was much better. He touched the yellow handprint on his shoulder and started to laugh. “It looks funny!” He felt happy, really happy and it felt somewhat wrong.

Garden

With no information given by Sir tree she ran off trying to find the answer. Grasping her dussel bag she ran the fast as she can but with the flora screaming there was too many things distracting her. Probably from running she tripped at least three times, she looked around hoping to find an answer. She created some flowers, big ones in fact that acted like stairs for her she gently jumped higher and higher until she was at the roof. “Thanks you!” She told the flowers, as they grew smaller. She sat down trying to process. “That sound earlier...it…” She felt really anxious, if it is enough to cause panic to the entire flora…She looked off at the distance and covered her mouth.

Tori - Voice

The Dark Angel was quiet, very much so. However, she listened to as much as she could, paying deep attention to those speaking- they were apparently getting ready for combat, which was a good sign in Tori's eyes, at least... They weren't so cowardly. Slowly, she approached the gathering group, as silent as always, her arms folded in front of her chest when she was close enough to be noticed, though she still didn't mutter a single word. A boy asked about ideas, and they started a discussion about possible strategies, a long, drawn out sigh of disinterested escaped the dark angel, but she still needed to voice her opinion- which would be, honestly, as boring as it could be. But she didn't mind it.

"Some of you," She started, her eyes casually glancing between the faces she could see forward. "Are strong enough to win this battle," Pausing in order to both allow her words to sink in- and to look at them, she continued briefly after. "However, some of you are being held back by... fear. I can nearly taste it. Those of you are nothing but cowards, cowering behind your friends as if they will always be there to protect you from danger. Disgraceful." Tori grabbed her scarf, wrapping it more tightly around her neck, she cleared her throat before proceeding. "But that doesn't matters, what matters is... If those who can fight have any sense of moral or honor, then it's perhaps time to test your valor. They're attacking Athalia- a place which has been designed to protect us- because we are, so to speak, special. Are we going to remain in here, gathered, cowering and hiding while discussing strategies, or are we going out there to show those beasts true strength?"

Criston - Auditorium

He smiled at the girl that had appeared talking about cowards and such.

"Would you rather we run in without any form of a plan? Sounds foolish to me." He spoke gently, keeping his tone smooth. Panic was the last thing he wanted to raise and raising his voice would do just that. He sent the girl (Tori) a small smile and then turned to Crash, hearing his words, as well as Matt's. He blinked, looking down at Matt and smiled.

"That's not a half bad idea. Though, I think it'd be better not to separate everyone that way. We want an even delegation of powers. If you think you are willing to go out there and face whatever is out there, join Group A off to this corner." He began, motioning toward the back of the room. "If you'd rather protect those who cannot or will not protect themselves, stay here in Group B." He continued.

He turned to look up at Crash, his smile still held there. "Are you willing to join one of the groups as a leader? I'll take which ever group you don't want to lead." He asked, wanting to give the boy a choice. Criston was more than willing to put himself out there because he knew who lurked in the shadows, ready to help should things go south.

Criston turned to a girl speaking (Kathy) and smiled at her, flashing pearly whites. "Very good idea. Why don't you get started on that then? I'm sure they could use someone with a cool head like you here." He told her, his smile warm and kind. He was glad to have such a willing to lend a hand group around him. Even more so glad to have someone willing to stand up and take a leadership role. Things were going well this year.

---

Eric - Auditorium

He sighed, watching everyone, the feeling from before still ringing in his ears. If he was going to fight, he'd have to have someway to draw and he'd either need to go outside or have his pad. He noticed a boy with ink but from what he could tell, the boy wouldn't spare it for Eric's powers. He walked over to the group gathering around Crash and silently waited in the spot Criston had mentioned, his eyes watching the floor with idle curiosity.

He didn't want to go, but he knew he could at least try to help and this was the only way he could be of use. He'd rather be of use rather than cowering the corner. He knew he wasn't useless and his conscious would get the better of him in the end. Better to join now rather than wait that way, he knew what was going on along with everyone else. As h stood, his mind raced with thoughts of things he could draw. None of his people doodles would be much use. Maybe if he drew a gun... He took in a deep breath, clearly bothered and nervous. What was he going to do? What was out there? He closed his eyes and tried to calm himself down.

It'll be okay...

---

Maria Cross - Calm

She listened to him with disinterested eyes, as if just watching with mild curiosity.

Of course there are people like you... Demons, all the same.

She blinked at his next words about being made by humans.

"We made you?" She asked, a brow raised. She hadn't heard of such a thing, nor did she honestly care. She simply wanted him gone from her sight.

"Yet, you seem to be... different, as I like to see it. You're... a little stronger than some of the so-calleed angels that barely left a scratch. Heh heh.... Hehehe."

"And a fine woman, as well." He spoke. She nearly had to suppress a giggle. Was he hitting on her? How laughable. With a small smile on her face, she watched him.

"Why, thank you. You're no push-over yourself, sir." She spoke, raising a brow as his neck popped.

"My name is Apophis. My brother, Ma'at, that looney-bin that babbled about Order and Light, no longer watches over you all. Actually, he technically is, though he is quite... a part of me, now. After all, wearing your brother is like an undeniable family reunion. Yesssssssssssssssssssssss...." He spoke again, explaining. She nodded, listening to him, trying not to show her reaction to his words. Wearing his brother... Certainly one way to keep him around... Her thoughts returned to her own brothers and sisters. She had to say, she didn't hold them with very much regard either but still, she could never bring herself to kill them, no matter how they irritated her.

"Witness it!" He cried. "And comprehend the might of our lord and savior, Lucifer! Embrace it!"

Her eyes narrowed as he yelled, watching him... She couldn't help but feel disgusted by him. Even the strongest of men would buckle under his clear attempts at breaking morale. Maria had seen too much, even by human hands. Where he frightened her, her will to protect her students was even stronger. She had a duty to fill and no matter what she faced, she must not falter. That had been instilled in her long ago and she dared not go against it. There were far scarier forces at work in her own family. This man was just crazy, it was the calm ones that scared her the most; silent anger.

The hawk spell still in affect, she could clearly see who Apophis had hit and she grit her teeth, her anger rising. She simply put on a smile, hiding her anger. She couldn't afford to make the first step. That boy would be okay, she'd see to it personally if she had to. With lips pursed, she listened to him as he turned to speak.

"So what's your name, missus? And why do you protect the girl so much? Just some questions I have wanted to ask. Do not worry; I haven't attacked yet, and I won't for today." He asked, putting his hands behind his back to wait.

"For today?" She asked, her eyes narrowing at him. She closed her eyes and decided to put that thought off to the side. She took a deep breath and smiled at the man. "I am Maria Ann Cross. This child is my student and I know she is what you are after. Not much escapes my ears, I assure you." She replied curtly, her voice calm and collected.

"Now, if you would kindly... Tell me why you are here. Why did you come here? Surely not to just see this little girl." She asked, standing tall.

Nikola - Athalia Academy

Albert Einstein said "Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results."

The clicks and ticks of invention have come to a halt.

A man stood at the top floor of a building near the campus. Actually, it was as if the building was sticking right next to it. His power had been shut down for a few seconds, but his assistants managed to fix at least his building's power up. Something was clearly wrong, and he could tell quite easily. The man was able to distinguish between faulty creations of mankind and supernatural events. He had seen enough events to be a natural with them, though he still found it uneasy to get used to foreign creatures.

More than that, however, he felt that he despised humans, his own kind.

Standing in front of a glass wall, watching an inevitable chaos about to erupt, a man stood with a calm stance. He had his hand inside his baggy, armored pants' pocket, his other hand carrying what appeared to be a wine glass. He had seen destruction. He had created destruction. He had grown accustomed to the madness that scientists experienced through labs gone wrong. He, he, he, he.

Why did he always think about himself?

He had no one to trust in. That was why he despised humans. Still, his forgotten past clung onto him like a nightmare begging to stay at its home. What irked him was the fact that he consistently accepted the nightmare's request.

A light-green haired girl walked up to him, carrying what appeared to be a technological staff. A mechanical arm mounted onto the man's shoulder gently pried the staff off of her frail hands, handing it to the masked figure. He spoke with a technologically modified, yet calm voice,

"Have you checked the Quantum Solver's override manual?"

The girl, who was actually a clone of another individual the man cared for, nodded shyly, looking up at the fairly tall man. The masked figure's mounted arm rubbed her head gently, which made her smile quietly.

Soul. Did she have one? Or was she simply a mirror of desperation reflecting him?

No. If it was for Margaret, he would treat her by putting his life on the stakes, no matter who and how she looked like. She was Nikola T. Lovelock's nightmare and, ironically, his only shining hope of retribution.

Nikola sighed, turning away from the glass wall as his mounted arm zipped away into nothingness. He walked past the green-haired clone, only to see her by his side again. The man had earned a spot to become a teacher in this fascinating academy, yet there were weird monsters attacking the students for reasons unknown to him. The man stated with a straightforward tone,

"Hand me the Magnum."

The green-haired clone nodded, scurrying away. Nikola waited patiently for her, though he felt quite concerned for the academy right at the moment. After all, how was he supposed to teach in a decimated school? Maybe there were buildings created in cases like these...?

As quickly as she went, the girl came back. She lifted a Magnum Revolver up to Nikola, who simply raised an eyebrow at the way she handed it toward him. He shook his head, taking away the firearm from her hands, as he chided,

"When you hand firearms to others, you don't point it at them."

The green-haired clone blinked, seemingly spacing out for a few seconds, before nodding. She began to follow Lovelock out of his office.

"I will be right there, my supernatural acolytes..."

Crash Bandicoot

Crash glanced at Kathy nodding his head curtly. Lion purred happily at Kathy, his ears flicking out to the side as he looked over to the direction of the crowd, grumbling an answer to her question his tail flicking. Crash looked down at the Lion before back up again as Kathy spoke he listened carefully to what she said, glad they all seemed pretty clear headed at the same time guilty of his secret. “True, there are several entrances to this place we should probably block them off; at least it’ll make it difficult for them to get in unnoticed” He thought over what else Kathy had said. When Matt piped up talking about dividing into teams, he frowned a little at what the young guy said he had a good idea but...Crash frowned a little at Matt, listening to Criston as he basically spoke what Crash was thinking. “We need to make sure we can keep these guys protected, we need to secure this area, keep everyone here...keeping an eye on the hallway outside does sound like a good idea” Crash said the last part hesitantly but offered his support to Kathy’s cause all the same.

Crash lifted his head as another voice joined in the discussion, his eyes narrowed at what she said. So many good points yet...delivered in such a harsh manner. “Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear -- not absence of fear” He was a little sharp as he spoke. “We’ll show them true strength” Crash grinned at the girl though there was a slight darkness in his eyes and bitterness to his tone. “But we should do it the right way...and that requires planning” Crash stated, wiping at his face again squeezing his hands into fists as claws formed at the tips of his fingers. He looked at Criston as he gave everyone the option of joining the groups, it was a good plan with a lot of potential, though he faltered as Criston asked him to join a group as a leader. He was silent for a moment clearly thoughtful, he wanted to stay to protect...it was what he did, sometimes haphazardly mind you...he ran a tongue over an elongated canine. But he couldn’t stay... Crash sighed and nodded at Criston with a small smile, he moved over to group A. “I’ll take this group” He told him.

-56%-

Little Feather

Little Feather looked at Leroy with a slightly wary expression, he was the first person she’d met that hadn’t been nice off the beat. She kind of expected it, she felt bad for asking about his ability when he begrudgingly explained it to her, she looked sown at the hand offered to her. “No...My emotions are my own, I’d rather not change them” Little Feather murmured, keeping her head down as she did. She felt bad for asking and then refusing to experience what he had to offer, but she saw what it had done to Zivon easing his discomfort and pulling him out of his fearful state making him ‘happy’. She frowned at Leroy before looking up at Dragonfly, who was fluttering overhead. “If you would stay with him, I’d appreciate it” Little Feather spoke to the animal, in response the dragonfly spun in a circle before returning to its happy hovering.

Satisfied with his answer she slid into the crowd making her way over to the small crowd of people talking tactics, noting Lion was sat at the center of them. “Hey” She murmured, sliding past people and crouching next to Lion entwining her fingers into his mane. They’re forming a battle plan, this one wishes to scout I’m not sure what the others are going to do. We should stay...we can offer more here Lion grumbled happily to the girl that had crouched next to him. Little Feather looked up at the many faces in the group of all of them she only really knew Kathy and Liam. She smiled at Kathy as she patted Lion’s head before looking at Criston. “We’ll both stay here, I’ve got a few tricks up my sleeves to help out...so does Lion” She grinned as the Lion rumbled in agreement.