Crazy Scion

Royal Rumble!

Elise was only slightly relieved when her cousin's lips finally parted from her own. Lise wore an expression much like her own, though she could tell through her link that she didn't feel quite as awkward about it as she did. As her cousin stood up, she started to calm down as rational began returning to her mind. However, this reprieve was short-lived as her world was shattered once again by Lise's impressive ability to misread a situation. She not only accused Elise of trying to court her but she also, in her own dumb way, had implied that it was ok. That there wore rules in place for this kind of thing as long as Uncle approved. It would totally be ok to have relations with your family.

"No!" she blurted out, faster then her mind could process, and then realizing that she inadvertently answered the question, babbled, "I mean. I'm not trying. How can you? What?!" At a loss for words, things only got worse as hot steam and hatred suddenly descended on the scene.

"Hands off MY LISE!" a man shouted as he landed between Lise and herself, interrupting her floundering, Oh gosh. Who's this now? Elise questioned, pushing herself away from the burning eyes in the mist. They made her think of Sho in a way and reminded her how she wished he was here right now. He'd swallow up all this hate and show this guy what for. However, before thoughts of fleeing took the forefront of her mind, the other falling girl decided to intervene. They grabbed Elise and pulled her away from the man before placing themselves between them.

"Are you alright, my Lady?" the boy said, blowing Elise's mind for the third time that day. He stood up and introduced himself as well as declare his intent to serve the Valois-Saint-Remy family. Elise knew a bit about foreign nobility, but the Yekaterinans always escaped her. The country was massive, and so were the number of noble households and branching households. Still, his intervention was helpful, and he wasted no time in rebuking the other man for his open hostility and passion. This moment of reprieve, from sins falsy accused, gave Elise a chance to think for the first time in nearly half a minute. Think of things like Why did Dimitry jump out of a window with Lise? Why did Lise kiss her, or did she kiss her? Why was Lise wearing a towel?! How did the water boy know Lise? These were things she should have been asking from the beginning. There wasn't enough time to form any answers before Lise decided to perpetuate their misunderstanding and derail her thoughts again. She didn't know what she was talking about, but it sounded like a lot of confusion. It turns out Andriem was the name of the man who brandished water like a weapon. She hoped Lise's intervention would keep any more fighting from breaking out. If that man felt even an ounce of guilt, Elise intended to grab it an spike it like a valley ball. Still, now was a good time to get answers. Thus the most pressing question in the world needed to be asked.

"Lise, why are you naked?" she asked as it was the most burning question in her mind since the whole kerfuffle started. Her heart demanded an answer. She had never really thought of girls in that way, but she also had never seen another girl in such a state of undress. Why is Lise so...what's the word? Busty. A bit of envy creeping into her thoughts. She did her best not to stare at Lise's cleavage. At least the steam was preventing students and staff from seeing all this. Her cousin was very popular with boys and if someone snapped a picture of this. It would be floating around the school for years to come. "Maybe I should fix that?" Elise thought aloud as she pointed at Lise, "Shadows cover her and become clothes." she commanded, and the area under Lise turned black. She was tired, but she had given this command many times, for herself, and the mist was obscuring the light enough to cast a shadow. Lise, if no on intervened, would suddenly find darkness wrapping around her legs and moving up her body, under her towel. In a mere moment, Lise would be covered from the neck down in shadows. The shadows would then coalesce and form a skin-tight but comfortable full-body catsuit.

Royal Rumble!

Elise had come to St. Lareuls intending to repair the damaged reputation of the nobility, or at least improve the view of her family. A very lofty goal by most people's standards, but Elise was confident. She had many assets going into her first year. She was an honor student with high marks, her family name was from a high ranking family, and though it was a little prideful to think so, she was quite the cute girl. Some early development went a long way to improving her confidence. However, much like life, school life would not be the breeze she had hoped it would. Slowly Elise came to realize that all her assets did little to help her fit in.

It turns out being small and young meant most people didn't take you seriously. Neither her status as a noble or an honor student would seem to sway this opinion. Still, she was not without hope. Her cousin, despite her many flaws, was well respected and adored by the student body. To Elise's infinite frustration, her cousin demonstrated all the traits she sought to correct, but maybe that was the wrong way to think of it. Perhaps classic tropes are what the people want. That instead of convincing nobility to behave better, not that she still wouldn't try, but convincing the populous that the old tropes they associate with them are cool instead. As a result of this line of thinking, Elise spent the next several months perpetuating Lise's popularity, by helping people to continue to misconstrue her intent and mannerisms.

It was especially successful during the tournament when Lise was putting on every aristocrat trope in the book. Her already growing popularity with a little manipulation in the background had the crowd screaming her praises. It was a shame that the tournament was canceled due to a demon outbreak, followed by a cultist invasion. If Lise had won the finals, she could have propelled the family's name. Still, fighting Cultists in the street won Lise some credit.

It was all going great, then her cousin, did something she hadn't seen coming. She decided to throw a masquerade ball, and she advertised it everywhere and invited everyone. The questions came fast, and she had no answers to give, luckily, someone said, "costume party?" and she faked it from there. As they say, the best lies are the ones people tell themselves. Still, this was unacceptable how could she have not known about this. One angry phone call to her family later and she had her answer. "It was a surprise." is what her Dad had said. She ghosted him for three days after that. Still, this was a wake-up call. She had never been %100 aware of what her cousin was up too. She didn't rant her plans a loud like a supervillain, and she couldn't have Sho watching her all the time as they were busy with their own tasks.

So it was with much trepidation that she finally decided that it was time to reconnect with her cousin. She had avoided this for many reasons. The main one being, she didn't like Lise. Her cousin with an arrogant, obnoxious, and oblivious girl who threw her out a window. Those kinds of memories didn't fade fast, nor did the broken leg. The other was she didn't want her to be aware of what she was doing. To a degree, she did feel bad using her cousin as a figurehead for achieving her goal. Still, she had spent all day thinking about it in class, and she guessed it was time to try and mend bridges.

As Elise approached the girl's dorm, her mind rehearsed the many possible ways conversations could go. Her musing, however, was cut short by the sound of a girl screaming, followed by a window slamming open. The PTSD like flashback this sequence of events gave her caused her yelp and jump in place. It took her a moment to regain her senses, but she looked up in time to see something she hadn't expected. Rather than a random girl getting throw out a window, it was her cousin Lise along with some girl, Miya, carrying her bridal style. She had no time to contemplate the situation instead choosing to act first, then ask questions later. She thrust out her arm, pointing at the falling pair, then shouted, "Shadows catch them!" The effect was faster than the eye could see as her command sent a wave of power through the long shadows cast by the building. The area around Elise would suddenly become almost blindingly dark, the air dropping several degrees. Then from the darkness, a half dozen giant black human like arms would emerge grasping at the falling pair.

As long as neither Mitya or Lise resist the grasp of the shadow hands, then they would catch and slow their fall towards the ground. Unfortunately, due to the trajectory, it would be right on top of Elise. They would both hear a yelp as they enter a dark space and land on something small and soft. After this, the darkness would clear, and the arms vanish to reveal Elise smothered by her near-naked cousin with her lips pressed against hers. Elise's brain at that moment chose to implode as all the logic and reason left in favor of panic and confusion. She would try to shove her cousin off her, but her arms were weak, and she would only succeed in grabbing Lise's towel and weakening its precious connection with her body. Someone would need to act fast to contain this deteriorating situation.

L'Mordryn Academy

Although Max found the current situation amusing to watch, he wasn't exactly the hugging type, or so he told himself. He instead turned his attention to Livia. He had only caught the tail end of the conversation, but he had heard something interesting when walking in. He called out to her from the table, "Hey, Livia. I think I overheard that you had a new summon. Do you mind telling me about it or showing it off? I could use a distraction from all this cuddling in the name of science mumbo jumbo." Max crossed his arms and looked around, "If you all don't mind doing some show and tell." He signed, "I'd do the same, but I don't have a summon right now." He smiled, "But, I can tell you a bit about my new summon project I'm working on." Max said, then pressing his fingers together, he grinned as if he had a wonderful secret to share, "It is a creature so dangerous that I think with the right equipment it could be unstoppable. Curious?" Max asked, hoping to get some attention.

L'Mordryn Academy

The flight was going to be a long one, and to distract himself from this fact, Max spent the majority of the trip to the city organizing his supplies. He didn't like letting other people see him get equipped, but he was behind schedule thanks to his laziness at Cute and Fluffy Club. He hoped that being the weapons enthusiast of the Future Tech Club would excuse him from suspicion as his assortment of items could be alarming. Max had over a dozen grenades set out, several of which had colored bands wrapped around the middle. He also set out enough spare magazines to supply a small squadron. Though probably the most alarming thing would be the jerrycan of gasoline and flares he'd set out. As much of gun enthusiast as Max was some would wonder if the school would be a warzone sometime today. He had one ulterior goal to perform while they were in the farmlands. He hadn't had the time last night to perform his summoning ritual. As if fate were cursing him. Livia had gone out last night with Odhra to summon Mizushi. He had found this out in Cute and Fluffy Club that morning. As a result, he couldn't perform his ritual without attracting unwanted attention. It wasn't that he distrusted them, but he needed to keep the Changling a secret for as long as possible. Its weakness was something to easy to look up once you knew what it was. He needed that element of surprise if he wanted to get the better of Isobel. He now intended to perform the ritual while in the city. The remote area of the forest adjacent to the farmlands would be an ideal location. He just needed to slip away for a little while without Esther and Corona noticing. He would figure that out when he got there. He was sure an opportunity would present itself eventually.

Once they arrived in the city proper, Max took his time looking over the area they were to set up in. He took special note of the geography and looked for landmarks. They armed everyone with injectors and handed out additional instructions to refresh everyone on their use. The instructions were to take the injectors and place them on the back of the creature's neck centered with the spin, then wait for a small beep to indicate it was correctly aligned. After which you could pull the trigger and inject the chip along with a mild anesthetic for pain. It was made as simple to allow those without medical training to perform the procedure.

After the refresher instructions, Esther and Corona set up to give their usual speech to the people. It was usually Corona giving the speech, but this time they decided to let Esther do it. They felt Corona was too technical for the simple farm folk. Esther spoke with a lot more energy and enthusiasm. It was a little emotional for Max's taste, but he understood the need to appeal to the people's sensibilities. The speech closed to the sound of applause, which was a good sign until a girl from the crowd intervened. The girl was a druid, judging by her attire, and she wasted no time laying into them. Max was irritated by the druid's blatant prejudice. Her words were nothing but illogical biased. He was going to need to put this girl in her place, lest she damages their organization's reputation with the farmers. He approached the Druid from the opposite end of the stage. He stands as close as possible, letting his body tower over hers as a small show of intimidation. He spoke in a purposely condescending tone, "Young Lady, you know nothing of what you speak. You claim we are committing some form of injustice, but if you truly knew anything. You would understand there is nothing unjust about what we are doing here." He leaned back and continued his tirade without giving her a chance to respond, "Perhaps you mistook my friend's words as propaganda and believe that when we say we better humanity, its only humans. This is not the case. What we do betters all creatures in the long run. Of course, I don't expect you to take my word for it. However, if you wish to renounce our intentions, you should do so logically and constructively." Max stepped away from the girl and turned to the crowd. "We shall have a debate, and the audience will be our judge," he stated, loudly so that everyone could hear. "The terms are simple. I will reiterate our device, and you shall find whatever fault you can with it. Within reason. If we can't give a satisfactory answer, then I will concede to you that technology isn't good for the animals. However, if we do answer your concerns, satisfactorily, you must concede that technology is good for the animals and endorse it. Do you agree to this?" Max stared at the Druid, his expression neutral.

L'Mordryn Academy

It was a new morning, and Max awoke to the startling sound of a Dragon's roar. Max leaped from his bed into a roll expecting Isobel to jump him at any moment before the vestiges of sleep fell away to reveal reality. He slammed the button on the clock cursing the prophetic device for scaring him so thoroughly. He reached for the switch on the side to trigger his music but paused. "I have a lot of important work to do today, but still. I have 'that' club today." He slowly retracts his hand from the clock, "It's just for the morning. Stress-free." The club didn't start for a while. Max got in his shower and for the first time, took his time. When he stepped out his demeanor was completely different. He slouched when he walked his steps weren't measured and strangest of all. His expression wasn't locked in a neutral scowl, but a slight grin. He went into the locker and through on the Achilles set, but wore the coat loosely and unfastened. He went into the vault and grabbed his usual gear. He then grabbed a backpack laden with extra equipment he had prepared last night. He then finally grabbed a large duffel bag filled with the 'special' pillows. He got ready to step out, but before leaving, he grabbed one extra thing out of the vault. A set of Inconspicuous sunglasses tinted orange with round lenses. He donned the glasses, completing his transformation. The Max that walked out of his room that morning was unrecognizable.

When Max got to the club room, he was a little late, but he figured his surprise would be all the forgiveness Evangeline would need. He opened the door and stepped into the room. He was greeted by the Floofel first "Welcome, what kind of tea would you like?" Max just gave her a sideways smile and said, "I'll take Black, extra strong. I got a hell of a day ahead." He saw Livia, Odhra, and Nikola were already there and engaged in conversation. He looked to Evangeline and smiled, he had no hostile intent, but on him, it looked like a tiger grinning at its prey. "Hey Evangeline, my 'special' commission is done, and I brought it in today." He throws the duffel bag on the ground and strips it open. Inside was a whole bunch of Dakimakura. If the club members were to look through it, they would find they are all modeled after their summons. Though, with artistic liberties taken by the artist to make them as 'cute' as possible. Max only hoped he didn't misinterpret that meaning. After throwing down the bag, he would sit at the table with his feet up and sip on tea. "Hope you like them."

L'Mordryn Academy

Isobel had spent most of the class ignoring the teacher in favor of glaring at Max for the duration of class...and thinking of the fifty different ways she could kick his ass. So for most of the class, she had done nothing but glare and irritably snap at people. Ciervia on the other hand, was about as calm as a dragon could be, coercing Isobel to pet him most of the class...and then, class was over. She wasn't letting that bastard get away.

“Rrrraaaaagh!” Max would first be aware of a very dragon-like sounding roar as Isobel barreled down the hallway. “Hey dumbass get back here!” He'd have about five seconds before her foot impacted his face.

Max had not been oblivious to Isobel's persistent glare throughout the class period. He had hoped to avoid her today but had forgotten about their mutual class. To most, it would be unthinkable to forget about someone like Isobel. However, Max was a man of focus. He only paid attention to people if he needed to. Isobel may have been a firecracker, but to Max, she was just another loud girl. That was until today, after giving her dragon the boot she was less than happy with him. He had gathered tidbits from the other students about her. Her reputation proceeded her as she was considered a powerful summoner. He now recalled that her family was a very prestigious Dracona bloodline which didn't help his predicament. It sounded like she only had three known summons. He had already met her land dragon, and the ice dragon was sitting in class with him. It was what he heard about her nastier summon the fire dragon that gave him pause.

As class ended, he immediately made his way for the door. Of course, Isobel had no intention of letting him get away this time. Max was not an unreasonable man nor a coward. He just loathed interacting with irrational people and especially disliked hotheads. Isobel was an unfortunate combination of both. Her scream was like that of a rabid animal rather than a human girl, and the class parted like scared sheep. He didn't need to try hard to predict when she would collide with him. He counted out his steps, timing his movements with her approach. As he crossed the threshold, she would be only a second behind. In that second, he quickly grabbed the door handle and slammed it shut behind him. He then grabbed the door and braced his whole body against it to hold it closed. "We need to talk!" He yelled from the other side.

“The only talkin' you're gonna be doing is to my fists ya coward!” To say Isobel might be slightly difficult to reason with, was an understatement. Especially when it came to things like her summons and people she considered her friend. Tough love and fierce protection was how she mostly entirely operated. Isobel slammed into the door, causing the entire thing to shake violently.

Max struggled to think of a way to gain an advantage in this situation. He pressed against the door with all is might, but the reverb from the door jolted him. She was bound to break through at this rate. This girl only wanted to fight and could cut loose like this. He didn't mind the idea of fighting her, but he wanted a better setting. "Maybe...She would too." He thought to himself.

With a plan in mind, he yelled through the door. "If you're so eager to fight, then there is a better time and place for it! Think about it. If we fight right here and now the teacher is going to stop us in mere moments! Would that satisfy you?" He asked the last part less like a question and more like an accusation.

“Don't care as long as I bash your face in for hurting Grarves!” She pulled on the door. “Now quit being a little bitch and open this door!” However, there was an audible 'whump' noise, lighter than Isobels as something else seemed to hit the door.

“W-weh? Ciervia?” Max couldn't really hear, but there seemed to be some conversation between Isobel and her first summons. “What'dya mean talk to him? That's not gonna solve nothing.” A moment of silence followed by an exasperated sigh. “Alright fine, fine! I'll not beat his face in and I'll do this talking thing. But if he does anything funny, my fist – his face.”

Max let out a long sigh at her reply, "It seems that reasoning with her isn't going to work." he muttered as he rested his hand on Lightning. A gathering of students that had been watching the spectacle. All suddenly decided they had better things to do and made a hasty exit.

However, as Max prepared to retaliate, he paused. He noticed Isobel had stopped trying to bash down the door down. He could hear a muffled conversation behind the door, but beyond the strange squeaks and clicks of her summon, couldn't tell what was being said. There was a pause in the conversation at which point Max took a calculated risk and put his ear to the door. He heard a sigh followed by some fortunate news. "Excellent!" He yells through the door, "Since your willing to listen to reason might I suggest a more satisfying way to settle your score. The arena. An official duel where anything goes."

“Hah? The hell would I do that for?” Isobel scrunched her nose at the thought. Why the hell would she go through all that trouble when she could just bash his face in? Before she could voice such thoughts though, there was a chirp from Ciervia, quickly silencing any protests the headstrong girl might have.

“Tch,” Frowning, Isobel folded her arms across her chest. “Fine, fine. Whatever. You want an audience for your ass-kicking, fine then.”

"Well, the crowd wasn't the point." Max thought, "Though, now that I think of it, that will also work to my advantage." Max had much preparation to do now. The Changeling was going to have one hell of a trial run. Max opened the door, without warning, and for the first time since meeting her 'looked' at Isobel. She was shorter than him, forcing him to look down to inspect her. She wore a combination of noble dress wear and armor. A style of dress much like Max's own, though Max's was far more protective. He heard she used a sword which would explain why only her left arm was armored. She probably favored her right hand and thus would defend with her left. Taking into all that he's seen into account, he could safely assume she was a fast pace and aggressive fighter. She was also quite pretty with her dark complexion and fair skin. However, he would never consider dating a girl he didn't respect. Max glances at the teacher, Lady Wyght, "Let's make it official then." Max narrows his eyes at Isobel, "I'll even challenge you." and then speaking loudly and clearly so that everyone could hear, "I Max Muerte challenge you Isobel Mulryan to an anything goes duel tomorrow at noon."

“Anything goes, huh?” Isobel glared at him.“Fine then, coward. I'll accept your challenge.” The dragon perched atop her head was far less openly hostile, though his attitude wasn't any better. The pygmy drake coldly glared at him, somehow seeming to radiate arrogance through sheer force of will. ““Better not cry when I feed your ass to Rutul.” The Pygmy drake puffed a cold gust of air towards Max.

"Then we are agreed," Max stated his eyes still locked with Isobel's. He again showed no reaction to her posturing. He honestly found her arrogance, even if warranted, annoying. This fight was nothing, but a means to an end for him after all. Though, he did want to shake that confidence of hers in some way. To let her know she should not underestimate him and take the fight tomorrow seriously. He thought about it for a moment his eyes gaining a dangerous gleam as he did. When he next spoke, his words had a coldness to them. "Isobel, I want you to understand something. I'm not afraid of you, and that's not because I think I can beat you. Its because we are similar. We both hurt people Isobel, and as a result, neither of us care about getting hurt. I'm positive that both of us will be waking up in the hospital tomorrow."

“...we ain't nothing alike.” Isobel replied with a scowl. “I'm not the one who nearly hurt someone by sending a half ton dragon flying towards them.” She grinned, an aggressive, toothy grin obvious meant as a taunt. “You're right though, I don't care about getting hurt if it puts scumbags like you in their place.”

Max paused at Isobel's words. He looked at her for several moments as if her words had struck a chord. Then, he laughed a long and mocking laugh, "That's too funny. You want to know why that's funny?" He pointed at himself, "Because, I was thinking the same thing when I flipped your Dragon." He said with venom in his words, then laughed some more while passing, "And you say we aren't alike. You want to hurt me because I hurt almost hurt your friend. I wanted to hurt someone because they let their dragon rampage through the cafeteria." He paused his passing and pointed at Isobel, "That dragon was meant for you by the way. I may have drawn a hasty conclusion based on circumstantial evidence. But, given what I've learned about you. It would have, probably, been better if it had crushed your friend because then you would have learned something." Max was breathing heavy now. His zen had cracked, and he didn't look in control anymore. At this moment, his demeanor looked far more like Isobel's.

“....the fuck you just say?” Isobel growled. The balls on this guy. “Grarves is a big slobbery baby, he wouldn't hurt a fly.” He was in fact, scared of them. [/color]“He wasn't rampaging or nothin'. I called him, and that's just how he is. The only one causing trouble was you.”[/color] Isobel was doing her best not to just physically punch this guys face in. It was useless talking to this guy. That much was becoming exceedingly clear. Was she doing anything other than antagonizing him? Not at all, but Isobel wasn't really that good at the whole talking thing in the first place.

Ciervia moved to Isobel's shoulders now, Sitting regally upon his throne before making a chirping noise.

“I got places to be and training to do, unless you'd rather just get your ass kicked, move.”

"A puppy? What?" Max stammered, unable to process Isobel's absurd claim. He spent a moment gathering his mind before blurting out. "Are you insane? You're telling me that giant boulder with teeth is friendly?" Max looked at Isobel incredulously, trying to sly any deceit but finding none. "Unless...could it be a dragon pup?" Max didn't like the implications of this line of thinking. It meant that the earth dragon was a mere fraction of its potential full adult size. He stepped aside at Isobel's request but more as an afterthought than an acknowledgment of her threat. "You know what. It doesn't matter if its a puppy. If anything, it's more disconcerting that you are letting an infant that big roam around unsupervised." Max sighed his rising anger having been put out by the sudden revelation.

“Like I said.” Isobel walked past Max with a grunt. “He don't hurt no one usually. If I thought he'd be a problem, I wouldn't keep him around. His species is a pretty docile kind, ya know, maybe if ya actually didn't have rocks in your head you'd know that.” Pot meet kettle. Isobel might not be the best student, but she knew her summons well. Not that Max would get time to reply. Isobel was already walking off, an aggressive pace that almost dared someone to try and get in her way.

"That went well." Max thought to himself, as he watched Isobel walk storm off. He had said more than he meant to due to her words getting under his skin. She, fortunately, didn't read too much into it. "At the very least. I know more about her than I did before. I don't think I'll have any trouble with a runt ice dragon and a giant rock child." He thought smugly, as he started walking to his next class. "My main focus will still be overcoming the fire dragon. I know I said I wouldn't be kind but if I were to kill one of that girl's dragons. Well, I know I wouldn't stop until someone's head rolled. That makes the challenge of bringing it down all the more difficult." Max went on like this, making plans for his future encounter.

Royal Rumble!

As David waited for Bak's reply Rurik interjected stating plainly, "Great idea. This place sucks," David hadn't been looking for an answer from Rurik but didn't disagree with his sentiment. Rurik seemed to have a similar mindset to his own. He didn't use fancy words to express how he felt. Still, he had wanted to hear what Bak had to say. However, Alto made that impossible when he decided to mention his attempted murder. David paused at this bit of news. That made two murder attempts today caused by Mephisto. He was going to have a lot of questions after today, but he was willing to hear all the facts before he made a judgment. As Rurik negotiated with Alto, he shot David a look that said, "Do something." David did want to hear Alto out, but he didn't want to get caught up in another fight. He weighed his options and decided that answers could come later. He crouched down on the ground, pretending to clutch his stomach in silent pain, and began drawing a tall rectangle on the ground. David struggled to make solid lines using the broken and cracked stone. He had to use set the pen on the highest ink flow to make the lines. The finished rectangle looked awful, with squiggly and broken lines everywhere and even a sharp angle at one point when he had to go around a hole. It would be difficult to form a connection with this. There were many hidden portals in Mephisto's. David had spent countless hours making and concealing portals. He had found paint in the janitor's closet, the same kind that coated the door frames all over the school. His lines did not need to be visible to work. They could clip through any material. So, he would draw them and then cover them in a thin layer of fresh paint. He concentrated and 'felt' for his lines. He would frantically whisper "Open" as he searched. He checked every door one by one as fast as he could. Until finally, it opened. The ground beneath him turned a luminescent blue. He fell through and into the hallway of the school. He faceplanted and slid, just outside a beat up and warped door. It seemed the student body had roughed up this door enough to skew its shape in just the right way. He quickly rolled to the side and looked at the door. He expected that everyone would fall and did not want to be under them when they did.

Royal Rumble!

The Cultist's mightly blow proved to be too much for Rurik's shield to handle. A powerful shockwave blew David off his feet along with everyone else. He hit the ground and rolled several times before coming to a stop on his stomach. His head ached having taken a hit at some point during his tumble. However, he could feel it. The familiar lines of his blood were now on the body of the Cultist. He shakily pushed himself to his knees and reached for his pen with a gleam of hatred in his eyes, but his pocket was empty. Shock and confusion spread across his face until a dreaded realization sunk in. "I dropped my pen." He thought to himself as he 'felt' around for his lost instrument. He could feel his blood somewhere among the cracked stone of the arena, but it must have fallen in a gap. He couldn't see it out in the open and cursed under his breath. He couldn't do anything without his utensil. He saw that Rurik and Bak were still trying to fight, but he couldn't move. The wounds gifted to him by Yuuto flared in pain from all the stress.

Rurik's luck also seemed to run out as the Cultist hoisted him in the air fist curled and ready to turn them into a bloody mess. David forced himself to his feet, with his body protesting every inch. The need to act was like an unyielding compulsion in his blood, but instead of the same old bubbling itch, it was more like a fire giving him energy.

BOOM!

The explosion gave David a reason to pause. It seemed Rurik was also the type that didn't know when to quit. "I think I'm starting to like this guy." David thought to himself. The Cultist looked more pissed than hurt, but it still gave David hope. Then the cavalry finally arrived with Gloria, Alto, and King descended like the super friends onto the battlefield. The tension was high and literal sparks, courtesy of the Cultist, danced through the air. The world bulk under the power the Cultist prepared to bring, but just as the power reached a fever pitch. It all stopped. A portal opened next to the Cultist, another sting to David's pride, and began speaking with him. He couldn't hear what was said, but the Cultist seemed pleased by the news. He bid them all farewell and disappeared into the portal with his compatriot. Then just like that, it was all over. David felt the fire leave his veins and unceremoniously collapsed back onto the ground. His body, like Rurik, was done and had nothing left to give. He wanted to go home and sleep for a week or two.

He didn't know how long he lay there on the ground, but the familiar sound of Bak's heavy footfalls rosed him from his rest. He felt Bak pick him up yet again. He didn't understand how she could be so forgiving and kind. He had more or less screwed her and her friends over by bringing them here. They were now all hurt even more than the park. The park felt like another lifetime ago. He came to save Katherine and instead got caught up in cultist nonsense. He failed to do anything he had come to accomplish. On top of that, he had little to no impact on the outcome of either situation. His pride had taken a significant blow as a result, and he wanted to save face.

His wish was granted, albeit in an unexpected way, when a new person descended on the scene. This girl had to words David thought of to describe her. Blood and tits. He didn't know who she was, but her declaration of being a healer was a welcomed relief. The burst of healing energy made all the pain fade away. David took the opportunity to spring to his feet. Happy he could salvage some of his pride by at least walking out of here rather than being carried. He went straight for his pen and dug it out of some rubble. It was unharmed by the fall, Luigi never built anything half-assed it seemed. He went back to Bak. "Hey listen." He started, "It isn't much, but I can portal us back to Mephisto's if you'd like. I can't teleport anywhere like some people, but I have plenty of portals in our school." He didn't know if she would accept his offer. However, regardless of her answer, he did intend to make a portal. He would find the nearest wall and draw a rectangle. If Bak accepted his offer, he would create a portal to Mephisto's. The portal would let out anywhere in the school Bak wanted. David had hidden many portals in the doorways of the classrooms and offices. If she rejected his offer, he would make a portal home. He would go straight to his room and collapse on his bed until tomorrow. He was far too tired to deal with this day any longer.

Sum up your week in roleplaying in just 3 words

Tournament Arch Over

L'Mordryn Academy

Things hadn't played out quite as Max had expected. Albus was spared his crushing end thanks to the interference of a couple of large cats, Lohi and Tohi, and their quick barrier. He still got some satisfaction out of kicking Grarves' ankle, after the fact, and eliciting a rather satisfying and loud yelp. Which caused Max some minor discomfort in his ears. He started walking away from the scene only to be stopped by the sound of an angry voice calling out to him.

"Oi!" Isobel yelled out as she walked up behind him, "Spiky haired overly dressed bastard. Where the hell do you think you're going?"

Max looked over his shoulder at her but didn't turn around. She along with another boy, Arkadian, were staring daggers at him. Though, Isobel's was by far the more impressive scowl among the two of them. Max knew they wanted a fight but wasn't in the mood to go all out in a crowded lunchroom. It was one thing to fight back against a dragon you 'thought' was attacking you. It was another to beat up two students out for an explanation you didn't want to give. His answer was thus brief and monotone displaying little care for their unspoken threats, "To class." he answered, then began walking away again. Max didn't expect either of them to just let him go. So, as he stepped away they would hear an ominous clicking sound as Max gently tosses something small and round behind him. Isobel would see the grenade roll to her feet as Max started sprinting away. SHe would have little time to react as the grenade exploded, but fortunately for her. The grenade would not explode into fire and shrapnel, but instead, pop like an over-pressurized can and releasing a massive cloud of smoke into the air. In the chaos that ensued Max would burst through the nearest emergency exit and run down several hallways. If he believed the coast was clear he would take some time to catch his breath before walking to Lady Lestrelle's class. "Well, this morning was certainly more exciting than usual." He mused eyes scanning the halls for dark skin and long white hair, "If I see her again. which will most likely be around lunchtime. There is no doubt a fight will break out." Max smiles, "Perfect, I'll just summon the changeling before then. It will make for the perfect test." Max walked with purpose as he made plans for his next encounter with Isobel, a look of sadistic glee upon his face.