---

Nuna's initial sentence was soon cut off by Yayo Fiji's announcement that reverberated against the walls of the training room. Daichi decided against taking his eyes off the succubus who had yet to elucidate herself. Once the elf's voice faded off into silence, the underlying murmur in the room resumed between the students as they maneuvered to their designated spots. Kuroda's primary focus easily shifted to the sea of students, spotting some familiar faces in the balcony overhead. "Just come here you fool. Enough explaining." The succubus snapped, and the heels of her boots sounded dangerously close to him. The cat whirled his head around only to feel a pair of warm hands grab his face with force. The unexpected turn of events threw Kuroda off completely, as this was the second time today this same creature advanced on him.

A flurry of emotions rose from within the Nocturne; anger, shock, chagrin, and anything along those lines made Daichi's head throb. He brought his hands to the girl's shoulders, gripping them tightly in an endeavor to wrench himself away from her assault. However, he gradually loosened his hold on the delicate frame, noticing that he was not losing more energy, but actually gaining it back. The muscles in his face relaxed as he leaned into the kiss, becoming almost mesmerized by the powerful sensation- gathering life force by such means was something he was quite unfamiliar with, and he felt himself rejuvenate with ease. A hand slid down the length of her arm as he closed his eyes, clearly making the whole scene look a bit more sensual that it was truly meant to be.

Suddenly, he jerked himself out of his daze and pulled himself away just before she followed suit. He brought the back of his hand to his lips, panting as his heart rate jumped in an instant. He was fully healed, as if he had just been standing under the strong rays of the night sky when the moon was full. Daichi wiped his mouth aggressively, his brows furrowed in slight vexation. Damn it, damn it, damn it! He let out a groan while he swore in his mind, gritting his teeth behind his gloved fist. "Umm, how do you feel?" Nuna chimed after a short pause. Kuroda lifted his gaze from the floor to meet the eyes of the succubus, who was glancing up at him in anticipation. The cat opened his mouth to speak, but he stopped himself before he blurted out something unnecessarily.

"How do I feel? You just--" The cat came to a halt, closing his eyes to take a deep breath. Calm down, Daichi... she's just trying to help, nothing more. He calmed himself down enough to respond properly. "...I feel much better. Thanks for that." He forced a smile, lacking some form of integrity. Unable to come up with any other words to say that wouldn't come off as impulsive, the cat spun on his heels and tucked his hands into his pockets. While he walked over to the passage leading to the balcony, he felt a certain spring in his step that only returned once he was fully rested, or energized. I probably should have thanked her properly. He shrugged off the thought and finally found himself a seat at the top. Satisfied with the spot he selected, he kicked his feet up onto the railing and crossed them accordingly, folding his arms behind his head.

Zensei Zaza

After being ditched by Daichi, the feeling of sadness expanded within Zensei. He let out a breath of boredom after Yayo's message echoed throughout the room. He fluttered to the front row of Section B and spotted the median seat, his favorite. Instead of sitting on the luxuriously cushioned part of the seat, he sat on top of the transparent golden backboard to see over the ocean of C rank students.

Zensei began clapping his tiny hands together when a large translucent screen fizzed into view, in front of all three sections. In the A rank's section, the screen featured a female mermaid in some water that looked like a glowing bright blue grid. Her red hair spread across the surface of the grid along with the top of her breasts that bulged out. Strangely enough, anything below the grid was not visible. In the B section, an Incubus was on the screen in a candlelit Gothic bedroom. What he wore was only the sheets of his bed that he laid in, creating a visible outline of his muscular body. His hair was short and black, messy from the red pillow that it nested in. In the C area, a turquoise glowing pixie was on the screen. She wore a white long dress that draped over the shell of a turtle. Both she and the turtle were resting on a cloud, the pixie laying with her back on the top of the turtle.

The holograms began to all speak at once, making a tone that brought chills to Zensei's body. "Welcome to combat training, students. Our activities today will help you in survival training, where you will either move up a rank, stay in your rank, or move down a rank. You will fight one other student from your rank, then get an analysis of your performance. After that, you will be put into a group with two other students from each other rank different from yours and fight other groups of three. Each member from the winning group will be able to choose from a pool of weapons to keep, and be later recognized for their amazing teamwork and skill. All of your classes and activities you attend here at Rosewood have a purpose; to defend Mystia from the Night Monarch. Don't forget what you are here for."

The screens then began to list who would fight who. Zensei was eager to see who he would fight, hoping it would be another pixie. "I need to show these bitches who the top pixie is around here." He whispered to himself, eyeing one of the purple pixies he saw on his way to class. "Zensei Zaza will fight," He began licking the roof of his mouth, anxious to smash the purple apple. "Zephyr." His jaw dropped in fear, remembering his towering appearance and giant hand that could break every bone in his tiny body with the flick of a finger. He screamed at the top of his lungs as he flew over to some weights, picking up the heaviest dumbbell with the help of gravity. "I must win!" He growled with his teeth shut.

Nodah Listig

The Nocturne slipped seamlessly beside Nodah, landing on his feet. How very feline of him, Nodah thought, lips quirking. "Yes, I am," he said. "You do not seem lacking, a worthy foe. Rank A, might I assume?" Somewhere, in the distance, Nuna was kissing Daichi again. Reas had entered as well, and was occupying himself with some light boxing while he waited. He looked at Mischa, eyes continually drawn to the ears that sat atop his head. Curious, curious company. "Oh, we shall begin soon," he said, eyes flashing an excited green as holograms flickered into being before their respective sections.

A mermaid addressed those ranked A. Scanning the screen for who he would be facing, he caught Desdemona's name beside his own. He turned to Mischa. "I wish you the best of luck with Reas," he said. "Have you met him? The human on skates?" He did not truly know Desdemona. Granted, she had been involved in the morn's fuss over Daichi, a scuffle between two females for one Nocturne. It was perhaps not the most foreboding light to cast one's opponent in, but Nodah was not about to woefully underestimate the female demon. He could only beseech the mercy of the gods if he did. He wondered what impression he had put forth of himself to the students of Rosewood, if at all. Little, and less, Nodah thought, with a wry smile to himself.

Leval Lamrue

Leval looked up at Rowan. In response to his makeshift bow, she seemed to be attempting to cover a small laugh with a polite cough. She seemed to visibly relax, her eyes locked in to his and stayed this time, a breath of air passed through her lips, and Leval could make out the faintest hint of a smile. Leval grinned, pleased that he had made a much better second impression. Rowan let go of her dress and held onto her golden ID necklace, murmuring "You too?" Before Leval could give her a reply, Yayo's announcement cut through the crowd. Rowan looked up at the ceiling and then gave him a polite nod of her head. Leval returned the nod, gave her smile, and allowed his illusion to grow back to it's original form, appearing to grow naturally.

Leval moved to a seat in the front section, taking a corner seat so he would not block the sight of the other students. He set his connector to record audio in order to not miss any detail of the start. A large screen with the image of a turquoise pixie and a turtle on a cloud. 'Whimsical?' Leval raised his eyebrow at it in contemplation. The hologram began to speak, it had a strange quality to it, as though one voice with different flavors was saying the same thing in perfect time with itself. He looked backwards and assumed that the other class's screens were saying the same things. The mention of the Night Monarch caught his attention, the being hadn't been too far on his list of reasons for coming here simply because he didn't know too much about it. He made a note to find out more information later.

The screen shifted revealing the fighting partners for the 1x1 battles. Leval licked his lips nervously, looking for his name on the list. 'Leval Lamrue will be fighting Rowan Delacroix.' His heart plummeted in his chest. 'Great, I just got her to speak to me and now I have to fight her.' He slapped his hands onto his cheeks and let his elbows rest upon the table staring at the board.

"human on the skates?" Mischa wondered, looking around "can't say i have" he looked back at Nodah "you and the elf are the only one that i've really met, and yes i was given the rank of A" he looked up at the screen seeing his name next to one Reas Grimorea 'hmm...' he thought, looking over the rest of the list on the screen he found Nodah's next to someone named Desdemona "so have you met your opponent?" he asked turning back again to Nodah.

Zephyr

Zephyr grinned a slow, sadistic grin. A legitimate reason to crush the annoying pixie? He was so in. He walked over to Zensei, who was lifting the heaviest weight using his powers, amusingly determined to win. Zephyr didn't doubt that he was capable, or else he wouldn't be here, but even so, Zephyr refused to give him even the semblance of a victory. He bared his sharp teeth at Zensei in amusement. "Ready to go?" He asked, laughing. He sized him up as he spoke, taking note of anything that might be important. Zensei was fast, and unpredictable, given how weird he was. If Zephyr caught a grip on him, that would be the end. Presumably Zensei knew that, so it was highly unlikely Zephyr would ever physically touch him. The fact that the floor was wooden was an advantage. You could tease any sort of wood into growing again, and there would be none of the loudness that came from springing plants up through the soil. Zensei was a Gravitin. This meant that Zephyr had to anchor himself to the ground if he didn't want to be floating around helplessly. Another question was whether he'd be allowed to use his usual destructive fighting style. Collateral damage wasn't of much interest to him. He turned to the hologram of the Incubus, and spoke in a lazy, confident drawl: "Am I allowed to wreck the hall?"

Dᴇsᴅᴇᴍᴏɴᴀ Cᴏʀᴄᴇʟʟᴀ

"Welcome to combat training, students. Our activities today will help you in survival training, where you will either move up a rank, stay in your rank, or move down a rank. You will fight one other student from your rank, then get an analysis of your performance. After that, you will be put into a group with two other students from each other rank different from yours and fight other groups of three. Each member from the winning group will be able to choose from a pool of weapons to keep, and be later recognized for their amazing teamwork and skill. All of your classes and activities you attend here at Rosewood have a purpose; to defend Mystia from the Night Monarch. Don't forget what you are here for."

Distracted by the announcement, Desdemona focused more on seeing who her opponent was rather than Nuna and Daichi’s confrontation. Reading the name next to hers on the screen, “Nodah Listig”, Desdemona began to conserve her magical energy for the match. She didn’t feel like she would lose, but underestimating an enemy wouldn’t be wise, especially if they’re also rank A. “I have to win.” Desdemona thought as she contemplated what would happen if she lost the battle. She knew worrying about an uncertain result wouldn’t benefit her chances of winning.

Taking precautions, Desdemona pulls the notebook from her nightstand out of her jacket pocket. Opening to a blank page, she begins to draw a conjuring sigil which is a difficult task when given little room. Ripping the page out once finished, the emblem emitted spores of energy, “Seal.” Desdemona whispers causing the spores to be absorbed into the paper. Folding the sheet, placing both it and the notebook into an inner pocket, Desdemona waits for the duel to start.

Rowan Delacroix

Rowan's eyes flickered towards the holographic screen that appeared before her. The blue pixie that claimed to position of her instructor proceeded to explain what was required of the students for this class. A wave of reassurance swept over the vampire when the pixie stated that each rank would be fighting against their own level, but she still felt uneasy about fighting shortly after her entrance into Rosewood. Her vision went blurry as a searing pain stabbed at her temples and her ears rang for a brief moment. Rowan clutched the sides of her head as she attempted to steady herself. The rest of the hologram's speech was inaudible to her while she went through this phase. "No... no! Why now of all times?!" She pressed her palms harder against her ears and shut her eyes tightly, trying to fight off the daunting feeling- her exhaustion from the fight earlier had awakened her thirst for blood.

"I mustn't let this blood lust take control- I need to overcome it..." Rowan took deep breaths. Her mouth went dry, but her determination kept her concentration set on taming her urges. With a little self-training, the vampire was able to develop a remedy for these sudden attacks. It was very much unlike the practices of her family, who satisfied their hunger whenever they pleased. Her stomach upset at the thought. "I am above them. I needn't dwell on them for long. Just breathe..." After a few instants passed, Rowan had composed herself well enough to sit up straight. She glanced around from beneath her hood to gauge whether or not someone had witnessed her scene. Soon, however, the names of the students flashed on the screen. Her focus returned to the list, a sense of foreboding loomed over her as she scanned for her name. There it was: "Rowan Delacroix will be fighting Leval Lamrue."

Her eyes widened at the sight. "Of all the students..." She clenched her teeth and tightened her hands into fists, digging her nails into her cold skin. Today just wasn't her lucky day. Rather than brooding over her situation, Rowan stood up from her seat and carefully made her way over to the middle floor. She made sure to tug the cloak further over her face to deter any attention from her appearance. She then crouched down to the wooden panels and placed the tips of her fingers on the smooth surface. "Is there even the slightest chance that I may prevail?" Her thoughts trailed off once again. She obtained a piece of chalk from within her drape and pressed the tip lightly against the floor. She hesitated before she began to draw a cross on the ground, very similar to the Gothic one adorned around her neck. Rowan made sure to leave out certain details of the image, that way nothing spawned before the battle itself. "This will be my last resort." She stood up once again, brushing herself off and stepping back to admire her work.

Nodah Listig

"Oh, yes, we've met," he said, in response to Mischa's question, "Well, perhaps to say we have met would be loose usage of the term. I exchanged a few words with Desdemona over the fainted object of her affection as we broke fast, and she said nothing to me." With the chirpy manner of a sparrow, he stretched forward on his tiptoes, hands buried in his pockets, and beamed at Mischa.

He heard Zephyr ask if assured destruction of the hall was permitted. Nodah was more concerned about the knives he had tucked in his belt. But surely. This was an institution specifically for the magical. Its forefathers must have had the foresight to predict a clash of sorts involving adolescents with too much power and not enough discipline. He would not be surprised if this duel in a controlled and safe environment - or as safe as could be - did leave a mark on the combat training hall, but he would be shocked if that counted against anyone. "Mayhaps you would like to introduce yourself to Reas," Nodah said, beginning to melt into the crowd. "Beg pardon, for I would like a few words with Desdemona before the duel." He let loose a parting grin. "May they compel her to lust for my death as little as is possible."

Silently, he walked up to Desdemona, sneakered feet making little noise against the wooden floor of the hall. Just as she was tucking away a notebook, he slipped into place beside her from behind, eyes flashing between burgundy and green at the movement. Nodah clasped his hands behind his back, and stood as though he had always been there, had any right to be. "It appears we must face off today," he said pleasantly. He inclined his head towards her, reading her eyes carefully. Here be demons who loathe to lose. With the jealous events of the morning, Nodah would wager a guess it was in Desdemona's blood to be competitive. "I wonder, what becomes of those of us for whom triumph elude?"

Dᴇsᴅᴇᴍᴏɴᴀ Cᴏʀᴄᴇʟʟᴀ

The human gravitin from the dining hall approached her. "It appears we must face off today," Nodah speaks, “A gravitin-” Desdemona wondered what the true extent of his power was. He could probably do more than just lift a body off the floor, he is rank A after all, “This could be difficult…” the realization that this might be a challenging victory, Desdemona couldn’t help but smirk. “Bring it on.” eagerness fills her body.

"I wonder, what becomes of those of us for whom triumph elude?" He asks, “I was wondering the same thing, but I don’t plan on being the one to find out.” Desdemona replies with a hint of arrogance, “May the best creature win.”

Nuna Mori

"...I feel much better. Thanks for that." "No problem." The boy turned around and walked away from her after giving his gratitude. She would have loved to stay and chat with him, but she had to run over to her appropriate section before classes begun. A hologram had appeared in front of the B section, with an Incubus lying in bed. "Nice introduction..." Looking around the room, she noticed multiple holograms with different creatures on them, simultaneously giving their address. "Welcome to combat training, students. Our activities today will help you in survival training, where you will either move up a rank, stay in your rank, or move down a rank. You will fight one other student from your rank, then get an analysis of your performance. After that, you will be put into a group with two other students from each other rank different from yours and fight other groups of three. Each member from the winning group will be able to choose from a pool of weapons to keep, and be later recognized for their amazing teamwork and skill. All of your classes and activities you attend here at Rosewood have a purpose; to defend Mystia from the Night Monarch. Don't forget what you are here for."

None of this really intrigued her because she wanted to get to class. Feeling some sort of hype from looking at the Incubus, she was ready for class. A list of the competitors were revealed on the projection and traversing her eyes down the list, grunting at the sight of Desdemona's name, she stopped at her name. Who the hell is Kuroda Daichi? She began spanning her eyes across the room to see the people she didn't know. "Roller skate boy. Cat man. Rifle cat. And the late girl with the hood. Out of those people, I wonder who is my opponent." She was enthusiastic about who this person might be and desired for these matchups to begin.

Leval Lamrue

Leval watched Rowan as she read the board, the small amount of her face that he could see looked surprised and then some other more complex emotion that he could not make out. She rose and pulled her hood further down her face, blocking Leval's view of her expression. She rose to the middle of the room where the fighting would no doubt occur, and started drawing something on the floor.'She must be a necromancer then,' Leval realized. None of the other classes of magic he knew of made use of summoning circles. 'I suppose she is preparing to fight, still though she seemed pretty drained.'

He had seen her just before the fight listings were revealed,clutching her head, she seemed like she was more injured then she let on. If he fought her, she would most likely lose simply due to her exhaustion and he could take a terrific first impression on the other students. Especially if he could take out the summoning circle early. On the other hand, fighting someone weakened who had shown him respect even in his real form seemed simply wrong. However, not fighting might insult her as a dismissal. Sweat broke out over his brow and his head sank lower to the table. 'Gah.'

Leval stood, brooding over his choice.
He strode over to Rowan, hands in his pockets. He stopped a fair distance away."Are you sure you want to fight now? You are exhausted. I can conjure false weapons to practice drills. That way you can have energy for the 3x3 battle. There isn't a penalty for not fighting now. If we are to fight, I would prefer that you had the energy for it. But I will accept your decision whatever it is."

---

The Nocturne closed his eyes and sunk even further into the seat, getting comfortable in his position before a holographic screen flashed ahead of him. His eyelids fluttered open when the mermaid on screen chimed in over the dying murmur of the students. Daichi's ears wriggled beneath his hat once he heard what the conditions were for Combat Training. Hell yes. He rocked back in his chair then swung forward, using his momentum to bring himself to his feet. A 1-on-1 battle with another A-Rank, huh? Let's see the unlucky bastard I'm facing. Kuroda entwined his fingers and stretched his arms forward, cracking his knuckles in the process. As he neared the projection, his brushed his fingers along the screen to scroll through the list.

He narrowed his eyes as he scanned for his name. D... why are there so many goddamn D's in the A-rank? Daichi rolled his eyes impatiently and resumed the tedious search. When he finally found his own label, he cocked a brow at the text. "Seems like there's no getting away from her." His lips curled into a slight smirk as he thought aloud, swiveling his head around to locate the succubus. To his surprise, she wasn't seated with the other A-Ranks- Nuna was found in the rows just below the elevated terrace. His face snapped from a goofy grin to a grimace, and he tapped aggressively on the transparent screen. "How come I'm not facing against another A?" Kuroda spoke at the hologram, which gave no satisfactory response. Frustrated, he strode towards the staircase that lead him back to the main floor. No point in getting all riled up... maybe it was a mistake in the system. He attempted to find any tangible explanation for the situation, all while he made his way down the steps. "After you have confirmed the opponent whom you will be facing, please make your way over to the designated training rooms. Be sure to have your identification necklaces ready- they will need to be scanned in order for you to proceed."

Following that announcement, Daichi joined the newly formed line of students as they waited for the the three doors in the back to open; above each door hovered the the letters A, B, and C. He was still hung over the fact that he had been set up with a lower rank- wouldn't that put him at an unfair advantage? While he pondered, the few students ahead of him finally stepped through the door. His vision was obscured from where he was standing, so he was unable to determine how anyone would get to their assigned rooms. Once he reached the front of the line, he peered through the entrance only to be greeted by a long hallway that seemed to stretch for miles. "What the-?" "Please swipe your identification card over the scanner." His mumbling was overlapped by the monotonous voice stemming from a kiosk that had materialized right before him in the middle of the doorway. Kuroda slid his necklace across the blank screen accordingly, and a student id picture (he didn't recall ever taking) appeared on the monitor, along with his basic credentials. "You may proceed, Kuroda Daichi." As this was stated, the register faded and the hallway transformed into a secluded room with thickly padded walls.

Daichi shrugged and eventually stepped into the room. When he glided past the doorway, a grid was projected across the passage. He walked through nonchalantly, seemingly unaware of the illustration. The door behind him disappeared as well, leaving him alone in the all-white training area. Another voice echoed from an unknown source, breaking the silence that lasted only a few seconds. "As you wait for your opponent, please note that an individual protective barrier has been activated upon entering the room. This shield will assure your safety during the match."

Traveling through the thickness of the wood's wildlife was one of the biggest traveling struggles that Maman Akujo had faced so far. As she continued her rough journey through the forest and towards her destination, beams of sun shone upon her freckled skin, making clear the bruises and cuts that had occurred from hours of tiredly tripping over rocks and roots; attempting to navigate through the heavy fog around her did not aid her either.

She released a sigh filled with exhaustion and looked forward at the reason why she had endured so much with no complaint: the Rosewood, School for the Gifted. It was here that she was to learn how to control and use her powers properly, and at the thought of this, a smile spread across her lips. With renewed energy, the young human stood a bit straighter and marched onwards at a faster pace.

It was not long before she stepped out from the trees and in front of the large building with exhilaration running through her veins and out through her tired breath. Akujo moved forth a single step before suddenly, an unknown figure slashed at her body, causing for her to fall to her knees into the dirt. With some difficulty, she lifted herself from the ground to find herself confronting a dark shade. Seeing at how it was unusual that such a creature decided to attack her at this moment, it was assumed that this was a sort of examination that needed to be passed in order to enter the school. This thought sobered her a bit, but did nothing to ease the throbbing ache of her body.

The shadow figure sprang forth, choosing to advance in a straightforward fashion, and so she adjusted her body into a defensive position. Whilst doing so, she tried to gather her magic and, once the enemy came into her range, increased the force of gravity upon her opponent. Though this didn't have as great an effect as she thought, the speed at which the being charged at her greatly decreased, allowing for her to draw her fist back and punch it as hard as she was capable of.

Her foremost thought was merely to try and harm the creature as best as she could physically, but soon realized that she didn't know anything of its physical composition. Luckily for her, it fell backwards and disintegrated into the atmosphere, and following this was a strange voice whose words boomed throughout the area. The owner of it said, "Congratulations, Maman Akujo. You have successfully completed the final step for your acceptance into Rosewood. Performance rank: C."

The registration of her low ranking did not occur in her brain, for she was simply ecstatic to be accepted into the school of her dreams. The smile that had pervaded her lips crept upon them once more as she walked through the gates and into the complex. The uniquely-eyed female passed by many of her soon-to-be classmates, who, for some reason, had various shades of bruising and scratches that ran about the length of their bodies and whose eyes seemed as tired as hers, if even more so.

Soon enough, she arrived in front of someone who seemed to be the receptionist who greeted her with a cheerful grin upon his facials.

"Why, hello there! Welcome to Rosewood! May I ask for your name, race, class, rank, and electives chosen?"

At first, Akujo stood and stared upwards at the great man, whose height easily dwarfed her own. However, with her brain gently nagging her for staring for a bit too long, she snapped herself from her thoughts and said with as much enthusiasm as she could muster, “Hey! I’m Maman Akujo! I’m a human, with a Gravitin class, I believe. The voice said that my rank is a C, and I decided to choose art and potion-making as my electives.” (continued)

With a lighthearted chuckle, he recorded the necessary information into his program, and then suddenly, an intriguing necklace came into view, levitating upwards a bit before swaying down and into her awaiting fingers. The elf said, “That’s your identification necklace. All of your room info is on the back, so make sure to always keep it on your person, okay? The one-on-one fights ended already, and you look tired, so I suggest that you head to your room right away so that you can get some rest.”

At those words, the human nodded and quickly headed off to search for her new room. It took a bit of time, but soon she found herself standing before the door of the quarters she was to be occupying during her stay here. She sucked in a nervous breath, the thought of her roommates already being in the room causing for her heart to race, and she simply opened the door and stepped inside.

To her great luck, they weren’t here yet, possibly still returning from the one on one fights that the other being had mentioned beforehand. Brain choosing not to absorb the fresh feel of her new room, Akujo lethargically ambulated to the nearest bed and jumped upon its soft covers, sighing into the pillow before quickly falling asleep.

Nodah's eyes narrowed into a squint at Desdemona's words, recognising a prideful tone. If she imagines me easily vanquished in battle, mightn't it serve my interests better to play the image? he thought, removing the squint in exchange for a wane grin, and bowing his head. "May he, or she," he agreed.

"After you have confirmed the opponent whom you will be facing, please make your way over to the designated training rooms. Be sure to have your identification necklaces ready - they will need to be scanned in order for you to proceed." Nodah waved a hand forward. "After you," he said, and waited for Desdemona to begin moving first before he fell into loping step beside her to the training rooms.

They came to the quickly-growing line for the doors. Nodah stared at Desdemona, molten hazel eyes peering down at her, assessing. When they were at the front of the line, Nodah gestured for the demon to step through first, before he promptly followed, only to find himself alone in a hallway that seemed to lead on for eons. If I were to walk this path, he thought vacantly, where might I find my journey's end? He scanned his student identification, the miniature eagle pendant winking dully in the dim light. "You may proceed, Nodah Listig." The walls of the far-stretching hallway dissolved to give way to a room that seemed suitable for combat, and Nodah stepped in, looking around to find Desdemona already in the room.

He closed the door behind him, and it slammed with finality, dissipating as well. "It appears nothing lingers long here," Nodah said to no one in particular, walking the edges of the room, fingers forming depressions in the foamy walls that bloomed full with passage of time. Would the same hold true of the feuds and bitter defeats they stood to conceive here? He turned on his heel abruptly, to face Desdemona. "You seem intent on winning," he said, indicating Desdemona's competitive streak. It is as shallow as the oceans, was his wry thought. "I take it you came to Rosewood with ambition in your heart." A Why? dangled precariously from the tip of his tongue, but he clamped his mouth shut before it could fall between him and Desdemona. Prod a vessel too relentlessly, and you risked it imploding. Nonetheless, the unsaid question invited her to answer.

"After you have confirmed the opponent whom you will be facing, please make your way over to the designated training rooms. Be sure to have your identification necklaces ready - they will need to be scanned in order for you to proceed." Mischa noticed the growing line for the training room doors and chose to head for it. he looked around to see if he could see the skates human before heading into the training room but unfortunately didn't before he reached the front and faced the hallway. he swiped the necklace across the scanner and waited until he was told to proceed before entering the combat room, he didn't find his opponent within so he sat with his legs crossed on the floor and waited for the arrival of his this human on skates.

Rowan Delacroix

Rowan was shaken out of her trance by the familiar voice that echoed from behind her. Her shoulders tensed up from the abruptness and she kept her head lowered. With her face out of view, she was able to avoid the stare of the other concerned party. "Are you sure you want to fight now? You are exhausted. I can conjure false weapons to practice drills. That way you can have energy for the 3x3 battle. There isn't a penalty for not fighting now. If we are to fight, I would prefer that you had the energy for it. But I will accept your decision whatever it is." Leval chimed in apprehensively, clearing expressing his unease. She opened her mouth to respond, but she hesitated as thoughts started to fill her mind with different scenarios. "He is certainly a creature with great solicitude. Maybe I should hold his words in high esteem?" Rowan lifted her chin to meet the gaze of the tall human. "His visage is one of sincerity- but what if it is simply a facade?" She stood motionless as examined Leval.

"It could just be an attempt to automatically win the battle- although the odds may already be in his favor. I must be wary." With that thought in mind, Rowan moved to close the distance between them only by a few steps. She looked up to face her opponent properly, being sure to show him her full expression. Her stoic face had a hint of determination, and her gray eyes flickered up at Leval. She stared at him unblinkingly. After another pause, she finally spoke with a quiet, steady voice. "I am undeserving of your worry, Leval Lamrue. However, I will not back down from this class." She slowly stepped back from Leval, lowering her eyes once again. "I will put my all into this battle, and I hope you will as well." Without looking up, the vampire pulled her cloak along with her as she turned to walk towards the forming line of C students. She kept to herself while she waited on the line. Once she arrived at the door, she looked into the dark abyss that was the hallway.

Rowan flinched when the scanner appeared and requested for her to scan her ID. "This school will require much tolerance for the unexpected..." She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. When the all-white training room replaced the hallway, she stepped into the area only to feel a light tingling sensation envelope her body. "As you wait for your opponent, please note that an individual protective barrier has been activated upon entering the room. This shield will assure your safety during the match." Rowan held out her arms out before her and checked her palms as well as the back of her hands. "Proper precautions were taken to avoid injury, but how much of a buffer is this shield?" As she pondered, she paced over to one of the cushioned walls and pressed her hand against it, which left a visible imprint.

Zensei Zaza

As Zensei repeatedly lifted the dumbbell, a familiar voice assaulted him from behind. "Ready to go?" It said while laughing, causing Zensei to drop the weight and quickly spin around. "Zephyr." he whispered to himself, starting towards his designated line. "Ready to go ape shit on yo' ass!" He yelled and accelerated.

After what seemed like forever, a kiosk appeared in front of him. "Please swipe your identification card over the scanner." Zensei thought that the voice was cute, so he smiled when he swiped his glistening green wing shaped card under a blue light. "You may proceed, Zensei Zaza." He blew a kiss and winked at the machine as he flew down the long hallway. "I hope to see you again cutie." Following his flirtatious attitude, the walls of the never ending hallway transformed into a thickly padded white room. "As you wait for your opponent, please note that an individual protective barrier has been activated upon entering the room. This shield will assure your safety during the match, only allowing minor injuries during combat. You lose when your shield's health depletes and it's glow dissipates." This excited Zensei very much. He began punching the padded walls and spinning around in the air while he waited for his opponent.

Leval Lamrue

Leval watched Rowan stride forward and look him full in the face, with courage and determination clear in her expression. "I am undeserving of your worry, Leval Lamrue. However, I will not back down from this class. I will put my all into this battle, and I hope you will as well." She pulled down her hood. and joined the line of C students. He let out a huge breath slightly relaxing the nervous tension that had begun forming in the pit of this stomach. 'I told her I would respect her choice, so all out it is.' He clenched his fists together and gulped. He walked over to the C line, his illusory form growing even larger and more muscular, the spikes extended further from his body and more began to sprout along the back of his arms, two particularly wicked point jettisoning out from his elbows. His teeth elongated into canine fangs in his mouth. He moved quickly through the line swiping his ID, and entered the room.

"Form one: Venom." Glistening green droplets began rapidly pouring down from his head, falling from his illusionary body giving a sizzling sound as they hit the white floor of the training. His illusory clothes appeared pierced and burned by the excessive changes. He reached into one of his pockets turned one of his light gloves to a moderate setting, and performed a quick Weave on the light. When he withdrew his hand, his illusion was wielding an exact duplicate of the rifle the Nocturne that had stolen his bed had left on the floor. 'Step one, exhaust her further.' His illusion began to fire rapidly, missing her by a hair's breadth everytime. The illusory bullets sound rang loud and true as they impacted the room. Inside the illusion, Leval tracked her movements focusing on keeping her on the defensive.