[center][img]http://orig01.deviantart.net/c0dd/f/2017/157/e/b/run_by_fenixking13-dbbqnry.jpg[/img] [url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=actZumishxQ]Stand tall, Students.[/url][/center] Kano kept a mental note of where each student was, monitoring them quietly from afar before moving on. Already there were black clothed figures darting behind the students who made themselves known. So long as you followed the main path they would not accost you from afar, and truth be told there wasn't much they were allowed to do anyways, but even just throwing a ball of freezing cold water onto your leg would be enough to make an already nervous student jump and run. Others had to get creative.. Then there were the Elementals given a physical form for tonights activities. four such creatures haunted the woods at this moment. A water elemental was waiting on a river few noticed was running through the forest, ready to freeze the path and rise from its 'tomb' with the shattering that followed. A wood elemental, attuned to the forest and with bark naturally giving it camouflage, stalked the upper levels of the trees. When the time was right it would create obstacles to funnel the students away from the objective without them realizing it. The next was what one student had always referred to as 'the walker'. Constructs made of root and stone were often very simple. This one was not. Scuttling on 8 stone limbs, looking like a giant spider, the rock being was already making its presence known by outright capturing students. The last one was arguably the worst one. An air elemental. Harmless in the extreme, it would lift up students and carry them into the trees to sit upon the branches before going to find its next victim. Kanos non-existent heart swelled with pride that his students could manifest Elementals capable of such intricacy. Now it was his turn to set the stage for the hunters in the night. Behind him was the fountain, the end game of the Midnight run, and a source of water he had been steadily turning into fog with the other elementalists aid. With their help they had amassed enough to coat the entire forest with a thick screen of the stuff. Which was exactly what they did as the first report came back, confirming the runners had reached the 'hydra' which was referring to the multi-pathed road. At his command, the wind shifted and blew the thick fog deep into the forest. Within minutes it had flooded the area to the point where only a dozen or so feet in front of you was visible. Everything after that was a blank sheet of black and white. ----- [@CriticalHit][@Raptra] [@kalleth] The groups of students haphazardly making their way through the forest were gradually splitting up. More and more chose to leave the path altogether or outright forego the run entirely, something tingling in their spines as the fear of the dark set in. Most were superstitious so it couldn't be helped, but the ones who continued on were the bold or the fearless. When the fog rolled in, all visibility was gone. Navigating where it had come from, where they were, and where to go now, vanished along with their surroundings. Swallowed whole. Their path was one of the duds. Rather than connecting on to the outer rim of the forest it doubled back subtly into a tall oak tree. ----- [@Hammerman][@kalleth] The path taken by Kanako and her new ally Jideh led through the tranquil and quiet forest. Three shadowy figures lurked beyond the field of their vision, obscured by darkness thanks to one of them. It clung to them and rendered the trio nearly invisible as they stalked the pair. One knelt down near where the boy had dug the hole and, finding nothing important, motioned to carry on. These were not hunters. The task of each one was unique to the individual and they took it with practiced efficiency. One obscured their movements, the second acted as a scout by listening to the wind and relayed it to the third, an earth student of great talent. A student who controlled the Walker. Its main body was a large clump of raised dirt, a very small tree sprouting from the grassy ground at its top. From it, the roots snaked out of the sides and wrapped themselves over the old grey stones that served as its legs. It had dominion over plantlife and soil, same as its summoner if you could call it that, and used it to alter the landscape near its chosen targets. That of Kanako and Jideh. The two were lagging behind sorely in the race, so they made a prime target. Detaching from the tall tree off to their right, the construct fell gracelessly onto the earth with a BOOM of shaking earth, its great legs pushing it out of the soil. While it lacked any kind of 'face' it was obvious it was staring at the pair. Legs twitched up and down as it mirrored the movements of a spider about to pounce, but was actually kneading the earth. The effect came a moment later with the shaking of the soil, the roots of the nearby trees sprouting out of the ground around the pair. They did not lash out or approach, but they waved back and forth teasingly. A voice called out from the darkness. [color=00a651]"Get caught and you're eliminated from the run. Good luck!"[/color] The roots, taking their que, began to approach the duo. If they ran, they would try to snare their wrists only and very weakly as they were only meant to capture and not outright harm, so the quicker or slipperier students could easily outpace them. The options were to avoid capture until they exited the Walkers 'zone' or outright defeat the beast. ----- (OOC: I was going to write a post for you ShiZen and Lyra, but it seems kalleth gets the honors of dealing with you! I'll provide back-up for him once his surprise is revealed)