[The three months since Principal Nagawa beat the hell out of you have passed like lightning. The time was spent in varying ways, some training, some acting, some eating. All in all, it's kinda hard to remember exactly what happened, because... ...you've all been thinking ahead to this so-called Battle High. Finally, the date on the tickets arrived, and you boarded your plane with baggage in tow to find that you were each the sole occupant of a small passenger plane. Now, some amount of time later, the plane has landed, and you're about to step out into the main airport terminal of your destination, on your way to follow the directions to report to the school for room assignment.] [School Intro Battle... FIGHT!] * As you emerge into the terminal proper, you see several other people converging in the same area, all caring baggage, and all of roughly similar age. * Hope is a tall, pretty girl. She's got long straight black hair, jade green eyes and is wearing a t-shirt and jeans. She's also got a gigantic bag slung over her shoulder. Very large, and yet she seems to have no trouble with it. Oddly enough, it looks like a sword handle is sticking out of it. * Kai wheels along his luggage, a healthy-looking, if slight-framed young man with long white hair (in a ponytail for travel's sake) and candy-red eyes, wearing a white turtleneck and jeans that look a smidge too large for him. He smiles softly, taking in the sights and sounds. "So many..." * Karasu is tall and lanky, but incredibly handsome. His attire consists of black jeans, a black shirt, and an open black trenchcoat. It goes well with his long black hair and shades. Lotsa black, ne? :P Wow. Lotta folks here. * Atsuko is a very cute, short, slim girl with pale lilac purple hair that's about chin length, held in place by a white hairband. Her eyes are wide and green and covered by large round rimmed glasses. She's wearing a pale blue sundress and is loaded down with a -lot- of luggage for such a small girl, though she doesn't seem to be struggling with it. * Hope looks around. "Yow. All these people are fighters? Never woulda guessed there were so many." * Atsuko looks around curiously. * Kai totters about, pretty much awestruck. He's got the most massive smile on his face someone his size could muster. "It's a great, big world. Lots of challenges. Lots of challengers." Yeah. Well, some day I'll beat 'em all. * Atsuko 's stomach suddenly lets out a large growl. "...I hope there's a snack machine around here somewhere. That airplane food just wasn't enough..." A healthy way of thinking, that. Just don't get ahead of yourself. ^_^ * Atsuko cranes her neck looking for such. * There are no vending machines in sight. * Karasu peers around for the directions he's supposed to follow. He doesn't talk to himself. * The directions are on the invitation. That's why you had them already. * Atsuko sighs and looks at the directions again, then heads off to follow them. * Karasu follows the directions. * Kai continues along, digging the invitation out and following said directions. "Now then..." * Hope holds the bag with one hand and digs out her invitation. ".. which way to go?" * Strangely, there aren't any directions on how to get _to_ the school. You're just directed to report to the entrance. Huh. * Kai blinks at that, but shrugs to himself and goes to make with the reporting. Guess the place must be obvious. * Karasu pauses and looks for directions then. :P * Atsuko looks at the invitation in confusion. Erm. ... wait. No... wuh? * Kai turns the invitation over a few times. "Curious." * Hope looks for anything that might be a Battle High. * There is no Battle High in the airport. Kinda stupid of 'em not to post directions. * Hope heads for the airport exit. Maybe there is a bus waiting or somethin'. * Kai sighs and wheels along to the closest exit. "Why do I have this nagging feeling I'm going to not like this decision?" * Atsuko looks around. "Um, are you guys here for the school too?" * Once you exit the airport, however, it's another matter entirely. You're in a small town at the base of a mountain, and perched on top of the mountain is a gigantic castle that just screams "BATTLE HIGH STUDENTS, REPORT HERE." Huh. Feel like I'm headin' for Hogwarts. * Karasu .... exits the airport. :P Mmm-hmm. And---oh! You might wanna come have a look outside. ^^ * Kai sees, smirks, and decides that, just maybe, the castle is where he should be going. * Atsuko quickly follows after Kai. * Hope starts towards the castle at a very quick pace. * Karasu follows the people who look like they know what they're doing. * You arrive at the edge of town and discover that there's no road up the mountain. You're gonna have to do it the hard way. Oh! Woooow... * Atsuko walks quickly in the direction of the castle. Aw cool. I'm digging this already. * Hope starts climbing. * Kai looks up and whistles before trudging on up. "A unique first day's experience, if anything." Atsuko swiftly finds herself slowing down. The moutain is steep. This castle must be virtually impregnable, it's so hard just to get to it, let alone to invade. * Karasu peers up the mountain. * Atsuko frowns a little upon discovering there's no path, but shrugs and starts up the mountain. You can say that again. Whew, good exercise. Maybe it's supposed to be a first test, or something. * You're not more than a quarter of the way up the mountain when you start becoming short of breath, and there's not a dry piece of clothing between the lot of you. Even Karasu looks like he _might_ consider taking his coat off. It may very well be... * Hope looks for a place to rest for a sec. * Atsuko looks for a flat stretch to put her bags down. * There is, sadly, a distinct lack of flat land on the mountain. There are some lumpy spots that create small crevasses for you to brace in for a while, though. * Kai decides that it may be a good time to catch his breath. "Quite... the test, I'll say." * Hope braces herself then. * Karasu takes off his coat and climbs the mountain @_@ Damn.. straight. * Atsuko pants, and finds a lumpy place where she can rest, trying to get as much of her luggage's weight off of her as possible. ... well, while we're here, I guess we might as well introduce ourselves. I'm Kairi... nice to meet you all. Yo. I'm Hope. * Kai smiles as much as his present state allows. * Atsuko smiles. "I'm Atsuko Matsura. Pleased to meet you!" She bows politely, or at least attempts to. * Karasu nods politely. "Name's Karasu. A pleasure." * Out the corner of your eyes, you catch someone down at the bottom of the mountain, roughly ten meters to one side of where you started. He's just starting up the mountain, but rather than your plodding pace, he's taking the climb in leaps and bounds, almost running straight up the slopes. He doesn't appear to be having much trouble, either. How did you guys get your invitations? Did you have to get beaten up by that guy, too? It'd be more of a pleasure if we could do without the climbing, but I'm sure there's a purpose to all this busi--muh? * Kai turns to watch the guy, eyes wide. * Hope watches the guy. "Damn. I've got to learn how to do that." * Atsuko BLINKS. "Wow." I'd like what he had for breakfast. Triple portions. * Whoever he is, he doesn't appear to be much older than you, though he's not carrying any baggage. He's wearing a pair of black running shorts and a black t-shirt, and he's got spiky blond hair. He swings closer as he approaches your altitude. * Kid hops over a large cluster of boulders and lands about ten feet away, then jogs across a patch of loose rubble until he's a few feet above you all. * Kid stops. * Hope waves at the kid as best as she can. "Yo." * Atsuko looks at the kid with wide eyes. "Wow, that was great!" Heh. Freshies. Havin' fun? Mmm-hmm. ^^ Not particularly. Oh yeah. Great fun, nothing better then getting all sweaty climbing. 'cept for maybe a good fight. Yeah, you're freshies alright. Seeya at the top. I'll wait for ya! Uh, yeah. ^^ * Kid resumes his run up the mountain, rarely slowing down. Thanks! ... I'm definitely going to enjoy this. ^^ Oh yeah. How can you be so certain so early? * Atsuko watches with not quite awe. "This is gonna be good." 'cuz I like fighting. * Kai seems to perk up a bit. "Dunno, but I can... feel it, you know?" C'mon. What d'ya say we keep going? Yeah! * Karasu stands up. "Going to have to sooner or later. May as well be sooner." * Hope continues. * Kai stands and steels himself for more climbing. "Right!" * Atsuko picks her bags back up, and continues upward. * Karasu climbs the mountain. * Going up seems to get harder as your muscles wear out. By the time you're three quarters of the way to the top, your muscles are screaming to lay down and die, but you haven't seen a suitable resting place since your last stop, and looking ahead, there don't appear to be any between you and the top. * Atsuko grits her teeth and trudges onward. * Kai grits his teeth. The only other option is to slide back down, so it's really not that hard of a decision. * The end _is_ in sight, though. The gates of the castle are well within sight, and you can see that just inside the open gates is a pair of small tents, one on either side. * Hope continues along. She ain't gonna stop now. * Twenty minutes later, because of your crawling pace, you reach the gates of the castle. The kid from before is waiting just inside, holding five bottles, though what's in them you can't tell. 'bout time. You guys are the slowest I've ever seen. * Hope leans on her bag. "Wow. That was a climb." * Kai takes a moment to ponder puking or passing out, but decides that neither would impress the upperclassman kid. "... well, I'm not too used to climbing." ^^; * Kid tosses a bottle casually to each of you. "Drink up, freshies." * Hope grabs the bottle and chugs it. * It tastes TERRIBLE. You feel better though, once you get past the taste. Bleh. Tastes like prune juice. * Atsuko grins triumphantly and lets her bags drop. "Wow, that was a workout." She catches the bottle and examines it, before drinking. * Kai takes the bottle uncaps it... and takes a testing sniff first. Locker-room habit, that. It doesn't smell caustic, so he drinks. "... mmnnng!" Legend has it it's the distilled blood sweat and tears of two thousand years of warriors. Whatever it is, it works. ... well. * Karasu inspects the bottle, then takes a swig. "Gah... Not exactly the best tasting drink." * Hope stands up, feeling better. "Yummy. Well, you're right about it working." * Atsuko makes an extremely amusing disgusted face as she tastes it. "Ewwwwww!" She eyes the bottle, but decides to finish anyway. Well, it worked...but I don't think I wanna do that too often. ^^; Think of it as the ultimate sports drink, combined with the best home remedy ever. The worse a medicine tastes, the better it works. * Kai finishes the bottle off, mouth puckering a little. "Eeegh. Anyway... well, I do feel much better. Thank you!" Anyway, you freshies need to report to that tent over there. * Kid points to the left tent. I gotta go through the other one. I'll meet you on the other side. * Karasu considers that claim briefly. I guess so. Thank you. The other one? Returning students. * Atsuko adds quietly "Probably why I hate medicine so much." * Kid heads over to the right tent. Well. Let's go get assigned. * Kai waves. "Thanks." That said, he wipes his mouth and heads to the left tent. * Hope heads for the left tent. * Karasu heads for the left tent while his player tries to catch up on all the info that keeps scrolling by in chunks x.x * Atsuko picks her bags back up, still looking rather grossed out, and heads for the left tent. * Inside the left tent is what some people would call a secretary. Other people, these being in the majority, would call her a woman to die for. Or to kill for. Or both. They're both right. * Hope would't call her either, cuz she isn't lesbian. New students? Yep. * Kai smiles brightly. "Yes, ma'am." * Atsuko nods. "Uhuh." Let's see... * Secretary flips through a box of cards, quickly pulling four out. ...Interesting. You're all in the GreatAl wing, in the same complex. Your cluster is 103. You can take rooms as you feel appropriate. Thank you, ma'am? Are there maps on campus? Huh? Wing? Complex? No. You'll know the Great Al wing when you see it. You can't miss the status of Alexander the Great. Finding your way around is one of the challenges. GreatAl... cluster 103. Right! Since you're all in the same complex, this means that you're all one team. You'll have another member join you before school starts, unless your final teammate decides to reject the invitation. I can't remember the last time that happened, though. * Atsuko nods. "Okay. Single rooms?" One single room, for the team captain. Two doubles, for the other teammates. Hm? Who's the captain? That's up to your team. Cool. * Secretary looks at the entrance. "Move along now, there's a new arrival." * Kai nods once. "Well, that'll come when we're all here." * Hope walks outside and waits for the others. Yes, ma'am! * Atsuko nods brightly. "Okay." * Kai heads out and joins Hope. "Well... we're a team. Interesting." * Secretary looks at the newcomer. "Kento, Great Al wing, complex 102." * Atsuko walks outside. * Karasu moves outside. Yep. Now we just gotta find our rooms. * Kid is standing outside tapping his foot when you emerge. Shouldn't be too hard. At least there's no more climbing. You guys take this long at EVERYTHING you do? * Kid laughs. Impatiant, arnt'cha pal? Yes. Especially with freshies. But I'm doing my best to slow down for you. If you think you're done with climbing, though, think again. And wait'll you have your first fight on the slopes. Oh, the slopes. Sounds cool. ... well, I have decent enough balance. ^^; Don't suppose y'll tell us where Great Al's statue is? * Atsuko smiles sheepishly at the kid. "Eheh..." Balance isn't the problem. And yeah, I can show you the statue. It's not hard to find, anyway. * Kid blinks. ...I haven't introduced myself yet. I must be getting absentminded in my old age. * Karasu folds his arms and considers. I'm Alan Carter, and a Junior this year. Yo. Hope Fayth. Nice ta meetcha. * Atsuko smiles brightly. "Nice to meet you, Alan." Kairi Yoshida. A pleasure to meet you. Karasu. A pleasure. * Kid shrugs. "Don't be offended if I forget your names. You're only freshies." * Atsuko bows properly this time. "I'm Atsuko Matsura." It's understandable. We have to pay our dues, I'd imagine. * Atsuko shrugs, still smiling. "If you say so." Something like that. If you make it into the main rounds of the Tournament, then I'll remember you. But you won't do that for another year, at the earliest, and I'll be about to graduate. ... anyway, I'd like to get to my room. I may feel better, but my clothes don't. ^^; Ha! Learn to like it. You'll be sweating most of your first year. That's how the mountain is. Especially on your first climb. C'mon, though. * Alan starts off towards the main keep, which takes up most of the area inside the wall that you can see. * Hope follows along. * Kai follows, trying to figure out how he got into this mess. * Atsuko follows after. * Karasu follows, putting is trenchcoat back on. * Alan leads you through the immense main doors, which are helpfully propped open. Inside is an immense entryway lined with statues and doorways. * Kai whistles appreciately, admiring the statues. "Amazing..." Neat. * Alan takes a left at the statue of Atilla the Hun and continues down a smaller, but still large, hallway. This is the Hun wing. Not a bad place to be, but it's a tad more savage than most people like. * Atsuko looks at all the statues. "Nice..." * Hope continues walkin' along. "Not surprisin', considerin' the name." Tell me... about how many people are enrolled here? And... we're supposed to be going to the GreatAl wing. Is this a tour? * Alan gets all the way to the end of the Hun wing and turns right. There are about a hundred students, all told. The number changes every year, though. About fifty freshmen enter every year, and slowly get pared down as time goes on. * Karasu blinks. "A hundred?" They can't handle it? * Alan nods. "That, or they die. Not common, that. Most people are good enough fighters to avoid killing, even with the deadlier weapons." * Atsuko 's eyes widen. * Kai frowns momentarilly. "It is a dangerous thing, after all." Some people can't handle it. They leave. * Alan continues for some time, and then stops in front of a statue of Alexander the Great. This the place then? Great Al wing. At the other end, the hall opens into the cafeteria. * Kai stops when Alan does, then looks around for cluster 103. * Cluster 100 is right at the edge, so cluster 103 must be further down. Still, such a large place for only one hundred students? The best of the best. More places to battle, I'd assume. Cool. And yes, most of the area on the higher floors is battlegrounds, as are the underground areas. I predict that before the end of the week, you'll be out running, or walking, the mountain with the rest of us. Heh. That'll keep things interesting. Underground areas? I gotta get back to my cluster, though. Everything else will be explained in time. * Hope shrugs. "Gotta be good exercise. See ya later Alan." * Kai smiles. "It is a mountain, after all. And thanks, Alan!" * Alan waves slightly and runs off, leaving an Alan shaped smokecloud that slowly dissipates. *** Alan is now known as NPC ... hm. Well... cluster 103. * Hope looks for cluster 103. * Kai heads on down the wing, whistling to himself. * Cluster 103 is down at the other end of the hall, almost all the way to the cafeteria. The doors into the cafeteria are shut, though. * Hope heads to Cluster 103. * Atsuko follows after Hope. * The door to Cluster 103 is standing open slightly. No light comes from within. * Karasu follows, observing the place as he goes. * As a whole, your wing is pretty drab. * There're no art objects, and the decorations common to other areas you went through are much more muted, not nearly as rich-looking. * Kai frowns a little. "I don't think doors should be open like that. And... it's rather dull-looking here, for some reason." Huh. If I were a betting gal, I'd say this wing hasn't won much. It's probably because we're just moving in. Or someone's in there waiting for us. * Atsuko frowns. "It's not very nice..." Oh well. I'm sure we can improve it. ^_^ Eh. Doesn't need to look pretty. We're just gonna be sleepin' here. Maybe we've been robbed before we even moved in. I'd like to think the people here are a bit more moral. * Atsuko looks at Hope with a slightly pouty expression. "Aw. It's always better to have a nice place to come home to." * Karasu shrugs. "It merely a possibility, and probably a slim one at that. * Atsuko looks at Kai and grins. "Maybe they're martial arts thieves." Jeez. You're a big bucket of cheer, aint'cha? Let's go find some bunks. Or maybe they just want less competition. Thieves. Heh. * Kai rolls his eyes. "I wouldn't be surprised." * Hope looks for beds. * Karasu shrugs and looks inside. A man once said, "Think of death while living, think of danger while safe." * Atsuko peeks inside. * Atsuko turns and looks at Karasu. "Aw. So gloomy." I prefer to think about just living. ^^; You think so? * The commons room for your cluster shows one of the reasons they don't have many students. The commons room itself is gigantic. Easily the size of a three bedroom house in the US, with five doors evenly spaced around the perimiter, not counting the one you're looking in. There are several old but servicable couches and tables, though you may want to bring in better. Woah. Better then my house. Wow. Big. Very big. * One door has a plate bolted onto it reading "Captain." * Kai walks around, stopping at the Captain's room. "Wonder who's gonna end up in this one." Huh. So, who's Captain? I'd say we fight for it, but I donno if they'll let us do that. Hm...I don't think we can really decide until our last member gets here. We're supposed to decide. I'd wait for our last teammate to show first before we think too hard about it. Wouldn't be fair, otherwise. * Hope shrugs. "They're late. 'sides, where are we gonna sleep if they don't show up soon?" * Karasu shrugs. "Although they did say he might back down. * Atsuko puts her bags down and goes about poking around in the other four rooms. * Atsuko looks back over her shoulder and calls to Hope "We can just split up temporarily. Boys in one room, girls in the other. Works fine." ^_^ * Kai peeks inside one of the double-rooms. "Sounds good." * Hope shrugs. "Fine, but when the next person comes, they better not complain about havin' to sleep in a bed someone else already slept in." * The room Kai peeks into is apparently a bathroom, given the presence of a shower and a toilet. Hm. I hope there's two bathrooms... * The first room Atsuko peeks into is about half the size of the commons room, and the only furniture is a pair of beds and a pair of identical, plain dressers. * Kai just goes about peering into the remaining doors, just to be curious. * Atsuko stops, and puts one finger to her chin as she looks upward, thoughtfully. "But...what happens if one of us girls becomes Captain? Then we'd have to have a boy and a girl in the same room..." So? You assume that the next member will be male. I don't see a problem there. ^^; Well, uh... I dunno. ^^; Not like you're gonna start shaggin' like a rabbit if you're left alone with a boy. * THe other two doors are another double bedroom, and what appears to be a training room. It's got slightly padded floors and walls, and a weapons rack in one corner. One bathroom, two double bedrooms, and a practice room. That will do nicely, I suppose. Well...that guy who gave me the invitation got on about girls needing to be modest and stuff, so I thought they might have some sorta rule about it, but I guess not. Practice room huh. Sounds like a fun way to spend some time. * Hope looks for a place to dump her stuff. Heh. The guy who gave me mine just beat me pretty badly. ^^; * Atsuko comes back into the common room. 'knocked me through a McDonald's wall. * Kai sets his stuff aside and sits down. "I had to explain to mom and dad how I'd ended up in the hospital again. Oh, and the invitation, too." ^^;; * Hope dumps her stuff in the "girl's" bedroom and comes out with a big ass zanbotou. "So, anyone else gonna practice a bit?" Was it a grey haired guy wearing black? Yep. Real girly lookin' guy. Reminded me of... well, me. I don't remember too well. He was pretty blunt. And far too good. I want to be that strong someday. He put me through a couple trees. Not even mom can hit anywhere near that hard... * Atsuko grins. "Someday, I'm gonna fight him again." So, anyone wanna spar a bit? Heh. Someday, I'm gonna beat him. Bad. * Kai sighs and leans back. "Oh! Wall for me. The Quick-E-Mart. Never had that happen before." Not I. Aww. C'mon. Nobody? Maybe when I'm a little more rested and alot less smelly... which reminds me. Need a shower. * Atsuko looks at Hope curiously. "What kind of style do you use?" Style? Uh.. my own. * Karasu decides to dump his stuff in whatever room he and Kai are sharing. You trained yourself? Neat! I've got a buncha training from different people, and I just sorta mix it together. S'why I used a sword and my fists. * Atsuko nods. "I learned from my mom...she's like a descendant of some ninja clan, or something like that. I never paid too much attention to family history." She scratches the back of her head and smiles sheepishly. * Kai watches Karasu, then shrugs and follows, finding a place to dump his luggage. * Karasu comes back. "Ninja? Intriguing." Well, c'mon then darlin'. Let's spar a bit. I've never seen a real ninja. Uhuh. Says I'm not ready to learn any of the really secret stuff yet, though. ... ninja? Hm. I wish she'd make up her mind. ^^; * Atsuko looks at Hope, pouting cutely again. "Aw, I kinda wanted to take a bath first. And I wanna get to know you guys! There's lots to talk about!" Why take a bath before you spar? You're just gonna get sweaty again. * Karasu laughs. "Very true." * Atsuko blinks, and laughs. "Good point." Point, but still. * Kai chuckles softly. Well, alright. If you really want to spar, sure. ^_^ Cool. I won't use my zanbotou, cuz that might hurt ya. Let's go. * Atsuko steps into the practice room. * Hope heads into the practice room, and leans her zanbotou against the wall. * Atsuko nods. "Okay." * Karasu follows them in to watch. * Kai hrms, then goes to find a place to watch. From a safe distance, of course. * Hope gets into a boxing stance and takes a few practice punches. "Ready when you are." Hm. It'll be good to see new styles up-close... * Atsuko settles into a loose stance and nods, still smiling and not looking anything like a fighter. "Alright." * Karasu nods. "I agree." * Hope quickly moves forward and launches a quick punch at Atsuko. * Atsuko tries to block, but takes the hit. She quickly pivots, bringing her leg around for a kick. * Hope is kicked. "Nice. See if you can handle this!" * Hope rushes forward and launches a strong backfist at Atsuko. * Atsuko leaps straight up, spinning around as she does so and lashing out with a whirling kick as she's airborne. Nice speed there... * Kai smiles, sitting cross-legged and resting his chin on his hands. * Atsuko grins. * Hope is slammed by the kick, but quickly recovers and launches a strong kick towards Atsuko. * Atsuko falls directly into Hope's kick and is knocked back, but somehow manages to land on her feet. "Ow. You're really strong." She smiles widely. Thanks. You're not bad yourself. Wanna keep going? * Atsuko shrugs "If you want." Cool. * Atsuko grins and dashes at Hope, stopping at the last second and dropping down for a leg sweep. * Hope is hit by the leg sweep and falls. She comes back up by aiming both feet at Atsuko while jumping up. * Karasu leans against the wall, pushing his shades up. * Atsuko hops lightly out of the way, and brings her leg up and back down again towards Hope for an impressive axe kick. * Hope is hit by the axe kick, but it's just because she's coming up with a uppercup for Atsuko. * Atsuko takes it on the chin and is sent staggering. * Kai winces a little. Ow. Ow. Nice one. Intriguing. Geez. Sorry. You okay? I didn't break anythin', did I? * Atsuko shakes her head. "I'm alright." She straightens up. "But I can't beat you like this. I just can't hit nearly as hard as you." ^^ You never know. I'm just strong. You're real fast, tho'. If you got a bit stronger, you'd kick some ass. * Atsuko smiles. "You win." * Hope bows. "Good fight. We gotta do it again sometime." * Atsuko bows. Yeah! And thanks! ^_^ Heh... perhaps I'll have to challenge both of you one day... to a spar, I mean. * Atsuko looks over at Kai. "Are you gonna use the shower now, or can I have my bath?" Ladies first. ^_^ Well, since I won, you can get the bath. Then I'll go. Okay, thanks. * Atsuko goes over to her luggage and hunts around for a bit, before producing a sky blue towel and heading into the bathroom, shutting the door behind her. * Kai stands and sighs. "Well... I think I'm going to enjoy this school quite a bit." I agree. This is gonna rock. Mm... I'll wait until I see what it's like before I form an opinion. * Atsuko calls from behind the door as she runs the water "Why don't the boys spar?" Sounds cool. I'll watch. * Hope goes and grabs her sword, and lifts it over her shoulder. "C'mon!" ... well. I guess I wouldn't mind. Shall we? * Karasu shrugs. "If you like." * Kai chuckles and pops to his feet. "Erm... would you prefer I not use my bo?" * Karasu walks to the middle of the room. * Karasu considers. "Actually, I'd prefer that you did." Right, then! If we don't fight to our potential, we won't learn our limits. If we don't know our limits, how can we expand them? * Kai pulls it out from... somewhere: a shiny red affair. He twirls it once, then holds it under one arm, free hand up defensively. "My thoughts exactly. Well then... prepare yourself." * Karasu stands casually. "I'm prepared." * Kai smiles, then darts forward and takes a testing swipe at Karasu's thigh. "Good! I expect nothing less of an ally!" * Karasu seems surprised at Kai's sudden attack, and fully takes the hit. He takes a step back, but manages to keep standing. He takes off his shades and starts glowing with a purple energy. "Impressive. I'm going to have to go all out." Excellent. Shiny, aint'cha? * Kai crouches, then leaps at Karasu with a mighty flying kick, complete with loud kiai. * Karasu takes another blow. He grimaces, then smirks and strikes back with an open palm, his fingers aimed at Kai's gut. * Kai weaves to the side, using his bo to glance the strike aside harmlessly. "Fast..." * Karasu moves like a blur, following up his first strike with a kick. * Kai shifts and moves to stop the kick, grunting with the effort. "I can feel the skill in your strikes... I'm glad to have met you." Don't flatter me. I still need a great deal of practice. * Kai smiles warmly. "We all do... but the fact that we're here says something about what we have!" That said, he draws a hand back, a circular distortion forming underneath it. "Whiiiiite.... HUNTER!" He flings the semi-visible wave at Karasu. * Karasu is totally unprepared for that one, and takes it full on. Damn, you guys are goin' all out, antcha? This is just a sparrin' match y'know. We cannot push our limits if we hold back too much, Hope. * Karasu grins. "Impressive." He charges at Kai. "Now it's my turn! Raven Nine-Needle Slasher!" He slices at Kai with a knife-hand, wrapped in a dark purple energy. Heh. Y'should try me at my best some time. * Atsuko comes out of the bathroom, wrapped up in her towel. She walks over to watch the fight. They ain't holdin back at all. Don't think they get that this is just a sparrin' match. * Kai grins at Hope's comment... and his lapse of judgment sends him *flying* at the slash hits his chest. He slams into the side wall and slumps over, bo rolling out of his hand. * Atsuko stares. "Wow..." * Karasu looks like he's about to do something else, but he stops. Hey, are you alright? * Karasu stops glowing, too. Not bad. ... ow? * Hope grins at Karasu. "Howzabout you and me next?" That's... probably not a good idea. Shucks. Well then, I'm gonna go take my shower. Peak, and you'll find this zanbatou shoved up your ass sideways. * Hope heads off for a shower. * Kai grunts and decides that lying there might be a good idea for the time being. * Karasu frowns. "This may not have been a great idea. I wonder if they have any medical supplies in these rooms..." * Atsuko walks over to Kai. "Hey, are you alright?" ... n-not really, no. I'll manage... * Kai rolls over onto his back and hisses, clutching his chest. "Nnnn... what a strike..." I apologize. I hadn't intended to cause real harm. * Atsuko cocks her head, looking concerned. "You sure you don't need any help?" * Kai shakes his head. "I'd have been angry at you if you held back... I kinda wanted to see your heart, anyway..." He nods after a moment. "It would be nice..." * Atsuko helps Kai up. * Quentin steps into the training room, dressed just as he was when he tested you all. If it makes you feel better, your skill is more than adequate. I was afraid I wouldn't be able to hit you before... * Karasu looks over at Quentin. * Atsuko looks up as Quentin enters. * Kai rolls his bo off of his foot and into his hand, hissing a bit. "... thank you---oh. Sir..." * Quentin looks around and quirks one eyebrow. * Hope heads out of the shower, and is surprised to see Q-man there. ".. Hey, what's goin' on?" It's nice to see you're so dedicated to improving yourselves after the rather pathetic performance you put forward in your tests. * Atsuko doesn't seem phased at all and smiles at Quentin. "Yep!" * Kai looks a little crestfallen. "I promised to become stronger, sir." Heh. * Karasu nods, but says nothing. Good. See that you do. * Quentin looks around. "I see you're well on your way to discovering some of the unusual properties of this place." Normally, I'd explain all this to you at the first general assembly, but since you're so set on improving yourselves, I'll tell you now. * Kai listens intently, pain momentarilly forgotten. First, you needn't worry too much about accidentally killing people. Don't attack someone who obviously can't take the attack, but as long as you're not actively trying to kill, you probably won't. Really? Cool. Good, good. * Atsuko blinks and pushes her glasses back up her nose. "How's that?" Good to know. * Hope grins at Karasu. "That means we can spar. ^_^" Perhaps, except I'm in no condition to do so at the moment. It's because of the history behind this mountain, and the castle. This mountain has been a training ground for over two thousand years. The power of thousands of warriors has been gathered over time into the very stone of the mountain. It will sustain you, and it will push you. I think you noticed on your climb. Of course. Later. In spite of the four of you having very different degrees of bodily prowess, you all barely made the whole climb. * Kai nods slowly. Oooooh. Yeah, that was one hell of a climb. The mountain is a favored training area for that reason. It will always push you to your limits. Cool. Second... the energy that pervades the mountain will repair you. Everyone who stays here heals at an increased rate. You may have noticed it, or you may not. Doubtless you would have noticed in a few hours anyway when Kairi was completely healed in a short time. Is... that so? Cool. This mountain has evolved over the years to become the perfect training ground. It allows you, and forces you, to train harder, and more often, so that you increase in power as quickly as you possibly can. Now... you've got a few days before school starts, and with it, the placement fights. I suggest you prepare yourselves. * Atsuko grins. "I like it." Got it. * Karasu nods. "Very well." * Quentin does a swift about-face and leaves the complex. Awesome. This is gonna rule. * Atsuko nodnods. I can wait to spar you Kar. ^_^ But not too long, so heal fast. Yes... yes, it's going to be very interesting. * Kai smiles softly. * Karasu nods. * Atsuko grins widely. Anyway... I'd like to take that shower now... So. Where's the last member of our little party? * Kai tucks his bo under his arm and semi-hobbles to get to business. * Hope practices a bit with her zanbatou. [School Intro Battle... Win by Submission: Hope Fayth Win by KO: Karasu Kage]