Soul Academy RP

The demon screamed, which was probably more terrifying than the roar, and flailed in the fire. It must have caught Jason in its flailing, because the next thing I knew, he was on the ground a few feet away. My ribs were throbbing, as well as my arm, and I tried to stand up.

I swung my sword at the demon, but because of my arm, I missed, and was sent flying into a wall, a plume of dust and ash flying up around me.

So, in the history of bad ideas.......this whole day, ranked as the top of the list. The demon had kicked me away, and that just hurt even more. I had bitten my tongue, and I tasted blood as I lay there on the ground, unable to move from the pain. Granted I could still feel and wiggle my toes so that was a good sign I suppose. I also felt like ice, from the fire I used. And still the demon was standing. We were going to die, weren't we? All of us, and it made me.....mad. So much so that I grabbed my soul, still intending to fight somehow. There was no strength to lift myself up, but just enough to lift the sword, and angle it a bit. If I was going to die, then I might as well go all out. And even if it did nothing, then at least I'd be so cold I'd make the demon's tongue stick to me as it tried to eat me. With that said, I reached for whatever heat was left, and let loose one last bolt of fire right at the demon's head. Then.....then things kinda went a bit fuzzy.

Nick jumped from the dust, having fallen into the adjacent building, and attacked the demon from behind. He leapt upon its back, stabbing it as he went and then, as the demon flailed, he jumped off it's back through the hole in the ceiling and onto the roof of the building.

The demon avoided the fire, mostly due to it trying to kill its new attacker, and turned towards Jason, obviously intent on killing him.

"You're all pathetic," Said a girl dressed all in black, a large hood covering her head, "Getting beat by this," She dropped down from the rooftop she was sitting on, the taller one, and landed on the ground with a quiet thud. In her hand she had a katana, and on her waist was a black saya, "You three, on the ground, you should've killed this thing easily, there are three of you," She continued, "And you in the building, hiding. That attack should've been the last one," She laughed, swinging her sword around in her hand. "If this is what the next generation of Angels can do, I'm a little worried for your towns,"

I could hear someone talking......but maybe it was the demon, it was so unintelligible. Hell the demon could have been doing interpretive dance moves in a pink tutu and I wouldn't have noticed. Besides, I was too busy shivering, like I had been dipped into a frozen lake. The only sound that came from me was the sound of my teeth chattering away.

Nick whispered to himself, "Bold words for one of the Fallen" without taking his eyes off the demon, he crept along the roof top.

The girl shook her head as the demon charged at her, and sidestepped it, almost lazily, and flicked her sword at it, a flash of dark red appearing on the blade and its side.
"Really, this isn't even a challenge," She said, a shard of ice trapping the demons legs as it stumbled, "Even you Malakhim should've managed to kill this," -two more shards trapped its arms, and she smiled, her mouth and nose just visible under her hood.

The demon was obviously in pain, the shards of ice dripping with blood. "It's pretty funny, how you all tracked this thing down, thinking you could kill it. That's pretty arrogant, actually," She shrugged, and beheaded the trapped demon. "This was barely worth killing," She said, sounding slightly disappointed, "Oh, and tell your Archangel that the last two who came here won't be coming back," She added, and turned to leave.

I felt warm enough that I managed to stop shaking, but still too weak to try and get up. All I could do was say "Wait," as I shifted a little on the ground. And for some reason.....that voice sounded familiar.

She stopped and looked over her shoulder, "You're not going to try and stop me, are you?" She asked sarcastically, "You should hurry up and run back to school,"

Like I could move in the first place. "Save us.....only to leave us to die?" I asked them, and it was clear they were female.....unless it was a very feminine guy.

=finally makes to the area and stops seeing the woman in black and instinctively draws her soul and gets into a combat stance=

who are you and what are you doing here?

She was about to answer Jason, before being interrupted by the girl, "Put the knife away before you get hurt," She said, and turned her attention back to Jason, "There's your answer. She can drag you back. Besides, I'd get executed if your Angels managed to catch me,"

Suddenly, the familiarity of her voice just made me blurt something out. "Why.....why do you sound so familiar?" I asked.

"How should I know?" She asked, beginning to walk back in the direction she came from, "Try to show a little gratitude, I could've let you die,"

"Why save us anyway?" I asked them.

"I have nothing better to do, it's not like you Angels have tried to kill me this week," She sighed, "You have a lot of questions for someone who was dying a few minutes ago,"

=stands her ground and watches the woman start leaving and doesn't risk starting a fight while thinking to herself=

never take on someone with more experience then yourself

More and more warmth came rushing back.....along with the pain of my injuries yet still I spoke. "What, this?" I said through gritted teeth. "Tis but a flesh wound."

"The 'Black Knight' act only works when you're not on the ground," She smirked, "But the sword fits it though, too bad Angels don't wear black,"

"I'll be sure to make it my thing," was all I said before I finally fainted, the exhaustion of the day finally hitting me, my head falling to the floor with a faint grin.

"You'll want to get your friends to the wall, or find help," She said to Ashiri, "See if those two are still awake, they might be able to help," With that, she climbed the broken building she had dropped down from, and vanished over the top.

Nick jumped down from his position. "Well, I'm certainly not going to scold you, because I know you will get plenty of that when you get back to Sanctum, so, congrats! you survived your first demon encounter. How 'bout that?"

Nick walked over to the dead demon. He drops to one knee and begins to study the fallen foe.

Rei frowned. That aura.
Crawling to Lily, she collapsed, her head laying on Lily's stomach.
"Worst. Idea. Ever."

-After some time-

I had returned to the academy pondering what that girl's reason for being on the train, my grandpa said I was a curious one, so I thought to change my minds subject. It had been quite an eventful day for me at the marketplace. The weather was calm and the people were vibrant. I had gotten what I came for and more, like this small radio-alarm clock for example. Even though I didn't need one I thought it would add some volume to my otherwise bland room. Not much caught my eye there, well other than the bookstore I found myself in. It had many fascinating reads, one of which was a very detailed book on demons, much more detailed than the ones we received at the academy. While the one at the academy was all about where they came from and how the angels fought against them, this one had more study into the aspect of them, their anatomy, their history and what they use to be, culture. It even had little side notes, probably from the original owner, and a note section in the back where they wrote their ideas and theories. This is why I loved hand me down book stores, such finds like this "Herbology of Survival," and "Arts of the Hidden World." As I took some time placing the items I had obtained in their rightful places in my room I tried to remember if I had to do anything for next class.

*Sigh*

"Time to study."

--Elsewhere--

-Rin-

The train I was on had left Koga a while ago, and I could already tell we were arriving at Sanctum. I hoped that I would still be able to get into the school, enrolled in my classes and even with a room this far into the school year, despite assurances that everything would be fine. In all honesty I was more worried about Shizune, my friend back home; before I had left, she had been attacked by our perverted classmate Shen, for which I promptly beat him to a bloody pulp. Odds were good that she'd be fine, but still I was allowed to worry about her. Looking out the window, I could see it was getting late, the sun already set and darkness coating the world outside. Hell I could see my own reflection in the glass of the window, the light of the compartment illuminating my features; a girl, pale of skin but with brown hair tied back into a tail, and with light blue eyes stared back at me. I smirked at my own reflection, and wondered if the clothes I wore were okay. To all the world, I'd probably look like a tomboy, donning a red t-shirt and blue jeans, a leather jacket over the shirt. It just seemed like the practical thing to wear, since it was a bit chilly when I left and it still freed up enough of my own movement to fight if the need arose.

As the train came to a stop, I rose from my seat and grabbed my backpack and the handle to my suitcase, and prepared to leave for Sanctum.

24 Hours Later

I sat outside the Archangels office, in a hard wooden chair. I'd already been chastised by every Angel here, but the Archangel hadn't seen me yet. I also hadn't seen Rei or Jason since the fight, seeing as my arm had needed stitching. I had some pretty bad bruising on my ribs, and my arm was now bandaged and in a sling. It still hurt to move my shoulder, which I was apparently lucky to have not broken.

I'd been interrogated by two Dominion angels, after telling them it was my idea, at the Archangels orders, and told them everything from finding the demon, to the Fallen Angel, which had caused some visible worry on their faces.

=was sitting on a bench thinking to herself=

what if they're ok after what happened

Rei was still in the infirmary. Her ribs were pretty cracked, and by that, she was still healing.
It hurt. Badly.

-Jason-

So after we had gotten back to the school (the story of how we got back was certainly an amusing one that I won't be sharing) we had landed ourselves in a large bit of trouble. Thankfully, it wasn't large enough that we were refused medical care, and I was in the same boat as Rei: in the infirmary, and wrapped up in so many bandages that I almost looked like a mummy. Being doped up on painkillers had it's advantages too, since none of the other angels bothered to ask me anything while I was recovering. I wasn't alone, since unlike the dorms the infirmary was coed, and Rei had a bed nearby. But.......I was still too doped up to really say anything. Hell all I was able to do was giggle now and then.

-Rin-

After I had arrived at Sanctum, someone from the faculty had shown me to my room. It was actually a decent room, and the bed was nice. I only had enough time to put my stuff away before I needed to sleep though, so it wasn't like I had the chance to look around, but I really looked forward to it. Waking up early the next day, I went to take a shower and was glad to see I was up so early that no one else was in the showers. Good, I was planning on staying a secret until my own choosing. Drying up, I returned to my room and got dressed, and looked over the list of classes on my desk.

=gets up from the bench and walks around while thinking to herself=

wonder if there's anything to do or not

I heard my name, and looked up to see the Archangels door open. Assuming he'd called me, I stood up and walked into the office.
"Lily Ito," He said, looking at me from behind his desk, which was covered in neatly organised files, "You've no doubt been told how reckless, dangerous, and in some cases stupid, what you've done is?"
I nodded silently, several teachers had said as much, "And you understand that you, Thorne and Sizuke are incredibly lucky to be alive?" Again, I nodded silently, having nothing that I could say in my defense. "However," He continued, "You showed initiative in finding the demon in the first place," He smiled at me, it was a friendly one, and it went well with his youngish appearance and light brown hair.

"I've read over what you told the two Dominion that spoke with you," He said again, after a minute, taking out a transcript of the conversation, "You say that you were saved by a Fallen Angel?" He raised and eyebrow at me,
"Yes," I answered, unsure why he was asking this; I'd already told the story.
"And her soul created large shards of ice?" He asked, to which I replied with a nod, "Did any of you see her face?"

I shook my head, I hadn't, but one of the others might have, "I didn't, but she was speaking to Jason for a few minutes after she killed the demon," I said.
"I think I'll have to visit Mr. Thorne then, and hear his version of events," He sighed, suddenly looking tired, "You can go now, please don't put yourself in other life threatening situations,"

-Jason-

What was odd, was how no one had actually tried to restrain me. Maybe they figured I'd be too doped up to move, or maybe they thought I'd be too injured to try, I don't know. In truth, I could move since while I was bruised to hell and yes maybe even cracked a few things, nothing was broken, at least according to the doctors. And I don't know why......but they left my soul close by. Now don't get me wrong, I was in no condition to get up and walk all the way back to my room......but get up and grab a seat by Rei, my friend's bed.....yeah, that was doable. With a few grunts, I managed to get out of the bed, (though those damned needle things were still in my arm) grabbed my soul, and walked to Rei's bed, the pole the tubes linked to my arm were attached to being dragged behind me on its wheels. There was a free chair, and I sat down, leaning back as I kept my soul in my lap, one hand on the handle. There was a chance I'd drift off to sleep.....but at least I knew I was close by to defend my friend.

-Nick-

I sat in the shower. Cold water fell from the faucet. I had goosebumps all over my body. I was freezing. My Soul, the twin pugio, were in my hands. My long hair hung in front of my face, heavy with water.

I sat in the cold stream, meditating on the events that happened the day before. My fingers drummed on the edges of the blades in sync. I went over the scene in my head, the size of the demon, its movement, how it attacked those younger students. Then my thoughts fell on the Fallen. The young girl with the magic and the ice ability. Cold spells mean cold personality, if it came to it, the possibility of working things out peacefully were slim. She would have to die eventually. She also used, what I could only assume to be, magic. There's no way the soul ability alone could kill the demon.

My mind went over the scenario again, and her words echoed in my head, "That attack should've been the last one..." I was infuriated by those words. Who is she too decide how he fights a demon?
She has no right. Gah, fuck her. My body shook in the shower, I was trembling, not because of the temperature, but because of my anger. Her words should not have gotten to me the way they did. I will show her. I thought to myself. I will grow in power and strength, and I will destroy her. My thoughts were dark and red.

I turned the temperature controls down to the coldest possible and sat back down on the floor. I needed to cool off.

-Jason-

Oddly enough, I did not in fact drift off to sleep. I was too busy thinking about the hooded figure, piecing together what I could remember. She was definitely a girl, unless she was in fact a very effeminate man. But my gut told me they were a girl. And shy apparently; the fact they were wearing a hood meant they didn't want anyone to see their face. Which would mean they didn't want to be recognized by us when we next met. I wasn't sure why I knew we would meet again, maybe it was just because the situation of how we met to begin with made me think that way. They were powerful, or at least very well skilled, to take down the demon on its own. Hell all I managed to do was give it a cut by its scrotum, while she on the other hand managed to take it down with fewer moves than me. And finally.....there was her voice. Something about it sounded strangely familiar, but I couldn't place why. It was an itching, nagging sensation in the back of my head that told me we had met before, but for all its desperation it couldn't put a name or face to the voice. So Jason could do little more than sigh, slump in the chair.....and be amused at how he was turning into a detective.

=decides to just pace around the school grounds=

wonder if they allowe visitors in the infirmary

Rei turned over, her blue eye shining weakly.
"Why sighing?" She asked softly.

"Oh hey, you're awake," I said. "Just.....thinking was all."

I walked back to my room, wanting to sleep a little; the stress of yesterday and my arm had made me feel extremely tired, even a little sick.

As Jason spoke, Archangel Gabriel walked into the infirmary, taking a quick, sweeping glance around the room before he spoke,
"Ah, Jason. You're awake," He said, "Good, can we talk for a moment?"

I blinked when I heard my name, and turned to see that it was the Archangel, Gabriel. I'd seen him only once, and that was during our introduction to the academy when he greeted us all. "Uh....sure. Just give me a moment." Grunting under the strain, I got to my feet, soul in one hand while the IV's still clung to my arm. I got my hand around the metal pole, and slowly walked over to the Archangel. "What is it......uh, sir?"

"You were with Lily yesterday, yes?" He said, it was a rhetorical question, "And you saw this Fallen Angel?" His eyes were narrowed as he spoke, he was clearly focused on the question and its answer.

"Saw her?" I said. "Sir, I didn't just see her, I spoke with her." Why was I being honest? I was already in enough trouble as it was. Lying to the man would only make things worse.

He sighed and lowered his gaze, obviously disappointed,
"That's... unfortunate," He said, "If what Lily described about the ice is accurate, then it was a Fallen Angel named Sariel. The fact that she has a biblical name alone is a warning to how dangerous she is, but she's responsible for several Angel deaths," He sighed again, much more loudly, "You are all incredibly lucky she didn't kill you,"

A Fallen Angel? That was.....worrying. But it didn't stop me from saying "Well frankly I'm just grateful she saved our lives.....though I've got no idea why. Or why she never showed her face." I frowned, looking away. "Sir.....there's something else."

He looked at Jason, raising an eyebrow,
"What is it?"

I arrived at my room, removed the sling my arm was in, and flopped onto the bed, my face buried in the pillow. I breathed heavily into it, my head was spinning and my body felt weak. I needed to sleep.

"Well sir, I was thinking about a few things from the encounter. Trying to make sense of some details. For starters, she saved us when she didn't have to. If she's a Fallen Angel, why save students of Sanctum? Second.....she was wearing a hood. All we had to identify her was her voice and her power, but it seemed she didn't want us knowing what she looked like. I don't know why, but.....that makes me feel she intends on meeting us again, and wants to surprise us in the process. And....there's her voice. I can't place it but I know I've heard her voice before from somewhere, and it's been nagging me ever since we got back."

He looked alarmed at once, his face now plastered with worry,
"The hood is easily explained, she always wears one. We have images of her, and security footage of her killing an angel, but in all of these videos, she wears a hood. But you say you recognised her voice? That is worrying. But you should try not to worry, there are two of our best angels hunting her, she'll be caught or killed,"

When he said that, that two of his angels were hunting her, it jogged something from my memory. h, and tell your Archangel that the last two who came here won't be coming back. That was what she said. Two angels. Last two. "Uh.....sir? She told me to tell you that the last two angels who came for her....won't be coming back. I think....I think she killed them."

The archangel's face darkened,
"I see... She's proud of that fact," He turned to leave, "That'll be all Jason, I think you should get some rest, if you remember anything else, then please don't hesitate to see me,"

"Sir...I hate to keep you, but there is one last thing." I stared right at the Archangel, into his eyes. "Why are Fallen Angels so much stronger? I know I'm just a student, and that I'm not as powerful as others......but what makes them stronger?"

"If I could answer that, they wouldn't be a threat, Jason," He stated, "It may have something to do with their methods, and remember that their leader was an Archangel, and he was much stronger than I am," He paused, "I've been told that deaths are quite regular during their training. While it may be barbaric, it works. They are taught to kill or be killed before they've even left their base, if they have one,"