Thousands of fathoms beneath the surface, the great steel and glass spires of the Sanctum –headquarters of the illusive ‘Bloody Embrace’- glistened with faint white lights, shimmering in the murky waters that surrounded the academy on all sides. Reinforced with hyper-advanced technologies, the great mechanical towers withstood the immense water pressure with stoic ease, standing tall amidst the clusters of deep sea fish and underwater rock formations.

Sleek, cutting-edge submersibles zipped back and forth across the underwater campus, moving resources from one section of the sprawling academy to the other through specialised mechanical docks.

Wōden Tsuszó, Grand Assassin of the Bloody Embrace and headmaster of the Sanctum, sat in the darkness of his humongous library, a rare luxury in the digital age, the skeletal fingers of his mechanical left arm loosely clutching a glass of whiskey, from which he took occasional delicate sips. The only light which entered the room seeped in through the viewing window which allowed Wōden to survey the goings on of the academy from his spot at the tallest spire of the Sanctum, where he now sat; in a large leather chair place in front of the great pane of clear, molecularly reinforced, glass.

Vhul, the captain of Wōden’s personal guard, strode into the room, standing to attention a few feet behind the headmaster’s chair. Vhul was a giant of a man, with a dark skin and a cleanly shaven head, built like a bull on in its hind legs, clad from head-to-toe in reinforced black body armour, with an ornate power hammer –practically the size of a full-grown man- fastened to his muscular back. Wōden kept his back to the captain, watching a distant submersible move food between two of the lower-lying steel towers.

“The submarine has arrived, sir.” Vhul informed the headmaster in his deep, booming voice “The new batch of students have just touched down on Primum Dock”.

“Excellent.” Wōden’s voice was a soft whisper, so quiet that the captain had to strain to hear the headmaster speak. “You picked these ones out yourself, did you not, Vhul?”

“Yes, sir.” Vhul replied, his face an emotionless mask of stone “they seemed best suited to the task at hand.”

“Then this mission’s success rests on you, Captain, and the fate of our organization itself.” Whilst Vhul couldn’t see the smaller man’s face, he could hear the wicked grin that was sliding across his lips in the sneering tone of his voice “That’s quite the honour, wouldn’t you say so?”

“That it is, sir.” Vhul kept his voice devoid of emotion, gazing blankly at a nearby bookshelf.

“Do you feel honoured, Captain?” Wōden cooed softly.

“Yes, I do, Sir.”

“Say the words…Say ‘I feel honoured’.”

“I feel honoured, sir.”

Wōden gave a sharp laugh “Oh Vhul, you are amusing.”

“Will you be wanting to greet the new students, sir?” Vhul asked, after an uncomfortable silence had settled on the room.

“I doubt these one’s will make it past their first mission,” Wōden sneered “I think not. Send one of the older students to greet them. I’ll have a look at what’s left in the weeks to come.”

“As you wish, sir.” Vhul said plainly, before striding out of the room, and leaving the headmaster to watch the submersibles bob about the Sanctum through his great glass window.





Chantrea Tascroix had not been expecting visitors to her cramped little dorm room, so she got more than a bit of a shock when the thunderous pounding of a giant fist started wrapping against her steel door. Frizzy haired and without makeup, Chantrea sprang off of bed, closing down the holographic display that had been playing through her brain implant, and set about trying to fish something to wear out of her tiered sliding metal wardrobe.

“Just a second!” Chantrea hissed when the knocking continued, as she fought to get her underwear up over her chunky legs. The young woman had always began a big girl, but a fortnight without any assignments, coupled with snacking on whatever was easy and available, had resulted in a weight gain of a solid ten pounds, and a noticeably softer form. Chantrea squeezed herself into too-tight jeans which chaffed against her large thighs, and a sleeveless white t-shirt which exposed the lower roll of her soft midriff.

The young woman punched her security code into the holographic wall panel, her blast-proof steel door sliding open with a slick whoosh, revealing a ginormous, fully-armoured, black man with a hammer, which looked like it was made for squashing elephants, strapped to his back.

“Good morning, Captain.” Chantrea managed in her sweetest voice, leaning in the solid doorway with one hand, whilst fighting to pull her t-shirt down over her stomach with the other.

“Tascroix.” Chantrea couldn’t tell if Vhul hated her, or if he was just permanently fucked-off at the world. She decided it was probably a mixture of the two.

The young woman looked the giant man over “Can I offer you a slice of Mars Bar cheesecake?”

Vhul scowled at her “The headmaster wants you to brief the new arrivals.”

“Ooooo, did he ask for me by name?” Chantrea squealed sarcastically.

“Don’t push your luck, Tascroix.” Vhul growled “Get down to Primum Dock ASAP, and wear your uniform. I figure even you couldn’t cock this one up.” The captain gave Chantrea one last lingering scowl, before stomping back the way he came.

Probably got a wall to stare down the young woman mused inwardly.



“All right, new meat, listen up!” Chantrea barked, clambering on top of one of the supply crates so she could be seen amidst the large cluster of newcomers. A great metal submersible bobbed up and down at the end of Primum Dock, which the new arrivals had just filled off of. Chantrea was dressed in the standard issue uniform for female students of the Bloody Embrace; A long-sleeved black top with padded shoulders, divided into several reinforced segments, which flowed straight into a similarly structured skirt, black tights made from an extremely durable synthetic polymer fabric, knee-high black boots with a high-heeled compartment which stored a compactable harpy-knife, and slick utility belt which held a small capsule of pepper-spray and a collapsible blackjack truncheon. The young woman’s uniform had been made to fit a marginally smaller Chantrea, and hugged her plump form in a rather unflattering manner.

“I’m sure you’re all under the impression that you’re here because you’re special and gifted, but get that idea out of your head right now. In the Sanctum, you’re just another number in a sea of faces, so don’t expect any special treatment.” Chantrea’s eyes darted over the large group, taking in the figures who stood before her “The Bloody Embrace have something fancy planned for us, but you’ll have to make it past basic training if you want in. You’ve all been set up with temporary accommodation, your dorm rooms should have been sent through to your implants, which you’ll have half an hour to settle in to before we meet in the main hall for dinner. Once we’ve all eaten, you’ll be briefed on your first assignment. We like to keep things fast paced here.”

Chantrea took a deep breath “So, any questions..?”

A set of presentable clothes and a 'ticket' which equated to little more than what looked like a blank business card with otherwise arbitrary numbers in the bottom corner. The idea seemed silly to Kaite, but he didn't ask any questions when the clothes happened to fit. A simple oversight for most, but to Kaite it was a display of care enough to not have to fight with their attire the way that their greeter had to. The idea of a lack of order confused him, since he was often told fluff storied about the world being the way it was supposed to be, and most of the people he knew had scraped by with mostly baggy tatters to remind them of the better times...if they even existed.
However, her words completed the self defeating circle in a way that offered an answer to Kaite's confusion; numbers do not get special treatment, and she must also be a number.

Humans love their goddamn numbers...

With the thought, the chimera rolled their shoulders, slightly. The consideration of the situation was making the laser-branded '073' on his left shoulder blade itch, probably knew Kaite was thinking about it. Supposedly that's how sneezing worked?
Regardless, he had so many questions, but most of them sounded silly in his head or he assumed others would ask...or everything would be explained and her invitation to ask questions was irrelevant to actual procedure. Still, it was a sensitive moment with every opportunity to look foolish if approached carelessly.

"Uhm..." Came the chirp of Kaite's voice from the crowd, a hand raising from the sea of heads, "Vaht iz your name?" authentic innocence lacing the syllables of the question with an underlying tone of skepticism.
Nail'd it...

In all honesty, it was a trick question to gage her response. Based on the information Kaite had gathered from the assumption that she was also a nameless number in the mix, he was genuinely curious what her mentality was in regards to her statement of personal irrelevance. It set the stage tense first impressions, or an admittance of hypocrisy on her behalf depending on how hard she believed what she was saying. Choosing to transcend the impressed belief through seniority would at least give Kaite a reason not to like her.
The swirling thoughts started to give him a headache which didn't help the situation in the slightest as he realized what he'd done and how he must look.

Standing at the back was the easiest part. She felt uncomfortable in the crowd, but she felt more comfortable with the stolen katanas on her back. That way she could actually protect herself. Her dark eyes scanned over the crowd. She was in her thieving gear with her hoodie and jeans in her backpack. She, of course, stood out among the rest considering she was dressed in a slight steampunk fashion, but she didn't care. The cloak hid her well enough. She gritted her teeth, her hand moving carefully over the spot where the implant was. This was a freaky ass place... She smirked. It was just her style.

The curvy girl in front of them began talking and Shadow just rolled her eyes, leaning up against the nearest wall. Pulling out one of her knives, she began picking at the underside of her fingernails, only barely paying attention to the girl in front of all of them. The silver glinted in the limited lights and she thought back to when she first stole the set. It was five months ago, and she was doing a heist. She needed to get weapons to protect herself now that the police knew she was a thief. They only knew her as Shade or the Black Cloud.

She had gotten into the weapons store no problem and managed to knock out the security cameras for a good half an hour. Unfortunately, there was no point to it though. As it turns out, the owner slept in his shop and he heard the door open. He had a pistol in his hand when he stumbled out of his bedroom and he was firing wildly. She had taken his confusion and grabbed the knife set. It was the only thing that she could grab before she heard sirens in the distance. She disappeared back out the door, but with the knife set under her arm. That was also the same night that she hit another weapons store, but this was an old, antique weapons store. That's how she got the katanas. She had been training with both on her own time in the passed couple months. She wasn't the best, but she could defend herself with ease.

She took a deep breath and looked back over to the girl standing in the front. She narrow her eyes at her and shook her head, running her thumb over the edge of the blade. The girl was cute, but she seemed like a bitch. Shadow stared down at her knife, smirking as the girl asked for any questions. The chick couldn't have been much older than her, which is why she didn't take her very seriously. The young man standing near the front asked for the girl's name and Shadow just rolled her eyes. She could care less about anyone's names, as long as she got training and she was still allowed to be a thief. The girl was one of the nameless, most likely, an expendable, just like the rest of them.

"Yeah, I have a question," Shadow said lazily, raising her voice from the back. She noticed a few glances from some of the other new recruits, but she ignored them. "Why is it that we had to do your master's dirty work? Is he too chicken to come out and do it himself?" Shadow honestly thought that they would send her back out to the streets if they didn't like her, a thing which she did not care about. She could already tell that she liked the streets, the stealing, the goodies, than being in here already. "And why the hell are you out here greeting us rather than your boss? You can't be much older than any of us, so obviously you're a student. There's no one else with you, which means that you aren't liked that much." Shadow tapped the tip of her blade against her chin. "What is your boss hiding and why is he hiding behind you?"

Null

Angie took the clothing, thought not finding it in her style. The card too she took after her glasses had scanned the numbers on it. The place was cold just how she liked places to be, she wanted to have seen more of the outside or way to get here. But they had to protect the Sanctuary so she understood why they weren't allowed. A chubby chick wearing one of the uniforms seated herself upon some box's. The uniform she was given had one key feature, heels. God did she hate heels. last time she wore a pair she couldn't stay straight up. This girl, who never bothered to name herself for the ease of the newcomers started blabbing. Not naming herself did cause a tick to go off in Angie' head, she would like to know the names of her fellow 'students'.

Barely listening to her speech, which by Angie's standers was one of the worst she has heard in a long time, she scanned over the faces of each and everyone of her fellow 'students'. The software in her glasses creating a profile for them. She caught a few segments out of the chubby girls speech. 'impression that you’re here because you’re special and gifted' and 'you’re just another number in a sea of faces, so don’t expect any special treatment' in half a sense she was expecting this out of a girl like the speaker. On the other half she knew she wasn't the most special thing on the planet. Nothing had ever came to her with special treatment.

For a place like this you would expect the speaker to just leave. But asking for questions seemed like a invitation to question the system. This speech was becoming less interesting. Going over the dorm room and how to get there were also put into her glasses. She put a mental note to get the dorm rooms of anyone she needs. The first guy to ask a question asked one of the most stupid questions she could have thought of. ' What is your name.' if the girl wanted to share that she would have earlier. she liked that the boy had some curiosity into the system, but curiosity killed the cat.

Angie was in the side of the group. Close to the edge away from the center. In all means of confusion or fights that could ensue in the crowd she could easily slip away to find her dorm. Which she did hope she could set up her system in. A girl spoke out next in the back, in all her days of mimicking emotions she knew the girl was just using sass to get in trouble. Another boy spoke up after her. While the girl had her points she found the entire question asking pointless. They would have gave you the information if it was available. Or you should get that on your own time. Right now the window for her to set up her room orderly was closing.

She was closer to the boy who spoke up after the sass girl than anyone else interesting. Again this seemed to just be causing so much trouble. Her expression stayed neutral, as she silently held the clothes In hand. She could get the information she needed later. now she just wanted to get to her new place of residence.

“Uhm…Vaht iz your name?”

The speaker was unusual to say the least; its hair was all miss-matched, its eyes were a mixture of colours –standing out even amongst the large shuffling crowd-, and what appeared to be antlers were protruding from its head. Fascinating .

A slick smile creased Chantrea’s lips, lining her chubby face. “Outwardly simplistic and crude, but with larger implications: I like it.” She laughed sharply “I’ll tell you what, sweetheart; let’s stick with ‘Tas’ for now, and if you make it past your first assignment I’ll give you my full name, and tell you about my love of rock operas. Same goes for the rest of you.”

"Yeah, I have a question," a dark haired girl dressed in a Victorian-esq fashion trend that had been all the rave about six years ago spoke up. "Why is it that we had to do your master's dirty work? Is he too chicken to come out and do it himself?"

Chantrea frowned inwardly. I can see where this is going…

"And why the hell are you out here greeting us rather than your boss? You can't be much older than any of us, so obviously you're a student. There's no one else with you, which means that you aren't liked that much." She continued in her lazy drawl. At least this one’s perceptive, that’s a nice change of pace.

"What is your boss hiding and why is he hiding behind you?" The girl finished, tapping some kind of knife against her chin ponderously.

"What a funny way to show that you don't play by the rules, are you that hungry for trouble... or do you just not want to be here?" Remarked a hooded figure from somewhere off in the side of the crowd.

Chantrea laughed at that. “I’m gonna have to second the Nazgûl over here”. She turned swiftly, addressing the dark haired girl first.

“Honey, d’you know what the average life expectancy for a member of the Bloody Embrace is?” Chantrea chirped with mock sweetness “There’s a reason why all the stories about our organization paint us as being the stuff of nightmares: All the shit one’s don’t make it past their first assignment.”

She paused for a moment, letting her statement hang on the air.

“When I was brought in I was with a group of seventeen, all new recruits like you lot. Four of us made it past our first mission, and only two of us made it out of our second.”

Chantrea moved a lock of scarlet/blonde hair out of her vision.

“My point is, the Headmaster doesn’t have time to come down here and greet every newbie that hops off of the meat wagon. Basically, he’s got more important shit to do. I’m out here greeting you cause someone up top hates me, and either thinks I’ve got nothing better to do with my time than break in the green kids, or doesn’t care. As to why you have to do my ‘masters’, ehmm, ‘dirty work’; You’ve been given a job opportunity…if you don’t want to do the work involved then accepting it was a pretty fucking stupid thing to do, sweet cheeks.”

Chantrea gave the dark haired girl one last lingering glance. I wonder if I’ve still got a corset like that lying around somewhere she wondered.

She turned her attention to the hooded figure.

“You seem alright, kid.” She gave him a quick light-hearted wink for good measure.

“Alright, Benders!” The young woman barked, turning her attention back to the crowd “You’ve only got half an hour to settle in and the clock is tick tick ticking, so go find your rooms and dump your stuff.”

-null-

Shadow smirked when the pretty girl in the front mentioned that most of them wouldn't make it passed their first assignment. Shadow instantly knew she would, because, unlike some of the people here, she didn't come from the lap of luxury. She grew up on the streets. She was used to being shot at, attacked, fought. She was also pretty sure she was immune to a lot of the diseases out there because when the other kids locked her out of the orphanage, she would get sick real easily. Though as she has gotten older, it hasn't been as much. She actually worked to make it here and to make it in life. Now that work was thieving, but at least she didn't get shot. Now for the boy with the pointed tongue...

As people began to move toward their dorm rooms, she grabbed the hooded boy by his shoulder and yanked him back toward her, spinning him around so he could face her. She narrowed her eyes at him curiously. "Ain't you a cutie pie?" she sneered at him, just shaking her head. She pressed her fingertips to her forehead, exasperated that all of this just went down. "Look, sweetheart, I know it's fun to play in the big leagues at time, but keep to your own crowd. I don't need some barely grown up jackass making my life harder than it is at the moment. Now," she continued with a fake smile plastered on her face. "Don't cross me again, or you may find some of your more important things-" Her eyes fell on his metal claws and she purred the last word. "-missing. Good? Great." She shoved passed him. "See you around, baby cakes."

Moving ahead of the crowds, she paused by Tas and smirked. She clapped her on the shoulder and said, "I think you and I are going to be great friends. Maybe something more." Shadow dropped her a wink and blew her a kiss, sarcasm dripping behind each movement, before she moved passed her and headed toward the dorms. "By the way, I already had a job," she called over her shoulder. She found one that she liked, cold and dark, and flipped the light switch on. It illuminated the room quickly and she tossed her backpack onto the bed. Cracking her knuckles she looked around the room. It wasn't much bigger than the room at the orphanage that she shared with four other girls.

Drawing her katanas off her back, she set them down carefully on one of the bedposts of her bed and she placed her knife back in her forearm sheath. She double checked all of her knives, the one in her boot and the two on her arms before actually proceeding to sit down awkwardly on the bed. She shook her head and rested her head in her hands. She preferred to be back in her apartment, thieving whenever she wanted. She was actually going to have to be careful here, which isn't fun. Well, this sucks already.

A rather psychotic looking blonde boy came bounding out of the crowd as they made the gradual move up to their dorms, stopping beneath Chantrea’s crate as he passed her.

"Before I go and dump all my shit in my dorm, I'm just going to say, you look beautiful my dear!” he began chirping. The young woman was slightly stunned, but then came to her senses and braced herself for what she expected was most likely following.

“Those curvey legs, that plump figure in such a tight outfit, my god, I will not lie to you my porcine princess, you pull off that outfit with a B+! Just don't eat any hamburgers, okay, dear? Cannibalism is illegal you know~!"

Aaaaaand, there it is.

Chantrea contemplated snapping back with something witty and equally vexing, but the unhinged character soon went skipping off past the rest of the crowd, his blonde mop bobbing up and down, so the young woman decided it was probably best not to.

She’d been putting up with tasteless fat jokes her entire life, and they hardly stung anymore, but the atmosphere in the Sanctum was different in many ways to the above world, one of which was that past prejudices were seemingly forgotten in the closely-knit environment, so it had been a while since Chantrea had had to endure any snide comments about her weight. Whatever. Its not like she needed the approval of kids who looked like they belonged in a straitjacket to feel good about herself.

The dark haired heckler from earlier was next to stop by the pile of boxes which Chantrea was perched atop.

"I think you and I are going to be great friends. Maybe something more." She sneered, blowing her a kiss.

Chantrea watched her walk away, a light flutter of something gently fidgeting about in the pit of her stomach. Oy! Eyes on the prize, Tascroix she inwardly scolded herself.

"By the way, I already had a job," the dark haired girl called back at her.

“What was that? Modelling Victorian fetish gear?” Chantrea shot back, failing to repress a smirk.

She watched the crowd continue to amble past, a great group of teenagers shambling beneath her crates.

I’ll wait for them all to clear off, then I’ll head to the dining room she told herself Might as well get there whilst they’re still serving the good stuff .

Null

Kaite shook himself from the idea of rocks in viking helmets after the woman known as 'Tas' had brought it up. Her answer was uncomfortably safe, leaving him with little more than a silent symphony of rolling eyes and disgusted sighs. He didn't have the courage to form a response and instead kept quiet, trying in vain to hide in the crowd. Thankfully, only a few moments later, someone spoke up from the back, stealing the spotlight with the help of borderline aggression in their tone and phrasing.
Never really questioning what was happening around him, Kaite found the underlying questions interesting. However, the assumption that he had jumped to was voiced by the woman which in turn shed some light on his own curiosities. Someone saw them all as numbers, and speaking of which, her short story about those in her group that'd been lost was disheartening.

Out the gate, they assume most of us will die...
I looked around the room. Only a few faces really stood out, although humans all look the same, anyway. I can't say I would remember most of th- good lord!

Kaite had just barely picked up the comment about getting settled in their rooms, as their attention was fixed on an eccentric individual who dressed quite differently from the rest...giddy and seemingly squirming with delight from every moment they were here. It was fairly unsettling how they behaved in the context of the situation. Before he knew it, the crowd was already moving, some of the group talking amongst themselves or nipping at eachother's heels, perhaps to test the waters.

He hung back, watching the group and the larger human who proceeded to make a round-about fat joke at Tas's expense. As far as first impressions seemed to be going, Kaite figured was starting to feel better about making a fool of himself, although the 'simplistic and crude' remark still stuck with him when he walked past the girl, seeming like he was about to speak. He wanted to, but instead managed to uncomfortably lock eyes with her for a second before hurrying off.
His expression had been blank, the colorful eyes betrayed by a hollowness as though he simply stared through her.
---------------

Kaite closed the door, quietly turning the knob back into place. It was a habit he had to try to make as little noise as possible. He'd picked it up from his time at the megaclinic since the ones that were the most noticeable were often the first to be taken. Sliding their bag into the middle of the room, they stood in silence for a minute before yanking the mattress from the bed and stuffing it in the corner between the bed frame and the wall.
He turned the table on its side, sliding it over to the setup to make a makeshift fort. He left the accompanying chair eerily alone in the middle of the room facing the door upon which he set the desk lamp that formerly sat on the recently repurposed table.

From his bag he drew a small violin case which he knelt by on the floor and popped open. The violin was less important than the shortsword and array of small hooked throwing axes in sheathes belted to the inside of the lid. It was a parting gift of sorts, or at least that's how he saw stealing from the dead. With a small sigh of relief, he went about getting dressed in the new uniform.

After a few minutes, a soft formless medley echoed from the room; Kaite tuning the instrument to play a few drawn out notes. It carried on for about two minutes before dipping into a muffled, haunting refrain.
Then silence.
-----
Dashink, vouldn't you say?
I vould say zeht I look like I don't belong...
Come now, iz adorable! Boots unt all~
My old ones fit better...
Tch, pessimist. Zeh'll fit better in time.
Says you...
Says you~

I set down the mirror, rubbing my eyes as I got up from the floor. It was awkward at first from the extra half-inch of heel from the boots. Time passed so slowly sometimes. Half an hour seemed like forever, at least, that's how it gets when you hide all the time. Stop...anyway, I wasn't entirely certain where I was supposed to go for this assignment thing that had been mentioned, and I didn't imagine being late or not going was an option. Would've been a good idea to ask about that, now I'm going to have to find or follow someone else. Incidentally, I don't remember what many of my group looked like. The ones I do recall...

Kaite shuddered briefly before stepping out into the hall, looking both ways before picking a direction. It didn't entirely matter which way he went, since he had no clue where anything was.

Angie smiled, be it fake, but she still smiled walking along with the crowd. Her glasses regestering the chubby chick s 'tas', another dude, made a fat joke to her. Which she found was slightly funny. It did seem as if everyone was picking fights. Deciding she should get more names, hopefully soon to come she made notes to ask the names of the ones who stood out. The eccentric dude, The one who asked the first question, the snotty girl, the hooded boy, and the one dude who did seem to rather be in the psyco ward of a hospital. She couldn't really find anyone she would connect with and be friends.

'Tas' as Angie was still reluctant to call her that, made a comment about not many people surviving the missions. She knew she would make it somewhat far. She didn't pick fights with her team, as some of the others did, which could help her in the long run. She did wonder how her mother was, she left without warning her. But she found she started caring less and less as she looked around. If she makes it far, she could have access to everything she never could have before. Not getting her hopes up to far she continued walking finding all of the interesting people gone and everyone else slowly moving.

Finding herself out of her element, she hurried to her room, slightly leaving the door open. Scanning over her surroundings she quickly unloaded the small carry on bag she had slung over her back. Another pair of clothes along with the uniform they gave her, both she hung up. A small tablet also was unloaded. and placed on her bed it lighting up with an annoying beeping , which she quickly swiped off. Slightly annouyed she looked out her dorm watching the stragglers find there way into their rooms.

Slamming her door shut she picked up the tablet, slipping in the three locks before quickly finding a app which she programmed herself. Copying the glasses new data onto the tablet. Sliding the tablet inside a pillow case she walked out of her dorm. To find the main hall maybe chat with someone. If they are interesting. Her short hair bobbing about her as she did so, the blue inniocent eyes questioning if she should really be here. Which countered with her sly smirk would leave people questioning.

Chantrea waited for the last few stragglers to shamble on past, before hopping down off of her crates, landing with a distinct ‘CLANG!’ on the metal walkway bellow. She was sceptical about this latest bunch, but she’d yet to see any of them in action so far, so she’d refrain from passing any major judgments. The young woman was almost certain they were a ticking time bomb of contrasting personalities and unstable character’s, but the higher powers at the Sanctum had assembled this latest batch of recruits, and from her experience that was reason enough to have faith in their capabilities, whatever they may be.

They’d all find out, soon enough.

Chantrea made her way back inside the looming underwater complex, her skirt ridding up over her stomach slightly, which she found herself constantly tugging at to try and keep at a respectable length.

It was only a short walk to the dining hall, through a few winding metal corridors and up the odd flight of stairs. She passed a few students her age on the way through the Sanctum. None of them spoke to each other.

The dining hall itself consisted of three tables that spanned the length of the room (which were accompanied by metallic stools), a sprawling buffet containing a whole manner of varied foods at the far end of the hall, and a large podium for giving presentations, with an advanced set up that let the speaking stream holographic displays onto a nearby wall.
A great celling made from a see-through glass-like substance loomed above. Brilliant blue/green waters spilled over the celling, shimmering against the panels, and an enormous metallic submersible drifted majestically overhead.

The buffet was manned by lean synthetic catering robots, and a handful of technicians were fiddling about with the holographic display, presumably in anticipation of the new arrivals. The bulk of the student body were either away on missions or spending their leisure time doing other activities throughout the Sanctum, so Chantrea was currently the only teenager in the vast dining hall.

Scooping up a tray and some cutlery from a slick dispenser in the wall, Chantrea made her way over to the buffet, eyeing up the food on display.

“Good Evening, Miss Tascroix.” One of the synths bleeped at her. It was painted a rusty reddish colour, and had a sleek, spherical head, with a single mechanical eye.

Chantrea’s eyes fell upon a large vat full of piping hot macaroni and cheese, with white steam wafting up from its creamy mass.

“I’ll take some of that.” Chantrea told the synth, gesturing to the pasta.

“Portion size?” inquired the robot.

“Large.”

The catering droid pilled a china plate high with macaroni and cheese, before placing it delicately down on the young woman’s tray with its slim, skeletal arms.

“Enjoy your meal, Miss Tascroix.” It beeped.

Chantrea filled a large metal canteen full of chocolate milkshake and collected a bowl of small powdered doughnuts from the desert section of the buffet, before finding herself a seat in the corner of the room, away from where she anticipated/hoped the majority of the kids from earlier would sit.

The young woman tucked into her meal with gusto, shovelling in large mouthfuls of macaroni and cheese, whilst she awaited the arrival of the new students.

-null-

As he walked, Kaite went about affixing what appeared to be a blank wristwatch in the shape of a clear bangle to his right arm. Looking down at the setup, expectantly, he mused a soft 'duh' and slipped a matching ring onto his thumb. Slowing his pace as he neared a corner with the intent to check around it first, the bangle came to life with a series of red lights that grew in hue to green as it wrapped around, disappearing once it completed. With the twitch of his thumb, the hologram of update progress blinked across his arm as well as an options menu.
In their wanderings, Kaite had made the effort to avoid people walking the halls when possible, although it was impossible to predict people coming out of rooms and turning corners. This lead to the inevitable double-takes and whispers between a few passerbys.

Ooh, go for amber. Iz calmink on zeh eyes.
Zeh are talkink about me...
Vaht did zay say!? I'll beat zehm up! Oh vait, mint! Mint!
I look stupid!
Zeh're jealous~
...
Vaht iz zeht smell?

He had no idea what they said, distracted instead by the aroma of a warm meal. Kaite was having trouble remembering when he ate, last, distracted by the idea of what he might find-

"Greetings, Ladies and Gentleman! Hold your applause, because the party has arrived!"

...god damn it.
He'd just worked up an appetite, too. The crude hideousness and generally disturbing behavior of the man whom the machine at the buffet had identified as 'Kessler Brigs' was almost enough to make Kaite consider starvation back in his room. However, the intoxicating allure of the steam which rose from the sneeze guard was too much for the chimera.
The uniform was surprisingly complimenting of his frame, sized perfectly. The long sleeved black top with padded shoulders underneath his own close-fitting black and blue plaid vest. Again, his own personal flair went as far as a black and white bandana which seemed like it had a design on it, although from the way it was folded, it was hard to tell. He had folded the sleeves up to a few inches before his elbows. The vest mostly obscured his beltline where the heads of a few of his axes hung from, holstered around his waist. Black uniform pants tucked into the set boots which accented his size with an extra half an inch to the heel.

Doing his best to ignore the brute's goonish glibness, he grabbed a tray and slid it along, unable to decide. He wasn't a fan of robots, the whole expressionless and cold mindless to their programming made it hard to read, making Kaite very uneasy. "Good evening, Zero-Seven-Three" the server read off, the words making Kaite blush with shock that that was his name as far as the machine was concerned. "Ehrm, Iz 'Jericho', actually" he tried to correct the machine which stood silently motionless although at the ready. It let out a soft beep before saying, "Does not compute. Please place an order, Zero-Seven-Three."

"Uhh...pierogies? Unt fried onions...aaand von of zoughs hashbrown patties?" he sighed in a defeated tone, just wishing to get his food and try to maybe-
His hope was cut short as Kessler sat across from 'Tas' to continue his display of social disgrace. Kaite's eye twitched, forcing himself to focus on telling the machine 'small' portion and grabbing a bagged bagel from the end of the line as well as a grip of napkins.

Getting settled at the end of the table farthest from Tas, he went about making a sandwich from his order, taking a savory bite and topping it with unsweetened iced tea. It was an odd combination of flavors, although Kaite seemed genuinely delighted by the noodly potatoy thing.
For obvious reasons, he was a bit of a vegetarian seeing as how he'd spent the first year of his life in essentially a slaughterhouse. His only complaint was the lack of sriracha. Despite his dislike of tactless neanderthals like Kessler, a twisted part of him enjoyed disliking people on a level that to any normal individual would make no sense...or would have already started throwing fists. As long as he stayed within earshot and wasn't a part of it, it was little more than having the radio tuned to a shitty station for the purpose of silently criticizing it.

Angie smelt the food before she saw the main hall. She had saw a boy go in there before her, so she was sure this was something. The smell was appetitizing but she really never ate much. Last thing she ate was a sandwich, she didn't remember the type because that wasn't important. Opening the door slightly trying not to cause noise, she slips inside. Her light frame helping the slient quality while the door itself slams shut as if it knew.

Shit.

Scanning over the crowd, of 3 which really isn't a crowd, she picked out the interesting people. Tas and the psychotic dude, and the one strange boy. Great walking, her slightly wedged flats, which she wore to the place contradicting the outfit she wore. The flats stood out as a dark red like pooled blood. She hadn't changed her outfit into the uniform. she could do that later if needed. Going over to buffet trying to ignore everyone the robtic server. She always liked synthetics. Most of them were easily hacked.

" Good Evening, Angelica Morres."

The pure of the machine inside soothed Angie's nerves, it reminded her of her nanny as a child. Looking around at the table her glasses pointed her to the best option; few slices of ham and some tomato's.
" Good Evening to you too. A few slices of ham and some tomato's please." Her voice staying its normal level, her entire presence contradicted her smirk which never left her lips. almost forgetting something she answered before the machine could spit out the response. " Make that Medium sized please."

The machine responding with a beep as it slid along the table grabbing what she had ordered, the ham slices on one plate tomato slices on the next. The machine delicately placed it on her tray and moved back to its starting potion. Looking at the plate she walked over to the drinks pouring some iced tea into a medium sized cup she walked away from the buffet carrying the tray. Wanting to know names she sat down a few spaces away from Kessler wanting to listen in but not be suspected. The way she ate was also a fake delicate in manner. Only known to her if she was faking this.

"Greetings, Ladies and Gentleman! Hold your applause, because the party has arrived!" screeched the mopheaded mentalcase as he came gallivanting into the dining hall with psychotic merriment.

Oh good Chantrea grumbled inwardly, trying to remain focused on eating her meal in peace.

The young woman had worked up quite the appetite whilst on leave from missions, and had made a large dent in her meal by the time blond haired nut plopped down opposite her with a tray full of meat.

"Well if it isn't the Bulky Butterball!” he chirped in a squealy voice that made Chantrea want to kick his stupid teeth in. “Already raced to the buffet, hmm?” he teased, burrowing into her with his wild eyes. “Afraid you wouldn't be able to scrounge up some of that Slop?"

Chantrea wiped some cheese off of the corner of her mouth, raising her head slowly, hand tightening around her knife.

Despite his loud mouth, her tormenter wasn’t all that big. Taller than her, easily, but that wasn’t unusual. He wasn’t exceptionally skinny, but Chantrea still had some serious bulk on him, and a year’s worth of training under the Sanctum’s tutelage. He looked like he’d been dragged straight out of a padded cell, so there was no telling what he’d be capable of in a fight, but Chantrea had gone up against nutcases in the past.

She clenched the handle of her knife, its firm grip reassuring her, and stirring something dark and primal inside her gut.

Thinking better of it, Chantrea inwardly composed herself, before scoffing down another forkful of macaroni and cheese.

“If you’re looking for an easy target, I’d suggest you go pick on one of the punk kids you stumbled in here with.” She said in a sweet, calm voice which hid something vicious; long a jagged blade slathered in thick honey.

“You peg me as someone who’s looking to spread as much woe and misery as they can before they kick the bucket, that’s probably why the guys and gals upstairs brought you on, so let me give you some advice…” She continued, pausing to stuff in another mouthful of hot food.

“You’re like a spree killer, right? So when you’re stalking through the halls of the school, or the hospital, or the nursery, or wherever it is that you dream about running around and cutting up lots of screaming innocent people, the smart moneys on finding the weakest, most defenceless bastards you can sniff out, and making their finale moments as bloody and full of pain as you possibly can.”

She paused for a moment, belching to clear some of the trapped gas out of her stomach.

“You don’t go looking for the girl who is just as keen to spill you blood as you are hers, and is more likely to rip out your spine and choke you with it than she is to roll over and let you have your way.” She flashed him a quick smile, fluttering her eyelashes ever-so-slightly.

“So do the smart thing; fuck off and find someone you can push around. What was it you called me earlier? ‘Porcine Princess?’ Well honey, not all pigs like to roll around in shit and eat out of a trough. Some of us have pretty sharp tusks, and will fucking gut you with them if rub us the wrong way one too many times.”

Chantrea held steely eye contact for a moment longer, before going back to spooning hearty portions of macaroni and cheese into her hungry maw.

-null-

Shadow blinked open her eyes. She must've taken a nap for a few moments, but was awoken by her rumbling stomach. She stood up, still wearing her thieving gear, and pulled on her katanas, making sure as well that her knives were still in place. She stood up and headed down to the cafeteria, or what she thought was the cafeteria from the noises that came out of it. She saw Tas and another blond kid and saw the look of fury on Tas's face. She smirked and walked over to the machine. It greeted her and asked what she wanted.

"An apple," was her response. "Just an apple."

The machine made a noise for a brief moment before it spit out an apple onto her plate. She grabbed it off immediately, setting the plate aside and walked over to where Tas and the blond kid were sitting. She sat down next to Tas on her other side but didn't saw a word. Instead, she munched on her apple and just eyed the pretty red head. She was obviously infuriated with the blondie sitting next to her and Shadow was shocked that she hadn't kill him yet.

She had sat down toward the end of his little speech and made a quick comment. "But you are already weak. Your hubris. You show it through your insults. You think you're cocky and the best. That will be your downfall." She smirked and took another bite out of her apple. It didn't take a lot to keep her filled, which is why a lot of people found her strange. She barely got anything to eat back at the orphanage, so she was used to small portions and small portions kept her satisfied.

She then turned her dark eyes to Tas and cleared her throat. It was going to be painful to say this, but she had a realization that she should probably not be on this woman's bad side. "I wanted to apologize for my behavior earlier, though I do believe that we deserve a better explanation than the one you gave us. I am willing to start over if you are." She cleared her throat again and said, "My name is Staci Jamerson, but you will only call me Shadow. That is my middle name and it is the name that I go by."

She took another bite out of her apple and looked at Tas. She didn't care for the girl, though she was pretty, but she did not want to be on her bad side right off the bat. They could make good partners out in the field. Shadow noticed Tas's strong will and capability to control herself, a lot of things that Shadow lacked. She admired that about her, but she didn't want to change how she was. Polishing off her apple in another bite, Shadow wiped her hands on her pants and proceeded to pull out a knife, picking underneath her fingernails. She smirked when she remembered the last thing Tas said to her before she went to her dorm room. "And just for reference, I was--am a thief. I consider that a pretty good job myself, considering the fact I was the best."