Welcome to Death

Chaol shrugged his shoulders. "Well if you're sure about me picking, then why not work with these two? You said we'd work well with close range allies, claws are about as close range as you can get. Not only that, but the mission seems interesting, so I'm sure we could all come to some sort of agreement and partake. Training together though.." he said, giving a half-grin, "part of me is thinking that I'm not sure how we could train with others using the bow, but at the same time maybe this could be my chance to prove to you that the blades are useful too? I dunno, that one's your call" Chaol Arroway declared, mostly indifferent to how things progressed.

If he did work with others, how well would he be able to manage? He was a little concerned about that, but he didn't want to show it. The less Hannah had to worry about, the better. He'd been on very few team-orientated missions, and those that he did he'd had almost no contact with his partners...would this one be the same? He was just thankful that he'd been able to suppress his assassin instincts up until that point, and thankful that the environment they were in was relatively stress-free.​

 

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"Alright," Roderick said, putting his hands in his pockets as he walked out of the classroom towards the mission board. "So, tell me about yourself," He said as he walked.

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"Wait, you have blades on your bow?" Matthew said, staring at Hannah and feeling impressed. "That's so cool! And yeah, then we could totally train together, because if you have blades, your meister and I could like, try to attack each other and defend ourselves against each other, using Mikio and you. That makes more sense than training with arrows, because I wouldn't be able to do any ranged training with a gauntlet, and haha, all I'd be able to help you with is being a moving target, and I don't like the sound of that much." He laughed a little before turning back to them. "So yeah, if you have blades, we could actually spar a little bit, and that would be really fun!"

 

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Hannah had been smiling quite brightly at the prospect of working together with the other pair, they both seemed quite nice and this gave her an excuse to be able to talk to them. Having a good group of friends here almost seemed like a dream to her. She could actually do this, this was a good time to introduce herself and everything could go great...

Then her blades were mentioned and her smile dropped, then the blonde haired meister also joined in, getting enthusiastic about it and it was as much as she could do not to run away. "Um, um, I'm not so sure about this. Those are more like a decoration or a last resort, I'm not a close range weapon and I don't like this. Anyway you've not even shot a whole round yet, the target was really close and just that you've hit one gold doesn't mean you're proficient." Her breathing had got faster as she was clearly flustered.

"Um we could maybe do that a little but you're not turning me into a melee weapon. I think we should practice with me as I'm supposed to be used, first and foremost. I don't want to accidentally hit our new team mates because we didn't practice enough. I think we could support them a lot better as a ranged weapon than in close combat. I-is that okay?" She was shaking a little as she finished talking. The sheer prospect of being used in close combat terrified her. What if her string got cut or she got snapped in half? She knew that as a bow she could do well and she knew exactly what she was doing but this was completely outside of her comfort zone.

 

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Oh gosh, he'd said something wrong and she was clearly anxious now, and she shot his idea down so decidedly and firmly, he had to backtrack or she would probably think he wanted her to get hurt or something. "Oh, uh, s-sorry," He said quickly. "I didn't mean to make you nervous or something, we don't have to spar if you don't want to, I just thought it might be a good idea to get some practice in, just in case, like, if you had to fight someone close-by sometime, you'd be ready. Not- not that I think you're not ready, or, or that you'll definitely have to fight someone close-by, it was just an idea, I'm sure everything will be okay and you'll never have to fight anyone with your blades, so... sorry I brought it up... Er, we can still train together, right? You don't have to fight, I can just watch while you guys do your range practice, right?"

He blushed, feeling awkward and nervous now, as he waited for the girl to give her verdict. Would she still like him? Were they still going to be friends? Or had he messed it up somehow? Oh gosh this was exhausting and already so hard, why did he have to go and open his big mouth all the time? He needed to learn to talk less, he just kept annoying people and driving them away...

 

While Dana jumped a little at the sudden sound of doors closing, Zoey stood straight when she heard the door shut behind her and realized that they were trapped in a room."Well that didn't sound good..." She heard a door open and stood alert, instantly sliding into a defense position. Strange monsters came out of the wall and Zoey clenched her teeth together. "Ah man, this isn't our day. Then again..." She looked to Dana, who was kind of frozen with a giddy look on her face, and held out her hand. "Come on, real life training starts now," she declared, forcing a smirk on her face. "Change into your weapon, and let's kick some monster butt."

About a hundred thoughts were racing through Dana's mind as her Meister spoke, but one was more prominent than the others. This was her chance to prove to everyone that even a lazy weapon could make it, and to live out all those exploration movies she'd watched as a child. Heck, she was already living one of them! The very idea of it made her feel super energetic and confident, like she could take on the world.

"These mummies won't know what hit them!" Dana exclaimed with a slight giggle before she was engulfed in a light blue glow and transformed into her weapon form. "Tear them a new one Zoey, be the quarterstaff master meister" the girl encouraged, enjoying the situation a little too much. Perhaps she wasn't taking the mission as seriously as she should, but that sounded like something that required effort and effort was not something Dana was particularly fond of. Besides, they had the mission in the bag, it would be a piece of cake.....she tried not to drool at that last thought.

Zoey grinned as she grabbed Dana's weapon form, twirling the middle wooden part over her wrists with her hands. Her father, a former meister at the DWM, taught her staff form first before anything else. He wasn't going to let his daughter be so defenseless out in the world, not with this curse of a sickness in her eyes. Zoey twisted her wrist and grabbed Dana's handle, swinging it down to point at the enemy coming at her. She took a moment to feel the hum of their souls united in the same cause and inhaled deeply. "Here we go!" She charged forward, swinging Dana up and knocked a mummy down by the neck. She felt another slice at her with hands and kicked it in the stomach, using this to step on the enemy, knocking it to the ground as she practically walked up it. She twisted her body and flipped around, moving Dana's spear tip downward into a head of a mummy that was flailing forward with no direction. Taking the staff out of the head that was now unraveling, she landed with a thud, her arms and quarterstaff stretched out to balance her fall, and then gripped Dana tighter as she took just a second to hear the enemies and saw the orbs of their souls. "A few more to go, more are coming," she said under her breath.

"That's okay, more souls to eat later. I wonder what they taste like, I bet they're all slimy and gooey and....oh my god what if they're chocolate?" Dana asked with a quick squeal.​

 

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Looking around at the blonde guy, she seemed to have a look of intense thought on her face for a moment before suddenly smiling and saying to him, "Oh, um, hi? I'm Hannah by the way, what are your names?" Internally she was celebrating, she'd finally done it. She'd introduced herself to them and they could start talking, that was good. Taking a satisfied breath, she'd calmed down a fair amount now.

"I apologise but I am a long range weapon. I don't feel comfortable yet with anything too close but if we work successfully as I team, I shouldn't need to fight like that. I'm not going to force you to just watch as that halts your training but how about you just move your training to next to us? That way we will both be able to see each other and learn what the other can do, additionally the biggest part of teamwork is communication. We could work on that and talking to each other while we are doing out separate training." She suggested, trying to think through their options the best she possibly could.

After a pause, she added quietly, "I guess I could maybe try a bit of that if we feel comfortable with shooting but ughh go easy on me?" She had a feeling she might regret saying that but she knew deep down that what he suggested was a good idea even if it terrified her.

 

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...What?

Matthew blinked at Hannah, now feeling immensely confused at her sudden introduction. Was... Was he supposed to introduce himself now, then, too? He'd assumed these two had already known their names, since the meister had called them out as he walked up. Oh gosh, he didn't know the meister's name! He'd known Hannah's because the guy had said it a couple of times, but he didn't know the meister's name! He could practically hear his mother now, lecturing him about social etiquette and scolding him for his inexcusably rude manners. He hadn't asked the boy's name, and he hadn't introduced himself or Mikio when the two had arrived. Well... Better late than never.

"Um, well, my name is Matthew Loring, and this is my partner, Mikio Ticchi. It's very nice to meet you, Hannah, and... Erm, I'm sorry, but I didn't quite catch your name," he said to the meister, blushing and feeling incredibly aware of himself as he held his hand out to the boy. He was fidgeting with his free hand, why was he doing that? And he was slouching a little and his mother hated when he slouched. He stood a little straighter.

 

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Mikio listened carefully to the conversation, letting each party say their piece. It seemed like Hannah was concerned about practicing long-rang, and for her partner to hit moving targets. He looked up when his name was mentioned and waved a bit. "I-I have a suggestion," he stated, finally breaking out of his silence. "I-If you're comfortable with it, you guys can use arrows with those suction cup things at the end instead of the pointy things. A-and I'm sure they have some here that has the same balance of regular arrows. Or even ones with paint at the end of them? That way, M-Matthew can practice footwork and defense, while um..." he ducked his head and looked at the ground. "Th-this gentleman can practice hitting a moving target? Win-win..." He moved a bit more behind Matthew, feeling all embarrassed for making a suggestion like that. It was probably a very dumb idea cause it sounded like the miester didn't even practice enough to handle a bow properly in the first place.​

 

Chaol simply listened as the suggestions were put forth and introductions were made, and was about to respond to Matthew when Mikio spoke up. Truth be told, he'd been a little nervous about the idea of firing actual arrows, and though he had seen it as somewhat necessary he hadn't been sure if he could actually go through with it knowing others would be at risk.

"Arroway. Chaol Arroway" he answered at last, before looking at Mikio. "I like your idea. It gives me a much more realistic target to hit, while ensuring nobody comes to harm. The only problem I can identify with it is that Matthew won't be able to get much practice with being offensive with the claws if he's kept at a range. Perhaps we could alternate attacking and defending? Of course, while I'm on defensive I'll be simply practicing evasive maneuvers so it won't be a great deal of help, but it's better than nothing and I can promise you I'm much lighter on my feet than I look" Chaol suggested. He felt a little guilty for even suggesting the idea of close range combat earlier...how had he not picked up on Hannah's reluctancy sooner? He wouldn't make that mistake again if he could help it, that was for sure.​

 

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Relief filled Hannah as the other pair introduced themselves. She'd actually done it. She'd introduced herself and successfully found out their names. She really hoped this would lead to them all becoming good friends. She smiled and carefully listened to what everyone else said, thinking carefully about what it would be best to do.

"I have an idea! Why don't we make a game out of it? So we use arrows with either suction cups or paint on them and you guys start a reasonable distance away from us and have to come towards us. We win if an arrow touches Matthew, you win if Mikio touches Chaol. You are allowed to use Mikio to block or deflect arrows. Likewise I can be used to block Mikio. This should increase your dodging and reaction times. At the same time it should help Chaol's draw speed and firing under pressure. I still want a little bit of time beforehand to practice seperately though. I want to make sure Chaol's technique is all correct and he's comfortable with static targets before we start. Does that sound like a good idea? It means we can train together." She smiled enthusiastically as she explained her idea. She just wanted a way to help everyone and make it work better when they were together.

In truth, while she did like her idea she was a bit nervous. She mostly had added in the close combat bit for those two but that bit did still really scare her. Also she knew that suction cup arrows or ones with paint on would be heavier and less aerodynamic. That meant they wouldn't fly as well and how they went would be different to with actual arrows. That said soul wavelegnth arrows would probably also fly different to the wooden arrows. That said it was a good simulation for what it would be like in an actual battle where they have an enemy coming towards them. It should also improve their firing speed and she could hopefully still work on Chaol's technique.

 

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Matthew listened to the suggestions, getting more and more excited - until paint was mentioned. He shook his head hurriedly. "We can't use paint," he said. "My mother would have a fit if I came home with paint on my clothes." He glanced down at himself, distracted for a moment as he realized how rumpled his jacket was, and pursed his lips for a second, brushing at it with his hands, not that it did much. He sighed, but smiled back up at Hannah and Chaol. "But that's still a good idea, minus the paint. How about we all meet after class tomorrow to train together? And if it works out okay, maybe we could take that group mission after all."

 

Zoey chuckled, moving Dana behind her to get ready to leap as she took a minute to analyze the souls. "Chocolate covered souls, eh? I wish they acted sweeter." The meister waited til the last minute to jump in the air, using one hand to press down on a mummy head as she flipped over the group, making them crash into each other like bowling pins. She then landed, and began to dance in a rhythmic movement of defense and offense footwork, twisting and turning to an unheard song.

With each movement, Dana attempted to follow the rhythm herself and did a pretty good job of it. She couldn't help but be kind of thankful that she'd been paired with Zoey; Dana had a colossal ego, but there was no denying her meister was equally as skilled if not moreso.

As Zoey was moving so smoothy with Dana, Zoey felt something brush and tickle agianst her face. What ever it was, it became stuck to her and her blindfold and she flailed, raising her hand up to try to get it off of her. "UGH! Spider web!" Zoey guessed outloud. She stumbled and had barely enough time to look up. A clawed hand came down, and Zoey dodged rolled out of the way, only to be swiped at on the way down. Zoey felt searing pain through her right shoulder and grunted in agony, clutching onto the area where the monster struck.

Seeing her meister injured, Dana quickly moved herself into position to block the next strike coming for her. The impact hit her, but she held strong, a little surprised by how different it felt being hit as a weapon as opposed to being hit as a human. It was solid enough to feel, for sure, but she hadn't felt much pain whatsoever. "Come on Zoey we've got this, we can't let a little spider web stop me from becoming a death scythe. Besides, i'm hungry and wanna taste them souls" she encouraged. Her stomach would have surely been growling at that point were it not for the fact she didn't have a stomach right at that moment.

Zoey blinked when she saw the weapon floating and moving on its own in her werid vision. She stood up, ignoring the pain and grabbed Dana back, blocking another hit and then shoving the mummy away. How stupid was she to let one little thing slip and allowed it to ruin her rhythm.

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"That's it, hit it until it's dead.....re-dead....uh....dead again?" Dana questioned in a very confused tone. Sometimes she confused herself, this was one of those times, she always figured it was a case of her brain being too stupendous even for her to comprehend. "Hey Zoey do you think if I eat enough souls I'll get fat?" she asked with a slight giggle.

"No, I don't think you would get fat," Zoey said with a slight smile. She jabbed the spear into one mummy, and kicked another down. She spun around, blocking a mummy hand from swinging on her and then grunted when the hand grabbed the middle and pulled. Zoey pulled back, keeping a strong grip on Dana and digging her heels into the floor. "Yeah but nobody really KNOWS do they? I mean, has anyone ever asked a weapon? What if they- watch out, mummy on your left" Dana warned.

"Got it," Zoey ripped the quaterstaff out of the monster's hand, stepping back and blocking the upcoming one. She then spun around it and stabbed it from behind, then got the other one taken care of. "My dad helped collect souls for a weapon. I don't think they ever got fat." A gasp from Dana, followed quickly by "Maybe I can be the first!"

"First one to get fat you mean off of souls?" She stopped short, realizing there was nothing more to hit. She straightened, feeling all the dark energies in the room evaporate. "Huh... that was it?"

"Yeah! And it sure looks like it"​

 

Blake listened as Malik instructed her about soul wavelengths and matching them so that their movements are one. She closed her eyes and she patiently attempt to match Malik's soul wavelength. Meister and Weapon working together as one.........match their soul wavelengths so their movements can become one.........Breathe and find and match his soul wavelengths......Breathe.... Blake took deep breaths for a couple moments. While her eyes were still closed, she could see a soul in the distance. In an instant, she knew it was Malik's. She continued to breathe and eventually saw her soul. Blake had begun to try and match his wavelength.
On the outside, she could feel herself balancing herself as Malik instructed her to. As he moved her weapon form back and forth, up and down. She felt herself moving along his movements and even guiding him at times. Blake moved her weapon self around Malik's body and guiding him to left and right side of his body, spinning herself around. She continued this as she anticipated Malik's next movements, moving herself along with him. "Is this correct Malik? Is there anything I should improve on?" Blake continued to move up and down at different angles until Malik gave her criticisms for to improve from.

 

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"Thank you," Roderick smiled at Dr. Stein and looked down at the note they were handed. "Babier Thirdly Hen?" he said as they walked a little ways away from the desk. "If it's an anagram, that's pretty cool," he said. "But what is it an anagram of? A name? A place? And hmm, is each word its own anagram? Or do you think they're all mixed up together? Hmm..." He looked at it. If they were each of them separate anagrams, 'hen' wouldn't make sense, because they couldn't change those letters around and still spell a real word, at least, not in English. "I think they're all mixed up together," he sighed, turning to Zephyr. "That will make it a bit harder. What do you think?"

 

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Roderick frowned down at the note, moving to his desk and pulling a scrap of paper and a pencil out, starting to write out different letter combinations, until they started separating into words. "Sooo," he said, biting on the end of his pencil and frowning down at it. "One possibility is that the note says 'bribery,' 'handle,' and 'hit,' but I don't know what that means..." He let out a sigh, turning back to Zephyr. "Any ideas?"

 

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"No no no," Roderick sighed, frowning and running his hand through his hair as he thought. "No, this can't just be some random three words, it has to mean something altogether. It's gotta be some name, or some place or something. Some kinda clue about where he's gonna be next, if he's as cocky as the Professor says he is..." He kept writing different combinations and words, trying to figure it out...

Finally, after about a half hour at least and feeling a bit tired from trying to think, he stepped back. "It could be 'Behind the Library,'" he said to Zephyr. "I mean... I assume it would be some big, well-known library in London... We'd have to check several, though, and unless he's waiting around to see if anyone tries to catch him, there's no telling what we'd find... But, I guess, there's nothing left to do but go for it." He shrugged.

"So, let's go to London! If the library thing doesn't pan out, we could start compiling a list of bars that are there, to see if any names might match up with the anagram."