Vix listened to what was said. So it was the lack of teamwork and civilian evacuation what bothered mr. Lang. She could understand the why he was angry about it... One mistake and someone may have died only because no one lead the people out of the breakfast hall for example. Or called back up to clear up the range from bystanders where they wanted the rocket to explode. Or someone powers didnt work and they failed when they were relied on to save the same civilians... She stopped that train of thinking, refocusing.

She could help with simulation of situations to improve upon weaknesses of strategy, powers and abilities, but she only could give that to the people she knew how they fought. Had recorded enough useful data about them. She didnt know anyone in this room how they fought at that level. Minus two people Alexs with which she was paired up often in combat class, and Richard on a few occasions she spared with.

As James commented and the professor responded to him she decided against pointing out that the first Avengers only came together as a group after someone died, at least that what the files she was given by her mother and grandfather read. And even then it wasnt always the perfect example of teamwork. The school idea was to teach them not to have same mistakes. To fix it. Vix raised her hand just after Charlotte spoke.

"How about instead of punishment, we increases the number of team building lessons, communications and trust exercises? As those are the lacking fields. And another question, when exactly is the start of today classes?"

According to her information it should have started a few minutes earlier, but then again they didnt and here Mr. Lang was pointing out the mistakes of the most recent accident. She wanted to know if they were pushed back, and if the classes were delayed she would so log into the game and farm vampire sea eagle drops for potions. She really felt like doing it.

Being called out on his inactivity caused Ben to shy away, back to his timid self. He stayed quiet throughout the lecture, not once piping up. He never once considered being part of a team before. Perhaps that was why he was sitting back. He knew that the team would handle things... but if he was another cog in their team...

Ben pondered this as Vix suggested increasing the lessons in team work. Ben piped in.

"Yeah. If we're meant to be a team, perhaps it'd be better if we learned how. Remember, I've been going solo for the first little while until I enrolled here." Ben got back to a bit of a cocky attitude, but not enough in the hopes of not pissing off Scott.

Richard was right and knew it was more than just asking what happened. He was chewing them out and he looked around at the reactions of the others as he did so. He noticed Ben's personal retreat and removed his arm from around Mister Lang. He didn't want to sound cocky but he was sure that if he was there the situation would've gone a lot smoother. He decided to keep that to himself. It wasn't the time to praise himself. Especially when the others were being scolded and in some ways belittled.

He listened to Vix and Ben and chiped in after them. "They're right. Put us to the test and let us change your opinion. I suggest we do a simulation right now." Even though he wasn't part of the original situation there was no way he was going to miss out on this. This would've been good for all of them. Especially those that weren't actually in the program yet.

Nao shuffled his feet a little as Mr. Lang went on, flinching at the waiting until the last second comment. Definitely him. It wasn't that he didn't want to help, it was more that he'd never had to be involved before. Really, he thought it would be heroic enough if he could actually pass a math class without extra tutoring this year. Seriously, who thought anyone would actually need the pythagorean theorem outside of a test.

Nao nodded as a few of the group suggested simulations. If working together was an issue, better to throw everyone into a situation to work out the kinks. Plus, he'd never had the opportunity to work with people that weren't trying to hurt others. Actually, it's more like he avoided it like the plague. But he had to start somewhere.

"Yes! Yes. Let's all listen to Vix and Richard. Allow us all to heed what they hath said to us." She had just accidentally issued a challenge to Lang by saying what she did, now she just wanted them to move past that and pretend that it never happened in the first place. A little test or simulation wouldn't hurt, but what about the kid? James had just kinda dragged him along with the group full of advanced training students, and she was pretty sure that his pipes were going to burst if he didn't go soon.

"Um, Will." She thought that was his name, at least. She wasn't really in the conversation when the boy had told James his name. "This is some pretty heavy stuff coming up. You should probably take a little bit of a break before we start up and get you stuck with us for at least an hour or two." There was no really easy way that she could subtly allude to him that this was his queue to go and find a bathroom. Runners, Marines, it had happened to grown men and women in those kind of situations, and she wasn't going to let that kid have any sort of accidents, as weird as it sounded to even think about.

The responses to his question only made Professor Lang laugh and sigh. "Getting lectured on how to teach by a bunch of kids, never thought I'd see the day. Most of you have been training for teamwork for a while now. But you know what? You want me to teach you teamwork? Fine. We're going to split up into groups-- Hold on." Scott stopped and looked at Will, turning his head a bit. "You're the kid who almost got hit by the rocket, right? A new student... Sorry for keeping you here, please don't pee all over the floor, this is an important building..." Professor Lang's face softened a bit. He always had a soft spot for younger kids. In all honesty Lang only came off as harsh because he was training the next people to take up the Avengers. Most of the students here were cocky and thought they could do anything, so he had to give them a reality check. But when it came to new students he was nothing but helpful.

"Friday, what's this child's schedule? we need to get him to class before he's late." A female voice echoed through the room in response. "It seems to be that this... is his first class today, Scott. He's Will Fleeter, right?

Scott eyed him for a couple moments before slowly nodding. "Must have been a slip up in the database. Never had a first day student join the program...

"There's nothing we can do at the moment. Might as well pair him with someone and see what he can do. the female voice responded kinda worriedly. James looked over at the young kid, worried himself. These courses were for people who have gotten a hold of their abilities or know whats in store for them... James prayed that Lang knew what he was doing.

"Alright, so we are going to spend the morning going through some teamwork exercises. You're going to partner up and complete an obstacle course. For anyone who's been here before you know these courses are meant to push you and your abilities to the max of your potential. If your partner fails, so do you. No excuses. You will have to work together or we will find of another group project for you to do, understand?

Now, time for the teams! Annabelle, I've seen the stink eyes you've given James, and vise versa. The grandchildren of two leaders should be able to work out their differences and pass these courses... I guess the two Web-Heads can pair up, and use genetics and technology to reach an end goal. Vix, Charlotte, pair up, and this time make sure your whole suit is here. Alex, Nao, I'm curious to see how this plays out... and Mister Westbrook, you're going to team up with Will... I hope you like these pairs, because they're final!

James nodded and glanced over at Anna. Lang knew that the two weren't too fond of each other when it came to their thinking. James hoped that they could push that aside to get through the course. it wasn't going to be easy. He then glanced over at Alex. He was teamed up with Nao, and although he was sure the two could handle it, James didn't know if things would get out of hand with that combination... And then there was Will. He knew Mark wouldn't let anything happen to him, he was a good person, but he had no idea what Will could do. He didn't look confident, and that was dangerous.

"Alright, we're going to use the arenas outside for these trials. It'll give you all room to work with. Time to move out!

The obstacle course Arenas were all next to each other, all looking like massive sporting arenas. There was a glass dome above them, and although there was grass in the field to start off, the terrain and lighting changed as soon as the simulation started. You could be on the rooftop of New York, or the jungles of Wakanda, or even old military bases for infiltration. There were even classic style obstacle courses that had no setting, just different shapes and blocks and enemies to move around. It looked like everyone was going at the same time. James was next to Anna, awkwardly thinking about what to say. They didn't hate each other, but there were those moments where they got on each other's nerves, and that seemed to be a lot.

Anna listened as Lang went on another of his casual tirades. Over the years Anna felt her and the groups respect for Lang change, even the smallest aspect of their relationship with him had shifted. For example, rather than 'Mr Lang' as she used to call him, Anna opted now for the more friendly 'Lang'. She'd never call him Scott though, that just felt weird. Furthermore, Lang had begun to feel more like a father figure and a mentor rather than a teacher, at least to Anna, someone she could confide in. I suppose that came with the job though, after all training what could have been the next Avengers requires a degree of compassion and sympathy.

Anna grimaced as the team members were read out. Of course she was paired with, James he was the only one she knew well enough to dislike somewhat. She rubbed the corners of her eyes with her fingers before moving a strand of hair out of her line of sight with a slender green hand. She crossed her arms, turning to face James.
"Alright, boy scout an obstacle course should be easy enough for you, if there are a few kittens caught in trees along the way that might be a different story though, so let's just hope that Lang has made this relatively traditional." She teased, attempting to keep spirits up between the two in her own strange way.

When Mr. Lang started speaking again Alex felt like an idiot for assuming the same thing as the others around him. However, he did take time to watch the video on the screen. As Mr. Lang listed off the problems that were more obvious Alex thought of ways to fix them and even noticed a few more issues. Then James spoke up with a glorious speech. Alex almost laughed out loud. Not because it was funny what James said, but because they had similar DNA yet couldn't be any different.

Alex listened as the others requested that instead of punishment they be put through some sort of teamwork exercise. He had to admit it wasn't the worst idea. If it were up to him the whole group would be shoved into a Danger Room at near the level Wolverine liked to train on. When Lang said they'd be participating in an obstacle course Alex felt a little disappointed. He wanted a real challenge. Alex had done these courses hundreds of times. Guaranteed he'd never done this alongside Nao. That would at least make the exercise a little more interesting than usual.

When they got to the locations of the courses Alex turned to Nao and said, "How do you wanna do this. I know whenever I usually do these things they throw some sort of magic at me since it's my weak spot. Got any preference on who leads."

As Mr. Lang read out the partner choices and he sighed with relief. At least he was running this with someone he knew well. Alex was one of the few people he spoke to consistently. Plus, it meant he wouldn't feel awkward or reserved when using magic. Academy magic was, for a lack of a better term, dull. They focused on defensive magics in starter classes and after showing that he could produce better with a thought and a gesture, the Academy advanced him relatively quickly. Even "advanced" classes pushed offensive magics as last case options. He hated to admit it but it was boring. Dark magic flooded one's being with an addictive euphoria. He was working on relying more on the newer magic but it was hard.

"How do you wanna do this. I know whenever I usually do these things they throw some sort of magic at me since it's my weak spot. Got any preference on who leads."

"Honestly, you should lead. Your reflexes are faster than mine and the extra distance may give me some cushion for casting spells." Nao responded softly. He placed his bag in the area for personal belongings after pulling out his journal. He frowned slightly. An obstacle course hm? What should he use for it. A shielding spell, an invisibility spell, a... He snapped his fingerings as an idea hit him.

Flipping through the journal, he found the most recently added one. A flight enchantment. So far he could only sustain the spell for a few minutes tops but getting a head start on the casting wouldn't hurt. Nao chanted for a few moments, stopping amd restarting after he stumbled over a few words, before a purple glow covered him. He rose a few inches off the ground and smiled, slipping his journal into the pocket of his lab coat.

As mr. Laan accepted the proposition about more training and started to pair them up Vix opted against playing a game because of boredom. As her name came up she was pleased that she was paired up with Charlotte. It was a opportunity to get to know the girl personally. She moved up to Charlotte and smiled.

"Vix. Nice we are paired up. I heard about you from uncle Tony."

She started moving her hair a bit more over her forehead. They started walking with everyone else towards the training room.

"He approves your music taste. " Vix commented lightly, her computer mind replaying the video memory of it. It was a fond memory for Vix as it happened shortly after the discovery of her failure, malfunction. His way of distracting her.

"If you get to use your armor you should give me your channel so I can connect to you. For communication and strategy proposes."

As they came in the room and were directed to their section they would have their teamwork out, Vix took a deep breath, trying to kill any process that will not be useful for the task ahead. To have a clear head. It was clear to Vix that if there were a leader in the team it would be Charlotte as she was longer in the school, and in the program as well. It was Vix first day in the advance program. That aside she started to replay the exercise she was taught during the last year. Calm content and she felt weightless, raising a few inches from the ground before she landed. That worked, she allowed herself to feel frustrated and she felt her mass increase. A second later she returned back to apathy that hold her as close to battle ready as she figured. She hoped really badly that the trigger feelings will not change during the simulation.

As it appeared they would run the track beside each other, the two white hallways in front of them didnt look any different at first glance. The wall they shared was made out of glass which would allow them to see each other. Vix looked at Charlotte, raising an eyebrow to indicate that she should pick between the left or right hallway first.

@pyroman

Will stiffened in surprise as Mr. Lang spoke to him. His gaze flitted to the floor and he blushed when Mr. Lang jokingly requested that he not pee on the floor. The older man was rather perceptive, but given that he was the second person to point out that he'd noticed, maybe Will was just being too damn obvious. He strained to stop fidgeting, biting his fingernails anxiously in a last-ditch attempt to take his mind off of things.

Lang's female assistant gave a piece of news he had dreaded hearing. This was his first class. There was no way he'd be getting excused anytime soon. Internally panicking, Will dropped to the back of the group as they filed out towards the obstacle course. Now he had even more reasons to be drowning in anxiety. Partner activities were the worst. Having someone else rely on you when you were the least competent person in the whole room was a sickening thought.

He continued to say nothing, glancing up at his partner with an apologetic sort of look. If Mark got mad at him for being a bad partner, he decided he wouldn't retaliate.

Then again, Will wasn't really giving himself enough credit. He didn't really know what these people could do, he only assumed it was better than what he could do. In actuality, his ability was far from pathetic and he had remarkably good control over it for someone who'd only had it for less than a year. But in his mind, he imagined that because he was a beginner in an advanced course, he'd just end up making a fool of himself and making Mr. Lang regret ever giving him a chance.

Mark largely kept quiet as James gave his "big heroic speech". IF they wanted to make a big thing of this, fine, but Mark just wanted to get to work. Too much drama over some stupid prank. Hearing that Will was in their class was a surprise, though. Mark hoped that Mr. Lang knew what he was doing. He figured that he would be put in a group with James. Seeing as he was the boy-scout and all, James would make a good mentor for the first exercise. This was precisely why Mark was so surprised to hear that HE would be paired with Will. Mark wasn't very good at the "social" thing, and wasn't sure if he was the best fit to show the new kid the ropes.

As everyone filed off towards the obstacle courses, Mark was about to protest to Mr. Lang. Before he got anywhere, though, he saw Will give him an apologetic look. Mark couldn't help but be reminded of his own first year at the academy, before he got a handle on his powers. He felt Euclid give a nudge of curiosity at his indecision, before he had an idea. This wasn't going to go the same way. Mark wouldn't let history repeat itself.

Putting on a confident look, Mark walked over. "You're Will, right? I'm Mark. There's a bathroom on the way to the arenas, but make it fast. And don't worry. We all have awkward first days." Mark waited for Will to prepare himself, and motioned for Will to move a little faster to catch up with the group when he finished. Before they stepped in their course, Mark spoke up again. "Ok, crash course before we go in. Abilities. Short version; I have a suit that gives me speed, strength, flight, and is really good for fights. What do you have?" Mark felt Euclid bristle with anger at being called a "suit", but he ignored it. He could fill in the details later.

Will's eyes showed a small gleam of hope as Mark mentioned that they would pass by a bathroom on the way to the arena, but he just found himself locked into a conversation he felt obligated to finish before he just darted off. He forced a smile as he wracked his brain for the best way to explain his powers, coming up with nothing. His pause to think was starting to verge on an awkward silence so he just started blurting out everything that came to mind.

"I can... stick to things. Kind of. I mean, like, you know how geckos can climb on ceilings and stuff? Yeah, that's what I can do. And, like, I can defy friction and slide across things. It's not really all that cool." Realizing he was starting to just babble pointlessly, he fell quiet, blushing a bit. He started walking a bit more stiffly, biting hard into his lower lip.

James was now looking around the groups to make sure everyone was alright... People were discussing what their course of action is. Alex and Nao were discussing what to do. Knowing the guy, Alex was going to take lead on this. James also tried to make sure Will was alright where he was. He knew Mark wasn't the most sociable, and he hasn't been here the longest, but he was sure that the two would make it out alright. His thoughts were brought back to Anna as she started to talk. Ever since the two had met she had coined the term "Boy Scout" for him, and it stuck around campus... Although James couldn't complain he spent a lot of his childhood in the Boy Scouts... He mentally sighed to himself, thinking how cliche his parents were for signing him up for that.

"I'm a little low on my cat saving quota this month so here's hoping. And remember, there's no award ceremony or a loving crowd waiting to get autographs from you after. James teased back, and then starting to stretch out his legs and arms. "This is strange. I know we've done a ton of obstacle courses like this before, but never on the first day. And never as random as these pairs..." The brown haired boy started, looking over at Anna. "We gotta stay on our toes. Especially for us. No doubt that Stark's database has us high up on their list considering who our grandparents are... I got your back. James meant that last part wholeheartedly.

These courses were to push their limits. He had done these hundreds of times in his six years but for some reason he felt like he was a first year again, afraid of what was behind those doors.

Mark started to process how he and Will could play off each other as he covered his powers. Sticking to walls was good. Mark could probably fly him around and get him to the ceiling to.....wait, DEFY FRICTION?! As he thought about that little development for a second, he noticed Will was still squirming. "Oh. Right. Bathroom is just over there. I'll wait here. Trust me, you don't want to do these courses with a full bladder."

As Will used the bathroom quickly, Mark tried to strategize. This was only his second year in the program, but this looked like Will's first year in the SCHOOL. He would have to take charge here. Will was likely more agile then him, given the friction powers, so if Lang threw combat at them he could probably just dodge. That meant that Mark should probably prioritize any enemies they might find in there, and let Will focus on any buttons or targets or whatever.

As Will came out of the bathroom, Mark stated "So, I don't know who told you defying a basic law of physics wasn't cool, but they clearly weren't an engineer. That sounds really useful. So here's the plan. If there are any targets or buttons we need to reach, I want you to focus on those. I'll take care of any enemies Lang decides to throw at us. Sound good?"

"Sounds cool." Will said, sounding a bit less nervous now that they kind of had a basic plan. He still didn't think much of his chances, seeing as this program was far more advanced than whatever he was supposed to be taking, but at least they weren't going into this blind.

He wasn't quite sure what Mark meant by enemies. Dodging obstacles and hitting targets was all fine and dandy, but somehow Will didn't like the sound of enemies. Was Mr. Lang trying to pick off the weaklings with some sort of gladiator-style fight to the death or something? Will wasn't sure he could handle that. He was good at staying out of the way and dodging things, but if he got into a fight he'd be down in 2 seconds flat. His powers weren't really geared towards combat.

"Charlotee. A pleasure." Mimicking the style of Vix, Charlotte introduced herself with a smile and a slight bow. It was good to hear that Tony held her in such high regard, though she couldn't help but let out one singular chuckle at the comment about her music choices. Well of course Tony would like them, most of the music originated from his library in the first place!

Her communication channel? That would be a great them for Vix to have if they were going to be working together for the foreseeable future. "Of course." She nodded and tapped her belt buckle. "COR, please give the kind lady what she wants."

"Sending the comm channel now, Charlotte." COR spoke back to her through the buckle, sending out the channel for Vix to connect to.

Charlotte didn't exactly want to step up and take the leadership role if Vix wanted it, but Vix was a new student, and this was her first day in the Advanced Training program. This was Charlotte's fourth year in both of these things. She was more experienced with handling such situations, so it would be wise for her to step up.

The two pristine hallways marked their entrance. So they'd be working together somehow, but still seperated. She was quite thankful that she had given out her comm channel when she did, unless, of course, Lang did decide to shut off such signals from being of any use during training. She wouldn't hold it against him.

She herself was left handed. Well, she was strange. She wrote and ate with her left hand, but her right was how she led her punches and threw things. Everything else was with both hands. She took the left hallway herself, if her strange line of thinking somehow directed her to that one, and smiled at Vix. "Alright, lets see what we have here."

She walked on. Not too far up, there seemed to be a drop off point on her side of the hallway, and a button waiting to be pressed right next to her. Charlotte's hands fiddled in her pockets, drawing out a small pair of earphones which she plugged into her ears. "Testing, testing." She said to herself. "Vix, can you hear me?"

@pyroman

Sides were picked, and Vix walked into the right hallway. The door slid shut once she was inside it. It was only several moments later when she felt the communication channel that COD send her activate. She heard Charlotte's voice inside her head. She simply asked if she could hear her. Vix could simply answer the channel inside her head. She didnt, she spoke aloud.

"Loud and clearly."

It was less weird for humans this way. Vix looked through the glass, noticing that the angle didnt really allowed to see everything in the other room. " Anything interesting in your part?" Vix gave a observation of her room as she said that, she turned with her hands crossed over her chest. It appeared there was only a red button to her side and a closed door across the room. She could simply walk over to the door and phrase though it. Her eyes refocused activating some of the scanners. "I dont like the fact they let me see the guns behind the walls, as well as most things appear to indicate movable parts and drops under the movable parts."

Clam content, apathy, frustration Vix reminded herself. Thinking of how nicely it is to play with cigars and to smoke inside her closet. The uneasy anticipations melted away keeping the non interested apathy as the main emotion. "...Oh and I have a button. Do you have any experience with this format of course? Should we both presse it or dont touch big red buttons?"

She couldnt stop the thought jumping on her mind questioning why was this looking like some puzzle instead of some normal run the obstacle courses.

An obstacle course? Could Lang make it any easier for him? The pair-ups seemed mostly random but that didn't matter. It was basically an on the spot decision unless he was secretly planning this all along. Richard was teamed up with Ben and it seemed to be the pairing that would guarantee a win on any obstacle course. They were spiders and Richard's spider sense was perfect for this thing. He was sure he could handle anything the obstacle courses could throw at him and he's been proven right so far. He just hoped Ben's tech based one was good enough. This would be his first time seeing it in action.

He headed over to one of the free arenas and waited for it to start. He didn't know why but he was excited. Maybe it was because it was the first day of school again. Maybe it was the thought of Lang having a few good surprises in store for them that made him excited. Richard pressed the spider emblem on his necklace and watched as it formed his Agent Spider costume around him. He turned to Ben and said, "Let's show them what the spiders can do."