Farewell to the Broken Boy

Kanzen’s leaned forward on the table, resting his chin on crossed arms. His eyes traced every single student which strolled into the room, each had their own redeeming characteristics. With each slight movement and adjustment he made in his composure, his handgun clanked with it. He wasn’t too surprised when some of the students snuck glances at the utility, after all, it wasn’t common for a teenager to be laundering around a firearm. They all caught his eye, some more than others. The person to sit next to his left was a blonde girl, who had a slim figure, much like himself. Every student came form a different aspect of reality, there was even one with a dilapidated doll, and another with prostetic legs gleaming with luster. All of them were interesting, but his train of thought was as a figure dressed in full black suddenly came into his peripheral vision. Unlike the beige apparel the students were currently draped in, this man looked like a human crow, ready to scavenge off of unknowing first years. But, he definitely had no intention to feast on their feeble minds, as he appeared to have other matters to attend to. The man who introduced himself as Kentarou Hanade kept a straightened back, almost as flat as Kanzen’s usual physique. Kanzen didn’t recall the fourth year ever entering the room, he would have surely caught sight of the distinguishable uniform, contrasting the walls of a lighter hue.

It took a few moments before he recalled the existence of S ranked individuals, and deduced that this man was one of them. Kanzen straightened his tie in lieu with the student, as he was in the presence of somebody of notable worth, valor and accomplishment. His shoulders slightly tensed, and a worried expression appeared from beneath his viridescent overcropping. A lone eye appeared from beneath the hanging hair, meanwhile the other was completely covered. The man continued to go on about how covert the academy operated, and that any flow of knowledge was ceased from the outside world. Basically, the students accepted the invitation, with the approval of their guardians, and ventured into foreign terrain. As the ship casted off, Kanzen shifted slightly in his seat, losing some balance in his waist. He was quick to regain his composure, but was offset when he was informed that a week of school had already transpired. ”Great. Now I have to check in with all of my teacher late, and catch up. I’ll have to pick up the pace.” Although he had complete faith in his abilities to come to terms with some of his courses, he still disliked started at a disadvantage.

But, the 20,000 yen would have to suffice. At the mention of their ranks, Kanzen followed suit with many of his classmates and unraveled his identification, revealing his classification. He wasn’t surprised by the mediate rank, as there were many factors to come into play. Though he was a living human aimbot, his capabilities in other aspects were… lacking. Sure, he had a decent build, but that meant nothing with a slow reaction time. And his grades in literature weren’t the best in high school, which is why he opted out of any classes of the sort. ”...This guy has quite the technique of making stuff appear all of a sudden.” He had a few theories of why the man presenting all of this to them was a rank S.

But, such queries would have to be left for later, as the man briskly made his departure. The students were left in a few moments of silence, one even proposed a query pertaining to their next choice of action. Kanzen was about to speak up and offer a meager guess, but almost instinctively, most of them broke into conversation. One sporting a fine pair of spectacles abruptly stood up and made his way for the door. Perhaps the man received something less desirable, and was attempting to shut himself away from the others. A younger woman soon followed suit, like a lost puppy following its fleeting master. He shrugged it off and peered down at his firearm, still attached tightly to his thigh. ”Can’t wait to get to the firing range. Wonder how many of these people are in my classes?” He cocked his head, the pressed out strands of hair swaying with it. Kanzen looked to his left and glanced at the blonde who made her appearance as the last arrival. ”Um… Hello. My name is Kanzen Tadashi. That was quite the opening speech, hm?” A generic ice-breaker, molded by a young man outside of his comfort zone. He would be lying if he wasn't interested by the fact that she was a rank above him.

Ren had begun to observe everyone who had arrived before her when she noticed the boy standing in the doorway she had just entered. She didn’t recall seeing him on the way, and certainly didn’t remember seeing any movement in that direction. It was as if he had just…appeared.

“Now that everyone has arrived, we can finally depart.”

Ren was taken aback when he paused for a moment to shoot her a very nasty look. She felt her face heat up before looking away quickly. A mix of embarrassment and annoyance shot through her. She wasn’t exactly sure, but Ren was pretty positive that this boy was not pleased with her arriving a minute late. She waited to be reprimanded, but breathed a sigh of relief when he changed the subject.

As she listened to him speak, her eyes found their way back up to the door. After he introduced himself as Kentarou Hanade, a fourth year student, she noted the obvious difference in his uniform compared to the other boys in the room. Kentarou was wearing black as opposed to the light tan. Dread washed over her when he also informed them that they were all one week late due to “cyber terrorists.” This also made her very nervous. Why were there people targeting the school she was about to attend? And how in the world was she going to catch up after missing a whole week of school?

"...your student card can be found within the envelope. Your rank is listed at the front of the card. If you believe you have been ranked inaccurately, you are free to rise up on your accord through the shuffle matches. Either that or you can wait patiently for the reclassing in three months."

Just like Kentarou’s mysterious entry, an envelope that had not been there before appeared on the table. Ren blinked a few times to make sure she wasn’t hallucinating and then gave the boy at the doorway a curious look. She tried not to let her wariness get the best of her and once he left, she retrieved her own student card like everyone else.

Ren raised her eyebrows when she found that her ranking was B-class. She was pleasantly surprised although she had secretly taken a peak at some of the other cards. A few other people were in the same rank as her, and she was pretty sure the only A-class was the strange looking girl who held a stuffed rabbit. Ren glanced at her for a moment and noted the very blank expression on her face. It unsettled her a bit, as everyone else had begun to converse with one another, but Ren shook the feeling off. Everyone in the room seemed nice enough with the exception of the blonde boy sitting in a dark corner by himself. He just looked like he wanted to be left alone.

She was content to just sit and ponder what to think of the allowance given to her. It was yet another sweet surprise as Ren had never had that much money on her. Just as she was pondering what she could even spend it on, a voice to her right pulled her out of her thoughts.

“Um… Hello. My name is Kanzen Tadashi. That was quite the opening speech, hm?”

She looked at him. Ren noticed earlier that she was sitting next to a boy with a gun attached to his thigh and she still didn't know what to make of it. He had a very friendly face even though his long hair covered most of it. She could still see one green eye peaking out at her.

She smiled awkwardly.

"Hi. Uhhh...I'm Ren," she laughed a little. "But I guess you already knew that, right? Are you as a lost as I am right now?"

Lord Santa said
'You build robots? That's so cool!' Able said, eyes sparkling. It wasn't everyday that you met someone with prosthetic legs, after all, and he was glad that the one person he met with prosthetic legs was friendlier than she first appeared. He didn't mind the pronunciation of his name, he found it hard to say many Japanese style names, so it didn't bother him if someone had trouble with his name. Maybe he would already make a new friend. It was shaping up to be a good day!'You must be really smart! I don't know how I'm in rank B myself. I'm not that great' Able said with a sheepish grin. 'Nice to meet you, Kobayashi-San! What subjects are you doing, by the way?'

Kimiko had almost forgotten what classes she had taken for the year. "Hmm... robotics, computer science, calculus, applied science, biology, a~~nd general PE. I think that's all of them. I already have plans to build an ASIMO or something similar. My father works for Honda so he's going to get me some parts. I think I'll make it taller though. Which means I'll have to adjust the parameters for balance. Also, coordination software... Kimiko went on for a bit about the changes necessary to build her first robot of the year.

She realized she was rambling about it and decided to change the subject to spare him the headache. She had become accustomed to discussing the finer points of robotics with her father, there were many nights where she had stayed up late talking with him, her mother would just smile and serve them tea. Most of her friends in school just ignored her rambling and left her to her own devices. It was easy for Kimiko to get lost in her work. "What about your classes? Are you taking anything interesting?"

Midori said
'Hmm... robotics, computer science, calculus, applied science, biology, a~~nd general PE. I think that's all of them. I already have plans to build an ASIMO or something similar.'

Able had heard of the ASIMO, which was apparently a super advanced humanoid robot, which was amazing.
'You're planning to build one of those?' Able asked in amazement. 'That's sounds awesome!'
"What about your classes? Are you taking anything interesting?"
'Well, for me, I think I have Physics, Astronomy, Astro-physics and General PE.' Able said, listing the subjects he remembered.
'I'm trying to be an astronaut. But now that I think about it, I wouldn't really need Astronomy or Astro-physics unless I was making the rocket myself.' Able thought out loud. 'Whoops.' Able said, giving a silly smile. 'Anyway, maybe we'll be in the same class in PE.'

Victor looked back at Aoife, smiling as he struggled inwardly to understand anything she just said to him. She was speaking...English? He only spoke German and Japanese, and even then, struggled with the latter. He understood...'luck', in the entire sentence she spoke to him. He gave an embarrassed smile, his accent thick as he struggled with the words. Why did language elude him so easily? His sister had taught him a single sentence in English, it was a sentence he could say in almost every language, entirely because his father had frequently dragged the pair of them to conferences and summits, and while his sister seemed to be a linguistic expert, Victor often found himself alone with a gaggle of foreigners talking to him rapidly.

"I sorry, I do not speak English."

She must have heard him speaking in German. So she understood German? No, then why speak to him in English. Guess it was back to Japanese and sounding like a neanderthal...

"I speak Japanese, ja?"

He decided against bowing this time. No one had responded to it before, and she didn't look Japanese anyway. She had pale hair and aqua eyes, and was rather small, even compared to Victor's lithe frame. He gave a polite nod with another smile, pushing his glasses up with one hand.

"I'm Victor Steiner. Nice to meet you."

His green eyes fell on her camera. Perfect way to start a conversation! Alright, time to be sociable and make a friend! It was a well known fact school is much easier with someone to share your experiences with. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad after all.

"Oh, you enjoy pho...er...phu..."

He flushed red again. He didn't know how to say photography in Japanese!? Are you freaking kidding, was it just Embarrass Yourself Victor day? He blinked for a few moments, then pointed at the camera, face still bright red as he tried to give a nonchalant smile, which instead came out as an embarrassed grimace.

"...p-pictures. You enjoy pictures."

Today sucked.

Aside from the on-going discussions being heard within the room, Ryu felt that the only words he really cared to hear were that of from Juliette, who had just pretty much asked him if she could be of any assistance. Ryu concluded that she was meaning about his staring at her. It took him a few seconds, and he shook his head slightly, as if trying to gather himself. Remaining silent for only a few seconds longer, Ryu spoke. “Oh I’m sorry.” He said briefly, “I didn’t mean to stare, but I saw that you’re the only one out of all of us that is an A-rank.” Ryu said still slightly red, “I’m intrigued.” He said.

Ryu knew that what he probably was saying sounded creeper-ish. He didn’t want it to come off as that way. He truly found Juliette interesting. If not for the fact that she was the only one to be an A-rank, then perhaps it was the way that she presented herself and the way that Ryu’s first impression of her was. He just couldn’t explain it, but there was a definite intrigue from him to her. Whether it would be received back the same way was unknown to him.

7:43 AM
Control Room of The Merlin

Kentarou had yet to understand Natsu's interest in those 11 students.

Amongst the 63 students who were affected by the cyber terrorism, Natsu had explicitly requested these 11 be brought in separately from the rest so she could test them. He was honestly peeved with the act he was about to commit but the teachers had granted approval and he owed Natsu a debt.

He sighed.

«Mental Jam»; the ability allows the user to freeze others. It did not stop time itself but merely their perception of it. It was what allowed him to enter the room as well as placing the envelope down without their knowing. However this ability was not Kentarou's. Kentarou's actual ability was «Sunder». As long as he fulfilled his conditions, he could 'steal' the powers of others albeit with some restrictions.

His powerful array of abilities was why he become an S rank student as well as the vice-president disciplinary committee. It was also why he was completely suitable for the task Natsu had prepared for him.

---

7:48 AM
Control Room of The Merlin

Before he realized it, most of the students had broke into conversations or had already left the room.

Hiiro wasn't exactly fond of socializing with randoms but he was about to turn into 'that one guy' that this rate. He had numerous options: 1. start a conversation with an already formed group, 2. start a conversation with someone who has yet to do so or 3. remain quiet and hope someone approaches him.

He decided on option 2 and the person he selected to talk to was none other than... shadow blonde.

"Gabriel, was it? So it looks like you're into psychology."

---

7:48 AM
The Deck

The first ones to realize the abnormality would be none other than Victor and Aoife who out in the open.

The Merlin was rapidly engulfed in a light fog. While visibility was still present onboard the yacht, the surrounding view turned into an endless wall of white.

Suddenly, one seagull appeared on the deck. Then another. And another. Soon, Victor and Aoife were surrounded by an army of seagulls. One after another, they began to caw and finally, they zerged the two with intent to injure.

His words made her raise her eyebrows in pleasant surprise and her lips settled into a smile. "Intrigued? I'm quite flattered that you are, though I am nothing special," said Juliette. While her appearance gave one the impression of innocence, she spoke with a refined grace, almost a bit too formal for a teenager. "I guess they liked my academic results. I do like learning...new things," she added with a twinkle in her eyes, her smile growing ever so slightly, almost mischievously.

Oh, look at you. First few hours and you're already making friends. He could be useful. Kojima, Ryu. B-Rank, Usa-chan spoke in her head, which was immensely helpful, for she had already forgotten everyone's names and ranks.

Juliette leaned forward in her seat, resting her chin on the palm of her hand, appearing interested in his words. "Being placed third in ranking is no small feat. You must be quite talented, Kojima-san," she stated, eyes sweeping over him before settling on his own with renewed interest. He was athletic, and looked slightly older than her. So far, she had only tried her magic on those equal to her age and not of much strength. She was quite curious to find out if such things would affect her spells.

You might have to find that out sooner than later. Something isn't quite right, the spirit's voice sounded alarmed. Juliette wondered what it had detected but it went quiet after that. She couldn't exactly prod it for an answer without speaking out loud, but that could possibly deter her new companion from her. And she couldn't risk that..not when the prospect of new experiments were so high.

When Juliette gave up the reasoning of why she was ranked so high, Ryu couldn't help but wonder if that was truly what she thought. Given that the academy was for those of special talents, maybe it was hers that allowed her to get a high ranking. Ryu could be wrong on that. Maybe it was as she stated and was merely for her acedemics, but there was something about that reasoning that made Ryu doubt it. Not her, but just that general reasoning overall.

When she leaned forward, Juliette would return Ryu's initial interest with her own and stated that him being ranked third was no feat to be overlooked. Ryu smiled and let out a slight chuckle, as if embarrassed somewhat. Though, she did bring up a really good point and she was correct in saying that he was talented. Not that Ryu would openly admit it since he's somewhat modest in that way, but he does know at least that's skilled in an unique way. "I thank you for your kind words, but the fact still remains that I'm B-rank." Ryu said, stating the obvious. "I would very much like to know more about you, Juliette-chan." Ryu said, eyes sternly locked on hers as if not wanting to break contact for any reason whatsoever.

Well that was a surprise - she thought that speaking English was pretty common in Germany. Still, she shrugged it off and smiled a little - her Japanese wasn't the best and chances are, she would completely fail at any kind of menial conversation. It was slight ironic that she had introduced herself to him in the hopes that she could have a little taste of home, but they were both stuck with speaking in Japanese.

He could smile, which was a nice discovery, Aoife thought - maybe he wasn't as harsh as she coined him to be. Frowning a little softly, she looked to her side, expected his hand to pop out in some form of greeting; handshakes were a big no no for her so she would have left him hanging if he did so. He didn't, which was good, it meant that the first time they talked wouldn't be the awkwardest situation ever.

Smiling over at him, she kicked her Japanese back into action. "Aoife Brady, it's a pleasure to meet you, Victor." She couldn't help but think back to the switch between primary and secondary school. Back then, she could make friends at her leisure due to already being with quite a number of friends but now, she had no other choice than to actively go out and befriend someone. Aoife already felt isolated enough, never mind having no friends.

Her eyebrows furrowed involuntarily at him as he tried to work away at the word he was thinking of. Still frowning, it took her a few seconds to pick up on what he was getting at but the pointing to the camera really helped. Smiling down at her camera, she looked up to see him glowing a bright red and immediately knew that her initial opinion of this guy was flat-out wrong. "Don't worry..." She reassured with a soft smile as her eyes flicked up to meet his. "Japanese eludes me too!"

Aoife hoped that would help him - she was a little shy herself and although he was probably a lot worse than she was, she did feel for him. Turning her attention back to the camera, she shrugged a little. "Japan is a beautiful country and I suppose I just want to document my time spent here..." She murmured, not exactly wanting to tell him that she was going to send all the pictures back to her mother - personal stuff like that came after first-impressions. Victor seemed to be pretty nice if she had to say so now and he could be a viable friend, but he would just have to get over the no-touching thing. He seemed shy so it wouldn't be a massive problem.

She had been so engrossed with talking to Victor that it took her a few minutes to notice the fog settling in around them. Suddenly feeling a slight chill run down her spine, she crossed her arms, digging her hands in under her arms for warmth. The shorts and t-shirt really didn't help at all. "Is it just me or has it got a little chilly?" She breathed, frowning and looking around in complete confusion. Aoife had no idea how fog could set in so quickly. The low drones of the engines were even muffled by the thick cloak that had been thrown over the deck and things fell eerily silent.

Eerily silent until the gulls started landing on the deck, of course. Frowning deeply in confusion, she took a step back against the railing before recoiling from it, feeling a few more land in behind her. "Victor? Do you have food or something...?" She questioned slowly, not making much movement as the small-army of gulls stared at them with their beady, dull eyes.

She naively thought that Victor was just carrying some food that they wanted - Aoife knew that she wasn't carrying anything of the sort. Why, they suddenly swarmed like locusts, she would have to ponder later.

First reaction? Scream, of course. Second? Shield face - she thought her eyes to be her best features, she wasn't going to let some pack of angry gulls poke her eyes out. Third, of course, was as natural as the other two - run for cover. Batting off any of the winged-demons, she darted for the door where she knew she would undoubtedly be protected. It was only when she had begun running that she even begun to think about Victor. Prying one hand down, she grabbed at his hand, hoping her gloves would prevent any sort of contact between them as she tried to drag him away.

Aoife seemed nice. Victor breathed a sigh of relief as she managed to avoid compounding his awkwardness, though the mention of Japanese being difficult for her as well confused him a bit. Well, communication would be pretty stilted between the pair. No big deal. She muttered about her photos, not looking at the German. She seemed a bit shy, or...uncomfortable. Nerves perhaps? It was their first day in a new country after all, the boy could understand feeling out of your element. He smiled again, looking back over the surf.

"Ja, vell I'm looking forward to be seeing it. I haf never been."

A frown crossed his lips, and he pulled his glasses off, took a silk handkerchief, wiped them, then put them back on. Nope, not his glasses. Fog was everywhere. Absolutely everywhere. It had deadened the sound of the yacht, and Victor could feel a chill run down his spine. He looked back at Aoife as she spoke, confusion on his face.

"Victor? Do you have food or something...?"
"No, I haf no foo-"

Seagulls, everywhere. Like some kind of horde, just staring at the pair. Victor instinctively took a step back, bumping into the railing.

"Uhhh...is...is zis normal Asia?"

The birds suddenly surged forward, causing Victor to give a yelp and throw his hands up. He swatted at the animals, knocking them aside as he kept his head low. Protect your face, seagulls weren't exactly built for battle, but a beak to the eye would quickly blind him! He hunkered over, completely frazzled by a swarm of flapping, scratching, and biting. Translation and language went out the window as he yelled in German, cussing as his ear got pecked and a webbed foot scratched the back of his neck.

<OW! WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON!?>

He went for another swat, then felt his hand grabbed by a glove. Aoife was suddenly pulling him towards a nearby door.

<OW OW! WHY BIRDS?!>

He lashed out, catching one of the birds by the body and throwing it backwards. Another bit his wrist, causing him to yank back into his body. As the pair reached the door, Victor gave a hard kick, still clinging to the girl's hand. Yachts weren't built for durability outside of the hull, they were built for parties and impressing. This meant a lot of posh with little utility. At least on anything that didn't protect something valuable. The door opened under the impact and Victor pushed Aoife and himself through, then threw himself bodily against it, holding it shut as mad squawking and scratching rang over the wood. Still unable to even consider speaking in a language outside his own, the frazzled boy yelled in German as he looked around in shock.

<ARE THERE ANY WINDOWS THEY COULD GET THROUGH?!>

Blood dripped from numerous shallow scratches on Victor's face, and his suit was frayed and torn in a few areas. Where did Aoife even drag him? Speaking of, how was she? He didn't dare move away from the door, his kick had effectively broken the latch and holding it shut was about the only way to make sure the birds didn't swarm in and eat them. His green eyes fell on Aoife.

<Are you alright?>
His common sense finally kicked in as he took a moment to take a deep breathe still looking around for windows the birds could slam through. Back to Japanese.
"Sorry, uh, you alright?"

It looked like most of the occupants of the conference room were occupied with conversation now. He felt two people leave the room, going for the upper deck. Perhaps they needed some fresh air.

"Gabriel, was it? So it looks like you're into psychology." A voice suddenly said. Looking up, he noted the speaker. He believed it was... Hiiro Furuta. He seemed to be japanese judging from his accent and his name, but his eye and hair colours would say that he wasn't. The Japanese people generally have black hair and dark eyes but he had blonde hair and blue eyes. Still, he had been asked a question and it would've been rude not to answer.

"Yes, I am." He replied. "I am taking psychology as a subject, and I wanted to learn about it early." He said politely. As he opened his mouth to ask the blonde Japanese boy about his subjects for small talk, he realized something was off. Looking around he realized that the room had gotten slightly darker than before. The lights still seemed to be functioning, why had it gotten darker? Then he realized it. Thick fog was blanketing the ship, blotting our the sunlight.

This is good. Gabriel thought. I can go outside without worrying for now.

Then, something else caught his attention. Whipping his head around to the general direction of the upper deck, he could suddenly feel a large amount of extra blood present on board the ship. Focusing his ability, <<Sanguine>>, he felt that there were multiple small circulatory systems moving rapidly through the air and seemingly attacking two larger human figures each with an elevated blood pressure. Birds were most probably attacking the students that had gone out, and they were probably seagulls as well considering no other bird would be this far out at sea.

Seagull or not, they were in trouble and it looked like they weren't coping too well. They were running now, across the deck and into an empty room. They seemed to have put some kind of barrier between them and the seagulls, as he could feel the birds suddenly stopping in mid-air at a certain point.

Standing up, he put his hand umbrella and psychology book away into his pockets. Picking up a chair, he turned to leave the room to assist the students, but not before informing someone of the situation. Turning to Hiiro, he said:

"Some students are being attacked. Gabriel said. "If you want to help, pick up a chair and follow me."

Without waiting for the boy, Gabriel ran out of the room, onto the deck of the ship and he was on the way to the trapped students.

Getting to the upper deck where the two students had gone first, he found very small traces of blood. Touching it, he could feel that there was very little blood and it had only come from some very small cuts. Following the blood trail with his ability, he ran across the deck trying to find where the two students were. Focusing on the feeling of human blood, he found them, still holding inside the room he felt them in before.

Rushing to the general area, he found the swarm of seagulls. The swarm was maniacally attacking a door which looked to be slightly broken, and he could see an imprint of a shoe sole. One of the students had probably kicked the door open and rushed inside. The blood pressure of the people inside were still slightly elevated, meaning they were still in a tense situation.

Not wanting to waste any more time, Gabriel raised the chair over his head and threw it with all his might. The chair sailed through the air and through the majority of the seagull crowd, dispersing it for the most part. The chair landed a little ways from the door. Running over to the door, he knocked on it to signify he was human.

"In a few seconds," Gabriel shouted to the people inside, "Prepare to open the door when I knock and close it quickly!" he said. He got a few knocks in response and he assumed that was an agreement.

The seagull swarm was reforming and now they had their sights set on Gabriel. He quickly ran over to grab the chair as a means to defend himself with before running back to the door before the seagull swarm could reach it. Knocking again and initiating a countdown, he started to use his chair to swat at the seagulls and keep them away from the door.

"3! 2! 1!" Gabriel felt the door open inwards, and he jumped backwards as he threw his chair again. The chair scattered the swarm as Gabriel went backwards into the room, the door shutting in front of him. His momentum propelled some more, and he felt his legs hit something solid as he sailed backwards into the room. Falling quickly, his back made a solid thud in contact with the ground with a loud ow! Escaping from his lips. Sitting up a little and seeing that he'd tripped over a girl, he scooted backward slightly, got up and sighed.

"What the hell is happening here?" He asked wearily.

Alvin was sitting comfortably in his seat as the S rank student appeared along with the rankings and cards, he didn't think much of the strange occurrences, he was never a very perceptive person. Opening up the envelope he read the card, holding it and looking on both sides...A D rank? He thought to himself, giving a short burst of laughter aloud he muttered quietly. "Guess I'm not that gifted after all." There was certainly a mistake, that wasn't arrogance it was a simple fact, Al had always been a solid B student, C was the minimum and even then it was rare for him. That meant one of two things: either the other students were much smarter than he was, enough so to push him down two grades or (most likely) he had been placed in the wrong category. Either way, he was going to be putting himself forward for a shuffle match very soon, he wasn't quite sure what it would involve but if it was the quickest way to rank up and it meant he could avoid a three month wait then he was going to at least give it a try. He tucked the card away into his pocket and leant back in the seat and spoke aloud, trying to be optimistic about his disappointing grade. "Ah well, at least Academia's closest to the academy."

Looking around he noticed most people had begun having conversations, deciding it would be odd and rude to butt in Al headed up to the deck, maybe there would be some good views. As he headed up the staircase he heard quite the commotion accompanying someone shouting in...German? So he wasn't the only foreigner attending, that was comforting, what wasn't comforting was the violent squawking and fluttering of wings he heard as he neared the deck. Just as he reached the doorway he herd something heavy collide with something else, through the crowd of birds he saw a chair and then a person and then an opening door and then just a wall of whiteness attacking the shut door. It was then that some began going for Al, the started hammering the glass part of the door he was watching from, the most making it even harder to see things. He retreated back down the stairs to the conference room and started yelling, at first in English but upon remembering where he was he switched to Japanese. "Hey! Shut the windows! There's a swarm of angry birds trying to get in! I think they've trapped someone on the other side of the ship!" Shutting the door behind him as he entered the room he tried his best to not come across as panicked, more just urgent and he hoped the others would take him seriously. "C'mon this isn't a joke!"

Aerial Assault

A greeting and kind smile was a generic expression to put on during first time impressions. Since it’s important for the receiving party to think highly and openly, and have a good idea of a person overall. At the propose inquisition, he raised an eyebrow behind the clump of flattened hair. The young man definitely followed, but the fourth year’s sudden appearance was slightly unsettling. It was most likely able to happen due to his ability, but the specifics and prerequisites of said ability would never be exposed to the public, much like the school’s internal operations. ”Can’t say I’m completely cost. Some questions are still lingering. But no need to dwell on them. Pleased to meet you, Ren.” He noticed that her line of sight was slowly gravitating towards his sidearm. ”Oh, this? It’s a HK P30. The school board didn’t want me to bring in anything high caliber, so a pistol had to suffice. I’m sure there will be some rifles at the firing range at the academy, kind of interested in the board’s tastes.”

Kanzen was lost in dreaming about the possible firearms at his disposal, but his mind quickly returned to reality. ”Who knows, we might have a few classes together?” He queried, cocking his head with a tint of hope. ”I know I’ll perform well in Tactics and Assassination, and the other courses are just to affirm my overall effectiveness.” The young an astute tone, taking in any factors which could prolong advancement for himself. Strength and experience was something he needed to ascertain, and this academy was the perfect place for such a task. Though most of the students were wearing their uniforms with a little bit of their own personal accessories, these two were committed to the base apparel, and were wearing what they were given with their acceptance letters. The young man’s lone green eye dilated, ”Well, it’s gonna be a hassle getting up to speed. We’re a week late after all. But, I have faith in all of our abi-” Kanzen was cut off when he heard a loud thump to his behind. He called a window in the direction of the sound, and surely enough, there was a seagull. It was pressed against the pane of glass, then disengaged itself from the clear surface and flew up towards the deck.

By this point, his ears began to pick up shouting from above. It was most definitely originating from the students who had vacated the meeting room. ”If you want to help, pick up a chair and follow me.” But, due to the fact that time was of the essence, he didn’t take the time to pick up the chair he was sitting on. Instead, Kanzen slipped off his jacket, hoping to use it as a shield. ”Let’s go help them out, and see what’s happening up there, at least.” As he got up, another student who had left quickly returned, and began to shout out in English. The man quickly changed dialects, and commanded that they close the windows.

”Already did, we’re going up there to see what we can do. Why are they randomly attacking this ship?” A worried expression and a furrowed brow could be seen on the left side of his face, meanwhile his hair was shrouding the right. But in contrast, he spoke in a very mellow and stoic tone. Kanzen made his way for the upper deck, not wanting to lose time. He glanced down at his sidearm, ”If only this thing was loaded, they’d be out of the sky.” By this point, the captain had probably sounded for some sort of assistance. After all, their students were being blatantly assaulted by a flock of seagulls. Once he was on the deck, he peered through a circular window, built into the door. His eyes traced the formation of birds, like a fighter jet constantly bombarding ground forces below. Their beady eyes were focused on a blonde who was making a break for another compartment. The doors quickly granted him access, to which he tumbled inside, and was closed off from the attackers.

Once Gabriel fell inside, the first row of seagulls came clashing into the medium between them and their prey. A majority of the formation was smart to split off preemptively, and was waiting for a next target. Kanzen gripped onto the metallic hinge and pulled swiftly on the level. When he pushed out the hulky door, it creaked with rust. The young man might as well have set off a dinner bell for the flock of birds. ”Oh crap.” Was all the student could split out before slamming the door shut tightly. He fell back against the iron wall, as a barrage of birds ensued onto the door. The student managed to catch his breath, as he was completely useless in this situation. He glanced over to Ren, who was a few steps below him. ”Got any ideas? I don’t think I can use my jacket effectively. Could catch a few birds, but then they’d just continue to assault us relentlessly.”” Kanzen got back to his feet, and waited for the girl to come up with an option.

Able was having a really nice time conversing with Kimiko, when a scream cut the air.
'Huh?!' Able said, turning to the sound which came from outside the conference hall.
Someone was yelling in a foreign language outside. Able got up to investigate but the boy with the Golden eyes brushed past him with a chair. Able watched him leave the room in a hurry, confused as to what he was doing with the chair. Able went up to the door window and what he saw surprised him. A wall of flapping white birds, birds which he knew very well. Seagulls, the bane of peaceful beach goers and the thieves of the innocent. Seagulls. And they were angry.

Able saw the golden haired boy jump into a storage container which shut quickly, sealing off the seagulls. Smart. Able thought. Able would probably just run around the whole boat with seagulls on his tail waiting for someone to think of an effective plan. Able noticed that the green haired guy and the girl who was late were also staring at the scene outside.
'Got any ideas? I don’t think I can use my jacket effectively. Could catch a few birds, but then they’d just continue to assault us relentlessly.' The green guy remarked to the girl.
'We should probably think of a plan with the others first.' Able remarked, staring out the window.
No seagulls were attacking the crew, which opened up a few options. Maybe he could run into the kitchens and grab some fish or something to distract them. Then the others could... do something somehow? Maybe as he was running, they could free the guys from the container or something. Then what? He could run into the container with all the birds and then someone could close the doors effectively trapping them. But he would be trapped to. It was hard to think of a plan, so he went back to tell the others the situation.
'Hey everyone! There's a lot of seagulls attacking the ship!' He called into the conference room.

All the commotion had started up so suddenly Kimiko barely had time to process what was going on. Seagulls attacking the ship? She had never heard of seagulls attacking people before but upon looking out the window it was apparently true. Some students had left the conference room as well. They had probably fled to another compartment somewhere, at least she hoped so. What could she do to help? Nothing came to mind at first. Kimiko started thinking aloud. "We can't just leave them out there but how do we get past all the seagulls..." She started pacing around trying to think of something. "We could try distracting them with fish or something but that wouldn't get us a lot of time. Maybe I could build a robot to smash all the birds!" Kimiko made a fist and punched the air in triumph.

Then she thought about all the resources it would take to build something like that. "Hmm... that would take too long wouldn't it?... Wait! Birds use the earth's magnetic field to navigate the world right? Maybe I could put together a magnetic field generator to confuse them! Right, let's see..." She looked around the room. There wasn't much to work with and the luxurious decor made it hard to spot anything useful without ripping off panels. There was a flatscreen TV at one end of the conference room but other than that she couldn't really tell. "I'll need my tools too. I'll be right back."

She made her way down the corridor where they had first entered and found the room where all the luggage was being kept. It was easy enough to spot her bright white bags among the others. all of them were neatly arranged by the butler that greeted them. She wondered where he had gone in a time like this. Wouldn't he be the one to inform everyone of the situation at hand? Putting that thought aside she reached for her bag and opened it up to reveal the mess of spare parts she had brought with her and the toolbox. She grabbed the bright red toolbox out of the luggage and made her way back to the conference room. The toolbox was so heavy she had to hold it with both hands as she entered the room. "Anyone want to help me build an anti-bird field emitter?"

Aoife never would have minded being thrown into the room, for that matter - she knew that Victor was probably just getting her out of harm's way. She really wouldn't have minded at all, if she could actually have the ability to use her mind.

Things were not ok. She didn't even know how it happened - her gloves were damaged but not that damaged; contact should have been virtually impossible. Maybe it was just a slight brush of palms or the locking of fingers but whatever it was, Aoife was about to experience a storm she wasn't yet ready to see. Victor was nice but reading his memories came later, just to check that he wasn't a murderer or anything else unsavoury.

Staying in the spot she landed, she slid onto her hands and knees, feeling a deep sickness in her stomach as she groaned lightly. Then they were there. Painted across her mind in the darkest colours possible - it wasn't even memories she saw, just pure, unaltered emotions that were extremely dangerous to her. On the outside, she had froze, her eyes staring off into the distance and her face going whiter than before.

It wasn't anger she felt; it was barely even dread - what she saw was a dark history that could explain Victor's nervousness. If she had to go through all that, she would be a nervous wreck as well. It fell over her like a dead heat, enveloping her previously happy-turned-scared thoughts and reversing them, molding them to fit the memories that she had received.

It went on for another minute, the intense feelings of isolation and being trapped taking over her - it was enough to scare her into being claustrophobic. She was only actually pulled out of her daze when some silly boy tripped over her. She barely even realised his presence but his weight falling against her was enough to wake her from the clouded dream that had enveloped her. Taking in a sharp intake of air, her eyes focused down once more and a little colour returned to her face but her emotions were still a wreck.

Aoife was up on her feet in no time, staring around the room like a deer caught in the headlights. She was terrified. It wasn't the birds or anything of the sort, it was the intense feelings of imprisonment joined with being locked inside a rather small space. It was intolerable, the gnawing feeling of dread that was awakening in the pit of her stomach. "Let me out Victor." She insisted quickly, moving to him with wide eyes. She couldn't handle it - she needed to find somewhere safe, somewhere where she couldn't be hurt and she could breath properly. That was another problem - her breathing was beginning to suffer and her heart was beating wildly in an attempt to get blood to her over-worked mind. "Please... I just need out..." There was the beginnings of a panic attack forming in the interior of her mind, her symptoms bunching up to form a perfect storm.

"Oh, there's not much to tell. I was born and raised in Yawata, my father is a priest, and life was very mundane growing up," Juliette replied. If you count raising spirits, animating dolls and causing others pain to be mundane, that is... she added in her head. Some things were just not meant to be disclosed after all. Especially not when things were going so smoothly. It wasn't everyday that someone else expressed an interest in her. If it continued like this, it wouldn't be too hard for her to obtain her first 'specimen'. The thought sent shivers of delight down her spine.

"And you, Kojima-san? What do you-" Her words trailed off as other students started shouting in the room about being attacked by...seagulls? How absurd. And were they really so weak to be afraid of a bunch of birds? Though, judging by the expressions on some of their faces, she figured that the situation was not really that simple.

Perhaps the birds are being controlled by someone or they're not real at all. Either way... I can sense magical anomalies in the air. Someone else is causing this, Usa-chan stated and she frowned at the rabbit in her lap. "But why?" Juliette wondered aloud, momentarily forgetting that she was not by herself. Who knows? Maybe they're sadistic. Maybe it's a test. I don't understand you mortals, anyway, the spirit replied unhelpfully making her roll her eyes at the doll.

Juliette cleared her throat. "We may be able to deal with them temporarily but I have a feeling it won't stop at that," she announced to the room, her voice calm yet loud enough to be heard by the others. "Think about it. Why would a bunch of squawking, feathered fowls attack us without provocation?" she questioned, looking around at the other students in turn. "Someone is causing this. If we want to stop it, we have to find out the source."

Victor slammed the door to the cabin back shut as Gabriel fell inside, tripping over Aoife. The German's initial adrenaline and panic over being attacked had dropped now that they were safer, though he was still breathing a bit heavily from the sprint. He was terribly out of shape it seemed. As he pushed against the door, the boy who had just entered asked for clarification. Victor winced as several heavy thuds hit the door.

"Birds seem to sink ve are sandviches."

Then Aoife moved up to him, eyes wide.

"Let me out Victor. Please, I just need...out."

The German looked at her, then immediately went into doctor mode. Examine. Her eyes were darting, she was hyperventilating, and hugging herself. Claustrophobia? He looked around, the cabin wasn't tiny, but it wasn't large either. A few bay windows, partially obscured by curtains, were on the far wall. He couldn't let her go out there, the birds would hurt her far more than anything in here could. Seagulls weren't exactly deadly predators, but a swarm of biting creatures could still kill or seriously injure, if given the time. But he knew better than to say she couldn't leave, you don't tell a Claustrophobic that they weren't allowed to leave. Had to distract her, keep her inside until they figure out a way to deal with the birds, but not make it seem like he's trapping her. Körperwissen. Victor's pupils dilated as he examined her, searching the pressure points, the nerves, every crackling of her synapses. Her inner workings laid bare as he looked over her organs, her vitals, her veins. The boy smiled, wiping his face with one sleeve. The boy behind her, a mass of meat, pulsing organs and viscera in the German's eyes.

"I vill, ja, but can help me first? I need sose drapes please?"

He pointed at the curtains covering the windows. Pulling them down would open the windows more, but it seemed the seagulls hadn't thought to circle around. Or were being distracted by the other students? Hard to tell from inside the cabin. But having the windows more open could help with claustrophobia. His eyes fell on Gabriel.

"So I sink I haf idea, sose drapes sick, gut padding. Vear sem like...uh...panzer?"

He gestured at his body, trying to convey the meaning. What was armor in Japanese? Shiesse, he should have brought a dictionary. Or his cellphone. Doubt there'd be reception here though...

"Remind to buy cellphone when arrive, ja?"

The initial panic had worn off, and now that Victor was thinking of this in a formulaic and observant fashion, he found it...fun. His humor started to bubble up as the challenge appeared before him: Save the vitals, the students, from the attacking foreign bodies, the gulls.

This was surgery.

Ryu sat in the chair across from Juliette as she would explain, at least in some bits, of her life. She said that she grew in Yawata. Ryu knew of that place. It was in the Kyoto Prefecture. She then said that her father was a priest. Ryu's eyes conveyed interest as she would speak. Compared to his rather dull life, being that of a priest's child sounded more interesting than being the father figure to three younger brothers whose real father left them when Ryu was real young. Yes, it definitely was a lot more interesting than Ryu's own life. "Must have been hard. Being the daughter of a priest is definitely something that couldn't have been easy." Ryu commented, mixing in his own experiences with those who were children of priests and other religious-like figures.

When Juliette would ask Ryu the same thing that he asked her, a commotion would soon present itself to The Merlin as cries and screams would be heard and then there was the mentioning of seagulls were attacking the room. Ryu's first thought instantly went to the two that left the room and how Gabriel also left. If they were attacking the conference room, then it was no doubt that the three that weren't present in the room were being attacked as well. That's when the idea to at least close the windows came up and it would seem that someone had already did that. So, at least that was something that could halt the birds from attacking further. Or at least, getting through. However, the fact still remained that they still posed a threat to everyone in the room.

Ryu was about to say something, but two things happened. First, Kimiko, the girl with big boobs and fake legs, returned to the room with a toolbox after she had suggested building a machine to fend off the seagulls. Ryu thought that was a smart plan. The second thing that happened was Juliette bringing up the fact that maybe the seagulls were attacking cause someone had it to where that they would. Meaning, someone else was the cause of this and not those damned birds. "Juliette's right. These birds are naturally neutral. Even if they're annoying winged-creatures, they don't attack unless provoked." Ryu said echoing Juliette. "I think we should split up." Ryu suggested, "One group stays with Kimiko and help her build the Anti-Bird Field Emitter, and the rest of us goes and finds who the hell the source is." Ryu said, not sure if anyone would agree or not, but considering the circumstances, it was the best suggestion yet.