Roxy finally noticed the strange man with the pipe, but didn't really give it much thought since she didn't see him mysteriously appear. Whatever, just some old dude with a pipe Roxy thought. Of course, she did think it was maybe a little weird how he seemed to be standing on the opposite end from where the crowd was, but Roxy still didn't think much of it

When robot girl asked for a volunteer for a whole new trick, Roxy wasted no time responding. Before robot girl could even finish her sentence, Roxy immediately shouted "Me!!" as she quickly grabbed at the deck and swiped a card from the deck all in half a second

"Splendid." The man in the coat smiled as PN61A agreed to include him in the show. He listened intently as she instructed him further, requesting his name and a fact. At this point, the applicants were watching with mixed emotions shining through their eyes. They were battling between impatience and the desire to begin the task they were so desperate to complete; more so now then they were upon the start of their trek to Roontah. Now the man's eyes moved from PN61A and focused on the group of weary applicants. "Very well then." Removing his pipe from his lips, the man blew smoke from his mouth until a giant cloud formed above everyone.

"You can call me, Smokescreen. And as for a fact-I am the official examiner of this triennial Arc Academy Associate Test!"

Those who had left the crowd earlier now rejoined the group as they were made aware of the examiner's presence.

"It's about time." One of the applicants grumbled as he made his way to the front of the crowd, though he didn't seem particularly exhausted nor upset. Rather, he seemed like he was bored. He was also one of the first twelve to arrive at Roontah.



"I congratulate you all on finding this location. This was a rather difficult challenge." Smokescreen continued. "If it is not already evident by the difficulty of the preliminary requirement of locating and reaching the city of Roontah, I am reaffirming now that The Arc Academy Associate Test will be extremely challenging. The tasks before you will only become increasingly more dangerous. There is a chance that you may lose your life, though I hope we can complete this test without any deaths!" Smokescreen had a sincere smile on his face still, his warning of danger entirely honest and without exaggeration despite him being equally genuine about wishing for everyone to survive.

Kenric

Kenric felt a sense of relief, though it was short lived as it was overwhelmed with his eagerness to start the AAAT; his gradual build up of determination and whatever energy was left in him. This was the moment that he and everyone else had been waiting for. He wondered how longer the examiner had been there watching them though. Did he really appear when they saw him? Or had he been hiding the whole time? Did I get here too early or was he assessing the candidates after we all arrived? But then, if that were the case, that would mean that those who arrived while he was observing had arrived too late and failed. And he didn't mention anyone failing the test just yet.

Shifting his gaze from the examiner back to the girls, Kenric wondered how capable they would be as actual candidates. They seemed to be bustling with a good amount of energy still, Miki leaping over the crowd without any reservation. Roxy arrived a bit later but she was still shouting her lungs out and giving her full effort to tasks that had nothing to do with the AAAT. PN61A . . . well she obviously wasn't quite a normal human being. Kenric really didn't know what to expect from her. Considering them and the rest of the unique crowd that had gathered here, this test would be just as interesting as it was challenging.

Miki was quite peeved when Roxy snatched her card-pulling duty from her. But when the mysterious man made his presence known to the three of them, that thought quickly passed away as he quickly pulled her attention. She was always like that; quick to forget her anger if something else came up.

Even at a glance, she could tell that there was something odd about the man. The way he carried himself didn't make him look like he was another participant. That hunch was soon proven to be true when he announced himself to be the examiner of the test, a fact that took Miki quite by surprise even though she already knew he was something different.

He then congratulated them for being able to reach this place. She had to agree with his comment about it being not an easy task. It wasn't only the heat that challenged her. There were also some unruly creatures lurking in the sand that she had to beat by kicking them really hard in the head. One of them even dared to grab her feet, something it quickly regretted as she quickly did her spin to break free, ripping apart its grabbing tongue in the process.

It was nothing she couldn't handle though. Her grandpa would laugh if she had difficulties fighting againts monsters that weak. They couldn't even use qi, which made a skilled qi user like her far beyond their level.

She was lucky she didn't catch any sandstorm though. Even if she could stay on her feet thanks to her qi ability, her vision would still be limited and she might become lost as a result. She wasn't particularly learned in the arts of trekking through the desert so it would be terribly difficult for her to get to the test site if she strayed from the common path.

And besides, she would hate having sands inside her clothes. It wasn't like she could just strip naked and clean them out here, not with so many people around.

She looked at the examiner expectantly. She was getting excited for the test, as well as some other contestants in the crowd who were already getting bored from the wait.

@Acid Hippie

@Acid Hippie

Roxy immediately began to pay attention as the old man started getting everyone's attention in the crowd. At first she was annoyed by the fact that he was distracting from the show, but once she started hearing him explain that he was one of the people from the AAAT, her attitude changed and she began getting excited

Hearing the old man's words and warnings about how the test was extremely difficult and dangerous only served to hype Roxy up about the test even more than she already was. This test sounded like the most exciting thing she would ever do, and the thought of which got Roxy pumped up like crazy. Unable to hold in all her excitement, she leaped up in the air and let out an enthusiastic shout. "Challenge accepted! Bring it on old man, I can take ANYTHING this test can throw at me!!" Roxy shouted at the old man, as loud as ever

Well PN61A knew when it was time to cut a performance quick. With a slow and steady series of exaggerated goosesteps she headed toward Roxy and plucked the card she procured from her. The Amazing and Oh-so-Glorious Gretchen Primrose returned it back into her deck and performed an elaborate shuffle. Once the cards were shuffled again, she returned them back into her pouch.

The robot then spun around and focused her attention on the magician who referred to himself by his stage name. She began to clank her robotic hands together, "Woo. Let us have a round of applause for the individual who did not quite act as an assistant to the performance, but notified us that he is the individual starting this exam."

And with a few more claps, the robot finished and held her staff aloft. Thrusting the staff in the directions of the ruins PN61A spoke again, "I implore you all to remember the beginning of my introduction. Be glad that I will succeed in this regardless of whether or not you all succeed here."

Smokescreen raised his chin as his eyes peered down on Roxy, shouting at him and calling him an old man. Though he was an older gentleman, he certainly was not considered an elder. But he withheld any comment as the young girl so boldly declared she would handle absolutely any challenge thrown her way. It took much confidence to say such a thing, but then, someone her age should not be here as things were . . . His eyes then traveled and rested on the hands of PN61A, watching as she gathered her cards and returned them to her pouch. Another young candidate, although, with her obvious unique circumstances. This would be quite the test this time around. No one applauded as PN61A prompted, but rather they watched as fire ignited in many of the applicants eyes, ready for the moment they had all been waiting for.

"It is heartening to see that there will be such eager participants applying to The Arc Academy in this triennial event! Now that my introduction is out of the way, let us officially begin the first stage of The Arc Academy Associate Test! The test, as I said, will become more and more difficult. The challenges will vary in objective and require various skills to be completed." Extending his arms out on either side, Smokescreen smiled once again. "The first stage is something I am sure you will all be grateful to complete. Not just to advance on to Stage Two of the AAAT, but to have the strength to do so as well. Yes, the first stage will be to explore this old town of Roontah and find some . . . water!" Pausing for a brief moment Smokescreen let his comment sit with the crowd of applicants, though he knew it would take but a fraction of a second for mostly everyone to immediately become even more motivated than they were before. With everyone fighting dehydration, completing this task was not only essential for the test but survival. However, Smokescreen had more to add.

"While both the prerequisite and actual AAAT must be of such difficulty in order to prove one's worth to The Academy, your death is not the goal. If you feel you cannot continue in your current state, I congratulate you now on the task you have already completed and would say train harder-train harder so that you may have the opportunity to try again in another three year or six years should you find the AAAT location again. That would be a much wiser choice than needlessly harming yourself or risking your life when not ready for the challenge at hand. If that is your current circumstance, have no fear, as I shall provide you with hydration and be sure you are better suited to find your way back to civilization. Once Stage One of the AAAT begins, I will not be able to intervene however." Smokescreen lowered his arms and angled his body so that he could view Roontah as well. "When Stage One is complete, whether all applicants have succeeded and/or failed, or the designated time of two hours has passed, I will be able to once again provide you with hydration and direction. But until Stage One is complete I can not assist you, even should you be on the verge of death. With that in mind, please go ahead and make your choice. Should you decide to proceed with The Arc Academy Associate Test, know that the objective of finding water can be accomplished by everyone present, however the chance of this occurring is rather low. With that in mind, should you wish to continue please follow me to the entrance of Roontah! All others, please remain here and I shall return once the AAAT has begun."

Finishing his speech and warning, Smokescreen began walking towards Roontah. Many of the applicants immediately followed, but fourteen of the crowd remained; unable to move due to dehydration or realizing that the test would be too challenging for them to pass. Smokescreen led the able applicants up the steps and together they all entered Roontah. The buildings, though ancient and beaten by vicious sandstorms for generations, looked unusual here in the vast desert. There was no rubble or threat to the structure of the buildings. In fact, as Roontah was built into the side and quite literally underneath a cliff, there was shade over the village now thanks to the Sun's position. It was still a very different scene today, but it was somewhat more believable that people actually lived here at one point in time.

"Now then." Smokescreen turned to face the applicants again. "It seems there are now fourteen less than the seventy two that were originally here. So that makes fifty eight applicants to The Arc Academy! That being said, as stated before, your objective for Stage One is to locate water. There is enough water to replenish you all, and it will be hidden throughout Roontah the moment Stage One begins. The water can be anywhere, and will rely upon your intuition to be found. And so, I wish you the best of luck. Let Stage One of The Arc Academy begin!"

The applicants took a moment to process what Smokescreen had said, puzzled looks on their faces as they were taken a back by the vague instruction they were given. But then the realization of what had been said sunk in, that this was the challenge they had to complete and that there was water there within the town. It was then that the applicant with a blue coat and small lute bounded forward and into the neat and tightly placed arrangement of stone buildings. Directly behind him were the rest of the applicants, creating a stampede of eager and thirsty competitors that all wanted to be the first to drink the hidden water.

Speed would not be the determining factor of this event however, as they would all soon learn . . .

The time frame to complete the task of finding water was two hours. The town, though not as large as modern cities, still had a good number of buildings to explore. It's rooftops also grew in height as the town elevated the closer it was to the cliff side. This meant there were different levels of the town. In addition, though the homes were ancient the participants would soon learn that inside the homes were various pots, crates, and other places of storage the water could be stored. There were even stairs that led to lower depths within the home, creating dark basements. With little instruction besides finding water that could be located anywhere within Roontah, this task would not be so simple. One was not going to find water simply lying around or inside the first pot they reached in.

Miki could barely contain her excitement as Smokescreen--she didn't know why the old man would choose such a name--explained what they would be doing for the first test. Finding water? This should be a cinch! She had intended to do that anyways as she really was quite thirsty after all that walking through the desert. She didn't understand why he would even give the option to give up for an easy task like this! She certainly would never do that after all the things she had to do to get here!

So imagine her surprise when she saw fourteen of the other applicants gave up, not following Smokescreen into Roontah. Due to her naivety, she didn't know that some, if not most of the applicants couldn't use qi at all, so they didn't have the qi-enhanced stamina that she had. Even though her mastery of qi was only on the level of a basic user, it already gave her quite an edge over non-qi users.

As the test began, some of the remaining applicants rushed forward into the city, as if it was a race to see who would find water first, even though Smokescreen already said there would be enough water for all of them. Maybe they were just that thirsty, she thought. She was thirsty too, of course, but not that much that she would rush in to find water as fast as she could. Besides, she knew better than to spend her energy wastefully. She figured this would be less of a speed contest and more of an endurance contest. She just had to endure searching for some water all through this large ruined city.

...On second thought, maybe this test wasn't so easy after all.

Miki shook her head, throwing away the negative thought from her head. Her grandfather would scold her if she thought a simple task like this was hard. It was simply a searching mission. It wasn't anything combat related. Even an ordinary person could do it.

She started her search by jumping roofs to roofs towards the highest point of the city. She could jump really, really well so might as well use it. She could at least gauge just how big this city really was.

Roxy listened intently at the old man's directions, and nodded in understanding. So, all she had to do was find some water? That should be easy! Once the old man finished instructing everyone, Roxy immediately gave a thumbs up in response. "You got it old man, I'm gonna find as much water as I can!" Roxy said with confidence and stepped forward towards the open desert area

Suddenly however, as Roxy started taking her first few steps, the thought of finding the water started making her think of water in general, specifically how she had run out of water on her way here. She hadn't really been thinking about that since she got here, she was too wrapped up in the excitement of the AAAT. Now that it was brought to her mind, Roxy suddenly became uncomfortably aware of how blisteringly hot she was and how much energy she had been exerting this whole time. So hot. So tired. Roxy's steps gradually went from energetic to weak, and she only made it a few more steps before pathetically collapsing on the ground. "Sooo...hooooot...soooo...tiiiiired..." Roxy whined weakly