[i]PREPARE FOR BATTLE![/I]

So read the floating text box blinking between the two girls. It hovered there for a few moments like a checkered flag, and Mary was anxious for it to finally descend. This would be it: her first battle. She wouldn't let herself lose, couldn't let herself lose. Losing is what Lissamarie did. Lissamarie was a Nobody, a [i]loser[/i]. She earned this. She would introduce the blonde girl to the dirt beneath their feet and walk away like a somebody. She glared at her past the translucent text box, violet eyes narrowing at her. This girl, [i]Alice[/i], was all that stood in her way between her first step towards anything her heart desired... and suffering for the next four years of her life as a Fight School Network wannabe reject. And that wasn't about to happen. Even after the text box faded she stood glaring at the her, as if the courtyard had gone still just for the two of them. This wasn't going to go down like last year. Over her dead body.

Red X's formed a ring on the outside of them, flashing in harmony with a few caution signs sprinkled in for good measure. Students began to clear out of their battle space as grid lines layered themselves across the ground, setting the stage. Soon enough, the caution signs lifted and the X's straightened into posts, projecting energy between themselves. The stage was ready. It was about to...

[i]BEGIN![/i]

Bloody Mary didn't react immediately at the appearance of the official text-box to start the fight. In all honesty, outside of her tough exterior, it was all a facade. Butterflies flapped and fluttered in her chest, and her mouth grew dry. Her muscles trembled slightly, hopefully going unnoticed by the other girl. She'd never been in a fight before, but it was too late now. Supposedly her class would come with a pre-set fighting style, and she could hazily grasp what she was capable of but was still unsure. Most people said it naturally came to them, like they'd been fighting all their lives up to that moment. This didn't make Lissamarie feel anymore comfortable, because she definitely wasn't feeling it. Twitching a hand, hesitating, she reached up to her neck and unfastened her cloak, tossing it dramatically behind her. Swallowing hard, she began to make circles on the ground with her boot, muttering a curse under her breath. A literal curse. As she stared down emptily, her bodily jolted quickly and violently as she stomped the ground she had been kicking at with her toe. A dark ring with an insignia snapped into view, and her body was consumed in a jet of flame. After half a second it was over, and Mary looked down at her body. Her entire self was on fire, but it didn't burn. It was kinda warm... and it felt really good! She felt... better. Like she could [i]really[/i] take on the blonde girl now! Her mouth gaped in awe as she admired her flaming form, twisting her arms to examine them from all sides. A sickeningly bloodthirsty grin cut its way across Mary's lips, and she clenched her fists. Breathing in deeply and out slowly, she settled backward into a fighter's stance, flames licking upon her as if she were a doorknob in a fireplace. She took a step, and then another... and broke into a run towards her opponent.

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[i]Aura of Hellfire - Grants +Intelligence modifier to all melee attacks. 3 posts remaining.[/i]