NationStates Jolt Archive

The staff member wasn't of any great interest to her anymore. The other students were. Each was looking forward toward different points in the front of the room, staring at non-existent people and making drastically different marks on their papers. Probably some kind of trick using a fancy toy like the computers, it seemed to fool the other students very effectively. Was it be a psychological test in order to find out how to control them? The political uses of these rich kids shouldn't be overlooked, on the other hand it just could be in order to prove a point. No matter, their reactions would be very informative when they realized that they saw different things.

She settled back and pretended to examine a blank point in the front of the room while watching the other students out of the corners of her eyes.

OOC: Are you allowed to talk to the staff member?

(will edit this post if yes)

OOC: Are you allowed to talk to the staff member?

(will edit this post if yes)

OOC: uhhh...it would help if you mentioned who are questioning

OOC: Dissension within the ranks...

OOC: no...i think that after the class...we are going to go out of the classroom and THEN we are allowed to talk to each other...sooo...i think no talking until the end of this class...

Salazar continued to look at the boy, the boy continued to star back. It was very un-nerving.

OOC: Can we leave the room now?

Flick slouched into the room, dumped her stuff beside a desk and immediately found herself feeling better, even though she didn't want to. All those familiar smells: newly sharpened sketching pencils and clean, be-yoodiful drawing paper. Her spirits took another lift when she realised that the person at the front of the room was Magister Llanwerin, looking perfectly human (Phew, must have been the library lighting, then.) Not looking perfectly normal, though. He still had on that robe thing and he was sitting with his feet up on the desk, puffing away at a -- a bong? Surely not! (A hookah, a hubble-bubble, a nargileh, said her brain, helpfully.) But he wasn't smoking anything illegal, so maybe it was some health kick (Sinuses, agreed her brain. Yeah, probably, said Flick, and then realised she was conducting a dialogue with her internal monologue ... this place was driving her nuts!)

She gave herself a mental shake and considered her task. Fifteen minutes ... she'd best do a sketch, she tended to get carried away with words. A caricature, in fact, she decided with an evil grin.

He brought it on himself, Flick told herself virtuously as she added non-existent stars and moons to the robe and gave him a bent and battered wizard's hat as well. That'd show him what a weird first impression he'd made. Smirking, she cross-hatched the end of his nose to make it look red. Now, should she put him in elf-y sort of slippers? She risked a quick glance to see what he was actually wearing (sandals, ke-yoot!) and discovered with a blink of surprise that there was someone else up there, too. A roundish middle-aged woman in a crocheted shawl, cosily working away at something woolly. She was right at the other end of the table, dammit, which really upset the balance of Flick's drawing. Ah, well, truth in art, and all that; muttering, Flick sketched her in as well. Now, one last check ...

Flick couldn't help it. She yelped. Standing behind Llanwerin was a shadowy hooded figure holding a huge book. Behind the woman was a similar shape with its hands crossed on the hilt of an unsheathed sword. They reminded Flick of the sort of statues she'd seen on public buildings: Truth, Knowledge, Justice. But these were real, they must be; she could see them.

Slowly the -- personages -- faded. Flick's hands began to shake. She breathed again, while a disappearing emotion, something she couldn't name, tugged at her memory. Shock? Fear? Reverence?

Are you going to put them in, too? nagged her brain. Shuddup! said Flick. They couldn't have been there, but ... all it took was a few pencil-strokes. Standing, ready to run, she nevertheless scribbled in two figures seen obscurely in a mirror (through a glass, darkly, right?), centred between the two people she knew were there.

"That's it! I'm outta here!" said Flick, grabbing her stuff and haring out of the room.

Hmmm...That was a weird class...Just who was that person... Makie thought in her head, as she stepped out of the classroom, after Alex.

"Hey! Alex wait up!" yelled Makie as the door closed behind her.

"Oh...Sorry...I'm just hungry...That's all." said Alex, while scratching the back of his neck. "We didn't eat much of a breakfast...Or any breakfast at all...So how 'bout getting something to eat?"

"Hmmm...I see...I guess you're right..."

"Ah...Check this out..." Alex pulled out a blue piece of paper out of the envelop they received in the morning, with their schedules. "It says here that today will only be the orientation...Hmmm...Seems like they are going to speak with the students...In...The main mess hall...Yea...Main mess hall."

"What time?"

"Ummm...9th at 10 o'clock...10th at 10:30...11th...The eleventh grade is going at 11 o'clock...Then the rest of the day is free...Right now it is like 8:45ish...So we have time..." said Alex as he checked his watch.

"Cool...I really didn't feel like doing anything today. Especially since that fiasco this morning..."

"Oh...That thing...It's no big...Don't worry about it..."

"That's good..." sighed Makie. "Now...Let's get something to eat."

As they continued down the corridor, they caught up to Flick, who had run out of the classroom ahead of them.

"Hey, what's the rush?" asked Alex casually to Flick. "You were in that class we just had right now right? How 'bout joining us for some breakfast?"

OOC: does anyone want to be like the headmaster or something...i cant (hw)...or if you guys dont want to have an orientation thing...just ignore this post and post something in the OOC thread telling me to change this...

Jenna saved the document into what appeared to be her personal folder on the school system, and stood up as she noticed others beginning to leave the room. She was fairly sure she'd done a report her father could be proud of, at least based solely on appearances - little things like the way she lined up her files neatly and the complete and utter lack of any stray hairs or creases. She made a mental note to add to the file when she had spoken to people - just because it was an assignment didn't mean she couldn't keep it up for her own benifit. It would probably be good practice. Speaking of practice, she should probably begin to size up the students too.

Checking her schedule, she saw she still had a few minutes till orientation. She wandered over to a girl she vaguely recalled someone naming Flick, and smiled at her. "Hi. I'm Jenna, from Resquide. So are you a newcomer like me, or have you been here for a while?"

Salazar left the room, shaking his head. He had no idea what that class was all about, it was like the school was playing mind games with him.

"Does anyone else think that class was screwed up?" he asked the others.

Sophie stood after finishing her sketch. It wasn't her greatest, but then again, most of her sketches were of cars and motorcyles, not people. She left on teh desk, grabbed her bag, and exited the room. She saw the other people walking, and jogged to catch up. "Man, what the hell was that all about?" she asked, to no one inparticular.

"I think the schools messing with our minds," Salazar replied. "I swear that kid looked like someone I know."

"What kid?" Sophie asked, giving him a wierd look. "Other than the students, the only one in there was some random teacher. Probably a noob who just started working here."

"Teacher?" Salazar asked curiously. "Never saw one, just this kid stood up front staring at me."

Salazar scratched his head, wondering why Sophie had seen a teacher there and he hadn't.

"There was no kid there. Just a teacher. Why the hell would they put a kid in there? Ya know, ya might wanna go see the school nurse if your seeing shit like that. Otherwise people'll think your wacked out or somthin."

Salazar scowled at her. "I know what I saw," he replied. "You're the one seeing things, there was no teachers in there."

"Whatever you say crazy boy. Ya know, ya might wanna get back on your meds. Next thing ya know, you'll be telling me pigs fly, and that you have a pet pink elephant," she said. She walked past him to catch up with the rest of the group.

Salazar let out a quiet growling sound. "Next you'll be telling me elves don't exist," he muttered under his breath.

Right at the end the most interesting one had been Flick, she'd seen something very shocking. Murdock had seemed incredibly fascinated by what he saw, his eyes had gleamed with an almost fanatical obsession as he worked with his hands trying to portray the figure. She'd like to get a look at what they'd all drawn. Whatever the school was trying to pull on these kids she wasn't in a position to interfere, she was a part of the same damn experiment.

Maybe it had something to do with the room, it wasn't labeled according to the system the rest of school used. It had some archaic numeric system that used the same Gothic system as English did. She looked back at the room expecting to see the same big X and the three Is following it. Strangely enough the room was labeled normally with a small black plaque with white numbers reading RC113. The rest of them had wandered off already not even looking behind them, some of them had to understand something about it. Maybe Murdock or Flick knew something about it, they were the ones who'd seen something that was different then an every day experience. She had just seen a woman, as boring as anyone could be.

Was the school board trying to explain something to her. 'Tone it down' was a probable message that fit well with what she'd seen. Maybe they wanted her to try to act more like everyone else, to blend in. If that was the case they knew even less then the imbecilic brats surrounding her.

Theorizing on such limited information wasn't going to help her in any way, besides that she had no idea where orientation was going to be and everyone else was already gone. She hurried along in the direction the others had left until she saw Murdock and slowed down to follow him to orientation.

Caught between two fires, and with her head still trying to process information that she couldn't possibly have received, Flick went into default setting: she could keep up a polite social front even when her brain was on automatic pilot.

"Uh, thanks, Alex and .. Makie, right? Hi, Jenna. This is Alex, we met in the library yesterday, and Makie. Yeah, no, I mean, breakfast sounds like a good idea. Hey, did you notice anything a little ... well ...odd in there? Besides Magister Llanwerin and that mumsy little woman, I mean?"

Caught between two fires, and with her head still trying to process information that she couldn't possibly have received, Flick went into default setting: she could keep up a polite social front even when her brain was on automatic pilot.

"Uh, thanks, Alex and .. Makie, right? Hi, Jenna. This is Alex, we met in the library yesterday, and Makie. Yeah, no, I mean, breakfast sounds like a good idea. Hey, did you notice anything a little ... well ...odd in there? Besides Magister Llanwerin and that mumsy little woman, I mean?"

"Whoa whoa...Slow down...You'll make yourself dizzy trying to multi-talk like that..." said Alex.

"Yes...I'm Makie, pleased to meet you." said Makie, with a slight bow.

"Magister Llanwerin and a mumsy woman?" asked Alex. "What are you talking about? The only person there was this old man in Chinese clothing...And with a long beard..."

"I...Ummm...There was this...A...I only saw a young woman teacher..." muttered Makie, under her breath.

*sigh*...But she was so incredible! exclaimed Makie in her head. She looks exactly like the sister i've always dreamed of! I wonder if I'll see her in one of my classes? She had the hair and face of my mom, but my father's eyes...It's as if we were related or like separated from birth...

"Uhh...Makie...Makie wake up..." said Alex as he waved his hand in front of Makie's eyes, which have just started to gaze off into space.

"Oh...Sorry...What is it?"

"Come on...Let's go..." said Alex, as he turned to Flick and the other girl who had run up to talk to Flick. "Let's hurry to the mess hall before it gets crowded..."

Jenna blinked. "So, wait. You all saw... different things in there?" She asked cautiously, trying to get everything straight so she could get a grip on the situation. "That's not normal. i saw a really strict teacher, looked like a maths kind of person but I might be wrong. Obviously there wasn't a mumsy woman, whoever this magister llanwerin is, a chinese guy and a young woman in there with her. So why did we all see different things?"

As they started walking to the cafeteria she looked around at the other groups of confused looking students. "You know," she continued, "I bet we aren't the only ones. I wonder what the others saw? We should at least establish whether anyone at all saw the same thing."

(OOC: I am taking it we are in the talking room, or talking somewhere)

Murdock sat down on a bench, putting his hands on his temples and looking at the ground in a slump. The others were talking of what they had seen, he didn't really care. What he had seen was enough for his mind, that was no person, what was it?
He sighed, why was he here? It wasn't his choice, damnit...damnit it all. He looked around at the others, shaking his head he tried to take control of himself again, to no avail. He saw them all get up and start to leave. He sighed another time and dropped his head.

"Well if they all saw different people then I'm not crazy," Salazar muttered. "This school is just screwed up."

The entire group had paused and were trying to understand what had just happened. They'd already figured out that each of them had seen different things. That wasn't much of a problem, but none of them seemed to know how it was done. Angelica thought it must have been some kind of experimental technology or perhaps a drug administered by contact with the skin. The school could have administered it through the pencils, the paper or even the desks. It would explain the differences in what they'd all seen and account for the strange reactions from Flick and Murdock.

Murdock just seemed confused now, he'd plopped himself down on a bench by the wall. Everyone else was walking ahead except him and for some stupid reason she couldn't just leave him there. It went against her nature but she found herself sitting next to him. "Are you okay?"

* * *

It was a strange assembly. The group ranged from normal to extreme but all their appearances were façades. They were took whatever forms they believed their chosen ones would best understand.

The faceless one called the rest to order with a wave of his hand. "We need to make this quick, they need to eat first but we'll have to introduce ourselves officially at the orientation. I know that we all have our 'official' forms prepared for the viewing of the rest of the students, so the important business is done. However, we need to know the chance of success. Everyone report"

The plain woman stood, she was grouped with the rest of the normals. "You know very well that I disproved of this initial demonstration. It didn't serve my purposes nor the purposes of my girl, but the council decided against me and I complied. My child was unaffected by the significance, as I predicted, and is now extremely suspicious. I believe that her feelings are shared by some of the others. This mistake will cost me incredible expenditures to fix. My work is going quite poorly." Most of them had expected her to say as much, the normals had ended up with the poorest results, but her case was especially difficult. She'd chosen a skeptic and a cynic who believed only what she knew to be true. Why the plain woman had chosen her was still a mystery to all of them.

The entire group had paused and were trying to understand what had just happened. They'd already figured out that each of them had seen different things. That wasn't much of a problem, but none of them seemed to know how it was done. Angelica thought it must have been some kind of experimental technology or perhaps a drug administered by contact with the skin. The school could have administered it through the pencils, the paper or even the desks. It would explain the differences in what they'd all seen and account for the strange reactions from Flick and Murdock.

Murdock just seemed confused now, he'd plopped himself down on a bench by the wall. Everyone else was walking ahead except him and for some stupid reason she couldn't just leave him there. It went against her nature but she found herself sitting next to him. "Are you okay?"

* * *

It was a strange assembly. The group ranged from normal to extreme but all their appearances were façades. They were took whatever forms they believed their chosen ones would best understand.

The faceless one called the rest to order with a wave of his hand. "We need to make this quick, they need to eat first but we'll have to introduce ourselves officially at the orientation. I know that we all have our 'official' forms prepared for the viewing of the rest of the students, so the important business is done. However, we need to know the chance of success. Everyone report"

The plain woman stood, she was grouped with the rest of the normals. "You know very well that I disproved of this initial demonstration. It didn't serve my purposes nor the purposes of my girl, but the council decided against me and I complied. My child was unaffected by the significance, as I predicted, and is now extremely suspicious. I believe that her feelings are shared by some of the others. This mistake will cost me incredible expenditures to fix. My work is going quite poorly." Most of them had expected her to say as much, the normals had ended up with the poorest results, but her case was especially difficult. She'd chosen a skeptic and a cynic who believed only what she knew to be true. Why the plain woman had chosen her was still a mystery to all of them.

Murdock shook his head, he had heard Angelica, but took a moment to respond.
"I don't know if I am ok or not," he said. He hadn't expected her to be the one to talk to him about this. "I barely heard any of the others, I was too busy thinking about what I saw..."

* * *

"You do not understand," Unknown said as he looked out among the others. "We cannot hope to have instant sucess from everyone, it will take them time, not even Murdock fully understood it all. We must give them time, they are not only just humans, but they are also just children."

"I don't know...But I swear that I saw a woman in her like twenties..." said Makie.

"And I saw that old Chinese guy..." seconded Alex.

OOC: going to bed...11:52pm at night

"Children, yes," said the "mumsy little woman" of Flick's vision. "Chosen, too. And, for all we know, soon to be Challenged. But you saw this morning how unready they are! Half of them didn't believe what they saw, and the other half didn't see! Well, if the rest of you are too soft to say it, I'm not: we have to push them. If any of them can't handle it," -- her voice wavered, then hardened again -- "it's better we find out here, where the others will at least survive."

A hubbub of anger and outrage broke out, stilled at last by Llanwerin's tired tones. "How often must we make the same mistake?" he mourned. "You know what you're saying? It's that old lie again: 'This is more important than any individual'. Haven't we learned our lesson yet? Nothing is more important, nothing matters more, nothing outweighs one single unique intelligence!"

For a moment he was the iconic figure that had shadowed Flick's morning, and the woman was his counterpart in power; then Llanwerin was once again the teacher.

"I'm sorry, Mother-of-All," he apologised wryly. "Sometimes I forget we're allies."

OOC: Haven't had much time this weekend, sorry for the delay.

IC:
Once again Angelica's vision stepped into the fray. "For some the more direct approach is undeniably preferable, the Murdock child for instance. However, if we continue to use the same methodology for all of them they won't make it. All full group demonstrations are going to do is create an intolerable separation between them. The end results would be best suited by dividing them up. Once again I must call for a cancellation of the demonstration at orientation. If they are forced to see what none of the other students see or understand they will be isolated. Not all of them are ready for this step, let the rally be as boring as they anticipated and let us make the proper decision for our own children."

* * *

Angelica carefully looked Murdock up and down, his vision had a far greater affect then she had guessed. His face was covered in a thin sheen of sweat and his eyes were glazed in a bizarre mixture of belief, fear and doubt. His vision had obviously been much more clear then her own. It probably came from a natural weakness to the hallucinogen they must have used. She normally avoided being too blunt, but she needed to find out what had happened so she used the most direct approach she could. "Would you tell me what you saw?"

OOC: Sorry ya'll, but the way this is going, I think I'm gonna drop out of this. I've never been a huge fan of the whole wupernatural magic stuff, so, its been fun, but with all due respect, I'm out.

Peace out...a town...lets do it...YEAH...

OOC:

Sorry to hear that; it was fun writing with you.

OOC: Gyah, i didn't notice the page... *blush* :headbang:

IC:

Jennas apparantly normal aparition stood up for the first time.

"Well, I think it's working. Jenna does not suspect magic because I succeeded in appearing entirely normal, and yet she is attempting to work out the meaning of all this. She is... just like her father, she will choose the most rational explanation first, but she will not eliminate the truth entirely because she believes in evidence. She is also attempting to bring the others into her world of intense observation, which she would not have done if she did not have a clue that something odd was happening."

She looked around at the other teachers. "I say we continue with orientation. We need more information before we can truly understand what is best for them, and indeed for our Purpose. It's positively un-scientific to simply give up because initial results are unsatisfactory."

*****

Jenna looked exasperated. "Well of course you did, i'm not trying to say you lied! But we can't all be right, in fact it's most likely that none of us is right and in fact there was nobody there at all. Maybe it was some kind of projection, or drug. The point is that we don't know. That means there is something big we are not being told, and why would they do that?"

She looked at them intently. "We must keep our guard up and find as much information as we can. Go with the available evidence. " She looked at her watch. "Orientation begins soon. The teachers will be there. We shall see what we shall see, and then we will pool our information and find a theory which explains all of this."

"I agree, we must continue orientation," Salazar's aparition agreed. "I suspect I did nothing but confuse Salazar and I think it maybe the same for other students as well."

********

"Drugs?" Salazar gasped. "What kind of school drugs their students?"

The plain woman held her hands up in apparent defeat. "I expected as much. In this case I would like to ask the council for an exemption in the case of Angelica. I know better how to handle the difficulties she'll present. If I am able to take her aside I may be able to improve the harmonization of the effort by subtracting a little dissonance." She turned once again to the faceless "man" presiding over the meeting. "Would it be permitted, 'headmaster?'"

Unknown turned towards her. "The fact is, it might be Angelica who needs this the most. She thinks the school is using a drug on the students to get them to see different images. She needs to expand her mind more, she is thinking inside a very tight box. The orientation will continue, for everyone, if Angelica doesn't show any progress within the week she may then drop out."

* * *

Murdock looked at her, and shook his head. "It couldn't hurt anything. What I saw...wasn't human, it was humanoid for sure. I could see the body shape and figure of a human, male I am guessing, but it had no texture. The skin was clear, and inside were no organs, but instead a purple oil, it almost seemed cloudy. In the direct center of the head was a light, shining out, illuminating the head. There was no facial features, nothing..."

"Since the mistake is merely inconvenient and not fatal I will accede to the wishes of the council." She finally took her seat again, she may have lost the discussion but she wore the failure with the aura of a victory as she watched the other beings carefully.

* * *

What he claimed to have seen certainly would have been fascinating. "I wish I could claim something like that." If it had been a drugging the appearance would be a reflection of their minds, her vision had been quite ordinary. Was that a reflection of her? She glanced around around at the empty hallway. "Maybe we'd better get to lunch." She looked down at the schedule that she'd received earlier that day. "The 'special assembly' starts in thirty minutes. Maybe we'd better go eat something?"

"Agreed," Murdock said standing up, he turned to her, smiled, and offered a hand to help her up.

* * *

"It is alright," Unknown said as he looked around the staff. "Does anyone else have any buisness matters about this before we continue on to the orientation?"

"Nothing more from me," the boy salazar had seen replied.

She firmly grabbed his hand and pulled herself up without any effort. It would have been impolite to refuse his hand, but she wasn't incapable of getting herself up. She held his hand for another moment before dropping it back and beginning to walk towards the cafeteria. He followed her step and they walked side by side down the hallway.

The old Chinese man, Alex's apparition, stood up from his seat in the corner of the darkened room. "Ahem...These are just children we are dealing with...We need to subtly and gently approach them..."

The old man walked up to the middle of the circle. "I agree that the orientation should go on...But we should let only one of us appear...One of us that has not been seen by the children...Like yourself headmaster..."

The man turned to face the "faceless" headmaster. "I've seen this problem occur years during my stay here...But as being an old man...You young ones seem to have a do first, and think about the consequences later sort of ideology. I suggest that we should hold private meetings with our "assigned" students...So that they won't be too shocked..."

"I agree...I don't think everyone is ready, not only just Angelica, but everyone." said a sweet young feminine voice from another corner of the room. Slowly, a young woman dressed, about twenty years of age, with very long black hair that was knotted at the top and fell down past the hem of her somewhat exceedingly short brown and red check patterned skirt office skirt (similar in color to the school uniform skirt Makie was wearing the day before), and she wore a matching brown blazer and a white button down polo and red tie. Once she entered the light, it almost looked as if she were somehow related to Makie.

"Ugh...I was wondering why Makie imagined me in this...She has a lot of pride in her school...I didn't really like check patterns before...But this isn't too bad...But it's still check patterened..."

She turned around and her suit changed from a check patterned skirt and brown blazer to a regular black suit with red scarf, replacing the neck tie.

She looked around at the other people staring at her. Being the youngest looking of the whole "imagined" group, she stood out from the rest. She stood in the middle of the room and blushed, it also appeared that she had also gotten some of Makie's personality, and the persona of the sister Makie had always wanted.

"Eh...Eheh...Ahem...I also believe that we should have individual meetings with our students...It'll help us to get to know them better and for them to get to know us better."

OOC: Oy! Noir! Why didn't you give alex and makie anything to say?? And what happened to Flick? Hellooo? Jenna can't have a conversation by herself!

OOC: Oy! Noir! Why didn't you give alex and makie anything to say?? And what happened to Flick? Hellooo? Jenna can't have a conversation by herself!

OOC: hey...just chill...i didnt finish the post above...i'll get to that in a sec...I was rushing 'k.

Jenna looked exasperated. "Well of course you did, i'm not trying to say you lied! But we can't all be right, in fact it's most likely that none of us is right and in fact there was nobody there at all. Maybe it was some kind of projection, or drug. The point is that we don't know. That means there is something big we are not being told, and why would they do that?"

She looked at them intently. "We must keep our guard up and find as much information as we can. Go with the available evidence. " She looked at her watch. "Orientation begins soon. The teachers will be there. We shall see what we shall see, and then we will pool our information and find a theory which explains all of this."

"Drugs!?! gasped Makie.

"They wouldn't." replied Alex calmly. "But I agree...This is suspicious..."

*gurgle gurgle grugle*

"Ehehe...Why don't we get something to eat first...We have atleast two hours left before our orientation..." said Alex as he clutched his stomach.

OOC: Resquide, if you have AIM, just IM me when you post your reply...and i dont know where Findhorn is...

OOC: hey...just chill...i didnt finish the post above...i'll get to that in a sec...I was rushing 'k.

OOC: Eh, sorry, did i sound a bit too vehement there? That tends to happen to me :P I use msn messenger, so sorry, no IM. I suppose it's okay if this goes slowly, it's not exactly hugely relevant to our countries and other RP's.

IC: Jenna nodded. "Well, yeah, I guess I'm hungry too. Orientation is right after that, though." They walked into the cafeteria. "Any other ideas on what might have caused this?"

OOC: Eh, sorry, did i sound a bit too vehement there? That tends to happen to me :P I use msn messenger, so sorry, no IM. I suppose it's okay if this goes slowly, it's not exactly hugely relevant to our countries and other RP's.

IC: Jenna nodded. "Well, yeah, I guess I'm hungry too. Orientation is right after that, though." They walked into the cafeteria. "Any other ideas on what might have caused this?"

OOC: MSN is fine...look at the little icons to the left, underneath my Country name...there is a MSN symbol

<over here on this side...

IC:

"Hmmm...They are still replacing the food from early this morning and from the leftovers the lowerclassmen left before rushing out of the mess hall..." said Alex as he watched several people in white clothing, aprons, and chefs' hats replace nearly emptied trays with fresh ones.

"Can't really think of any ideas with an empty stomach...Sorry...But I'm like that..." replied Alex to Jenna, as he sat down at a nearby table with a plastic tray in hand. "How 'bout you Makie?"

"No...But I highly believe that we'll see them sooner or later...I just can't think straight right now..." said Makie, as she turned to face Flick. "You're Flick right? How 'bout you Flick, got any ideas?"

OOC2: gotta finish my homework...feel free to bother either through AIM or MSN

(OOC: Orright orright already! :) )

"Uh? Oh, sorry, I was woolgathering," said Flick. "I'm more inclined to go with the projection idea, rather than the drug one. I mean, this is one helluva posh school. If it got around that they were giving us Funny Farmacy Frosties for breakfast, you can bet all the heavies'd be pulling their kids out so fast their feet wouldn't touch the floor."

She inspected something that was supposed to be scrambled eggs. Odd how school cookery was the same throughout the known universe. "Look, I don't know enough about what technology's available; my part of the world is only just catching up with holomovies. But surely there're some gadgets somewhere that can produce the sort of thing we saw today?"

Searching vainly for the salt, or whatever good-for-you substitute they used here, she noticed Angelica and that Murdock kid wandering in. Now, he'd been really upset; it was clear he'd seen something as weird as she had. Unless, of course, he was a better actor than anyone that age had a right to be. Which he probably wasn't, or he'd be out earning squillions. So that meant he was someone she could trust on this. Because she wasn't going to just trust anyone, no way.

After all, it didn't have to be the school that was playing round with their brains. It could just as easily be a student. Some super-rich kid who, like her, just wanted out; but who, unlike her, had the means to achieve an exit -- surely what had happened this morning would just about guarantee a discreet expulsion? In that case, though, the culprit would have to make sure his efforts were discovered ...

Okay: 1, talk to Murdock; 2, look for clumsy crims; 3 ... OMG, 3, shoot through like a Bondi tram; I'm the last one in the place!

Salazar headed off to the cafeteria, seemingly by himself.

"Hmmm...What is this supposed to be?" asked Makie as she sturred a think porridge like mixture on her plate, next to several pieces of shrivled up bacon.

"I think that's supposed to be porridge...Or..." Alex said as he took his spoon and tasted a bit of the "mixture." "Or...It's scrambled eggs...I just needs some ketchup..."

"Ewww...It's all watery..."

"At least it's food..."

"But..."

"I know...You aren't used to this food...But it's the only thing we've got..." said Alex comfortingly. "Here...Try it with some ketchup..."

Alex handed over the ketchup bottle to Makie, who hesitantly took it and poured a small amount of it on a corner of her plate.

"So...How are you holding up?" said Alex, as he turned to face Jenna.

Murdock followed in step with Angelica, a habit that one grows when they are in marching band. He wiped the sweat off his forhead, and continued on. He couldn't think of anything to talk about.
"I...er...," He ended it with a sigh and dropped his head, his mind was blank.

Murdock sounded rather uncomfortable. Considering that they'd probably end up eating together it would be best to keep conversing about something, but nothing heavy. They did have to live right next to each other for the rest of the year. Since he was having so much trouble she'd have to start it off. Something simple and light but it couldn't be trivial considering the importance he placed on the previous event. Angelica smiled and put on her most comfortable guise and started to speak pleasantly. "We're nearly roommates and we really haven't gotten a chance to talk yet. I don't even know anything about where you're from." There would probably a reciprocal question in eventuality, but she'd deal with that when it came up.

"MM?" Said Jenna. "Oh, sorry, I was trying to work out what this little lumpy bit in my egg is. Wait, they are eggs, right? Cos if they're not, the school has some explaining to do..."

"Actually, it has some explaining to do anyway. I've come to the conclusion that this has to be something organised by the school itself, and not outside forces or, I don't know, some genius kid with too much time on their hands. it's too well organised. They asked us to record what we saw, didn't they? That means they knew we were going to see something weird, and they wanted to know... how we'd see it?"

She frowned thoughtfully. "What do you reckon Flick? are they messing with our heads or is this some freaky radical freaky new freaky teaching method?"

"MM?" Said Jenna. "Oh, sorry, I was trying to work out what this little lumpy bit in my egg is. Wait, they are eggs, right? Cos if they're not, the school has some explaining to do..."

"Actually, it has some explaining to do anyway. I've come to the conclusion that this has to be something organised by the school itself, and not outside forces or, I don't know, some genius kid with too much time on their hands. it's too well organised. They asked us to record what we saw, didn't they? That means they knew we were going to see something weird, and they wanted to know... how we'd see it?"

She frowned thoughtfully. "What do you reckon Flick? are they messing with our heads or is this some freaky radical freaky new freaky teaching method?"

OOC: short post for tonight...cant post anything long...

"Freaky is right...And that is the porridge/oatmeal...I think..." said Alex as he took his spoon and tasted the "thing" Jenna was attempting to eat.

(OOC 1: Sorry; gotta get Flick back to the table)
(OOC 2: No matter how far away in time or space this story is unfolding, some TV station somewhere in Australia is still showing Simpsons re-runs.)

Flick's panic faded when she realised the others hadn't gone without her. They'd just been fetching their food. Still, funny how she'd reacted when she thought they'd gone. Apparently her subconscious had already decided that these people, even if she still didn't know all their names yet, were her "pack".

Of course, as soon as Jenna reasoned the recent display out so clearly, there was only one possible reaction.

"D'oh!" said Flick, with the classic hand-to-head gesture. "Of course it couldn't have been anyone but the staff! Sorry, Jenna, mornings aren't my time. Okay, it was them. As for the why of it ... I dunno; I'd never heard of this school before my step-father started raving about it, but if he admires it, it can't possibly be known for its inventive teaching methods. The impression I got was that it's an expensive kennel for all us cute little puppies who aren't so cute any more ... "

That evidently didn't go down so well with some of her hearers. Plainly several of them thought they were more than an inconvenience in some adults' lives -- "Hey!" Flick said suddenly. "Is anyone here actually important? I mean, someone went to a lot of trouble this morning. You don't make that much effort for ordinary kids. But if someone's the heir to the Grand High Throne of Wherever, or the only child of the President of the Supreme Somewhere ... ?"

Her mouth shut down, but her brain went on. Even if some of them were important, what was the point? Maybe the idea was to drive somebody mad. But since when had "mad" been unacceptable, once you got to the top of the tree? And why rope in the rest of them? She sighed.

"Y'know, all I can come up with is what you said before, Jenna: we don't know enough yet. So ... anyone got anything they want to, ah, share?"

Stumblebum, she told herself. Do you really think anyone's gonna jump up and yell, "Yeah, me, I'm heaps important"? Now they'll all clam up worse than before. Yay, well done, Tact Gurl!

OCC: Realy sorry I didn't say anything sooner but I'm gona have to pull out. Realy busy as of late and don't realy have any time for this or realy feal like it at all. Realy sorry I didn't say anything sooner. But later.

Angelica smiled and put on her most comfortable guise and started to speak pleasantly. "We're nearly roommates and we really haven't gotten a chance to talk yet. I don't even know anything about where you're from." There would probably a reciprocal question in eventuality, but she'd deal with that when it came up.

"Well, I," Murdock said looking ahead, then glancing at her. "Am from Techon, the entire planet is one nation; Techon. Its at the edge of uncharted space."

She moved along taking food items at random. It was all the same to her. "What's it like? I've never been off-planet." She still didn't know quite what to say about the demonstration they'd witnessed, but she doubted it would be an isolated occurrence.

"D'oh!" said Flick, with the classic hand-to-head gesture. "Of course it couldn't have been anyone but the staff! Sorry, Jenna, mornings aren't my time. Okay, it was them. As for the why of it ... I dunno; I'd never heard of this school before my step-father started raving about it, but if he admires it, it can't possibly be known for its inventive teaching methods. The impression I got was that it's an expensive kennel for all us cute little puppies who aren't so cute any more ... "

"Actually...Makie and I were literarally dragged here from our school back in -Noir-." said Alex.

"We were suddenly called up to the front office of our schools where we met some people to take us to the space port. Then after some travelling, we arrived here." added Makie as she pushed the bowl of mush away from her. "The food tastes nasty..."

That evidently didn't go down so well with some of her hearers. Plainly several of them thought they were more than an inconvenience in some adults' lives -- "Hey!" Flick said suddenly. "Is anyone here actually important? I mean, someone went to a lot of trouble this morning. You don't make that much effort for ordinary kids. But if someone's the heir to the Grand High Throne of Wherever, or the only child of the President of the Supreme Somewhere ... ?"

"Y'know, all I can come up with is what you said before, Jenna: we don't know enough yet. So ... anyone got anything they want to, ah, share?"

"Share anything?" asked Alex, who also pushed his empty plate away from him. The others looked at him curiously since everyone had mixed feelings on how edible the food was. "Hey, I learned not to waste food."

"I haven't really seen anyone of great importance like the ones you described, actually..." started Makie. "But if you count being children of major multinational corporations, then I could name a few."

"Like you?" said the voice from the back of Makie's head. Oh great...Not you again..."Yes...Me again..." What do you want anways? "I'm just watching over you like how a big sister watches over her little sister..." What??? Big sister??? Wait... But the voice had disappeared before Makie had been able to ask any further.

"I know Makie is the only daughter of the Sasaki Zaibatsu back in -Noir-..." said Alex to Jenna and Flick. "She's the yougnest sibling and only girl of a family of...Five...Or four brothers, I forgot."

"H...How'd you know about that? I didn't tell you."

"I just know my girls..." said Alex with a smile. "But...Seriously...I remember seeing you at one of those social parties my parents hold on the colony during Christmas Eve...You were with your parents...And I overheard more information from an old friend that goes to Mahora Academy, mostly about your brothers and your family...I believe you know Nina, right?"

"Nina? Oh, yea...Chancellor Keiji's daughter...Yes, I know her." said Nina, who was still trying to remember what happened at the party, or if she even went to one with her parents. "But how about you?"

"Me?"

"Yes...You."

"Well...I'm...You don't want to know about me...There's nothing interesting about me...Hehe..."

"Well...We don't care...Spill."

"I'm Alex Akashi, the yougnest of the five Akashi brothers who are going to inherit the Kukai Foundation."

"The Kukai Foundation...The company that made the colonies?"

"The same exact one..."

Alex quickly cut off Makie before she was going to ask another question about him, and quickly changed to focus of the discussion towards Flick and Jenna.

"So...How 'bout you two?" Alex said to Jenna and Flick.

Salazar sat and listened to their conversation as he drank the weak coffee.

Jenna shrugged. "Nothing here. My dad's the secretary general, but honestly, that post means almost as buggerall as the Prime Minister. Our parties are pretty much the same - they are letting in little ones now, but who honestly believes that will make a difference? So we've been in power since before I was born. The people know it will be more hassle than any kind of difference to vote in our opposition. So do the opposition, for that matter - they don't even really do anything much any more."

Jenna shrugged. "Nothing here. My dad's the secretary general, but honestly, that post means almost as buggerall as the Prime Minister. Our parties are pretty much the same - they are letting in little ones now, but who honestly believes that will make a difference? So we've been in power since before I was born. The people know it will be more hassle than any kind of difference to vote in our opposition. So do the opposition, for that matter - they don't even really do anything much any more."

"This is why politics bores me so..." sighed Alex.

"Sounds like my stepfather," said Flick. "The doesn't-do-anything part, anyway. He says he's a diplomat, but as far as I can make out, he's basically just a visa-johnny at his embassy. I know everyone reckons they're all supposed to be CIA, but he wouldn't have the guts or the brains for that. He must be rich enough to send me here, but he's not anyone important; no old family name or anything. I mean, the sort of guy he is, if he was anything at all, you wouldn't be able to shut him up about it. He thinks one of his horrible church socials is a big deal. As for my Mum, she's a freelance. She writes the words between the pictures in travel brochures, that sort of thing. Until Guts-ache showed up, we were pretty much broke. And my real Dad was a TV cameraman who died in a stupid helicopter crash filming a traffic report. He was some sort of big noise in his union, but that was 14 years ago. Basically, I'm the latest little fish in a whole line of little fish in a tiny, tiny pond."

Satisfied that she'd established herself as no silvertail, Flick reached for the Vegemite -- hang on, Vegemite? Here? Her countrymen's national craving for the salty black spread was something of a universal joke, but, all the same, finding it on the table at this place argued a truly awesome attention to detail. She almost felt flattered.

She moved along taking food items at random. It was all the same to her. "What's it like? I've never been off-planet." She still didn't know quite what to say about the demonstration they'd witnessed, but she doubted it would be an isolated occurrence.

"Space itself is beautiful," Murdock exclaimed. "It's..it's something that can't be explained, it has to be seen...gosh..." He smiled, remembering. "I will try to explain it. As you know all planets, almost all planets, that are inhabited have an atmosphere, blue sky, clouds, and a sun. One sun usually, well lets say you take off from the planet in a Spaceship. You travel up through the atmosphere, leaving the giant blue and green sphere behind. A moon is directly ahead, creating and eclispe for you, you move along, you see all around, billions of starsm shining like shattered peices of glass. Beautiful, everywhere.
"You move farther along in your ship, and soon enough you see it," He said, he was staring off at a wall, obvious imagining it in his mind. "The sun starts to appear, bright, brilliant, then, there it is, the giant sphere of plasma. Its beautiful, one of the best things seen possibly."

He smiled, and dropped his head, then looked at her. "One of the most beautiful planets I have been to is Iddium, its a small planet, an oceanic planet, that is in the middle of a nebula. There is a sun it orbits around, making it warm and tropical. The nebula is what makes it beautiful, the nebula itself is a kind of, dark blue, with a collage of red and orange. Its amazing..."

"The government of Techon is over control of 23 different star systems, not all of them are inhabited, a number of other nations are under its influence. Most of them allies, some are governments who tried to fight us, but lost," He looked around, taking in the area around him. "The planet Techon itself is beautiful, five continents, all very big, with the rest of the planet covered in ocean, we do not pollute our air as much as Earth does. Our air, and enviroment are some of the beautifullest."

Once he started talking he was fairly charismatic, but for all his elaborate word-painting she couldn't picture the scenes he painted. Either it was too far beyond her experiences or she simply didn't have enough imagination. She had a hard time coming up with a reply; what could she say? She couldn't really spout wonderful stories about her home, and she wasn't about to spout a sob story and look like a weakling. She really couldn't discuss what she knew about his home intelligently; she didn't know anything.

"It sounds really nice." Nice? It sounded like a dream, but it was his home and he missed it. He'd be inclined to speak about the beauty and not the sickness. He had a reason to dislike the school, as did everyone else. They had homes, families, something that connected them, things they had lost when they came to Martizar. She belonged there at that school as much as she did or ever would anywhere else. She would be home anywhere and never hold a regret about what she left behind.

"Sounds like my stepfather," said Flick. "The doesn't-do-anything part, anyway. He says he's a diplomat, but as far as I can make out, he's basically just a visa-johnny at his embassy. I know everyone reckons they're all supposed to be CIA, but he wouldn't have the guts or the brains for that. He must be rich enough to send me here, but he's not anyone important; no old family name or anything. I mean, the sort of guy he is, if he was anything at all, you wouldn't be able to shut him up about it. He thinks one of his horrible church socials is a big deal. As for my Mum, she's a freelance. She writes the words between the pictures in travel brochures, that sort of thing. Until Guts-ache showed up, we were pretty much broke. And my real Dad was a TV cameraman who died in a stupid helicopter crash filming a traffic report. He was some sort of big noise in his union, but that was 14 years ago. Basically, I'm the latest little fish in a whole line of little fish in a tiny, tiny pond."

Satisfied that she'd established herself as no silvertail, Flick reached for the Vegemite -- hang on, Vegemite? Here? Her countrymen's national craving for the salty black spread was something of a universal joke, but, all the same, finding it on the table at this place argued a truly awesome attention to detail. She almost felt flattered.


"Hmmm...That's a sad story..." said Makie, before her stare landed on the Vegemite. "Isn't...Ehhhhh...."

Makie had remembered her near fatal experience with Vegemite just last summer in Melbourne. One of her brothers had dared her to eat one of the small yellow Kraft Vegemite packets stacked neatly on the breakfast table inside the Crown Promenade Hotel. She was already feeling suspicious since her brothers were all sniggering as she spread the Vegemite on her toast. Once she had bitten into the piece of tainted toast, a strange urge to throw up came over her, making her quickly stand up and run for the restroom as her brothers all laughed at her.

"Ummm..." started Makie, her pupils dialated, and still tramatized from the experience in Australia.

"CIA huh..." said Alex. "And then you say that they don't do anything? What kind of Central Intelligence Agency is that?"

"Eh...Vegemite..." said Makie in a small terrorized voice. "Excuse me..."

Suddenly she cupped her hands around her mouth and ran out of the mess hall towards the nearest restroom, while almost knocking over several freshmen who were in her way.

"Hmmm...What's wrong with her?" asked Alex.

OOC: Hehe...No hard feelings Findhorn, ok? Australia was a fun place to vist over summer...Even though it was winter there, and freezing in Melbourne...One thing that weirded me was that we had to pay for the ketchup packets at fast food places, like KFC...

"Ah, vegemite." Jenna said with a grin. "I have many fond memories of slipping it into un-expected places for my father's colleagues to step on when they least expected it."

She reached for the jam and spread it on her toast. "Will she be alright?"

"Ugh...Ugh..." panted Makie, as she leaned over the sink in the girl's restroom. "Vegemite here! Of all places!"

Makie quickly washed her and dried her face with a paper towel, and headed toward the bathroom door. As Makie reached for the handle, the door opened and in walked a young lady, but from her office suit and adult-like composure, she did not look like the other students.

"Thank you." said Makie politely quietly, while trying not to face the person since she didn't have a breathmint with her.

"You're welcome." said the person softly and kindly, as she held the door open for Makie, who quickly rushed out.

Without giving second thought to this, Makie contiuned to walk back towards the mess hall. But as she made it to the half way point between the restroom and the mess hall, Makie came to a complete stop, she quickly turned around to see who the person was.

Wha!?!? I think she looked like the woman from the classroom!! I've got to go check. exclaimed Makie, in her head. Her heart pounding, she rushed back into restroom, but only to find that the place empty. At this, Makie started to walk back to the mess hall.

"Ah, vegemite." Jenna said with a grin. I" have many fond memories of slipping it into un-expected places for my father's colleagues to step on when they least expected it."

She reached for the jam and spread it on her toast. "Will she be alright?"

"I heard vegemite is made of yeast." said Alex, as he took the yellow jar from Jenna.

"Yeast and ... other things," Flick said darkly. "Soldiers use it for camouflage and to clean their boots. And at school camps, we always had to have some handy when we went on bushwalks, in case there were any rogue koalas. See, koalas only eat one kind of eucalyptus leaf. But if they're hungry enough, they'll eat from any sort of gumtree, and then they go mad, turn into what we call drop-bears ... " She checked her audience; gotcha, have I? Ri-i-ght ... "They fall on their prey from above, rip the throat out of you before you can scream for help. So if you go into the bush you have to smear Vegemite on your neck. That way the flash of pale skin under your chin doesn't alert them if you accidentally look up. Course, you'd be stupid to be looking up in the bush anyway, you should keep an eye on the ground in case there's any wait-a-bits, but sometimes when you get bitten by a giant mozzie you forget ... "

Shuddup, Flick, warned her brain. Some of these kids might not be total townies. Besides, she had to set Alex right.

"It's not the CIA that's a do-nothing, it's my stepfather," she said. "I don't think any spy agency would be dumb enough to recruit him, not even ASIO -- that's Australia's CIA, sort of," she added, though she wasn't really sure if it was. All those alphabet-soup mobs were basically the same, anyway. "Umm, I might go check up on Makie, she's taking a while." Poor kid; surely no-one would've been mean enough to play the Vegemite trick on her ...

(OOC: Dunno if the KFC tomato sauce charge is just a capital city thing. I saw a lot abt it in the Sydney papers, too, but they don't seem to bother in the backblocks. Maybe there aren't enough fast-food customers to go round, they've got to lure us in with FREE! sauce.)

Salazar had been looking down at his pocket computer as he sat in the cafeteria. It had taken his attention away from what the others were talking about and what he had seen in the room. The others would have seen his face pale before he ran out of the cafeteria, leaving his pocket computer behind.

***********

"It would seem that Salazar has recieved some rather disturbing news from home," the boy Salazar had seen in the room tol the other teachers.

"Yeast and ... other things," Flick said darkly. "Soldiers use it for camouflage and to clean their boots. And at school camps, we always had to have some handy when we went on bushwalks, in case there were any rogue koalas. See, koalas only eat one kind of eucalyptus leaf. But if they're hungry enough, they'll eat from any sort of gumtree, and then they go mad, turn into what we call drop-bears ... " She checked her audience; gotcha, have I? Ri-i-ght ... "They fall on their prey from above, rip the throat out of you before you can scream for help. So if you go into the bush you have to smear Vegemite on your neck. That way the flash of pale skin under your chin doesn't alert them if you accidentally look up. Course, you'd be stupid to be looking up in the bush anyway, you should keep an eye on the ground in case there's any wait-a-bits, but sometimes when you get bitten by a giant mozzie you forget ... "

"Hmm...Interesting...I haven't heard that part of the story...All I knew was that Vegemite was at first made out of beer yeast extract or something...And that it is supposed to have lots of Vitamin B in it." said Alex as he tasted a piece of toast which he had liberally spread Vegemite all over. He squinted as he bit into the corner of the bread.

"Ehhh...Ummm...Ok...It's...Ugh...Ok...It's salty..." said Alex as he downed the rest of the piece of toast.

"It's not the CIA that's a do-nothing, it's my stepfather," she said. "I don't think any spy agency would be dumb enough to recruit him, not even ASIO -- that's Australia's CIA, sort of," she added, though she wasn't really sure if it was. All those alphabet-soup mobs were basically the same, anyway. "Umm, I might go check up on Makie, she's taking a while." Poor kid; surely no-one would've been mean enough to play the Vegemite trick on her ...

"Hmmm...I wouldn't like a father like that...I feel sorry for you and your mother...If I were you, I'd have thoughts of moving out...But it seems that your mom needs you to help her deal with your stepfather." said Alex. "Yea...Makie has been gone for sometime now..."

(OOC: Dunno if the KFC tomato sauce charge is just a capital city thing. I saw a lot abt it in the Sydney papers, too, but they don't seem to bother in the backblocks. Maybe there aren't enough fast-food customers to go round, they've got to lure us in with FREE! sauce.)

OOC: and there's another thing! it is KETCHUP!!! K-E-T-C-H-U-P!!!! i've had people look and hesitate at me when i said ketchup...then they finally handed me the "tomato sauce" and i remember there was something to do with the floor system you guys have...i'll rant about it in the OOC thread later...(maybe remind me later...)

"It sounds really nice."

"Nice?" Murdock asked. "Its beautiful.... I wish I could go back. Maybe I could show it to you, let you see it with your own eyes..."

He turned his head, seeing Salazar running out of the cafeteria, his mood changed to grim.

"Whats wrong?" He asked himself or anyone near by who cared.

Jenna smirked. "Drop-bears, huh? Now where have I heard that tall tale before?" She looked around at the wide-eyed believing audience.

"Well, I haven't been to Australia, but... have any of you read Terry Pratchett?"


OOC: I actually live in australia, so I know about "drop-bears"... *smirk*

Flick hurried down the corridor. She was beginning to be genuinely worried about Makie; besides, she wanted a quick exit from the group. When the urge to tell yarns like that came on her she couldn't resist giving way, but it was embarrassing sitting around waiting for the penny to drop ... although it apparently had dropped with Jenna, bless her.

She's quick, smart, Flick thought, I'd like to get to know her. Then she remembered why she was here. Don't get involved, Flick, she ordered herself. You won't be here that long; get the grades, grab some of that rich-kid polish, if you like, but leave it at that. You'll never move in their worlds; you'll never want to.

But it wasn't easy. She was instinctively attracted to the fierce intellect she sensed in Angelica. She wanted to get behind the cool charm that helped Alex hold life at bay. That guy Murdock seemed so intense about something, and the other one -- Salazar? -- he was ... different? Alien? Other-worldly?

Well, of course other-worldly, she scolded herself. Weren't they all? God, she felt so provincial among this lot ... and then there was that business this morning. No, we're not going to think about that, Flick, not till tonight when we're trying to sleep ... She was so absorbed in her thoughts she almost ran into the young woman who hurried out of a side passage; then, recognising her, took hold of her arm: "Makie, are you okay? I was a bit ... "

The young woman who gazed at her calmly wasn't Makie. How could she ever have thought that? "Oh, sorry, I ..."

The stranger murmured something polite and hurried off. Flick, embarrassed, saw Makie coming towards her and waited, hoping her momentary confusion didn't show.

Salazar didn't notice Murdock as he ran past, he was too focused on getting back to his dorm room then taking notice of anyone else.

"Nice?" Murdock asked. "Its beautiful.... I wish I could go back. Maybe I could show it to you, let you see it with your own eyes..."

"I don't think that's likely to happen." Angelica paused slightly to watch Salazar disappear. He certainly didn't look very good. It was too late for her to follow; he had been heading toward the dormitories but she didn't know where to find his room.

Murdock's startled question broke her out of her reverie. "What's wrong?"

She started a little; she had nearly forgotten she'd been talking to him, but she sensed that the question wasn't directed towards her. It might be best if she answered it in any case. "Looks like he got some bad news; I wish I knew where his room was." That hadn't been a smart thing to say, regardless of the grammatical error. "I guess it doesn't matter, I probably wouldn't be able to help anyway." Weak recovery, but in this case it was probably better then nothing. She tried her best to look fairly comfortable as she waited for Murdock's response.

Murdock looked at her, then back where Salazar had run off to. "I don't know, but I am sure I could find it, come on..."
He grabbed her hand carefully, and ran along in the direction Salazar ran off to.

She followed where she was led. He was probably right that he had a better chance of finding the dorm then she did. At least he had been polite.

He led her down a hallway with doors on both sides, the dorms, he walked slowly and quietly down the hallway, and then checked his watch...

Twenty minutes until that orientation

...He looked ahead, seeing a door slightly opened, he walked over to it, and opened it, seeing Salazar inside.

Salazar was rumaging through one of his draws, tears were streaming down his face.

Flick hurried down the corridor. She was beginning to be genuinely worried about Makie; besides, she wanted a quick exit from the group. When the urge to tell yarns like that came on her she couldn't resist giving way, but it was embarrassing sitting around waiting for the penny to drop ... although it apparently had dropped with Jenna, bless her.

She's quick, smart, Flick thought, I'd like to get to know her. Then she remembered why she was here. Don't get involved, Flick, she ordered herself. You won't be here that long; get the grades, grab some of that rich-kid polish, if you like, but leave it at that. You'll never move in their worlds; you'll never want to.

But it wasn't easy. She was instinctively attracted to the fierce intellect she sensed in Angelica. She wanted to get behind the cool charm that helped Alex hold life at bay. That guy Murdock seemed so intense about something, and the other one -- Salazar? -- he was ... different? Alien? Other-worldly?

Well, of course other-worldly, she scolded herself. Weren't they all? God, she felt so provincial among this lot ... and then there was that business this morning. No, we're not going to think about that, Flick, not till tonight when we're trying to sleep ... She was so absorbed in her thoughts she almost ran into the young woman who hurried out of a side passage; then, recognising her, took hold of her arm: "Makie, are you okay? I was a bit ... "

The young woman who gazed at her calmly wasn't Makie. How could she ever have thought that? "Oh, sorry, I ..."

The stranger murmured something polite and hurried off. Flick, embarrassed, saw Makie coming towards her and waited, hoping her momentary confusion didn't show.

Staring at the ground, Flick's appearance at the end of the corridor had surprised her.

"Oh...Sorry for running off like that..." said Makie, almost tripping over her foot since she still was fatigued from throwing up and her little sprint back to the mess hall. "It...It was the Vegemite...I'm really really sorry...It was very rude of me..."

But as Makie staggered towards Flick, a nearby classroom door suddenly flung open right in Makie's face, as a rush of students ran out of the classroom and scattered to their other destinations. As the last student rushed out, with the classroom door closing behind the person, Makie lay on the floor, knocked out as a stream of blood emitted from her nose. A small bent, metal container lay beside her, in a small pool of what appeared to be blood that was dripping out of a small cord attached into the container and connected to somewhere hidden underneath Makie's shirt.

OOC: im just making this up haphazardly since it's late...'cause my internet was down for almost the whole day...

The joking smile dropped from Jenna's face. "What... why is everyone rushing out suddenly?" She asked Alex. As usual her inquisitive personality took over.

"Come on!" Without waiting to see if he was following, she ran out in the same direction as Flick. After hiding behind a door as a stampede of unfamiliar students rushed past, she turned a corner and gasped... there was... blood...

She took a deep breath to steady herself and sank to her knees beside Flick and makie.

"What... happpened?" She whispered.

"I don't know!" said Flick, frantically. "I think it's more than a nosebleed; I think something bad has happened here ..."

She had arranged Makie in recovery position -- at least she'd learned that much from watching Buffy re-runs, when she should have been out doing first-aid courses, joining the St John Ambulance Brigade, learning resuscitation techniques ... with a vague memory of school demonstrations, she checked; Makie was still breathing, her airways didn't seem to be obstructed, what else am I supposed to do, ohmigod, what if there was a Vegemite allergy like the peanut allergy, she could be dying ...

"Can somebody please get someone?" she entreated; yeah, like, really helpful, Flick ...

At last, there was someone pushing through the crowd; someone who must know what to do, someone saying, "Let me through!"

"I don't know!" said Flick, frantically. "I think it's more than a nosebleed; I think something bad has happened here ..."

She had arranged Makie in recovery position -- at least she'd learned that much from watching Buffy re-runs, when she should have been out doing first-aid courses, joining the St John Ambulance Brigade, learning resuscitation techniques ... with a vague memory of school demonstrations, she checked; Makie was still breathing, her airways didn't seem to be obstructed, what else am I supposed to do, ohmigod, what if there was a Vegemite allergy like the peanut allergy, she could be dying ...

"Can somebody please get someone?" she entreated; yeah, like, really helpful, Flick ...

At last, there was someone pushing through the crowd; someone who must know what to do, someone saying, "Let me through!"


"Let me through!" yelled Alex as he pushed to the front of the crowd. "Get out of my way."

As Alex tripped over the last person, barring him from the center of the crowd.

"Shoot...Flick...What happened?" said Alex, as he quickly rushed over to Makie's side.

While Alex made his own observations of the situation, he came across the small container lying besides Makie.

"Hmmm...Makie...Makie...What have you been hiding..." Alex asked himself, as he tugged the cord connected to the box to find where it goes. "Underneath her shirt..."

Alex quickly looked at the crowd that gathered around them.

"Uhhh...Jenna...Flick...Do you think you could help me bring her somewhere more...Uhh...Private..." asked Alex, as he continued to examine the box. "Huh?"

The box, he was holding in his had began emitting a beeping sound.

"Uh...Come on...Flick, get her legs...And Jenna...Help me find a room."

Jenna, holding her breath, picked up Makie's legs, and the three of them carried her into a nearby room, class-room, dorm room, whatever - Jenna wasn't paying attention. She was just trying not to throw up.

"What's wrong with her?" she asked hoarsely, thankfully closing the door.

Jenna, holding her breath, picked up Makie's legs, and the three of them carried her into a nearby room, class-room, dorm room, whatever - Jenna wasn't paying attention. She was just trying not to throw up.

"What's wrong with her?" she asked hoarsely, thankfully closing the door.

"I'm not sure...But I believe it has something to do with this box..." said Alex, as he held up the metal container. "It doesn't seem to be a pacemaker... But it's light...Lighter than it may appear...And the beeping seems to have stopped."

Alex wiped off the blood that stained a corner area of the box.

"Hmmm...'Sasaki Corporation'...'Do Not Pull'..." said Alex aloud, as he read what was on the container. "...'Cord'..."

Alex followed the Cord from the side of the container all the way to the bottom of Makie's shirt, where Alex hesitated to go further.

"Should I or should I not..." said Alex curiously. "Do anyone of you two want to do the honors?"

Alex looked at the two other girls, and sighed, as their expressions showed that they didn't want to be responsible for any further "damage" that might occur.

"Looks like i'll be the one..." sighed Alex. "Sorry Makie..."

Slow, Alex pulled Makie's blood stained shirt over her head and threw it aside.

"Hmmm...The cord goes to her back...Jenna, hold Makie up on her side, so I can take a look at her back."

Jenna takes a hold of Makie's shoulder and pulls up 90 degrees, so that Makie is now lying on her left arm.

Alex moved around to the side to get a better view of where the cord seems to be "plugged" into Makie's back. Once facing Makie's back, Alex saw that the cord was seamlessly connected, or somewhat integrated, to a spot on the lower back of her neck, which would have been covered by a collar of some sorts.

"Hmm...This is odd...It's cold..." said Alex, as he felt down Makie's back. "Hey, can someone hit the lights?"

Jenna went to find a light switch, glad to get away from the blood. You'd think it would stop bothering me after I turned thirteen, but nooo...

"Any idea what it could mean?"

OOC: i had no idea where that "smilee" came from in my last post...I got rid of it thankfully...

Jenna went to find a light switch, glad to get away from the blood. You'd think it would stop bothering me after I turned thirteen, but nooo...

"Any idea what it could mean?"

"Scars..." said Alex, as he stared at the myriad of scars that littered, Makie's back. "And the blood...This..."

Alex, dipped his finger into a small puddle of blood that was coming from the box. He lifted up his finger and smelled it.

"Odd...This...Is..."

He placed his finger in his mouth to taste the "blood" and to confirm an idea that came to his head.Saikano

"This isn't blood...It's nano-machines...Her blood...If it is even REAL blood is primed with nano-machines...Which explains the box...But why it's out and not strapped down somewhere puzzles me...And also why it's cold like metal...But is soft to the touch..."

Alex looked over Makie's back again.

"The scars...They appear to be in a pattern of some sort..."



OOC: me finish this tomorrow...if you can...there is a clue to where im going at...it's hidden in the post

OOC: She's... a... robot? Er... android.. er... meh, we'll find out tomorrow :P good suspense there.

IC: As Alex stared at makie's back and mumbled to himself, jenna moved away from the pool of blood with relief. Her nausea subsided, and she noticed Flick standing white-faced and not saying a word.

"Hey, are you alright? You scared of blood too?" Jenna asked.

"It's not the blood," Flick said shakily. "It's not anything, really, it's just ... look, Jenna, I'm normal, right? I'm a normal kid who lives in a normal city in a normal country where nothing ever happens! Not anything but normal stuff, anyway! Cyclones, bushfires, droughts -- they're awful, but they're normal! Even political things like assassinations and stuff, they happen, you read about them. But this .. someone I was just having breakfast with, and now she's ... well. I don't know what! And there was that thing before, with everyone seeing things, and -- Jenna, it's not normal!"

Salazar was rumaging through one of his draws, tears were streaming down his face.

Salazar didn't look good at all, whatever had been in that letter must have seriously upset him. Angelica was torn between the need to help and comfort him and the desire to escape, she knew that what she'd want above anything else would be privacy. Not that she'd ever get it, the world didn't look well upon 'introverts.'

For some reason she still felt compelled to talk to him, to try to convince him to tell her what was wrong. She hardly knew Salazar and he didn't know her any better, but he'd been thrown here and taken away from the people and things he did know. Then he'd lost something, almost definitely someone, even more. Even though it went against her better judgment and slipped her hand away from Murdock and walked up to Salazar. Words were always a clumsy medium at best, and this was far from the best, so she did her best to make her presence known without them. She walked behind him and put her hand gently on his shoulder, it was almost as worthless as words, but she wasn't good at expressing herself or reassuring others. She just did what was required of her.

"It's not the blood," Flick said shakily. "It's not anything, really, it's just ... look, Jenna, I'm normal, right? I'm a normal kid who lives in a normal city in a normal country where nothing ever happens! Not anything but normal stuff, anyway! Cyclones, bushfires, droughts -- they're awful, but they're normal! Even political things like assassinations and stuff, they happen, you read about them. But this .. someone I was just having breakfast with, and now she's ... well. I don't know what! And there was that thing before, with everyone seeing things, and -- Jenna, it's not normal!"

"Shhh...Keep it down." muttered Alex. "I don't think we can do anything to wake her up now...The best thing to do is to treat her as if she was knocked unconscious...And get an ice pack for her forehead...Seems as if the door slammed into her pretty hard."

Alex walked over to where Makie's shirt was lying on the floor and picked it up and them continued to look for the container which he had placed also close by.

"Hey...Guys, have you seen the little box?" asked Alex. "It had a cord...But I can't find it..."

After almost a mintue of searching Alex gave up and started to put Makie's shirt back on her limp body.

"What the!?!? The box!" exclaimed Alex as he jumped back as he propped up Makie to a sitting position.

The container was slowly being "pulled" or "assimilated" back into Makie's body. The box seemed to be melting in with Makie's flesh and continued to do so until all that was left were some barely visible scars that had formed in the outline of the box.

"Holy *****!?! They've perfected organic nano-machines..." yelled Alex at the top of his lungs, as he jumped around excitedly. "I've got to hand it to the Sasaki Corporation...Wow!"

After "jumping" around for a few more seconds, he turned to the two other girls who stared at him as if he were a maniac.

"Back in -Noir-...*huff* *huff*...I remember..." panted Alex. "I remembered that we have the nano technology to replicate cells and to repair and maintain the vital organs and other parts of our body from nanos inside our body...But this is the first time i've seen nanos being used like this..."

Alex walked over to Makie, and finished to put her shirt through her arms and down her body. As he did so, he felt the spot where the box "melted" into.

"I haven't seen or known it that we had already developed nanos that can do this somethin this large in scale...Little repair jobs and cell replications inside the body is one thing...But being able to create physical objects, even the size of that box we saw earlier, outside of the body is incredile...If her nanos can do this, then surely the replacement of limbs might fully be possible!" explained Alex in an exasperated tone. "Huh?"

"Huh??? Wh...Where am...I???" said Makie as she slowly started to come to. "What??? Ha....Happened? Huh?"

Makie instinctantly slapped Alex's arm causing his hand to quickly remove itself out from underneath her shirt.

"Looks like she's awake..." said Alex, as he rubbed the part of his arm that Makie slapped.

Salazar closed his eyes as he felt the hand on his shoulder. He said nothing, his eyes just stayed shut.

Invisible Bump

"Well, it helps if you look at it as 'new and interesting'" Jenna commented helpfully, before turning back to alex and makie and failing to see any blood, or the odd box.

She stared. "Wha-"

After listening to the confusin explanation of nano-tech - Resquide was a tad behind the times on that one - she was relieved to see Makie sitting up and looking back to normal.

"I'd... like to find out more about this nano-stuff later," she said thoughtfully, "but right now... why did that thing come out of your back? All that happened was a nosebleed... that shouldn't cause wierd stuff, you'd be at it all day."

"Well, it helps if you look at it as 'new and interesting'" Jenna commented helpfully, before turning back to alex and makie and failing to see any blood, or the odd box.

She stared. "Wha-"

After listening to the confusin explanation of nano-tech - Resquide was a tad behind the times on that one - she was relieved to see Makie sitting up and looking back to normal.

"I'd... like to find out more about this nano-stuff later," she said thoughtfully, "but right now... why did that thing come out of your back? All that happened was a nosebleed... that shouldn't cause wierd stuff, you'd be at it all day."

Makie gasped once Jenna mentioned something about nanos and something coming out of her back.

"Y...You didn't..." stuttered Makie. "You...You saw it!?"

Makie looked down at her blood stained shirt and at the puddle of blood around her.

"No...They'll find me now for sure..." Makie whispered to herself, then she quickly turned to Alex. "There...There was a container...What h...Happened to it?"

"It uhh...Went back in you..."

"Oh...Th...Then...I might have a chance..."

Makie stood up and looked up at the three people standing around her.

"Promise me...Promise me that you won't tell anyone about this...Please...They'll come and get me..." begged Makie, who started to sob. "I don't want to fight anymore..."


6th Research and Development Division
UMN Administration Building Second Miltia Branch, Second Miltia Space Colony

"Sir, we have a reading from Unit SI-001m..."

"Really...I thought we lost her during the last battle...Can you verify a position?"

"I was unable to track the signal...The frequency was scrambled before it reached us...But we know she's still out there..."

"Keep monitoring...All we need to do is wait for another signal to escape...Then start tracking it immediately."

"Yes, sir."

Maybe he didn't want company, just wanted a chance to compose himself in privacy. "Would you rather be alone?"

In his circumstance she probably would prefer to be alone, but she didn't think that most people were like her.

Salazar sniffed, he slowly shook his head. "I... I don't know," he said in a quiet voice.

Murdock was still hanging outside the door, probably unsure as to whether he'd get in the way or be able to help. She needed his help, she couldn't deal with any emotions. They were too irrational, too unpredictable for her to understand. In any case for now it was only her, and she was far deeper then she should have ever dived.

She knew well enough that he didn't want her to leave, his voice told enough of that story and his eyes begged for reassurance. She didn't have any to give; at best she could have listened to him, but he probably wouldn't speak in front of a crowd. She had to do something.

She shifted slightly and put her arms gently around him, as reassuringly as she could and spoke quietly into his ear. "I'm sorry, you can talk if you want or you can be silent. Whatever is best."

Salazar kept his eyes closed as another tear rolled down his cheek. "I don't know what is best anymore," he said.

Looks like she has everything under control, like usual...
He turned around, and walked away from the room, he walked down the hallway, the lights glowing above his head.
"What could he have been..." He asked himself as his mind trailed back to the unknown man he had to describe.
His thoughts ran over everything he had gathered from everyone....they all had seen different things, some thought it was because of drugs that the school was using, others thought because magic.
"Magic doesn't exist...and no matter what schools wouldn't use drugs on kids, the outcomes are always unpredictable," He said to himself, and then he stopped dead in his tracks. "We all saw different things...none of us tried to touch them... we don't know if they are etheral or... shit..."
His head flew over his shoulder, making sure no one heard him. "What if...possibly, they weren't humans at all...but...spirits...ghosts, beings from the etheral plane. That would exlpain why we all saw different people. Its happened in the past where ghost sitings have been seen different by different people..."
The lights above his head started to flicker. "Maybe this school... is...haunted..."
The light flickered out, and he realized it wasn't just that one light, all the lights in the school had gone out.

She didn't know what to say. "I really don't know how you feel, I've never known what was best." That was really stupid, true but stupid and now Murdock was leaving. She wasn't what Salazar needed, he needed someone who could reassure him and share something. Not someone who didn't have any experience with other people, she needed him.

Salazar opened his eyes, but they were not fixed on anything. He was just staring blankly. "My best frien was killed by his grandfather," he said, tears rolling down his cheeks.

Speaking wouldn't do any good, she hadn't even tried to guess what had happened but this didn't shock her much. Not that anything would have. She just didn't have the understanding of the issues to connect properly. What could she do? Reassurance would be worthless, apologizing would be insincere, just standing there would be insignificant.

She just stood there holding him; wishing she could do something.

Salazar closed his eyes again. "I saw him in that room," he said. "I should have realised then that something was wrong."

She let go, it was probably best anyway. "Do you think that whatever that was had anything to do with..." That wasn't easy to say without being downright rude.

"Kurt's death?" Salazar asked and then shook his head. "No I just think this school is screwed up. I hate it here, I should have been back home, I could have been there for Kurt."

He was blaming himself for something that he hadn't been involved in and probably wouldn't have been able to change. Would she have done the same? She didn't know, so she was very unfit to give advice. Not that she was smart enough to stop trying.

"You weren't there, and you couldn't be. Grieving is good, but regretting something you couldn't change and no one could foresee is pointless." As always the message came across poorly, no matter how soft she had kept her voice those words were going to sound like an accusation. Well, it was too late to take them back now, she'd just live with the consequences.

Jenna glanced at Flick, whose spaced out expression appeared to have come back - well, it sounded something like kidnapping, and what's more it was sciffy kidnapping, which was NOT normal.

"Um-" She started to say, before the lights went out.

Jenna glanced at Flick, whose spaced out expression appeared to have come back - well, it sounded something like kidnapping, and what's more it was sciffy kidnapping, which was NOT normal.

"Um-" She started to say, before the lights went out.

OOC: what's a sciffy?

The lights flickered in the room and suddenly flickered off, right when Jenna was about so say something. Makie jumped, still breathing heavily and heart still racing after regaining consciousness. The whole group now stood in a pitch black room, barely able to see the person across from them.

"Now what?" asked Alex loudly, expecting to get an immediate answer from out of nowhere, if not from one of the girls.

OOC: what's a sciffy?

The lights flickered in the room and suddenly flickered off, right when Jenna was about so say something. Makie jumped, still breathing heavily and heart still racing after regaining consciousness. The whole group now stood in a pitch black room, barely able to see the person across from them.

"Now what?" asked Alex loudly, expecting to get an immediate answer from out of nowhere, if not from one of the girls.

OOC: Adj. in the style of science fiction. It's the less annoying version of sci-fi, which is reserved for movies and wannabees, apparantly. That and I just like the sound of it better.

IC: "What the hell did that?" Jenna asked. "I thought we had spare fuse-boxes and things so we wouldn't lose power in the event of an emergency. It was even on the brochure."

She felt her way to the window and pulled the blinds open, letting in the daylight, which streamed in, making ominous shadows on the floor.

OOC: Adj. in the style of science fiction. It's the less annoying version of sci-fi, which is reserved for movies and wannabees, apparantly. That and I just like the sound of it better.

IC: "What the hell did that?" Jenna asked. "I thought we had spare fuse-boxes and things so we wouldn't lose power in the event of an emergency. It was even on the brochure."

She felt her way to the window and pulled the blinds open, letting in the daylight, which streamed in, making ominous shadows on the floor.

"Hmmm...A brown-out...Never believed this would happen here...Considering this is an exclusive school and such..." said Alex, who seated himself on a nearby desk, his dark silhoette(sp?) could be seen as his figure blocked the incoming rays of light. "Oh...And Makie...You need to get changed...I think you'll be freaking out a few students if you go out with all that "blood" on you..."

"Oh...Ok..." said Makie, who managed to calm down, she then turned to the two other girls in the room. "I'm sorry for running off from the breakfast table earlier...I had a bad experience with Vegemite a while back..."

"Hmmm...So...You're human right?" asked Alex, out of the blue.

"Pardon?" replied Makie, who was taken aback at Alex's directness.

"Are you human?"

"Y...Yes...Why do you ask?"

"Just wanted to make sure...Wondering if they actually perfected creating an robot this life-like..."

"Alex, of course I'm human...How could you ask that...I'm not an robot!"

"Oh I knew that you were human..." whistled Alex. "Me meant to make Makie mad...Hehe..."

"Hmph...That was really mean..."

"You're too cute to be a robot...Heh." said Alex, causing Makie to blush.

Alex looked around at the rest of the girls, who were off day dreaming.

"So, do you think the orientation is cancelled?" asked Alex.

OOC: my (-Noir-) country also...just cant get the sig to work....

"Well, we won't find out unless we go check." Jenna replied. "Which we should probably do, considering it starts in 5 minutes."

She began to walk out the door, but stopped next to Flick.
"Uh... are you alright?"

OOC: so what happened to noir? some people are gonna get confused.

"Well, we won't find out unless we go check." Jenna replied. "Which we should probably do, considering it starts in 5 minutes."

She began to walk out the door, but stopped next to Flick.
"Uh... are you alright?"

OOC: so what happened to noir? some people are gonna get confused.

"Yea...We should get going...And...I think that is it for the day...After the orientation...We are free to go...Unless they say something otherwise after or during the orientation..." said Alex.

As he stopped flicking the broken light switch on and off, a low grumbling noise could be heard from his stomach.

"Hehe...Maybe we could all go up to Makie's and my room to get some REAL food...Not like the food they are forcing us to eat in the mess hall..." said Alex, holding his stomach.



OOC: the sig should be obvious enough...
OOC2: do you have any form of messenger? MSN, AIM, Yahoo? i think we should all discuss where we are going to bring this RP...

"Yea...We should get going...And...I think that is it for the day...After the orientation...We are free to go...Unless they say something otherwise after or during the orientation..." said Alex.

As he stopped flicking the broken light switch on and off, a low grumbling noise could be heard from his stomach.

"Hehe...Maybe we could all go up to Makie's and my room to get some REAL food...Not like the food they are forcing us to eat in the mess hall..." said Alex, holding his stomach.

OOC: was supposed to be -Second Miltia-'s post but it didnt post correctly...

ooc: wait till flick comes out of limbo, there's no hurry. And it is obvious, i just wanted to know why? What happened to the other one?
ooc2: magz_attakgz@hotmail.com , although as I recall we had an ooc thread for that.

He was blaming himself for something that he hadn't been involved in and probably wouldn't have been able to change. Would she have done the same? She didn't know, so she was very unfit to give advice. Not that she was smart enough to stop trying.

"You weren't there, and you couldn't be. Grieving is good, but regretting something you couldn't change and no one could foresee is pointless." As always the message came across poorly, no matter how soft she had kept her voice those words were going to sound like an accusation. Well, it was too late to take them back now, she'd just live with the consequences.

Salazar looked down at the ground. "Being there would have been better then being stuck here," he replied.

"Yeah, no ... Sorry about the hissy fit," said Flick. "When Makie looked -- you know -- it was -- I mean -- " She stopped, tried to get a grip on herself. "See, my best friend Esther got cancer two years ago. She's in remission now, but ... well, we've known each other since our mums used to take us to playgroup. And it was always, like, when we grow up we'll do this, we'll go there. And then it was, well, maybe she won't grow up." Flick's voice went blurry, but she kept on. "For two years, both of us living with that. Sometimes I hated her, really hated her, for dying. Sometimes she hated me for living. Then I come here and see something that maybe might have cured her in a couple of days. Why didn't we have that?"

Flick glared angrily at the others, as if it were their fault. She knew it wasn't. What she'd just seen might still be experimental, even on Makie's home world.They wouldn't want to rush out with it before they were sure it worked.
But understanding that and feeling okay about it were two different things. Her heart was saying, They could have helped Esther and they didn't! Her brain was saying, Grow up, Flick! She's all right now, let it go!

"Oh, stop playing with that stupid switch!" she ordered Alex, as furiously as if he were to blame for every weird thing that had happened that day.

"Possibly, but you can't change that." She glanced at the door to see if Murdock was back and she noticed something, first that the hallway was dark, apparently there had been a power outage. Then she thought about the orientation. It was probably about to start, but a power outage would give her an excuse to be late or miss it. It was more important to stay with Salazar at the moment.

"Yeah, no ... Sorry about the hissy fit," said Flick. "When Makie looked -- you know -- it was -- I mean -- " She stopped, tried to get a grip on herself. "See, my best friend Esther got cancer two years ago. She's in remission now, but ... well, we've known each other since our mums used to take us to playgroup. And it was always, like, when we grow up we'll do this, we'll go there. And then it was, well, maybe she won't grow up." Flick's voice went blurry, but she kept on. "For two years, both of us living with that. Sometimes I hated her, really hated her, for dying. Sometimes she hated me for living. Then I come here and see something that maybe might have cured her in a couple of days. Why didn't we have that?"

Flick glared angrily at the others, as if it were their fault. She knew it wasn't. What she'd just seen might still be experimental, even on Makie's home world.They wouldn't want to rush out with it before they were sure it worked.
But understanding that and feeling okay about it were two different things. Her heart was saying, They could have helped Esther and they didn't! Her brain was saying, Grow up, Flick! She's all right now, let it go!

"Oh, stop playing with that stupid switch!" she ordered Alex, as furiously as if he were to blame for every weird thing that had happened that day.

"Ok...Ok...Yes ma'am..." said Alex, who walked over Makie.

"That's a said story..." sniffled Makie.

"Why you guys don't have this technology?" asked Alex.

OOC: not finished...

Salazar shook his head slowly, "This is bad," he said slowly. "So very bad."

Murdock practically slid into the doorway of the room, he was panting, and he looked at Salazar and Angelica. His face was pale, and his pupils very small, even in the darkness.
"You guys gotta see this," He said.
He looked back down the hallway. "I don't think the school is putting drugs into us..."
He backed up into the room. "I think...what we saw...were ghosts, or spirits, or some sort of etheral being..."
He looked in the darkness of the hallway, and before their very eyes a figure moved in the hallway, the figure was more of a cloud, darker than what surrounded them, making it easy to see, it moved passed the door, and then soon another passed, and another, soon enough there was a group of them passing the door.
"I don't know what they are up to here," Murdock said standing in the doorway watching them go by. "I just hope they aren't here to harm us... look they're moving down to the auditorium...the orientation!"

"Figures," Salazar muttered.

The shadowy figures didn't have any strongly defining characteristics, nothing that would make one different from another. The fact that they passed through walls as if they were nothing gave the impression that they were illusions, an absence of light or something. The physics behind such a falsified astral being was far beyond her, but she was young and stupid.

It wasn't the time to be decisive, the others had more experience in this realm. It was time to let one of them lead. "What should we do?"

"It's okay," Jenna said to Flick. "She isn't dead, is she? My dad won't even tell me what my mum died of..."

Suddenly her head jerked up. "What was- did I just hear a yell?" She looked at her watch. "Damn, orientation's about to start! Come on!"


ooc: just cos i thought we needa keep the two groups at basically the same level...

"I don't know," Salazar said, shaking his head. There was too much going on today for him to take any of it in.

Joining her fellow lemmings in the rush for the door, Flick was glad of the reprieve. She vaguely understood why Earth, these days, was no longer the focus of human discovery, but it wasn't something she wanted to discuss. Certainly not in the sort of detail Alex would no doubt insist on ...

"Oof! Oh, sorry ..." Scuffling on the floor for the books she had dropped when she ran into Jenna, Flick didn't realise at first why everyone else had stopped dead. "Sshhh!" somebody hissed. Flick peered through the thicket of legs to see what they were carrying on about.

Ignoring all physical barriers, a file of insubstantial figures moved inexorably down the hallway. Flick's eyes followed one as it melted through an inconvenient wall.

"Wow!" she said admiringly. "That's the best initiation trick I've ever seen! All they ever did at my old high school was send the new kids to the staffroom to say they had a note for Mr Bond -- James Bond ..."

(OOC: I'm not dissing Techon's ghosts, this is just the sort of person Flick is. Besides, since Angelica, Murdock and Salazar are seeing the same thing in another part of the school, when they all get together it should add to the atmosphere.)

Joining her fellow lemmings in the rush for the door, Flick was glad of the reprieve. She vaguely understood why Earth, these days, was no longer the focus of human discovery, but it wasn't something she wanted to discuss. Certainly not in the sort of detail Alex would no doubt insist on ...

"Oof! Oh, sorry ..." Scuffling on the floor for the books she had dropped when she ran into Jenna, Flick didn't realise at first why everyone else had stopped dead. "Sshhh!" somebody hissed. Flick peered through the thicket of legs to see what they were carrying on about.

Ignoring all physical barriers, a file of insubstantial figures moved inexorably down the hallway. Flick's eyes followed one as it melted through an inconvenient wall.

"Wow!" she said admiringly. "That's the best initiation trick I've ever seen! All they ever did at my old high school was send the new kids to the staffroom to say they had a note for Mr Bond -- James Bond ..."

(OOC: I'm not dissing Techon's ghosts, this is just the sort of person Flick is. Besides, since Angelica, Murdock and Salazar are seeing the same thing in another part of the school, when they all get together it should add to the atmosphere.)

"I don't see any projectors..." said Alex, who had managed to push to the front.

"Because, there aren't any...These things aren't artificial..." said Makie, who said in a monotone voice. She then shook her head, and appeared to be driving away a thought from her mind. "Argh...I hate it when THIS happens to me...The signal scrambler chip they installed must have gotten knocked out..."

"Was it in that box that said 'Sasaki Industries' on it?" asked Alex.

"Yes..."

"Then it is broken..."

"Oh...This isn't good..." said Makie in a worried voice. "But...I think my nanos could fix it...But it's going to take time..."

OOC: im out of it today...too tired...need rest...need at least 8 hours of sleep tonight for once...

Jenna's eyes lit up when she saw the figures. "Whoah, how do they do that?!" She exclaimed, rushing forward. She didn't touch them, but instead tried to lean forward and examine them closely for any hint of graininess or other signs of something computer-generated.

"Come on, they're heading the same way we are - it might be some weird part of orientation!"

OOC: yawn...save for my post...something about decding to follow the transparent people towards the hall...

Murdock heard Angelica and Salazar say something behind him, but he was hypnotized by the black figures, there seemed to be a soft whisper in the air. He looked around to see where it could be coming from. The figures continued to walk by him, he heard the whisper growing louder, it was a normal voice now, something very familiar was from it.

He saw one figure walking towards him kind of, it was the exact same height as him, and seemed to have the same body build, it resumed talking as it walked by.

"Follow me...." It said, and Murdock realized why the voice sounded familiar, its because it was his own voice, that figure was him, or at least shadow of him, or a astral version of him or something.

He was hypnotized, and walked out of the doorway into the crowd, following his figure, thats when a figure passed through him, he got extremely cold, and his body just seemed to loosen up, he collasped onto the floor, and just by seemingly air his legs lifted into the air and his body was drug down the hallway with the crowd of figures.

"Shit," Salazar swore.

He stood up and followed Murdock out the door. Outside he say him being dragged away and looked toward Angelica. "We have to help him," he said.

OOC: Techon, Draconis take it from here, I may or may not be able to participate actively for a bit, but I'll try my best.

IC:

As soon as Murdock collapsed her instincts kicked in; hard. She hardly even noticed that Salazar was speaking as she darted after the receding figures blending easily with the oblivious crowd with ease. After a moment she remembered that she hadn't been alone and motioned silently for Salazar to follow, but he'd already fallen in step behind her easily mimicking her movements and attitude. It made her wonder a little about his history, but the more important task of following the shadowed creatures pushed the thought aside.

Navigating silently through the outskirts of the crowd the creatures and Murdock seemed completely invisible to everyone but Angelica and Salazar, but the two of them were essentially ignored as well during the pursuit. The creatures bearing Murdock were obviously making their way up to the stage where the opening speech would presumably be given, but Angelica couldn't even begin to guess their motives.

"This doesn't look good," Salazar muttered as he followed Angelica

OOC: just got back from the 94.7 The Wave THE MERCEDES-BENZ WAVEFEST (http://www.947wave.com/listingsentryfeature.asp?ID=227406&PT=feature) (Saturday Showing) at the Greek Theatre...and im exhausted...

IC:

"Why in the world are people following these things..." asked Alex. "These people need to practice self-control..."

"Those ghost-like things are starting to freak me out...Look...They are just coming out of and going through walls..." replied Makie, who was hanging onto Alex's arm. "Should we follow?"

"I'm not completely sure it's safe...But...The orientation is that direction..." said Alex, resting his chin on his hand while in deep thought. "And I heard, I think, Flick saying that this could be more like an initiation trick or gimick."

"So...Now what?"

"I don't know..."

As they continued to walk towards Flick and Jenna, nearer to the front of the crowd, several gasps and the loud murmur of several groups of students whispering had reached them.

"I head someone fainted..." said a student, next to Makie.

"Fainted? How?" said another.

"One of the transparent thingys passed through him like...." whispered yet another.

"Fainted huh?" asked Alex, who had butted into the conversation.

"Ummm...Yea...That's what I head." said the student. "Over there a few classrooms back...Like at room 4."

"Ok...Room 4ish..." repeated Alex. "Come on, Makie, let's tell Flick and Jenna...Room 4 is, I believe, is near to the orientation hall."

Alex and Makie push their way through the crowd, back to Flick and Jenna's position and told them about the incident they had overheard.

Flick listened carefully to Alex and Makie's account. There was no doubt they'd seen what they said; they'd already shown they were shrewd observers. But they were a decidedly odd pair, all the same. Flick was sure she remembered Alex asking Makie if she was "real" or "human" or something. Maybe it was some kind of slang on their home-world, like asking if someone if they were okay or all right ... anyway, while the group stood here nattering they were making a little knot of people that others had to push around.

"Somebody always faints at orientations," she said dismissively. "It's probably nothing to do with those ... things. Anyway, have you noticed, they don't seem to be upsetting any of the older kids? Let's go on in."

She pushed her way into the hall -- wow, the Parents and Citizens sure didn't pay for this with cake-stalls! What with the banners and the polished wood panelling and the ornate lights, not to mention the stained glass windows, you might just as well be in Westminster Abbey. But folding chairs are folding chairs, no matter where you go. Flick edged down a crowded aisle, looking for familiar faces.

There was a swirl of movement over there -- oh, good, Angelica and Salazar. Flick waved, but they didn't see her. They looked intent, really worried, in fact, and they seemed to be trying to get to the front. Flick tried to see what they were looking at. Not those stupid "transparent people" again, surely!

But even as she framed the thought, her eyes focussed on ... was that a body being carried on-stage? She couldn't quite make out who was doing the carrying. Perhaps someone really had fainted, and they were going to hustle them off into the wings ...

Flick listened carefully to Alex and Makie's account. There was no doubt they'd seen what they said; they'd already shown they were shrewd observers. But they were a decidedly odd pair, all the same. Flick was sure she remembered Alex asking Makie if she was "real" or "human" or something. Maybe it was some kind of slang on their home-world, like asking if someone if they were okay or all right ... anyway, while the group stood here nattering they were making a little knot of people that others had to push around.

"Somebody always faints at orientations," she said dismissively. "It's probably nothing to do with those ... things. Anyway, have you noticed, they don't seem to be upsetting any of the older kids? Let's go on in."

She pushed her way into the hall -- wow, the Parents and Citizens sure didn't pay for this with cake-stalls! What with the banners and the polished wood panelling and the ornate lights, not to mention the stained glass windows, you might just as well be in Westminster Abbey. But folding chairs are folding chairs, no matter where you go. Flick edged down a crowded aisle, looking for familiar faces.

There was a swirl of movement over there -- oh, good, Angelica and Salazar. Flick waved, but they didn't see her. They looked intent, really worried, in fact, and they seemed to be trying to get to the front. Flick tried to see what they were looking at. Not those stupid "transparent people" again, surely!

But even as she framed the thought, her eyes focussed on ... was that a body being carried on-stage? She couldn't quite make out who was doing the carrying. Perhaps someone really had fainted, and they were going to hustle them off into the wings ...

"I really think someone actually got injured, Flick...It's not the time to joke about it..." said Makie.

"Maybe they paid him to faint." said Alex quickly.

"Hey, you too...It might be serious..."

"But where are the teachers then? Shouldn't they be watching over the students and...They would have reacted faster if it was actually real..."

"You got a point, but you still can't rule out if it might not be a hoax."

"Eh...We'll see once we get inside the hall, right Flick, Jenna?"

Murdock was carried onto the stage, and drug into a chair, they sat him down in that, he was still fast asleep, the dark figure form of him stood right beside him, keeping watch over him. All the other black figures that had come into the room moved to a different kid, each kid black figure appearing to be the students exact shadow.

Seeing a black figure of himself creeped him out. It was too wierd, this school was strange. Salazar hoped his parents would find out and withdraw him from the school.

Murdock was carried onto the stage, and drug into a chair, they sat him down in that, he was still fast asleep, the dark figure form of him stood right beside him, keeping watch over him. All the other black figures that had come into the room moved to a different kid, each kid black figure appearing to be the students exact shadow.

One of the presences made a quick movement toward her and she sashayed to the right to avoid it. The thing didn't even hesitate, it quickly fastened to her. She waited a moment more to see if it would do anything and when she didn't she moved onto the stage where Murdock was sitting. If the other creature didn't harm her she doubted that the one on stage would try anything at all.

She walked confidently right next to Murdock and shook his shoulder a little bit before speaking. "Now would probably be a good time to get up. The hall isn't full quite yet." She never once took her eyes of the large darkness behind him, but the students and faculty in the hall didn't seem to notice it at all. Those who weren't talking were staring at her and Murdock.

***

The costs are beginning to outweigh the benefits Chairman. I think you'd better finish this infantile display as soon as possible. Any success you might be having is being undone by the damage to the rest of them. Cease at once.

Jenna was frowning in concentration at everything, trying to work out what was going on. It hadn't escaped her that the random black things were shadows, and each moulded itself to be somebody's shodwo specifically as it approached them - so she decided to do a little experiment. She kept away from them. One was drifting towards her now, and she quickly swung onto the stage to escape it. She saw the others looking confused below her, and then the thing rose onto the stage...

Shit, she thought - I don't know what they're playing at, but this is way too inexplicable. Suddenly she had a thought, and pulled a small flashlight out of her pocket. she switched it on and shone it through the shadow...

********

"I agree," said the woman, her strict and proper mask long gone. "This is creating nothing but confusion. "I think maybe it's time for the truth. After all, we were pretty sure of them or we wouldn't have brought them here - and their interest is peaked now. Maybe that Flick girl needs something she can't ignore, but the others just need an explanation. We're wasting time."

They'd got the fainting person on stage, Flick saw, and plumped him down in a chair. Angelica and Salazar were still surging towards the front, and Jenna hadn't taken a seat, either, but was ... waving her torch about? Why?

With a cold sense of shock, Flick realised that the black things were actively pursuing Angelica and Jenna, who were dodging them. They'd attached themselves like shadows to everyone else -- "Including me?" Flick wondered. Not wanting to, she nonetheless turned around. Behind her stood ...

Extinction. Nothingness. A world in which you don't exist, have never existed. Emptiness. Not being.

Flick felt her sense of self-ness sliding away. She reached out, trying to clutch something with form, something real ... and found her fingers fastening in what had to be the robe of the black thing. But it was a shadow, formless, it couldn't have a robe ...

"Don't grab so hard, Flick, you'll stretch it," said the familiar voice of Magister Llanwerin. "I'm sorry, lass, they've become stronger than we thought," he said. "But you'll be all right now. We've got it all under control. Well, anyway, we're getting it," he added, with a worried glance at the stage.

Closer now, Flick could see that the figure slumped in the chair up there was Murdock. Angelica was talking to him and Jenna was still shining her torch, but the black things both girls had been avoiding were gone, and two women teachers were heading towards them. Behind Murdock, though, there seemed to be an echo of that emptiness.

"What's going on?" she demanded, turning to Llanwerin.

"Later," he said brusquely, heading for the stage and dragging her with him.

The headmaster appeared, right in the center of the stage, Angelica and Murdock close to his left. He was looking out into the crowd, every student in it were chosen ones, all of their Reverse Images. His faceless face turned this way and that, and then he spoke.

"I welcome you all," He said looking out at them. "You are all here for a very special reason, all of you have been chosen, you are the chosen ones, we know this because of your Reverse Images. These are the shadows that seem to be the exact same as you. You were all brought here so we could teach you that of your destiny."

"Right this is bollocks," Salazar mumbled to himself. "I swear this school is drugging us."

If that wasn't 'smoke and mirrors' she didn't know what was. The orientation must have been specifically announced to the thirty or forty people in the room. The rest of the school was probably attending their normal classes. She quickly ran a catalogue of all the faces in the audience, she'd remember every one of them, but for now all the students seemed very surprised. A few of the faculty lurked in the background and one of them was near Flick. None of them seemed surprised, a few looked slightly irritated, including the women from the only class she'd attended. They must be the ones behind the entire thing.

"Allright, we get the picture. You're almighty showoffs, can you wake this kid up and let us get to class?"

The man swung towards her, she hadn't really gotten a clear view of his face before. It was shocking and somewhat fascinating, but it wasn't any less possible then space-flight. Even if everything this creature had said was true she still knew better then to trust it, or to trust some fanciful 'destiny'. In the back a tiny movement caught her eye, the woman from before had leaned back against the wall and was smiling very gently.

OOC: saved for my post...ugh...been too busy with my schoolwork...here's a short "IC" post...

IC:

"Eeek...Alex!" gasped Makie.

"Wha? What is it now?" said Alex calmly, as he wrenched his arm free from Makie's grasp.

"Look...Look at the black shadows on th..." stuttered Makie. "The floor...They're moving!"

Alex looked at the mass of shadows following the various students as they entered the threshhold of the auditorium. He attempted to step on one but had no affect, as it had continued gliding past and into the hall, where it then attached to a walking student, who happened to have not inklink to what had just attached itself on him.

"Hmmm...Interesting...Very interesting..." replied Alex, with his fingers to his chin again in thought. "AH...Makie...Wait! Don't go in yet..."

"I haven't moved..."

"Hmmm...Must be seeing things...All these strange things are getting to my head..."

Alex continued to observe the shadows until he could not think of any way to explain them. He finally shrugged off the thought, deeming it as some fancy lighting trick that supposedly symbolized new students have a new self, the shadows, when they enter the school.

"Come on..." said Alex, as he looked over his shoulder to Makie. "Lets go...They don't appear to be dangerous."

At this, Makie ran by Alex's side, and followed him entering the auditorium. Seeing a row of empty seats behind Flick and Jenna, they walked in that direction. As they walked, two shadows began to follow them. Makie jumped and looked up at Alex, who walked calmly. A slight nod from Alex, helped Makie settle down, as the shadows attached themselves to them.

"Odd...I just noticed that there are barely any windows...And that the way the lights are faced...It is not possible to have shadows trailing behind us like this..." said Alex, as they took their seat behind Flick and Jenna.

OOC2: tired...must finish worksheets...

"This is still screwed up," Salazar remarked, still being creeped out by the shadow that looked exactly like him

Jenna started to walk off the stage, following Murdock who was being carried to his seat below.

Then she heard the principal talking, and something in her snapped. She hated being lied to, and this was definitely not legit.

"the chosen ones?" She said loudly. "Care to clarify that? What exactly are chosen ones and what are we supposed to do? What are the shadows and why do they exist? We aren't going to accept a bunch of rhetoric - we need straight facts."

Shaking herself free of Llanwerin, Flick stood still and watched as he eased his way to the front. There were things she needed to think over, and she couldn't do that while being dragged along like a naughty toddler.

The headmaster -- ye gods, that's the headmaster? -- apparently had decided it was time to restore order. Calmly, he welcomed them, while Flick stood and gaped. He sounded as if he thought he was just an ordinary headmaster giving a standard getting-to-know-you speech, but way he looked and the stuff he was saying was simply bizarre. Chosen? She wasn't chosen!

Evidently Angelica and Jenna didn't think they were, either. Flick, still numb from her weird encounter with that shadow-thing, felt a lot better as she heard them being so plainly unimpressed by events.

"I'm with them!' she croaked from a dry throat. And then, as she regained her courage, "She's right! They're both right! Stop mucking us about!"

"Always ready to join the rebel chorus, eh?" said a stray tendril of thought in her head.

Makie twidled her thumbs impatiently, as she waited for the headmaster's speech to end, while Alex listened closely and intently.

"Makie, you should really listen to this man's speech..." said a voice from the back of her head. What the...? Where have you been? "Just wandering around..." said the voice before it faded and disappeared. Where? Where did you go?

"Odd...It never disappears like that...Not even a bit of sarcasm..." muttered Makie, under her breathe.

"What was that Makie?" said Alex.

"Oh...Nothing...Nothing at all..." said Makie, quickly. "Oh...It...It's the woman...From the hallway."

"What? Which woman?"

"Oh...Nevermind...I didn't say anything."

"Ok..."

Makie looked straight at the young woman, seated two seats to the left of where the headmaster spoke. The woman looked almost the same as she had in the classroom, before they had breakfast.

"Hmmm..." hummed Makie, as she thought of trying the intercept the woman sometime after the orientation.

OOC: odd...i missed reading Techon's post with Bolded letters...


Alex sat in his chair, contemplating what the headmaster had said.

"Weird...Chosen ones...Our destiny...Hey Makie...Did you hea..." said Alex, before he was cut off.

"Yes...I heard...Loud and clear...It puzzles me also..."

OOC: Here goes, I'll edit for anyone who disagrees with my methods, transition or anything else. Bleh...

IC:

The air was filled with a sustained tension, the "headmaster" and every one of the students wanted some kind of explanation, but the "faculty" didn't trust them yet. There was one final test before they could prove themselves.

Not yet...

The unvoiced thought rang through the minds of everyone in the room, it wasn't forceful or powerful but strangely it had more effect on both the students and the faculty then any of the "headmaster's" theatrical balancing. It was the voice of the true power behind the situation.

The students didn't have much time to consider this new development, the auditorium snapped out of their view and they were in the cafeteria again with their breakfasts before them. Nothing had changed, no time had passed, but all of them were different.

Makie and Murdock remembered the most clearly, to them every detail of the room and every professors face was clear, beyond the reality they were in. Murdock remembered even more, the beginnings of his training and the reality beyond what he could see now.

Angelica and Alex made up the other end, neither of them felt anything more strongly then a tinge of nausea. It had felt more like an unremembered dream in the back of their minds, but like a wraith certain faces stuck out as unreal and dark corners looked almost alive with the shadows that dwelled there.

Between the two extremes fell the other students, Salazar remembered some but he had a hard time recalling details. Flick remembered it more like a novel with facts and events easily recalled but in a detached manner as if she had never been there. Jenna remembered only small pieces but an intense bond had formed in her, she "felt" everyone that had been in the auditorium, even those she had never met she knew by name.

There never had been an assembly, they just had to get to class.

Salazar rubbed his eyes, he was sat in the cafeteria staring at a cup of weak coffee. The small pocket computer he had was also in front of him, but it was off.

"I think I've been drugged again," he muttered.

"Huh? Where am I???" said Makie as she jumped up from her seat, almost spilling a glass of juice that was on the table.

"Settle down, Makie..." said Alex comfortingly. "You were just resting your eyes for a bit..."

"Oh...Ok...What happened?"

"Hmmm...I'm not that sure...I felt a bit dizzy earlier and you were asleep on my shoulder."

"Didn't we have an orientation to go to?" asked Makie, as she sat up straight.

"Orientation? I didn't hear of any orientation...Maybe you're just thinking things..." said Alex, as the bell rung. "Ahh...That must be the bell to go to class...Come on...I think we have the first class together."

"Oh...Ok..." said Makie, looking confused.

I could have sworn I remember being in a large hall with a bunch of students...And also the professors...And even that mysterious headmaster..."Maybe you're imagining things..." said the voice in the back of Makie's head. I'm sure I am not imagning things...I remember everything...Why doesn't Alex know what I'm talking about?

Makie quickly rushed after Alex, who was already heading out the door.

Flick idly chased a piece of allegedly scrambled egg round her plate, playing with words again. Given an allegedly scrambled egg, was it the scrambling that was alleged, or the egginess, or both? But she hadn't been given it, she'd picked it herself, as the least revolting sustenance offered ...

"I wonder what I'm trying not to think about this time?" she asked herself. She'd started cultivating this vagueness last year, as a deliberate trick designed to get her through her stepfather's mealtime rants without being driven to chuck the cutlery at him. Lately, though, it seemed to have become something she did automatically.

She tried forcing herself to think about school-y things. First day of a new academic experience, she should have been at least a little nervous. But pictures kept floating into her mind -- sort of about this school, but weird, weird -- still, at least she had a few friends, now; they'd help her deal with it.

Hang on, friends? When did she make friends with these people? She seemed to have some idea of some experience they'd shared; she could remember an impressive room, feeling urgently that something had to be done, someone rescued ... yes, Salazar ... but Salazar was sitting there muttering about the coffee, and the only sort of rescue she could offer would be to take the stuff away and make him a nice cup of tea ...

"Note to self: stop reading in bed," she scolded silently. She must be half-remembering some dream based on the book she'd fallen asleep over, and she'd woven the others into it because they'd been still awake, talking. Yes, that had to be it.

"Right!" she said briskly, gathering books and pens and setting off with a confident stride to her first -- dammit, what class was it, again?

Salazar looked down at his watch and picked up his pocket computer. "Time for class," he sighed and headed out the cafeteria.

She kindly excused herself from Murdock's company and started off towards class. It took her a few minutes to find the room but she'd left early. Too early obviously, no one else was there, but maybe the students really didn't want to start their day with Calculus and were just waiting for the last minute. It didn't matter, she just took a seat in the back and waited for everything to get started.

Before going to class, Salazar went to pick up some books from his dorm. He quietly walked inside and knelt down beside his bed.

*Valerie wakes up*
What the......how did I get here? last thing I remember i was in the woods about a mile from my uncle Cyrus's home in Madra city.
*She was running away from her father to go live with her uncle. her father was a jerk, he would insult her, beat her, you name it*

Oh well I better make the best of this

Jenna stared vaguely at her eggs. There was something she was missing... something she hadn't been told... but... well, she'd find out eventually. Nobody seemed about to tell her anything important right now, and she felt they might react negatively to "Tell me... I don't know what about, but there's SOMETHING, right? Right?" Maybe she could just sort of deduce it from what people didn't say... She turned to ask Salazar...

Before realising he was sitting a few tables away, near the new girl. She was sitting with Flick, near Alex and makie. "What?" But she had felt him right there... she frowned, then suddenly realised everyone else had started off to class - she had daydreamed right through breakfast.

She headed off after them, hurriedly pulling out her schedule.

Valerie sat straight up in her bed and waited for her thoughts to collect themselves "It had just been a dream" she thought. She had been going to this school since the beginning of the semester. Suddenly she looked at the clock and realized breakfast was about to end and if she didn't hurry she was going to be late for her 1st period class. She jumped out of bed and grabbed some loose fitting jeans and a tight T-shirt. She pulled on the combat boots that her nation forced all youths to wear, and stuffed a potentially lethal boot knife in them. The last thing she grabbed was her partially finished assignment, and the books for her 1st period class. She was all set and started running out of her room to try and make it to class on time.

OOC: what should the class schedual look like, or are we not worrying about that?

Before going to class, Salazar went to pick up some books from his dorm. He quietly walked inside and knelt down beside his bed.

Caldrin yawned and rolled over in his bed to face Salazar's back, who was kneeling down by his bed.

In sleepy voice Caldrin asked, "Hey... what are you doing?"

He blinked to clear his vision, and the clock on the wall became visible. "Aw, crap..." he stated as he slid part-way out of bed.

Salazar jumped, he hadn't been expecting anyone else in the room.

"Umm getting books for class," he replied, turning around. "By the looks of things you are going to be late."

Jenna wandered into polsciprep, still trying to get a grip on the confusion. Nothing had happened that was confusing... right? She had a sudden vision of... what? When had that happened? Was she daydreaming about...

She shook her head and sat down to her first class.

ooc: class schedules, page 9 of the ooc thread

"Boring boring boring...." muttered Makie, as she sat next to Alex in the International Studies class. "This teacher keeps droning on and on..."

"I know...Just try to look awake..." said Alex, who looked straight towards the front of the classroom, but his eyes were glazed and appeared to be focused somewhere else. "Ahhh...Why in the world did we chose this class..."

"Because YOU said that it would be like the ones we have back at home..."

"Actually, you said that..." said the voice in the back of Makie's head. Oh give me a break...Now how about you do something constructive and listen to the teacher while i'll sleep.

"Hmmm...It doesn't matter...At least we know that the tests for this class are going to be a piece of cake..." said Alex. "They are barely teaching the basics...It's like the...Pre-basics..."

------Attendance Sheet------
Period 1: International Studies

Alex: Present
Makie: Present

Flick skidded to a stop at the door of the Art room. Her Year 12 Major Work had been unpacked! There it stood, to one side of the studio.

Magister Llanwerin was walking round it, looking quizzical. "It takes up a lot of space," he commented.

Flick grinned evilly. "Yeah. Must've cost my stepfather heaps to ship it here."

The baby-blue convertible was life-sized, but that was the only realistic thing about it. Every detail had been sewn -- or embroidered, patchworked, appliqued, cross-stitched, quilted, tie-dyed, whatever -- and then stuffed. It had broderie anglaise wheel trims, lace speed stripes and parts of a crocheted engine visible beneath its raised bonnet. Flick thought she might make a fake-fur surfboard to go in the back, but she was still working on ideas for what to put in the boot. This year she planned to teach herself wood-carving so she could make its driver, whose sharp-planed head and triangular nose would reproduce an iconic Australian painting ...

"You've put a lot of yourself into this, Flick," Llanwerin said. In fact, it was the flood of inspiration you felt when you first thought of it that alerted our sensors to your existence. You might just as well have lit a beacon. "But right now, you should be putting a lot of yourself into .. what is it ... International Studies? You're going to be late for class."

"Oh no!" Flick gulped. Panic drove out of her head the puzzlement she had felt seconds before, when Llanwerin seemed to say ... yet didn't say ... the idea fled as she snatched for her timetable.

"Here, I'll write you a pass saying I summoned you to sort out some details," the teacher said accommodatingly. After all, that's exactly what I did.

Attendance sheet: Political Science Preparatory: Jenna: Present

ooc: so what, we just say that, and then move onto the next period? Can we work out who actually has any classes together?

Valerie slowly opens the door to the Pre Calculus room, and offers a weak smile at the teacher, who Gives her a harsh look and tells her to take her seat. After she takes her seat she pulls out her half finished assignment and starts trying to finish it while the teacher is talking.

Attendance: Pre Calculus: Valerie: Tardy

OOC: can we do the attendance sheets more UNIFORM people...like mine

saved for my post...

"Ugh...This class takes so long..." complained Makie.

"We have a few more minutes...Then we have..." said Alex, as he started to rumage through his bag for his schedule sheet. "Then we have latin next..."

"Ugh...Latin...Sheesh..."

"Well...It might be better than this..."

"Hopefully..." exclaimed Makie, as she dropped her head onto her arms on the table and started to stare out the nearby window.

Attendance: Algebra I: Salazar: Goofed off

saved for my post - are we up to period 2 yet? It IS day A, right? looking at the schedule again, what does "HR" mean?

saved for my post - are we up to period 2 yet? It IS day A, right? looking at the schedule again, what does "HR" mean?

OOC: "HR" means homeroom...i based the schedules off of my school's schedule...it's a bit confusing this year...

The class was a literal waste of time. The only accomplishments they were getting through were a round of introductions and a boring lecture on common sense rules. She had no intention of "chewing gum" in class. Why would they subject her to this pointlessness? It didn't matter, it would all be over soon she just let her mind wander and let the droning fade into the background.

A few minutes later another voice drew her out of her reverie. "Excuse me Dr. Clemens, I've been sent for an Angelica Hemlock." As she looked up she saw the bespectacled man look vaguely over his students as if wondering which one could be this 'Angelica' could be.

She didn't give him much time to dwell in stupefied confusion, she stood up with a near-military curtness and looked straight at the girl running errands. The girl almost cringed under the heavy glare but she got the picture. "Please follow me. Sara wants to see you." Angelica gave a slight nod and followed as the girl left, the entire class and the teacher staring after her. At the very least it had to be an improvement over listening to a recitation of rules and regulations.

Attendance sheet: Calculus: Angelica: Removed

Makie sighed as she continued to look out the large window. "Boring..."

"You, Miss Sasaki, pay attention!" said the teacher, who had looked toward her direction.

"Oh!" exclaimed Makie, who had jumped in her seat. "Sorry..."

"Ok...Ahem." said the teacher, who looked back down at the textbook. "Miss Sasaki, please read the next section...4b...'The Digital Divide'."

"Hmm...'The digital revolution has given rise to a digital divide as new ways to create and disseminate knowledge and information have privileged some and left others behind...'" and Makie kept reading until the end of the section. "'Perhaps more noteworthy is the fact that, because of disagreement, the plan did not include two issues: who should govern the Internet and how to pay for bridging the digital divide...'"

"Thank you, Miss Sasaki...Mister...Mister Philips, read the next section." said the teacher.

Suddenly the door to the British Literature class squeeked open loudly, and the students turned to face Caldrin who was standing at the door. His light brown hair a mess, and his clothes wrinkled and unmatching.

"Um... I slept in." Caldrin began to explain to his teacher, who was at the chalk board with notes.

"No need to explain yourself, your apperance says it all." his teacher responded. The class giggled, and Caldrin quickly found his seat in the back. He got out his notebook and began to catch up with the rest of the class.

Flick mentally allocated a point to the English teacher, for not making the standard late-student joke about pronouncing bedraggled "bed-raggled".

Grinning sympathetically at the late-comer, she did her best to bring him up to date.

"It's a quote about Wordsworth," she whispered, pointing to the board, which proclaimed in firmly-printed chalk, "Two voices has he; one is of the deep/ And one is of an old, half-witted sheep ..."

"We're supposed to say whether we agree or disagree, with examples," she explained. "But look out, this one thinks Wordsworth sitteth on the right hand."

Flick knew perfectly well what she meant; but, as explanations went, perhaps it wasn't one of her best. Sigh. She'd better buy this bloke a coffee later, to make up for it.

Finally classes were over for the day, Salazar was glad as he found most of them boring and ended up just goofing off. He entered the dorm room and found it empty as he dumped his books on his bed. Maybe Caldrin was being told off for being late or something. He lay down on his bed and closed his eyes.

Flick mentally allocated a point to the English teacher, for not making the standard late-student joke about pronouncing bedraggled "bed-raggled".

Grinning sympathetically at the late-comer, she did her best to bring him up to date.

"It's a quote about Wordsworth," she whispered, pointing to the board, which proclaimed in firmly-printed chalk, "Two voices has he; one is of the deep/ And one is of an old, half-witted sheep ..."

"We're supposed to say whether we agree or disagree, with examples," she explained. "But look out, this one thinks Wordsworth sitteth on the right hand."

Flick knew perfectly well what she meant; but, as explanations went, perhaps it wasn't one of her best. Sigh. She'd better buy this bloke a coffee later, to make up for it.

Caldrin rubbed one eye and nodded to the kind girl next to him. "Ah, thank you. I think I get it..." that wasn't too far from the truth.

Caldrin combed a little bit of his hair with his fingers before writing out what he agreed to. Usually he'd be different and either agree to both statements or neither. However he was just a little to tired to put his mind fully to it and decided, for simplicity's sake, he'd agree with one and disagree with the other.

The class was actually fairly attentive. The professor had done away with most of the introduction and gotten straight into teaching the material and since British Literature was widely considered one of the more difficult options available almost all of the students there were studious and intelligent, even though a certain few stood out as potential problems. Due to this Angelica's entrance was nearly unnoticed by the class, the teacher had better eyes and saw her take an empty seat way in the back. He knew how to bide his time, so he continued to lecture for another minute before he pointed straight to her. "Miss, do you know what Mr. Stephen was referring to when he wrote this" he changed the focus of his finger to the board "poem?"

Angelica just stood and looked around before she started to speak in a near trancelike state as if recalling something from long ago.

"Two Voices are there -one is of the Sea,
One of the Mountains; each a mighty Voice:
In both from age to age thou didst rejoice;
They were thy chosen music, Liberty!
There came a tyrant, and with holy glee
Thou fought'st against him; but hast vainly striven:
Thou from thy Alpine holds at length art driven
Where not a torrent murmurs heard by thee.
Of one deep bliss thine ear hath been bereft;
Then cleave, O cleave to that which still is left;
For, high-souled Maid, what sorrow would it be
That Mountain floods should thunder as before,
And Ocean bellow from his rocky shore,
And neither awful Voice be heard by Thee!"

After she finished her countenance changed as if she'd only just realized what she'd done. Her normally perfectly controlled features betrayed a deep confusion as she sat and stared with the eyes of the entire class staring at her. She didn't know what she'd done, she'd never read any Wordsworth or any Stephen for that matter. She hadn't even gotten a chance to read the board, she'd just wanted to slip in. Fortunately many of the students turned straight back to the teacher whose jaw was also hanging down and was staring in complete surprise at the student in the back of his class. He recovered admirable and very quickly went back to lecturing, thanking Angelica for her recitation of the Wordworth poem to which Stephen was referring and continuing his lecture from that point. He did occasionally glance back at the girl in the back during the remaining minutes of class. He wasn't sure quite what to make of either her response on inadequate information or her own apparent confusion about it. This would be a very interesting class.

*Brrriiiinnnggg*

"Finally that class is over!" exclaimed Makie, who started to walk out the door and observed that some classrooms had not opened. "It's odd how some classes are dismissed while others aren't..."

"Mmhmm...Weird schedule..." said Alex in a low tone.

"Hey, what's wrong?"

"Oh...Eh...Nothing...Just thinking..." replied Alex, before he started to rumage through his backpack. "What do we have next?"

"Uh...Not sure...I'll get my schedule also...Wait a sec..."

"Found it!" exclaimed Alex, which also made Makie jump. "Wow..."

"Found what?"

"My PDA...It's been ages since I've seen it..."

"Just a PDA? Why'd you have to make me jump like that?"

"Nothing..." said Alex, as he switched it open. "What the!?!?"

"What?"

"My address book is gone...Shoot....All those phone numbers..." groaned Alex as he scrolled down the blank address book.

"Oh come on...Geez..." said Makie as she punched Alex lightly on the arm. "Big deal...Don't tell me you're making all that fuss about lossing a few numbers in your PDA."

"Eh...No...I just lost this thing a long time ago, anyways, but take a look at this..." asid Alex, as he held up the PDA to Makie. "Look..."

Makie's pupils dialated as she saw the image on the screen. A very blurry figure could be seen in the distance, surrounded by the rubble of a burning building and the fires of the surrounding buildings. Alex went forward to the next picture which showed the same picture but mechanical type wings had emerged from the back of the figure. The next picture Alex showed was even more blurry and it was even more difficult to see the figure, but it was apparent that the figure appeared to be flying away. Dust and other debris where flying around from the figure's vertical take off, this revealed a hundreds of corpses that had been buried under the rubble.

"W...Where did...Where did you get this?" asked Makie, as she turned her head slowly to face Alex. Her face was pale with horror.

"It was on internet military sites a long time ago..." said Alex. "Does it remind you of something?"

"Y...Ys...Ye...No...NO, I just thought it did..." said Makie, as she tried to suppress the myriad of memories that flashed back to her. "No...I think I saw it on the internet also..."

"But you do remember it." said the voice in the back of Makie's head. I know I do...replied Makie. I...I...I just don't want to...To remember..."But it happened...And you can't ignore it forever...You know what you did..."

"I KNOW!!! JUST BE QUIET!!! DON'T REMIND ME!!!" yelled out Makie, unable to suppress her emotion.

"What??? Remember what???" asked Alex.

Makie quickly covered her mouth with her hands, too shocked at her outburst. "Nothing...Nothing...I'm sorry..."

Makie, quickly dashed off towards the dormitories, leaving Alex behind, puzzled.

Alex walked into his next class, history.

Jenna wandered into class, sighing as she dumped her books on the desk. This day was going... WAY. TOO. SLOWLY.

"Er, sorry," she mumbled as she accidentally bumped into someone who was walking past. She looked up... it was Alex. "Sorry," she repeated, more clearly. "Um... I didn't know you did history."

moved contents to previous post...

Jenna wandered into class, sighing as she dumped her books on the desk. This day was going... WAY. TOO. SLOWLY.

"Er, sorry," she mumbled as she accidentally bumped into someone who was walking past. She looked up... it was Alex. "Sorry," she repeated, more clearly. "Um... I didn't know you did history."

"Hey...No prob...Here...You dropped this..." Alex said, as he picked up a small bag Jenna had dropped. "Yea...I got assigned into this class...At least I have someone to talk to during the class."

Alex dropped his bag onto the floor and kicked it under the desk next to Jenna, and sat down. "So...How's your day so far?"

Jenna took the bag and rolled her eyes. "Don't even ask. I really thought this place would be more interesting, you know?"

She slid her history book out and opened it to the page written on the boar. "Ooh, the history of Nationstates sport, lovely. I'd say this is looking like a tune-out class, wouldn't you?"

Jenna took the bag and rolled her eyes. "Don't even ask. I really thought this place would be more interesting, you know?"

She slid her history book out and opened it to the page written on the boar. "Ooh, the history of Nationstates sport, lovely. I'd say this is looking like a tune-out class, wouldn't you?"

"Yea...It's gone downhill from what I see..." said Alex, as he began to pull out his text and a notebook. "I can't wait till the end of the day...I hate my classes so far..."

Alex stretched his back, as the bell rang, signaling the start of class.

"My expectations of the teaching here is non-existent...It's all backwards." said Alex, as he dodged a paper airplane, which drifted from the back of the classroom. "I wonder what they are going to make us do in this class...And their little history of Nationstates..."

Jenna raised an eyebrow at him in amusement. "So is it nonexistant or backwards? From what I've heard you can't really be both at once."

She flipped through the other pages of her history book. "Now there! A nice, complex little political uprising which is given only the most minimal detail! Why couldn't we study that? What's so special about sport? Honestly this place is just like all the other schools, it's just in a more scenic location."

Jenna raised an eyebrow at him in amusement. "So is it nonexistant or backwards? From what I've heard you can't really be both at once."

She flipped through the other pages of her history book. "Now there! A nice, complex little political uprising which is given only the most minimal detail! Why couldn't we study that? What's so special about sport? Honestly this place is just like all the other schools, it's just in a more scenic location."

"Eh...I'm jumbling words again...This is sad..."

Alex looked over to where Jenna had her book opened to.

"A political uprising that started out from a miscall by a referee..." parapharased Alex. "How pathetic..."

...saved...

tired...very tired...

"Eh...I'm jumbling words again...This is sad..."

Alex looked over to where Jenna had her book opened to.

"A political uprising that started out from a miscall by a referee..." parapharased Alex. "How pathetic..."

Jenna grinned. "Oh, that was just the tip of the ice-berg. I mean, a footy disagreement does not become a major rebellion under normal conditions. From what I've read, the political atmosphere was building up incessantly for the past fifteen years, and that was the straw that broke the llama's back."

She reached into her bag and pulled out a packet of chips. "Want some?" She offered. "The teacher seems to be asleep anyway."

Jenna grinned. "Oh, that was just the tip of the ice-berg. I mean, a footy disagreement does not become a major rebellion under normal conditions. From what I've read, the political atmosphere was building up incessantly for the past fifteen years, and that was the straw that broke the llama's back."

She reached into her bag and pulled out a packet of chips. "Want some?" She offered. "The teacher seems to be asleep anyway."

"Sure, thanks..." replied Alex, as he reached down to grab a chip. "We really didn't get a chance to eat breakfast..."

He looked over to his left and saw that the teacher, after writing the reading assignment on the board, had actually fallen asleep at his desk.

"Weird...Hey, check out the teacher, he really is out cold." said Alex, trying to supress a laugh. "So...Let's talk about something else more productive than 'Nationstates sports'."

Jenna glanced around wickedly. "Well, I don't know about... productive... but I do know that head on the desk is just screaming for decoration... what say we give him a nice surprise to wake up to?"

Jenna glanced around wickedly. "Well, I don't know about... productive... but I do know that head on the desk is just screaming for decoration... what say we give him a nice surprise to wake up to?"

"Sounds like an interesting plan...And I think the people in the front row are getting the same idea..."

Several girls in the front row had already begun decorating the area around the teacher.

"I can't believe they haven't fired this teacher yet..." said Alex. "Hey, these chips are good."

Alex started to reach for the bag of chips, again.

"Why..." gasped Makie, as she stumbled onto the 5th floor of the staircase leading to the dorms, tears streamed down her face while images from an era from long ago flashed before her eyes. "Why now..."

She slowly began to pick herself and continued her half paced sprint down the empty corridor.

Gruesome images of battles long gone continued to emerge out of her subconscious. Her mind began overwhelm her senses, she could smell the blood and decay of her surroundings, hear the sporadic gunshots of some unnamed battle and the groans of dying soldiers.

"Not...Now...P...P...Please..." groaned Makie. "Please stop..."

She continued down the corridor.

(not finished)

"Sounds like an interesting plan...And I think the people in the front row are getting the same idea..."

Several girls in the front row had already begun decorating the area around the teacher.

"I can't believe they haven't fired this teacher yet..." said Alex. "Hey, these chips are good."

Alex started to reach for the bag of chips, again.

As Jenna reached for the chips her hand brushed Alex's, and both blushed slightly.

"Um... so," Jenna sai, desperately looking around for a topic of conversation, "er... what ARE they doing to Mr Farns's hair?"

It was now bright orange and looked somewhat sticky.

As Jenna reached for the chips her hand brushed Alex's, and both blushed slightly.

"Um... so," Jenna sai, desperately looking around for a topic of conversation, "er... what ARE they doing to Mr Farns's hair?"

It was now bright orange and looked somewhat sticky.


Still slightly red in the face, Alex pulled his hand up and held it in his other hand as he turned to look at where all the attention was at.

"What the...Orange?" said Alex. "Orange with blue streaks now...crude bunny ears...and a drawn on unibrow...Interesting...And now a "hitler-style" mustache..."

Mr. Farn started to stir, and the several people that had crowded around him jumped and backed up several steps. Several groans emitted from Farn's mouth, as he began to move his arms, which he was lying on.

"Oh shoot...He's wakin' up..." muttered Alex. "And I don't want to stick around for this..."

Alex looked at Jenna, as he stood up. "Care to come? I don't want to be around here when all hell breaks loose..." said Alex as he stretched out his hand towards Jenna, while he grabbed his bag and books with the other. "I doubt we'd be needing this class...So it doesn't matter if we leave...We still have about an hour and something minutes left."

Jenna laughed and grabbed his hand, throwing one amused glance back at the groggy and mildly fluorescent teacher before following Alex out the door.

They stopped running a few corridors down and inexplicably burst into fits of giggles.

"Ahhhahaha!!!...I...I...I haven't laughed like that for ages" exclaimed Alex. "Oh Man!!!...Did you see what they did to his face!?!? And how weirded out he looked when he started to come to."

Alex looked around at the empty hallway, as their laughs continued to echo.

"Hmmm...That was fun..." said Alex, finally stopped laughing. "You ok, Jenna?"

Jenna was kneeling on the floor, coughing.

"sorry... I think... *cough* something ... wrong pipe" Was all she managed to get out before the coughing fit overwhelmed her vocal chords. Her face started to turn red.

Jenna was kneeling on the floor, coughing.

"sorry... I think... *cough* something ... wrong pipe" Was all she managed to get out before the coughing fit overwhelmed her vocal chords. Her face started to turn red.

"Jenna!!!" yelled Alex, who quickly rushed to her side. "Wha...What!?!?"

Jenna was holding her throat, her breathing lessening.

"Ok...Uh...Heimlich Maneuver...Ok..." muttered Alex.

Alex quickly went behind of Jenna and wrapped his arms around her waist and propped her up to a standing position.

"Ok...One hand into a fist...Other fist grasp hand and press with...Quick thrust...On upper abdomen...Ok..." said Alex to himself, trying to remember what they had taught him in physical education. "It's ok...Just hold on Jenna..."

Suddenly a soggy lump of chip was dislodged and hit the opposite wall, as Jenna gasped for air, leaning back on Alex.

'Thanks," She croaked. "Note to self - never laugh with your mouth full of chips."

"Thank god...Phew..." exclaimed Alex, who was sweating frantically. Almost instinctively, Alex dropped his head to rest on Jenna's shoulder. "Are you ok?"

Jenna sighed. "I'm fine. So... what shall we do now that we're free of nationstates History of Sport?"

She suddenly noticed alex's head was on her shoulder but decided to say nothing about it.

"I don't know...Back in Miltia...I'd bribe the guard, I mean...My friend...To let me leave campus..." sighed Alex. "But that's back at home...Huh?"

Alex's eyes opened wide in surprise that he had been holding onto Jenna for the longest of time and quickly let go.

"Oh...Sorry, sorry..." quickly said Alex, who had turned red in the face. "Soo...Let's go outside and get you some fresh air..."

"No, really I'm fine," Jenna said, blushing mainly because Alex was, "but, um, yeah, lets go outside. I reckon a place like this must have some nice gardens, it was probably built by some old millionare in the beginning."

With the slight drawback that they had no idea were they were.

They started walking down the corridor, randomly opening doors which looked like they might lead outside...

"Shoot...We just opened a door into a class!?!?" whispered Alex, as he closed the door quietly, seeing that the students seated nearest to the door had started looking at them.

"Annoying...This place is massive...Ah...Found it...This door should be the one..."

Alex slowly opened a large brown oaken door, which revealed rays of sunlight. As he opened the door, it revealed one of the massive fields that surrounded the school.

"There should be gardens or something around here somewhere..."

"Woohoo!" Jenna shouted, running into the grove of trees. "Freedom!" She laughed and swung into the branches. "come on up, the view is great!"

"Hey, slow down...Hahah..." yelled Alex, who had only gotten half way up the tree. "Man...You're fast..."

Alex finally reached the branch where Jenna was already sitting on. From that point, they could see the whole campus, and the massive expanse of the countryside around the school buildings.

"Ahhhh...It'd be great to stay here...And get out of the hustle and bustle of the city..."

Alex slowly observed the surroundings and had come to a stop at Jenna, who was sitting next to him. Try all he might, he had become somehow captivated by her. Alex tried to reason with himself, thinking that it might have been the surroundings or the fresh country air, but try all he might, he could not find an answer.

"You're right...It really is a great view here..." Alex said, his head was spinning, saying things automatically.

A loud crash could be heard, as Makie slammed into a glass cabinet, all it's contents spilling on top of her. As she layed on the cold stone floor, the images kept drifting through her head. The same scenes, one of a dark battle zone, another within the burning rubble of a large building, and then another of an operating room with bright lights and several grouped up doctors operating on something. The screaming, yelling, and the moaning of the dead could be heard.

"No...No...Not NOWWWWWWW! screamed Makie, as she fell on her knees, her head buried in her arms on the ground.

An erie silence filled the corridor, as Makie stopped thrashing and screaming. Suddenly she lifted her head, her soft green eyes, had turned a demon red color. The skin on her arm started to come apart and had revealed a dark metallic colored object, which then expanded and replaced her whole arm, from shoulder to hand with a strange type of long barrelled gun.

"Area...Clear..." muttered Makie mechanically, completely different from her usual voice. "Code 15...Returning to base..."

As she had said this, Makie's body began to flinch and shudder.

"NO! YOU CAN'T!!!!!!" yelled Makie, now back in her normal voice. "Argh!!!!!!!!!"

Makie's body began to convulse(sp?) sporadically.

"NOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!" yelled Makie.

As the her body began to twist and contort itself, her gun had started firing it's 20mm shells, blowing large holes out of the walls, and chunks of marble out of the floors. After almost 2 minutes of continuous firing, she had stopped and slumped to the floor. Her gun disappeared as it merged back into her arm. A large puddle of nano-machine primed blood grew from underneath her body.

"Hey, slow down...Hahah..." yelled Alex, who had only gotten half way up the tree. "Man...You're fast..."

Alex finally reached the branch where Jenna was already sitting on. From that point, they could see the whole campus, and the massive expanse of the countryside around the school buildings.

"Ahhhh...It'd be great to stay here...And get out of the hustle and bustle of the city..."

Alex slowly observed the surroundings and had come to a stop at Jenna, who was sitting next to him. Try all he might, he had become somehow captivated by her. Alex tried to reason with himself, thinking that it might have been the surroundings or the fresh country air, but try all he might, he could not find an answer.

"You're right...It really is a great view here..." Alex said, his head was spinning, saying things automatically.

Jenna studied Alex as he climbed into the tree. Actually, he's kind of cute she thought. She tuned in to what he was saying, and tried to keep from grinning.

"uh... you're rambling, Alex." She said. "I'm not surprised - this is all pretty random, don't you think?"

Valerie hated History class, and when the teacher didn't care enough to even stay awake during the class, she didn't even see any point in staying. Shortly after the teacher fell asleep she got up and left, watching a few students walk up to pull a prank on the teacher as she left. She went to her dorm and sat down thinking about what to do. She decided to change, so she could go on a jog throughout the grounds. After a couple minutes she decided to stop and strech at a tree. After sitting there for a couple of minutes she noticed that the tree seemed to be giggling and shaking.

Jenna studied Alex as he climbed into the tree. Actually, he's kind of cute she thought. She tuned in to what he was saying, and tried to keep from grinning.

"uh... you're rambling, Alex." She said. "I'm not surprised - this is all pretty random, don't you think?"

"Really...I wouldn't say that...Ugh..." said Alex, but then almost slipped off the branch. "Whoa...That's scary."

The branch shuddered as Alex took his seat next to Jenna.

"Yea...It is really random...Skipping class...Having to adminster the Heimlich Manouver on some girl I met only yesturday..." said Alex, as he stared into Jenna's eyes. "And now...Sitting next to the same girl in a tree...How random..."

Valerie hated History class, and when the teacher didn't care enough to even stay awake during the class, she didn't even see any point in staying. Shortly after the teacher fell asleep she got up and left, watching a few students walk up to pull a prank on the teacher as she left. She went to her dorm and sat down thinking about what to do. She decided to change, so she could go on a jog throughout the grounds. After a couple minutes she decided to stop and strech at a tree. After sitting there for a couple of minutes she noticed that the tree seemed to be giggling and shaking.

OOC: im not trying to be mean...but you could put a bit more life in your post...not just blank did this...blank did that..then blank did another thing...

Stuffing the steering-wheel was trying Flick's patience. If you got too much in any spot, it wouldn't be round. But how much stuffing she put in, and how hard she pushed it, depended on her state of mind. So she always had to be calm when stuffing, even though the thought of ruining her Major Work, Art, Year 12, wasn't all that calming.

Usually she could soothe herself by thinking about poetry, the jinglier, the better. But thinking about poetry right now led her straight back to that astonishing display in Brit-Lit. She'd tried to talk about it with the new guy, Caldrin:

"Have you ever seen anything like that thing with the poem?"

Caldrin stirs coffee judiciously.

"Do you thing Angelica might be the reincarnation of a 56-year-old English professor killed before her time by a falling Collected Works and returning to complete her definitive analysis of his output?"

Caldrin smiles sleepily.

Okay, o-kay, thought Flick, serves me right for trying to communicate before brunch. I'll go work in the Art Room.

Which she had, but every time she tried to concentrate on art, thoughts of her English homework floated in. She fully agreed with the "half-witted sheep" bit and yesterday would have been able to say so clearly and with plenty of good examples. But that was before she'd heard Angelica. Whatever she wrote now was bound to seem utterly juvenile beside that depth of scholarship ... on the other hand, it wasn't about other people's opinions, it was about hers, if they were adequately justified ...

Flick, peeved to realise she was so petty she envied another's intelligence, stuffed savagely. The steering-wheel turned oval again.

Jenna slowly became aware that Alex's face was very close to hers indeed. She hesitated, trying to analyze her feelings when... she felt soemone there. She frowned, realising she had no idea how she knew but someone was... down...

"Um, Alex? I..."

She looked down, breaking the intense gaze, and found the face of Valerie looking up at them, her mouth an O of surprise. "Er. hi."

"Huh?" jumped Alex, as he broke out of his trance-like state. "Eh? Whoa!?!?"

Alex had almost fallen off of the branch for a second time.

"Jeez...Annoying..." muttered Alex, as he stablized himself and looked down at the girl staring up at them "strangely" at the base of the tree. "Hey..."

Stuffing the steering-wheel was trying Flick's patience. If you got too much in any spot, it wouldn't be round. But how much stuffing she put in, and how hard she pushed it, depended on her state of mind. So she always had to be calm when stuffing, even though the thought of ruining her Major Work, Art, Year 12, wasn't all that calming.

Usually she could soothe herself by thinking about poetry, the jinglier, the better. But thinking about poetry right now led her straight back to that astonishing display in Brit-Lit. She'd tried to talk about it with the new guy, Caldrin:

"Have you ever seen anything like that thing with the poem?"

Caldrin stirs coffee judiciously.

"Do you thing Angelica might be the reincarnation of a 56-year-old English professor killed before her time by a falling Collected Works and returning to complete her definitive analysis of his output?"

Caldrin smiles sleepily.

Okay, o-kay, thought Flick, serves me right for trying to communicate before brunch. I'll go work in the Art Room.

Which she had, but every time she tried to concentrate on art, thoughts of her English homework floated in. She fully agreed with the "half-witted sheep" bit and yesterday would have been able to say so clearly and with plenty of good examples. But that was before she'd heard Angelica. Whatever she wrote now was bound to seem utterly juvenile beside that depth of scholarship ... on the other hand, it wasn't about other people's opinions, it was about hers, if they were adequately justified ...

Flick, peeved to realise she was so petty she envied another's intelligence, stuffed savagely. The steering-wheel turned oval again.


Caldrin nodded to himself, infact he did think that what happened in Brit-Lit today was weird. Perhaps Angelica is the reincarnation of a 56-year-old English professor killed before her time by a falling Collected Works.

He stared at his coffee a moment... after shaking his head he decided to down it all in one try...

Successful, he got up to leave. As soon as he got to the door, coming very close to running straight into it, he decided it may be best to go slee-r.. STUDY in the library. Yes, Caldrin needed to study, he was slacking, and he decided it would be best from now on to stop spending all nighters just to beat some horrendously long dungeon in a video game.

Valerie looked up at the tree. Taking a minute to find the source of the noise. She finally spotted a girl and a guy up there looking like they were about to get intimate. Suddenly one of them looked at her and awkwardly said hi.
"Uuuummmmmm............Hi."
Valerie sarted to blush.
"I'm sort of new here and haven't had a chance to meet many people. I'm sorry if I interupted, but I didn't know you were there when I stopped."

Valerie looked up at the tree. Taking a minute to find the source of the noise. She finally spotted a girl and a guy up there looking like they were about to get intimate. Suddenly one of them looked at her and awkwardly said hi.
"Uuuummmmmm............Hi."
Valerie sarted to blush.
"I'm sort of new here and haven't had a chance to meet many people. I'm sorry if I interupted, but I didn't know you were there when I stopped."

"Aahahah...Ahh..." sighed Alex, as he let off a small laugh. "This always happens...How ironic..."

Alex, looked over to Jenna, who was also looking down at the girl.

"I understand how you feel to be new and not know others...Uhh..." said Alex in a comforting and friendly tone. "Uh...What's your name? My name is Alex...And this beautiful young woman next to me is Jenna..."

saved for a post on Makie's condition...unless someone wants to come out and asses the damage and investigate...

A loud crash woke Salazar. His eyes snapped open and he looked around. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary and he hadn't realised he'd even fallen asleep. He groggily rubbed his eyes as he sat up. Seeing there was no Caldin around, it couldn't have been him making the noise and so he got up to invastigate. After wandering the corridors, he found the source of the noise. A girl was on the floor, there looked to be chunks taken outof the floor and walls like a gun battle had taken place.

"Shit," Salazar swore and ran over to her.

He could see blood underneath her, this was not what he expected to find at the school. Salazar resisted the urge to panic, it would not help her if he did. He knelt beside her to check if she was still alive.

"Hello Alex, Hello Jenna, So you two decide to skip history as well. My name is Valerie, I just recently came here from,...... well I'm sure you two don't care about where I'm from." Valerie looked up at the two faces and offered a weak smile, which hardly suited her.

A loud crash woke Salazar. His eyes snapped open and he looked around. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary and he hadn't realised he'd even fallen asleep. He groggily rubbed his eyes as he sat up. Seeing there was no Caldin around, it couldn't have been him making the noise and so he got up to invastigate. After wandering the corridors, he found the source of the noise. A girl was on the floor, there looked to be chunks taken outof the floor and walls like a gun battle had taken place.

"Shit," Salazar swore and ran over to her.

He could see blood underneath her, this was not what he expected to find at the school. Salazar resisted the urge to panic, it would not help her if he did. He knelt beside her to check if she was still alive.

A young boy knelt beside Makie's unconscious body and attempted to check her pulse.

But there was no pulse...

------
Encephelon
(Inside of Makie's head)

"What? What is this...Where am I?" said Makie, as she started to stand up.

Makie found herself in a large white room, wearing her school uniform from Mahora Academy, back in Second Miltia. The room had no apparent end nor any signs of walls or sources of light, an erie silence enveloped the room until it was interrupted by an unknown voice.

"You are home, young one..." said a booming voice.

"What are you talking about??? I...I...I'm supposed to..."

"Be at school? You are...I am sure you remember this place well..." said another voice.

"I have no idea what you are talking about..."

"It seems that she is in need of much repair...They have tampered with the mainframe...They were able to bypass the AAA encryption."

"Unit-019...You have failed in your duties...Please explain yourself.

"Certainly..." said a familiar voice.

"What the!?!?" yelled Makie, in surprise after hearing the voice which she had been hearing in the back of her head.

A bright red glowing circle had appeared on the floor in front of Makie. Slowly, the figure of someone's head had began emerging from the circle, then a torso, and last a pair of legs. The bright light had prevented Makie from giving Makie a clear view of the "person" who was coming out, and only revealed a sihillouette.

"Wh...Who...Who are you?"

"Me? I know that you already know who I am..."

The red light had subsided, revealing a figure who looked straight into Makie's eyes. It took several seconds for Makie to actually focus on the figure and was shocked to see that it was herself. The figure was an exact replica of Makie's nude figure, but the only difference was that she had a strange red digitized complextion which was emphasized even more by the strange lines of darker red tatoo-like lines that streamed up and down her figure. Along these red lines, ran several pulses of light, which jumped occasionally from line to line, as if an electrical switchboard had been imprinted onto the figure's body.

"Hello, Makie...I do hope you do remember me..."

"You...You can't be..." muttered Makie. "Sakura?"

------

Back in the real world...

The crowd had already grown, from just Salazar to several other students that had chanced to pass by the corridor. But it was Salazar who had taken the commanding role over the situation...

"Hello Alex, Hello Jenna, So you two decide to skip history as well. My name is Valerie, I just recently came here from,...... well I'm sure you two don't care about where I'm from." Valerie looked up at the two faces and offered a weak smile, which hardly suited her.

"I see...Got tired of watching the other girls decorating Mr. Farn?"

"Shit, shit, shit," Salazar repeatedly swore. "She has no pulse, someone get a teacher quick."

He did the only thing he could think of doing and that was CPR.

Encephelon

Yes...Sakura...You do remember...Hahaha...I'm glad.

Ahem...Unit-019...Please explain why you have failed your duties...

...busy...need finish later...

"Aahahah...Ahh..." sighed Alex, as he let off a small laugh. "This always happens...How ironic..."

Alex, looked over to Jenna, who was also looking down at the girl.

"I understand how you feel to be new and not know others...Uhh..." said Alex in a comforting and friendly tone. "Uh...What's your name? My name is Alex...And this beautiful young woman next to me is Jenna..."

Jenna grinned, the word "beautiful" not escaping her notice, and made a mental note to continue this later. She jumped down from the tree as Alex made a comment about the teacher's newly artistic head, and shook Valeries hand.

"I'm from Resquide, and Alex is from Noir. Actually I would quite like to know where you're from - there's a very interesting multi-cultural mix in this school."

Alex jumped down from the branch to joing the two girls in their conversation.

"Man that hurt...Heh...Ok..." said Alex, as he rubbed his knees. "Yea...No need to be so secretive on where you're from..."

Alex looked back at Jenna, who seemed to be grinning about something.

"Hmmm...Well...So...Valerie...What brings you here to this school?"

"Well, Ok, if you insist. I'm from a place called Nation of Fortune. As to why i'm here is a whole other story. They have a policy that all males begin military training as soon as they reach the age of 10. females can join if they want to, usually. My father didn't want me to join so I got sent here so I wouldn't ....no....couldn't join the military. Usually the police would have let me join, regardless as to what my parents said, but since my uncle is the dictator of NOF, I didn't have much say."
Valerie paused to catch her breath before asking "So, where are you two from, and are there any interesting stories as to why your here?"

"Well, Ok, if you insist. I'm from a place called Nation of Fortune. As to why i'm here is a whole other story. They have a policy that all males begin military training as soon as they reach the age of 10. females can join if they want to, usually. My father didn't want me to join so I got sent here so I wouldn't ....no....couldn't join the military. Usually the police would have let me join, regardless as to what my parents said, but since my uncle is the dictator of NOF, I didn't have much say."
Valerie paused to catch her breath before asking "So, where are you two from, and are there any interesting stories as to why your here?"

"I see...Politics intruding into your lives..." nodded Alex. "Well...Uhhh...For me...Hmmm..."

Alex stammered for a while, trying to find the words to introduce himself, without revealing his "wealthy" background, which he was ashamed of.

"I...Ummm...Fine...I'm the 5th son of the the Akashi family...And are destined to inherit the Kukai Foundation, -Noir-'s premier space platform manufacturers..." sighed Alex. "You may not have heard of the Kukai Foundation...But it's a pretty big company in -Noir-...It even rivals Vector Industries and Nergal Industries."

Alex looked downtrodden, being unable to make up a fake personal history that would cover up his rich background.

"Well...Why I'm here...I was actually just taken out of a class during the middle of the school day...Then I was debriefed on the plane ride here...And told that I must stay here for the remainder of the first semester." said Alex, somewhat happy to leave the topic concerning his background. "Sounds kinda wierd...Doesn't it..."

Jenna frowned. What Alex had said had sounded... familiar. Like something she'd forgotten but been reminded of. But he had never told her, this - presumably because of his apparant shame of his rich background. She filed it away for further consideration and turned to Valerie.

"Well, we are all the slaves of politics, but I for one enjoy it. I'm sent here for future contacts and things - to know people who will someday be part of the international community. Negotiating alliances is easier between friends. I'm from Resquide, we're incredibly disorganised as a country and I intend to help fix it."

Jenna frowned. What Alex had said had sounded... familiar. Like something she'd forgotten but been reminded of. But he had never told her, this - presumably because of his apparant shame of his rich background. She filed it away for further consideration and turned to Valerie.

"Well, we are all the slaves of politics, but I for one enjoy it. I'm sent here for future contacts and things - to know people who will someday be part of the international community. Negotiating alliances is easier between friends. I'm from Resquide, we're incredibly disorganised as a country and I intend to help fix it."

"Hmmm...I've had my share of politics...My annoying family is so far deeply involved with the government, it's not funny anymore..." sighed Alex, as he sat down on the grass. "When I was younger, I thought that the idea of having bodyguards around me was cool...Until I almost got killed by some "anti-space station" activists...I don't really like to involve myself in politics as much anymore..."

Alex laid back on the grass and looked up at the deep blue sky, and sighed once more.

"Hmmm...But it's so relaxing here...There's something about staring up at a blue sky, instead staring at the deep dark space and its millions of stars..." said Alex, as he stretched his arms. "There is something very simplistic and comforting about looking at the sky..."

Alex turned his head to face the two girls.

"Sometimes you just have to relax...Take a break...Like now for instance..." Alex moved his head and stared back at the sky. "Hmmm...How about we all go back to my dorm room later and get some real food also...Not the stuff they serve us at the mess hall..."

"Hmmm...I've had my share of politics...My annoying family is so far deeply involved with the government, it's not funny anymore..." sighed Alex, as he sat down on the grass. "When I was younger, I thought that the idea of having bodyguards around me was cool...Until I almost got killed by some "anti-space station" activists...I don't really like to involve myself in politics as much anymore..."

Alex laid back on the grass and looked up at the deep blue sky, and sighed once more.

"Hmmm...But it's so relaxing here...There's something about staring up at a blue sky, instead staring at the deep dark space and its millions of stars..." said Alex, as he stretched his arms. "There is something very simplistic and comforting about looking at the sky..."

Alex turned his head to face the two girls.

"Sometimes you just have to relax...Take a break...Like now for instance..." Alex moved his head and stared back at the sky. "Hmmm...How about you go back to my dorm room later and get some real food also...Not the stuff they serve us at the mess hall..."

Jenna giggled, also sitting and casually leaning on Alex's shoulder. "I know - that last shepherds pie was so greasy it soaked right through the tablecloth." She looked up. "I prefer the sky when there's a storm, really. Thunder and lightning create this kind of atmosphere, you know?"

Jenna giggled, also sitting and casually leaning on Alex's shoulder. "I know - that last shepherds pie was so greasy it soaked right through the tablecloth." She looked up. "I prefer the sky when there's a storm, really. Thunder and lightning create this kind of atmosphere, you know?"

"Actually...I've never experienced a true storm before...I rarely go down to the planet's surface and actually stay there and experience how real nature is like...I've been cooped up in the space station for so long...I've gotten used to scheduled weather changes and such...And it's all artificial..." sighed Alex, who had adjusted himself on the grass so that Jenna would be more comfortable. "I've only learned about it in texts at school and on the media..."

Jenna looked at him contemplatively. "That's right, you don't get much atmosphere on a space station, do you? You know, father was talking about making me governor of one, once, to give me practice at leadership. When I turn eighteen, that is. But then he saw what our people are doing to the whole scheme and he scrapped the idea. Honestly, our nations leaders are so crappy the hprase 'I'm surrounded by idiots' applies."

Jenna looked at him contemplatively. "That's right, you don't get much atmosphere on a space station, do you? You know, father was talking about making me governor of one, once, to give me practice at leadership. When I turn eighteen, that is. But then he saw what our people are doing to the whole scheme and he scrapped the idea. Honestly, our nations leaders are so crappy the hprase 'I'm surrounded by idiots' applies."

"Ah...The leadership role...Luckly, in -Noir- we happen to be well off...Except for that war that is going on against the Sith Empire..." said Alex. "The problem with many nations these days are that they are TOO democratic...See...They sacrifice control and order for freedom and liberty...You see...Without a sufficient amount of control and order, you would not be able to fully appreciate the freedom and liberty declared by the country...I'm actually for centralizing government authority, but they must keep in mind of preserving the ideals of freedom and liberty. Another thing in most nations today is that these so called democracies, even though how much some people say otherwise, revolve around the people. Oh, and here is a perfect quote that would justify my theory: "The masses are asses"...Isn't that creative way in describing them?"

Alex turned his head, to avoid moving Jenna from his shoulder, towards Valerie.

"Hey...Valerie...Why don't you take a seat? Or just lay down for a bit...And rest..." yawned Alex. "Actually...That isn't a half bad idea..."



OOC: whoa...im really drifting asleep on my computer table...gotta finish hw...

Jenna nodded seriously. "Yeah, people are pretty stupid, in general. I think our government is a good example of too much democracy - decisions are made on the basis of whether people will like them rather than the economy. Because after all, people care more about the state of their petunias and S&M clubs than they do about whether the government can afford to pay those damn plumbers to fix the embassy sewage systems."

Jenna nodded seriously. "Yeah, people are pretty stupid, in general. I think our government is a good example of too much democracy - decisions are made on the basis of whether people will like them rather than the economy. Because after all, people care more about the state of their petunias and S&M clubs than they do about whether the government can afford to pay those damn plumbers to fix the embassy sewage systems."


"Yea...I completely understand your point. Like, what is the point of having a government if they aren't going to do anything...Especially anything that pertains to the economy. Then if they would try to help the economy, we would be better off that they didn't. I'm not really a firm believer in Adam Smith, nor am I a full Keynesian, but i've got my own opinions on how the government should involve itself with the populace." added Alex. "But...Now, i've lost much of my interest on the government. 'Just let the big wigs handle it' is my motto these days."

Alex let out a deep sigh and inhaled deeply.

"I actually...I became interested with the government only when I had nothing to do while I as staying back at home, before going out to high school and living on my own."

Encephelon

"Sakura, what are you doing here????"

Shh! don't say that now...Just wait...

"But..."

Unit-019! Please explain yourself

Why I failed? I haven't failed yet...

"What are you talking about?"

You have allowed Them to get a hold of her and alter her mainframe...

Such failure is inexcusable...

Ok...ok...I failed there...But why must she be tortured like this? Why??? Hasn't she suffered enough?

That is not for you to decide...

She is merely a child...You cannot do this!

SILENCE! We will have none of this insubordination...

The whole conversation kept going, while Makie stood there on her original spot, still puzzled by the turn of events.

Give me another chance...They have installed an encryption code on her...And from what I know...You guys won't be unable to unlock it without hacking into Their mainframe.

True. It seems that you still have some value.

I agree...Unit-019...You are to secure the access codes...

It is imperative that we get Weapon-268 up and operational as soon as possible.

Yes, I understand.

The voices faded, and soon the white "room" began to fade as a strange darkness enveloped the room. Soon, the whole area around Makie was pitch black, except for a small circular area where she was standing that glowed dimly with a faint white light.

"Finally that is over..." sighed the familiar voice.

"Sakura! What's going on!" yelled Makie.

Sakura's familar form rose infront of Makie. This time, as the bright light subsided, it showed that the figure of Sakura was now a silvery color, instead of the red from just a while ago.

Don't worry Makie, everything is going to be fine...

"NO...NO IT'S NOT!!!! THEY ARE GOING TO TURN ME BACK INTO A WEAPON!!! yelled Makie, tears falling down her cheek. "AND...AND...AND YOU ARE HELPING THEM!!!"

"No! No...I swear I am not...Just listen to me..." Sakura said in a comforting and soothing voice. "Just sit down and let me explain..."

------

Back in the Corridor
Martizar H.S.

The crowd around Makie's body grew, and amazingly no faculty member had come across it nor has word reached them about the problem...

Salazar knelt back. "I can't save her," he said, closing his eyes. The CPR was apparently a faliure, there appeared to be nothing he nor anyone else could do for her.

"Yea...I completely understand your point. Like, what is the point of having a government if they aren't going to do anything...Especially anything that pertains to the economy. Then if they would try to help the economy, we would be better off that they didn't. I'm not really a firm believer in Adam Smith, nor am I a full Keynesian, but i've got my own opinions on how the government should involve itself with the populace." added Alex. "But...Now, i've lost much of my interest on the government. 'Just let the big wigs handle it' is my motto these days."

Alex let out a deep sigh and inhaled deeply.

"I actually...I became interested with the government only when I had nothing to do while I as staying back at home, before going out to high school and living on my own."

Jenna suddenly jumped up all in a jumble, as though it was involuntary. "Makie!" She cried, and started to run towards the school before either valerie or Alex could do anything but stare at her.

Jenna suddenly jumped up all in a jumble, as though it was involuntary. "Makie!" She cried, and started to run towards the school before either valerie or Alex could do anything but stare at her.

"What!?!?" yelled Alex. "What happened to Makie!?!?"

Alex quickly stood up and started to run after Jenna.

"Jenna! Wait up!"

Valerie was confused. She was talking to her two new friends when one of them ran off, yelling "Makie!". Shortly afterwards the other followed. "What the hell, might as well go too"
Valerie got up and ran after the two of them

Alex quickly caught up with Jenna.

"What...What happened? What's going on?" Alex stammered. "How do you know something happened to Makie???"

OOC: Nation of Fortune...do you have AIM, MSN, or Yahoo Messengers?

Jenna couldn't explain it, she simply felt... even as she ran, pulled by the inexplicable sense that something bad had happened to Makie, she tried to examine the link and figure out what it was. It was as though... somehow she could feel the presence of everyone who was at... at what?

A room flashed before her eyes, and a shadow looming... murdock... the faceless man...

It was gone. But as she entered the building at a run, out of breath, she realised what it was. She knew where everyone was, EVERYONE, she could feel them even though she didn't know why these particular people were everyone, and makies link was fading...

Jenna, Valerie, and Alex neared the large crowd gathered in the middle of a hole ridden hallway. Jenna managed to squeeze up to the front, and to answer Alex's fears, saw Makie, lying in the middle of a puddle of blood. A young boy was kneeling beside her, holding her arm, as if checking the pulse.

"Excuse me? Yea, you, what happened here?" quickly asked Alex, as he rushed over to Makie's side. "Oh shoot!!!"

Alex jumped up and pulled out his PDA-like device. Quickly pressing buttons he pulled on one of the sides on the device and pulled out a flexible OLED scroll and handed it to Jenna.

"Shoot...She's gone into shock." muttered Alex under his breath. "Jenna...Can you hold that for me for a sec."

He lifted up Makie's right arm and ripped off her sleeve, revealing a small barcode with minute writing underneath it on her shoulder. "I knew it! But..."

bump

"I don't know what happened," Salazar said. "I heard a crash and found her like this, I felt for a pulse but there wasn't one."

Valerie Peeked her head over the crowd, and saw a Girl laying there. She looked to be unconsious. Valerie thought this must be Makie, but she did wonder how Jenna knew what had happened.