“Thank you Press.” She was relieved to find some help. She listened contently as she heard the sound of dog-food being poured into the bowl, then the sound of Carl’s happy chomping. “Does he have water? I’m sorry…” She heard the sound of water as well, then a plate and cup were put into her own hand. Would ask for coffee, no milk or sugar. She heard the word ‘bagel’ in the air, but did not understand its context. “Might I have a bagel please? Is there any butter or jam for it?” She figured it would be easier to ask for something that everyone was already eating. “Thank you very much.” She would have to make him breakfast in the future to return his kindness. (Occasionally she heard noises coming from him. Small clicking noises, or low tones, or a soft ‘whirrrr’. She wondered if the noises had something to do with his power, but did not ask.)

Press had found some strawberry jelly for her bagel. As she ate she tried to ignore Nathan and Cora’s exchange, it made her stomach churn and she was only able to eat half the doughy ring. Magara remained at the counter to eat her breakfast where she easily avoided both Nathanial and Coraline at the table and couch.

On the matter of their physical fitness training Magara did not have anything to say. She might shrug or nod. She assumed that she would be excused from any actual sport or difficult activity, just as she was in her physical education classes at school. Sometimes the teachers would try to get her into something simple like sit ups or push-ups. If she did only a few and stopped no one ever reprimanded her or encouraged her to push her forward. No one had expected much from her.

“Linn, Hello. What were you taking care of?” That train of thought was interrupted as she felt her scarf loosen around her head, then vanish.
Her hair would poof out like a dandelion, perhaps looking a bit ridiculous and lumpy after having been under the scarf. Then Linn carefully gathered it all up in her hands and tied it off in the back. Magara felt a bit exposed, but surprisingly, no one else in the room seemed to have an emotional-reaction to the state of her hair. So, she said “Thanks, It is fine.” She felt it with her hands every so often thereafter, as if checking to make sure everything was still in place.

She tilted her hand, hearing the sound of Linn biting it the apple. “Is that an Apple? Is there another?”

~

Carl would visit everyone during his ‘morning patrol’. After his official breakfast was done he ‘made the rounds’, sniffing everyone at least once (This was to confirm the identities, health, and general well-being of each squad member, as well as assist in leftover disposal should the soldiers find themselves with any extra food), patrolling the perimeter (to ensure general security and check for bombs that may have been planted the night before), and so on and so forth (He was a very energetic dog).

Carl noticed but was unaffected by the conflict between the two recruits. He knew that the one-who-smelled-like-burning-toast bothered his Dearest Human, but was not deemed an active threat at this time. Their fight was only normal behavior for newly formed squads and packs, they were trying to assert social and physical dominance within their ranks. Thankfully Carl knew that deep down inside he was the Alpha-dog, however his priority mission was, and always will be, Dearest Human. These squabbling pups should have felt lucky that he was out of the contest by default.

The automatic doors to the base opened with a hiss as Guardian and Animal entered. It of course didn't take them long to find all the recruits, as they all stood out in the common area. Most of them looked exhausted, a sight which was enough to make the two overseers laugh to themselves. They'd been up a few hours before most of the team members, filing away papers and planning missions. Today was certainly Guardian's favorite kind of day, one-on-one sparring. He'd be the one accessing their combat skills for the most part, as Animal was the overseer who saw to titan training.

Guardian for one was excited to see what these kids brought to the table, after having gotten to know a little bit about them at the ice-breaker event yesterday. They all seemed so different, so complex, which was of course was to be expected. He thought back to his time as a recruit, and it wasn't much different this time, of course these kids had more potential apparently than any of the groups of the past. Though the fact that Guardian and Animal were greeted by half dead students, one of which was asleep on the couch, cast a couple doubts into the overseers' minds.

Vita, seeing that both men had finally returned to the base, floated over to the side of Animal. Her alarm had seemed to do the trick with waking up all of the students, of course they probably didn't appreciate such an abrupt and unexpected wake up call.

Guardian looked out to the group, a huge smile painted on his face. "Alright, recruits I hope you've all gotten some food in your systems. Today begins training day. We'll be heading to the training room, and from there we'll pair you all off." It was time to see just what these recruits could do!

Brookes was still cradling his hand when he spoke gently. "I just sort of make this dust. It does a lot of things but mostly I just use it to help people," he said shyly. Between his ears, the iron burning his hand, and now the dust, it was about time Press would get an idea of what he was. Hopefully though, he wouldn't notice his wings. Before he could speak anymore, the doors opened and they were greeted with the sight of Guardian and Animal. When Brookes heard that they were being paired off, his stomach dropped. There are so many things that could happen. They could fight each other, or the pairs could fight other pairs, or something else that would involve people seeing him. "What a great day indeed." He mumbled to himself.

Press might have given it a bit of thought about what Brookes was, but he had a lot on his mind, including the hope that his malfunctioning equipment did not hinder him in times of crisis and that the training was apparently about to begin. Besides, he had a strong belief that fairies and the fey didn't exist, so the thought that Brookes was one of them never crossed his mind.

When the announcement that they were going to go to the training room, his eyes widened in hopeful expectations and a smirk of excitement showed up on his face. He was nervous, but he had some experience of fighting, from years of friendly brawls against friends from his neighborhood, the research on fighting that he looked up, and occasional times when people tried to bully him for money that came from his once-prosperous toy sales when he was a child.

As all of the recruits ushered into the training room, a few heads turned in marvel out how large it was. No doubt the big open space, would provide enough room for titans to spar comfortably, most notably those with super or even just enhanced strength. The thick walls, looked to be made of just concrete, however, they were reinforced with metallic casing. The floors had the same, but rested underneath a thick black mat, surely designed to cushion any fall the recruits might take in combat. To the upper right side of the room, was a spectator room protected by reinforced plexiglass. Surely this is where the overseers and the other recruits would be watching.

Despite her tired state, Ming was still incredibly excited to brawl. Her powers seemed absolutely tailored to this, and it had been a good while since she had a challenge. This, is what she expected of Sanctum, and she was glad they could deliver. Cracking her knuckles Ming wore a large smile as she headed into the training room.

Ambrose, was a bit different than Ming, sure he didn't mind a little hand-to-hand, in fact he was quite used to it given his past. He marveled at the room, the size was no doubt necessary for some of these guys, Ming was included. He'd rather not face someone with super strength, but if it came to it, he'd do what he had to.

Feng unlike the other two was incredibly nervous, his knowledge of hand-to-hand was pretty limited, so he really didn't want to embarrass himself. The teen felt his stomach sink, as he made his way inside the room, looking around, and then viewing the spectator section. That made him gulp, swallowing down the lump in his throat.

"So, here we are, the training room. As I'm sure you're already aware, today will begin your training in hand-to-hand combat. I will be the one who sees to this, analyzing your ability to think on your feet. Now, most of you here are titans, or have other supernatural properties. Coming from someone without either, I cannot stress enough the importance of hand-to-hand combat. There will most likely be times when you are without your powers, most probably at the mercy of anti-titan technology. So today's training will require that you use only your body as a weapon and a shield, no powers." Guardian gave a smile to the group, even though he could see reluctance in some of the recruits' faces. "Animal has your pairings listed, so once we're all sure of who our sparring partners are, we can begin!" Guardian's Somali accent came through again. He never really hid it, but it wasn't especially thick, until he got excited. He was certainly excited to see if any of them had potential in this field of combat. With Vita at his side, Guardian would be able to analyze the group without even having to take notes. He looked over to the artificial intelligence, she certainly was the pinnacle of technology.

Cora listened to Guardian with half an ear. Something about fighting, something about a sheet on the far side of the wall, and the rest was just nonsense she didn't care about. So Cora went to the listed pairings and saw that she was paired with Avis. The cat eared girl who looked like a German wuss. Just as she read the name, the girl came up behind her.

"Wanna go first and get the embarrassment over with?" Cora said with a cruel smile. There was no hint of a joke in her voice.

Avis said nothing, and followed her to the mat.

"I'm going first, so you all can see how it's done!" Cora yelled, trying to clear the mat. She was so confident in her ability to win, she didn't remove her sunglasses.
Cora opened with a right hook at Avis. Avis ducked below the right hook and attempted to slam both her palms into Cora's temples, causing her ears to ring and temporary disorientation. Cora didn't block Avis's attack, but aimed a punch at Avis's exposed stomach. Avis took the punch to the stomach and grabbed Cora's shoulders, throwing her down with Avis's weight. Avis readied a right palm at Cora's jaw, but Cora tried to turn her face to avoid it.

When Avis was about to strike her again, Cora retaliated by using her legs to push Avis off her. It worked, Avis staggered back and tried to get back into a fighting stance, just waiting. Cora didn't make her wait long however, before charging bare-handed, at the last second changing into a slide and pulling out her knife. Without a second thought Cora stabbed it at Avis' leg. Avis, with barely a second to spare, spun around, dodging the knife. Avis then grabbed Cora's arm and threw her to the ground again. Instead of giving Cora a chance to stab at her again, Avis slammed her foot down hard on Cora's hand while twisting to kick Cora in the face. Cora struggled, but the kick to her face disoriented her, and the crack in Cora's sunglasses only made her worry further.

"Crazy bitch!" Avis yelled before walking away.

"Where do you think you're going?" Cora said as she grabbed Avis' ankle, tripping her.

Ignoring the pain, Cora rolled onto Avis, returning the blows on her face. That's for ruining my only pair of sunglasses, Slam. That's for kicking me in the face, the list went on and on until Avis managed to wedge her leg between her and Cora, using it to kick Cora off. Cora was knocked away, as well as the wind knocked out of her. After a few sputtering coughs, Cora regained most of her breath before Avis even stood up. Cora snatched up her knife again and ran over to kick Avis in her side, making the cat eared freak fall to the mat again. Cora raised her knife, just to finish off the match, until she was falling towards the mat again. Avis had slammed Cora behind her knee, causing her to fall towards the mat. Cora didn't have enough time to process the elbow flying at her face until she felt the pain. Avis grabbed her chest, lifting the dazed Cora to her face.

"Fuck you!" Avis headbutted Cora three times, each producing a sharp crack. Then let Cora fall again.

Cora did nothing but take off the now useless glasses -they came apart in her hands-, and lay there, eyes closed. She was just too exhausted and too badly hurt to continue the fight. Cora waited for ages just for the last, final attack. The knife or a gun, whichever Avis decided was fit to put her down.

Instead, when Cora opened her eyes Avis was standing over her, offering her hand. Cora glared at her through mostly closed eyes, but decided to take the hand. Suddenly Cora was on her feet, and being patted on the back. With all the throwing, Cora winced, and pushed away from Avis.

"If you couldn't fight the way you did, I wouldn't trust working with you on this team. It's good to know someone else sees this as a fight for survival, nothing more, nothing less." Avis said.

Cora snarled at Avis, "don't touch me." Then walked away, using her hand as a shield against the harsh light.

I think I just made a new friend. Avis thought with a chuckle.

At least she's not afraid to fight, Cora thought as she walked back to the main dorm area.

Famotil and SaraRPs collaboration

After Cora's and Avis spar, it was announced by the Overseers that Feng and Linnette would proceed next.

Feng looked on at his opponent, Linn or Monsoon, he figured he'd be facing the superhero, not the girl. Either way, he took
a gulp. Unsure of if he should make a move, Feng simply took a fighting stance. He tried to analyze her movements, to see if
she would lunge out or try and attack. He began to move around a bit, his fists now guarding his face for protection.

"Good luck," he muttered to the girl somewhat sheepishly. For a moment Feng looked on at the instructors, it seemed he was
getting himself worked up before the fight even started. He wasn't necessarily afraid of losing, he was more afraid of
either of them drawing blood. Feng's powers came from his senses detecting blood, and sometimes it could be a bit strenuous
to control.

Well she didn't imagine she'd be taking on the boy she once thought was pretty hot, but hey beggars can't be choosers. She stood completely still for a moment looking him up and down. He was pretty tall but not all that muscular; she could use this to her advantage. Seeing as he was taking a boxing stand she smirked, well someone might ruin his pretty face today. Linn grimaced in fear at the own risk of messing up her own, but shook it off and raised her hands into fist. This would be the first time she did this without gloves.

"Be quick. Be smart. Don't be reckless. Always stay ahead." She chanted this under her breath, remembering all the times her father said that to her before taking her on, or refing when she was about to take on someone at the gym. Linn let her body take over as she started shuffling back and forth on her feet, her defenses up. Slowly she allowed her hand to fall from her face to give Feng a 'bring it on' gesture with her hand.

Feng managed to crack a smile at the girl's gesture. A few moments of circling each other and waiting for the other was enough
to make Feng want to stop before it even began. He understood the importance of gauging teammates abilities, but he didn't
really want to fight them. Sighing, he realized there was no way around it. Quickly, Feng went in for a jab. He had a fearsome quickness in his movements considering his father was known for his incredible speed.
The jab was aimed at Linn's stomach, rather than her face, as someone's stomach was always a bigger target than their face. Feng's fist clenched, tightening his grip on the protective sparring gloves as his fist moved forward.

Linn gasped not expecting that for the first move and quickly jumped back, not quick enough as the jab connected with her stomach briefly before she moved causing her to let her stone face slide. Linn took a deep breath using her left hand to go in for a hook across the side of his head.

Linn's fist connected with the side of Feng's head, causing him to back up a bit. She actually hit harder than he expected. Shaking off the blow, Feng squared back up, again using his speed to come in through a few punches towards the girl's head and the left side of her stomach. He'd use his speed to overwhelm,or at least, he'd try to.

Linn was victorious. At least she was for the moment. He recovered quickly and sped up his attacks, she wasn't very fast but she successfully blocked the blows to her head, leaving her stomach vulnerable.His fist connected to the left side and Linn felt the wind be knocked out of her. She let out a few coughs and fell back slightly.
Now she was getting mad, something that she had to work on in the ring according to her father. But this was training for when actually they are fighting enemies so he figured it was ok to get mad.She growled and hopped up raising her right leg in the air going in for a kick to his shoulder blade.

Feng was a bit taken a back by her anger, enough to be distracted when Linn quickly rose, sending a leg hurdling towards his shoulder.
He had only barely managed to skin to the side, hold his hands out firm in an attempt to catch Linn's leg. If he could manage it,
then he'd surely be able to take her down. He braced himself for the impact, unsure of just how strong her kicks were.

As Linn's leg went up but she cursed when she felt a cramp in her leg. She hadn't stretched before the match and her kick wouldn't be as strong as it should. She continued with the move anyway, her foot connected with his shoulder but remained there she gasped when she felt his hands on her leg holding her there. She grunted and struggled to keep her balance knowing that if she fell he would be at an advantage.

Feng suddenly twisted on the leg and pulled it forward against her struggles. He was attempting to take her down. Luckily her kick hadn't hit too hard, so Feng's shoulder wasn't injured.
Despite his twisting, the maneuver wasn't focused on a sensitive area like the ankle, but instead on the leg, meant to bring her down, but not harm her. Feng certainly commended Linn's counter speed
with that kick, but the lack of strength gave him an edge. Through gritted teeth he pushed, hoping it could keep the girl at a disadvantage.

Linn muttered a curse as her leg twisted causing her to teeter on her remaining foot that was on the ground. She tried to shake him off but he was holding strong, knowing that there was no way out of this she let herself begin to fall, but not without a fight. A maneuvered that she learned in the gym will have both of them on the floor.
While her leg was in his grasp she hooked her foot on the back of his neck and let herself fall back hopefully the her weight and him not expecting it would cause him to tumble down with her thus giving her an advantaged to climb on top and finish the match.

The element of surprise was enough to overwhelm Feng, as Linn's foot hooked the back of Feng's neck, the momentum of her body shifting downward towards the mat was enough to bring Feng tumbling down with her. Preparing for impact, Feng hit the ground, but instead of falling straight on his back, he used his hands to spring him forward in a rolling ball-like position, landing now on his hands and knees facing away from Linn.

Linn's landing wasn't as graceful as Feng's, not the by the slightest. As soon as they began to fall Linn unhooked her leg to prevent any injury and twisted to land on her side. She landed with a loud "Oomph!" and groaned as she twisted to get on her stomach so he could not get the upper hand. "Fuck." She cursed realizing that he had managed to get on his hands and knees faster than she could of. There was only one thing she could think of, Linn sprang off her feet and flailed her arms out in an attempt to tackle him down to the ground.

Unable to turn fully around in time Feng was tackled to the ground by Linn. The girl was now on top of him, but figuring that he was probably stronger than her, Feng grabbed her wrists in an attempt to fling her over and off of him. With this he also lifted his foot, trying to bury it in her stomach and push her off. He growled a bit unintentionally, he had let her outmaneuver him and he was paying for it now.

Linn let out a strangled grunt as she tried to hold onto the much larger male. The fact that she even managed to knock him down was shocking to her but she had to remain strong if she wanted to win this thing and show everyone that she wasn't some weak girl. Linn kept a grip on his shoulders, and hung on tightly as he tried to shake her; the plan was to wait till he let up, and then finish him. What she was not expecting was his foot going, once again to her stomach, a still sensitive area for her. She coughed and let out a little whimper as the pressure got worse in her abdomen forcing her to loosen her grip on his shoulders and begin to shake.

Feng took advantage of Linn loosening her grip as the foot now placed in her stomach lifted in correlation with Feng's grip on her arms. Working in tandem, Feng's body thrusted upward in an attempt to lift Linn over his body and flip her on her back, leaving them at a neutral position with perhaps a slight advantage position. Feng certainly gave Linn credit, she was a pretty tough competitor. With some training she'd probably be very capable, Feng hoped the overseers could see the same potential in him.

Linn shrieked as she felt her small body being lifted up into the air above Feng. This caused more pressure in her stomach as she squirmed to get out of his grasp, it was no use, he had her pinned there and she couldn't get out of it. She couldn't believe that he was suspending her over his body like this as if she was nothing more than a rag doll, "Lemme go!" she began thrashing about trying to get down off this embarrassing position. "Put me down!" She struggled further, with no avail as her entire body flushed red as she began coughing once more.

Feng was surprised by the girl's sudden outburst and could tell by her flushed complexion that she was pretty embarrassed. Before he could react though, Guardian was on his way over, separating the two. Feng hoped that he hadn't done anything wrong. He had been able to keep his powers in check, and it seemed that Linn had too. Either way, if Feng was being completely honest, he was glad that the sparring was finished.

Eyeris and athanshadow

Carl was left to stay behind and guard the living room. A duty that he took very seriously. He posted himself on the couch, which was not only the most comfy, but had a particularly good vantage of every entrance. He laid his head down on the arm rest and took a nap.

Magara had heard them call her name to be paired with Brookes, but had not quite believed it until she was physically nudged away from the wall and into place. The floor of the training room was different from the rest of the base, slightly squishier. She pushed her toes into it nervously.

Sparring without powers. Magara wished she could turn her powers 'off'. She was acutely aware when a presence approached and stood across from her. "Brookes...?" She inquired. She wanted to apologies for him for her own shortcomings. Hopefully her fellow titan would land a blow and get this all over with quickly.

Brookes' heart was already racing and when he heard his and his opponents name called again, Mag, it dropped even more. How could he fight a blind girl? That was probably against some weird law. And even more so against his morals. He walked up onto the mat and looked her right in the eyes despite the fact that she was blind. "Uh...yea." He wanted to apologize just as much but felt it would just make him look stupid. Already though, a plan was forming in Brookes' head. "I know this sounds dumb but could we shake hands?"

“Okay…” Mag held out her right hand toward his presence and his voice. He might have found her’s to have a sweaty palm. The room was full of nerves, including her own.

Brookes firmly grasped her hand, pulling her in for a sort of hug. He whispered in her ear as his fairy dust left his body and crept along his arm and onto hers before it lightly dissolved into Mag’s skin. “Don’t be afraid. You’re going to win.” He whispered as he stepped backwards, assuming what he thought looked like a good sparring stance. He felt slightly regretful for a moment when he realized he was throwing the game to a blind girl. When he loses, he was most likely going to be ridiculed for losing to a blind girl.

Magara shivered as he came close, whispering, he had conflicting feelings which made him difficult for the young empath to pin down. “You don’t have to humor me…” She said as he stepped away, she felt his presence now only a few paces away, wrestling with the regret and embarrassment caused by their circumstances. He really was trying to be nice. “I’ve never fought anyone before. Never mind the--” She paused, she needed to make some sort of ‘stance’. She lifted her thin arms and made small fists. The placement was far from ideal, her elbows far too high and her arms crossed at strange angles.

“No one expects me to do this.” She told the fairy-boy. That was the truth of it. Her whole life was a series of events that others carried her through. No one expected her to accomplish anything for herself. She didn’t struggle against the flow, she was obedient and did what was expected of her. If she did that then she would not be so much of a burden on others. She learned very early that all she had to do to please them was keep out of the way, stay quiet, and ‘wait right here for now dear’ and there she would wait, even if they forgot she was there.

Then she felt something new. She felt herself begin to tingle, first in her hand where she had touched Brookes, then it swept down her arms and into her body. Her breath would catch as she felt Brooke’s presence flare and expand before her, then, contract and focus itself.

Where once Brookes was an airy cloud before her, now he was specific and certain. She still perceived that vague aura around him, but now he was a shape, his shape. She could distinguish arm and hand, leg and head, heartbeat and breath. She was also able to block out anyone else in the room, no stray feelings or presences would distract her now.

“What are you doing?” She wondered if this was Brookes’ power, emanating from him, making him more vivid?

“That’s not me that’s you.” He enjoyed the look of confusion that crossed the younger girl’s face.

Magara shifted a bit. Subconsciously copying his stance. Which, she assumed, was correct. "Me?" She wondered why this would be happening now. Was it something on the bagels?

"Go on. Fight me!" His nerves were gone, he jumped lightly on his toes despite the fact that using his dust to make Magara stronger was slowly wearing him out. Excited. His remorse for fighting the disabled girl was gone, replaced by excitement and the satisfaction of helping another.

So she did it just as he asked, her own remorse faded with his. The confidence he felt fed her own. Magara took three steps forward and swung her fist toward her fist as hard as she could.

She didn’t expect anything to come of the action. He’d be able to see her coming after all. And there was no way she’d have any accuracy or str--

She felt her fist connect, as Brookes stumbled backwards she could hear him mutter “Ouch” under his breath. She felt pain blossom in her cheek and in her fist (which was not tightened or set properly) "What did I just do?" She knew the answer, she had sore knuckles and Brookes had a sore cheek. She had never hit anyone before in her life, not on purpose anyway. She did not even feel as if she had done so now, it felt like an accident.

But it wasn’t.

Guardian and Animal looked on as Brookes and Mag sparred.. They already figured what was going on, given Brookes' ability to amplify other's powers there was no doubt he used this on Magara out of sympathy. Vita's analysis confirmed that the young man's fairy dust was aiding Mag in this battle, a report she sent to the overseers' tablet covertly.. Guardian sighed before giving a quick glance at Animal who only nodded in agreement. He had hoped that he wouldn't have to do this. As Magara landed her punch, Guardian made his way onto the field.

"That's enough," He let out, as me made his way over. A certain air of authority lingered in his voice, intimidating power laced in those two simple words. He clearly seemed disappointed. Now finally stepping in between the two recruits, who had stopped their battle, Guardian turned his focus first to Brookes'. There was silence in the room, a harsh tension, though nobody fully understood what was going on.

"Tell me...why did I stop the match?" Guardian said this with a deep voice, enough to demand both respect and a little fear, as he looked on at the young male recruit.

Brookes looked around, slightly confused after taking that blow to the head. He noticed Guardian walking across the field. He gulped down his easily noticeable fear and stood his ground against the instructor. "You stopped the match because I was using my powers to boost Magara's." He said with false confidence as he pretended to be calm, his hands shaking at his sides. Brookes thought Guardian was being stupid. That the match was just a sparring match and that he might as well even the playing field against a blind girl. With his fairy dust on her it should have been enough to let her see a clear form of Brookes and that's all. How could he tell that he was using his powers on her?

Ignore.

Guardian being quite taller looked down at Brookes who was missing the point, which wasn't unexpected. He wasn't angry, he couldn't be, most people would have done the same thing in Brookes' position. He simply sighed slightly, "Well I suppose that's part of it yes," he said looking at Brookes straight in the eyes. Guardian was never one to look away from someone, he saw it as a sign of disrespect to not be fully engaged when speaking to another person. Standing firm, Guardian continued, "But it's not that you broke the rules because let's face it," Guardian spoke loud enough for everyone in the room to hear.

"There are going to be people and situations that leave you no other option but to break the rules.When it means the difference between life and death for the innocent people we try to protect, then it is expected of us to put aside our regulations. That isn't why I stopped the match," at this point, probably to the relief of Brookes, it didn't seem that Guardian was singling him out, rather talking to the entire group.

"I stopped the match not because you broke a rule, but because you broke a sacred code. A code that exists as the pillar for any team, and thus without it would surely leave you all toppled." Guardian paused for a moment, seeing all eyes and ears tuned on him. "You must be able to trust that your comrades are not only able to protect their own life, but that they are capable of protecting your life as well."

"By lending Magara your power in this battle, you underestimated her ability to take you on without powers. You didn't trust that she was capable." The boy didn't even have to speak for Guardian to know what he was thinking, what they were all thinking. She's blind after all. "If we weren't sure that she was able, do you think we would have brought her here? She does not need your charity, she is a person, one who has more potential than even many people in this room, including myself. So you do not underestimate her, she is a pillar just as all of you are. Magara is not the 'blind girl', she is a recruit here on par with the rest of you. If you doubt her then she will doubt herself, and nothing good can come from a pillar that isn't sure if it can stand any longer."

Guardian hoped that he conveyed his point clearly, it wasn't that they could never help each other, but he wanted to separate helping Magara and pitying Magara. He simply looked down at Brookes' "Am I understood," he asked firmly, with a hint of kindness laced in his words, as he gave a half smile to Brookes', and then to the empath.

Cora, after waiting a bit in the lounge, realized that she did have access to medical facilities and should be looked at after the match. Her being headbutted that much never ended well for her. So she hauled her aching body out of the couch and walked back over to the training area. She was cradling her right hand against herself, in case Avis had broken it during their fight. At least Cora had managed to retrieve her knife, and slid it back into her she usually kept it. So, she haunted the door and didn't quite enter the area with the other recruits, instead of going inside to hear from the team about her eyes or something else obvious. It looked like the kid was getting an earful from Guardian, and he was using to turn it into a lecture. No one needs charity, but here you are handing it out like it's goddamned candy. I didn't need any of the crap you offered, and yet I was saddled with the dumb supplies that you idiots slipped into my bag.

She moved back, away from sight a little more, drawing the shadows closer to herself and trying to draw attention from herself. It wasn't hard, as they gave her plenty of darkness and shadows to work with, and she was far away from the stage so that they would single her out again. Cora touched her forehead to check if she was still bleeding. She was, a little, but it had mostly stopped. A little warm water would clean the blood off, and a few bandages for the scratch would keep it clean. She'd just have to ask the stupid robot or the AI for directions. She could take care of herself from there.

Bruce stepped out into the padded field, to the place where Guardian designated he should fight. It was his turn, him and this Press.

This guy was kind of hard to read. Didn't say much, or hadn't said much to Bruce, anyway, and was just a bit odd in general. Bruce decided to play tough, and try to finish this quickly. He pulled his coveralls back over his shoulders, shoving his arms into the sleeves and zipping it up. The top flapping around was just a hand hold in a fight. He stood with his hands up and watched as Press approached.

Press had been watching the previous spars with interest, and made mental notes on their moves. Eventually, though, his name was called, and apparently he would spar with someone named Bruce. He gave a command to Horus and the falcon took off, out of the training room to the living room, where he landed on a table. He took off his metal glove and placed it in his storage cube, then removed his cube from his belt and place it on the bench where he was sitting. He gave the cube a command to shock anyone that tried to touch it, just so that no one would steal it, and walked onto the padded field. He stood in front on him, smiled, and said, “Let our match be a good one,” raising his hand, as if for a handshake.

Bruce was a bit taken aback. But he took a step forward and grabbed Press’ hand to shake. “Huh, yeah, let’s kick each other’s asses.” He took a few large steps back, to get some distance, and then when Guardian called for the match to start, he charged forward, closing the distance as fast as he could, and presenting his well practiced football tackle.

Press had taught himself to never make the first move, to get a feeling on his opponent's strengths. When Bruce charged toward him, he raised his arms as if to defend himself, then, as Bruce made skin contact with his hands, proceeded to try to roll onto his back while moving his hands to Bruce's chest. At the same time, he stuck his left leg in front of him on the ground to try to trip Bruce while moving his right leg to Bruce's lower area (perhaps around the stomach region) to push Bruce up and send him flying. This was a trick that involved using an opponent's momentum against him, and Press was once surprised to see how far one flew. A charge, of course, was perfect, since the charger only had a narrow field of vision and carried a lot of momentum that couldn't be easily stopped by himself.

Tripping is illegal in football, and for a second, Bruce forgot that that wasn’t what he was playing. His legs were kicked out from under him, and he was falling forward over top of Press. He grabbed around Press’ neck, meaning to pull him to the ground with him. If it came down to who could take the most full body hits, Bruce was confident he could win this one. He’d bring the both of them to their backs together, and keep pulling them down until the other guy was too battered. That’s how he’d have to fight without his powers to give him an advantage.

Press felt hands grab around his neck, and only had time for a mere "Uh oh" thought before his body continued with its planned motion of kicking outward, sending Bruce flying, but forcing Press' body to slightly move with it. This resulted in Press' disorientation as he was flipped onto his stomach in an awkward fashion, and the power of his kick reduced somewhat. Bruce would still be undoubtedly flying, but not so much as if Press' maneuver had been successful.

Bruce rolled on his shoulder and scrambled quickly to his feet. His head was spinning from the blow, but he was already moving, in spite of his shaking vision. He had meant to keep his hands on Press, but was now mentally kicking himself for letting go. He needed to close the distance again. But something was wrong. He realized as he moved toward Press that the other teen was moving much too fast. He was already back on his feet and ready to intercept Bruce when Bruce realized that the shock of the blow had disoriented him, and his time was desynchronized, making him slower than everyone else. To Press he must have looked like he was moving in slow motion.

Press shook his head as if to clear his mind, then rolled onto his side and pushed himself back up, jumping onto his feet. He suspected that Bruce had merely grabbed him due to instinct, but wasn't entirely sure. He got into a defensive position, palms open. He did not make fists, as they were only capable of breaking his own fingers, plus he could never make decent fists.

Bruce stopped for a second, and concentrated on the flow of time. He brought it back up to what seemed like a normal level.

“Thanks,” he said across the mat to Press, “You’re a good guy for not taking advantage of that.”

Press was slightly dumbfounded by Bruce's comment, then realized how he seemed to move in slow motion. He mentally kicked himself, but he also knew that sometimes going on the offensive was dangerous as he couldn't tell how the opponent would react. "No worries. After all, this is a spar, not a death match," Press replied. "Now come on, unless all you can attack me with is a dimwitted charge," he said, trying to taunt Bruce into attacking again.

“Pft, like I’m doing that again,” he moved forward without hurry this time, hands up and ready to get in the way of anything Press wanted to throw. But Press was still intent on not making the first move, so Bruce threw a quick jab, and followed it up with a straight punch.

Press blocked Bruce’s jab with his left hand and dodged his punch, then immediately counterattacked and tried to hit Bruce’s face with his right palm. If that failed, Press would proceed to spin using his momentum and try to land a low left kick.

Bruce’s hands kept Press’ first strike at bay, but he took the kick to his hip with a grunt and a wince. He retaliated by throwing his leg out in a vicious kick to Press’ chest.

Press lowered his leg after the kick had landed and barely saw the kick headed toward him. He reacted by raising his arms in a cross position and partially blocked Bruce’s kick, sending him back a few feet onto his back, knocking the wind out of him. He did his best to recover from the blow, taking a deep breath and trying to get back up. Press immediately had an idea and pretended as if the blow took more out of him than it actually did, grunting as he pushed himself up with one arm, raising himself slowly. If Bruce approached, Press would attack with a sweep kick to Bruce’s feet, then try to pin Bruce down by placing his foot on his chest. Otherwise, he’d get back up and resume his defensive position.

It looked like Press might be down for the count, so Bruce walked towards him to extend a hand and let him up. He was sorely surprised to have a swift kick sweep him well off of his feet and onto the ground. While he was winded, Press jumped into action, and pinned him down with a stomp to the chest, further winding him, and holding him in place with the threat of added weight. Bruce grabbed at the leg and tried to push it off, twisting and shoving but he couldn’t shake him, and every time he tried Press would step his foot down harder.

He had fallen for a little trick, and he was considerably embarrassed for it.

Press did his best keeping his foot on Bruce without causing any serious damage, like broken ribs and such. Eventually, though, the struggle ceased, and it seemed like Press had triumphed. "Do you surrender?" Press asked, smiling.

“Yeah, yeah,” Bruce said, hot in the face from the exercise and the embarrassment. “Get off me.”

With the final sparring match finished, Guardian began working out the analysis of each member of the team, working closely with Vita, the two would stay in the observation deck for some time to work everything out.

Animal left his fellow overseer to make his way out to the recruits. All of them looked a bit ragged and tired some even had minor abrasions. He figured that they all knew that this was only the beginning. While Guardian handled things for "normal" human training; combat, tactics, and firearms- Animal held authority in areas of power conditioning and enhancement. See, unlike Guardian, Animal was a titan, he knew exactly what these kids were going through. Perhaps that's what gave him the aura of confidence he carried, one that overshadowed Guardian's. Even more likely, it was Animal's more vast experience in the field that gave him his edge of his peer.

"Well," Animal said as his laughing lines gave way with a small laugh. "That was certainly enjoyable." His tone carried this illusion of sarcasm, coming off as a bit coy and lighthearted if nothing else. "I hope you all aren't too tired, we've still got a big night ahead of us." His seemingly joking nature would probably be a bane for the more serious members of the team, but that was Animal, unrelenting on and off the battlefield. His words were met with a few groans, particularly by Ming, who was already worn out from her fight with Ambrose. These groans were simply met with a grin from the overseer before them.

"Alright, now then. Everyone head to the debrief room. You'll all be given your first mission specs. I'll be right behind you, just need to check up on a few things with Guardian and Vita." With that Animal made his way back to the observation deck, leaving the recruits to make their way to the debriefing room.

---

As he made his way over, Feng couldn't help but feel knots twisting in his stomach, he couldn't even handle his own teammate. It's not like she had really been trying to kill him, and they were already getting a mission?! Trying to find some resolve, the teen clenched his fist tight, telling himself that this was his choice, he was ready to face the path he had followed. Arriving to the room with his knew teammates, Feng took a deep breath. This still all felt like a dream...a really really horrible one.

Press went over to where he had left his glove and cube, and put them on. He felt much better now that he had them back, as he felt quite uncomfortable without them. Now, however, he had to head over to the debriefing room. He contemplated whether or not he should get his armor equipped, then decided he could get it later. However, he pulled out a remote-like device out of his cube and pushed a button. In a few moments Horus appeared and landed on Press' arm, then climbed up to his shoulder. He gave Horus a pat on the head, then followed the others to the debriefing room.

Bruce had barely sat back down when he had to get up and move to the briefing room. It seemed a little odd that they'd move straight to a mission. It was like playing a game the same night of open tryouts. But then, most football players aren't Titans. Bruce may have come off worse against robot guy, but he hadn't been using his powers. Hell, worse, his powers had messed up. It's a lot easier to stay desynced forward than to stay in sync. He would have dominated if he could use his speed. He could probably take on any of them at his fastest. It doesn't much matter what your power is if you get hit five times before you know you're under attack.

His in-transit musing meant that Bruce arrived in the briefing room with his ego re-inflated and ready for whatever they dished out. He saw Press waiting there already.
"Hey, lemme ask you something," he said, seeming like he might mention their fight, but instead he said, "Why do you pet the robot bird? Does it feel it? Does it care?"

Press was lost in thought when someone asked him something. He turned to see that it was Bruce, his sparring opponent. "Sure Horus feels it," Press replied. "But whether Horus cares or not is another story. I never intended for Horus to have emotions, but sometimes Horus does things that are beyond even my comprehension." As if to confirm that statement, Horus dipped him head down as if to nod. That was the thing with Press' ability to create machines. Sometimes his creations had characteristics that were unknown to even him, and it was up to him to figure out what those were.

Cora watched the match disperse, quietly moving to the back of the arena to avoid attention and then moved back to the doorway once the crowd dispersed. Someone would want to talk to her or something, and they'd comment on her eyes. Everyone did. Didn't matter if they were human, titan, or anything else. They always mentioned them and how strange they looked. I don't need this, I'll just go find it myself. she balled up her fist, the one that hadn't been stepped on, and started walking down the hallway opposite of the rest of the group.

Linn held the icepack to her stomach leaning against the wall of the large gym. She groaned when she flexed her ab muscles, it was like the next day after doing fifty sit ups times a hundred, there was a ninety-eight percent chance of bruising, according to the little medical android that was lingering out in the hallway when Linn decided to go to the medical bay she scanned Linn’s abdomen and after confirming gave her an frozen icepack then putted back to the medical bay. Linn couldn’t care less about the huge bruise that was forming, she was just happy there was no internal bleeding, because…well she’d have to kill Leng and he was too cute for that. Linn held no personal vendetta against him; it was a spar and a test, nothing more. She was sure that he received a few bruises from her as well so all in all she’d call them even.

Watching the other matches were quite entertaining, except for Magara’s. Linn was on edge throughout the entire thing she was so…afraid for Magara and for Brookes as well, she would have to end him if he hurt her and, blood stains were hard to get out of clothing. So when Brookes threw the match and let Magara win she felt relieved and a sense of respect for the guy, even though what guardian said was true Brookes was only looking after his teammate the best way he could imagine. Linn just hoped that he didn’t bruise Magara’s ego or pride too much, Linn would feel like that if Brookes had done that to her but Magara was different in many ways.

Linn’s body went colder than it was already with the icepack at the thought of already receiving their first mission. Even though everyone was extremely talented from their sparing abilities they were the new recruits, the babies of the Titans technically, and it was their second day and most of them were banged up. It couldn’t be anything incredibly difficult since their beginners but Linn couldn’t help but worry for the people she cared about, Magara, she had no idea why she was so protective of her, Linn would never admit it was because of her blindness because it was not. Something about Magara made her want to protect and defend her, and Linn hoped that she felt the same about her, otherwise Linn would have to admit she was crazy and she wasn’t ready to do that yet.

Everyone was filing out of the gym to the debriefing room so Linn got up as quickly as she could and made her way to Magara Linn placed a hand on her shoulder giving it a good pat, “Welcome to fight club kid. Don’t talk about it!” Linn laughed and took the hand that Magara hit Brookes with and placed the icepack on it, “That was some hit ya know for someone who never hit anyone before. At least you won your match though I rolled over on the ground like a pussy.” Linn cursed under her breath that the ice pack had already melted she took it into her hands again and as her hands turned to ice the pack froze. Satisfied, she placed it back on Magara’s hand, “We should head to the debriefing room.”