Arc 1

Arc Academy Associates

Chapter 1: Open Your Eyes, Abandon Your Self



Out in the desert lands known as Orocos, a rare event in the universe was about to occur. There was a slim chance of this occurrence happening every three years, but often did not. It required the gathering of very unnatural beings, creatures capable of transcending their given bodies and limitations imposed at birth. Evolving at a vary rapid pace, these beings known to some as monsters would eventually have the power to change the course of the universe itself.

Orocos is a harsh land, intensely beaten by the sun's scorching rays. The air is so dry that one can almost feel the moisture being sucked from their skin. Throughout most of the land, there is nothing living but wild beasts that have adapted to the unforgiving climate over generations. The few human civilizations that exist in Orocos are closer to non-desert land, never too far from a river or oasis that provides constant water supply. It would be impossible to survive in Orocos for even a day without immediate access to water at all times. Yet, on this day, many brave souls decided to embark on a journey into this guaranteed death sentence. Embarking from the nearest town with as much water as they could carry and out into the desert at the same time; a time that at every hour the desert simply grew hotter and hotter and . . . hotter.

The locals would have informed anyone that the destination was not a good choice for a day's travel, especially not without an expedition team that was well trained and well supplied. The desert's climate alone was enough to kill someone from a heat stroke, and the creatures that lurked about waiting for exhausted travelers were abundant. Orocos was also under frequent threat from vicious sandstorms that if one somehow survived, would still die after having lost their way, being cut off from the sun and severely beaten.

It may have been an unconfirmed fact, in that you could not call and verify its invitation, the actual event being kept secret after all. But out in the desert there was a chance for something unique to each traveler as well as common. A reward that could grant an entire new perspective to the world, resources some could only dream of, power that the ordinary would not even think possible, and legendary experiences that made life worth risking.

And so the daring travelers ventured, out to find the ancient ruins of a town that once existed in a now uninhabitable location. The fallen civilization of Roontah. It was here that the true journey began, the chance to test one's resolve and desires for unrivaled reward. And now, the travelers capable of locating and reaching the ruins were to begin this journey. Would they face the same fate however, as those who failed to find the ruins, become lost to the desert forever? Or would they transform into tales of grandeur?

Kenric

One of the travelers was sitting before Roontah's steps now, in the golden sand with legs crossed. The young male with light brown hair and light complexion was leaning back on his arms, with his head tilted upward and gaze fixed upon the sky. His name was Kenric, no formal family name, and he was one of the first twelve to arrive at Roontah. At first he thought nothing of his arrival time, but as at least fifty people arrived over the next two hours, he realized his endurance and experience traversing dangerous landscapes had proven advantageous. Still, over the course of his trip here and waiting for two hours, he was still down to his very last water canteen. That meant that nearly everyone else had probably already ran out of water entirely, as they could only carry so much water. Not to mention the trip was a lot longer than even Kenric thought it would be. With the high endurance he knew he had, he was still winded and greatly appreciated the two hour break he had before something occurred.

After finding Roontah, Kenric simply plopped down right before the ancient town. Others may have opted to explore the ruins, even find some sign that the fabled test they were all gathered for was actually to happen here. But Kenric honestly rather rest and conserve his energy. They had all spent the entire day trekking through a miserable desert, and the test hadn't even begun yet. Kenric didn't want to waste any effort on something that didn't move him forward in his goal. Besides, they were not told how long it would take to find this place or what time the test would start. The only clue Kenric and likely everyone else was given, was to leave for Roontah from the nearest town at 12:00PM on the dot. Nothing else. With such gaps between arrival times, who knew what time the test was going to start and what was an acceptable time to arrive. If Kenric and others had arrived way too early, they might still have quite some time to wait. Thus, searching Roontah would be rather pointless. Also, Kenric had no idea what condition the town was in and if there might be some sort of traps laid out either by people of the past or people wishing to catch people now. He did examine the square and rectangular buildings, built up onto the side of a giant cliff, very well in the last two hours however. But now, he was growing rather impatient. None of them would survive for very long without water, much less take the Arc Academy Associate Test.

Some of the other travelers, applicants to the Academy, were beginning to speak to one another. Kenric could hear a portion of the group beginning to question whether they had truly found the right location. If this was really Roontah. Others wondered if it was all a false lead to begin with, and The Arc Academy Associate Test was actually taking place somewhere else entirely. Another portion of the group was in a different state entirely. They were nearing dehydration and were unlikely to make it much longer. Kenric could not help but feel as if the test had already started. Would they really start it like this though?

Kenric turned his head, moving his gaze from the sky to the fellow applicants around him. If this was the task that needed to be endured just to take the test, what kind of things would they be put through? Some of these men might not even be able to stand up by the time someone arrived to give them some sort of validation. And that was when his eyes widened a bit. He couldn't believe it, but there was a child there amongst the crowd.

"A kid? Here?" Any of the other participants would probably laugh if they were paying enough attention to him, as he would surely be regarded as a kid himself by the older applicants here. The younger applicant, if they didn't hear him speak, would likely notice his crimson red eyes bearing down on them. It wasn't intentionally a menacing or intimidating glare, but with his lack of facial expression and piercing eyes, it may come off as so.

Not far from where Kenric was, there was a girl among the other participants to the AAAT. She was pretty young, as least compared to the other participants who were mostly middle-aged men. She was looking around impatiently, with her arms crossed below her chest.

"Uuuu, it's so hot..." she said while waving her hands near her neck in an effort to cool her body's temperature down. Obviously, it wouldn't work, so then she tried another method. She lifted her skirt and used it to air her thighs. At first, she took care not to lift it too far but after five minutes of some unsatisfactory tiny winds, she decided to just screw it and used the entirety of her skirt as a makeshift fan. It wasn't like she was a stranger to her flashing her panties. Her high kicks already introduced that to her.

She would've joined the others who entered the city, but she just felt too spent for that now. The journey here wasn't exactly easy and her water canteen was near empty. She had to conserve her strength.

A thought crossed into her mind. What if this was a part of the test? Like some sort of an endurance trial? After they were all tired from the trek here, they would start the test, so only the best of the best would pass.

She looked around once again. Still no sign of the test being starting.

"Aaaaa, I would've wore my short-sleeved shirt if I know it would be this hot."

A pair of eyes were focused upon the ruins that were in front of the body the eyes were attached to. PN61A looked forward with a blank expression on her face. She took note of these Ruins of Roontah, as thoughts rushed through her head pondering what would be there. Perhaps there would be mummies! Or quite possibly a pit full of snakes! Gretchen Primrose could hardly wait to explore the ruins and take the treasures that were sure to be there! For there were always treasures in ruined civilizations.

Her staff that was clutched in her not as noticeably robotic hand pointed directly upwards. A small bit of wind came and started to move her hat off her head. Lifting up her staff the Amazing and Oh-so Glorious Gretchen Primrose waved her staff around in a circle as she gave off a powerful magical chant!

"oppicusStay yMay atHay allingFay Offyay!" She continued to wave her staff around as she tried to be discrete about moving her quite obviously mechanical arm upwards to push her hat back into place. With her hat secured, she took a moment to dust off the edges of her skirt.

With exaggerated goose-steps, The Amazing and Oh-so Glorious Gretchen Primrose moved in front of the the group and the ruins in the distance.

She waved her staff around before pointing it towards the group at large. "Fear not. Do not worry about the conditions of this place. For I am the Amazing and Oh-so Glorious Gretchen Primrose, Witch Extraordinaire!~" She took a brief pause for any gasps or clapping that were sure to happen.

"That pause was for your gasps and clapping. I assert my earlier point. Fear not. Because I am here. And I will explore these ruins and achieve success in this test shrouded in mystery. I am unaware how you will fare; however I can assure you that you will take happiness in the fact that I will succeed regardless of whether or not you do."

A couple yards away from the gathering, Roxy was rushing towards them. She was carrying her sweatshirt over her shoulder, and the bottles of water she had taken with her had been completely emptied. After her long and arduous journey through the desert lands of Orocos and not finding anything, Roxy had started to finally wonder whether or not this whole "Arc Academy" thing was just some kind of elaborate prank being played on her or something. However, when she finally caught the group of people gathered together, she immediately started running towards the crowd excitedly. "Whoohoo, I finally found it!" Roxy shouted energetically as she reached the crowd, pumping her fist in victory at the same time

A couple seconds later, A girl reached the front of the crowd and speaking to them all. Still full of excitement due to having finally found the AAAT, Roxy started cheering loudly at the girl's words. "Yeah! Whooo!" Roxy shouted into the crowd with great enthusiasm, not really paying attention to the fact that she was most likely the only one doing so

"Yes. I was expecting such enthusiasm from all of you when I told you these facts." PN61A gripped the edges of her dress as she performed a curtsy. The Amazing and Oh-so-Glorious Gretchen Primrose had a touch looser grip on the side with her staff. She kept the curtsy position, staring dead forward at the crowd, as she noted all of their enthusiasm. Well okay, mostly from Roxy, as the others were silent. They were surely just as enthusiastic as her, but they were a bit subdued in displaying such excitement.

Returning back up to a straight standing position PN61A turned her head from side to side in a slow and methodical movement. "I see you are not all expressing the eagerness you all have. I can fix that with some spectacular displays of magic~!" She declared with her expression remaining completely blank, while raising her staff and much more robotic appendage upwards. Lowering them back down The Amazing and Oh-so-Glorious Gretchen Primrose pointed her staff towards the crowd, "I require a volunteer from the crowd."

After a few seconds, Roxy eventually stopped cheering but still continued listening intently to the girl's words. When Roxy heard the girl say that she needed a volunteer however, her arm shot right back up and she immediately started shouting again. "Ooh, ooooh! Pick me! Pick me!!" Roxy shouted excitedly, waving her hand back and forth like crazy. She didn't even really know what she was volunteering for, but she was just so caught up in the moment she didn't really care. Despite all the energy Roxy was putting on display she was actually pretty physically exhausted, but she certainly wasn't going to show that

"Ooh, what's going on here?" Miki said as she noticed the show PN61A was putting on. She had always been fond of magic shows like that so finding one here, done by another applicant nonetheless (or at least she thought the girl was), was certainly a pleasant surprise. And when the performer girl asked for a volunteer, she quickly raised her hand, only to be beaten by another, red-headed girl.

"Aaw," she pouted. "I wanted to go up there too..."

You might think that it was odd for her to be so carefree in this situation, like the other contestants did, whom just stared at the performing girl blankly. But it was just in her nature. She had arrived here safe and sound, and the test hadn't started yet. So the only thing she could do is to relax. No sense in tearing out your nerves for something that was out of her control.

She looked closer at the performer. She then noticed how she seemed to be a cyborg, judging by her metal arms. She was dressed like a witch though, so that would make her a witch cyborg? Now that would be a strange combination to behold.

Oh well, there would always be odd people here and there. And it wasn't like she wasn't a bit of an oddball herself. What kind of high school girl would participate in a grueling test like this for starters?

And so the series of events had unfolded in the way PN61A computed was a likely result. As soon as the Amazing and Oh-so-Glorious Gretchen Primrose had requested some volunteers she had gained more interest than from her initial amazing speech. She pointed her staff towards Roxy's arm that was moving more frantically, "Yes. You have volunteered to be a volunteer. This means you get to be my assistant for this." Slowly Gretchen turned her head to face the other hand in the crowd that was raised up, well before being put down.

"You also wanted to volunteer. You also get to be my assistant. I shall reanalyze the parameters for my initial magic display to account for this." she spoke as she gestured with her staff towards Miki. PN61A moved her head from side to side as she gauged the crowd.

"Please demonstrate your support by applauding these two assistants. You may applaud either vocally or physically. Allow me to demonstrate." Moving out both of her arms, she allowed her staff to rest against her arm as she prepared to clap. Both hands came together and pressed against each other making a clanking noise. "Woo! Woo!" declared the Amazing and Oh-so-Glorious Gretchen Primrose with a blank expression.

"The two volunteers I obtained from the crowd, listen to my pre-instructions before my instructions. Each of you should take a spot on one of my sides; please do not occupy the same side. When you have made your way to me you will tell the crowd and myself your names. Also a fun fact about yourself if you would not mind."

The moment the robot girl picked her, Roxy promptly rushed toward the robot girl as if on cue. She forced her way through the sea of people standing in front of her, thoughtlessly pushing everyone out of her way and probably stepping on a few feet along the way, and made it to where the robot girl was standing. She then immediately took her place on the left side of the robot girl like she had asked Roxy to

When the robot girl asked Roxy to give her name, Roxy wasted no time immediately responding. She looked out to the audience and shouted 'The name's Roxy and...uhhh..." Roxy started, but then hesitated awkwardly once she realized she didn't give herself enough time to think of a fun fact about herself. After thinking about it for a second, she started to smirk and quickly took a wide-leg stance and pointed dramatically in the air. "...And a fun fact about me is...I'm gonna be the most famous and powerful person in the Arc Academy! Don't you forget it!!" Roxy shouted at the top of her lungs with great enthusiasm

Miki quickly brightened up when she heard the performer taking her as well. She had thought she had been left out, her spot taken by the other girl who was noticed by the cyborg first.

"Coming!" she shouted back, waving her hands.

She went towards the stage as quickly as she could. And unlike the other girl, she had just the perfect way to do so. It was the way of the performer. The way that would turn every head in the audience towards her.

She jumped.

Not just any jump, mind you, but a really high jump.

And not just any high jump, but a really long one as well.

Yep, she jumped to the air, straight through all the crowds that blocked her path.

She didn't care that it basically revealed her ability to her future competitors (not to mention her panties for that matter). She got no time for that. It was show time and what better way to make an entrance than to just jump straight to the stage like a falling comet.

She landed perfectly with a straight leg without any loss in balance. She was well-trained in this after all. She knew perfectly well the capabilities of her legs and how to move them as she willed.

As she landed to the right of the robot girl, she raised her hands to the air dramatically and said, "I'm Miki, Miki Melbourne! And I'm going to become the strongest martial artist of all time!"

@tipssyCalibrator@Blight Bug

The Amazing and Oh-so-Glorious Gretchen Primrose turned her head from side to side as she watched both the ladies eagerly rush to take their positions. One picked running through the crowd to reach her, while the other leaped over the crowd in order to reach other. She kept a blank expression and stared forward while the two gave out tidbits about their dreams.

Clanking her hands together, PN61A clapped as she glanced between Roxy and Miki Melbourne. "Wow. What a display. And you even share the same fun fact; both of you desire to have enough power to claim to be the best." Slowly her head turned to Roxy before pointing towards Miki, "I hope you do not mind the competition from Miki." The gesture was repeated with Miki as she stared at her and pointed towards Roxy, "I hope you do not mind the competition from Roxy." With her head facing straight forward she mused aloud, "It is fun learning about these things."

After that bit of dialogue was finished PN61A marched forward a small bit with more exaggerated steps. Spinning on her heel she turned back towards the two girls.

"First before I prepare my spectacular feats of magic I must inquire. Is this the first time the two of you have ever dealt with a Witch's Performance? It'd be nice to know." spoke the Amazing and Oh-so-Glorious Gretchen Primrose as she reached into the satchel that was hooked onto her dress. From this pouch she pulled out a deck of cards.

"Behold. I have a deck of cards. A deck of ordinary cards to most but when they are in my possession they become something spectacular!" declared PN61A with a blank expression. She extended out the deck of cards to Roxy, "Please go through these cards, then hand them to Miki. I would like the both of you to confirm that these are a normal deck of cards before I apply my spectacular magic to them."

Roxy watched in awe as the blonde haired girl performed her rather impressive feats. Aw man, that girl's entrance was WAY cooler than hers, Roxy thought to herself as she folded her arms in frustration. Roxy's feelings of jealousy only intensified when she heard blondie reveal her own goals and dreams. What did she just say? Was she challenging her? Who did she think she was, stepping into Roxy's territory like that? Roxy started to make a subtle sneer at blondie while looking at her from the corner of her eye

When robot girl asked Roxy about what she thought about what blondie had said, Roxy felt compelled to reply. She had to keep it cool though, she definitely didn't want to look like she was bothered by what she had said, after all. She gave a scoff in response. "Whatever, it's not like she'll ever be able to compete against me anyway!" Roxy said with a condescending tone along with a smirk

Suddenly, robot girl handed Roxy a deck of cards and asked her to look through the cards. Roxy nodded her head and started scanning through the deck very quickly, then handed them back barely a second later. "Done!" Roxy said, acting as if it was a competition

Miki on the other hand didn't really care that much for competing with the girl. She wasn't a competitive person by nature. Of course, she loved facing a good challenge but she didn't go out of her way to look for it. And she wouldn't be jealous of someone stronger than her as her own grandfather had always been stronger, even to this day. Part of the reason why she was willing to take this test was to train herself so that one day she could win over him, like he wanted her to do. She had no malice towards the old man. Only admiration.

Thus, when she was asked by the robot performer about the girl, she merely replied, "I do not mind at all! The more the merrier after all!" with a cheerful tone. She didn't take offense at all when the girl said that she was obviously superior than her.

She looked at the girl shuffling the cards real quickly, as if it was a deck-shuffling competition. She didn't understand. It if were her, she would make sure to check all the cards throughoutly, making sure that they were perfectly ordinary cards. She would even scan for any qi in them. She would be disappointed if the performer girl was only using a simple qi trick for her show, especially since she did it in front of experienced fighters that would probably know how to use qi themselves.

@tipssyCalibrator@Blight Bug

Kenric

Kenric's crimson eyes remained locked onto the young girl and followed her as she made her way to the front of the crowd. What was she wearing and . . . why? Not that his all black attire was exactly most befitting for this climate, but he had brought with him a sand colored robe to shield himself from the sun's rays and could lower the zipper of his jacket. But she was wearing an old fashioned looking dress, an apron, and knee high boots. The only useful article of clothing she had might have been her tall hat, providing shade from the sun's relentless rays. Upon reaching the front of all the travelers, the girl decided to introduce herself.

She can't be serious.

Stating her name to the crowd and spewing out random gibberish, some of the travelers looked on with irritation in their eyes. People's patience and even their sanity was low at the moment. But nonetheless, the girl continued. Not very far into her speech, another girl could be heard shouting out of nowhere. Kenric grabbed his robe from the floor and stood up now as the the supposed witch requested volunteers; the other girl, of course, eagerly leaping to the opportunity. Many of the applicants had moved away from the crowd now, while others either continued to ignore what was happening or were too thirsty to even move.

There's two of them now. As Kenric began to wonder if the girls were some kind of test of their own, being the youngest here besides himself, a third voice overtook the crowd. Following the cheerful and high pitched voice, Kenric focused on someone his age-another female-right before she suddenly leapt into the air and moved over the remaining applicants so that she landed right beside PN61A and the other girl beside her. This wasn't what he had expected to see. Still, Kenric moved to the front and center of the crowd to get a better view of the girls. Nothing had happened up until this point and so he could not help but wonder if it was related to the AAAT in someway. Upon reaching the front, he heard the 'volunteers', Roxy and Miki, announce their desires to be the best. PN61A, the apparent cyborg, made note of their grand desires and conflicting interests in regards to The Academy. Ironically, her own attitude was not too far off. Kenric crossed his arms, his robe draped over the left, and watched as PN61A handed a deck of cards to Roxy.

As Roxy handed the deck back to PN61A everyone in the crowd perked up for the first time, eyes becoming intently focused. Kenric furrowed his eyebrows as his gaze moved passed the three girls and up to the stone steps of Roontah. At first he thought he may have imagined it or be looking at some kind of mirage. But after blinking repeatedly and focusing his vision once more, Kenric could still see it. Someone was suddenly standing behind the girls, on the steps of Roontah. The strange thing was that he appeared out of nowhere. Those that were watching what was taking place or had their attention on Roontah would have caught that the man did not walk or fall from anywhere. No one had been alerted of his presence before; he came into everyone's view simultaneously.



The fashionably dressed man made no sound and did not move from the steps. He was simply gazing down at PN61A, Roxy and Miki, who would be unaware of this as no one else would have noticed him if they weren't already looking in his direction. Kenric was only more confused now. Was all of this apart of the test? Or were the three girls actually participants and the test was about to start now? On the other hand, had the test already started and the man was actually another applicant? Or was this all something to further deter them from the actual AAAT? Kenric sighed and shook his head as his brain began to hurt. There were too many possibilities and nothing he could do now but watch the 'magic show'.

The deck of playing cards were in fact a normal playing cards. They were nothing more or nothing less than just some regular cards. While some might've resorted to utilizing qi for tricks, The Amazing and Oh-so-Glorious Gretchen Primrose would not stoop to such levels. She was The Amazing and Oh-so-Glorious Gretchen Primrose for a reason after all! And she had no use for qi in her spectacular displays of magic, because she didn't need it. Only unprofessionals would need it for what PN61A would perform.

"Very good to hear that." PN61A remarked as she reclaimed the deck, sliced it in half and held both sections in her hand. With her thumbs facing inwards she released them allowing the cards to fall into place as another shuffle was done.

Flipping the deck upside down, she revealed the face of the Queen of Hearts. She turned her attention between Miki, Roxy and the audience, as she showed off the Queen of Hearts. "Behold. This card is currently the Queen of Hearts. However! I shall turn this card into the Queen of Spades."

The Amazing and Oh-so-Glorious Gretchen Primrose goose-stepped close to the audience to make sure they were all at a suitable viewing distance for this trick. Placing one of her hands on top, and began rubbing down on the Queen of Hearts. "Now I incant the magical words; Hocus Pocus!"

All while this spectacular display was going on the sleight of hand behind the trick was set up and finished, approximately about the time the figure did their own version of the vanishing and reappearance act.

PN61A removed her hand over the card to show that it was indeed the Queen of Spades! The Amazing and Oh-so-Glorious Gretchen Primrosed showed off the card to all in attendance. "And through my magic it is the Queen of Spades!"

She paused for the adoration shown via clapping and cheers alongside a stunned silence. "This pause is for the clapping and cheers from all of you seeing such a spectacular display besides that stunned silence. Good job on the stunned silence. I have many, many more displays of magic I can show. Are you ready for more?"

@Acid Hippie @Blight Bug

Due to her facing the crowd and away from the sight, Roxy did not notice the mysterious man appearing out of thin air. Honestly, it would've been fairly likely that she wouldn't have noticed him even if she WAS looking at him either

Naturally, Roxy was incredibly impressed with robot girl's magic trick. She immediately started applauding and cheering loudly in response, not thinking at all about how she was right next to her and was probably screaming in her (and blondie's) ears. When the robot girl then asked if they wanted to see another trick, Roxy held her fist in the air. "Hell yeah! Let's see another one!!" She shouted, rather unsurprisingly

As the cyborg girl began her performance, she made sure that she looked at her trick as closely as possible. Even though she knew the crucial part of a magic performance was how nobody knew the trick behind it, she still wanted to know. Of course, if she knew, she wouldn't spread the word around. It would simply be her little secret.

Try as she might however, her eyes couldn't see through the cyborg's fast finger movements. Yes, even when she used her qi to enhance the sharpness of her sight. Perhaps her metal fingers were enhanced beyond what ordinary human fingers were capable of.

Miki didn't notice the man standing behind her either, as her concentration was all directed towards the magic trick. And when the performer girl finished, she clapped loudly as well, though not as loud as the other girl did, which quite disturbed her a little. Make no mistake. She was just as excited as she was. She simply had more self-restraint in expressing her excitement.

"Yes, I'd love to see another one as well!" she said to the cyborg with a bright smile.

@Blight Bug

The Amazing and Oh-so-Glorious kept a decidedly blank expression even while Roxy zealously yelled in her ear after clapping intensively. She was followed by the excited, but not nearly as excited, claps of Miki. Both of them voiced their eagerness to see another one of her spectacular displays of magic.

"Very well. I shall demonstrate even more of my spectacular magic as you are all clamoring for it, whether through the stunned silence or active participation of clapping and cheering." noted PN61A, still fully unaware of the other figure.

She rested her staff against the temple of her head as she began to shuffle through the deck again. "Now then. Yes, I can feel the mystic energy here." The Amazing and Oh-so-Glorious Primrose noted while trying to appear as if in a trance; but instead she kept the same blank expression. "I shall pick a card these ruins have told me to."

The Amazing and Oh-so-Glorious Gretchen Primrose placed a card face down on the dirt below. She turned her attention to Miki as she fanned out the deck. "Now I need my fair volunteer Miki here to pick a card. Any card will do." She stated as she began to set the wheels in motion for this next amazing display of magic.

Kenric

Kenric raised an eyebrow as PN61A completed her magic trick. His head then tilted to the side ever so slightly as both Roxy and Miki excitedly praised the trick. It's not that his eyes could follow whatever it was that PN61A had done in her trick, but it wasn't something he would expect The Academy to be showing them. Clearly they were not part of the test, but more likely that the man behind them was going to be the first sign of something. That only left the question however, as to what were they doing out here?

The crowd of applicants now huddled together a little more closely, as if appearing to be more interested in PN61A's magic show.

But they were not.

The man who suddenly appeared had now begun to slowly descend the steps of Roontah. Through his glasses he examined the applicants carefully, but with no expression on his face. He kept one hand kept in his pocket as he walked over to the crowd and casually smoked his elegant wooden pipe. With the sun now shining off him; his silver glasses and hair, his coat adorned with golden buttons, buckles, and chains-it was a mystery how no one noticed him before. Yet, everyone remained silent as he himself quietly approached them all. The man stopped once he was a few meters away from PN61A, Roxy, and Miki. He brought his hand up to his chin while he examined them without their knowledge. Then, he grabbed his pipe with his free hand and removed it from his lips as he exhaled a large plume of smoke.

"Well. Let's see this trick then? But perhaps I could volunteer myself as well."

There was an actual stunned silence from the crowd this time, as everyone stared in disbelief.

Kenric's shoulders hunched in as he sighed. "Now what . . ."

"Hm? inquired the Amazing and Oh-so-Glorious Gretchen Primrose as she turned her head back to the sound of another one wanting to volunteer. She stared at the other magician with a blank expression as she turned to face him. "Well I do need three for this particular and spectacular display of magic; this trick has various stages and to complete it as I said earlier I need three volunteers for this." spoke PN61A who was completely nonplussed to the situation of a mysterious figure showing up out of the blue.

This did mean that she'd have to save the vanishing tricks for later.

"I now have three volunteers. This is good. However..." PN61A motioned her head to side to side as she glanced towards the gentleman, then to Miki, then to Roxy. "I will need to have one of my volunteers to select a card from the deck. Any card will do." The Amazing and Oh-so-Glorious Gretchen Primrose kept the deck fanned out as she motioned it slowly in the direction of all three.

"Now then, who would like to be the first to pick the card from the deck?" PN61A inquired, before gesturing her staff at the new comer. The Amazing and Oh-so-Glorious Gretchen stared blankly at this individual for a short, but seemingly ludicrously long, time.

"Oh. Since we have a new volunteer, please state your name to the crowd and one fun fact about you." she quickly stared back at the audience, "And when they are done giving out their name and a fun fact about themselves, please demonstrate your support by applauding this new third assistant. You may applaud either vocally or physically. Allow me to demonstrate."

Instead of clapping both of her robotic hands together, she instead clapped against the forearm of her arm that currently held the cards. After showing this physical applaud, she then proceeded to add a vocal demonstration of applauding. "Woo. Woo."