Fantasy Vehemen Academy - Academy of Hunters

[OldTurtle]

Ravyn entered the mansion first, pushing the doors open easily to reveal the inside. Adrian filed in the rear of the small group, softly shutting the doors behind him, then turning around to examine his new surroundings. The mansion's interior was surprisingly well-kept despite its forlorn exterior. Though it was as splendid as you would expect for a home of its size, the large lobby they entered was sparsely furnished. Adrian's eyes were drawn towards the pair of large, intricate chandeliers hanging from the high ceiling, both of which shed a bright light upon in the area. The comfortable aura of the inside of the mansion was a stark difference to the first impression he'd gotten of it. Adrian could almost picture what the structure would have been like if it was inhabited.

"Oh my god! They're so adorable," Ravyn whispered to herself. 'They'? Adrian turned to face in the same direction, locating the small, brightly colored creature near the staircase immediately. He couldn't help but find himself agreeing with Ravyn's remark. The unfamiliar animal was rather cute. Or at least it was until it pounced on a nearby rat. The large rodent fell instantly, going limp once the creature, having captured the rat in its now-visible claws, bit down.

Adrian swallowed drily. Well, it seemed that this not-so-cute-after-all animal was to be their first obstacle. At least it was small, right? The small Poex released a howl that, under other circumstances, would have been adorable. Here and now, where it was responded to with numerous other calls? It was nothing short of nerve-wracking.

"Alright, stay quiet and don't get bit. These things'll likely try to swarm you to attack," Ravyn ordered in a hushed tone. "Try not to draw any unnecessary attention to yourself. I... uh, if you see another rat, tell me. It may know where the gem is. It's a long shot, but hey, at least it's a lead."

The dark-haired boy nodded in acknowledgement, keeping his eyes peeled on the Poex. Small as it was, it was still dangerous and if it ever noticed them standing there, he didn't want to be caught with his guard down. When it made no moves towards the group, he searched for a path to take, preferably one that kept them well away from the Poex near the staircase. As long as it was there, the stairs were a no-go. That left three other doors. The dining room was already out of question, being next to the stairs as well.

As Adrian debated which one would be the best, a deep, bellowing roar tore through the air. He flinched, turning to try to locate the sound. It came from behind, back outside. Whatever made it must've been enormous. Realizing that it spelt nothing good for the forest team, Adrian winced. The series of higher pitched, but equally audible howls similar to that from the Poex in the mansion only made him feel worse for them. That was quite a horde.

"More are coming." Ravyn stated. "We need to move quickly."

Giving the Poex in front of him another careful look, Adrian moved over to one of the curtained windows beside the large doors. Brushing the drapes aside, he peered out at the forest. His blood ran cold. There was an incredible number of the Poex approaching the mansion, more than he could count in the dim light of the moon. Clearly, the Poex weren't going to stay in the forest. Fuckity fuck fuck. They were screwed. That many of the monsters would devour them as easily as they would a rat.

"They're almost here already," Adrian hissed hurriedly. "Time to run. Now." Turning away from the window and the sight of impending doom, he struggled with the final two options. Randomly, he chose one. Gesturing to the left wildly, he spoke quickly. "The library."

Not waiting to hear if the others had complaints, Adrian made a beeline for the large door, attempting to be as stealthy as he could while still making his way quickly. He shoved the door open and practically dove into the room, the sound of the Poex horde getting louder and louder.

N nios xXx.lovely.xXx

 

[PixelSymphony]

~Frederika von Eisenhart~
-- Lumberjack (And that's okay) --

Status: Lightly wounded (facial knife wound)
Wearing: Vehemen Academy Gym Uniform, female
Wielding: Worn greataxe
Carrying: Dagger, winter gloves, tarp
Location: Vehemen Academy, Basement, Virtual Training Room, Initial Assessment Simulation, Forest

---

As she turned from her strike to watch the bull Poex careen straight into Kiyoshi’s portal, subsequently being barbecued by Hanna’s explosion of fire, a small wicked smile crept across Frederika’s face.. Ja, gut... we are behaving as a proper fighting unit! Her satisfaction was short-lived, however, as she saw the Poex stagger back to its feet; she should have known a single attack, as coordinated as it was, would not be enough to take down the beast, if their very first fight was indicative of the overall lethality of this world. With the horns that remained intact, the Poex lifted one of the felled trees and hurled it towards the team.

"Fredi!" Kiyoshi called out over the building din, "Can you get on that?"

The Prussian girl needed no clarification. With a burst of sigil augmented speed, she took off running towards the flung tree, leaving a cloud of sprayed debris in her wake. The task assigned to be would be more difficult than last, given the rapidly hurtling nature of the massive tree, but far from be for her to falter in her attack. She skidded to a halt directly in front of the tree’s path, raising her axe again and swinging just about as hard as she could.

---

Mention: vxnilla

 

[Nessi]

Hanna Aldren

Hanna saw the portal manifest in front of her, and knew what she had to do. She had already taken notice of the portal that loomed over the beasts head, now she just had to mount the beast. Hanna picked up her blade from the dirt, and ran through the portal, her perspective changed, one moment, she was running, and then in an instant, she was falling, right on top of the boar. Hanna always wondered what riding a bull would be like, and today, she got her answer. It was terrifying, with a dash of excitement due to the amount of adrenaline being pumped into your body. Hanna Raised her katana, and drove it into the back of the poex, hanging on for dear life as the boar tried to shake Hanna off.

Hanna drove her katana into the Poex's back for the fifth time. It was almost like the Poex felt no pain, as it still swung around wildly in it's attempts to throw her off. She had given Fredi enough time to breakdown the tree, but this Poex needed to go, The mansion team was going to need their assistance with the sheer amount of those cuties that were closing in of their position. Personally, Hanna wouldn't have fought back,she would happily die at the cute paws of those adorable little beans. And the fact that the mansion team got them made Hanna feel short changed. She was stuck with a boar that was not only ugly as hell, but smelled like what death should smell like.

Hanna started to slowly climb up to the Poex's face, using the katana as an ice pick of sorts. "God dammit, you don't know how to give up, do you!?!" Hanna growled as she climbed to get close to the face of the Poex. Once she was there, she stabbed the katana into the poex to have something to hold onto. She made a fist, and commanded her arm to burst into flames. She charged up the attack, the flames going from a fiery orange to a bright yellow. "Just die already!" She yelled before punching the boar. Similarly to the fireball that she launched earlier, her flaming fist imploded in fiery glory, which sent Hanna flying.

 

[nios]

code by @fudgecakez

third gen

usami

location: simulation, mansion
interactions: OldTurtle , xXx.lovely.xXx , Dawnsx

Usami stopped abruptly behind Ravyn- almost bumping into the redhead. Before she had the chance to ask what was going on, a creature emerged from the darkness and into the chandelier light.

"Oh my god! They're so adorable," Rayvn whispered under her breath. In turn, Usami's shoulders slumped and she released a breath. She was unbothered by the looks of the creature and instead brought a hand to massage the bridge of her nose. She initially feared the team was going to face a hoard of demons, so the Poex the size of a medium-sized dog was far from what she was expecting. These professors were really beginning to try her patience. No matter. This assessment was going to be a breeze since it was only one against three... Or so Usami thought.

Usami's relief quickly morphed into a stroke of alarm after she witnessed the flamboyant creature enrapture the rat into a silent slumber. The sudden thought that that could be either her or her teammates in the rat’s stead was unsettling.

Usami dipped her head in a nod upon Ravyn’s instruction while keeping her attention on the Poex. Usami’s face scrunched to expressed how unimpressed she was with the Poex’s howl. Somewhere within the crinkles of her face, there were hints of annoyance. “You weren’t even cute to begin with.”

...but then the rumble of a monstrous roar followed by an echo of distant howls filled the air. The howls altogether sounded similar to the Poex standing among the trio. Usami caught eyes with her teammates the moment she could feel the ground vibrate. The immediate sense of being hunted came without a hitch, and it brought Usami to go rigid in her spot while the hold on her walking stick and knife tightened. She had not forgotten that danger was expected the moment she set foot in the mansion. She just hadn’t expected danger to come so imminently.

"They're almost here already," Adrian sounded from behind her. "Time to run. Now."

Usami joined after Adrian in the pursuit of finding sanctuary within the library. She limped in haste while waving for Ravyn to follow. Along the way, she stole a glimpse behind the curtain- spotting over dozens of Poexes advancing onto their location. “Oh my god,” she whispered before pulling herself into the library, the Poex in the lobby long forgotten. There were much bigger things to worry about-

Usami leaned against a shelf and slowly slid down until her bottom was seated on the floor the moment she entered. Her legs were already aching, so she gently massaged and stretched the sore limbs. From the looks of it, the building was quite extensive. She worried how long she’ll be able to keep up with the other two- and how long it'll take to find the gem while dealing with hordes of Poexes. Usami’s fingers rubbed circles on her temple- the cogs of her mind churned. For now, she will rest until they have to move again.

 

[SilverBlack]

Cleo Donovan
Location: Alleyway/Backyard ​

Cleo nodded at Elise’s determination to come with her. Her eyes proceed to glance toward Jun, who put the last bit of crepe into his mouth. After a moment, the last bit of sweet savory of the crepe went down his throat, and he finally spoke.

“I’ll go too.”

Elise’s concerns weren’t something that didn’t cross Cleo’s mind. Three Vehemen students going after a Faciete member by themselves without the accompaniment of a professor or a hunter? She wouldn’t have worried about this if she is planning on going alone, after all she never abides by rules or thinks about those things anyway, not to mention her confidence that she would always find a way to get out alive in any kinds of situations (a confidence she would get scolded for.) However, now that she’s dragging two people along with her, she did have enough consciousness that she might be bringing them troubles as well.

But to miss an opportunity like this, to let the Faciete slip past them even after they already spotted their existence? However, upon a more careful thought, she also considered the possibility of this whole encounter being nothing more but a trap. The stolen gun, if anything, could be just a bait--and the chance of it is unsurprisingly likely. Which Faciete member would carry an Otherworlder’s gun so obviously, out in the open, for all to see like that? Was that man trying to lure them somewhere, after all?

Seeing that her fellow comrade had decided to drop all hesitations, though, Cleo pushed those thoughts away. After all, what’s the point of thinking all of these if she’s not planning to back down anyway? Her eyes looked into the direction the man had run off to, missing him right as he turned a corner into an alleyway across the street. People passed on by, barely noticing the man--if they even figured that the man was someone worth noticing.

After Cleo took another glance at her two fellow second generations, making sure that they weren’t gonna change her mind, a grin spread across her face.

“Let’s go.”

What followed was not a cat and mouse chase, because they’d long lost track of the sight of the man. However, considering that they had already seen which way the man had gone, it wasn’t hard to spot the same alleyway and run towards it as well. There weren't much words spoken as they ran, already throwing behind the very original assignment they first came into the city for.

Upon stepping into the alleyway, though, Cleo obviously slowed down. It was a very thin alley, as if it was formed because the gap between the two buildings that were supposed to be huddling close together turned out a bit wider than it’s supposed to be.

The tall building by their sides blocked off half of the sunlight, making the alleyway darker than usual. Their running turned into a slow, cautious walk, with Cleo leading at the front. Away from the busy streets bustling with energy and people, the alley was a lot more quiet. Trying to look toward the end of the alley, she noticed that they’d have to turn sharp left to know where exactly they were going.

In a way, Cleo felt like she was here not exactly for the sole reason of her wanting to get her gun back now. Of course, the gun was the start of it all. She wasn’t used to holding any type of things precious, or to even own anything precious at all. When Rei Fey gave her the gun, he was aware of that as well, so he said he’d tried to find something useful--so Cleo wouldn’t consider the souvenir useless.

Truth be told, she still rarely uses it. The gift itself, however, still holds its weight.

Now, however, the curiosity behind what the Faciete could be doing here and a growing sense of bad feeling took over her mere intention to retrieve her gun.

They reached the end of the alley and turned left, following the only path given to them.

The sight of nothing but an empty space entered their view, walls enclosed on three sides. It looked as if they had entered someone’s abandoned backyard. Dead grass and weeds spread along the corners of the walls and the gaps between the concrete ground.

The backyard was huge, enough to be a parking space for perhaps three or even four vehicles if parked closely next to each other. However, if the word empty is enough to describe this space, then the trio would’ve felt like this area is safe.

But something did feel wrong.

Cleo sniffed the air. The atmosphere here in this backyard felt obviously different from the rest of the city, or even the alley they came from. It was much heavier, even the air was thicker. There’s something to this space that, even though it was enclosed by walls, it still felt rather...exposed, if that’s even the right phrase.

She felt like something that was here before, something that was invisible, was now gone for good.

The...barrier?!

Everyone who live in Praeces know that the country was protected under a thick barrier to prevent the cities from constantly being swarmed by Poex attacks. She’d heard some news leaking before that the barrier was weakening, so both the Vehemen Hunter Association and the government have been debating over this issue. But to break apart? That’s impossible--at least not yet, unless it was intentional…

As if to prove her assumption, large, thin streaks of light flashed in the air around them. The thin streaks took the form of cracks and holes, they flashed for a moment before vanishing. And after a long moment, fleshed again.

“The barrier here’s broken! Contact Eiichi immediately!” Noticing the seriousness this issue could pose, Cleo shouted, turning around to face the two behind her. At that moment, Jun’s eyes widened a bit. “Cleo, dodge!”

The girl froze for a second, then instantly tipped her head to the side right as a bullet sizzled past her cheek. Missing its original target, the bullet continued on mindlessly without the intention to stop, now in Elise’s direction.

A low chuckle could be heard from behind her, forcing the white-haired girl to look back. That’s when she finally saw them--four hooded figures standing there, originally nowhere to be seen. The man standing at the front was the man that they first saw across the street. In his hand held the very gun Cleo was looking for, Ignis, except now the gun was aiming sharply at them.

“Woah, this gun’s good,” he said, his voice somewhat murky with a mix of mockery. It was hard to see his face under his hood, but they could see that the man just licked his lips. “To think you guys will actually come here...This gun’s really the shit, huh.”

“Boss, the barrier’s already broken. We should not waste too much time on them,” from behind the man, another hooded figure said in a low tone at him. The man was obviously impatient as he clicked his tongue. “I know, but it should be easy this time.”

Cleo eyed them carefully, watching as they exchanged words. These people didn’t look like they’d just gotten here--if anything, they looked like they’d been here the whole time, just unable to be seen. One of them probably has some sort of disguising ability, making them all invisible until now.

Cleo’s face was grim. Are they behind the ones who broke the barrier…? And facing them could be part of their goal here as well...What’s the chance of three against four?

“Elise,” she said again, her tone lower this time. She could feel her burning urge to go ahead and throw a punch, but years of being part of a gang--then as a student hunter here in Lumen--was enough to teach her about being logical. They don’t know how strong these Faciete members are yet, and the barrier’s broken too--Poex could charge in at any time.

“Contact Eiichi,” she repeated, but now it sounded more like an order.

“Fufu, there’s no use doing that, you know,” abruptly, a new voice was heard over their heads, and a new hooded woman with crimson red lips could be seen sitting on top of one of the walls. “You see, we kinda guessed you guys would come, so I blocked off all signals around this area~It’s a convenient ability, I know,” The woman giggled.

“Is that so?” Cleo replied back in almost a murmur, redirecting her focus onto the woman. Her yellow eyes were brimming with displeasure and even a mix of rage and sneer. “Does that mean if we beat you first, we can contact the guy we need?”

“Why don’t you try?!”

In that instant, the woman leapt down from the walls. Her high-pitched yell pierced through the thick air as she swung her hand in Cleo’s direction. From the tip of her fingers was long, sharp black nails, even longer than her fingers themselves. The white-haired girl jumped back, and almost as a form of defense, several white orbs formed around her. Cleo bent forward, locking her target. “Jun, get out of here to contact Eiichi. Elise, cover us!”

Another bullet sizzled past them as they prepared to fight. Cleo felt disgusted just knowing that her gun was being used rashly by a trash of a man. That very same man laughed as the rest of the Faciete members dashed to block off the only entrance they got here from. Two positioned near the walls, as if to tell them that climbing up of it won’t be a smart option as well. Finally, the trio could hear the man’s sheepish words before they lunged into action.

“We’ll see how long you can put up with us.”

----
Interacted/Mentioned: Nano Dawnsx

 

[Dawnsx]

Icarus grinned. He'd worried that the brats wouldn't take the bait, but here they were, ready to be butchered by them. Still, he couldn't push down the irritation that bubbled up inside of him. His initial surprise attack had failed, and Peggy, that stupid, incompetent imbecile went ahead and announced her ability, no doubt making her a target for these brats now. He was surrounded by fools. They were the reason that he was going to...!

But he was different. He was going to take the heads of these Second Gen brats and prove himself worthy of being in the Faciete. Jacob and Mara had positioned themselves at the entrance of the alley, and Uldrin and Bob were closing in from either sides of the kids. They had to do this before the commotion draws any attention. His patience was beginning to thin.

"Attack them, you fools!" Icarus barked, firing three more times at Cleo. At his words, the remaining members sprang into action. The faint sunlight suddenly brightened and became unnaturally concentrated. With a wave of Jacob's hands, the light flashed towards at the trio's eyes with the intent to blind them. At the same moment, a white orb, not unlike that of Cleo's power but larger in size, gathered in Uldrin's hands. He thrusted his palms forward, and the ball of energy was shot towards the trio.

If the Second Generation paid any heed, they'd notice that Peggy and Bob had vanished from their sights. Regardless of whether Uldrin's attack landed, an invisible blow aimed at the side of Elise's head would be delivered, and sharp claws would be going for Cleo's eyes.

SilverBlack Nano

 

[Dawnsx]

Fredi's strike connected with the tree and split it into two. The momentum carried the two halves of the tree through the air before they landed, narrowly avoiding the Otherworlders. The Poex didn't slow its onslaught until Hanna drove her katana into its skin. With a furious roar, it halted to thrash about in an attempt to get the human off its back. Another small, adorable Poex materialized and dashed off towards the mansion. With each stab, one more of the horned Poex appeared and rushed off.

The boar Poex took Hanna's fire attack in the face with a violent jerk. Amidst the resulting smoke, it staggered several steps before falling onto its side. Twenty-five more of the smaller Poex appeared and ran off. If the Otherworlders checked, they would find that the boar Poex was still breathing, but unconscious.

Mansion Poex count: 57

---

Once the Otherworlders venture deeper into the forest, they would spot another large, looming silhouette. Instead of coming towards them like the boar Poex had, it prowled back and forth slowly in a repetitive cycle. Upon a closer look, they could see that the Poex had sharp claws and teeth, with spikes along its head and upper back. Its tail was nothing less than a flexible bludgeon with a large, boulder-like sphere at its tip. The Poex didn't have visible eyes, and perhaps strangest of all, there was something small and metallic lodged in the left side of its neck. It wouldn't react to the Otherworlders' presence, too focused on circling what looked like an unassuming incubator. But step too close to the incubator, or make too much noise or unnecessary movements, and the Poex would lash out with a swing of its tail.

Spoiler: Poex

PixelSymphony Nessi vxnilla Pilgrim59

 

[SilverBlack]

Location: Mansion - Library

Once the Otherworlders were safely within the library, they would be able to hear the pitter-patter of the Poex's paws as they searched for a target. After several minutes, the trio would be able to hear the footsteps drift further away, presumably off to search the rest of the mansion. The library was lined with tall bookshelves arranged in rows. There was a large array of genres, including various types of fiction, history, memoirs, and even art books. All of the books were published in the past two centuries, and they would be unfamiliar to the Otherworlders. Towards the front of the room, close to the door, was a sizable desk with six chairs around it. Several books were scattered on the desk, and among them a piece of paper.

Dear Sebastian,

Thank you as always for taking care of the house while we're gone. Recently, Jessi has been sneaking into the game room without our permission when she should be doing her homework, so I hid the key in my room on the second floor. You can find it under the lamp, in case you need to go into the game room for any reason.

----
Interacted/Mentioned: OldTurtle N nios xXx.lovely.xXx
Post Credits: Dawnsx

 

[xXx.lovely.xXx]

Ravyn flinched as the connection between her earpiece and Kiyoshi's was opened, and she noted the abrupt sounds of their battle. Despite the seriousness in her features, her flirty voice snapped back into place. "Having fun, are we?"

"Ravyn. Poex are making their way towards you. I count more than a dozen, each about the size of a dog."

She glanced out the window. Kioshi's voice... Deep and a little sharp. Mmmm… It was so easy to casually flirt with such a shy little cutie...

Her thoughts were interrupted by Adrian's much-needed interjection. "They're almost here already. Time to run. Now. The library."

Ravyn turned and followed the other two racing into the library whilst still speaking to the blue-haired boy on the other end.

"I see them. Thanks for the heads up. Now don't scratch up that angel face of yours, alright doll? Good luck~."

Ravyn disconnected momentarily as the sounds of their battle intensified. Didn't need that ringing in her ears... The redhead glanced out the door as the entirety of the tiny Poex burst through the window. These were undoubtedly more vicious than the ones they'd seen earlier.

"Holy shit..." She breathed. Ravyn then slammed the door shut as quietly as possible. She turned to Adrian.

"Could you find something to barricade the door temporarily? We don't want to be trapped nor do we want the cute little scary Poex thingies to get in."

The redhead then began to look around the library for the ever-so-vital rat and possibly some other clue. She glanced towards Usami- who sat by a bookshelf. Poor girl. Ravyn hoped that she was okay. She was about to speak until she noticed something on the table. Thinking there could be something important, Ravyn went through the contents and found a paper: the paper addressed to someone named Sebastian.

She quietly read it aloud to herself. "The game room... Hid the key... Second floor under the lamp..."

Ravyn read it once more while she wondered why it was there. An epiphany struck her a moment after.

"The game room key is on the second floor under the lamp! That's a clue!"

The redhead spun around to address her teammates. "I found something! I think it might be a serious lead. Why else would it be here?"

She crossed to Usami to show her the parchment. Ravyn waved Adrian over to join them. She didn't want Usami to get up if she didn't need to-- self-care. It was clear that the dark-haired girl was stressing and aching. There was no need to make it worse. Now was the time to plan. If they didn't need to move, they wouldn't. Unless there was a rat, then Ravyn would move. It's always the rat. Why the rat? Just, rat. Rat.

OldTurtle N nios​

 

[Nano]

Elise Friedhelm.

Coupled with the harrowing sense that danger was imminent on the other side, the tight fit of the narrow alleyway felt claustrophobic. Elise’s conviction remained strong, but the thorns constricting her nervously hammering heart made her short of breath. Still, she didn’t dare breathe, as if the millisecond she took to inhale would be a great enough distraction to dull her sense of danger during a crucial moment.

Elise’s long-awaited shaky exhale hitched the moment she finally stepped into the abandoned lot. It was empty. At least, her wildly wandering eyes couldn’t make out a singular oddity amongst the clusters of weeds and cracked, aged concrete. In contrast to the setting’s lack of visual stimulation, the presence of something foul hung ominously in the air. At first, the ash blonde didn’t know if it were merely her imagination, but the sight of something breaking and Cleo’s and Jun’s shouts confirmed her hunch.

Having been unable to confirm the properties and trajectory of the attack headed their way, Elise heeded Jun’s warning to Cleo and ducked to the side. Fortunately, she had made the right call. The dull sound of a bullet hitting the brick wall behind her alerted her of the presence of the man on the other side of the previously empty lot. Her eyes narrowed at the sight of the hooded man arrogantly pointing Ignis’s muzzle their way.

Elise could feel her face contort into a mix of anger, fear, and disappointment. As expected, they had waltzed right into a trap, but she hadn’t expected the situation to escalate to the discovery of the broken barrier. Even if they couldn’t defeat the faciete members due to being outnumbered, she was still confident in their ability to escape. After all, they’d been through far worse. The missing barrier, however, added a new layer to their troubles. If a Poex or, god forbid, a Faex managed to charge into the scene, the situation would no doubt get a lot messier.

Throat dry from her mental simulation of the worst of potential scenarios, Elise did her best to swallow. Still, the words caught in her throat, prompting her to answer Cleo’s orders to contact Eiichi with a single nod. A hooded woman sitting atop one of the surrounding walls quickly interrupted her before she could take a step back and reach into her pocket for her mobile phone. Rather than panic like what the faciete member might have expected, the blonde merely tossed her a look of disbelief. No matter how she viewed the situation, Elise could only see advantages in keeping the woman’s ability to block signals a secret. Not to mention, she had always thought that only those cliche cannon fodder villains in manga were capable of spouting such lines. She almost even expected the woman to “oh ho ho” rather than “fufu” with an otherwise normal-sounding giggle.

In contrast to Cleo’s bold words, Elise merely murmured to herself, “Is she daft?”

The woman’s shrill screech and Cleo’s following orders pulled Elise back into a more vigilant stance. “Understood,” she said, immediately locking on to the movements of the faciete members who had moved to surround them.

A small but thick hexagonal plate formed in front of Cleo, covering the area from her right shoulder to her chin, where Elise had approximated that the bullets were aimed. However, the ash blonde failed to follow up on her teammate’s status, having been forced to cover her eyes with one arm at the sudden flash of light. In response to being blinded, she hastily drew up a boundary in front of herself in hopes of shielding her teammates from whatever attack the enemy wished to toss at them while they couldn’t see.

The impact that clashed against her boundary had hardly registered in her mind by the time she felt a movement beside her. Not having expected the invisible assailant to skirt around her barrier, the blonde was sent staggering to the side by a sudden blow to her head. Given that it had landed at an oblique angle, she didn't faint like the time when she had nearly gotten her skull inverted during one particularly grueling endurance training session, but the kick was nonetheless jarring. Hoping to distance herself from the enemy to recover, the girl created a thin wall and pushed against it, using her boundary’s repulsive force to kick off in a direction that would hopefully land her in a better position to provide both Cleo and herself cover.

While blinking away the stars in her eyes, Elise hissed at the sharp sting pinching at the corner of her left eye. Though her eye itself wasn't bloated, she could tell that she'd have trouble keeping it open soon when her bruised cheekbone started to swell. With some difficulty, she tossed her gaze to the left and then to the right but failed to spot her assailant. Had the faciete member cloaked themself with the same invisibility ability that they had used before the encounter? If only they had something to mark the man…

Regardless, their situation wasn’t good. They were surrounded: two in the back, two in the front, and two who had successfully flanked them. Thinking quickly regarding the pros and cons of the course of action planned in her head, Elise decisively drew up another boundary. Within seconds, a glass-like dome sprang up out of the ground to envelop herself, Cleo, Jun, and the cloaked woman. Though Cleo was better with a bit more distance put between herself and the enemy, the blonde had figured that the situation called to prioritize isolating the signal canceler. However, her barrier wasn’t as effective when using only her own body as the anchor rather than something like her shield, which she deeply regretted leaving behind in the dorm room.

I just need to hold out until Cleo takes that woman out, Elise thought, her hands slick with sweat from the stress of the barrier.

“Jun! Cover me!” Elise shouted over her shoulder. The clawed woman aside, she was unsure as to whether or not the invisible man had managed to slip in without her noticing. In her current situation, she couldn’t move or draw up more boundaries, and her barrier didn’t protect her from anything within.

SilverBlack Dawnsx​

 

[OldTurtle]

The sound of glass shattering and the cries of the small Poex rang in Adrian's ears. Thankfully, the trio had just barely managed to escape their wrath. The large doors swung closed behind Ravyn surprisingly silently, their size and solidity acting as a comforting bastion from the Poex. All of a sudden, the din of the monsters was much less audible, much less threatening. Adrian heaved a sigh of relief, feeling an almost insignificant amount of tension trickle away from his limbs.

"Could you find something to barricade the door temporarily?" Ravyn asked. "We don't want to be trapped nor do we want the cute little scary Poex thingies to get in."

"Yeah, alright, I can do that," he nodded in response. 'Cute little scary Poex thingies', was it? Not exactly what he would have chosen to name the vicious creatures, but it was accurate enough. Looking around the fairly large - for a private home - library, there was really only one option for a barricade. There were plenty of bookshelves, all of which stood slightly taller than Adrian. He hurried a few paces to the nearest one, bracing himself and shoving at it with a low grunt. It was far from effectual, the bookshelves much too heavy for him to move so easily. Adrian stopped pushing and stepped back to examine the shelves. At the very least, this meant that it would be quite the barricade.

Adrian wrapped his arms around the bookshelf as far as he could and pushed again, this time allowing his power to spring forth. Immediately, the large piece of furniture shifted, the majority of its weight being countered by his own artificial force. It wasn't enough to render the bookshelf completely weightless, but it did allow Adrian to maneuver it in front of the doors, obstructing the entryway from opening up.

Quieting his slightly labored breathing, Adrian backed away from the shelf to admire his handiwork. Satisfied with what he saw he turned around and made his way through the room back towards the others. Ravyn was standing next to the table near the front of the room, busying herself with something or the other. Usami was seated on the floor, leaning back against one of the bookshelves and visibly tired. Clearly the physical exertion they'd just been through was trying for her. Unfortunately, Adrian was sure that they'd only just begun, so she'd have to hold on. He sighed again and continued on, passing through the shelves to see if the library held anything useful.

There was nothing worthwhile, just books, books, and more books. Maybe the books themselves could help? Adrian peered hopefully at the shelf nearest to him. On a whim, he plucked a tome that lay on a shelf on the same level as his eyes, rifling through it quickly. It was just a book. Completely normal, completely unfamiliar, and completely useless. Despondently replacing the book in its place, Adrian sighed. Huh. He'd certainly been sighing much more often than he used to. How strange.

Stifling yet another sigh, he left the shelves behind and made his way to the back of the library. Another window lay here, concealed by the same type of drapes in the previous room. Brushing it aside, Adrian peered into the darkness outside. There was no motion as far as he could see. No Poex remained outdoors nor was there any sign of the other group of students. Hopefully that just meant that they hadn't found their gemstone yet, not that they had been eliminated.

"I found something!" Ravyn's voice cried out loudly from behind. "I think it might be a serious lead. Why else would it be here?"

Adrian turned around to the redhead move towards Usami, motioning for Adrian to approach as well. He quickly made his way over to the other two, peering over Ravyn's shoulder to read a small, short note written on paper. While the writer remained unnamed, the recipient of the note was someone named Sebastian, with the contents presenting a curious bit of information.

"Definitely a clue," he muttered, brow furrowed. Of that, there was no doubt. The entire simulation was artificially created, so the note had been intentionally placed in the room to be found. Even if the gem was neither in the game room nor the bedroom, it would be worthwhile to see what each place contained. What confused Adrian, however, was the people. Who were Sebastian, Jessi, and the writer? Clearly Jessi must've been a child, likely the daughter of the author, who was in turn someone of authority, possibly the owner of the mansion. Sebastian, some kind of caretaker, perhaps?

Usually, this would have been the kind of details that Adrian deemed unnecessary of extra attention, but he'd already decided that all the information they were given was intentional. The people could be part of the puzzle. Or was he simply overthinking the whole thing? Adrian hummed thoughtfully, trying and failing to decide on a conclusion. Well, he'd find out if it was important or not eventually.

"So we know where we're going, then?" Adrian questioned, glancing at the barricaded door. Out there, where the numerous Poex still wandered, searching for a meal that their small group could certainly serve as. The second floor... He didn't like the idea of having to leave the relative safety of the library, but there was nothing remaining for them there. No point in staying. Adrian regarded Ravyn and Usami questioningly. "Anyone have an idea on how to get around this place? The Poex are still out there and we'll be dead in an instant without a plan."

xXx.lovely.xXx N nios

 

[nios]

Endo, Usami

Health

Stamina

Magical Energy

Ammunition

location: mansion, simulation
mentions: N/A
interactions: xXx.lovely.xXx , OldTurtle

Usami silently endured the symphony of shrieks. The blanched knuckles by her sides made her worrisome as clear as day. There was no stopping how fearful she would be if the horde were to burst through the doors at any moment. Fortunately, the further they strayed from the library the more Usami seemed to calm down.

Meanwhile, as Adrian busied himself with barricading their only exit and Ravyn wandered off to search the room, Usami reached behind her and grabbed a book at random. There was hope she’d find something useful- a catalog of the house renovations or a blueprint would suffice- but after flipping through her fourth book, she found useless information lodged within each passage. Everything was outdated, the only thing left of this place was long-forgotten memories.

"I found something!" Ravyn's voice cried out loudly from behind. "I think it might be a serious lead. Why else would it be here?"

Usami discarded the book in her hands, allowing it to join the others surrounding her in a messy half-circle, and she took the piece of parchment from Ravyn. This simulation was surly thorough- she had to hand it to whoever planned this out.

"Anyone have an idea on how to get around this place? The Poex are still out there and we'll be dead in an instant without a plan."

Usami wordlessly agreed with Adrian. They knew where they needed to go now, but the question remains of how they were going to navigate the house without being cornered. Usami thought back to their brief encounter with one of the Poex. The only thing threatening about it was its claws and teeth, and let’s not forget, it was fast. As the number of Poex roaming the halls remain unknown, there was no definite answer to how quickly the trio would get spotted.

Something sparked in Usami after long contemplation, and at first, Usami shook away the thought by thinking it was a crazy idea. She figured it would be best to wait for someone else to come up with a plan, but then a voice called out from the depths of Usami's mind. It was familiar- a long distant memory resurfacing for the first time in years. Usami pinched the space in-between her eyebrows; out of all things, she remembered that.

With a sigh, Usami awkwardly pulled herself off of the ground and headed over to the desk. She grabbed a wooden pencil founded amongst one of the drawers and returned to her spot against the bookshelf. Usami took one of the books lying around, opened it to a fairly blank page, and scribbled on the aged paper before looking toward her teammates. "I... might have an idea." Usami placed the finished product in the center and began to explain her plan.

“A formation,” she started, gesturing to the three figures standing in side by side. With a point of her finger, she pointed at each figure and spoke each of their names. The simple act explained Adrian would be situated in the front with Ravyn in the rear and Usami in between them. Usami bit the end of her pencil as she stared at the drawing. “We’re going to have the run of our lives if we get caught,” she thought, a grim look passed through her as a hand subconsciously gripped her knee.

Next, Usami moved over to explain the three arrows on the outer sides of Ravyn and Adrian's position. "Push back anything that gets too close," she explained while drawing small X's around the end of the arrows. Usami wasted no time when she circled the two crescent shape with the end of her pencil. Each crescent shape protected Adrian's front and the other covered Ravyn's rear. "I'll provide protection," she says before adding a few more arrows and X's around her figure, "but they will drop if Poex gets past."

The dark-haired girl suddenly remembered the arsenal stuffed in Ravyn’s backpack. “Weapons are our last resort.” Usami held some skepticism for the gun, knowing that a single shot will give away their position. “Gomen... That's all I got." Usami placed down her writing utensil and fell back into silence.

coded by weldherwings.

Spoiler: Plan

Spoiler: Mobile Friendly

Usami silently endured the symphony of shrieks. The blanched knuckles by her sides made her worrisome as clear as day. There was no stopping how fearful she would be if the horde were to burst through the doors at any moment. Fortunately, the further they strayed from the library the more Usami seemed to calm down.​

​

Meanwhile, as Adrian busied himself with barricading their only exit and Ravyn wandered off to search the room, Usami reached behind her and grabbed a book at random. There was hope she’d find something useful- a catalog of the house renovations or a blueprint would suffice- but after flipping through her fourth book, she found useless information lodged within each passage. Everything was outdated, the only thing left of this place was long-forgotten memories.​

​

"I found something!" Ravyn's voice cried out loudly from behind. "I think it might be a serious lead. Why else would it be here?"​

​

Usami discarded the book in her hands, allowing it to join the others surrounding her in a messy half-circle, and she took the piece of parchment from Ravyn. This simulation was surly thorough- she had to hand it to whoever planned this out.​

​

"Anyone have an idea on how to get around this place? The Poex are still out there and we'll be dead in an instant without a plan."​

​

Usami wordlessly agreed with Adrian. They knew where they needed to go now, but the question remains of how they were going to navigate the house without being cornered. Usami thought back to their brief encounter with one of the Poex. The only thing threatening about it was its claws and teeth, and let’s not forget, it was fast. As the number of Poex roaming the halls remain unknown, there was no definite answer to how quickly the trio would get spotted.​

​

Something sparked in Usami after long contemplation, and at first, Usami shook away the thought by thinking it was a crazy idea. She figured it would be best to wait for someone else to come up with a plan, but then a voice called out from the depths of Usami's mind. It was familiar- a long distant memory resurfacing for the first time in years. Usami pinched the space in-between her eyebrows; out of all things, she remembered that.​

​

With a sigh, Usami awkwardly pulled herself off of the ground and headed over to the desk. She grabbed a wooden pencil founded amongst one of the drawers and returned to her spot against the bookshelf. Usami took one of the books lying around, opened it to a fairly blank page, and scribbled on the aged paper before looking toward her teammates. "I... might have an idea." Usami placed the finished product in the center and began to explain her plan.​

​

“A formation,” she started, gesturing to the three figures standing in side by side. With a point of her finger, she pointed at each figure and spoke each of their names. The simple act explained Adrian would be situated in the front with Ravyn in the rear and Usami in between them. Usami bit the end of her pencil as she stared at the drawing. “We’re going to have the run of our lives if we get caught,” she thought, a grim look passed through her as a hand subconsciously gripped her knee.​

​

Next, Usami moved over to explain the three arrows on the outer sides of Ravyn and Adrian's position. "Push back anything that gets too close," she explained while drawing small X's around the end of the arrows. Usami wasted no time when she circled the two crescent shape with the end of her pencil. Each crescent shape protected Adrian's front and the other covered Ravyn's rear. "I'll provide protection," she says before adding a few more arrows and X's around her figure, "but they will drop if Poex gets past."​

​

The dark-haired girl suddenly remembered the arsenal stuffed in Ravyn’s backpack. “Weapons are our last resort.” Usami held some skepticism for the gun, knowing that a single shot will give away their position. “Gomen... That's all I got." Usami placed down her writing utensil and fell back into silence.​

 

[vxnilla]

Even with his mind mostly preoccupied on the battle and the bull Poex, Kiyoshi still had it in him to fluster at Ravyn's harmless comment. He knew objectively that it was nothing, an offhand remark about his supposed 'angel face' and then a nickname, but still he stuttered, "I—er, I'll make sure to be vigilant." He cleared his throat, shaking his head as if to clear his thoughts as well. "You as well. Hopefully our paths will cross soon."

With that, he disconnected from the conversation, in time to see more of those small Poex peel off from the body of the bull with each blow they landed. He winced, wondering whether to warn the mansion team about the more incoming, but ultimately decided against it; he was willing to bet they were trying to be quiet, and this second warning would do more harm than good. The Poex fell and, this time, did not get up. Kiyoshi wasn't foolish enough to believe it was dead, and even if he were, a glimpse at its body—damaged from their battle but still displaying the rise-and-fall of steady if shallow breaths—would prove him wrong.

He hesitated. Would it be best to finish it off now? Still, even at its prime the Poex was clumsy and not terribly fast; injured, it would be even slower, and if they moved fast enough he doubted it could track them. And every blow they struck against it seemed to have added more foes for their peers, so the least they could do was minimize that.

Turning to Hanna and Fredi, he said quietly, as if the Poex were sleeping and not unconscious, "We should continue moving. I doubt it can catch up to us if we start now, and I hesitate to make our peers' lives any harder." His steps were careful as he stepped around the beast's bulk to continue into the forest. Ideally, they'd walk right into the gem and complete their objective like that.

Of course, it wouldn't be Vehemen if their life was that easy.

Instead of the gem, they came across yet another Poex, this one just as dangerous-looking as the last, if not more so. It hadn't seemed to notice them yet. Reacting on instinct alone, Kiyoshi reached for his companions, hands wrapping around each of their forearms as he mentally apologized for the lack of warning. His minor power was rusty from disuse, but after a beat, he felt the telltale coolness trickle down his veins, a sign that the cloaking had flickered into effort — though looking down at himself, there was no sign otherwise that anything had changed. Among other reasons, one of the main distinctions between his cloaking and stereotypical invisibility was that it was hard to tell when it had taken effect, simply because they could still see themselves.

Unless things had gone very wrong, Hanna and Frederika alike should feel the same strange feeling, that chill spreading quickly across them. Kiyoshi regretted that he had no chance to warn them beforehand, but he didn't want to risk alerting the Poex and, frankly, acted more on reflex than anything else. At least this way, they could still mouth to each other and read each other's lips. The Poex, hopefully, didn't have good enough eyesight to catch the slight ripple at the edge of their figures.

If nothing else, this would at least buy them some time. Turning back to the rest of the forest team, Kiyoshi mouthed, In-vi-si-ble, dramatically enunciating each syllable. It wasn't quite the truth, but it was close enough. All the while, his hands stayed gripping their arms.

PixelSymphony Nessi xXx.lovely.xXx

 

[xXx.lovely.xXx]

Ravyn

Health

Stamina

Mental State

we can be smart... occasionally

"Anyone have an idea on how to get around this place? The Poex are still out there, and we'll be dead in an instant without a plan."

The redhead was at a loss. Then Usami got up. "A girl on a mission." Ravyn thought as she watched as the dark-haired girl scribbled into a book.

"I... might have an idea. A formation."

Ravyn crouched down and studied Usami's drawing as she continued to explain her plan. "That's genius..." Ravyn mused. "The only problem, though, is that we don't know the total layout of the house or how spread out the Poex are. We should try to find a map or something that could lead us to the location of the gem."

Her green eyes scanned the perimeter of the room. "I know it sounds somewhat strange and trivial, but I really do think we should find a rat to see what information it holds. The animals have been here longer than we have and surely have seen something. Let's split up and look for clues?" Ravyn realized what she said and chuckled.
"Ruh-roh, now I'm quoting Scooby-Doo. Ah, throwbacks..." Ravyn got herself back on track. "Anyway, let's see what we can find?"

She then got up and started her patrol of the library. There had to be something, and Ravyn was going to find it. Whether it be a map or a rat, she would prove herself even if it was just this once.

c o d e b y t r i p l e s
​

Spoiler: Mobile Friend

"Anyone have an idea on how to get around this place? The Poex are still out there, and we'll be dead in an instant without a plan."

The redhead was at a loss. Then Usami got up. "A girl on a mission." Ravyn thought as she watched as the dark-haired girl scribbled into a book.

"I... might have an idea. A formation."

Ravyn crouched down and studied Usami's drawing as she continued to explain her plan. "That's genius..." Ravyn mused. "The only problem, though, is that we don't know the total layout of the house or how spread out the Poex are. We should try to find a map or something that could lead us to the location of the gem."

Her green eyes scanned the perimeter of the room. "I know it sounds somewhat strange and trivial, but I really do think we should find a rat to see what information it holds. The animals have been here longer than we have and surely have seen something. Let's split up and look for clues?" Ravyn realized what she said and chuckled.
"Ruh-roh, now I'm quoting Scooby-Doo. Ah, throwbacks..." Ravyn got herself back on track. "Anyway, let's see what we can find?"

She then got up and started her patrol of the library. There had to be something, and Ravyn was going to find it. Whether it be a map or a rat, she would prove herself even if it was just this once.

N nios OldTurtle Dawnsx​

 

[Nessi]

Hanna Aldrin

Health

Stamina

Magical Enegry

Location:
Simulated forest Interactions:
PixelSymphony vxnilla

Hanna's back slammed into a tree, and the wind was knocked out of her. She coughed, hard, and took multiple breaths before standing up, and retriving her Katana. "Somebody tell me they saw that!" Hanna said with a wide smile. Her right arm hurt like hell, but she could live with it for a few more hours.

"We should continue moving. I doubt it can catch up to us if we start now, and I hesitate to make our peers' lives any harder." Kyoshi said.

Hanna shook her head, and marched over to the downed Poex. She jabbed her Katana right into the beasts throat, and watched it's body tense up before slumping over. "We can't risk having it get back up and chase us around. And don't you remember the poex from yesterday? we don't know if this guy and heal itself, so better to play it safe and finish it off." Hanna explained.

With one poex down, Hanna thought that she could relax, they did kill the poex after all, now they could look for the gem in peace! or so she thought. When the group came across yet another poex that seemed to be guarding an incubator of sorts, Hanna felt like her soul leave her body, and only came back to reality when Kyoshi grabbed her forearm, and mouth something to her.

"In-vi-si-ble "

Hanna nodded when he said that, assuming that while the Poex couldn't see them, it could most likely hear then very clearly. Hanna came up with a plan, and turned her attention to her group. She pointed at herself, and then the poex. Then she pointed at Fred and Kyoshi, and then pointed at the incubator. Hopefully they understood that her plan was for her to be a distraction while they went to see if that gem was in the incubator.

"alright, let's do this Hanna." She muttered to herself before taking off towards the poex. She let out a very loud war cry, before launching a fireball at it's body. She hoped that Kyoshi would quickly retrieve whatever was in the incubator and then help her take this thing down.

coded by weldherwings.

 

[OldTurtle]

Usami's sudden movement startled Adrian out of his thoughts. The girl made her way over to the large desk nearby the trio. She rifled through the desk's drawers for a brief moment before retrieving what appeared to be a small pencil. Flipping open one of the numerous tomes laying on the desk, Usami began to scribble using her newly-acquired writing utensil. Even knowing that it wasn't real, Adrian couldn't help but cringe subtly at her treatment of the old book. There wasn't any other paper as far as he could see, but the idea of writing on the pages of a book still remained distasteful.

"I... might have an idea," Usami announced, moving her work towards Adrian and Ravyn. She gestured at the drawn diagram. "A formation."

Adrian leaned closer, peering carefully at the page. There were three ovals, each labeled with a letter, some strange crescents, and bunch of tiny dots. All in all, it meant nothing to him beyond perhaps the letters representing each of their names. Thankfully, the image didn't remain gibberish for long, its creator quick to explain it with more words than he'd ever heard her use before. She pointed at each of the ovals and confirmed his suspicion that they did indeed represent each person.

"Push back anything that gets too close," Usami continued, now pointing at the arrows coming from Ravyn and Adrian's ovals as she added a few markings just beyond the arrows. Ah , so that's what it was. If he remembered correctly, Ravyn's powers were something like telekinesis, similar in some ways to his own. Both of them would indeed be well-suited to zoning the Poex. The dark-haired girl circled the crescents, then drew more arrows and X's, this time around her position in the center. "I'll provide protection, but they will drop if Poex gets past."

This... was problematic. Adrian had figured that Usami's shields wouldn't be the perfect solution he wished they had, but this plan relied very heavily on luck to survive. If they ended up caught by a large group of those dangerous monsters, neither he nor Ravyn would be able to keep them away for long. When that happened, Usami's shields would be worthless and they'd be swarmed in seconds. Adrian chewed on his lip silently, staring at the diagram. But no one else had a better plan, so this was their only option.

“Weapons are our last resort," Usami finished. "Gomen... That's all I got."

"That's genius..." Ravyn spoke up. "The only problem, though, is that we don't know the total layout of the house or how spread out the Poex are. We should try to find a map or something that could lead us to the location of the gem." The redhead paused for a moment and glanced around at the outer reaches of the library. "I know it sounds somewhat strange and trivial, but I really do think we should find a rat to see what information it holds. The animals have been here longer than we have and surely have seen something. Let's split up and look for clues?" She chuckled. "Ruh-roh, now I'm quoting Scooby-Doo. Ah, throwbacks... Anyway, let's see what we can find?"

Putting aside the unexpected reference to childhood cartoons, it wasn't a terrible idea. The group was already scraping rock-bottom and they'd barely even begun. At this point, it wouldn't hurt to look for a rat on he off chance that they gained some sort of information out of it. At worst, they'd have just wasted some time.

"Alright," Adrian sighed, pushing away from the large desk. "Let's go find a rat. A rat." This was getting weirder by the hour and he wouldn't be surprised if the entire day was just a strange fever dream. The boy turned and stalked away towards the tall shelves, the area most likely to contain rats. He hadn't seen one on his first search, but he wasn't exactly looking for any then. Hopefully this time would be more fruitful.

xXx.lovely.xXx N nios

 

[PixelSymphony]

~Frederika von Eisenhart~
-- Lumberjack (And that's okay) --

Status: Lightly wounded (facial knife wound)
Wearing: Vehemen Academy Gym Uniform, female
Wielding: Worn greataxe
Carrying: Dagger, winter gloves, tarp
Location: Vehemen Academy, Basement, Virtual Training Room, Initial Assessment Simulation, Forest

---

Frederika exhaled a breath she didn't know she'd been holding as her axe tore the tree in half, the pieces of trunk safely (albeit narrowly) passing to either side of the rest of the group. As she recovered from the mighty swing, she whipped her head around to check on Kiyoshi and Hanna, and found herself watching Hanna deliver thrust after thrust with her katana to the soft parts of the beast, driven by a flame that only was matched by the firey fist that she so soon thereafter delivered in kind. Mein Gott she is not to be trifled with, Fredi thought, her eyebrows lifting just slightly in a mixture of amusement and approval. She began the trek back with the axe jauntily resting upon her shoulder, pausing briefly to retrieve the errantly discarded lantern before joining the others.

"Well well, it would appear the situation is well in hand, thanks to our begeistert companion," Frederika wryly remarked to Kiyoshi.

The blue haired boy turned to Hanna and Fredi, his response in a hush. "We should continue moving. I doubt it can catch up to us if we start now, and I hesitate to make our peers' lives any harder." His steps were careful as he stepped around the beast's bulk to continue into the forest.

Hanna shook her head, and marched over to the downed Poex. She jabbed her katana right into the beasts throat, and watched it's body tense up before slumping over. "We can't risk having it get back up and chase us around. And don't you remember the poex from yesterday? We don't know if this guy can heal itself, so better to play it safe and finish it off."

Fredi gave a low chuckle, directing her words towards Hanna. "I cannot say whether that puts all of us in a better or worse situation, but I also cannot deny the admiring the assertiveness of your decision. Well, what's done is done. We must venture onwards with the mission." Forming back up into their column, the team of fledgling hunters continued their journey deeper into the forest, the cool night air rustling through the leaves and whispering mystery at every passed branch.

Just as Frederika shoved her way through a particularly dense thicket, half tempted to lay it flat with her weapon if not for the inevitable attention it would draw, that a large, looming shadow cast itself over the party. She held up a hand to signal to the team to stop, and as they watched, the beast looped back and forth in a patrol around a small electronic device. "I did not expect our task to be consist solely of a single Poex," she gave in a low grumble, "but this is quite a new opponent. What do you think we should do?"

Reacting on instinct alone, Kiyoshi reached for his companions, hands wrapping around each of their forearms. A chill coursed through Frederika, emanating from where he touched, flowing up throughout her body and causing a brief moment of alarm before she caught him mouth out the word In-vi-si-ble. She was far from being an expert at these newfound powers they seemed to possess, but was still surprised that she and the other two remained visible as the cloaking took effect; truly a unique aspect of this ability, she noted.

Hanna nodded when he said that, and pointed at herself, and then the poex. Then she pointed at Fred and Kyoshi, and then pointed at the incubator. "Alright, let's do this Hanna." She muttered to herself before taking off towards the poex. She let out a very loud war cry, before launching a fireball at it's body.

"Wait, Hanna!" Frederika hissed to no use as the girl ran off. "Verdammt," she cursed, "if she does not watch herself, we will be having Hannaschnitzel tonight. Come, Kiyoshi, we cannot squander the ill-proposed opportunity we have been given; follow me." Dropping the lantern to the ground with a soft thud and returning the boy's grasp, she maintained contact as she moved in a steady dash towards the device. Upon closer inspection, it revealing itself as an incubator, sturdy and stout; an experimental tap with the head of her axe revealed it was going to take far more than the tree had to open it up. On top of the incubator was a number pad on top and a small screen displaying four spaces to be filled. "Locked, with a keypad requiring a combination..." She looked back to Kiyoshi. "We don't have time to be attempt every combination, can you teleport whatever's in here out?"

---

Interaction: vxnilla
Mention: Nessi

 

[Dawnsx]

The bull Poex's body went slack once Hanna drove her katana into its throat. Nearby, forty-three smaller Poex materialized and rushed off towards the mansion. At the same time, while the trio took shelter in the library, the Poex that were summoned from Hanna's attacks had arrived, leaping through the windows and proceeding to roam the mansion once they saw no target in sight.

Mansion Poex count: 100

---

"Alright, let's do this Hanna."

The words, softly spoken as they were, caught the Poex's attention. It whipped its head towards the group before Hanna's war cry successfully diverted its focus. Despite being unable to see, it seemed to sense the fireball coming its way. With an agile spin, it met the fireball with the heavy tip of its tail, then drove it into the ground to smother the flames. Immediate threat averted, it immediately brought its claws down in the direction of the noisy human. Regardless of whether the strike landed, it would go still, growling softly and tilting its head to listen to any movements. But before it could discern Hanna's status, it whipped its head towards the incubator—specifically, towards the duo inspecting it. Releasing a piercing roar, it rushed towards them and swung its tail in the direction of the duo, just narrowly missing the incubator. It thumped its tail on the ground threateningly several times, then began to circle the incubator protectively.

 

[SilverBlack]

Cleo Donovan

Location: Backyard​

Elise never fails to live up to Cleo’s expectation. The small hexagonal plate that formed in front of her right shoulder and chin precisely blocked off the three bullets that were aimed her way. A boundary quickly followed to defend against the white energy orb that was further shot in their direction soon after they were almost blinded by a burst of bright light. It clashed against the boundary, creating a huge impact. All of these occurred in just a few seconds, and Cleo was once again impressed by her fellow comrade’s fast counter response.

However, before she could spend just one more moment to admire Elise’s defense ability, she immediately sensed the presence of two other Faciete members. Yet, her sight failed to capture their figures, and Cleo realized instantly that they were cloaked with the same invisibility that they managed to cover themselves with when they first entered this area. In the next moment, she glanced back just to see Elise staggering to the side with a hiss by an invisible blow to the head. “Elise!” She called out just as the girl tried to use the boundary’s repulsive force to push back the attack, but there was barely any time for her to care for the other before she felt a thrilling sharp breeze aiming right for her eyes.

Peggy was not invisible at first, but a glance toward Bob and the man knew what she wanted. Without the second generation being able to see her now, a gush of confidence overwhelmed her as she attacked.

Cleo tilted her head to the left and lifted her chin up in an attempt to dodge, but not used to combating against an invisible force, Cleo gritted her teeth as she felt the claw dig into her skin and slashed her left cheek open, blood gushed out from the sudden wound on her face. In a quick counterattack, she held out her right hand in front of her and pointed her palm toward the invisible woman. A a blurry form of a white orb entered Peggy’s sight for only a second before it contacted her forehead and blew off. The woman cried out then leapt back, her invisibility faded as she was caught in surprise by the accuracy of Cleo’s aim. Her overconfidence in her partner’s invisibility caused her to neglect the logic that by attacking Cleo in the center of her face with her close-range claw attack, it’d be normal to deduct that she’s right in front of her.

Oh, Cleo realized at the same time. This signal-controlling woman is probably the dumbest one here. That settles it, she can be taken out first. With the decision in mind, the white-haired girl suddenly dashed forward at Peggy while the other was still struggling to get up. Blood was already pouring down from the top of her face, her nose already crooked. Seeing that Cleo was coming, the woman could settle with nothing else but fling her arm about in an attempt to slash the girl again. Except this time, already predicting this basic move, Cleo grabbed hold of the woman’s wrist just before the claw touched her throat.

And a second explosion went off, much louder than the first one, but none could compete with Peggy’s shrilling scream as her hand was blown to pieces right in front of her.

Cleo let go of the other, watching as the woman collapsed onto the ground, holding her wrist in pain, before stomping on the woman’s head---then, with her shoe still pressing the woman against the ground, she took out her phone. Her other hand was hastily trying to wipe the blood dripping down her cheek with the back of her palm.

Great. Signal’s back.

“Eiichi!” She immediately dialed her professor’s number, regardless of the fact that he’s probably monitoring the third generation’s assessment with Mitra right now. “We’re under attack by a group of Faciete members. The barrier here is broken. I’ll send you the location. Come help us.” The instant she hung off the phone, she sent their location to the male. Then, as if she was pissed off enough today, she stomped the woman under her foot just a couple more times before turning around to see how Elise and Jun are handling the situation.

Elise concern was on point. Bob did manage to sneak into Elise’s barrier. The man’s already pretty upset by how useless Peggy was, and if he was visible to the others right now, they would’ve been able to see how much the man’s eyes were fuming with rage right now. However, at least this girl here received a good blow to her head. The way she only knew to put up some shields, this girl must be weak as hell when it came to offensive attack. Good grieve, Bob smirked. At least he may be able to take her down---!

Tightening his fist, Bob launched himself against Elise and bent forward, ready to slam a punch into the girl’s stomach. God forbid, the moment he was about to do so, he felt the texture of something cold and hard colliding hard against his back, sending a sharp pain right up his spine.

He then heard a boy mumbled, “gotcha.”

...Damn it! Bob hissed to himself. He thought he dodged well all these time---

When Jun heard Elise say to cover her, the male immediately sprung into action. However, facing an invisible opponent, he could not be sure where the enemy might be--if he’s even within the barrier or not. If one was to become more skilled and experienced in battle, just sensing the difference in the air and the aura around should allow him to get a general idea where someone invisible might be. However, they’re clearly not on that level yet.

So Jun settled on one decision: to beat his iron chains around until it beats something. With that in mind, the chains freed themselves from the male’s limbs and began to whip the air around the male, who was careful not to let them hurt the girl. Under the control of magnetic force, the iron chains moved by themselves as they swang about, almost as if they had a mind of their own.

The beating increased in pace, moving so fast that it was hard to track the chains’ moment with mere human eyes. However, Bob only mocked at the second generation’s inefficient method. He dodged each whip with every gap in Jun’s attack, until he was confident enough to attack Elise again. God forbid, however, that decision ended up hurting him, and as soon as he felt the chain hit against his back, he knew for sure that it had broken his skin if not cracked a bone.

It was painful enough for him to lose his invisibility for a moment, and Jun was smart enough to seize this opportunity. Immediately, his iron chains slammed down hard against the Faciete member’s back again, and just as the male was about to dash away from his position, Jun tugged on his chain.

In that instant, the chain sprung forward and tied around Bob’s throat, hard metal pressing tightly against the member’s skin. Jun yanked on the chain, and immediately his opponent was pulled back, choking hard. Bob struggled vigorously, his nails digging against the iron chains to no avail as he back scratched against the ground.

Then his vision finally went black.

Until he made sure the man had fallen unconscious did Jun retreat back his weapon. He watched silently for a moment as the unconscious man on the ground laid there motionlessly, before seeing his chest began to rise up and down again.

Jun frowned at himself. He doesn’t have enough gut to kill off another human being yet, even if it’s his worst enemy--be that a good thing or not.

“You okay?” He asked Elise finally.

“Aye, would've died without your barriers, Elise,” Cleo exclaimed from the side, perhaps with a little exaggeration. However, the trio probably figured out one thing: two opponents down, four opponents remained, a Poex may come in anytime, but at least someone’s coming.

---
Interaction/Mentioned: Nano Dawnsx

 

[vxnilla]

Kiyoshi had barely put together what Hanna was communicating—to be sure, the pointing didn't leave terribly much to the imagination, and unless he misunderstood something direly, he was pretty sure Hanna was planning to take on the beast by herself—before she was launching herself at it with a war cry. "W— Hanna," He stared after her, hand outstretched belatedly as if to hold her back, but it was a useless gesture.

If he weren't deeply anxious about the outcome of this, both for them and for Hanna, he might have laughed at 'Hannaschnitzel.' As it were, he only nodded in agreement before following Frederika closely behind, knowing that the cloaking would only work as long as he maintained a grip on her.

Up close, the incubator looked strikingly, in his opinion, like a refrigerator, but refrigerators weren't often guarded by Poex and locked by a passcode he couldn't even begin to guess. It also looked significantly more sturdy than what was sold in appliance stores.

"Locked, with a keypad requiring a combination... We don't have time to be attempt every combination, can you teleport whatever's in here out?"

He shook his head helplessly. Apologetic, he explained, "I apologize, but I cannot teleport things that I can't see. My portals — I have to be able to see the entrance and the exit. Are there clues, perhaps, that we can use to guess?" Scarcely had he proffered the question, however, when the Poex let out an ear-piercing sound and rushed towards where they were, evidently bored of Hanna. Kiyoshi only narrowly dodged its tail strike, ducking out of range a safe distance away, cloaking broken when he was forced to let go of Frederika's arm.

Perhaps he should have expected this. A Poex with no eyes was not going to be dramatically affected by being unable to see them.

Helplessly, he swept his gaze over the prowling beast, over to the incubator, and then back again. It seemed too easy that the code might be printed on the Poex's scales, but at a loss of what else to do, he scrutinized it from head to toe. His gaze caught on the glint of something, small and metallic, lodged on the side of the Poex's neck. Surely it had to be important...?

Making up his mind, and hoping somewhat irrationally that this wouldn't provoke the monster, Kiyoshi manifested a portal just behind the suspicious glimmer, all but laid flat over the Poex's skin. The other he manifested just above his free hand, palm upright. If all went well, the item of interest would sink back into the entrance portal and fall onto his hand.

PixelSymphony Nessi

 

[PixelSymphony]

~Frederika von Eisenhart~
-- Protect the HVT! --

Status: Lightly wounded (facial knife wound)
Wearing: Vehemen Academy Gym Uniform, female
Wielding: Worn greataxe
Carrying: Dagger, winter gloves, tarp
Location: Vehemen Academy, Basement, Virtual Training Room, Initial Assessment Simulation, Forest

---

Frederika barely had time to bring the axe up defensively before the tail lashed out at her, knocking the wind out of her as the collision drove her backwards, sending her tumbling head over heels as she fought to regain her footing. As she clambered to her feet, her form sprayed with dirt and small nicks and bruises dotting her face, her trademark scowl reappeared on her face. I will not take that lightly, beast, she threatened in her mind, now forced to be careful with her words as it would appear the creature's hearing was good enough to pick out their location without the aid of sight in in the middle of a melee.

The blonde valkryie's eyes flashed between the incubator, the monster, and her two companions; there was little doubt that the small cubic container deserved their interest, but at the current moment very little was hinting towards a method of cracking its thick shell. Similarly, the huge Poex seemed more than happy to deflect their minimal attacks upon it; a more coordinated assault might prove more effective but there was no denying the tall order that possibility represented for just the three of them. And as for Hanna and Kiyoshi... well, her dark-haired roommate had so far had managed to avoid imminent death, so props to her for that, but how long could she keep it up?

The blue-haired boy on the other hand appeared to have come up with something, his gestures indicating he was focusing on bringing another set of portals into existence. Frederika momentarily wondered what he was aiming for before a small glimmer on the side of the Poex's neck, and the subsequent telltale swirling of a forming portal between it at the poex revealed all. I see... very well then, I need to ensure this objective is completed. She made a flat out dash back the way she'd come, closing again with the incubator; the strange creature seemed to be closely monitoring the device so there was little doubt what she was about to do would draw attention. Thrusting a hand out, she quickly typed in the only four digit number of significance that came to mind; a number that rose from the morning's lectures.

"Zwei... Vier...Sieben...Zwei!" she commanded to the touch pad, typing in the year she had been told they had appeared here in Lumen: 2472. Then she took a step backwards and prepared to meet the beast's inevitable rage with an attack of her own.

---


Mention: vxnilla , Nessi

 

[Dawnsx]

From the monitoring room of the simulation, Eiichi watched the progress of his new students as they struggled with the challenges presented to them. It would be a lie to say that he wasn't impressed. The forest team's encounter with their first Poex was a little rocky considering Hanna's self-inflicted damage, but the fight gave Eiichi a basic idea of each of their abilities. They also did well with thinking on their feet and executing impromptu strategies. Also smart of the mansion team to seize their opportunities to communicate and strategize before initiating anything.

Overall, he was pleased by their ability to work as a team. Eiichi had seen far too many students in the past at each others' throats minutes into the simulation, and those who charge in head-first without consulting their teammates as though that would impress the professors. So far, the Third Generation seemed promising.

Just as the forest team began to engage the second Poex, Eiichi's phone buzzed in his pocket. Half-expecting it to an update from Vince, he lifted an eyebrow when the screen displayed Cleo on the caller ID. He picked up, but before he could even get a word in, Cleo was already urgently explaining their situation.

“We’re under attack by a group of Faciete members. The barrier here is broken."

Eiichi felt his blood run cold. He wrestled his nerves and expression back under control once Cleo hung up. Their location came a few seconds later. They weren't too far off from the town square, just minutes away if he used his ability. Eiichi glanced up at the monitors, then towards Mitra. He briefly considered being candid with his coworker and letting him know what was going on, just in case the Faciete turned out to be a bigger issue than he thought, but their conversation with Rolvel yesterday gave him pause. Faciete members were slippery, and this could be a rare chance for him to find out something about the Fangen Tragedy.

Just then, his phone buzzed again, this time with a text from Vince.

“I’m coming to see you soon ( ˘ ³˘)♥”

...Good timing, though Eiichi couldn't help but sneer down at the text in disdain.

Leaving Vince on read, Eiichi turned to Mitra and said, "Vince should be arriving soon. Cleo dragged the others into some trouble again, so I'm going to sort out their mess. I'll leave Vi- the simulation to you.

Hopefully, using Vince as an excuse to leave would draw attention away from whatever was happening to the Second Generation. With no time to waste, Eiichi stepped into his pocket space.

---

Icarus's face twisted in rage when Peggy and Bob were knocked out. These brats' brutality were unexpected. Jacob and Uldrin visibly balked when Peggy's hand was mercilessly blown to bits by the blonde one's ability. Useless, each and every single one of them. How did they expect to make it in Faciete if they can't even handle this? To make matters worse, they didn't manage to break through the barrier to stop the kid from calling for help. They needed to finish this before their backup arrives.

If you want something done, you must do it yourself.

Icarus hunched over. The bones and skin on his back twitched and writhed under his clothes until a large pair of white, feathered wings bursted through the fabric. With a powerful flap of his wings, he soared into the air and over the dome shielding the trio. Flames ignited from his fingertips and quickly spread to cover his arms. With outstretched hands, a thick, steady stream of fire shot out from his palms and collided with the side of the barrier. Uldrin caught on to Icarus's intention and threw several energy balls in the same spot as the fire.

Not a complete idiot, then.

Rising higher into the air, Icarus willed the flames on his arms to blaze across his body and wings. Without warning, he swooped down at high velocity and smashed into the dome. Icarus grinned when the barrier shattered beneath him like glass before flying higher and out of arm's reach. He flung his arms down, sending several fireballs flying toward the kids.

Down below, Jun managed to dodge the fireballs as well as he could manage while flinging his chains upwards, but Icarus weaved through them expertly. Expending most of his attention on the larger threat in the air, he didn't notice Jacob and Uldrin making their move. Icarus tossed another barrage of fireballs towards each of the Second Generation, but before they could land, the faint glow from the flames that had been barely noticeable under the sunlight brightened tenfold and flashed into the students' eyes. Caught off-guard, Jun instinctively screwed his eyes shut and staggered back to avoid the fireballs, heart leaping into his throat when he felt the fire licking at his legs.

Behind him, Uldrin fired an energy ball.

The attack collided with a burst that sent Jun flying several feet before his motionless form landed on the hard concrete.

Icarus grinned viciously. One down.

SilverBlack Nano

 

[nios]

Endo Usami

Health

Stamina

Magical Energy

Ammunition

location: mansion, simulation
mentions: forest team
interactions: xXx.lovely.xXx , OldTurtle

Usami brushed away the fact that Ravyn imitated a cartoon and focused her thoughts on the other stuff she had said. She still had a point and their original plan was most likely their best bet. Luck, however, wasn't on their side since there wasn’t any record of a blueprint nor a way to locate the Poex roaming the house.

With the end of her writing utensil stuck between her teeth, the dark-haired female was the last to stand from her spot while the others already wandered off to search around the room. She stared back at her plan for a brief moment. “Well this was a waste of brain cells,” she sighed to herself, feeling a thin blanket of embarrassment drape over her. She tore the page from its spine, crumpled it, and shoved the ball in her pocket without a second thought. “Should’ve just kept your mouth shut and your thoughts to yourself, Usami.”

She glanced out of one of the windows for she could've sworn she heard an occasional roar in the distance. It seemed the other team was making some form of progress...

Usami turned away from the desk and chose a section of the library to begin her search. She started to nudge books aside and tapped against certain objects in case she was able to gain some reaction from any rats nearby. After some time, Usami roughly toppled over a few books from a shelf using the end of her walking stick- a show of mild frustration after finding nothing but dust bunnies and the occasional spider winding its web."If only we had a sonar device that could pick out the Poex, or if one of us had some echolocation powers," she grumbled.

Usami cocked an eyebrow and faced the wall with newfound interest. Perhaps... She could try to see through the wall...? There should be any harm in trying. It'd be nice to know what her limitations were...

Usami checked her surroundings, making sure the others were nowhere near to see what she was up to. "It'll be a quick peek," she whispered, though even with her intentions pure the statement alone sounded obscene. Usami shook away the thought, placed her hand against the wall, and began to peer into it.

coded by weldherwings.

just a filler post *thumbs up*​

 

[Nessi]

Hanna Aldrin

Health

Stamina

Magical Enegry

Location:
Simulated forest
Interactions:
PixelSymphony vxnilla

Hanna's face turned pale when she saw the poex instantly snap towards her from her simply muttering to herself. She watched it make quick work of her fireball before attacking her. Hanna was nearly hit directly by the beast claws, but she was able to avoid a fatal blow. That being said, the poex still was able to dig it's claws into Hanna's left arm, but too much adrenaline was going through Hanna's body for her to feel anything.

Hanna looked towards the incubator, Kyoshi and Fred seemed to have made it towards the thing, but couldn't figure out how to open it. "This is bad. This thing has the hearing of a god, and it's puppy guarding that incubator. I don't think we can beat this thing with just the 3 of us." Hanna thought to herself.

Hanna knew that she was the closest to the poex, but she also knew that if she took a a step anywhere, this thing would hear her. Recklessly charging in again would only get her killed. But at the same time, if the poex didn't attack her, it would attack Fred. Before Hanna could decide on what to do, something caught her eye, a shiny piece of metal sticking out from the poex's neck. A weak point? Their would only be one way to find out.

Hanna shoved her katana into the ground, and charged up yet another fireball, this time, putting a LOT more energy into it. She then fired it at the beasts legs, hoping to keep it occupied with that for a bit, and she also hoped that the roar of the flames would mask her voice and footsteps, because she would begin to attempt to get closer to her team. "Fredi, Kyoshi, we need to leave. Now." Hanna said urgently.

coded by weldherwings.

 

[xXx.lovely.xXx]

Ravyn

Health

Stamina

Magical Energy

rat

Ravyn prowled the library, keeping her eyes peeled. Then, she saw one. A nasty, plump little information carrier. She fished the crackers out of the backpack. She knew they would come in handy somehow. Ravyn laid the crackers out and set her trap. When the rat came close, she pounced and grabbed it. The redhead didn't hold it harshly, even though it was disgusting and she never wanted to touch one again.
"Sssh sssh... tell me what you know."
In all honesty, that probably wasn't the best way to go about talking to a rat, but it seemed to work well enough. Soon, the squeaks turned into words and the words into phrases.
"Basement. Food in the basement. Can't get to basement.
Bunch. Pack. Pack in table room. Dining room. Lots of clutter. Storage. Many many.
Let go. Free. Please."
Ravyn had gotten what she needed. She released the rat and let it scamper off on its way. There was a congregation in the dining and storage room. There was also food in the basement and there wasn't a way to get there. Strange, but it was a lead.
"Hey!! I found a rat and got information!!" Ravyn called, "Can someone see if they can find a floorplan?"

c o d e b y t r i p l e s​

Spoiler: Mobile Friend

Ravyn prowled the library, keeping her eyes peeled. Then, she saw one. A nasty, plump little information carrier. She fished the crackers out of the backpack. She knew they would come in handy somehow. Ravyn laid the crackers out and set her trap. When the rat came close, she pounced and grabbed it. The redhead didn't hold it harshly, even though it was disgusting and she never wanted to touch one again.
"Sssh sssh... tell me what you know."
In all honesty, that probably wasn't the best way to go about talking to a rat, but it seemed to work well enough. Soon, the squeaks turned into words and the words into phrases.
"Basement. Food in the basement. Can't get to basement.
Bunch. Pack. Pack in table room. Dining room. Lots of clutter. Storage. Many many.
Let go. Free. Please."
Ravyn had gotten what she needed. She released the rat and let it scamper off on its way. There was a congregation in the dining and storage room. There was also food in the basement and there wasn't a way to get there. Strange, but it was a lead.
"Hey!! I found a rat and got information!!" Ravyn called, "Can someone see if they can find a floorplan?"