[IC] The Heroes of Beacon

[Lugubrious]

In reply to Bridget, a loud exclamation best described as 'raaaagh!' sounded from the tree where Abel had situated himself. This articulation was followed by Abel himself, leaped straight from the branches down toward the Beowolves and his new partner. Having watched for a few moments while composing himself, he had found out that this girl -while incredibly acrobatic- really couldn't take a hit, so it was his job to do just that. In midair, he pivoted the Ampere so that the point faced down, and he landed with all one-hundred and sixty pounds on the Grimm that Bridget had stunned. The blade was driven through its black hide like a knife through butter, and the beast -like a water balloon poked with a needle- instantly vaporized into black smoke.

There was no time to waste, however. Two Beowolves remained, both of them on the other side of his teammate. Abel yanked his imbedded blade free of the ground and rushed past Bridget to place himself slightly in front of her. Faced with two warriors who had shredded their packmates in a matter of seconds, the two Beowolves still alive seemed reticent to attack. Clearly they were more intelligent than some of their more brutish brethren. One snarled gutturally, as if to say, 'We'll be back with more friends.' and the pair promptly cantered away into the forest.

“Ever heard of the phrase 'Mighty Glacier'? Anyway, that was pretty good. Wish I had your agility.”

A wiped a few spots of sooty ash from the Ampere's blade with his sleeve, making sure not to accidentally slide it against the edge. “Shall we?” Even though he suggested moving, he made no effort to start walking—he had quite forgotten which way he was supposed to be going. “Don't suppose you could lead?”

[harinezumikouken]

Red leaves and grass rustling underfoot as he moved, Kuhaku had been jogging through the treeline for some time now. No new events had transpired however, sadly. Not a single Grimm to fight against or fellow student to meet as he traversed the crimson treeline. Slowly, he came to a halt to catch his breath and to take a little break from his fruitless running. Then as if to answer Kuhaku's boredom, his ears began to twitch, picking up some curious new sounds in the distance. His 'radar dishes' twitching back and forth, Kuhaku looked up at the sky and tilted his head slightly to one side. Bronze-colored eyes blinking inquisitively, his panting steadied out as he quieted himself. Lowering his sword and shield, he began to relax his body in order to 'tune in' more effectively.

The sounds of a swarm of Rapier Wasps pursuing a screaming student...
An Ursa Major in combat...
Another pack of Beowolves also engaged in combat and...
...Distant, automatic gunfire?...

It seems that Forever Falls was indeed every little bit as dangerous as the Headmaster had said. Not one to be bothered by the idea of 'danger', Kuhaku just grinned and chuckled. "Well, it looks like everyone else is busy with their own problems. Well, to my future comrades-in-arms, I wish you the best of luck!" Sheathing his sword into his shield, he placed his hands on his hips. His nose then began to tickle and twitch irritating Kuhaku, making him frown. Continuing to scan the skies, he then focused in on his sense of smell, flattening his ears against his head to drown out the distant noises.

He smelled...metal and wood. Oil and smoke. The faint scents of machinery were nearby. How curious.

Perhaps the scents his nose were picking up on were that of the train tracks the Headmaster mentioned in passing? Most curious. Slinging his shield behind him to free up his arms for quicker and easier movement, Kuhaku broke off into a sprint towards the scent to investigate. His enthusiasm got the better of him and he crouched down in mid-stride, now tearing through the forest on all fours. As trees got in his way, threatening to slow him down, he merely dug into them with his nails and used them to launch himself forward quicker. He kept his ears pinned against his head, his tail swaying behind him to provide extra balance and control; eyes narrowing into a black vertical slit, he was laser-focused on finding the train tracks. It would certainly make things easier to navigate and perhaps he'd run into his fellow students. Maybe even form a partnership or team. As the thought excited him, he then noticed rays of light penetrating the thinning treeline. Within seconds, he broke out of the forest and quickly put the brakes on, sliding on the ground slightly.

A large smile on his face, he slowly stood up. He was right on the money, standing at the edge of the train tracks he had detected. Looking to his left and right, he was a little disappointed to not have immediately run into another student, but his smile only faded ever so slightly. It was to be expected, the test had only just started and depending on where the others landed, they would not have been able to find the train tracks as quickly as Kuhaku did with his Faunus senses. Tapping his chin with a single finger, he then began to lose himself in wondering what kind of student he would run into first. Male or female? Human or Faunus? If they were female, he hoped that she would be cute. If they were human, that they wouldn't harbor any ill feelings against the Faunus.

Plopping down onto his behind, he crossed his legs and sat thinking. Looking to his left and right again, he then contemplated which would be the right direction to go in? He was thankful that the train didn't seem to be running at this point in time, but that would probably make traversing Forever Falls a bit easier if it was. Resting his head on a fist, he began to pout. He was really eager to meet another student, though he had ironically hid from them earlier. He regretted that decision now that he thought about it. Sighing heavily, he closed his eyes and began to decide on the next course of action he should take.

[Guess Who]

Robert continued running and screaming while the Rapier Wasps continued chasing and buzzing. He was tiring, the pain he started to feel where a few wasps had stung him made him realize the adrenaline was starting to fade. Soon he would become to exhausted to run and with the number of wasps chasing him, he knew that he would die. "Killed by bugs. Not the way I was expecting to go out," Robert thought. He began searching his surroundings looking for anything that might save him from his current predicament. "There! Water!" he shouted, as soon as he saw the stream. Robert ran in the direction of the stream. As he got closer, he took off his visor, his weapons, and the picture in his pocket. "Don't want these to get wet," he thought to himself. When he was within a couple feet of the stream, he jumped in. He then stayed under the water until the wasps finally left. As soon as they did, he rose to the top gasping for air. After getting out of the water, he took off his clothes and rung them out. He didn't want to stay in one place for too long, especially naked, so as soon as he finished he put his clothes back on and he turned around to see where the forest was. "Oh, come on!" he shouted when his eyes spied the zip-line he had come here on only 20 yards away. "I'm back where I started!" he yelled. A loud cry of anger left his lips. He looked back in the direction of the forest. "Back to it than."

A few minutes later.

As he neared the tree he had been attacked from earlier, Robert took a slight detour. He kept a one mile radius away from it, and even than Robert still felt uneasy. All he could say though was, "Stupid wasps, with their stupid stingers. I can feel my skin beginning to get sunburned. I hate nature." Nature clearly hated him back.

[Lucius Cypher]

Gren ran down the railroad tracks as fast as he could. Which, while impressive for someone in full metal armor, still wasn't really that fast. He was jogging at a brisk pace, both to cover distance as well as he can and not tire himself out in the event he ran into some errant grimm. The sound of battle throughout the forest told him that the test was well underway now, and that he should hurry up if he did not wish to be the last of the students to pass. While he has no doubts that all the students have a chance to succeed if they're competent, being the last before the gate would leave a bitter taste in his mouth. As he ran, his eyes noticed something in the distance. At first he thought it might have been a fallen branch, but it was much too big. A fallen tree maybe, but than it'd be too small. Perhaps a rock, but as Gren got closer, it didn't look natural. When he was about fifty feet from the object in question, Gren realized it was a student.

"Ah! My partner!" Gren thought. The moment he'd lay eyes on this person, he would be their partner for the rest of their time at Beacon. How would they be, he wondered? Was it a male or female? Human or Fauna? What weapons did they use, what Semblance did they have? Questions questions questions. Excited to meet his future compatriot, Gren quicken his footsteps and called out for the person. "Hello there!"

Gren stopped when he was ten feet from the person. He saw from his ears that the boy was a faunas of some sort, perhaps a dog or wolf. HIs weapons looked to be a sword and shield, but it's unique design told Gren there was much more to it than meet's the eyes. The boy himself seemed to bare no scars and injuries, but the smell on him told Gren that he had a brush with what he guessed was Beowolves. So this student was blooded a bit, and since he wasn't dead, competent. "Good. Good." Gren cleared his throat and bowed his head. "Hello. I am Gren Orchid. I suppose that we're partners now, aren't we?"

[BuriedComic7]

Chris smiled as the portly man spoke of slaying Grimm, and then his story transitioned to how he received his first weapon. However his story seemed to drag on forever, and soon the excitement in the air drained and was replaced by annoyance as the man continued to drivel on. The other man, a tall one who kept sipping from a coffee cup, detected this shift in mood and decided to cut the other man short.

Tall Coffee Man said "Now that you've heard his words of inspiration, it is time for this test to get under way. You will all be taking one of the many Zip-lines located around this area, and riding them down the pass and into the basin of Forever Fall. The rules of partnership are simple, first come, first served. Eye-contact binds you together as a pair, and every pair must search around the basin for an artifact." "Two pairs with a matching Artifact will make a team of four, which, needless to say, will be your permanent team. Good luck to all...and uh, word of warning Students, there are Grimm a-plenty in there. Oh, and a train. Careful of the train. Now...any questions before you start?"

Chris darted to the nearest zip-line and held on for dear life. He zipped through the trees, the red leaves forming blurs in his peripheral vision, a few smacking into his face. After a few more minutes of flight the end of the zip-line was fast approaching, Chris braced himself for the landing. He let go right before the end, running forward with the momentum. Using this momentum he continued to run through the forest. He heard the sounds of gunshots and the calls of various forms of Grimm all around. "Oh wow, things are getting real. Crap." Chris thought to himself. He looked around trying to see a familiar face, but to no avail. Off to his left he heard what seemed to be something rushing through the underbrush. Chris hid behind a tree, and waited for the thing to run past him. "I need to find someone soon...safety in numbers..."

[BuriedComic7]

~double post~

[OldManWong]

Gideon's fall was both ungraceful and bone-breaking, not to mention; loud. He had managed to land on his feet, though it was quiet obvious he was still recovering from the fall when he stood at his full height, his lean yet muscled form straightened slowly until Gideon appeared in his usual, disciplined posture. His eyes were only able to purvey the surrounding clearing for a couple seconds, the trees forming a sort of ellipse of colorful grass and moss that circl-- out of the corner of his eye, Gideon was able to see the form of a beowolf lunge at him, giving him just enough time to rotate his hips and torso to face the pounce head-on. Gideon landed hard on his back, his Mardemdievs clacking loudly as Gideon rolls onto his shoulder and used them as leverage to both push the beowolf as well as himself, causing the two figures to land a few meters apart.

Gideon glanced around with his peripherals in the moment that the beowolf lunged, noticing 5 other hulking figures all equally as muscled as the large beowolf in front of him. Barely sidestepping one of the beowolf's overhead swipes. Gideon let loose a couple brutal punches to its side, causing two, very audible, thuds. The beowolf leapt away again, allowing Gideon to reach for his Mardemdievs, though he was unable to draw as the beowolf quickly re-engaged with another lunge forward, forcing Gideon to improvise.

Gideon was good at improvisation. Despite this fact, Gideon also did not have the preparedness of somebody who might have been able to sit down and think out their next move.

No, Rather

Gideon did something much less intelligent

And much more ballsy

Gideon lunged out with both hands for the head of the beowolf, one hand impaling itself on the upper jaw of the beowolf, wrapping itself around the muzzle. The only hand protection being tightly bound cloth one might apply to blisters or burns. The other hand reached for the top of the head, forcing the beowolf's head down to about 2 feet off the ground as the beowolf's claws grazed either side of Gideon's frame.

Then came the curb stomp

No, not to the top of the head, or the foot, or the neck.

Gideon curb stomped the beowolf's lower jaw whilst he lifted its upper jaw.

The Result: A loud snapping sound, audible to the surrounding area, followed by a screech mixed with a barking whine as the lower jaw of the beowolf dangled by skin and muscle, the tongue flapping aimlessly with the pained vocalizations that could be heard for kilometers. The bone had pierced through the skin, acting as a locking mechanism as the joints of the lower jaw dragged outwards across the palette of the beowolf's mouth, the muscles in spasm causing the bone to move similar to a catapult, resulting in the bone only remaining attached to the muscle by loose tendons.

Gideon quickly followed through by withdrawing his right hand from the permanently open maw of the beowolf and sliding his left hand down to the back of the target's neck. In a split-second Gideon extended and withdrew his right fist from the neck of the beowolf, the screech turning into a strangled sound as the defeated form flopped to the ground writhing for air before eventually going still. Of course, Gideon didn't have time to watch as another beowolf leaped towards him, though, in that instant, Gideon had enough time to brace himself and act as a springboard, rolling the beowolf off his shoulders and maintaining the beowolf's trajectory towards the other side of the clearing.

As soon as Gideon stance recovered, another beowolf ran at him with swiping blows. At this point, Gideon began to count. This beowolf he named "3".

Gideon dodged the first swipe, before stopping the second one inches from his face, intertwining his arm with the beowolf's, he pulled the monstrosity closer until the maw of the beowolf was close enough for Gideon to feel its breath. The stance was not maintained for more than a second as Gideon slammed his foot down on the knee joint of "3", causing it to bend inwards at an awkward angle and collided with the other knee-joint, accompanied by a sound similar to a branch snapping off a tree. Quickly diverting both of their weight to the side of the broken joint, Gideon flung the beowolf onto its side, about to draw his Mardemdievs once again before assigned beowolfs "4" and "2" collide with him at 90 degree angles from each other, flinging him back with the two of them on top of him.

Focusing on "2" first, Gideon grappled both the upper and lower jaw with each hand, his hands quickly becoming pin-cushions. Twisting his hands in a 360 motion, he snapped the beowolf's neck like a twig, but not before "4" ran his jaw down Gideon's upper arm with a vicious twisting motion you'd more likely see with a dog playing tug-o'-war. Gideon quickly grabbed the skull of "4", digging his left hand thumb into the eye socket of the beowolf and dragging its head off his arm before bringing his knee up from under the beowolf and dragging its head downward to meet in the middle, the jaw audibly snapping shut as Gideon's knee forcefully closed it.

Pushing the stunned beowolf off of him, he stood with his right arm limply hanging at his side, he wasn't really totally standing before "4" returned with a vengeance, only to be met with a sweeping kick that took out its legs, causing it to fall to the ground like a bag of bricks. Before it could get back up, Gideon stomped on its muzzle, causing the beowolf's head to whip to the side and into the grass. The stomp was followed by a few like it, beginning to noticeably cave in its skull before designated beowolf "5" slashed open Gideon's side, which was instantly replied with a shoulder to the beowolf's torso, taking them both to the ground. Gideon quickly gained the upper ground on the beowolf, placing his knees on either arm and beginning a flury of audible punches to the skull of the beowolf, bloodying both his knuckles as sharp thuds turned into soft squishes, Eventually, Gideon stood his knuckles, a flowing red. "4" seemed to have gotten up and was sauntering towards Gideon whilst barely able to maintain its balance. Gideon came in with a side kick, knocking the already shattered material of "4"'s skull several meters.

Gideon stood silently, facing the last beowolf that had made itself apparent to him, his piercing gaze matching the beowolf's predatory stare before suddenly falling to a knee, his fists placed on either side of him to maintain his balance.

At this point, to any current onlooker, it has become quite obvious that Gideon Xovos could use some serious help as the final beowolf closed in.

[Skyrte]

Ineko was one of the last to rouse from his rest. Although he had woken up an hour earlier, he spent the time to run system diagnostics, adjust and fine tune certain programs, and converse with Damascus. Ineko had no idea what the test was about, if it was written, or if it was a physical test of ability, Damascus would likely have a clue though. Green text, the same color as the rest of his HUD, appeared in a small box.
¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Ineko inhaled then sighed.

"Attention all 1st year students; Please report to the skyport within the next half hour. There, you will be sorted and distributed properly; one group shall be headed towards the Emerald Forest, and one will be heading towards Forever Fall. Prepare yourselves adequately, the staff will not rescue you should you find yourself in insurmountable danger. And, remember this: No matter who you should be paired up with, they will be your partners for rest of your life here at Beacon. That is all."

Ineko's drones heard the announcement and flew out of their nest to dock onto his back. That was all he needed to be ready to go. Ineko got up, and walked out. He reached the skyport and hopped into the ship he was supposed to go into. The trip wasn't long, but he spent the time to review a low res map of Forever Fall. It was... Red. And had a lot of trees. As usual, he kept to himself. After all, he was here to learn how to become a hunter, making friends was a secondary goal. When they arrived, there were two instructors present. One seemed like a veteran warrior, Ineko could see it in how he spoke, stood, and held himself. His story shortly after confirmed it. Damascus recorded the entire thing and stored it in a folder. The other instructor seemed much more professor like, and had a cup of coffee that seemed endless. Ineko would have to ask about that cup later, and was sure the professor-like instructor was a very experienced warrior. During the briefing, Ineko noted several things. And he threw up a window of objectives in his HUD, the primary being obvious, to find the Artifact. Secondary objectives included the study of Grimm, mapping out a high res version of the area, and locating the train tracks. After the briefing, as several students already began to zipline down, Ineko walked over to the edge and looked at the massive forest. Switching to IR Vision, he saw the majority of activity in the forest, noting that already several battles were raging.

[harinezumikouken]

His ears twitched. Kuhaku's eyes snapped open. His ears were picking up the sound of a lot of heavy metal, clanking and rattling heading towards him. Was it an enemy? Another Grimm? Though, Grimm didn't wear METAL armor as far as he knew. So then the only logical explanation was...

...Another student!

Kuhaku bolted upright, his shield and sword clinking against each other from the sudden movement. Turning to face the source of the noise, his eyes began to light up and sparkle, his mouth agape from excitement. His long and slender tail swaying back and forth restlessly. Black pupils narrowing into a vertical slit, he focused his vision on his future partner. It seemed that his heavily-armored compatriot was a male Faunus.

The student called out to him, "Hello there!"
As he approached, Kuhaku excitedly waved at him and returned his greeting, "Hello!"

Now, with the two of them standing ten feet away from each other, Kuhaku took a quick moment to look his fellow student over. He was most definitely a male Faunus, just like himself. Kuhaku briefly wondered if he had a harsh childhood just like him, but pushed the thought from his mind. He couldn't quite place exactly what KIND of Faunus he was, but noticed that he had quite a bit of armor on and that his weapon of choice looked rather strange. However odd it looked to Kuhaku, he took note of its great size. As he was temporarily lost in thought, the other student introduced himself.

"Good. Good." The other student cleared his throat and then bowed his head. "Hello. I am Gren Orchid. I suppose that we're partners now, aren't we?"

Kuhaku widely grinned and bowed his head in return. After raising his head, he extended a hand to shake towards 'Gren'. In all honesty, Kuhaku wanted to pounce on his new partner, take his hand to shake vigorously, and assault him with a barrage of questions. But, he restrained himself.

"Hello again, friend. I'm Kuhaku. Kuhaku Shiro. It's a pleasure to meet you and yes, I suppose we ARE partners now," he chuckled.

[Lucius Cypher]

Gren took the fauna's hand, Kuhaku Shiro, and shook it firm but not hard. He was very much aware of his own strength and took careful consideration into making sure that he didn't try to overpower his smaller partner. "Excellent. As much as I'd like to chat and get to know you, I believe that we're a bit strapped for time. Also, we have a train to catch." In the far distance, there was a shrill whistle. A train whistle. "I spotted it as I came down. Empty box cars, perfect for us to hitch a ride. I can't say for sure if they'll lead up to the artifacts, but if we take the train, we'd be able to avoid most of the Grimm and conserve our energy. I believe that the teacher mentioned that the artifacts are scattered throughout the basin, though I also believe that they've been placed in locations which will test out skills and abilities. So stumbling upon them as we walk through the forest is unlikely, but finding them at say, a nest or a cave, that would be where an artifact would be hidden, yeah?"

Gren proposed his idea to Kuhaku, but they'd only have a scant few minutes to decide their actions. The train, at it's pace, would arrive at the two boys in about five minutes. It was going too fast for them to simply run along side of so they'd need a plan if they want to get on that train and don't get splattered. Gren was looking behind him, waiting to see if the train will arrive and getting himself mentally prepared for if or when Kuhaku has some idea of how to get on. Gren had an idea, but it relied on his innate toughness and his semblance, something that he knows that Kuhaku doesn't share with him. "If you have any other ideas, speak quickly."

[harinezumikouken]

Kuhaku returned the firm handshake in kind. As Gren spoke to him Kuhaku's ears twitched, catching the noise of the oncoming train and its whistle. The shrill screech of said whistle caused him to pin his cat ears flat against his head in slight discomfort. He wondered why he didn't detect it before from further way. Maybe he just wasn't paying enough attention to his surroundings or was distracted by his thoughts and Gren's approach. He took a few seconds to mull over Gren's logic. It didn't take long for him to come to a conclusion.

Nodding, he agreed with Gren's words and removed his shield from his back. His sword still sheathed within it.

"Your guess is as good as mine. Let's not waste anymore time and figure out a good way to get onto that train without killing ourselves."

As he spoke, his combined sword and shield rapidly disassembled and reassembled itself into his Great Axe, metal parts sparking and sliding against each other in a cacophonous racket. Within seconds, his Great Axe was complete and let out a hiss of air signifying so. Lifting the axe, he rested the shaft of its handle against his right shoulder. He then faced the oncoming train, tilting his head slightly and placing his left hand on his hip.

"Hmm...I'm thinking of using this bad boy to maybe hook onto a part of the train while it's moving. What do you think, Gren?" Turning his head, he looked at Gren and flashed him a smirk.
"We can get to know each other on the train ride, until we get to where we're going. Where ever that may be."

The train's whistle blasted again, showing no signs of slowing or stopping as it neared the two of them..

[Galgarion]

“Don't suppose you could lead?”

Bridget couldn't decide if Abel was merely being polite, or was truly turned around from the brief encounter, but decided to give him the benefit of the doubt. With a small twirl she fully retracted the chain into her Kusarigama and the blade snapped with a sharp click. Using the collapsed weapon to gesture, Bridget pointed in the direction she had been jogging.
"Thank you, you weren't half bad yourself, if a little brash. The instructor never stated exactly where the artifacts were, but on the way in I spotted a train station in that direction, seemed as good a place as any to start." Sheathing Rakurai back on her thigh she paused a moment before adding, "In the future I would appreciate it if we avoided unnecessary minor encounters, too much risk for too little gain." To accentuate her point she moved the hood her cloak away from her face a little, displaying the already fading claw marks on her cheek.
With a grandiose sweep of her arm she gave a slight bow she affected a particularly fancy tilt to her voice "After you sir, if you please. I shall keep watch and alert you of any dangers." and she began to focus her will once more.

[Lucius Cypher]

Gren began to stretch his muscles out as the train grew nearer. Kuhaku was going to use his weapon, which originally was a sword and shield now turned into a giant axe, to hook onto the train as it went by. Gren's idea was... Much simpler. "Well... I'd figure I'd just use my Semblance and throw my body onto a box car. We'll have to see if it works now!" Gren stood a bit beside the train tracks and got his body ready. The train was just seconds away. Ten box cars, two of them open, one locomotive. Hopefully the operator wouldn't mind two hitchhikers.

"One... Two... Three!" The train shot right past Gren, which was right when he jumped. He activated his Semblance than, his body glowing a faint green as he slammed himself onto the side of the train. Where others would have than bounced off and hit the ground, or worse, fell underneath the train's wheels, Gren's body stuck to the side of the train car. Gren couldn't confirm if Kuhaku made it, so for now he'd just have to get inside a box car and hope that Kuhaku did. He was a smart guy, Gren was sure that getting onto the train wouldn't be too hard for him.

Fighting against the wind, Gren focused his Semblance onto the soles of his feet. Doing so allowed him to walk perpendicular to the train cart and literally walk into the open boxcar. Once safely inside he stepped onto the level floor, deactivated his Semblance, and took a seat. With any luck, Kuhaku would be joining him.

[Lucius Cypher]

~Mystical Ninja Double Post~

[harinezumikouken]

As Gren stood beside the tracks, Kuhaku positioned himself next to him. He was going to let Gren attempt to board the train first before he tried, to see what exactly Gren had in mind. Plus, he was interested to see what his Semblance ability was.

"One...Two...Three!" Gren counted, jumping on three.

Kuhaku watched intently as Gren's body glowed a slight green and he seemed to have 'stuck' himself onto the side of the train car. Laughing and clapping, he applauded Gren's flawless train boarding. Stopping short, he then remembered that he was supposed to have gotten on too. Though, his method would be a bit inevitably be a bit...cruder.

"Aha...oh, right." clearing his throat, Kuhaku crouched low beside the train tracks, rearing his Great Axe behind him. Eyes narrowing into slits, he focused his eyes on the speeding boxcars. Wind loudly roaring in his ears as the train continued to speed along its rails, violently rustling his clothing and hair.

Waiting for the perfect moment, he patiently timed his swing. "And...NOW!" muscles tensed in his arms, he swung wide and hard at the train's side, leaping at it as he swung. With a thunderous slam, he buried the massive head of his axe into the sides of the boxcar he aimed at. The moment he 'hooked' his axe onto the train car, Kuhaku was lifted away with it, hanging.

With a heave, Kuhaku did a pull-up and flipped onto the shaft of his Axe. Squatting down, he then examined the giant gash he tore into the train car, nervously scratching at the back of his head.

"Aha....whoops. I hope it doesn't cost too much to fix that...Ah, well." Kuhaku then leapt off of his axe and yanked it free from the side of the train car. Spinning his axe around, it quickly broke down and reverted back to its sword and shield mode. Kuhaku then slinging his weapons behind his back.

Walking along the top of the train with relative ease thanks to his tail giving him balance, he made his way to the car that Gren was in. Grabbing onto its open side, he swiftly swung down and into the boxcar.

Grinning, he gave Gren a thumbs-up. "No problem!"

[Flamelord]

For the most part, Tai had an uneventful walk. It seemed that most of the Grimm in his area were attracted to the other, louder fighters going on, some of which he could hear going on elsewhere. Without the Grimm, the place was calm, peaceful, majestic with it's painted reds and sweeping forest trees. He walked with a destination in mind, but did not race ahead, careful to take the path of least resistance, while also being able to contemplate and prepare. After all, there wasn't much point in arriving at the artifacts without a partner, was there?

Fortunately, fate seemed to have a partner in store for him. In he course of his almost idyllic stroll, he could hear the sound of someone else moving through the underbrush nearby. The sounds also indicated that said person wasn't exactly having the best time of things.

Well, fate appeared to have thrown him something, so he oriented himself and moved to meet with whomever this person was, eventually emerging from the trees to come into sight range. "Well, looks like we're partners then," he said to the boy who up until that time, had been muttering under his breath. "I'm Tai Zhou."

[The Irish Tree]

"...Uh, sir" Bruce raised his hand as the others started going off onto the zipline,and even though he nearly completely towered over both the teachers, he still looked at them with a great deal of respect. His eyes were still a little red and puffy from his reaction to the wonders of Professor Port's story, but it was clear that if he wasn’t prepared to throw himself into danger, he would still be crying at the emotional depth of the story.

The coffee-guzzler didn’t cease sipping, even as the others started moving down the lines, and zipped over to Bruce at the speed of light saying: ”Yes, yes yes, what is it young man? A question before you throw yourself into the Falls?” To which he got a slow nod as Bruce regained his composure, asking: ”Do we have to use the lines?” Somewhat speechless, the professor adjusted his glasses, taking another sip and saying: ”No...No I suppose you don-” Bruce had moved before the man even finished talking, and was already running towards the edge of the cliff, gauntlets already on his arms. Diving off the ledge, Bruce descended the basin, running downwards on the steep slope, occasionally using his beartraps to slow himself down by grinding them into the grey mountain walls.

Eventually reaching the forest floor with a loud crash, Bruce looked around before he began walking north, at least from his view, and going straight.

---

Beliya had already begun sliding along her zipline, using her Joyeuse as a make-shift glider down the line, coming to a stop over the tree-line and dropping in, taking care to land on a branch on one of the many crimson trees. Narrowly avoiding landing on a nest of Rapier wasps, she descended from the tree, and scoped the area out. Trees, trees, rock over there, trees, trees, Beowulf, trees...Wait.

Wheeling around just before she turned away, she took her machete-rifle in hand and approached silently behind the beowulf, and, once she was a breath away from it, the beast spun around and lunged at her. In one fell swing, she sidestepped the thing and sliced through it vertically with her blade, cleaving the thing apart cleanly from the hip. Breathing steadily, she closed her eyes and sheathed her weapon to her side...and only then did she notice the person bleeding out on the ground. Staring at him for a moment, then silently cursing herself, she dreaded the thought of trudging along with an injured partner. Figuring that none of that mattered, since the rules were set in stone, she walked over to him slowly and knelt down in front of him and asked: ”Can you walk?” at least trying to sound concerned.

---

”....Ahem.” Ineko, even in his armor would feel the tapping of the coffee-holic on his shoulder, though he only heard one, it must have felt like someone was dialing SOS on his suit as the professor then said: ”If you would please.” as he gestured with his mug to the basin below.

[OldManWong]

Gideon looked up at Beliya with a tired gaze, his appearance looked entirely focused as his slit eyes appraised his partner without a verbal answer for a few moments. After the small duration of him quietly looking her up and down, he seemed satisfied, standing up slowly with a grunt and offering his good hand, which happened to be his left hand, as the right arm hung limply, "Forgive my appearance, my name is Gideon Xovos. I will be your partner from now on." He frowns for a moment, as if remembering something, "My legs are fully functional." He states as a matter-of-fact, his way of saying he 'can probably walk', though it would seem he's a bit off balance, swaying ever so slightly from side to side with the breeze.

[Lugubrious]

“Mhm.” Abel grunted in agreement with Bridget's words. Having no real clue where to go, he did suppose the train was a better option. What else would be it be for but to transport students? Surely an area that a prestigious combat academy used for training wouldn't allow some random locomotive to barrel through it every now and again, endangering students? Or was that the point?

Her comment about his impetuousness went unregarded as he responded to her last statement instead. “Too true. I'm all for a good fight, and Beowolves are pretty much made of plasticine anyway, but part of being a protector is not pushing your nose into bad business.” Perhaps he had mixed his metaphors, but the point still stood. If this girl wanted to know exactly what he had meant by 'protector', he might very well have a conversation on his hands. He watched the gouge left upon his partner by the Beowolf he'd landed on disappear, Bridget's aura healing her at a remarkable rate. Her bow signified to him that he could goof around a little just as she did; he released the Ampere and span it around using his semblance, flourishing it before attaching it to his back. The electricity that arced between his fingers and the metal shaft was more than obvious to his fellow student, though compared to him moving the weapon without touching it, the tiny lightning bolts were nothing interesting. “You got it.”

A few peaceful minutes later, Abel and Bridget had left the scarlet copse and giant whetstone in their dust. The region of the forest they now entered seemed a little wilder than the basin where everyone had entered; the trees were thicker, the grass longer, and the shadows more menacing. It wasn't until they approached a canopy-high tangle of what looked like webbing that Abel's apprehensions started to show. “Looks like spiderweb,” he observed, arms crossed. The two stood around thirty feet away from where the silky spread began. Beyond the silvery threads the way was darker and more ominous, particularly when he considered how large the spinners of said webs would have to be. From that same direction, however, came a distant thundering noise. “What do you think, Bridge? Sounds like the train isn't too far away. Must be nearing your station. We could power through this mess or try and find a way around."

[Guess Who]

Robert had finally reached the edge of the forest, keeping up the rant he had started back at the lone tree from earlier. His skin stinging from the wasp stings and sun burn. He continued a few more feet before he saw a lone figure standing there.

Flamelord said
"Well, looks like we're partners then," he said to the boy who up until that time, had been muttering under his breath. "I'm Tai Zhou."

"Hello there, my name is R-" before he could finish his sentence, Robert walked into a spider's web. "Ahh, ssspppttt sspptt spt," was how Robert finished his sentence, trying to spit the web out of his mouth and rubbing his hands all over his face trying to get the web off of his face. "Frickin' spider webs! Sorry, my name is Robert... Robert Fallson," he said, finally finishing introducing himself. In his head, all Robert could think was "Please don't think I'm an idiot partner. Why? Why do you hate me so much world?"