Oliver Kootz
Oliver sat at a table with a veritable mountain of plates beside him, and was currently trying to build a house with them. The tables directly adjacent to him abandoned their conversations in lieu of watching him start on his impossible seventh layer of plates, afraid to breath lest it all come crashing down.
“Almost… there…” Oliver said to himself, standing on his chair and balancing a back leg for extra height. His hands slowly, slowly brought two plates together, nearly touching each other as he lowered it to the plate top.
”WHAT THE-WHAT’RE YOU DOIN’?!” a voice bellowed from behind.
Oliver yelped, his two plates leaping out of his hands as the stack fell, shuddering from the scream before finally giving way. Oliver’s hands flew, trying to catch the dancing places as they bounced from his fingers, and amazingly kept from falling off the chair as he finally snatched them. “Woah, got ‘em!” he said, looking back at a very angry worker. “What?” he said, getting off the chair as he looked at the also veritable mountain of smashed plates and shards. “…Yeah, you knocked those over, man,” Oliver said, pointing.
The worker snatched the plates from the circus boy’s hands, tossing them into a very large tray, and sliding the majority of the smashed pile into it. He shoved it in Oliver’s arms, angrily gesturing him to follow. Oliver shrugged, whistling as he walked after the man storming towards the kitchen doors. They both froze when the sounds of breaking wood and creaking metal came from nearby. Oliver spotted the white haired boy who was atop the pillar with him tossing the chairs and tables from in front of one of the restaurants at another, very large and very angry, student. His axes chopped each piece of furniture easily, the other student was running out of ammo, and it looked like the axe-wielding student had friends joining the fray.
Oliver saw that the bakery was either not calling security or too scared to, trying to resume business normally, and students were making a wide berth. Either this was a common occurrence, or they just wanted to ignore it as best they could.
Oliver shrugged, saying, “Yeah, I’m not gonna follow you, gonna go deal with that, so-o-o-o…” he said, handing the tray to the struck-silent worker. “Toodles!” he said, waving as he took off.
From far away, he saw the white-haired student duck behind a table as the group shifted their weapons and opened fire. Oliver’s eyes shot open, as he sprinted even faster, but was shocked to see the same person latched onto the face of one of the attackers. He gasped as the student’s head yanked away, a spray of blood showing that something was torn off the other student, as the four remaining of the group only looked in horror. But not for long.
Still sprinting, Oliver took a deep breath. “One,” he said taking another, “Two,” one more, “Three.” He did this before every routine, every grand feat of showmanship, everything that required his full capabilities. He was no stranger to people fighting, the circus life was filled with angry people threatening people just as much as it was with people eating cotton candy and popcorn. What Oliver was taught was to separate the aggressors, and shift attention to himself. If they wasted time being angry at him rather than each other, it was time that security or authorities could come and deal with it. However, it required his total focus for the best way to interrupt, intercede, and separate, as each situation was different.
Five versus one, biggest one prolly packs most punch, but climbing dude bit an ear off. First… Oliver thought, bearing down on the big guy who was raising an axe to strike Rygar. “CRO-O-O-OTCH!!” Oliver shouted, as the big one shot a glance back in surprise and confusion. Oliver dropped to slid between his legs, throwing one leg up to kick the Axe-guy in the groin. Second… He then grabbed the big student’s arm, as he was then grabbing his crotch in pain, and then Oliver latched his legs around the other student’s shoulder. In one motion, he unbalanced the brute and threw his whole body into Rygar and the earless magician, knocking them both aside. The both rolled away, as the ear flew through the air and landed near a table, which the magician scrambled for when she got her bearings. Snatching her body part, she fearfully looked at Rygar, and ran, screaming, for the exit.
As the magician was running away, and the Axe-man was still reeling, two of the attacking group were gone. But three were left, as Rygar was quickly getting up. Oliver was getting up himself, but the three had already lined up their shots. Oliver couldn’t do much, but he grabbed the rope divider and flung it at the weapons, knocking them aside as Rygar charged. Bullets shot, a few spurts of blood on Rygar’s arms signaling them hitting the edge of their target, but he didn’t slow at all. He launched forward as they brought up their weapons to defend themselves, Rygars teeth sinking into a bare arm as he also began to crush the student's face, earning a scream from the victim. His fingers dug at the student’s eye socket, fumbling for grip as his mouth clenched, tears and blood staining the digit.
Oliver scampered over, fearing that he heard a crunch of bone, as he hooked his arms around the white-haired student's abdomen. He slammed his fists into the student's lower abdomen, freeing the arm of the Whip-guy from Rygar's foaming mouth. "Hup!" Oliver grunted, as he quickling leaned back and slammed Rygar's shoulder on the floor behind him, before looking up at the remaining three. The one with the whip was still on the floor, writhing and grabbing his arm, while the other two went for their weapons. "Nope!" Oliver shouted, launching over and tossing up the spear/rifle with his feet. Quickly transforming it to the spear, he used it to grab the remaining weapons.
Rygar was surprised at the sudden attack. If he wasn't so wasted on Buzz he might have recognized the kid, but right now he was just a threat. As the kid was disarming the to other students, Rygar snuck up behind him, unhindging his jaws for another chomp as he felt something churning in his guts.
He flung them across the Food Court, surprising a passing group of students who dove for cover, as he stood before the three attackers and brandished the spear defensively. "Look, buddies, it's our first day here. No reason for us to be-CRACKER JACKS, YEOWCH!!" Oliver cried out, as a mass of white hair came over his shoulder. There was a intense pain in his shoulder, and although it was searing, Oliver's Semblance kept it from breaking the skin. Still, ow.
The two students not injured looked at each other, quickly grabbing the third and getting up.
“Dude, let’s bail.”
“I’m with you.”
“Oh, f*&$, my arm, my f*&$ing eye, how’s my f*&$ing eye?!” the injured one cried. They looked at him, the eyeball clearly moving, but bleeding and bruised, definitely swollen.
“…You’re fine, let’s bail.” they said.
They quickly ran away, as Oliver popped his hip up and threw Rygar over his shoulder. He didn't rub his shoulder, he didn't have time before he had to deal with the charging student once more. "Upsy daisy!" he said, side-stepping the charge and tripping Rygar, spinning with him to throw him on the ground. He climbed on top, pinning him with the spear and saying, "Woah, WOAH, dude! Calm down, it's me, alrigh! From the pillar, Ollie? Dude snap out of-" Oliver said, in between growls. He stopped when Rygar's teeth sank into the spear, and easily snapped it in two.
"Ah," Ollie could only say, as his breath was then knocked out of him when Rygar landed a strong kick to his stomach. Oliver went flying, landing in the thankfully vacated tables and chairs nearby. They were on the outskirts of the Food Court, but they were getting some attention by now. Oliver groaned as he knocked the chairs away, looking up in surpise as the rage-fueled student had already cleared the distance between them and grabbed Oliver's coller, practically tossing him back towards the wall. Oliver's body hit it, cracking the stone and earning a groan of pain, but Oliver's body could take it. Though by now he kind of wished he's just have passed out.
Rygar looked over to the kid, his mind focusing on nothing more than attack attack attack. But his body had a different idea. The Buzz was now starting to fade, and all it's side effects was coming to hold. Lost of feeling, hazy vision, upset stomach. Rygar could hardly see a thing. And he felt something begin to rise. Just as Rygar roared in the general direction of the kid, he also began to vomit violently, spraying the content of his stomach like a fire hose. The mix of brown and cake bits flew towards the unforunate kid and everyone around him, not that Rygar particularlly cared. As soon as he stopped vomiting Rygar charged forward, unable to make up any clever battle plans aside from tanking anything that comes and hitting it until he get's tired.
Oliver just barely managed to get his arms up as Rygar slammed his head into the wall. And while the two managed to take the fight away from the main part of the cafeterria, they were also precariously near the edge of the entire school; it was a long drop down. As Rygar slammed his elbow into Oliver's head, he began to drag him towards the edge of Beacon, with the intention of throwing him off. And he would have done it too, had Rygar not received a swift but solid blow to the back of his knee, lower spine, and head. The resulting impact knocked him onto the ground and out.
Oliver looked up, dazed. This was far more brutal than a fight he'd been used to, it was quite the gear shift. But what he saw when he looked up scared him more than if the fight had continued.
Arrun looked down a the two students. Mustache bristling with fury and eyes wide in anger. “Not…the best move…for your first day…” he said in an even, calm tone. Which was all the more frightening.
“Ah, well, uh, you, heh, you see…” Oliver said, nervously chuckling as he pointed to Rygar. “These guys, five of them, were, like, fighting with him. I dunno, maybe something about the baking…place…thingie, or something. I-i-i dunno, um, anyway…” Oliver continued, waving his hands about as he spoke. “So, like, he got, you know super angry. Like, totally bonkers, and stuff, and bit a girl’s ear off. I guess they, I dunno, pushed him or something, they were really trying to give it to him. Like, with guns, and stuff, so…” Oliver paused, pointing to himself. “I kinda…stepped in? I’ve seen stuff like…well, not exactly like…I’ve seen stuff kinda like that, I thought it best if I, you know, kept them from fighting each other. But that escalated really quickly, you know? I mean, it really got out of hand fast…and stuff…” Oliver finished, twiddling his thumbs now that he was finished talking. He gulped, lips shaking with fear and confusion as Arrun glared down on him.
Behind Arrun, Rose came up, staring surprised at the two beaten boys. She also looked to Arrun, who was still quiet.
Arrun took a breath, “You…you…” he said, pausing.
*Morella Cinder
Morrella tapped her chin, saying, “Well, it’s not so much multi-glyphs, so much as switching the type of Dust frequently. For Elemental Gate attacks, anyways, I think the cylinders might jam if I switch too fast. I mean, it had an odd shudder when I tried the prototype, before I installed it. It might be nothing, but…” she chewed her lip in thought, snapping back when Tarkus continued talking. She kept as up with rising Hunter stars, though she mainly knew about competitions in Vale. She vaguely remembered Tarkus saying something about a Simmons when they were in the workshop together. Something about an autograph, or a poster, or a handshake. Morella couldn’t quite remember, as she sometimes tuned people out when she focused on work, but the name was familiar. As was the twinge of guilt when she realized that might, perhaps, have been a teensy bit rude.
She quickly nodded, looking around the Food Court. “Yep, quite the crowd…” she said, making popping noises with her mouth over the din of the students. She looked to the far edge of the Food Court, seeing a group of students gather around an area. She couldn’t see what was going on, the group blocked the view from pretty much any place in the court, and the roar of the crowd made it difficult to hear anything. Sighing, she tapped her shoulder for a few seconds, before rezipping up her bag. “C’mon, let’s get to bed,” she said flatly and nonchalantly, pushing in her chair and at the group of people that had amassed to the tables on either side of them. Not seeing an easy path through, Morella calmly stepped onto hers and Tarkus’ table, gracefully hopping over the chair beside her eating companion, and looking for the exit. “I expect we can shower tomorrow, you have your things?” she asked, nodding towards the exit.
Beecher Betelgeuse
B.B. gave a quiet squeal as Isaac smashed the teacup into pieces, struck silent as he tugged his arm and excused himself. B.B.’s hand found itself on a heaving chest, his/her stare followed Isaac leave. Very slowly, B.B.’s tongue slid across his/her purple lips, which turned into a hungry smile.
“Ooh, honey honey, so manl…” B.B. said quietly, fanning him/herself while watching Isaac walk away. B.B.’s thighs squirmed, as the pink-haired staff member quickly stood up, obviously intent on following Isaac leaving before being yanked aside.
“Ow, OW, woah, buy me dinner first, hone…o-o-o-oh…” B.B. whined, face falling when it was brought right in front of Arrun’s glare. Arrun’s hand tightened on B.B.’s collar, who could only manage a nervous smile.
“Not even 12 hours, Betelgeuse?”
“B-but Arrun, baby-“
“In fact, I don’t think it was even 2 hours since they got here, but I’m sure it felt like days to you.” Arrun’s eyes narrowed. B.B. nervously giggled, as Arrun looked to the waiter who finally felt comfortable coming out. Nodding to the Lien Isaac left, Arrun said, “Place those in that student’s school account, as well as the payment for the dinner. The meal price and the teacup can be taken out of Betelgeuse’s account, I’m sure you won’t mind,” looking to B.B. with a furious glare. B.B. nodded quickly, as Arrun practically dragged him over the partition. He roughly smoothed out B.B.’s collar and shoved him in front, marching behind him as B.B. regained composure and began sauntering out of the Food Court.
Arrun rolled his eyes, as B.B. still tried giving students flirtatious glances, all while making their exit. Arrun could only rub his brow, grumbling to himself while he walked.
”What the…what’s going on over there?”
”Those guys fighting?”
Several sounds of smashing wood and stone came to Arrun’s ears, obvious sounds of a fight…on the first day. Arrun’s eye twitched, as B.B. froze. “Keep…walking…” Arrun said through clenched teeth, as B.B., without turning around, nodded and ran away, quite a feet in high heels. Arrun gritted his teeth, a noticeable vein popping on his forehead.
Arrun Tower
Arrun stood for a short while longer at the entrance to the Food Court, struggling to keep from roaring. He inhaled deeply, bringing his wrist up to his mouth. “Ms. Patch, please meet me outside the Food Court, I believe I’ll require your assistance,” Arrun said, straining to keep his voice even. He tightened his gloves as he exited the Food Court, circling around. He marched, he didn’t run, yet he moved incredibly fast and with purpose. He strode, following a long trail in the grass, as two figures came into view near the edge of the cliff where the campus stood. Having cleared that distance while dragging someone was a great feat of strength. Arrun was not impressed, nor was he in any mood to congratulate.
Swiftly, silently, he walked up behind the white-haired figure dragging the dazed student. Arrun’s leg shot forward, appearing as one swift motion but striking Rygar in three different places. The student fell quickly, as Oliver shook his head and got his bearings. The very angry Arrun was starring down on them. His mustache bristled, as he tried to keep from shouting at the only conscious student there.
“Not…the best move…for your first day…” he said in an even, calm tone. Which was all the more frightening.
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Arrun took a breath, “You…you…” he said, pausing.
Oliver gulped, trembling.
“You did very well…considering the circumstances…” Arrun said, begrudgingly.
Oliver raised an eyebrow. “What?” he asked, bewildered.
“You would’ve done better if you’d have gotten a faculty member or part of security, but your quick thinking was commendable…if a little sloppy,” Arrun continued, gesturing to Oliver’s current state. Oliver grinned sheepishly while rubbing his head. Arrun snapped, as Oliver looked up in attention again. “My good words are not doled out lightly, Mr. Kootz, I hope you don’t think you’ll hear them everyday,” he said, as Oliver smirked.
“I hope not, Mister T.” he replied, earning a raised eyebrow from Arrun. “We-e-e-ell, I better go, I guess you can handle this guy?” Oliver said, stand up and patting off his pants. He reached down and hefted Rygar up on his shoulder, saying, “You know, he seems much nicer now,” Oliver said, nodding to Rygar’s passed-out face. “Maybe it’s the scenery, the quiet, the him not biting my face off, I dunno,” he said with a shrug, looking at Arrun and Rose with a grin. “…Okay, tough crowd, you want him now?” he asked, as Rose nodded.
“Thank you Ms. Patch, please deliver him to the infirmary, I’ll see to the other students. You should return to the Auditorium, Mr. Kootz, I’m sure you’ve had enough trouble for one night,” Arrun said, turning to walk away.
Rose walked over, as Oliver quickly helped Rygar onto her shoulder. “Buddy,” Oliver said to Arrun, running over and cartwheeling beside him, “Not even close, I grew up in a traveling circus. This isn’t the first time I’ve been beaten and nearly thrown off something high.”
“If you don’t go inside, it won’t be the last,” Arrun said under his breath.
“What?” Oliver asked with a grin.
“I threatened you, go inside the Amphitheatre and go to sleep. Tomorrow is a big day,” Arrun replied, annoyed. Oliver snickered, and bounded off towards the Auditorium. Some students were already on their way there.
Rose sighed, looking at Rygar. “Every year, things get crazier…” she said, tapping his face. She opened one of his eyes, squinting as he saw it was bloodshot and very dilated. She gasped, letting it close as she took her hand away. Is he… she thought, shaking her head as she adjusted him on her shoulder. She brought her palm to his chest, closing her eyes. Her breathing slowed. She concentrated, focusing her Aura and channeling it through her palm. Her energy, light blue, seeped into Rygar’s Aura Core, in his chest, and spread through his body. His breathing slowed as well, not shaking and erratic. His skin grew less flushed, his body less tense, he seemed to relax and calm. Rose sighed, adjusting him once more as she carried him towards the infirmary “Yep, crazier,” she said, shifting his head so his vomit wouldn’t get wiped on her dress. She yawned, grumbling as she said, “I wish it was tomorrow already.”
<Tomorrow>
“Gang way!!”
Oliver’s cries echoed from the showers. The Freshmen were told to be ready by the Docks by 10 AM, and after some convincing from Rose, were also given a free breakfast. She said they’d fair better on a full stomach, though Arrun still felt the dinner should’ve sufficed.
Oliver, however, wasn’t thinking about breakfast. He had other plans to take care of, and unfortunately wasted time making a mountain of bubbles in the boys showers, that was currently oozing out into the hall. He flew out, ahead of the wall of bubbles, in a towel, wet hair flying as he carrying a satchel over his shoulder. Truth be told, he shouldn’t have been in a hurry. He was up at sunrise as he always tried to be, so he could climb to a tall place and do his exercise/meditation routine. But he inhaled a lot of breakfast as well, and with the whole bubble situation, he barely had time for the shenanigan he wanted to pull.
He flipped and bounded through the hall, jumping off walls and over students, making several girls and a few boys blush when from catching certain views of his jumping antics. He maneuvered around people, though a few times he made a show of dramatically dodging someone who was minding their own business, making a show with a faux complaint. He leapt over a girl, flipping so he kept his head near hers while he said, “Woah, careful there!” he landed, pivoting and saying, “There’s people walking, watch where you’re going, blondie!” with a grin.
Morella didn’t care enough to even throw him a glare, she just continued walking down the hall. She wore short-shorts with a belt for extra Dust cartridges for her Boots, though she didn’t expect to need them, and a sleeveless hoodie, white. She had the hood down, her hair in a ponytail, and headphones around her neck, but on and loud enough for her to hear the music. She walked outside of the boys shower room, earning a few glances from the boys walking out in towels, but not even paying attention to them. She took some notice of the mass of bubbles coming out one side of the doorway, slightly raising an eyebrow as she called out, “Tarkus, you in there? It’s 9:35, hurry up,” and started leaning against the wall outside the showers.