[b]Mark[/b]

The Academy was a big place to go jogging around, and the size and length of the wall should have tipped him off to this fact. But working up a sweat was much better than the alternative: awkwardly chatting with people he didn't know, or twiddling his thumbs alone in his room. Besides, a good run always helped him clean out the gunk from his mind. In fact, that may as well have been its primary purpose, because he knew he could only [i]half[/i] remember everything that he was seeing. No, he had to get his brain in order.

And the first thing he did was calm himself down. Being plunged into pitch black against creatures that he needed to learn to classify as people who could assumingly bat his head off his shoulders if they wished it.. was something that was difficult to get over. He was quite confident in his ability to react to new dangers, but that was just pushing it. He had had no idea what he was up against, and asides from some idle chattering, [i]that[/i] had been his introduction to this hellhouse of a school. These were the thoughts he worked to suppress. To let them fester was to give in to fear, and although he was not the type to actively do anything, he knew what he [i]wouldn't[/i]. He was that kind of guy. So he told himself that he would throw himself at situations like that. He didn't know whether it would be a regular thing, but he didn't care; it was a challenge. Those were one of the few things that could rouse him from inaction. Especially here, where he was surrounded by those with some astonishing abilities. His own weaknesses were becoming more and more apparent to him, and he'd only been here for a few hours. He wanted to eliminate them.

Or at least he would when given the opportunity. To his shame, he wouldn't go out of his way to do anything, as his lazy personality wouldn't let him make his own opportunities. All he knew how to do was react to what came before him. Mark's demeanor matched his power quite well.

And as his thoughts touched on his power, he remembered what had happened when lightning had struck.. For a miniscule fraction of a second, he had moved his fingers faster than a wave of electrical current. It baffled him. He replayed the moment over and over in his mind as he tried to think of some other explanation of how he could drop his phone, but he came up blank. There was no alternate conclusion: there was more to his power than he was aware.

Before he could fully comprehend this, he noticed to his right was a great dome which he had so far ignored. It had an open door, so he proceeded inwards to find the garden that the map had been talking about. After walking for a short while in the beautiful and varied expanse of colour around him, he climbed a nearby tree. Mark didn't know why he liked to climb trees; it may have been because as a child he had been told it was dangerous by his mother, but his father had discretely encouraged his young curiosity. His parents flitted in and out of his mind as a mixture of worry and pain crossed his braincells. He knew they would be fretting over him, but [i]he[/i] knew that his time on this earth was limited more than most. Why that was exactly was a question that needed an answer, and he figured the more he developed his power, the more he would learn about how to prevent turning himself to ash.

And with those thoughts, an accidentally loud group of three parked themselves beneath his tree. One of whom he recognised, but whose name escaped him. Mark just knew him as the social butterfly. Resting his head against the trunk of the tree, Mark tried his hardest to ignore them.

Now eavesdropping was something he didn't approve of, but he found himself doing anyway.

[i]Ah, Red was his name. I remember now.. and its still too unorthodox for a normal person to call their son. But still, I've inadvertently learned that he is not a murderer. Awesome. Why someone would think he is is none of my business, but still. Whatever.

We also have a girl named Deborah and Shannon. They seem close. And they seem to want to find things out about this Academy's.. secrets? Have I gotten involved in something shady? Good God I hope not. Or maybe I do. I don't know. I guess I haven't fully decided yet.[/i]

On that note, two people popped out of the bushes. They were making a troupe now it would seem. And they were heading to the sunken cruise ship. And they said it was where the Headmaster conducted illicit activities. This was also a place that the guide highly encouraged to stay away from.

[i]...Well if I'm going to decide if I want to be involved with something shady.. Now's a good time.[/i]

They got up to leave. His world stopped as he agonised over this decision. 10 minutes passed for him in 1 second as he weighed up he tried to eliminate his fears and boost up his confidence so that he could leave this tree and tag along with these inquisitive individuals.

Mark jumped from the tree.

"Hey, mind if I tag along?" Was the best he could get out of his mouth. A tight lipped smile followed. At best he was charming. At worst he was a stalkerish nobody who appeared out of nowhere to invite himself along to a small group's secret excursion. At least, that was how he thought he appeared. Social situations definitely didn't put him in the best state of mind.