private Academy of Magic

[Mephala 2,633]

Luce was sitting in her room. Her head was pounding, putting her in a worse mood than usual.

The room was very plush and large, with a king sized bed and a widescreen television.

Luce stared at her reflection in the glossy TV screen screen. Her hair was slightly messy and her cheeks flushed.

Suddenly, she screamed and swung her hand forward towards the screen and the whole television suddenly turned into a puddle. However, the spill of yellowy, runny liquid began burning holes in the table it was on, corroding through it into the floor until you could look through a hole and see the tracks below.

Luce didn't stop there, however. Her entire body was shaking as everything else in the room began to melt.

 

A team of black clad men burst through the door, and opened all the doors of the other rooms, dragging everyone out as the yellowy acid seeped through underneath the door. Soon all the confused students were herded into a sitting room.

 

Thalia was grouchy at having been shoved in the sitting room, but she saw Daniel in a corner and went to sit down with him.

"Do you know what's going on in there? It's crazy," she grumbled.

Edited October 25, 2012 by Raindancer

[Parties like Pinkie 385]

Daniel was slightly confused at the sudden influx of people, but quickly pushed it aside as he realized his corner spot was working. Barely anyone saw him, sitting quietly in the corner, so he turned his head to look out the window. As he was looking out the window, he felt the seat bounce, as someone sat beside him. He heard Thalia's voice, and turned to see her right next to him, asking him a question.

 

At her words, the gears in his head began turning again. This whole situation was seriously starting to turn up multiple flags in his head. I know this can't be a complete coincidence. First the unknown school's acceptance letter, then the large gathering of somewhat shady people, the attendants knowing our names, and now this? Daniel dismissed it one last time, hoping it was nothing more than a huge huge coincidence, but he wasn't confident. "Nope." He responded. "I guess I was lucky. I got in here on my own, then start to see everyone being forced inside." He smiled at Thalia, his mood lightening. "At least I got a good seat!" He said, jokingly.

[Flicker Sweet 3,391]

Red began to start raising his voice, "If you wanted me in here that's fine! But there's no need to grab my instrument!!!"

The men continued to grab at him, tugging ruthlessly on the already damaged guitar strap. "If someone doesn't say something soon I'm going to start kicking," Red threatened, "And I aim for faces!"

Red began to stand up, taking a more suitable stance for kicking, when another man came in and ripped the bass guitar right off of Red, breaking the strap, "YOU BROKE MY BASS YOU TIE WEARING DICKWEED!!!!!!" Red's temper exploded. He threw his left knee into the air, then brought his right foot straight into the man's face. One of the others tried to grab Red from the right but Red was skinny enough to slip out. Before he could get up again, the men piled on top of him, cuffed his hands behind his back, and chained his legs together. They then picked him up and carried him on their shoulders to an area Red passed before. It was the sitting room. Red wasn't sure what to expect, but he had a feeling that he either just got kicked out of a school he hadn't even seen yet, or these guys were some sort of mafia gang that got the wrong guy........either way, Red was screwed. He felt it best to keep silent until spoken to......in case the ladder was true.

[Apollo 297]

*Sasha walked into the room, led by one of the strange attendants. She walked over and sat down on a couch next to Olivia sighing.*

"This place is really fucked up. And we havent even gotten to the school yet. Was hopin to catch some sleep on the way, but so much for that."

*She leaned back and let herself sink into the plush couch.*

"Sorry about that little outburst earlier Livi."

*Sasha said to Olivia quietly.*

"That guy just crossed the line. Life is hard, ya know?"

*Sasha picked up the dragon pendant that was hanging around her neck. She ran her finger along the cool silver charm up to the small sapphire that made up the dragon's eye. It had been a long time since her last outburst like that. It was upsetting that that streak was now broken. Years of anger management down the tubes with one fell swoop.*

(Now there aint no rest for the wicked, until we close our eyes for good.)

*Sasha sung in her head, quoting one of her favorite songs, "Aint no rest for the wicked", by Cage the Elephant.*

"So,"

*She said to Olivia,*

"We cool?"

 

{Really not much content for this post. xD}

[Flicker Sweet 3,391]

The men in the suits finally set Red down in a chair. Red looked around. There was nobody he recognized on this train other than Olivia and......ah crap.....the other girl from before. She was right next to him! Why was the world such an ass? Red looked over at her as non-agressively as possible and managed to say, "How's it goin'?" to her in an equally non-aggressive tone. He wanted to make sure that if he was going to apologize, he could at least do so on good terms.......while completely hog tied and immobile......this was going to e an interesting time at this school.

"How have you been since we last met?" Red started, "Never got your name? You can call me Red."

Hopefully, by introducing himself he could get her to at least be less tense around him.......and not threaten him again. She was obviously a puncher, Red was a kicker. He wasn't quite sure how that would work out for them if they were to get in a fight. Punches were usually up close and personal, where as kicks were delivered from farther back, well out of punching distance. Red wasn't sure why he was thinking about being in a fight with her.........he tried again to begin conversation, "Do you know anything about this school?"

[THE WILD HUNT 213]

Ajax hadn't even entered his room when a group of agents suddenly rushed towards him and drove him into a room where all the other students where packed in.

"Geez, what the heck just happened here?!" Ajax exclaimed as he plopped down onto a bench. He looked around and saw that the others were talkong amongst themselves while things were sorted out. Instead of going over to them, he decided to try and figure what could have happened that had made the black clad men so upset. He breathed in, noticing a rather acrid smell coming from the hallway.

"A system malfunction perhaps? No, this train looks relatively new and updated for that to happen so easily," Ajax mused as he looked at the people in the room. He then remembered something earlier on when he had entered the train. A flurry of negative emotions, growing stronger as the minutes went by. He couldn't place who or what was the source, but Ajax did conclude that the men in black started rushing in only after the negativity had reached its peak. Everything else was happening at the moment.

"... Could it be possible that ''mentally enlightened' means gifted with powers? Some of those come around when emotions are altered in the greatest...."

[Toothless the Night Fury 260]

Jason had slipped quietly into the train, taking one of the back doors instead of following the large group led by the overenthusiastic guide. They were an assortment of kids, a variety of different personalities and races, a mixture of both boys and girls. However, out of the entire group, the mob of attendants and workers on the train circled one girl, and singled out from the rest of them. They seemed like they knew the entire group, quiet names picked up from his auditory senses as they looked at each person, but he wondered why that girl was so special...

 

Sneaking through the back doors, he entered the train, only having seconds to hide from the men in suits as they took her away, her blonde hair obscured in the sea of tuxedos. She was holding a purse, and seemed very wealthy, the assortment of jewelry planted in various locations around her body. The make-up she was wearing gave her a bit of a snooty look, even though he didn't disagree with the sight.

 

He had no idea where to go, but he judged from his position that he was between a large cart where many chairs and sofas were laid out, and what seemed to be a sleeping quarters. Without being detected by anyone, he quietly moved into the nearest empty bedroom he could find, eventually stumbling upon the numbers "145", with an empty bed inside. It wasn't bad, the small room where he found a small bed, and a wooden desk at the foot of it, a lamp for midnight drawing, or reading he supposed. He also had a large window, where he could see the sights streaming past as he sat in his bed or his desk.

 

He liked it. It was sure a step up from his small cot at his foster home. He could hear a faint music playing in the background, probably the train's speakers playing the radio, he supposed. Dropping his backpack and sliding it under the desk, he pulled out two large leather books, one for his journal, the other for his drawing and miscellaneous assortment of poems and such. Pulling out a small iPod, he stuck the earbuds in his head, playing a gentle piano in the background.

 

However, it wasn't long until he was uninterrupted by a loud shriek, causing him to drop his pencil and nearly jump from his chair. He could hear a distinct sizzling sound, like steak on a grill. Suddenly, part of the top of the wall in his room began to change color to a sickly yellow, unaware that some of the acid was seeping through from the other room. Curious, he climbed on top of his bed, and touched it.

 

It was a terrible mistake. The burning sensation instantly hit him, causing him to let out a yell of pain as he fell from the bed, slamming down upon the carpet floor in his bedroom. Gripping his right wrist, he moaned, staring at his fingers as it was being eaten away at by the acid. The pain soon became unbearable, and the world began darkening before his eyes, heavy eyelids falling upon his vision. He soon passed out, but not before hearing his cabin door slide open, and the words from a man in a suit, "Oh my god!"

Edited October 25, 2012 by Toothless the Night Fury

[Mephala 2,633]

Luce stared at the white wall.

Again.

Jaime was shaking his head. "In addition to destroying your room, Ms. Bolton, you also vacated the entire wing and burned a student rather badly."

Luce didn't say anything, just glared at the floor.

He sighed and pulled over a clipboard, marking off a few things before he looked at her again, speaking more firmly this time.

"Ms. Bolton, this type of behaviour is not acceptable at our institute. Now we have given you special privileges but that does not give you the right to abuse them in this manner." He reached out to touch her in a comforting manner but Luce threw her arm up to block him and glared fiercely from beneath her sweaty, messy bangs.

Jaime just sighed again.

"I really don't know how we're going to explain this, Luce," he said gently, using her name for the first time. "Please, just try to help me out here."

Luce remained silent, and eventually Jaime muttered a few things into a headset and the guards came to retrieve her.

 

Olivia just smiled at her kindly. "It's all right, of course, I'm sure you couldn't help it. If he talked to me like that I probably would have flipped out as well. Of course we're cool."

She glanced distractedly at Red, who was sitting next to Sasha, and then back at her lap in thought.

Her mind wasn't really on the two people next to her, though she went through the motions. She was thinking of Luce, the mysterious blonde girl, and the only one who was missing. Obviously she was the one who had screamed, and as Olivia was rushed past her room she could smell a strange sort of acidic stench, and a yellow liquid seeping beneath the door. A piece of the puzzle was missing.

But she knew what it was.

Mentally enlightened really DID mean mentally enlightened. There was something deeper than just an invitation to a school. It was entirely free, isolated, and no one knew about it. She had asked around and even the woman at the local library couldn't find any hits on the Internet about it.

If Olivia wasn't the only one with a few secrets to hide, then the rest of these kids must be "gifted" as well...

 

Thalia nodded, pleased that she could look from around the room without sticking out. Everyone looked as confused as her, though, and Luce hadn't returned yet.

"There's something fishy here," she muttered to Daniel, not wanting to draw attention to them.

Suddenly Ms. Frey burst in, but she looked different. Her face was drawn and the warmth from her eyes had disappeared. She had changed as well, and was wearing stiff white clothing that looked more like it belonged in a laboratory.

Luce was ushered into the room after her. All her makeup had been removed and her hair tied back into a braid, but she still looked pretty in a very natural way. She had also changed into a simple white dress and flats, and she looked smaller without her heels and big bag.

Ms. Frey cleared her throat. "We apologize for the earlier inconvenience. Luce had a little bit of a...problem." Her face made it look like it was much bigger than that and she beckoned for Luce to sit down. She did so quietly, but her spirit was still there, and she glared at everyone challengingly, as though daring them to mock her. She was still vulnerable, however, and without makeup and her normal clothing she felt very naked.

"Dinner will now be served," added Ms. Frey. "Jason will be joining us later. If you would follow me." She gave Luce a warning glance and strode stiffly to the door on the far side of the room.

Thalia raised her eyebrows and shot Daniel a look. "Okay, NOW I'm curious."

 

Olivia's head shot up as soon as Ms. Frey began speaking. After she mentioned Luce's problem she felt a mix of delight and fear.

She obviously wasn't the only one with abilities here....but she obviously wasn't the strongest one of them, either.

And if Luce freaked out again, who knew what could happen?

Edited October 25, 2012 by Raindancer

[Toothless the Night Fury 260]

Great. Just great.

 

As he sat in the sat in the small bathroom as the attendant wrapped the bandages around his burned left hand, he was already pissed off. I mean, come on. Why the hell would there be hydroiodic acid on a train? He had just hopped on, and has already suffered his first injury. Most likely the first of many.

 

Sighing, he began to think about this little roller coaster he was on. He didn't know what, but something was odd about this "school" he was going to. For one, they haven't given him a location to go to. Instead, he had to blindly hop onto a train, then from there to some island in the middle of nowhere. It could be that the school was willing to pay for the trip, but they should have given him an option. Why the secrecy? It would be much easier to just give him the location and have him fly there himself.

 

Of course, if he had any money. "There we go." The male butler said, quite proud of the white strips of cloth that held my hand in a tight bond. Jason replied sarcastically, "Yeah. Thanks." A slight frown, the assistant exited the bathroom, allowing for Jason to stand up and move out. Looking down at the sleeping quarters, a flutter of men and women worked, attempting to clean up the mess which was the acid-filled room that was conveniently located next to his. The assistants worked in the area carefully, each dressed in a large white suit with splash goggles, heavy-duty gloves, and more equipment of the sorts. Man... it almost looks like they prepared for something like this to happen...

 

Jason's thoughts were interrupted by a small cough, the man in the suit staring at him. "Like I said." He repeated, obviously a tad annoyed. "Shall we go to the dining cart?" Jason did feel a tad hungry, and the quiet rumbling in his stomach confirmed his thoughts. He gave the butler a sly smile, and said, "Sure. Let's get something to eat."

[Flicker Sweet 3,391]

"Dinner will now be served" The lady said. Everyone began to walk into the next cart, Red tried to stand up and follow, but he failed. He tried to take a step, but it was to big and the shackles caught his ankle, his weight propelled him forward, then gravity yanked him downward. He tried to catch himself but his arms were cuffed with chains going around his body.

"Hey! Men in Black wannabes, little help here?" Red yelled, he noticed he was using his voice that he would use during ROTC.........it was beyond loud, it was the maximum volume a human could possibly reach without artificial amplification. A man came, picked him up and began carrying Red to the next car, "Could you do me a favor and set me next to where that 'Luce' girl is sitting please?" The man obliged silently.

Red was set down in a chair next to Luce, "Hey, um," Red stammered, "Heard you had some kind of accident." Red felt extremely vulnerable at the moment; if he wasn't careful, he could easily offend this girl and piss her off. A fight right now, like before, was a very bad idea due to Red being fully restrained of his primary motor functions. "Are you alright? I'm Nick......or you could call me Red if you prefer......"

[THE WILD HUNT 213]

Ajax silently headed to the train's dining hall, still thinking about all the conjectures he had made and trying to piece them all together.

"And there's also the fact that all of us here seem to be hiding something. I don't think he anxiety is just derived from going to a new place," he thought as he sat down in a corner at the table. As he waited for the food to be served, he saw the awkward musician that had been bound a while ago sit down next to Luce. Ajax then did a mental facepalm as Red started engaging in a conversation with Luce.

"Bad idea there," he said to himself as he began to look at the others walk into the room. He wondered what would be for dinner.

"Hopefully something good like steak or fish. Frigging love steak..." he said to himself as he began to draw random things in a small notepad he had brought, just in case things were boring. He began drawing a fruit... then he added fangs and other weird features to make it into a demonic looking fruit.

"Why do I draw this crap?" he laughed as he put it away. From the corner of his eye, an apple looking thing rolled out of a corner and stopped next to him.

"Uh..." he said as he tried to kick away. He slightly jumped as it bit down on his shin, drawing blood. It vanished shortly after, leaving Ajax with a bloody shin. He crossed his legs over each other, trying to hide anything that could give away he was injured.

"Ketchup, that's a good excuse..."

 

(Don't ask why I decided to have a demonic fruit. I've had demonic fruit on my mind for a while now xD.)

[Toothless the Night Fury 260]

Entering the dining room, his left hand in his jeans pocket, he scanned the dining cart. All of the seats were either full, or required to sit next to someone. Great.. Jason mumbled to himself, as he searched for someone who he wouldn't have an entirely awkward conversation with. He saw one kid hog-tied as he tried to make casual conversation with...

 

The blonde. The one who was dragged away earlier. Jason, breaking eye contact with her, took a second glance, just to make sure. He soon confirmed that it was her, the blonde hair, now tied up, unmistakable. That face, even though the make-up have been removed, a perfect match. Jason made a mental note to talk to her later, and soon sat down next to a kid near his height with a small notebook in his hands. Some disorganized scribbles lined the paper, but he could make out a few drawing sketches in the mess of pencil lines and erase marks.

 

Seeing that this he was the closest Jason was going to get to having a decent conversation, he sat down next to him, greeting him with a casual, "Hi there." A small red liquid stained the bottom of his pants, which was when Jason asked, "Got some ketchup on your pants there?"

Edited October 26, 2012 by Toothless the Night Fury

[Apollo 297]

*Sasha sat down next to Olivia in the train's dining area. She looked around, seeing bits of coversation going on here and there, most notably, Red attempting to converse with Luce. Sasha rolled her eyes and took a black box out of her leather jacket's pocket. She set it down on the table and opened it up, revealing a set of metal pieces in various shapes, some of them gold or silver, some with gems embedded into them. She began picking up a few of the pieces and attempting to fit them together in various ways. It was a puzzle her senior year art teacher had given her as a graduation present. An old japenese puzzle, that when completed, became a pendant that was said to bring great luck and fortune upon its wearer. Sasha had been attempting to solve it nearly constantly throughout the summer to no avail. It really stressed her out sometimes, but in a good way. It took her mind off of bigger issues and gave her an objective, a goal to achieve that may come with a fairly valuable reward. And she always loved a good challenge. It was just a part of who she was.

[THE WILD HUNT 213]

Ajax's eyes widened as he saw the nervous, hoodied kid from the train station sit down next to him. Regaining his usual composure, he looked towards him and made eye contact.

"Yes actually, tried to steal a bite from the kitchen and spilled some on me when I made a run for it," he lied, but sounding extremely truthful. "So, your name would be what?" he asked as he extended his hand for a formal handshake. "My name's Ajax by the way."

He gestured to the area around him. "Quite the treat huh? Its about time something distinguished recognized me," he said proudly. "I've grown bored of the... usual system I've... gone to lately, I hope this will expand my horizons and challenge me more than the other things," he said as he looked to the corner. With no idea how, the fruit was still there, sitting with a seemingly sarcastic smile on its... face.

"You gotta be fricking kidding me," Ajax thought as he turned his attention back to Jason.

"Anyway, how about that little men in black scene from a while ago. I bet some cosmetics exploded up there!" he whispered sarcastically.

[Toothless the Night Fury 260]

Ajax seemed pretty honest when he told him that he tried to take a bite from the kitchen. But despite the fact that all these people WERE going to serve them in a few short minutes, and that stealing wouldn't really benefit him much, he let it go. When the teen asked him what his name was, he hesitated a quick moment, almost pulling out his bandaged left hand to shake him with, which would be a tad awkward to explain.

 

Shaking Ajax's hand with his right, he responded, "Jaaasooooon! Jason. It's... a pleasure meeting you." He hasn't been entirely social when he lived back in the foster home, so it was a tad awkward for him. Nonetheless, he learned quickly. Who knows when one of these people could help him out in the long run.

 

Looking around at the luxury car that Ajax gestured to, he had to admit, it WAS a nice car. These people obviously had a lot of money. "I suppose it has it's advantages... and it's disadvantages." He finished up. "Don't you think this place is a bit... odd? Like how they already know all of our names? And why they're treating us all so well? Not degrading myself, but I didn't exactly do the best in my school. Don't know why these people would want me here."

 

As he spoke about the acid accident in the backroom, Jason slipped his hand in a little further in his pocket, hiding it away from the rest of the group. "Actually... I think it was an acid spill. But it's strange. After it happened, a ton of those guys brought out some acid-cleaning gear. As if they were preparing for it..." He did sound a bit paranoid now that he was repeating his thoughts. Maybe they had an acid-container and they kept the gear to clean it up. And they stored it in someone's sleeping car. With someone in it.

 

"After dinner, I might go "exploring" the train a little." He says to Ajax, feeling a tad suspicious of the people around him.

Edited October 26, 2012 by Toothless the Night Fury

[THE WILD HUNT 213]

"A pleasure meeting you as well," Ajax said to Jason. "Funny, we both bear the names of famous Greek heroes! You interested in that type of literature by the way?" he asked as he looked towards Luce. Despite the enormous amounts of perfume that still lingered on her, she smelt strangely like the same acrid smell that had risen earlier in the train.

"I do agree with you that some things are a bit off, especially some annoying things that keep rolling around the place," he said as he 'accidentally' knocked a pot over on the demonic fruit.

"Woops, hope that wasn't expensive," he said as apologetically as he could to one of the train attendants. "But yeah, I know it was something acid based judging by the smell, and I don't think guards would be needed if something big weren't going on or at the very least about to go on," he said as he wiped the 'ketchup' off his shin.

"I figured I wasn't the only one who was going to be poking around here," Ajax said. "Wouldn't reckon you'd want to tag along or something, we can watch each other's backs in case the MIB wannabes are still prowling around."

[Toothless the Night Fury 260]

Jason chuckles, finding a fellow reader on the train. This might not be as bad as he thought. "I've read a couple stories about the two. But I'm more into fantasy. Chronicles of Narnia, How To Train Your Dragon, and more of the sort. I've always had sort of a weak spot for those types of stories. Kinda makes me feel... distant. Away from reality." Away from his curse...

 

As he watched Ajax continue his war with the Apple of Eden, Jason began to question the sanity of this person he was starting to know. Maybe he had OCD, or some other mental disease. Oh well. You can't have 'em all, right? Jason watched the pot "fall over" and crash upon the ground, making a loud noise. The attendants, apparently becoming very annoyed with the kids they were watching, sighed, and went to go clean it up.

 

Jason had a small trace of a smile on his face. He was glad that he found someone who he could trust, even though it was only for a few minutes. Might as well go with him. They would be stronger together, even if they are just a couple of kids. Only... he had his fire manipulation. He supposed he could defend the two if he needed, but it was very inaccurate. If he slipped into a rage, everything in his path will burn.

 

And he has a good reputation for burning.

 

"Sure. I'll stick with you, at least until we get to the school." He finished, then turned to watch the butler clean up the mess in front of him.

Edited October 26, 2012 by Toothless the Night Fury

[THE WILD HUNT 213]

"Yeah just... ignore the thingamajig under the broken pot," Ajax said to Jason. He hoped he hadn't seen the razor sharp teeth the fruit bore, because either Ajax will be discovered for what he could do or the other person will question his mental stability.

"Well that wouldn't be the first time something like that happened," Ajax thought as he began to remember something from his past. A group of people standing opposite to him were surrounded by large snakes, but that was all he could see before the memory strangely slipped away. Shaking his head, he turned back to Jason.

"Fantasy eh? I like that type of stuff too. Ever read the book series Dragons in Our Midst? Best fricking series I've read in the fantasy genre!"

Ajax looked back to the attendants, suddenly aware they were risking their fingers. To his relief, the evil fruit had vanished, hopefully back to its rightful realm.

"Anyways, yeah, sounds good. After dinner is a good time as people would be sleepy after a heavy meal."

Ajax noticed that Jason had become worried about something once more. The air around him also felt rather warm, but he disregarded it as the body heat of people affecting the closely packed room.

"How interesting," he thought to himself as he tried to recall the lost vision.

[Toothless the Night Fury 260]

Jason chose the later of the two events, believing that Ajax may have lost a few of his marbles before the trip. Jason has seen some pretty crazy stuff in his life, but nothing like the teen next to him could conjure. Ignoring the fact that he may be a bit nuts, he looked out the train window, seeing the tall trees fly past as the train sped through what looked like a small forest, the trees seemingly as high as the sky itself.

 

When Ajax mentioned the Dragons in Our Midst series, it sparkled a tad of interest. "No... I don't think I have." Frowning, he asked, "Happen to have one of the books on you? I could use something to distract myself on the long train ride."

 

He wished the stars were out, instead of the blazing sun. Technically, his element of Fire called for the sun, for it's warming rays and godly power. But he wasn't Fire. He never wanted to embrace that elment because all it gave him was rage and anger. He could never control it. Consequencly, Jason became a nocturnal person, sitting outside in the cold night air as he watched the distant balls of fire, millions of miles away from where he saw them.

 

Instead, it was the early morning, the sun just barely rising up over the horizon. Why did it have to be so hot? Why couldn't it be night time already? Jason began to tense up, a warm heat building in his chest. Take it easy Jason... Just one step at a time... He thought, taking a few deep breaths from his anger mangement classes afterschool.

 

To occupy his mind, he began to make a few sketches on the napkin on the table, drawing out the first thing that came to mind. A moon. He then followed up on the details. A dark sky dotted with vivid stars, two clouds on the opposite side of the picture, looking like the two were reaching out to touch each other, a lake, the lunar moonlight reflecting upon the dark void of water...

 

What else? Jason began to think, then drew a small hill overlooking the lake, the moon reflected in the dark void, with the sky above it. Finishing it up with a tree, he then drew a person sitting under it, holding a brown notebook, with a pencil in hand.

Edited October 26, 2012 by Toothless the Night Fury

[Mephala 2,633]

Luce didn't reply to Red but moved her hand. He was removed from the seat next to her so that she had two empty spots next to her, and seated across on the other side of the table. She just stared at the tablecloth as though it was the most interesting thing she'd seen. Most of the fight had evidently gone out of her, and lingering by the door near her were two guards.

She stirred the first course, a salad, half-heartedly on her plate. After the earlier ordeal she had gone through, she had lost most of her appetite.

She looked up and across the table and saw Thalia eyeing her carefully, a glint of white beneath her left bangs narrowing as Luce watched.

That's when the vision hit again.

 

Woodchips between her bare toes.

Misty heavy breathing.

Hand on her shoulder, turning her around-

 

It stopped and Luce fell backwards, slamming her head against the wall.

Ms. Frey stood up from the head of the table and rushed to her, muttering a few things to the guards, who then nodded and helped Luce back into her chair.

Luce, though she kept a stiff upper lip, was mortified ans Ms. Frey put a hand on her shoulder as she spoke.

 

"Well, a few of you appear to have gotten to know one another, but I think an introduction is in order for those who haven't yet had the chance." She gestured to Luce. "Let's start over here."

 

Luce licked her lips and lifted her head, blinking at everyone from eyes so blue they were nearly white. "Luce Bolton," she said dryly her voice cracking slightly.

 

Thalia hadn't known her eye could do things like that, and she was surprised at the reaction she had gotten from Luce. Everyone was looking at her expectantly, and, realizing it was her turn, she bobbed her head. "Thalia Evans," she said clearly with a small half smile.

Edited October 26, 2012 by Raindancer

[Artemisia 166]

Keren wandered into the dining car behind everybody else, everybody seemed to be talking to eachother but she had not met anyone to talk to so she just stood there, as two of the other girls introduced themselves, Luce and Thalia, she realized that it was her turn to introduce herself. She mustered up her courage and as she shook in her boots finally spoke to the group, "

"Uh...Hi. I am Keren Jay."

She said nervously still then turned her head to the next person expecting them to speak up and introduce themselves.

 

As she looked around the room she saw all sorts of different people, from the prim Luce who seemed disturbed by something to the cool and collected Thalia who spoke without a waver in her voice. The others in the room who had yet to introduce themselves also seemed to be of a wide variety, they all seemed involved in what they were doing and did not seem to notice her. Not knowing where to sit Keren freaked out and flattened herself against a wall wishing that she could just blend in like a chameleon and not have to deal with other people.

[Flicker Sweet 3,391]

Red didn't bother introducing himself. Any one who had been paying attention at this point would have noted that he had been moved, but somehow he ended up right next to Luce again. Frustration took hold as he said, "Excuse me! I asked if you were alright!" He then looked around, not really noticing anyone else in the room, "Is she deaf? If she is come undo my hands! I know Sign Language!" He turned back to Luce, "Seriously, does anyone, other than me, even CARE that something happened to her?"

Red felt his anger beginning to take hold of him. He tugged and yanked at the restraints, "I DON'T APPRECIATE BEING IGNORED YOU KNOW!!!!!" He was sounding off (AKA using his ROTC voice) again, "IF YOU GOT A PROBLEM JUST SAY IT! I CAN'T READ YOUR GODDAMN MIND!!!!!!! NOW I AM GOING TO TRY THIS AGAIN, AND YOU ARE GOING TO ANSWER ME!" He barked at her like he was an NCO training an arrogant cadet, "ARE YOU OKAY? I HEARD YOU WERE INVOLVED IN SOME SORT OF INCIDENT! DID YOU GET INJURED? DID SOMEONE ELSE GET INJURED? ARE YOU OKAY?" Red felt the back of his throat vibrating from the stress of sounding off for more than a few seconds at a time. When he finished his sentence, he found himself panting and looking around the room, finally noticing that there were, in fact, other human being in the room with him and Luce. "WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU GUYS LOOKING AT?!" He screamed at them.

[Mephala 2,633]

Luce looked at him coldly.

She then stood up, and before anyone could stop her, slapped him hard across the face.

There was a few moments of silence and Luce began to speak in a horrible voice.

"Have you ever considered that I don't feel like talking right now?" she snarled angrily, and the jug on the table suddenly began to dissolve as the water inside of it turned to acid. All the beverages in front of the students also began to turn to acid ans she squeezed her fists.

Before anything else could happen, Luce was tackled by a guard, and anything the acid had touched was hurriedly removed. Luce punched the guard in the face, and he screamed as his face was consumed with burns.

"Let go of me, you pig!" she spat as she kicked his writhing form and turned to face Red.

Her hand suddenly began to morph as it had earlier, turning a sickening green colour and becoming almost liquid-like. She then slapped Red again. This time a chemical burn also appeared across his face, and the guards hurried to save him before she could do anything else.

It was total chaos until Olivia hit her over the head with a chair.

Breathing heavily, she looked at the prone form in front of her and then straight into the shocked face of Ms. Frey.

"What. The. Hell."

That was when a guard jabbed a needle in her back. Others repeated this on the students until they were all unconcious.

Ms. Frey looked at them sadly. "Wipe them."

 

When Olivia woke up she was in her bed on the train. She remembered nothing that had ahppened, but something was bothering her. She tiptoed into the hall and opened another door-Thalia was still asleep. Shrugging, she returned to her room and sat on her bed, staring out the window.

 

(You have all been brainwashed. None of you have any recollection of the event, no matter what.)

Edited October 27, 2012 by Raindancer

[Apollo 297]

*Sasha looked up from her puzzle to see the ongoing chaos erupt and saw a splash of noxious looking liquid flying at her.*

(Well shit.)

*Sasha held up her hand and something blocked the liquid as her eyes glowed white for a second and the liquid slipped onto the table. Sasha lowered her hand to see Olivia standing over Luce with a chair in her hands.*

"Da fuq?"

*Sasha said. She carefully put the pieces of the puzzle back into its box and slipped it back into her pocket.*

(Well Sasha, looks like you've stumbled onto something a bit over your head.)

*She looked over and saw the guards dealing with a burned Red. Sasha turned her head to Ms. Frey. She looked startled and a bit uncomfortable. Thats when Sasha felt a sudden stinging pain in her back and fell over onto the table unconscious. When she awoke, she was back in her room. She felt groggy and very out of it, but could not recall what had happened. Sasha felt her jacket pocket, the box containing her puzzle was still there. She sighed in relief. The puzzle was one of her most valued possessions, and if she lost it, she would never forgive herself. She stood up and walked over to the door of her room on the train, checking to see if she could lock it. She could, and after locking said door, she walked back over to her bed where her suitcase lay. She popped it open and searched through the jumbled contents before pulling out a pair of pajama pants. She took off her jacket and changed from her jeans into the pajama pants. Then storing her jeans back into the suitcase, closing it up again, and setting it on the floor, she laid down on the soft bed trying to recall what had happened at dinner. As hard as she thought, she could not get her mind off of one singular topic. The boy who had introduced himself as Jason Damon. Just thinking about him made her blush, but she had no idea why. She had never felt this way about her previous and first boyfriend. Why would this happen when thinking about some boy she had never met before? Sasha sat up and put a hand on the yin yang tattoo on the back of her left shoulder.*

(What the hell is going on here?)

Edited October 27, 2012 by David Tennant

[Flicker Sweet 3,391]

"WELL EXCUUUUUSE THE FUCK OUT OF ME FOR TRYING TO BE CONSIDERATE OF YOU! YOU FUCKING BI-"

Red felt an immense surge of anger coursing through him. As soon as he felt her hand make contact, his kidneys jumped as they released adrenaline and endorphins into his body. Red could hardly contain his emotions and it showed on his face. He began to tighten his fists, he wanted to grab hold of her this very instant and punch her nose until it came flying out the other side of her head. The splash of acid severely weakened the restraints. The chains split apart when Red stood up, freeing his legs. He immediately began walking directly towards Luce, ready for action, when suddenly she dropped to the floor revealing Olivia behind her, holding a chair. Red halted, still poised to fight, and looked at Olivia, then the chair, then back at the unconscious Luce. He gave a simple nod to Olivia as a sort of thanks, not that he expected she'd understand it, then he spit at Luce, saliva landing an inch away from her face. "Excuse me," he said, trying to savor this brief moment of rational thinking, "I need to step into the other room for a while." He then began to make way for the door, dragging broken chains at his ankles.....