Magical Teacher Professor Landry! - Episode 4: The Lady in White

[Teal Mage]

Red dresses swirled, as the plastic limbs of the faceless mannequins uncoiled and the quartet lunged inward. Pale light flared from Dal, as the Fae hissed, "Don't die." Before being launched into the air on a pulse of magical power. Adeline was already in motion - the girl had thrown herself forward, beneath the slashing leg and thrusting arm of the north-most pair of dancers.

A sharp line of cold fire gazed Dal's ankle, as one of the southern dancers gazed him. He narrowly evaded her follow-up strike, soaring higher yet.

Adeline's sandal-clad feet touched down on the tiles two paces behind the Mannerquins. Scarlet magical power flared and her sword disolved in a flash of white light. Twisting, the long haired girl sprung to her feet, a series of five-pointed stars of light materializing in her clenched hands. "Hah!" She flung her arms wide, sending the mass of ninja stars spinning toward her recovering attackers.

A series of thuds sounded, as the stars hit their marks. Faces, wrists and throats were pierced with unnerving accuracy - each had struck a vital point, staggering the - now spinning - quartet of dancers.

Who recovered instants later, straightening.

Adeline's triumphant smile withered. Landing another two paces away, the girl's aura flickered. "Hate robots..." She growled softly -

And from the Mannerquins, white auras exploded.

* * *

"Shuyin!" Dal called, eyes narrowed and flickering between the spinning Mannerquins and the slowly moving winged Professor, "Stop this!" Almost pleading - and not without a hint of desperation - "You told us that you arranged this to stop the deaths of innocent humans! -" He gestured fiercely toward Adeline, as the girl landed on her feet four paces from where she had started. "- That Landry, 'coolly calculated the murder of her own species', but now! What are you doing? What is this worth if you kill her? -"

Shuyin paused in his approach, and glanced coolly over his shoulder toward Dal. Below, the auras of the mannequins flared to brilliant white life.

"- Let the human girl go! She doesn't need to have her innocence or life destroyed by this battle!"

"Innocence?" Shuyin murmured, low and mild.

Suddenly, a figure in a billowing red gown was behind Dal. White radiance filled the air around it, seeming to render the Fae's pale yellow aura insignificant in contrast. Hunched as she was, the shadows playing over the figure's faceless visage gave the impression of a glee-filled grin.

Sean's shouted threat rang through the Ballroom, echoing.

Shuyin's face split into an icy smile.

Movements dance-like, the Mannerquin brought her hands up in a pair of rising slashes, aimed square at the Fae's wings. Without pause, the faceless being twisted, flowing smoothly into another attack - a razor-tipped kick that would score a deep and painful gash along Dal's back.

"This world cares nothing for innocence." He added, still looking at Dal and seemingly ignoring the disembodied words.

And suddenly, a pair of eerie high pitched laughs burst into the air. Red dresses swirled, as a pair of new faceless Mannerquins slid with ghostly grace, out from behind Johana - seemingly from thin air. Silver flashed in vicious arcs as each launched a pair of synchronized kicks at the back of Jo's legs. Swiftly, they twisted and stepped forward, each turning their momentum into a second whirling lash with their katar-like feet - which would eviscerate the Jotun from behind, if she didn't move.

But, with one on either side of her - the only avenue of escape was forward; toward Shuyin.

Around whom four vortexs of swirling coral-red light were forming - the same aura forms that had preceded the tea-geyser from before. One aimed into the sky toward Dal, one off in Adeline’s direction, and two in Jo’s direction.

They were bigger than before.

* * *

Sparks exploded from Adeline's short sword, as the girl was forced back a step.

After their auras had flared, the quartet of Mannerquins had launched themselves in four different directions. The more supernaturally know knowledgeable might have called the technique a crude parody of Flash Step, but to Adeline, it had seemed like they had rocket powered shoes. One had pursued Dal into the air, while two more had broke off to the sides, one taking up a position on the platform to Adeline's left, and the other, moving further out from the Ballroom's center, on her right. The final one had launched itself directly at Adeline.

Growling, her aura surged. White light exploded through her sword blade, and, bearing forward, she launched a vicious slash of her own.

The Mannerquin's aura flared. Suddenly, it seemed to split in two. Adeline's sword passed between the two immaterial and pirouetting copies, harmlessly. Eyes wide, she stumbled forward and through it –

As the remaining Mannerquins launched themselves, in flares of supernatural light, at her from either side.

* * *

"...its been a while since I'd heard that song." As Jack neared Hannah, the girl's whispered words to her Grandmother became audible to his ears. Suddenly, the girl's eyes shot open, and she sat up sharply, twisting to regard her now young grandmother critically. Like Sean, Hannah's wounds had vanished, and her garments were mended as if new. "I thought you said you couldn't cast spells like that any more." Hannah went on, posture tense.

Her now-young grandmother smiled kindly. "Hannah..." She shut her eyes - Jack thought he'd detected something sad in them for a moment. "...there is something important I should tell you." Brown eyes opened and flickered toward Jack. She fell silent, tapping her granddaughter's shoulder, before pointing toward the young, vine dripping, wizard.

Curious, Hannah turned around. Her expression seemed to flatten, a hint of distaste showing through, at the sight of Jack. She didn't say anything, though.

"Why did you kill her?" Jack asked, stopping before the pair of women. At his sides, both his hands were clenched into tight fists. "Or try to kill her," He amended, after a moment's pause, "I guess."

Hannah grunted softly, seeming to flinch faintly. Her eyes shut. "...why did I kill her?" She repeated, slowly. The girl crossed her arms loosely, and seemed to lean back a little, gaze dropping to the tiles off to Jack's right, before she allowed her eyes to slide open again, slowly. "Why, huh?" She chuckled, faintly and shook her head. "I guess the easy answer is..." She trailed off, thoughtfully.

A faint click sounded from behind the blond. Her grandmother turned her head curiously.

Shedding dark flecks of light, an auburn haired woman seemed to step out of the air. For an instant, she was wearing a slim black gown, the front of which was decorated with twelve holes, each revealing patches of skin. Then, a white labcoat seemed to appear on her shoulders, clinched tight around her waist with a cord of black fabric. Only the upper part of her dress's bodice was visible - none of the holes. In an almost absent minded movement, the woman reached into one of her pockets and withdrew a pair of glasses.

Professor Landry slipped them onto her face, and offered both Jack and Hannah's grandmother an ironic smile, followed by a nod.

"...revenge." The girl concluded, after a moment had paced. She fell silent again, pensive. Something in her expression seemed to suggest that she was planning to go on, but was merely thinking carefully about her words. Unlike the others, Professor Landry's appearance seemed to have escaped her notice. Her grandmother didn't seem interested in correcting this oversight – but would Jack? Even if he didn't, would he just wait patiently for her to go on? Did it matter at all?

Decisions, decisions, decisions.

[Riin Whitewind]

Sao seated herself in front of the faintly steaming Kohana, facing toward him. She was getting to be quite familiar with tea-related burns, recognizing the angry red patterns it left on his skin despite the lack of obvious cause. "Lend me your hands, shaman." Folding her hands around his, the healer's aura flickered to life. The cuts and light burns on his hands faded instantly, subsumed by her will and a feeling of soothing cold. As she channelled, that cold would work its way over his body, soothing the worst of the burns.

"Don't worry about Diana." The Undine's eyes were closed in concentration, steadily drawing power through herself to the shirtless Koh. "When this is over, we can find a cursebreaker to finish what I started." Tired, low on power, and aching, Sao bowed her head. Her voice was quiet and calm, like the gentle lap of water over pebbles. "Until then, it is probably for the best that she stays away from us. The curse she carries is highly contagious."

However calm her voice sounded, internally she was conflicted. Some of 'her' people were now in the pavillion with Shuyin, despite her earlier plea. Bringing the structure down around them still seemed a better plan than following Adeline and Dal - common sense screamed that they had charged into a trap. But exactly how disabling that trap would affect her classmates was unknown, and the thought tormented her.

[Dracorion]

"...why did I kill her?" Hannah repeated the young wizard's question. She fidgeted a little, before continuing slowly. "Why, huh?" Yeah, why? Care to answer any time soon? "I guess the easy answer is..." MY GOD WILL YOU GET TO IT.

Jack crossed his arms to hide his clenched fists. Slowly, not for any kind of effect but because he was still tired and pained and very aware of the weird feeling of the vines poking out all over him and their weight as they simply hung there limply. He was also aware of the embarassing state of his appearance, and it made him blush more than a little in the presence of both women.

Then his jaw dropped. Professor Rebecca Landry just appeared out of thin air behind Hannah, looking healthy as ever, the only imperfection being the holes in her dress. She put on a pair of glasses pulled out of a labcoat that also appeared out of nowhere, and smiled and nodded at both Jack and Hannah's grandmother.

Jackson's lips moved to form a question, looking dumbfounded at the Professor when Hannah finally answered. "...revenge." Jack's gaze fell back on the witch. She seemed not to have noticed Landry's reapparance, and her grandmother wasn't about to tell her. Jack closed his mouth, trying to look at normal as possible and shot Landry a quick look that was supposed to say 'disappear on me again and I'll hunt you down and kick your ass'.

Of course, he had no idea how to give that kind of look.

He turned back to the blonde, and waited for her to continue one of these days maybe.

[Krylo]

"Innocence?" Shuyin murmured, low and mild.

'Just keep talking,' the fae thought to himself, repressing a small smile. 'I've almost...'

And then the mannequin was behind him. The fae glanced back. For a moment his eyes widened with surprise, and, maybe, fear, as he had no time to avoid the attack. He hadn't been paying enough attention, hadn't been expecting them to be able to get so high.

"This world cares nothing for innocence." Shuyin added, still looking at Dal and seemingly ignoring the disembodied words.

But then the faerie's body merely faded away, the mannequin's blades slicing through empty air as a hollow laugh echoed from the space Dalbhach had been.

"Words continue to fail me," came a voice from behind the Mannequin as Dalbhach faded back into existence. He quickly locked an arm around the mannequin's neck from behind, while another reached for her arm, his rapier having been returned to the aether.

"Then I suppose it's time you understand what it means to challenge one of the fair folk like this..." As he spoke his body changed, his toussled hair turning into fine golden wires, his green eyes becoming emeralds, and his lips seemed to be be fashioned from rubies, each set into a perfectly sculpted platinum face. His hands, arms, and all the rest of him, as well, followed suit. Dalbhach's body was no longer weak flesh, but an amalgam of precious metals and jewels, hard as steel, but much heavier. Except his wings, which seemed to be, simply, gone.

This was locked about the Mannequin, holding it as tightly as the faerie turned... whatever Dal was now could hold it, and where platinum came in contact with the mannequin's 'body' a silver light seemed to glow outward.

[Overcast]

Jay leaned on his bat, his breath heavy as he stared at the remains of the pillar. The damn thing had been HARD! He hadn't felt this much rebound in his arms since his first fastball out of the park. He gripped his bat hard and lifted it to his shoulder, letting out a yell to get his spirits back in play, it hadn't knocked down the building. He needed more.

He started a steady gait northward, trying to keep his body together and coax himself toward another wind, sure as he had burned through his second or third long ago. But he needed his strength if he was going to take down another of those damn things, he couldn't half ass it. His full potential was the difference between a line drive and a home run.

He looked into the pavilion, trying to get a grasp of how much faster he had to get his work done when he caught view of Adeline. Strange puppets armed with blades rather than proper distal appendages stood in her way. They seemed rather intimidating, even in their fancy clothes, but she brought the pain with a collection of throwing stars! Jay was about to throw her a big cheer until the things seemed to shrug off the impacts like mosquito bites.

Mild annoyances.

Jay felt himself concerned as they began to approach her, his feet stopping short on their path to the next pillar, and even worse turning. He should have been concentrating at the task at hand, but damn him if he wasn't the sort who let new ideas sway him left and right. Whether it be a duel, teammates, enemies, tactics, love. His mind could not sit still. And there was no part of him not heroic enough to let one of his classmates get jumped by a bunch of plastic goons!

They formed around her, and she struck at the one who charged from the front. For a moment he thought she had it, but it was a distraction. Moving right past her, and the other two moved to strike.

But their tactics were robotic, pre-set routines, just like all puppet shows, and so when Jay had made his way past the adorable puppy(the temptation to pet it unusually high, but capably resisted) they didn't realize he was on his way till he had made sure he was too close for it to matter when he said the next part,

"Hey fuckers! Batter up!"

He swung at the mannequin on her left, he didn't have all his heart in it. He still felt it in his arms, but it would definitely fuck up their routine.

((OOC: Teal check this and send me a PM if anything is off. I imagine Jay hasn't moved too far for his turn, but considering his condition I may be wrong.))

[Bard The 5th LW]

Sean's ultimatum echoed through the inside of the pavilion, but Shuyin offered no acknowledgement. "Then so be it!" he shouted one last time. Sean then relinquished is grip from the curtain and turned back to the allies. It was... an odd sight to say the least. Infinite it seemed. He saw the backside of some odd figure, and he may have caught a glimpse of Adeline. What would happen if the structure collapsed? What would happen to Adeline and anyone else in the pavilion?

Either way, after seeing that he wasn't sure if he wanted to go in.

His gaze lingered, and he found Diana had left. He almost felt relieved. He almost suggested that someoen should go after her, but he decided not to at risk that they would nominate him.

"Don't worry about Diana." he heard Sao say to Koh reassuringly. "When this is over, we can find a cursebreaker to finish what I started. Until then, it is probably for the best that she stays away from us. The curse she carries is highly contagious." Cursed eh? Well at least Sean didn't have to get near her, she just made him feel uneasy.

"Alright, lets get down to business then," he said to the others, although Jay seemed to be running off. "I want to help, but this doesn't seem a normal gazebo. If we go forward with this, the others might not be able to get out, I'm pretty sure I just saw Adeline in there." He took a few steps back, and focused at the standing pillar. "The risks of destroying it might be too great. We could just end up hurting each other.This is a risky thing, we might just hurt the others."

He took another few slow steps, getting a good view of nearest remaining pillar. Snow and ice were still revving around his arm as the blizzard spell charged. "Its up to you Koh, or Sao, or whoever. Give the word and I'll shoot the pillar, or give the the word and I'll try something else."

[SinrXIII]

Sao seated herself in front of the faintly steaming Kohana, facing toward him. She was getting to be quite familiar with tea-related burns, recognizing the angry red patterns it left on his skin despite the lack of obvious cause. "Lend me your hands, shaman." Folding her hands around his, the healer's aura flickered to life. The cuts and light burns on his hands faded instantly, subsumed by her will and a feeling of soothing cold. As she channelled, that cold would work its way over his body, soothing the worst of the burns.

"Don't worry about Diana." The Undine's eyes were closed in concentration, steadily drawing power through herself to the shirtless Koh. "When this is over, we can find a cursebreaker to finish what I started." Tired, low on power, and aching, Sao bowed her head. Her voice was quiet and calm, like the gentle lap of water over pebbles. "Until then, it is probably for the best that she stays away from us. The curse she carries is highly contagious."

Koh blinked, opening his eyes. Sao had moved to start healing him; he was surprised, he hadn't expected her to. Maybe he looked worse than he felt.

Not that he felt particularly great. Sitting still hurt like hell. The shaman flashed an appreciative smile before Sean's voice caught his ears and Sao's words finally processed in his head. He started to try and answer both at once, but found his tongue wouldn't cooperate and shook his head to clear it.

"No one else should go into that... thing. The inside is... expansive. And my wolf-friend can't see a way out; it would be better to stay outside and try to find a way to get everyone else out, if you ask me." The shaman frowned, looking at the pavilion.

He then turned back to Sao, brow furrowed. "Cursed, huh? That could be... unpleasant. We'll drag her to a cursebreaker if we have to chain her to a team of horses."

[Arhra]

Jo's thoughts were racing in circles.

Or at least they were trying to. They raced, hit a wall and sprang up again, only to batter themselves into the same wall.

She had lured some of her fellow students into a trap but it didn't make any sense.

As a trap, the Infinite Ballroom was terrible. Very deadly to those inside, but it was a gigantic expenditure of resources to capture just a handful of people. And Shuyin trapping himself inside an infinitely large box was absolutely terrible as far as escape plans went. The people outside were free to pull it down around his ears.

But then the pattern of her thoughts shifted and a possibility made itself clear. A booby trap as an extension of Shuyin's stalling tactics? Yes, that would fit.

He still needed to unbox himself however.

Shuyin needed to neutralise all external enemies. A hidden ally? Static and a missing clone buzzed at the back of Jo's mind. But none of the other students had gone missing. And if there was an ally, and they were potent, why had they hidden themselves until now? Hannah, Shuyin and a third person would surely have been an overwhelming force together.

It was a gamble as well. No matter what happened in here, if the students outside weren't overwhelmed he'd be pulled out and swarmed under.

Unless, unless unless unless, breaking apart the Infinite Ballroom didn't actually matter. Was this Shuyin a fake? It was a flimsy supposition, but it would fit the 'no-win' situation he preferred. It would distract people both inside and out, forcing them to devote time and energy to collapsing it while he was possibly free to work elsewhere.

It still seemed incredibly costly for what it might gain him. Flimsy as it was, she couldn't dismiss the fake Shuyin idea out of hand though.

More deadly mannequins materialised and Dalbhach unveiled a hidden talent for being diamonds. Some unforeseen interaction with the nature of this special world?

"I would say again that your plan has gone wrong and will continue to go wrong, but are you even real?" Jo called to Shuyin as she started her headlong rush at Shuyin, the blades of the pair of mannequins behind her slicing at her heels. "Dalbhach, I think this entire world is just a distraction! Kill him!"

[Girasol of Chaos]

Sean's cry was safely ignored, allowing the oni to feel comfortable as she moved north to the next pole. He didn't seem inclined to take any rapid action, so she targeted the pillar for him. As she did so, she overheard the wolf-boy that Sao was healing and kept an ear in his direction. The only thing the conversation confirmed were two obvious facts: the stupid building was a giant trap and she was right to not trust the Diana girl. Chou stopped by the pole, planted her feet into the ground and readied herself, knowing it'd take a few strikes.

Carefully using the section of her club that suffered chips from the spikes, the oni proceeded to swing calculated strokes at this next foundation. In a few strikes it would collapse, and she'd need to proceed to the next. As much as the blue-skinned ogre wanted to hurry up, she also had to keep herself strong. The other guy who seemed to blast the pillar he worked on seemed winded afterwards. It didn't stop him from taking up his bat and stupidly running into the trap.

Oh well. Chou's club slammed into the foundation for the third time causing it to give way, splintering and collapsing from the force.

[Teal Mage]

Hurling a flurry of words over her shoulder, Diana fled from her so-called allies, disappearing to the north. Sao, the front of her dress bleached white where the strange curse-fluid had touched it, had settled on the tiles in front of Kohana and now held his heat damaged hands. Bright green light radiated out from the pair, flowing from the undine into the shaman. A sharp crack erupted near them, as Chou's club smashed through the dark material of the second support, breaking it at the base. From above, there came an ominous groan. A single hairline crack now bisected the underside of the roof. Panting, Chou took a few moments to catch her breath.

"...this doesn't seem like a normal gazebo." Sean observed, standing slightly north of the others. He was eyeing the veil-shrouded pavilion with a mixture of suspicion and wariness. It wasn't too difficult to figure out what he meant - only two of the pavilion's supports were left, and they were both on the north-side, but the roof wasn't even slanting. That, and the white glow surrounding it, made it pretty clear that it was supernatural.

A corona of orange light surrounded Sean, gathered into a controlled blaze around his left hand. He turned toward Kohana and Sao, "If we go forward with this," He gestured toward Chou, who was now turning her attention to another pole, "the others might not be able to get out." Sean threw another glance toward the pavilion. Slumping slightly, Jay now stood near the center of the strange tiled expanse inside the white veil-like curtains. Aside from Kohana's puppy, he was alone. "…and I'm pretty sure I just saw Adeline in there." He added.

Clearly, Jay was not important.

* * *

"Hey fuckers! Batter up!" Jay swung!

But Mannerquin was already gone.

Exploding forward in a burst of supernatural force, the faceless doll launched itself at Adeline, ignoring Jay entirely. Stumbling, Adeline twisted left, "Wha -" Wide hazel eyes got wider, as the Mannerquin's leading hand slipped below her glowing blade to plunge into her chest. Adeline let out a choked cry of pain, sword slipping from her hands, clattering to the tiles below.

Whimpering softly, she half curled in on the katar-like hand, before suddenly arcing backward. Twin lengths of burning cold slammed into her back, and a scream tore itself from her throat. From her back, bright red fluid spurted. The doll from the west had arrived, and now stood behind her, faceless head speckled with blood.

In front of her, the first Mannerquin raised its free hand. Glinting, the katar-like limb levelled itself at Adeline's eye. "Heeheehee!"

It thrust!

Darkness exploded in a thunderclap, obscuring the figures completely.

Back on the central platform, Jay slumped faintly, aluminum bat heavy in his hands. Nearby, Kohana's puppy whimpered softly.

He'd been too late.

* * *

"…you're probably thinking that revenge is stupid." Hannah murmured softly, a faint smile appearing on her lips. She was staring at her hands, folded palm-up in her lap. The girl chuckled. "Professor Shuyin told me that a lot." A sigh, "Revenge doesn't bring anything back – if someone dies, they're gone. If something precious is destroyed, killing the person who destroyed it doesn't magically bring it back." Another chuckle followed, but this time, it sounded choked. Hannah squeezed her eyes shut. Her aura flickered for an instant, from blue to white. "Even magic can't do that. Death is forever." She raised a hand to her eyes, trembling faintly.

Around the girl's body, the arms of her grandmother tightened.

She heaved a shuddering sigh, raising her eyes to Jack defiantly. "After a while though, he stopped trying to talk me out of it." Her jaw tightened, and she closed her hands into fists, nails digging into her hands, "Because, there is a point to revenge – to killing," Her voice broke at the word, becoming higher than usual for an instant. She winced, then shook her head, sighing. "The reason you kill someone isn't to get something back." Her green eyes blinked rapidly. She took a slow breath, then released it. "Its to protect everyone else." Hannah nodded faintly, then smiled sadly. "…Professor Shuyin agreed with me, I think. I never explained it to him," She shook her head again, "but I think he understood." Self-consciously, she tangled a hand in her blond hair, gaze leaving Jack again. "He knew Professor Landry longer than any one – he had to understand that."

Her green eyes snapped back to Jack. "That's why he did all this." Hannah stated firmly, hand leaving her hair, closed in a tight fist. "It doesn't make sense any other way – he's fought Landry before, and she beat him – almost every time." She paused, eyes dropping suddenly. Her hands lowered, trembling suddenly. "It just doesn't make sense otherwise." She whispered, desperately. "Professor Shuyin wouldn't do this!" Her own cry, emphatic, stopped her cold. Green eyes wide, Hannah lowered her eyes and hugged herself, shivering.

Behind her, Professor Landry's expression was pained. Her hand was half-outstretched, then, voicing a soft grunt, she snapped her eyes away, dropping her arm to her side.

Hannah didn't say anything else.

* * *

"Heeheehee!"

A high pitched giggle erupted behind Jay. Two new Mannerquins pirouetted out of thin air, from behind him. Bladed feet clinked, as they quickly twisted, hands snapping into attack position. Auras flared white –

Suddenly, a white hilted and slim sword appeared. Spinning end over end, it rushed in from the north and swept through both Mannerquins, cutting their attack off in mid-lunge. In a clatter of plastic limbs, the dolls toppled, vicious diagonal gaps bisecting their chests. Clanging sharply, the mysterious sword embedded itself in the tiles a few feet further from Jay, near the platform's center. A faint corona of dark red supernatural light surrounded the blade, fading quickly.

He'd…been saved?

Moments later, Jay's off-hand closed around the worn leather of the weapon's hilt. It slid free of the tiles below easily. Hafting it, the young man grimly turned toward the last place he'd seen Adeline. The shroud of darkness had dissipated, but the girl was nowhere to be seen. In her place was a statue of pale blue crystal, vaguely feminine in shape, but featureless. Three Mannerquins surrounded it. Two of them were speckled with blood, one was clean.

One of the bloody dolls swung around to face him –

Just before a massive torrent of green tea engulfed the quartet, explosively. Thick clouds of steam billowed upward. "Hahahahahah!" A trio of boisterous laughs cut through the roar of water that suddenly filled the ballroom, as the three Mannerquins burst into the air far above the conflagration. White auras of flared, and they suddenly changed direction. Two raced off toward Dalhbach – separated from Jay's line of sight by the geyser of tea – while the blood faced one from before rocketed toward him. Grimly, Jay held his ground, falling back into an approximation of a boxing stance, he reversed his grip on his newfound sword. Extended behind him, the tip glinted dangerously.

At the last moment, Jay lashed out in a vicious one-handed uppercut!

"Heeheehee~" And the Mannerquin split in two.

The bat passed harmlessly threw the space left by the ghostly twins that had replaced the doll. Twirling, the ephemeral images of the Mannerquin met a half-step to the baseball player's north, and the faceless creature rematerialized. It had easily avoided the obstacle of Jay's sword. "Heeheehee!" Voicing a giggle, the doll twisted. Its blood-stained katar rammed forward, toward Jay's temple. Overextended from his awkward uppercut, Jay had no time to dodge -!

Darkness exploded.

* * *

Frigid winds swirled around Sean's frost coated left hand, raised in the direction of the pavilion's third support column. "…this is a risky thing, we might just hurt the others." He stated, glancing toward Kohana and Sao with a worried expression. The light from the undine's healing spell had all but faded, leaving Kohana fully healed, if a little damp. "Its up to you Koh," Sean continued, as Chou arrived at the column in question, expression intense, "or Sao, or whoever. Give the word and I'll shoot the pillar. Or -"

Chou slammed her club into the pole. There was no effect.

"- Give the word and I'll try something else." Sean concluded, somewhat lamely. Risks aside, it appeared that Chou had decided the best solution was to smash something.

She hefted her club, bracing herself to strike again.

Eyes shut and emerald aura burning around his shoulders, Kohana spoke up. "No one else should go into that...thing." His voice sounding strained. "The inside is... expansive. And my wolf-friend can't see a way out -" Chou slammed her club into the pole again. It trembled faintly. "- it would be better to stay outside and try to find a way to get everyone else out, if you ask me."

Taking a deep breath, Chou readied herself to strike again.

"Cursed, huh?" Kohana turned his attention to Sao. The young-looking woman looked pale and weak. "That could be... unpleasant." Chou's club thundered into the pole a third time, causing it to shed black fragments and shake. Cracking a smile, Kohana went on confidently, "We'll drag her to a cursebreaker -"

Someone screamed.

More surprised than afraid, the sudden cry had erupted from just outside of Chou's line of sight, on the pavilion's north side. Club already raised to strike again, the blue Oni started and, instinctively, lashed out. Ashen gold light flared sharply around her body, as the orge's weapon slammed explosively into the support, obliterating it in a spray of black fragments. Thrown a little off balance, Chou staggered. Above, large faults appeared on the roof of the pavilion, accompanied by a cacophony of shattering cracks. Shattered, it began to sag precariously around the edges, but did not collapse.

"- if we have to chain her to a team of horses." Kohana finished hurriedly, suddenly on his feet, smile withered away to nothing.

That was Diana!

* * *

Tiles exploded into the air, as Dalbhach crashed into the floor, a half-step from the central platform's south-west side. Arms locked tight around the slim and deceptively delicate body of a Mannerquin, the Fae had his eyes shut in concentration. Pale yellow light slowly spread over faceless doll.

Struggling, the Mannerquin's katar-like hands and feet slammed again and again into the silvery surface of Dal's skin, raising sparks and denting themselves in the process, but managing little else. A dark film had appeared on top of the creature's head, and its facial structure appeared to be warping. Whatever Dal was up to, it seemed to be working. Unfortunately, it was also taking its sweet time to finish.

"Dalbhach!" Jo launched herself forward, ice-claws glinting dangerously, as she charged Shuyin headlong. "I think this entire world is just a distraction!" Behind her, the pair of Mannerquins she had just escaped broke into a run, one charging off to the north-east, the other to the north-west – and at Dal. Shuyin, for his part, merely turned a cool smile toward the white skinned girl. "Kill him!" Barefoot, Jo hurtled toward Shuyin, eyes narrowed on the vortex-like aura structures surrounding the bluenette angel.

A low, dull, note rang from Shuyin.

Reacting, Jo twisted to the side, lunging away -

Around the Professor, a shock of coral-pink power erupted, as his charged spells detonated. Directly in front of Jo, a massive torrent of water swept outward. Quickly, the Jotun threw herself into a roll -

It was too big!

* * *

The silence around Hannah stretched for a long moment. It as though Jack was about to say something, but someone else beat him to it.

"…Shuyin is a coward." Professor Landry stated, decisively.

Hannah started, glancing from left to right in a panic. Tapping her shoulder, the girl's now-young grandmother offered a small smile, before directing the blond's gaze behind her. Professor Landry was looking to the side, toward the glittering cylinder of crystal that enclosed the tower. In the gold radiance that filled the Field, it had turned green.

"Hannah." The Professor turned her eyes, unhurriedly, toward the girl. Around the auburn haired woman's body, black fire danced and swirled fiercely. "You never could have killed me." A smile, sad, but warm appeared on her face. "Not so long as your only motive was vengeance, anyway." She shook her head, eyes closing.

"Your life becomes nothing in pursuit of a cause." The Professor continued, heat slowly building behind her words. "Doubts are banished, even when reasonable. Love -"

"Oh just shut up!" Hannah cried, suddenly up on her feet. "Stop talking about things you don't understand!" She glared at the Professor, aura rolling angrily around her. "Professor Shuyin isn't a coward! He's never run from anything in his life, and if you knew anything about him, you wouldn't say something like that!"

The Professor crossed her arms, and let out an indignant laugh. "Hardly. This entire battle is nothing but an attempt to run from reality -"

"That's a lie!" Hannah cut in, voice choked. "If any one here runs from reality, its you!" She gestured fiercely. "All you ever do is talk about love and justice, as if any of that stuff mattered! Well, news flash Professor," she slammed her foot down into the marble floor below, "they don't! The only thing that matters in real life is power! This isn't some stupid anime movie - we're not the main characters! You can't just try harder and expect results!"

The Professor's expression was dark, but she didn't reply.

* * *

"Heeheehee!"

At the same moment that Jo vanished beneath the torrent of tea, a pair of Mannerquins touched down behind Dal. One was covered in blood, the other, still perfectly clean. In front of him, a third Mannerquin slowed to a stop, forming a triangle with the other two. In the Fae's arms, the doll he held had gone slack. Twin flares of dark-light, one on his left and the other to his south, where Jay and Jo had been, respectively, erupted.

They were probably dead.

"Hee…" The Mannerquin he held giggled softly.

Around him, the trio of Mannerquins burst into motion. White auras flared bright, as they started to twirl and spin, breaking into ephemeral ghostly copies of themselves. In moments, the Fae was surrounded by wide a ring of constantly shifting dancers, outlined in a solid mass of white supernatural light. High-pitched giggles sounded from within – it sounded like they were having fun.

That was probably bad.

* * *

"At least Professor Shuyin tried to tell us the truth!" Hannah continued, eyes shining wetly. "At least he cared enough to show us that we can't expect our dreams to come true, just because we want them! Reality isn't something that can just be wished away, but the way you talk about it, all we need to do is believe in ourselves, and everything will turn out fine!"

"That doesn't work though! The only way to survive in this world is to throw all of those naive ideas away, and accept your limitations!" She threw out her arm in an expansive gesture, "Some people are stronger than you! That's how it works! If you want to survive in this world, you need to recognize that sometimes, no matter how many times you try, you can't win by throwing yourself at them! You need to fight smarter, not harder -!"

Smack!

In a flash, the Professor had crossed the distance between herself and Hannah, and slammed her fist into the girl's face. Hannah was knocked off her feet by the powerful blow, and fell back. She landed heavily, on her back.

"There! Are are you happy now!?" The Professor shouted, "That's the reality you're talking about! That's what Professor Shuyin claims you can defeat by fighting smarter! Well Hannah, the truth is, if you believe him -"

"That's enough!" Voice like a whip, Hannah's grandmother cut the Professor off.

On the ground, Hannah had pulled herself into a sitting position. Tears ran down her cheeks, but she kept her sobs quiet, biting her lip. A bright red mark dominanted one of her cheeks - it looked painful. Quickly, her grandmother knelt beside her. Whispering softly, the dark haired woman took off her shawl, and gently began to dab the blond's cheeks.

"I..." Professor Landry started, half-raising a hand. Voicing a soft grunt, the Professor turned sharply away, and walked off a few paces.

A few moments passed.

"Jack." She stated suddenly. "Come here."

...was that safe?

* * *

Smack!

Diana reeled, stumbling backward before toppling to the floor below. Her grip on her sword went slack for an instant, and the weapon flew from her grasp, sailing off the tower's edge, clanging metallically as it bounded off the tiered walk-way, toward the distance floor below. Stunned, the girl lay unmoving on the ground, aura flickering fitfully, and breath coming in quick, shallow, gasps. Though sprawled limply on the tiles, she didn't appear injured.

Tap, tap.

Steps fluid, Shuyin flowed back two paces.

His azure hair was now bound by a gold cord into a tight pony-tail, and barely extended to his jaw. Golden cat's eyes rested on Diana for a moment, before flicking left – where he knew her allies would be arriving from in moments. Like his hairstyle, his garments too had changed. The eastern-style robes had been replaced with a matching set of a black formal jacket and dress pants, both perfectly tailored enough to show off his slim and broad shouldered build. Military in style, the gold buttons of the man's were done up to just-below his collar, revealing a hint of the white dress-shirt beneath. Similarly metallic embellishments decorated his jacket's sleeves, shoulders and cuff-links, gleaming brightly in the now-radiant light filling the air. A white belt was visible at his waist, from which an empty sheath hung.

By his fighter's stance, it seemed he was ready to battle.

And, with his back to the Pavilion's north wall, it would be difficult to approach him in any way that wasn't head-on. More annoying, perhaps, was that he was also blocking Chou's most direct route to the final pillar, in the North-East corner of the pavilion. If they wanted to destroy that without a fight, they'd need to take the long way around.

Not to mention, leave Diana to fight Shuyin alone.