@Estylwen@Psyker Landshark@ERode@AThousandCurses@Sifr

ASCENDIA, ROOM 103 FOUNTAIN

As Ciara's sword met Alto's back, another clang of steel resounded through the woods. His Personal Barrier held firm, crackling like sparks against her strike and preventing injury. He'd stare at her for a moment, a smile on his face - and a glint of something in his eye, for the briefest blink. In the heat of all this, Chunji's further questions had unfortunately gone ignored. "Brave, truly. But it takes more than that to break my defenses, Ciara," he would whisper.

This contact was broken when he heard Iraleth, and turned just in time to see her rush him. Surprise overtook him for a brief moment as the wrist of his sword hand was gripped, followed by one against his throat. His barrier didn't budge even then, but slowly, it would begin to flicker in the places in which Iraleth made contact. As this happened, the bullet by his knee picked up momentum against his PB, seemingly finding purchase amidst the wall it fought against.

The instructor stared at Iraleth, a look of recognition plain as day as he gripped against her wrist with his free hand. "An Ethos that grants physical strength, speed, flight and presumably so much more. But it's in its infancy, Ms. Kyrios - and in its current state, the power of an overcharge can match it."

His nails dug against her Personal Barrier with physical strength matching or surpassing her own, the benefits of a leyline overcharge clearly being used to grab her. She would feel her own barrier begin to dilute as the grip was maintained, and due to the overwhelming reserves of essence granted by a leyline, it was clear that hers would crack open before his, if it were to continue this way. "And now you're both here with me."

Near instantaneously, a wall of vines and thorns would sprout from the ground all around them in a perfect circle before forming a dome containing Alto, Iraleth and Ciara. Immediately upon the formation of this dome, tendril-like thorns would emerge from the walls and hurtle towards both students with spear-like tips trained on them from all sides. In the meantime, Alto's sword hand would begin to resist as well, slowly but surely raising itself towards Iraleth with his sword pointed at her as his other hand continued to pry at her barrier. The instructor would speak, and even from inside the dome, those outside would be able to hear him as he responded to Otis' question, replying, "If you can break through my PB before the overcharge ends, there miiight be something in it for you guys. Remains to be seen. Give it your all, ahaha!"

In his mind, Otis would hear a reply from Rio, speaking in a low tone mentally, "All four of my guardian's shields contains a different unique property when struck, but you're not gonna hear from me what those are. As for me, I practice the Four Seasons Fist, though I've only got real experience with the Autumn Stance. I've also got some degree of experience with arcane casting, but not good enough to throw out reverse incantations in the heat of battle, I do know that."

Rio remained on guard as he looked towards the thorn dome, slowly regaining feeling in his hand as his barrier reformed around it. Chloe sprinted towards Rio, but upon seeing the state he was in, stopped herself from shouting any cusses at him. Mentally, she'd respond as well, saying, "Hmph. I'll be in this battle until it's over! If I can get but a single finger on the wretch, he'd be a prune in no time! When the brutes fail in their pursuits, you'll be begging me to finish things for you." A flick of her hair and a smirk on her face, all clearly doing the part of hiding the rattled nerves and battle jitters all about her.

Two activations, and then something of an involved risk.

Understood, was Otis’s response to Hildegunde. Hold off on that.

The situation was evolving, the combination of Ciara and Iraleth’s attacks enough to keep the instructor occupied and unable to disentangle himself from either of them in the same way that he had done to Rio. Despite the chaos of the melee now, the Strigidae could spy the fluctuations in his Personal Barrier. As expected of Iraleth. Even when facing the full weight of a primal leyline, her Ethos had enough raw power to affect the integrity of the barrier that Alto possessed.

Within the melee then, what was their next move? Rio possessed four shields with differing capabilities, Chloe possessed a one-touch-kill. Chunji wasn’t participating, Davil was a non-factor, and Hildegunde had one more activation of her persisting bullet. Their options were…

A dome of thorns ensconced itself around the three combatants, preventing interference.

…quite straightforward now. It just had to be fast.

“Despair in struggle,, embrace her to Return? Living the for but.
Prepared are coffins our, lungs our leaves last the when
Earth and air of beings remain we, scattered or buried whether.
Cremating and embalming, pyres and temples.“

He clasped his hands together as the arcane incantation gradually made its way through his lips, binding them together tightly. From such motions, the essence of ‘embracing’ and ‘binding’ was realized, and the earth around the dome rose up to form two self-same walls that clapped together. Damp soil, solidifying under the effects of Otis’s spell, formed a second layer, a denser layer over the dome of thorns.

Shutting off all sources of sunlight.

Creating a void within this essence-less space, a deep darkness that was only driven away by the inherent radiance of the Inheritor.

Iraleth, deactivate your Ethos and disengage best you can. If not, then just fortify your Personal Barrier. Ciara, strike with intent, but leaving the top of the dome unguarded by your shadows. Rio, I know one of your shields has a repulsing effect. Coordinate with Chloe. Alto’s best bet would be to break out by ascending upwards; launch Chloe at him in that moment and ONLY in that moment. I’ll trust that you weren’t lying about the power of your finger, Miss Steeler. Hildegunde, I’ll leave you to handle any unpleasant tricks Instructor Alto may use to enable alternative escapes. As a primal mage, you have a better understanding than I do of the possibilities.

It would be a flurry of actions, soon enough.

And now that Otis had taken direct action, he suspected that he’d be earning some unwanted attention too.

His words went on deaf to the sounds of battle. Chunji lifted his head, and by the time he did, Ciara, Iraleth, and Alto were consumed by roots and thorns. His Ethos told him everything he needed to see. Ciara and Iraleth are trapped inside the root-like cage with Alto. Seeing what happened at the final stages of the auditorium would bode badly for Alto.

That made him curious.

Why didn't Chloe just touch the cage and activate her Ethos? It was connected to one point, so the cage would have easily withered away from Chloe's withering touch. Chunji could not complain about the initiative since he wasn't a participant in their current battle. Otis must've connected everyone through a mental link and instructed them based on previous interactions and the prick Chunji had felt earlier.

That left him with an awkward situation between him and Davil. His fellow student was beside him as Otis requested him to do so. Now that Alto was occupied, Chunji's focus was redirected to Davil. Like the rest of his classmates, Chunji could count his interactions with Davil with only one hand. It wasn't enough reason not to interact with Davil, however.

"Davil," Chunji called to his classmate's attention. "The numbing spell I cast earlier will cause problems in the future. Make sure to check with the clinic daily for a week." The spell went wrong somewhere, but he didn't know what. A visit to the clinic would be necessary to ensure a full recovery afterward. Though while they're on the subject.

"If I may, I can heal your arms, Davil." Chunji was perfectly capable of restoration on that level. Even with the overcharged leyline, Chunji could cast an incantation quickly and efficiently. "However, there will be some drawbacks. My healing is imperfect as it is." Davil's arms may deteriorate back to their current state, become numb for a week, or worse. Chunji wanted at least consent from Davil to perform his spell art. "Whatever the case, the choice is yours. Your health is the most important."

Davil's injuries aside, Chunji needed to find a way to prevent his future injuries. If Davil was going to be injured when entering the overcharged leyline, he'd probably be damaged when they came out as well. As Otis stated earlier, Davil must put up a Personal Barrier before anything else. So, Chunji needed to find a way to help Davil manipulate it.

The problem was that Chunji wasn't familiar with essence manipulation. He knew the feeling but not the verbalization to instruct Davil.

Considering his next choice of words, Chunji spoke up. "Why do you think you are unable to manifest your Personal Barrier?" The words were delivered in a cold tone. "Remember what Professor Alto said. Emotional and conceptual essence. While this space is void of any essence, there's still essence inside us." It was a reminder, but something Chunji emphasized. "I know you can do it, Davil. If I can do it, so can you."

Acendia, Room 103 Fountain
@Nanaya

---

She saw that glint. She saw it, and she didn't like it.

“Brave, truly. But it takes more than that to break my defenses, Ciara.”

Ciara clicked her tongue, trying to press harder against his barrier, feeling the weight of the force pressing back.

“I'll show you brave, professor.”

She watched the exchange between Iraleth and the professor, cursing under her breath, about to act-

When-

“And now you're both here with me.”

”Wha-”

Before Ciara had time to react, a prison of thorns and vines encased them, surrounding them. Was this really the power the professor held in this place?

In the muted darkness of the thorny prison, she could hear shuffling. Something was coming. On instinct, she sent out shadowy feelers to act as her eyes, and felt it when the thorns shot towards her from all sides.

“Give it your all, ahaha!”

Ciara grit her teeth.

”Fames.”

As the thorns approached with their spear tips, tendrils of darkness wrapped around the shafts of each, circling before pulling tight, shredding each into harmless plant matter that merely scratched Ciara’s barrier.

A huff as Ciara stood there, the adrenaline of a split-second save rushing through her veins.

Ciara, strike with intent, but leaving the top of the dome unguarded by your shadows.

If it wasn't pitch black before, save Iraleth’s glow, it was pitch black now. A small smile split Ciara's features, shadows writhing all around her. She could feel it. The overwhelming darkness, the unification of her shadow with this entire space. It was just her, and she was everywhere. She could feel the two separate domes surrounding them, the upturned soil versus the thorns, the texture of Iraleth’s metal boots versus the professor’s leather. The minute details, an extension of her.

And she loved it.

Strike with intent.

”It'll be my pleasure,” she thought across the mental web, and coiled her body, ready to attack.

Tendrils of darkness shot out, wrapping around the professor’s neck and ankles from a myriad of angles. With vice-like grip, they pulled, aiming to roughly yank the professor like a doll to the right.

At the same time, darkness coated the blade Ciara held. She stepped forward, elongated edge cutting through the vines as she spun the blade around from the left, cutting at an angle aimed towards the professor’s abdomen. She spun, cut once, then spun again, and cut again, the darkness’ razor edge impacting the PB.

So there were two forces at play - the shadowy tendrils pulling the professor into the embrace of the sword, and the sword slicing against the PB with explosive intent. She pulled the sword back once more, and sent forward a single jab, trying to run the professor clean through the abdomen.

Then, she took a step back, and the tendrils holding the professor grew, aiming to wrap his limbs and torso, to suffocate him.

And then for good measure, she struck again with the darkened blade. And again, and again, and again.

Her eyes were alight with hungry, hungry focus, keen to see the professor’s barrier break.

Frankly, Iraleth hadn't expected her Ethos to simply be able to outright roll over a professor qualified to work here. But it was still galling to hear him say the Inheritor was in its infancy, no matter how true it was. No small part of her wanted to simply grit her teeth and see just how far she had to go in a contest of strength, but both reason and duty called. There was no point in pushing her limits here when there was something with actual stakes later tonight.

With that in mind, she resigned herself to following Otis's plan again, given that the same tactic had come across her mind moments before he'd ordered it. She was stuck in here with him. Fine.

A flick of her wings rebuffed the thorns firing at her. Darkness fell, and the paladin took advantage of the split-second of surprise it offered her to deactivate her Ethos. The Inheritor's armor faded, and Professor Alto would only be grasping thin air for but a moment before he would grapple Iraleth again. She didn't give him the opportunity. The half-elf shoved herself away from Alto before he could reengage, drawing her mundane blade as she gained a small amount of distance, her back to the literal wall of thorns.

Even with the outright invincibility granted by his Personal Barrier, Alto still had to actually make contact to score a blow. If she could bait him into a contest of swords, Iraleth could likely stand a chance even within his overcharge. Plus, Ciara's constant assault distracting him didn't hurt, either.

"You're barely older than I am, and your breadth of knowledge is wider." She said flatly, taking up a defensive stance. "I've my doubts your depth of skill with a blade overtakes mine. Or even Ciara's, for that matter. Come on then, Professor." Iraleth goaded. Otis wanted her to play for time? She'd give the others that.

@ERode@AThousandCurses@Sifr

ASCENDIA, ROOM 103 FOUNTAIN, OUTSIDE THE DOME

Davil took in his surroundings as Chunji spoke, then met the boy's gaze with his own. The wounded Wund shuffled a bit closer, arms swaying like al dente pasta. He held no semblance of panic in him at the moment - perhaps a result of the numbing setting in and affecting more than his body, but his mind as well. "The world's a weird place. We live somewhere where, provided the conditions are right, we can not only experience the joy of suffering in a world running dry of its own lifeblood, but by sucking out that lifeblood faster like greedily slurping the last droplets of a milkshake, we can also suffer in an entire other world too."

The winged warrior's pupils were dilated, and as he looked around, his posture took up almost that of a stumbling drunk. He'd continue, saying, "Everything's imperfect, so just do the best you can, man, and use those healing spells on me. You're a good guy, you know that? You've been a good friend to me, and that really speaks to my soul, whatever that thing's actual name is. Did you know we have those? They just have... fuckin'... names, man, and you can do stuff with them. Crazy."

His eyes were locked on the dome, but he continued to address Chunji as he inquired further. "I think my Personal Barrier's trapped somewhere. Now and again, when the anxiety goes away, what remains is the feeling like there's more. I don't think I was meant for this, but I'll try."

While continuing to stare at the dome, faint wind began to gather around his feet, coating them slowly - or rather, that wasn't it at all. It was most likely that his legs were coated the entire time, in a Personal Barrier so faint and paper-thin as to be near invisible to the naked eye until the moment it flowed and defended. It pulled and pulled, desperately struggling to reach above his waist as he stood there, expression vacant as he observed the battlefield in front of him.

As the battle inside raged on, the faintest sounds could be heard from further out in the forest - the cracking of dry branches, the clanking of armor, and the nondescript chirps of various voices speaking what sounded like gibberish. The woods would be too dense to see for most, but were Chunji to look around, he would see what looked like various humans dressed in laborers' clothes wielding pitchforks and pickaxes. They shambled like the dead, though they appeared alive. Further behind them were what looked to be guardsmen, dressed in minimal armor and wielding various spears, pikes or swords. They were around the entire perimeter, all shuffling their feet towards the area that the class found themselves in.

Rio tapped his feet with his phantom summoned next to him, keeping an eye out for the origins of the sounds, but with his primary attention on the dome. He'd tap in mentally to chime in, saying, "A distraction? Regardless, I'm gonna keep my focus on this dome shit. But I ain't seeing anyone emergin'."

Chloe, on the other hand, was very much focused on the perimeter, her hands in front of her as if to dust the first thing to leap out at her from behind bushes. "I don't think we should be ignoring that," she'd stutter out within the mental link.

More trees would begin to uproot themselves and fall, once again aiming to crush the students under their weight - more repeatedly now, and with far more ease in their descent. The area also began to feel hot, as if ready to burst aflame at a moment's notice. All the while, those footsteps and voices grew ever closer with each passing second.

---

@Estylwen@Psyker Landshark

ASCENDIA, ROOM 103 FOUNTAIN, INSIDE THE DOME

As the barrage rained down on Alto, it could be said to appear almost one-sided. He was grabbed and yanked by tendrils once Iraleth had broken free, slashed and stabbed, and yet through it all, his defenses held strong, the strikes never seeming to quite break through. The average PB would have long since shattered, between Hildegunde's drilling bullet and the relentless assaults of the warriors of light and darkness. Whether it was the overcharge's immense battery, a large reserve of essence from the instructor, or perhaps a combination of those factors and others, not one strike among the many broke through. "The righteous indignation of a paladin, and the hunger of an Umbralist... though, that's not quite been confirmed yet, has it? Even so, it's apparent that you fight with a temper, with voracity - and in that respect, you would have many things in common with that death cult regardless."

The good instructor's expression was cold, his words biting, his demeanor one of an owner scolding his pet. While he held respect for Iraleth's approach and mannerisms, it was apparent that the polar opposite could be felt from Alto's attitude towards Ciara. In Ciara's head, as she grasped tighter to the instructor with her tendrils, the distant sounds of screams and flames could be heard in her ear. Alto's attention was split between her and Iraleth, but something had taken specific attention to Ciara upon the instructor's words reaching their end. What could only be described as the guttural howls of the damned in the pits of the ninth hell, rang out in the shadow caster's ears and in her mind, fighting against her own inner voices in volume. They wailed for the deliverance of an end, and screamed for redemption for their betrayal. As this happened, more thorny tendrils would lash out at Ciara and Iraleth from nearby walls, sturdier in construction than before, aiming for specific joints like the backs of the knees, ankles or elbows.

"I'll get to you in a moment, Ms. Kyrios," Alto would mutter, a small smile once more creeping onto his face as he stepped towards Ciara. He moved with the speed of a trained assassin despite the bindings of the tendrils, and pried his sword arm free from their grasp as he stepped. In a single instant, his sword slashed towards Ciara's midsection, dueling her one-handed while weighed down and shifted by her bindings. He would continue slashing and stabbing away at her like this, parrying and deflecting attacks coming his own way. Despite the crushing darkness, it appeared as if he could see and strike without issue. His eyes were catlike inside the shadows, as if he were a hunter of prey in a dark forest. "I have a remnant to attend to. Or, gods willing, you're welcome to join in from over there!"

The dome around them, notably, would begin to make cracking sounds - and upon looking, one would indeed see that the inner walls of vines and thorns were slowly crumbling. A pressure filled the dome, as if rising heat from an oven of gargantuan size. More thorny tendrils and spears would descend upon the two students inside, growing denser and sharper with each new batch. Yet as this happened, the heat increased, and the cracks began to show more, even on the outside.

"Davil. We talked for approximately eleven minutes in total." Chunji spoke after Davil's heartfelt words. "Two of the minutes consisted of me insulting your capabilities as a student," Then he started to list off all the times they talked. "Four minutes of discussion between Ms. Kyrios, Mr. Arillo, and me regarding your safety, to which I supported but also criticized Mr. Arillo for coddling you." The words of the Doctors were printed out as if they were hastened by magic. "Two minutes then allocated to when I performed first aid with Ms. Kyrios on you, and finally, the remaining time is spent on the now when our classmates started a fight with Professor Alto." Despite that, Chunji didn't seem winded by that analysis.

"You may need to reassess your idea of friendship. I am not professionally trained in this area and don't know if the clinic is either. Talking to the counselor is the most efficient option to find help." If there was anything that Chunji took out of this conversation, he was slightly mildly concerned about how Davil perceived him as a friend. While he didn't have much basis for a friendship, Chunji knew that spending approximately eleven minutes with a peer did not equate to an immediate friendship. Davil had many more problems than just the personal barrier.

Chunji's eyes lingered on the forming barrier that Davil materialized. It was trapped, as he said. The Doctor didn't know any words of advice he could offer to his classmate. Still, he tried his best. "I know little of those names as well," Chunji admitted to Davil. "Yet, I do not care for its name either; neither does it for mine own. As long as I acknowledge its existence and it acknowledges mine, I see no reason to know it." Chunji's eyes furrowed off to the side. His eyes detected movement.

Blood started to rush into his body as he assessed the situation. "Though the time may come when I'll know its name. Eventually, it will come, just like how your barrier will flow out of our body like a breeze." This wasn't good; several enemies were approaching them from the treeline, along with the tumbling of trees.

"泉源的慰安是猴泪眼的子. 11 日 9 月 1500 年"

The bones and flesh in Davil's arms started to heal. It was as if the wound was undoing itself in a completely painless way. However, that was hardly his concern right now. Turning to face his opposition, he got up and stared at the looming threat. "Stand back, Davil. If you get caught, I have no guarantee for your survival." Drawing out his sword, he walked five feet forward. Chunji raised his sword and reflected the fake sun's rays before unveiling his scarred wrist.

In a practiced move, Chunji slit his wrist. Blood poured profusely from the wound as he began his incantation.

春天诅咒一切永恒绽放。 (Spring in eternally blooms curse this)
夏天净化地狱，天堂也随之净化。(Summer with it purify can hell nor heaven neither)
冬天将继续，它们可能在秋天形成任何东西。(Winter into continue they, take may they form whatever in)
秋天，河流流淌着罪恶。 (Fall the through flow sin of rivers)

- 召唤大蛇莲 (Summoning Serpent Lotus Great)

The blood pooled into a singular point and expanded beyond its origin. It encapsulated Chunji's feet and started extending towards the approaching ensemble. Every drop that touched the grass started to wilt away. The pool stopped once it reached halfway before a ripple shook through the lake.

A muddy head slowly emerged out of the bloody pond. Its serpentine body slowly rose above, and its height reached the trees and stared at its summoner. The serpent was constantly rebuilding itself, its muddy body collapsing and rebuilding itself simultaneously. Petals were swathed within the serpent's body like scales, and they circulated akin to a blood vessel.

The spawn of the Great God Lotus Serpent had manifested.
"攻击!"

With a foreign word, the spawn immediately threw itself at the enemy. Its immense weight crashed through them and ran rampant amongst the crowd. Its petals cursed any that touched them. The weight of sin deteriorates and saps the water of life. Anything that touched them wilted like a flower.

Chunji grew faint at the rampant loss of blood, though he did not falter at all. The moment he broke his concentration would be the moment the Spawn of the Great God Lotus Serpent turned around and killed him. He had done this many times before and was expected to perform it more times in the future. To falter was to die; one must persevere and strive forward to find redemption.

Acendia, Room 103 Fountain
@Nanaya

---

"The righteous indignation of a paladin, and the hunger of an Umbralist... though, that's not quite been confirmed yet, has it?”

Ciara's head jerked up, staring at the professor as she pressed her sword against his midsection.

He knew about the duel?

Near immediately, her eyes narrowed, her lips curling into a snarl.

“Even so, it's apparent that you fight with a temper, with voracity - and in that respect, you would have many things in common with that death cult regardless.”

A small gasp escaped Ciara's lips as she felt the sting from the professor's words. She narrowed her eyes, furious.

But nothing could have prepared her for what came next. If the professor’s words were a stinging slap, the sounds rattling in her mind after were the maddening element necessary to disarm her. She pressed a hand to her head, wincing, her breath coming in ragged gulps, as the screams of the damned tore at her mentality.

Like touching a hot coal, the tendrils withdrew from Professor Alto in an effort to make the maddening voices stop. Before latching on once again in greater fury. Ciara growled and cursed, failing to prepare against the thorns and vines that assaulted her once again. She felt blows against her barrier once, twice, and the third blow, landing at the elbows, broke through.

“AAAARGH!!!”

Ciara stood there, gulping air and hissing through her teeth, as the thorns and vines cut across the muscles of her inner elbow, severing muscle and creating large gashes.

The pain did some good, though. It snapped her out of the mental hellscape she was privy to.

Ciara dropped the sword, wincing, her eyes glaring hot at the professor. Quickly, shadows picked up the sword, holding it aloft in front of her, ready for his counter attack. Shadows reached out with tendrils, feeling the limbs of the professor, so she could ‘see’ his moves in the dark.

She could almost feel that cruel smile on the professor's face as he took a step forward. There was a rush of sparks as his sword met her own, and she parried against him at every turn, blinking through the pain she felt.

“...I have a remnant to attend to…”

“Remnant?! Damn you, professor! That's not who I am!” Ciara shrieked, mustering all her anger, burning her throat.

As the thorns struck again, Ciara was ready this time, and melted into the shadows. She reappeared behind the professor, and slashed at his back with the sword held in her shadowy grip. When he would turn, she would disappear once again, and reappear behind his back, and slash again. She would continue to repeat this with increased hunger, fervor and speed, desperate to break his barrier. She continued until she became a blur, appearing and disappearing with dizzying speed around the professor, careful to avoid Iraleth as she did so.

She had something to prove now, didn't she? Duel be damned, she'd go all out on the professor. She had to now. He dared to associate her with them.

As she moved, she began to pant. It was getting hot. Unbearably so…

There was a struggle within that dome, while outside, it was clear that Instructor Alto had decided to reveal his own Ethos now. Otis could not see as Chunji had, but he could feel the change in the air nonetheless, the budding of a wildfire while trees tore themselves from the ground. Evolved to treants, they rampaged with a crushing desire, but were met by an equally monstrous creation in the form of a giant snake birthed from a bloody pond.

Occult magic, nonsensical and rooted in folklore rather than centralized religion.

So that was Chunji’s specialization, was it? Otis licked his lips, glancing towards how the trees withered and shrivelled at the Serpent’s touch, acknowledging the strain and focus upon its master’s visage. The dome still did not split. In total darkness, he had imagined that Ciara could have at least caused a discomfortable enough situation for their instructor to choose to retreat and reposition from, but he could feel the ambient heat building up against that earthen barrier he had laid overtop, the way the barrier of brambles writhed and shifted underneath, still active, still fighting.

The Strigidae considered the situation. Considered how much he ought to reveal on the first day. Considered the pros and cons of the situation, how much further to push. Considered how much he could rely on the capabilities of Ciara and Iraleth, whether or not they could afford to wait much longer before whatever all this heat built up to revealed itself.

How much did he trust them?

How much could he use them?

Iraleth, Ciara, force Alto near the center of the dome. We’ll break in if he won’t leave. Signal when he’s in place.

That was his only message to the two combatants, before Otis wove essence around him, pulling at the threads of ‘air’ and ‘movement’ within him in order to manifest a levitation effect upon himself, Rio, and Chloe.

“Change of plans.” He spoke this time, checking his firearm’s bullets as the manipulated essence drew them all overtop the dome. “I don’t trust that whatever’s approaching us from beyond the treeline is something we can handle while still beating Instructor Alto, so we need to end this immediately."

A bullet was taken out, and a different bullet was slotted in, one with red casing, with ensorcelled inscriptions.

“Chloe, bolster up your Personal Barrier as much as possible. Rio, launch yourself downwards with her, body-blocking as much as possible. Take the Instructor’s sword arm and immobilize it; Chloe, do what you need with one touch. If it doesn’t work, then immediately surrender.”

He pointed his gun downwards, ready to dismantle his Earthbind spell and fire an Anti-Material Shot to freeze, weaken, and then shatter the thorn barrier from overhead.

“We still have things to do after this. Let’s avoid joining Davil in the clinic.”

He didn't take the bait. Disappointing. That disappointment didn't last long, however, compared to Iraleth's alarm at Professor Alto's sudden change in tone and target. Iraleth wasn't exactly surprised that he knew; something like this would have been long since passed along by the staff, especially after one night. And his words weren't exactly wrong. After all, she'd reached the exact same conclusion herself.

But his action still rankled. The paladin scowled, stomping forward. How dare he?! Otis's words barely registered in the back of her mind as she advanced.

"What in Astra's name are you doing, professor?" She ground out through grit teeth, raising her hand-and-half sword with one hand to slam into the man's barriered back while her other reached out to try to drain his Personal Barrier again.

"I made the accusation! She is my responsibility to deal with, until I am no longer able to! I will not let you kill the accused until her guilt is conclusively determined, one way or another!"

Iraleth's free hand moved to wrap around Alto's neck in a blood choke, aiming to drag him back through force. All the while, she reached out to Otis through the connection.

"In position. Whatever you mean to do, now is the time!"

@ERode @Estylwen

@ERode@AThousandCurses@Sifr

ASCENDIA, ROOM 103 FOUNTAIN, OUTSIDE THE DOME

The land itself began to wither with the serpent's rampage, very similar to the way the Umbralists' Seedspawn during the Five Year Apocalypse were said to rot and decay the world with their presence as they absorbed essence. Whether the connection held any true meaning was unknown, but to one not versed in the study of such creatures, it may even appear identical in these abilities. The various humans that approached from beyond visibility would fall without issue, becoming more victims of the beast as they crumpled. Yet even as it moved and killed all in its way, the sound of movement could still be heard - it seemed as if anywhere Chunji looked, yet more of these people would begin moving ever closer.

Davil, still numb and heal-drunk - if that were even a thing - staggered about as he bore witness to the serpent's moves with confusion, unable to fully process the situation at hand. Rio and Chloe each looked on with almost matching scowls, the frill-elf in particular clutching herself as if unnerved. They were safe, however, thanks to Otis' levitation, and nodded in acknowledgement as the owl went over his plan. "I can't vouch for her, but I can do my part," Rio replied mentally. This earned a slap on the shoulder from Chloe, flustered with her scowl now directed towards the object of her annoyance. "We'll both do our parts," she would conclude, staring down towards the dome.

And so they would.

---

@Estylwen@Psyker Landshark

ASCENDIA, ROOM 103 FOUNTAIN, INSIDE THE DOME

A hurricane of darkness spun around Alto, the instructor unable to match the sheer speed of each slash as Ciara darted about. Small barriers of vines and thorns would begin to sprout up from his blind spots, though they were constructed so hastily that they were only able to mitigate the very smallest of damage before being cut through all the same to continue assaulting the teacher's barrier. Slowly but surely, as the assault progressed, the wind that rose to guard each strike seemed to lessen, as if flickering as opposed to the solid and definitive shields of essence from before. A bead of sweat dripped down the good instructor's forehead as he endured the onslaught, slowly but surely becoming more reactive to it and anticipating Ciara's next location. He'd finally smirk once more, muttering, "Now...!"

However, as he turned and brought his sword down upon Ciara as she appeared, he was staggered into a near miss when Iraleth's strike further smashed against his defenses. He opened his mouth to speak, but was immediately pulled into a choke as he stared directly at the paladin. Heat continued to build as he was dragged to the point that, by the time he was in position to execute Otis' plan, embers danced through the air within the makeshift prison. His barrier further crackled against her grip, showing less resistance than the last attempt - it was clear that the dozens of blows were beginning to take their toll on his PB, and it wouldn't take much longer for a gap to form at this rate.

All attention towards Iraleth left, however, when near blinding light overtook the dome. Its ceiling had been shattered, the walls of vines and thorns falling as shattered shards of ice. Through the rain of ice and the blinding of light - Alto's eyes unable to adapt quickly enough to the sunlight after adjusting to the dark - a duo descended. Rio shot down like a bullet of his own, Chloe quickly behind, as the two set their sights on the professor like he was the only thing their eyes were made for. Chloe, a bundle of adrenaline at that moment, would shout out triumphantly, "We finally get to do our paaaaaart!"

Alto's eyes grew wide once his brain had put together, in a flash, what was about to happen. With strength and speed unlike any before, seemingly out of nowhere, he would rip away Iraleth's hand from his throat and kick her backwards with force as if he were closer to an ogre in musculature than a human. However, it would prove to be a moment too late, as Rio immediately dove in. He would shout through grit teeth, "Wake Svalinn!"

The golden giant appeared, materializing directly behind Alto, two of its shields disappearing from its lower arms as its free hands reached towards the instructor's sword arm, grasping tight. As he landed, Rio would contribute further by grasping as well, digging his heels into the dirt as he wrestled with Alto's wrist for further control of his sword. At that same point, Chloe followed, dashing forward with her hand extended towards the weakened area of his PB around his throat.

All the while, as the dome crumbled, Alto's eyes darted about as if to process everything to catch up mentally, clearly surprised by this coordination. In another blink, his gaze focused. A pulse emanated from his sword arm, sending out a ripple that pushed the golden giant backwards towards a crumbling wall of the dome, and simultaneously pushing Rio's grasp away as well. The boy was kicked away all the same, sent tumbling into the dirt a few meters away; his barrier shattered like glass as he tried his best to stumble to his feet. Through all this, Chloe persisted, her hand making contact with Alto's throat just as this transpired. The wind itself seemed to crumble in that moment, forming a fist-sized hole in the professor's barrier where she had touched.

The instructor's eyes widened in surprise at this, staring directly at Chloe who kept pushing further against his Personal Barrier, seemingly aiming to go beyond the original plan. She didn't just want to break his defense, she wanted to make skin contact. Both individuals seemed to be caught in this interaction, solely focused on this clash.

As this happened, perhaps not of his own intent, Alto's sword began to gather the stray embers floating about the area, the metal slowly catching ablaze. Just being near him at that point, the presence of the heat radiating at its strongest off of the instructor, Chloe's own dress appeared to ignite as well, burning at her barrier such that it couldn't fully mitigate the heat even when pushed to its fullest.

It was like looking into a heart of a furnace.

The moment the dome shattered, Otis narrowed his eyes to shield his gaze from the heady heat. Even from this distance, it was enough to be irritating. For Ciara and Iraleth, who had been cooking inside that oven? Their Personal Barriers must have suffered a heavy tax too, just to protect them from such an environment. And now, it was that same environment, that strange ability, that was intensifying ever-further. The ignition point was coming soon, certainly. Chloe, stubborn and unrelenting, was already aflame. The others, dangerously close to that flaming sword, would soon find themselves aflame as well.

And once that happened, it would truly be over.

But that moment, that end, would not come pass, for Otis remained above them all. A bird's eye view. A mage's cold perception. A creator's understanding of natural laws. Within this world of void, lacking in environmental essence, he stood upon the Heavens, unmarred by the conflicts of man. There was only one line left.

"Show me wonders of this world."

A Door opened, and from that Door came clouds. Clouds thick with moisture, clouds heavy with promise. They manifested directly overhead, constructs of Ethos that possessed all the essence that the rest of this world did not. What birdfolk beastkin did not have a love of the skies? What child had not stared upwards and wondered at the enormity of summer clouds? Whom could claim that they were never interested in the slightest in the subjects of meteorology, that which took the instincts and intuition of farmers and shepherds and turned that into knowledge, recorded in notes and graphs? Rainclouds overhead, and the thermal updraft from the Instructor's own ability, rising up to meet it!

Otis's eyes shone bright, his hands plucking at the constellations of essence seeded within his atmospheric creation, feeding and accelerating cycles upon cycles.

He had hoped, once, to solve the anomaly of Rekordia's weather with this creation. Hoped to bring life to those burning deserts, to deliver storm upon storm upon storm. But water upon sand just created deluge, and flash floods simply stripped what little nutrition remained away from the soil. And there wasn't enough essence in that empty land anyways, to sustain such a project.

Here, however, he needed not such things.

All he needed was for those clouds, Cumulonimbus calvus, to burst.

And at Otis's command, they did, a miracle of rain performed in a heat that surpassed the summer haze.

Chunji frowned. The enemies were still coming in droves despite the summoned Spawn thrashing itself amongst the group. It seemed having the Spawn rampage wasn't enough to stop them. If he couldn't stop them, then he'd have to pull out an alternative. Chunji covered his bloody wrist to halt the profuse bleeding. With another foreign word, he commanded the Spawn.

"花田 - 大蛇莲"

The Spawn let out soundless roar through its undeveloped vocal muscles. The Serpent coiled up and sprang up into the air. It came crashing into the ground, and throwing mud and grass everywhere. The Serpent disappeared down into the Earth before suddenly the land started to shift. What was once had been a relatively grassland, soon became a muddy marsh.

As the Spawn was only a newborn, it couldn't perform the command to its fullest, though this would be enough.

Anything that traversed through the mud would start rapidly sinking down into the Earth. The marsh acted as if it was sentinent and constantly tried to consume more and more. With being consumed, the marsh steadily grew as it feasted upon the humans.

If only he had spawned a stalk rather than a spawn. Chunji imagined that a Stalk would have performed better, but he have to do with the Spawn.

Where were these enemies materializing from? He couldn't channel the Serpent forever and he didn't know the progress on the fight with Professor Alto. If only there was a way to attack the leyline and disrupt the support it offered to Professor Alto.

"透过现象看本质!" Perceive beyond what the eyes can tell. Chunji hadn't tried this before, but he was going to try to observe the Overcharged Leyline. When he was younger, he would have used his Ethos on the Earth from time to time. The visual information that Chunji received would have more often than not, knocked him out from sheer mental pain. Though this was different. This wasn't an all-encompassing world, but rather a forced stage that wasn't even a spech of the Earth.

He needed to know, he needed to presevere. Chunji wasn't going to let Rio's anger be the reason that he'd be stuck in a clinic.

Acendia, Room 103 Fountain
@Nanaya

---

"Now...!”

She felt the sword lunging directly at her as she appeared, her own sword moving a fraction too slow to catch it. She was going to get hit!

Until Iraleth snagged the professor into a choke, giving Ciara a second to catch her breath. The professor was good. Too good. Did he have actual physical combat experience? He had to, in order to keep up with her movements. Clearly not just an academic.

”I still hate his guts, even if his strength is admirable.” She thought with a grimace.

Light poured in, evaporating her tendrils and shrinking down her shadow to a singular spot under her. She raised a hand to block the light, cursing under her breath as she watched Rio and Chloe dive in from above. The professor moved quick, and Ciara had barely enough time to dodge as Iraleth and Rio were pushed aside.

And then, she saw it.

In Chloe's grip, a hole had formed in the professor's barrier.

“This one has power in her hands.” A Voice whispered, brooding.

“She's gonna hurt the professor!” A small, child-like Voice.

“Oh, wondrous days!” The Voices echoed this one, cheering Chloe on.

Ciara's eyes widened. “She's gonna hurt the professor? That's- that's not according to the plan!”

“So? That light-hugger deserves it.” A Voice said coldly.

“Yes, just let it happen.” Another Voice crowed.

Ciara shook her head. “No, it's not right. I- I gotta- I gotta-!”

As rain poured from above, creating steam from the heat of the flaming sword, Ciara ran, and then teleported forward, appearing in mid-air in front of Chloe. Her hurt arm extended to the side, aiming to clothesline Chloe in a half-tackle, to tear the girl away from the professor. If she was successful, both her and Chloe would roll to the ground, past the now withered thorn barrier. Ciara would hiss under her breath - being too close to the flaming sword for even a moment caused the steam to lick at her back. She could feel mild burns, mild tenderness of the skin.

Anger bubbling up, she turned to face the professor from where she half-sat up from the ground, wincing in pain from her arms and mild burns.

“Your barrier is broken. That's enough!”

The flames taxed Iraleth's barrier nearly to breaking point, but she endured. She had just enough to ensure that Alto wasn't leaving her grasp for the next several seconds, so whatever they were planning out there had better come soon.

Their prison fell apart. The instant she saw Rio and Chloe plummetting down, Iraleth hurriedly extricated herself from the situation. Or at least she would have if Professor Alto didn't do it for her. She skidded back from the kick with a wince, the professor hitting far harder than she would have assumed. The tip of the sword slammed into the ground to slow her down, allowing the paladin to observe just what was going on.

Unbeknowst to her, Iraleth drew the exact same conclusion as Ciara: letting Chloe loose on Professor Alto was unacceptable. Certainly, the effects were reversible, by all accounts. And he did have it coming. Just a little. But who knew how far the other half-elf would take it? They couldn't quite take that chance.

She dashed forward at the same time as Ciara, running past the witch and Chloe as the former teleported forward to clothesline the latter. Iraleth didn't stop as she swung her arm out, her free hand moving to trap the professor's wrist before her sword smashed against Alto's, aiming to disarm the man. The moment her blade made contact, Iraleth hurriedly released the wrist with her off hand and drew a dagger, bringing it up to the point where Alto's Personal Barrier was broken.

"Yield." Iraleth ground out with a wince, practically radiating light as her own barrier struggled to hold back the heat for much longer.

@Estylwen

@Estylwen@Psyker Landshark@ERode@AThousandCurses@Sifr

ASCENDIA, ROOM 103 FOUNTAIN

The screams of people rang out across the forest as the makeshift swamp grew. They continued to move even as they sank, doing their best to wade through, but all eventually succumbed. Even as this occurred, more clusters of approaching farmers and knights moved in from farther out, from what Chunji could see. As he peered into the leyline itself, deep beneath his feet, it would at first appear to be a mass of writhing plants flowing through the very ground as if liquified. As his eyes would take in more of the scenery, however, something much more illogical would begin to form: a small village. It was lit ablaze, a sea of crimson burning the crops and forcing people from their homes. These people fled, only to be cut down by an individual cloaked in shadows, the blood of countless victims coating the massive greataxe this obscured executioner wielded.

It was impossible, as it appeared to be a bird's eye view of this situation from above, and yet it was underground within the leyline's roots. A vision or memory was the most likely reason, projected from inside the leyline's core as a result of mixed essences from the instructor and the primal powers he had temporarily merged with. Regardless, it would seem to repeat this scene after a while, were Chunji to keep looking. One thing would be clear, however: the clothing and general looks of these people being cut down appeared very similar to that of the people that wandered from out in the forest.

As rain fell heavy upon the smoldering marshlands, slowly but surely the embers would fade out. Chloe grit her teeth and let loose pained growls as her index finger slowly dug past the gap in Alto's barrier, giving it her all just to merely make contact with his Adam's apple, just to graze him long enough to age him - even two or three decades would do, if only to receive the satisfaction of seeing greying hairs or a receding hairline. Even as her clothes tattered and her barrier broke down further and further, she needed to just poke him!

Her vision tunneled, focused solely on this one task, not realizing the sword raised to be brought down upon her in another blink, Alto's eyes sternly focused on her as if seeing a challenger to be incapacitated rather than a student to be taught. Even as the flames dimmed from the downpour, a swing of steel alone would be enough to shatter Chloe's defenses at that point.

Ting.

In the next instant, the professor's weapon was flung aside, landing halfway into a nearby mud puddle. At the exact same time, the pink half-elf was tackled away. As if on a whim, the remaining embers and heat in the area that fought against the rain all subsided at once. Alto's eyes met Iraleth's as she made her statement, and it was as if a spell was broken on the man, recognition returning to his gaze. He'd nod his head, raising both of his hands in surrender. "Right. It's a win for you guys, you punched a hole in my PB."

His demeanor had shifted once again, returning to how he appeared before the overcharge, his shoulders sunk low in relaxation. "I thought it'd be a lot to ask for day one, but you all pulled through. Nice work." His tone was casual, his disregard for the heat of prior seconds made apparent in his unsympathetic yet vaguely proud expression.

Chloe, meanwhile, struggled against Ciara. "Let me go! I was almost able to really teach him a lesson. Then he'd learn not to take us so lightly." Her frustration shone through plain as day, her desire for vengeance obvious. Rio stumbled over bruised and muddy and looked at Ciara, perhaps for the first time, and let out a small smirk. "Thanks for that. I'd have done it myself, but apparently I overestimated where I stand in comparison to our 'amazing' instructor."

He'd then look down at Chloe, who by now had stopped flailing and instead elected to sigh and pout as rain fell upon her unsatisfied glare at Rio. "Don't act like you were really gonna do somethin'. Another second and you were in for a week in the infirmary in the best case scenario," was all the muddy leather boy would respond with.

All at once, the screams from further out in the forest would stop. Were Chunji to look, he would witness all of the nameless shamblers vanish into thin air. Alto would clap his hands together three times above his head as he looked out amongst his students with a glint of satisfaction. "We've about run out of time, and this leyline's been spent for now! Recover your Personal Barriers and prepare for re-entry into the school building. Compact 3 has claimed victory in this introductory lesson to survival, and so when we get back, you're all getting a big pizza party! Later, anyway." The last line was said under his breath, but Iraleth would, at least, be close enough to hear.

Almost everything appeared to wrap up in a neat little bow, with one exception - Davil was nowhere to be found. It was unknown exactly when, but at some point during the chaos of the battle's final moments, the boy had vanished. Even with a scan of the area through Chunji's eyes, the winged Wund wouldn't be visible. Even so, Alto appeared not to realize this, and had slowly begun the process of ending the overcharge...

Chunji's eyes strained as he comprehended the artificial leyline itself. An unfamiliar method that caused an exertion that made his eyes. He could feel the blood in his eyes rushing as he tried to comprehend the leyline. However, when he did, Chunji felt empty inside.

Ah, so that's what Artificial Leylines were fueled by.

The 'humans' who appeared before him and those within the leyline were the same. All of them died to an executioner's blade, and their remnants remained to haunt this leyline. Were they figments of memories constructed in their likeness, or were they souls trapped into stitching this artificial line together? It didn't make a difference to Chunji. The usage of this leyline was purely unethical to life itself.

Chunji detested it.

Regardless of his thoughts, the situation was changing in front of him. The endless hordes started to drown in the Spawn's mud. It was thriving under the endless supply of food that wandered into its body without hesitation. Behind him, he could hear the sounds of battle fade into cries of victory. Well, victory to his ears anyway. Ms. Steeler was complaining about something, and Chunji didn't care to know what.

He needed to return the Spawn to its seedbed.

Utilizing their deep connection through blood, Chunji prodded the Spawn to return back into the pool of spilled blood. At first, it resisted for a moment before obliging to his call. Not bothering with reconstructing its form, the muddy serpent simply slid into the pool of blood, disappearing as if it were as deep as a lake. A sigh of relief was released from Chunji. It was as if a burden had been lifted off of his shoulders.

The Spawn seemed satisfied with his summon as Chunji gave a cursory glance at his body. Nothing seemed to change, which was good. Seeing things ended well, Chunji was glad he didn't summon a Stem.

Applying some healing magic onto his wrists, Chunji wrapped it securely with a couple of bandages. As he stood up, Chunji stumbled for a bit before straightening his posture. The amount of blood he lost was severe; a couple of days of rest would be needed to neutralize the loss. Now, he needed to check on Davil. Chunji's eyes flitted around the area before realizing a fact.

He wasn't there. In fact, he wasn't even here.

Confusion soon turns into alarm. "Professor! Don't close the leyline! I don't see Davil anywhere!" It was impossible. Davil was right behind him earlier. He didn't enter his periphery, so that meant he had to disappear between Chunji and the rest of the class. Looking up to the sky, he only saw Otis up in the sky. How was this possible? It was the first time his Ethos had lost track of someone. Chunji came up with only one conclusion.

The leyline itself. Could Davil have found a way to enter the leyline's memories? It seemed impossible, but that was Chunji's only guess. With strained eyes once more, Chunji peered deep inside the leyline once more. He is specifically trying to find Davil this time around. Diluted tears started to well up as he began his search.

Well, that was a pity.

He had looked forward to seeing what exactly Chloe meant, but perhaps neither Ciara nor Iraleth were nearly so bloodthirsty as they made themselves out to me. Or that they both agreed tacitly that no matter who lost, Chloe wasn't allowed to 'win'. The Instructor looked satisfied with this, and Otis himself descended once more, shaking raindrops off his clothes as the cloud above began to transition from a downpour to a sprinkle. It would disperse soon enough, and even if it didn't, it would be collapsed alongside the rest of the realm when Alto released the Overcharged Leyline.

Which was surprising, then, that Davil himself had gone, and that Chunji was the one that wanted to search for him. The Strigidae stared at the bespectacled youth, the summoner of that Serpent, before shaking his head.

"The nature of a Leyline Overcharge is such that one world overlaps the other. Once it is spent, all foreign elements within this space will be returned to the previous world," he explained, not a single shred of feeling in his intonation. "If Davil left this one, he will return in ours. If Davil is somewhere here when it is collapsed, he will still return to ours. And if this world collapses and Davil is not found in our world after?"

It would be a shame that he'd have missed out on completing his research, but it would mean that the boundaries of knowledge regarding Overcharged Leylines would be pushed further by this. Sacrifices made for research, truly.

"We can seek him then." No reason to do so now. "Instructor, as you were."

Professor Alto admitted his forfeit, and Iraleth lowered her knife from his throat in response, exhaling slowly as she sheathed her weapons, trying to catch her breath. Pizza certainly sounded good, given she'd not had some in quite a while. But a bribery of food wasn't going to go far in winning any esteem back, especially after her pointed ears caught the last bit he'd murmured. 'Later' was a rather vague term. It could be tomorrow. It could be the end of the term. How stingy. That, and it didn't quite make up for the nonsense he'd put them all through, especially Davil.

Iraleth turned her back on him, looking back in Ciara, Chloe, and Rio's direction. She afforded the witch, or Astra knew whatever she was, a brief nod, catching her eye and shifting her eyes in Chloe's direction for a bit. Despite their differences, they could at least agree in not letting the other half-elf get her way in this situation. Or at all, at this rate.

"Behave yourself." She said straight to Chloe. "Lest you want to be defeated in one move again." With that done, she turned back to glance at whatever the professor was doing to end the overcharge, only to be met with Chunji and Otis's words in short order. A frown.

"Are Otis's words true, professor? You've done enough to Davil as it is today. I'd think it would be best to at least make sure he's secured before we return."

@ERode @AThousandCurses @Estylwen