Ooc: I am not a good weapon designer.

Alice was momentarily stunned as she registered what she was seeing. She regained her composure and gripped the sword more tightly. Had Rachel sent her to do an exorcism? "It's a great honor to meet you, and I'd love to exchange pleasantries," she said. "but unfortunately I'm going to have to demand to know why you're trespassing on this realm."

Phora decided now was the time to make her move. She pounced at Alice's right leg and grabbed onto it. "Boo!" She said, but Alice ignored her, as Phora, in this tiny form, had never grasped the basics of hiding her spiritual presence from others.

Alice sent a massive amount of spiritual energy into Phora's body, and she began to transform in a flash of light. As the light dissapated, a beautiful adult Phora was still clutched onto Alice's leg. "Let us never speak of this," The embarrassed creature said. Standing up, she touched her master warmly on the shoulder. Then, she looked towards Albright and took on a more serious tone. "I will protect you," She said. "Ad Amar, Tempest Incarnate." A beautiful staff, engraved with images of swirling tornados and firestorms, topped with a large gray jewel, materialised in her outstretched hand.

She banged on the floor with the end of her staff, and wind began to spiral around her, and gusts began to concentrate within the crystal. "Alice is the finest warrior in this realm, and I am her guardian and servant, bound by blood and soul. State your business in this world."

Ooc: forgot this guy

This was an outlandish place to meditate, but Daniel expected something interesting to happen. He sat against the pool which contained the water and cleared his mind. Having practiced wicken and other spiritual things religiously in his youth, meditation was something he was familiar with. He breathed in and out through his nose, focusing on the feeling of the air flowing in and out. In and out. In and out. This went on for several minutes, until he realized he could feel everything around him with a sixth sense. It felt different than when he used his magical senses, it was as if he felt it internally rather than externally. Everything was a part of him. Each person seemed to act within him differently, and he could sense Alice overpowering everyone. The feeling scared him, so he opened his eyes and found himself in another realm. Time was flowing around him. The past and the future melded together, and when he tried to grasp a moment he got a tiny glimpse of the moment before it slipped away, however the past was easier to see then the future or another place in the present.

Looking up he saw an endless dark mass. Within it were bizarre creatures that swam about. There were bright lights in it too, which the creatures swallowed occasionally. The bottom of the mass was within reach, and he reached up and touched it. A huge amount of bizzare, wild energy filled him. Harnessing this energy he tried a few spells. Fires and lightning flew from his fingertips, with power and ease like he'd never experienced before.

It was then that he realized what he was doing. He was harnessing the power of the ether. The power of the ancient gods. The power of every soul that has ever existed.

Johnathan appreciated the simplicity of the barracks. The other buildings were decorated pretty impressively for the most part, but if this was treated the same way it might make it look less serious. But he wasn't here to gawk. If he could successfully master this ability, it would prove to be an invaluable asset to his personal mission. However, he learned the hard way: sometimes becoming stronger comes with a price. But not this time.

Why was I attracted to this exact spot instead the others? He wondered as he sat down. Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes and began to conjure up his energy.

_____
OOC: I'm assuming they already know how to fly.

How was this even happening? He knew this was just a flashback, but it felt so real. And now he was a griffin chick just like his "brothers". Was what happened here the source of his bitterness and hostility when Lloyd and Grayson first met? Looking over at his brothers, he gave a short nod with his eyes saying, Don't attempt to fight back, jump off and get far away from here as possible and wait until this blows over. It would be suicidal to fight back even though they outnumbered the harpy, since they were just chicks and he doubted they would stand even an inch of a chance.

Jumping backwards he leaped from the ledge opposite the direction his mother took and began flying upside down for a few seconds before twisting his body. He was fairly confident in his mother, since it was just a distraction he didn't think they would be that strong. He glanced back to see if his brothers had followed.

OOC: Lots of text incoming. Open at your discretion.

Maximilian's eyes opened widely followed by a deep a long exhalation of breath. He had never experienced something quite like that and for a moment he needed to take in and mull over what had just occurred. As he gathered his wits questions began to pool into Maximilian's head, like how was he capable of seeing such things through meditation and more importantly why was Evelyn the only person he could distinctively see? Nothing really seemed to add up to him but he desperately wanted answers to his questions and so he closed his eyes once more and began to meditate. If he were unable to instinctively understand the nature of his powers perhaps exploring them further would result in further clarity. If all else failed he would try to make contact with some of the other students in his meditative state, though he seemed certain that making any kind of contact would be futile in the end.

Just as before Maximilian entered his meditative state and wandered Apollon simply watching the signs of light move about him. Without any real direction he attempted to discern which light belonged to which person but he found that there was simply no way for him to do so and once more he turned his vision back towards the plaza, and Evelyn. It made no sense to him why he was able to see her and not the others. Was it because she too seemed to be meditating? Was there something special about her in comparison with the others? All of these questions and no answers, it was beginning to irk him and so he opted to simply observe Evelyn until either something happened or felt no answer to his questions would appear.

ooc: i have not made any rp post in centuries, forgive the terrible rustiness

-Damian, do not become complacent in the abilities of Evelyn. While she is the most sensitive to the spiritual realm, she will not always be there to guide us. She has guided you in the past, take her words to heart and search within yourself. There are things occurring all around you, yet you cannot feel them, because your mind remains closed. Do not see with your eyes, but rather with your souls. I want you to go to the market. You are to find a glass bauble in one of the stalls, however you cannot see this bauble. Your soul of lightning will direct you to its precise location.-

Damian stared at his pda, blinking unresponsively. He had no desire to go anywhere alone right now and he wasn't entirely sure where the market was. Evelyn and Johnny had already left however, perhaps it was for the best to listen and attempt to carry out these directions. He nodded stiffly and bit his lip, until he uttered a half-hearted response.

"Ok."

It was then that he realized he had a map which he quickly pulled up. After much direction changing and a minute or two of being lost, he stepped into the market.

The butterfly flittered around Lotus' head mockingly before flying out of the girl's reach once again. It flew deeper into the gardens landing on various flowers before taking off again and flying further into the garden. Soon Lotus would barely be able to tell to see the golden-winged butterfly as it flew away.

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James Albright chuckled lightly to himself as he stood up, his figure slightly transparent as he stood.

"You have nothing to fear Alice," spoke her old mentor calmly, "I wish it could have been me who brought you to Apollon," he added wistfully, "This city is quite magnificent, as no evil may enter the city neither harm come to any Omnivident human being. At least, that is what the legends state; an angel by the name of Mikandriel has total dominion over this island."

"The fact that I am here however is still concerning, while I pose no threat to you, unfortunately I am a restless spirit." He disappeared with a flash of light before fizzling a few feet in front of Alice and Phora,

"When I first knew I had died, all I could do was blame myself for failing all of you. I was in a very volatile state, and at risk of falling into eternal emotional turmoil. Thankfully, the very same spirits I once hunted were quick to set me at ease; quite ironic actually.

You see, there was nothing you, or I, or anyone could have done to stop what happened that day. There is a demon prince lurking within Darren. He has been building strength for years, and he's been the source of the sudden onset of spiritual activity in the last three years.

I have tried to locate him, but the spirit realm is quite the daunting place. It gives me a newfound respect for every Spiritorum I have encountered; a shadowy parallel world, where nothing ever is what it seems, and friend and foe both look alike. Typically a creature of such power would be quite simple to find, but he's been hidden. He has taken on flesh and possessed some poor sap.

That however, is not the primary source of my restlessness. Your friends, my students, they have not crossed over. I know a few of them saved you in the apartment building last month, but I have not run into any of them myself. You must have them make peace and allow them to cross over into the light."

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"Fool," spoke a voice to Daniel chidingly "What you wield is beyond that of mere human souls. The power of the ether is power itself. You are weak. Your powers of all-sight supplied by a meagre portion of spirit energy bestowed to you. An insignificant drop of power in the pool of the powerful"

"What you seek is more than the simple link you presently share with the ether. While you may be an...inferior...being, but there are means to remedy such things. All you have to do is listen to me-"

The voice was immediately cut off by a sudden change in his vision. He saw a giant rusty metal gate open up and from behind him he heard screaming quickly approaching, before he could respond however, Carter slid by him on the ground and was pulled into the gate.

A different voice began to speak, a deeper, more sinister voice: "Your fear, it is delicious. Do not fear, little mouse, we cannot find you. You are in a place we cannot see. We cannot see you, but we can feel you. Itching. Scratching. Playing with things which you should not. Does he know? No he does not. I think he does. All the more delicious. Tick tock, the hour glass has turned. One down thirteen more to go. Oh how I do look forward to it. As do I.

Let it be known, little mouse, it is you who opened yourself to us. We never force ourselves. That is a lie. Why yes, it is. Or is it? Was it? Will it? Hush. He trembles. He should."

The voices stopped and Daniel was left in silence.

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As Johnny focused and found his centre, he felt his hands become warmer. Raising his palms upwards as he meditated, he could feel an orb of energy forming above his hands.

Opening his eyes, it stood before him, a ball of energy pulsing with light and dark energy swirling about in a never ending pattern. Colours of blue and purple twisted and coiled around the pure white. It was a reflection of his soul, corrupted by the contract he had signed those few days ago.

He felt a pressure building up in his head, almost similarly to when he had overexerted himself before, and he immediately loosed the bolt of energy. It flew into the far wall, in between the targets that had been arranged. What was it that Miss Rachel had told him to do again?

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Young Lloyd/Grayson took flight without any trouble, his new flight feathers aiding him despite still being covered with much down. His brothers followed closely behind him as the harpy shrieked frustratingly. This however, was her mistake, the mother griffin's attention was alerted and she immediately flew back to her nest and attacked the harpy violently with her talons, throwing her to mountains below.

Lloyd and his brothers cheeped happily as they watched safely from a cliff as their mother chased the harpies away from her nest. Eventually they all gave up and flew away. The mother griffin shrieked victoriously as her chicks flew back to the nest nuzzling up to their mother.

Lloyd opened his eyes after nuzzling with his mother. He felt bigger, his wings stronger, no longer did he peep as he opened his beak to call out to his brothers. He saw one in the distance, appearing to be laying on the ground as it relaxed in the sun, but his other brother was nowhere to be found. Suddenly he heard, a snap and from above, his brother playful landed on him and they began to wrestle.

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Evelyn felt herself sinking even farther into her own consciousness as she meditated with herself. Every spiritual occurrence around her seemed so glaringly obvious, and she could pinpoint every individual and spirit around her within the entire city. It was becoming a bit overwhelming, she had to focus.

Putting everyone else out of her mind, she focused on herself. She briefly recalled the naissance of her abilities as a child. Evelyn felt that she had always been spiritually aware, her estate was old, and many spirits (often long-dead relatives) found themselves wandering the lonely halls. She befriended many of them, a much more cheerful and friendly toddler than she was now. Her flight was the first Spiritorum ability that manifested. She was often discovered floating on the ceiling cradling her blanket when her parents went to check up on their child. Her first light wisp manifested as a result of her own fear of the dark when she was five, this she would never admit to another soul, living or dead.

Unbeknownst to Evelyn she had begun to levitate off of the ground as light wisps began to appear around her and orbited about her as she floated. It was quite spectacular to witness.

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And witness did Maximilian, he watched as the lights spun faster and faster around Evelyn. Circling around her as if she were some sort of sun, and her orbs, the planets stuck in her gravity. He could hear a bubbling sound around him as he concentrated further, wondering why it was she whom he could see.

Re-examining his field of view he found that there was one other person who he could focus upon. Oddly enough, he could see Lloyd and his griffin Grayson. That sat in front of a fountain, as Evelyn did, in deep meditation. Once again, he found himself questioning the nature of his abilities. There had to be something in common with Evelyn and Lloyd that allowed him to see them while he meditated in the water.

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The market was quiet, very quiet. A tumbling weed rolled in front of him as Damian stood looking ahead at the mass of abandoned stalls. Long had the awnings that were raised over each stall worn away over time, yet the place still felt like it could be revived any moment. Nevertheless, he had a task at hand. He had to remember the short training session he had with Evelyn in the shop, how was it that she had told him to find objects through his spiritual senses alone?

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Logan can continue

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Waiting for Tsubaki, Dom and Li

Phora shifted about nervously while the spirit spoke. After he was finished, she said to her master, "Alice, something unnatural is happening out there. I don't trust this person."

"You don't trust anyone," Alice replied. "Even Miss Rachel."

"You have some doubts about her yourself!" The Pixie shot back. "You can't hide it from me."

"Don't say things like that!" She said. "She could be listening! If something is worrying you, go check it out! I need to speak with this spirit."

Phora looked from Alice, to the door, and back. "I don't want to leave you with a spirit."

"I have my sword. Besides, if something goes wrong, I'll use that thing I taught you."

Hearing this, Phora reluctantly headed out the door. As soon as she exited she felt something strange in the air, directing her towards the academy.

Alice cleared her throat. "I knew I'd have to help them cross over eventually. If I had died that day, I would be trapped in this realm as well. Where are their spirits gathering? I will go there and exorcise them at once."

Phora slipped through the academy doors and felt it hit her like a ton of bricks. There was a strange taste in her mouth as she flew to the highest floor. There, sitting cross-legged before a pool of water, was Daniel, and he radiated a strange energy.

Daniel silently listened to the voices as they spoke to him. Perhaps the creatures in the ether could become dangerous. Assuming he could simply stop medititating at any moment, he reached up and was filled with even more energy than previously. Would he be able to use more energy every time he absorbed from the ether? Either way, he felt as if he could cast any spell. Daniel was reaching up to suck up more of the ether when something yanked his spirit back into his body.

Opening his eyes, Daniel saw the most beautiful woman he had ever seen, and she was shaking him. "W-what?!" He said as his face turned red.

Scrutinizing him up close, Phora realized the space around him seemed distorted and the colors of his clothes, the floor, and the water all melded together. "What are you doing?" She shouted.

"M-meditating!" He replied.

"You're doing something weird!" Phora said as she grabbed his wrist. "You're coming with me!" She tried to drag him, but her hand felt hot. A dark purple aura crept from his body and began to wash over her arm. Confused and angry, she withdrew her hand and hissed at the boy. "When Alice finds out about this you're going to be burned at the stake, wizard!"

Now Daniel was really scared. He ran faster than ever before, and Phora flew after him. Reaching the door to the s**** he threw it open and slammed it behind him. Phora saw this and stopped. Never before had a human bested her. She kicked the door in frustration.

Daniel dashed through the hallways and into the locker room. He entered with a few magic words and used his key on the closest door. Before sitting down to catch his breath, he looked over the room. In here, he could meditate as much as he liked. But it wasn't safe for him to leave. Opening his magic book, he asked it to show him a conjuring spell so he could have his own servant, who could protect him from Alice.

Focus? How was he supposed to focus when he keeps getting a headache? His first energy manifestation had been successful, save for the end. It was pretty amazing to look at Johnathan had to admit, but it still had a pure center. That was right, he was still pure somewhere deep down inside. Maybe he should just meditate so he could better handle it? If he had a headache just by summoning it, he was scared to think of what would happen if he tried to imbed one of his sigils inside. It sucked to be the only one in this situation. With Carter gone. Evelyn still had her energy wisps, but those were natural for her, like her flight. So instead, he started to focus on his energy in general.

_____

It was weird. Lloyd had still been happy given the situation, but he could also feel Grayson's happiness also. There was something else behind that that he couldn't differentiate. The first flashback had been successful and had passed, and Lloyd/Grayson had seemingly gotten older in the next one. It appeared his mother was nowhere to be found, but Lloyd dismissed it. Next thing he knew, his brother was on top of him, ready to wrestle. Challenging him, Lloyd/Grayson attempted to overpower and pin him down.

Damian gulped. "And I thought finding the market was tough." He stepped forward and came to a stop in front of a stall, only to find nothing inside. He sighed and looked around with keen eyes but it was pointless. Oh wait, it was mere days ago he learned how to find objects with his soul and yet it seemed so difficult remembering as it was the battle with the demon that took up his thinking space much of the time. After a few minutes, he stepped back from the stall and slowly shut his eyes. Soon, he was beginning to feel much of the market. Many wooden stalls somewhat overpowered the other objects. In time, he felt something round, clear, and smooth. This could be it, he thought. His eyes opened and he was immediately walking around the market. After navigating deep into the ocean of stalls, he came to a stop in front of one in parting. "Should be the one." He muttered. There, he picked up a glass bauble and stared at it.

Maximilian was quite surprised that he was able to see Lloyd let alone recognize him. After all, he barely paid any attention to the boy or his beast. Nevertheless Lloyd's appearance shattered his original conceptional-theory of how this power worked due to the fact that Maximilian had never once shared a word with Lloyd meaning there was no possible way he could have an emotional link with him. The remaining theories to this power still seemed somewhat plausible, those being that the water in the fountain was allowing him to see the others or their acts of meditation was allowing him to see their power with clarity.

Presumably there was a reason that Maximilian had been instructed to meditate within the pool of water rather than just to meditate around it or even without it and so one of his theories seemed much more- plausible- than the other. He thought perhaps the water was making his own power more acute and that perhaps he could control water from much further away when meditating in a source of water. Testing this theory would be easy, he would simply focus on the fountain and attempt to shift the water coming out of it. If his power truly was extended he would, at the least, be able to change the course of the water... Right?

Tsubaki had been standing around aimlessly for a time now, head on her arms, all on the fence, and still hadn't come up with a decent plan. It was quite frustrating for her. She didn't approach them, nor they her, and over all very little changed within the scene since she got there.

"Oh boy," Tsubaki sighed. "I just don't know what to do with all of you. What can I do? I wouldn't want to break your spirits like the cowboys, after all, spirit is kind of the only thing you have left..."

After another vocal sigh Tsubaki turned around and slid down the fence until she was sitting. Apollon was actually quite nice if you just took a break and watched it for a while.

[Tsubaki]
I am lost, I am found
Right here, on these grounds
Guide my hand, help me to stand
I feel the power of this land

Challenges, I my face
That will always be the case
But with a little hope
I find that I can cope
With the fear, with the bad
I'm not as near, quite as sad
And I can find, I can go on
With faith, nothing can go wrong

So if you're lost, you'll be found
You'll be helped, off the ground
Take my hand, help you to stand
Can't you feel the power!

"Of this land? Hmm...?" Looking up at the sensation she just felt, Tsubaki was surprised the find one of the horses nibbling on her hair. Timidly she reached up to pet it's head. "Hello there, why are you so friendly all of a sudden?"

---

"Well, that went as well as could be expected." The boy in the arena said to no one but the air.

Obviously the statue didn't move, if it was able to be moved by physically pushing, he wouldn't have been told to push them with his mind. So, about that. Derrek took his time, observing where each statue seemed to belong, so he could choose the one that was the closest to were it needed to be. After some consideration, and a fair amount of yawns, he decided that the 'guy with a fancy bow' statue would be his first target.

On the first try the statue didn't move at all, which made sense, since Derrek only 'pushed' on it the same amount something like a marble would had needed. On the second try he obviously needed a bigger force, so, with a might yawn and a wave of his arms he willed the statue to move, right at it's face, which didn't move it as much as send it horribly of balance, which caused it to wobble quite dangerously. Derrek quickly ran to catch it every time it shifted, but it eventually corrected itself with out his help. It would only be in retrospect that Derrek would realize just how idiotic it was to try to catch a statue that he couldn't even push, but its not like any one would ever know, right?

Finally Derrek saw what needed to be done, a fair amount of force directed equally over the course of time. A daunting aspect to be sure, as his skills up to now had only been sharp, quick jabs, by comparison. However, after a little concentration, he actually managed to move the stone figure, not all the way home, but if he did a little at a time, with plenty of breaks, he might actually be able to do this thing.

Mr. Albright sighed as he put his hands in his pockets.

"Unfortunately, I have been able to locate any of your former peers," he said with yet another sigh "It troubles me greatly, for the demons have been looking for them as well. I am not sure why, but I can only assume they have ill intentions"

Suddenly there was a shriek, sounding somewhat like an eagle, and fire began to spread along the walls of the floor that Alice and Mr. Albright stood upon.

"It's good to see my pupil taking her place as leader," spoke a voice instantly sounding familiar to Alice. She turned around, and behind her stood Byron. He too was a ghostly apparition, his hair vibrant red, coiffed into a permanently gelled curl that rested on his forehead. His amber eyes seemed to smile at the girl, while his face remained stoic and void of emotion. A phoenix with a long flowing tail of red and gold feathers perched on his shoulders patiently, watching the girl with unreadable green eyes.

Byron Johnson would have been in his fifth year had he survived the bus explosion. He was an Artes de Totem, like Alice, and his particular totem was a phoenix by the name of Ardor. The two had an incredibly strong bond, having mastered the metamorphosis with his totem in his second year. He taught much of what Alice knew today, having come from an experienced monster hunting family, acting as her mentor and older brother figure.

"I have long awaited this moment Alice" spoke Byron calmly, "The new team has gotten much stronger since I last ran into them in that apartment building. You don't need my protection any longer, but before I go, I have a gift. Of course, you are expected to fight me for it, but you must leave Phora out of this."

He opened his palm and a fiery sword materialized in his hands. "Shall we?" Ardor took flight loosing fireballs at Alice.

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As usual, the book's pages turned until it stopped at a page. It was a table of contents of sorts, listing spells of resurrection of the dead, spells of capturing spirits, spells of summoning creatures from the ether, and spells of summoning demons.

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As Johnny gathered his energy, he felt the pressure in his head gradually lessen as a sphere of energy appeared in his hands once more. However, as he continually held the sphere, once more the pressure began to build up in his head until he had to release the sphere, sending the energy bolt flying into one of the targets at the end of the range.

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His brother laughed, or what he did what he thought sounded like a laugh in griffin-speak, as they tumbled about on the ground, the other brother watching from a safe distance away. Eventually Lloyd gained the upper hand and he pinned his brother to the ground, who struggled underneath his weight.

Their play fighting was interrupted however as a loud roar could be heard from above. Instinctively, Lloyd knew that this was the call of a dragon, an angry dragon. Within seconds, the sky grew dark as the dragon's wings momentarily blotted out the sun. The brother that had been watching his siblings fight, jumped and glided to his brothers' side. There was no time to run, they had to stand and fight.

The dragon was much larger than they were, though it was not fully grown. It's amethyst scales rippled in the sunlight, and the ground trembled as it landed on the ground. Turning its attention towards the three griffin cubs it opened its mouth to breathe fire.

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The glass bauble in hand, Damian wondered what its purpose was. He glided his hands along the surface for some sort of clue, though quickly retracted his hand as he received a significant shock from the orb.

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OOC: Ichigo definitely wins clever points this round. I had not intended to have him be able to control water through scrying, but I feel like that's a definite Naturae thing that could happen.

As he focused on the stream the spraying of the fountain began to waver as if it were being tugged at by an invisible string. It was not as significant as if he were there and manipulating the water himself, but he definitely had an effect on the water.

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The horse whinnied once Tsubaki had stopped what it was that she was doing, and she found that the other horses were also staring at her expectantly. The stallion however, still seemed unimpressed by all that the girl had done, which was not much in its opinion.

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As time wore on, Derrek eventually manage to slide the first of the statues, the one of the archer, into the slot. There was a click, and the sound of gears turning beneath him as if there were more to the arena below. Motivated by this success, he took great time and effort to move the others into their respective slots, and found that after every instance another click would sound followed by even more gears.

After the last of the statues had been placed, the ground trembled violently as a square opening in the ground of the arena slowly began to open. Inside all that could be seen was darkness.

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While Evelyn could not see that her wisps had manifested, she could definitely sense their presence. It was mildly frustrating, she relied greatly on her wisps, yet so much of them remained a mystery to her. Reading books about those before her who had had the same abilities did not do much beyond educate her in history. There was nothing practical to what she had read. Why were there never any instructions? Why were Spiritorum so aloof, so undefined, so detached?

She seemed to answer her own question in the next second, the Spiritorum were much like spirits. They lived on a very fine line between life and death, and had a spiritual sense beyond all other disciplines. Of course they are detached, while their body remains in the realm of the living, their mind was floating in the beyond.

Evelyn needed to stop running from this fact of life. She had been raised a warrior, and a hunter. Rules guiding her every action to all things that got in her way. However, she was also a spirit, she had to break free from the confines of her shell, and the things that sealed her emotions. She needed to feel the world around herself and immerse herself wholly. She had two souls, a boon granted by near-death, she had been given a second chance to live and she needed to take it running.

Opening her eyes, she found herself floating a considerable distance off of the ground. A translucent sphere surrounding herself consisting of the same golden energy that her wisps were made of. She knew right away that her soul of light had developed once again.

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Logan can continue

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Waiting for Dom, Li, and Lotus

"Your hair still sucks, I see." Alice said as she ducked underneath a fireball. "Are you trying to kill me? I guess I'll take your ghost-head then." Alice secretly felt as if she surpassed Byron during her first year. For the next two years after she watched her once-mentor drift further and further behind her, although she respected Ardor as a very wise and powerful totem. It was the true threat here, but she knew the fastest way to get rid of it was to go for its master. She summoned a shield, enchanted to dispell magical attacks at the cost of her own spiritual energy, and her armor which glistened as the fire's reflection washed over it. The girl broke into a run as fireballs flew past or were deflected by the shield. As she approached Byron her longsword gleamed as if the spirit within it was angry. As she swung the blade turned to piercing white light. "I'll cut right through your sword!" She shouted as she aimed for his neck.

Phora sensed a powerful spirit and regretfully abandoned her frustrated pacing to take flight. Upon returning to the Senate building she found Alice locked in combat. The pixie recognized Byron with his strange haircut. Phora liked Ardor a great deal, but disliked Byron for his arrogant attempts to guide someone who far surpassed his talents. She drifted to Alice's side. "Be quick," the totem said. "We have pressing matters to discuss." With that, she nodded in greeting to Ardor and flew high into the air to spectate the battle.


Daniel watched the book flip through the pages with an unseen hand until it landed on the table of contents. This was rather advanced magic. Summoning a demon seemed like a good option until he realized he could wind up trapped in Hell like that other kid. So he chose instead to try summoning a creature of the ether.

Honestly it seemed as if Grayson's early life was constantly in danger, but this flashback raised questions that Lloyd and Grayson had to discuss after this was done. At that moment he had a revelation: since this was a flashback, there would be no way Grayson would die. Lloyd was free to do whatever he wanted here. What type of world was this anyway Lloyd had to wonder. Did all of the mythological creatures for the Totem users come from this realm? And how did they manage to bond to a specific item in his realm? He tried to say, scatter, don't stay close to each other, it'll make it harder for the dragon to catch us, but it came out as griffin babble. However, he didn't have time to throw a fit as the dragon closed in on the trio. Or, accurately quartet minus the singing. As the creature landed and started to breathe fire, Grayson's instincts took over and combined with Lloyd's tact and strategy as a demon hunter. Their--Grayson's mother wasn't there anymore. They were on their own for this battle.

Rapidly maneuvering out of the range of the fire, Lloyd/Grayson took flight and closed in on the dragons eye, their talons outstretched, aimed for it's target. He was itching to taunt it, but he doubted dragons could understand griffin speech. Maybe they'd still be able to get back to their play fighting.

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Johnathan sighed. He had managed to stop the pressure in his head momentarily, but it somehow had manifested again as he formed another energy sphere. The way Miss Rachel had worded it, he thought it would be a walk in the park. But sometimes becoming stronger comes with a price. How was he going to prevent this from happening? So far he wasn't going to use this sphere in combat, the elevated pressure would be too risky. If Carter had been here, they would work together on this, perhaps. He attempted to focus again, this time he simply attempted to meditate and sat down. He felt a wave of agitation, but he was quickly washed in calmness once more. What else was he to do?