Ask to Join Anima Eques-Blaze of Soul never Fades.

[Clite of Dragonbow]

(Would want to join? I will be happy to see you among our ranks ^^- https://pokecharms.com/threads/anima-eques-blaze-of-soul-never-fades.27906/#post-915590 )

The young boy suddenly woke up on his bed when a loud bell rang throughout the stronghold. Although stronghold may be an overly exaggerated word...
The castle was small, the walls were old with visible cracks and holes in some places. Of the four towers, only one was standing completely while the others fell apart. Under no circumstances should you go near these towers, except when you are in a hurry to go to the underworld. The palace (the only building in a usable condition) had 3 floors, of which the 2nd and 3rd floors were residential floors for the Knights.
Liam hastily donned linen clothes and put on leather armor. As Leader said their first assembly and training would be at dawn. After some time, he left his slightly small room and went down the stairs and then through the main hall to the court.
Hartias was already waiting for everyone with a fairly neutral expression on his face, and next to him was Felix who seemed to want to sleep a little more, the morning sun illuminated the courtyard well, although it also dazzled into the eyes a little.
Liam had never really met the other members of his round table, so he didn't know what kind of people they were, he only knew that apart from him, there was only one other person who had no contract with the spirit, and Liam tried to get his Contract with Felix, but the devil's soul possesed an element of water, not fire.
After a long time, most likely they had all reached the courtyard, and Hart began his speech.
"Everyone, first let me congratulate you once again on passing the Eques exam. I bet it was not easy, but remember that you have a long way to go. As you know, I am the leader of our round table, Hartias, and the lazy guy next to me is Felix. " Felix lifted his hand sluggishly, not very interested in the whole appeal.
"I am happy to see both impetuous young people and thoughtful, mature and experienced by life in Galatia... in our ranks. Although I have experience as a trainer, I have no experience as a commander and I will try to quickly become worthy of your trust and train you to become outstanding Knights ... And now I would like everyone to introduce themselves."

After some time Li said "I'm Liam, 18 years old ... Looking forward to work with you"
(...)
Hartias listened to everyone, his neutral expression giving way to the soft smile that showed on his face.
"Great! Now we will do a little revision of the training and I will explain to you what is most important in the fight against other Anima users. I would also like to remind you of the rules that each knight should follow and then I will present you the first task we received from the Grand Master. Any questions So far? Just So you know I wont be too harsh on today's training as I want everyone to know each other."

 

[Spoiled Bread]

Poka

"-up... Wake up... Wake up.. wake up. Wake up." Poka's day started with Eeriel slapping her cheeks to wake her up. The girl opened up her eyes just a little to glance around the room before she decided to pull her blanket even further to cover her entire body, even her head.

"5 more minutes..." She said groggily before going back to sleep. However, she couldn't go back to the dream world as she felts something soft and squishy slipped into the blanket together with her and the next moment a feathery wing tickled her nose relentlessly. Poka couldn't help but let out an uncontrollable giggle from it.

"Wake up. Wake up. Wake up. Wake up. Wake up. Wake up. Wake up. Wake up."

"Allright, I'm awake now." Forcing herself out of the bed, Poka yawned as she walked towards the nearby window and opened it. She gawked when she realized the yellow line on the horizon, the dawn would come soon!

"Eeriel. Why didn't you wake me earlier??" Suddenly the girl was thrown into panic as she hastily prepare herself for the first assembly. Meanwhile the bird spirit simply shrugged before handing her a warm toast.

"don't blame me. That's the fourth times you requested for another five minutes this morning."

"I-is it. Thank you." Poka finished changing into her outdoor outfit quickly and then rushed towards the courtyard, toast in mouth and Eeriel tucked under her arm. Fortunately she was able to arrive on time. She didn't want to leave a bad impression on her first day of her first legal work.

The first thing to do was unsurprisingly introduction. Poka took some mental notes about the people who had been introducing herself before finally raising her hand to draw attentions to herself.

"Greetings! Good morning! Salutation! Whichever works! My name's Poka, nice to meet you all." She introduced herself enthusiastly, then lifted the chubby chick on her hand so everyone can see him. "This is my pal Eeriel, he might be a bit grumpy but he's a good boy. Come on, Eeri, say something."

"I am an angel and I will kill anyone who jokes about me being a chicken."

"That's the spirit!" Poka concluded their introduction by giving everyone a thumb up.

 

[Crystal1302]

Cala yawned before floating through the closet with her ethereal body. Spirits didn't necessarily need sleep, but it certainly did help. As Cala can attest, Levy seemed to not need sleep as well. "Levy dear, how long have you been working on your weapon?" she said head tilting toward Levy at a small workbench in her quarters. Levy looked up from her project at Cala. "Good morning Cala. I honestly can't remember. I started it last night, remember blacking out for a bit, I woke up and I was back to tuning up ol' Eitri here." she said turning around in her stool before slipping the Knifegun onto her finger, spinning it around a few times, and put it on her holster at her waist. "First I started out trying to fix the anima charge not working sometimes so I had to fix that in time for today's training, but then I came up with the idea to try to implement a way to somehow use my fire to boost the energy of it in knife form, so I had to fix that. upgrading transition time, updating energy efficiency in fire stream mode, increasing rapid fi-" "Levy, you're rambling." "Oh, am I? Sorry," she said before yawning. "While I do appreciate you making sure your equipment is in working order, I do want to make sure your body is in working order as well." "I'm taking care of myself fine Cala." "Your head is on your desk and one of your eyes is closed." "No it isn't!" said Levy before jerking her head up and opening her right eye. Cala sighed and moved to Xavier's door only to hear him snoring. Cala stuck her head through Xavier's wall only to see him on the bed fully clothed clearly after a long night of training as shown by his slightly more worn training bag. Cala sighed one more time. "I swear with the way you two treat your bodies, soon I'm not going to be the only spirit in this family." Xavier's eyes slowly opened to Cala's talking. "Morning Cala, what're you up to?" "Making sure that you and Levy don't miss this morning's assembly." Levy opened Xavier's door (they were neighbors at both of their requests) in time for both of them to say "morning assembly!?" at the same time. Cala pointed out the window at the end of the hallway showing the sun almost starting to rise. "I'd give both of you about five minutes." Xav and Levy locked eyes for a second before both of them bolted to their rooms to get dressed.

Xavier and Levy stood with the rest of the knights as they both slightly awoke as their fellow knights began to start introductions. Xav snickered a bit at Eeriel's intro. "Well that seems to be a feisty angel." "Well seeing as how I'm already dead. I'd like to take you up on your offer." Cala cleared her throat as Levy whispered a silent "Oh no." "Well I believe you are feeling slightly cranky due to you not having breakfast yet, or should I say 'peckish'? Though I must say your irritability seems to come from more t-hen just that. Anyway, it's nice to meat you. I'm sure that we'll become the breast of friends an-" "Hello! I'm Levy Marshall, it's a pleasure to be working with you all!" said Levy interrupting her spirit's verbal onslaught. "Xavier Gymir's the name. Charmed" followed Xavier.

 

[Cmeriwether]

Constantine Argonne had been wandering around, due to the Leviathan he was contracted with wanting to find some really nice fish, he had gotten the fish, and got back to the guild house, a couple of hours before people woke up. He slept for a couple hours and then got up after the Guardian Monstrosity of The Seas had poked him.

"What the Heck!?" Constantine yelled, "It's just you."

He was annoyed and headed towards the courtyard. It had been a while since he stepped into a courtyard, it being when he was a child, and the Crown prince of an Island, but now he was The Wicked King of No One. When he arrived at the Courtyard, there were several others. He had heard puns being said out loud.

"Why is it there are puns first thing in the morning!?" Constantine yelled.

He looked around, and waited.

 

[=Nightshade=]

Miriam made her way through the courtyard, cringing internally as every step left frost on the grass. She was lucky it was warm out—she wouldn’t want the grass to freeze to death because of her frosty footsteps. She craned her neck back to look at the sky, puffed clouds like cotton plants huge and spaced out, a sapphire blue peeking through, then her eyes dropped to the man addressing the group, and by default, the other humans around her. The air around her body became even colder as her anxiety spiked. Why are we doing this again?

Because you need to socialize yourself with humans. The voice in her head was a deep growl, slightly irritated, but affectionate. The others who became reclusive wasted away and died under the force of my power. You must learn to control it with more efficiency than I can teach you at the moment. Socialization will—

Yeah, I know, I know. But how do I talk to them? The same way I talk to animals but without the petting?

Essentially.

Miriam scratched her deerlike antlers in exasperation at Growl’s vague answer. “Um. Okay,” she whispered to herself, then grew very slightly louder to address the people gathered. “Um. I’m Miriam, and I have a contract with a spirit that fused with me? I call him Growl because that’s what he sounds like…” She wasn’t even sure she’d been heard, her voice higher-pitched than normal with tension.

The unspoken question marks are completely unnecessary, Growl “said” gently, a touch of humor in his mental tone. Would you like me to make a more forceful impression?

“No thanks,” Miriam said aloud, then bit her lip the moment she realized. “Oops.”

 

[Killerbunny the god]

Isak was seated on top of the Cerberus. Only Tsuki had been unwilling to let him use them as a trusted steed. Both Eclipse and Luna were happy about the thought. And Isak felt superior to the rest, sitting so high up. While he listened to the other people around, all three heads of the giant German Shepherd were focused on the "chicken" that had spoken up earlier with their ears pointed straight up as if they were ready to chase after the angel at any time. Even Tsuki were interested. Isak, despite knowing Luna never shuts up, couldn't tell something was wrong until Eclipse gave out an "uff" sound. Then he immediately knew what was wrong. He regretted bringing the dog with him. But none of the three heads would've accepted anything else. They had already grown attached to Isak, despite only having known him for a month.

Isak patted first Luna's head to calm her down, then Eclipse's head to end with Tsuki's. In order of who would most likely start sprinting first. He managed to calm down Eclipse and Tsuki, but Luna was a lost cause. Hopefully Tsuki and Eclipse could keep her in check.

Eventually it was Isak's turn to introduce himself. Having had to focus on the three heads, he didn't even realize the girl before him had talked with herself.
"Hey uh... I'm Isak. I come from a farm far away from here. This three-headed dog is the spirit I'm contr-" he said before getting interrupted by Luna who just managed to catch what Isak was saying.
"We're a Cerberus and we're contracted with Isak! I'm Luna, right next to me is Eclipse and right next to her is Tsuki! I really like eating chickens!" Luna said and looked at Eeriel while she said the last part.
"Uhh... yeah... that" Isak said and face-palmed out of embarrasment while Eclipse laughed and Tsuki scoffed.

 

[Clunpsy]

Amare struggled to walk in a straight line. One one hand it was due to nervousness, on the other it was excitement. A fluffy white bird that was resting on her head cranked its neck down to speak with he girl. "You know, if you hurried it up, it would be over with sooner." Amare seemed to consider this for a second. She tilted her head backwards, almost knocking the Caladrius off her head. "But, what if I don't make a good first impression? What if everyone thinks I'm a weirdo?" The bird interjected. "What if you stopped talking?" Amare pouted. "No need to be mean, Sana."

She eventually made it to the group. After a bit of talking from the leader, it was time for introductions. Amare listened to the others introductions. Someone who had came a bit late was complaining about puns, which made Amare chuckle a bit. Everyone seemed different to one another, making her wonder if she would fit in. Soon enough, it was her turn.
"I'm Amare Fortis, pleased to meet you." Her voice was very monotone, as she didn't like introducing herself. Sana faked a cough, to remind Amare of her existence. All of a sudden, Amare sounded a lot more enthusiastic.
"Oh, and this is the spirit I contracted, Sana. She's a bird. With healing powers." Sana piped up. "A Caladrius. Not just a random bird." Amare seemed generally mad to be interrupted, but didn't add anything.

 

[Gamingfan]

"I still don't comprehend why you would choose to work for these people."
Tento sighed as Lei complained about his decision...for the fourth time.
"Well, you said I needed to get stronger. Wouldn't this be the best way?" Tento argued.
"No. Raijin is a god and my master, I cannot have my master be an underling for humans" Lei snarled the last word.
"Are you forgetting I'm human, or are you projecting again?" Tento argued, fully aware this was an unwinnable battle.
"Shut your mouth" retorted Lei, too irritated to bother with linguistics anymore.
Tento rolled his eyes as he entered the court. Really, he wanted to avoid any responsibility, and the idea of tacking knight duty onto god preparation was enough to make his palms sweat, but they technically worked hand in hand, so maybe it wasn't all bad? Either way, Lei wouldn't stop pestering him, and this would be the best way to make things right.
He just hoped he wouldn't kill anyone this time.
Tento's internal monologue was cut short by the introductions of his fellow knights. He realized he should probably do the same.
"...Uhhh..."
Lei was snoring, so they're wasn't gonna be any help there.
"I-I'm Tento...Tento Omo." he clapped his hands together, flinching at the slightly too loud clunk his gauntlets made. "My contract is with Lei, a Raiju. I'd show him off but he probably isn't very...interested in meeting you."
Lei conveniently woke up. "Damn right. Could've talked me up more though."

 

[DemonicHoneyBun]

Yamamoto woke up from his dream to the sound of Jaden snoring. “Jaden wake up you moron.” Jaden continued to snore as slobber come out of his mouth Yamamoto hopped out of the big open dresser he slept in and changed into his human form. He slowly walked over to jadens bed and slapped him across the face. “Ow, what the hell yami!” Jaden held the side of his face, angrily looking at Yamamoto. “You wouldn’t get up and besides you were snoring, It was getting annoying.” Jaden glares at him for a while but stops to wipe the slob from his mouth and walked to his closet to pick what to wear. Yamamoto changed into a unbuttoned vest to expose his chest, leather pants and brown boots, jaden just wore what he would normally.

Jaden and Yamamoto walked town the street for a while until they came across the courtyard. “Most of the people here look pretty weak, I guess I can show all these losers up.” Yamamoto grinned while showing his teeth until Jaden shut his mouth and introduced himself. Hi there, my name is Jaden when I’m given a task I always like to do my best.” Jaden saluted. “Hey how’s it going.” Yamamoto said in a monotone voice.

 

[ThePlayfulFox]

Aalis woke up extremely early and swiftly got ready for her day. She was a responsible adult. At least she tried to be. Her daughter died because she couldn't take care of her well enough, especially since she got so sick so often. She couldn't help but blame herself for everything. Aylssa stirred glancing up at her. She was about the size of a weasel, though she smiled. Aalis knew what her size meant though. She knelt down to her spirit and gently brushed her hand against the tiny dragon's feathers. "Hey," she cooed, "I'm going to make breakfast for the Knights in our Round Table. Want to help?" The white dragon nodded, lifting herself up to land on Aalis' shoulder.
"I like helping," the white dragon cooed. Aalis smiled at the dragon as the two entered the kitchen and went to work. Aalis worked by candle-light, as it was very dark. However, Aylssa had decent night-vision, as she was a dragon. Aalis was a decent cook, and Aylssa enjoyed doing anything to help anyone. As the two cooked breakfast (pancakes, eggs, and bacon), Aylssa grew to the size of a fox. The woman wiped her hands on her apron after washing them. "There we go. Shouldn't we be heading to the introduction now? Hopefully we aren't late."
Aylssa tilted her head, her blue eyes almost seeming to glow. "Being late is never good, is it?"
Aalis shook her head as she walked along, the dragon following behind her. "It isn't, you're right. Only time it would be good if, well," She trailed off, thinking about her late husband for a second. What if he was late then? What if he wasn't there when he was? Would he still be alive? Tears gathered at the edge of her eyes before she forced the thought out of her head. She didn't want to worry Aylssa.
"Did I make you sad. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you sad! I just thought-" Aalis cut her off.
"No, no. It isn't you. Just, something I still have to learn to live with."
The two continued on in relative silence until they got to the introductions. Relief flooded the widow as she made it just in time. Her eyes flicked down to Aylssa, who had shrunk to about the size of a cat and was standing behind her. Did the new people make her nervous? Aalis would have to keep an eye on that for sure. She lifted a hand to her chest I am Aalis Pecivl, and my little angel dragon friend here is Aylssa. We have actually prepared breakfast for everyone after this meeting."

 

[Clite of Dragonbow]

Hartias nodded every time he heard a new name introducing itself to everyone, which made the older knight to smile, It seems almost everyone that had their spirits already was accompanied by them which honestly was quite rare but it would also tighten the bonds between them So it was not bad at all. Suddenly, Felix approached a Man with a concerned look on his face "Not all of those spirits are all good, arent they?" He snickered.
"I can figure out as much" Teacher replied.
"You better keep a close eye on some rookies..."

Hartias nodded to Felix and then approached everyone "Its great to meet all of you, remember to always stay true to Knight's code of honor and to always protect the weak" then as he finished, then smiled gratefully towards Aalis as she mentioned breakfast "Thank you a lot Aalis, you really helped us a lot with that the breakfast is prepared already. We all Shall enjoy what you two made after we finish with a morning practice."
-
"Listen! There are actually few Basics when it comes to a battle between Anima users. First is the Element, those who have the element advandage are usually a fear some opponents to those with disadvandage, unless they exceed in other two Basics you may have hard time winning.. Second is Anima amount, although it is set at birth how much Anima we have, It is not something we can not change without training, medidate over your soul and train your body and you will soon notice amount of your Anima to increase as well! Third thing is the tactics, how you use your abilities and learning about abilities of an enemy is a Key, never Forget that. As long as you have advandage in two out of Three of those basic rules, you will win every battle and defeat any opponent, but remember strenght is not everything, your knowledge, passion, determination and hard work is also needed. Support your friends, help repair what was restored, be the one to stay close to those who need you.. Always remember that" Hartias told to everyone.
"Now..." He whispered and suddenly a blue, intense aura surrounded him, It seemed peaceful, yet strong.
"Many can manifest their Anima to outside world, show they are Anima users to either scare away or calm down people and spirits. Just like me you can show Just a small part or..." He suddenly burst with powerfull aura, almost making Liam to flinch. Heavy pressure in the air would be hard to bear by many rookies here, but Luckily, Hartias hide his aura quickly "Show all of it.. I know you already did this but Anima Manifestation is first step to use any other technique So I want to see how good all of you are in this."

Liam nodded and tried to collect all of his Anima, tho he was capable of showing the great red aura that came from his soul, It was leaking way too much from his body, after a two minutes, boy somehow managed to collect his aura and make it circulate around him...

 

[=Nightshade=]

Miriam glanced around self-consciously as others began to follow instructions and release their Anima in controlled auras. Resigned to the fact that she would have to release at least some of her aura, she took a deep breath in preparation, trying to calm her nerves. Can you at least try not to blend your aura with mine this time, Growl?

I cannot guarantee anything. We have been fused, so our auras are nearly one. But I can try.

Miriam sighed. She knew that would be his answer but had held out hope that maybe she wouldn’t end up going out of control. She could still attempt to control it, of course, but it would be difficult with the vastness of the Wendigo’s power sealed in her tiny body. She took another deep breath and wrung her hands in preparation.

It started with a wisp of cyan-colored energy, curling away from her fingertips. Then, in a wave, it swept over her body on a surface layer, and the tiny leaves and roots protruding from her skin began to writhe and grow. This is enough. This is…enough—! The aura swelled around her, defying Miriam’s attempts to rein it in. The plants on her body began growing more rapidly, wrapping greedily around her thin limbs. Her eyes flashed white as her Anima grew brighter and the air around grew colder, the grass on the ground nearest her curling up on itself and turning brown. Goddamnit Growl, help me out here—!

Do not fight me, the Wendigo instructed gently. Miriam nodded, seemingly to herself, and gave up control of her body. Growl took control when she let go, reining in the rogue plants and the raging Anima, the energy sucking back into her body like overcooked spaghetti. As soon as the aura was under control in a thin, sharp-looking, cyan film over her skin, Growl switched out again, and Miriam fell to her knees, no longer having the energy required to remain standing.

The grass around her in a one-foot radius had died from the cold her aura had exuded, ice crystals fragmenting their stalks. After a few moments, the girl stumbled to her feet, clutching her head, but having succeeded—sort of—in her endeavor to produce an aura of Anima as requested of her. The whole ordeal had taken all of ten seconds. Miriam awkwardly brushed frost off her antlers as she regained her balance, frankly relieved that it was only the grass that had been hurt.

 

[Crystal1302]

"Ok, you usually do this when it's cold outside. Just calm yourself and channel your Anima." Levy took a deep breath and a bright orange energy emanated from her body generating a surprising amount of warmth. "Good job Levy! You sure do feel toasty." Levy was surprised by the sudden voice in her mind that was not her own, which caused the temperature of her body to significantly rise making Xav step back a little. "I will never get used to you doing that Cala." "Well you agreed to it dear sister, it's in the contract." "Y'know I need to actually get to review this contract because you claim there's a lot of stuff in there I don't remember reading." "Oh it's far too long and boring to read all the way through." "...Right." She looked over to Xav. "Xav, you doing ok?" she whispered. "Do you even have to ask Levy?" Xav whispered back before his aura really started to show causing Levy to wince. "What's wrong Levy? Too much for you?" before poking her in the forehead "It's only because you're a water knight and you know it Xav." she said before returning the poke.

 

[Gamingfan]

Tento took a breath. "Right, okay. Any advice?"
"No." Lei responded bluntly.
Yeah, that made sense.
Tento didn't let it keep himself down, however, focusing on his energy. Electricity began to spark, some streaks of static zipping across his body. Every hair began straightening, including his already crazy hair, somehow making it look wackier. The streaks grew more intense, varying in color from blue, white, and yellow, before his whole body seemed to spark. Tento briefly flashed, and was back to normal, save for a few changes, such the constant static crackling around his body, two "horns" his hair made and his flickering skeleton somehow illuminating from inside his body.
It was rather natural to Tento, thanks to a natural affinity to his element. He did, however, forget he was in a crowd, and the sudden realization he was being watched caused him to freeze briefly, his bright body dying down a bit before he composed himself.
Of course, Lei wasn't impressed.
"Hmmm, you could've done better. Raijin could cause storms by just appearing. Oh well, I suppose we'll need to practice more."

 

[Clite of Dragonbow]

Liam still tried to Focus on himself for a bit longer as he could feel his aura Just wanted to escape which he didnt want to allow, a flame-like Orange aura was visible on his whole body, like a cloak covering him completely.
"Its not good..." He sighed, he still seemed to be worse than other rookies? Was it becouse He doesnt have a Contract?
Well, probably not, as Xav didnt have a Contract too. Liam would glanced to other boy and shiver on the sight of his water aura "Scary..."

Hartias meanwhile kept watch over everyone, during it he noticed something strange was happening with Miriam, It was Just his instinct but he suddenly surround a fist in his right hand in white aura as if he was about to punch her, but when she suddenly fell onto her knees, Captain quickly get rid of the white aura and cursed himself quietly as he almost punched a student. Then he approached her "Is everything Alright?"

When students were struggling with their Aura Manifestations, Felix suddenly burst with a icy blue aura of a water element. It was So strong and compressed that it shattered the ground under the Devil Spirit of Water. He then glanced at few students. "They dont look bad, not bad at all!" He nodded to himself and got rid of his aura, clearly enjoying watching progress of others.

 

[=Nightshade=]

When Miriam’s eyes lifted, she found Hartias not a foot away from her, and made a small noise of surprise. Growl’s presence inside of her smoldered with suppressed anger, but he made no move to attack the captain, and kept her aura steady. She couldn’t understand why the Wendigo was suddenly so tense unless she had been put in danger somehow, but she shook off her confusion and addressed the man in front of her. “C-captain!” she stuttered, her nervousness palpable but not unusual. “Um, y-yes, I… I’m fine…” Miriam fidgeted with a loose string on the hem of her shirt, aura still flat and slightly raised from her body with occasional spikes and peaks, relatively normal compared to the torrent it had been a minute before.

I don’t trust that man, Miri, Growl rumbled in her head. He gave her nothing more, though Miriam sensed he was withholding some information.

Why?

No answer. Miriam chalked it up as Growl being focused on helping her to keep her aura steady and let it alone. She stopped fidgeting and looked up at the captain again, blinking at him with doe-like eyes. It was a little nerve-wracking being so close to the one who would be in charge of all their lives as long as they were a part of this Round Table. The man gave off an air of importance, balanced by a hint of kindness, but something a little darker was in his gaze, battling with the goodwill. Apprehension? Suspicion? Miriam wasn’t sure, but unused to being in the “spotlight” — even if it was just for the one person — she felt herself shrink a little under his scrutiny.

 

[Spoiled Bread]

Poka

"Wooo... Everyone is so good." Poka let out some enthusiastic claps as she watched the others manifested their aura. As a fellow lightning user, she gave Tento a thumb up for his flashy display of aura manifestation.

"Everyone is so amateur." Eeriel added his grumpy comment. "Half of them can't even do it properly."

"It's my turn then." The girl did some stretching before extending her right hand forward. She closed her eyes and lightning started to course through her entire body, which Eeriel curiously avoided by jumping down from Poka's hood onto the ground below. Everyone who had metallic items on them would feel a sudden tug at their belongings, only for said pull to gradually decrease until it was too small to be felt. Meanwhile around Poka countless metallic particles were pulled from the ground and float next to her. The girl did some gesture with her hand and those particles rushed into her hand, as if sucked into a particular point. Poka clenched her fist, catching all those particles and ended her aura manifestation.

"Phew. I managed to make an iron ball." She let out a wide grin and wiped some sweat from her forehead as she opened her hand to reveal a small ball made of various metallic grains. Overall her manifestation didn't display much in terms of raw power but it clearly demonstrated her control over it. The chickenangel spirit nodded in approval.

"Pick me up." Eeriel opened wide his wings like a toddler asking to be lifted and Poka gleefully put him back into her hood.

 

[Clite of Dragonbow]

"I am glad, I thought for a second that you may lose Control over the aura" Hartias said, which wasnt really a lie, but he couldnt say that he felt something else Anima in her.

Liam looked to the side, noticing Pola and quietly making a sigh of awe as he didnt know Aura can be used that way... He was weak.. Comparing to anyone else, he couldnt do much more than Just barely mantain his aura and even this was hard. He would walk up to Poka and Eeriel "Hey!..How did you do this? I mean.. It wasnt Just aura Manifestation, right?"

Hartias got up and looked around at everyone, his hair was lightly brushed by the air as he tried to think about something, most of the students reached Just about the level they would need for the next part of a training, but not everyone. He considered stopping the training now but he couldnt send them for first missions if he wasnt sure of their survival.
He took a Deep breath and then said "Alright, I have seen enough! All of you are more than capable for second part of this training... You got 30 seconds to survive attacks from Felix, try to use manifested aura as a shield or you can even use Raw Anima to attack. If you know a skill or two, dont hold back either! Of course Felix will hold back as I dont want any of you to be badly wounded" He said and smiled to everyone "I believe in you.. Felix, your turn"

"DONT NEED TO TELL ME TWICE!!" Devil yelled with a huge smile on his face, suddenly a Powerfull Aura, even stronger than the one he manifested earlier. A very powerfull Aura that normal devil would not be capable of manifesting.
"Attencion all Little Knights! You heard the boss, you better dont die on me now!" Suddenly a hundreds of icicle surround the knights, making a sort of a Dome. Felix smiled and all of the icicle shot at the same time in rookies direction.

Liam quickly formed his aura on the body and tried his hardest to Focus it on the blade. He managed to cut through most of the missiles and got scratched by some of those he couldnt block, before he checked if others are okay, he felt that ground under him... No... Under them all free że completely as the second wave of the icicle were coming.
Felix was strong.. It was impossible to find opening...
Liam couldnt do it... Devil was of opposite Element, his techniques were more than Just aura Manifestation and He had far more Anima than any of them. He didnt have any of the Three advandages, but he wasnt the only one with fire Anima... They probably was struggling too.
A shiver went down through his spine, It was getting colder by a second and his body felt as if it was slowly freezing. He pointed his sword that he focused his aura in at direction of other fire element users and shot it in the direction of missiles that were coming their way to weaken them. He didnt know how many missiles hit him and if someone tried to protect him as well.. But some hit, Luckily Felix didnt made them too sharp and they felt more as if someone hit him with a Hammer than pierced with a spear.. So Luckily he wouldnt have any bad wounds, but he was too weak now and the Young knight fell at the frozen floor of the courtyard.

Devil didnt wait another second. Felix extended his hand to the sky and a huge whirlpool of water appeard, which he throwed at rookies (his victims). Sadly for him, before it reached them, Three arrows engulfed in wind reached the whirlpool. They exploded and formed a quite big wind air spheres that destroyed Felix's attack before it reach anyone.
"Why you did that?" He asked and glared at Hartias.
"Time's up"
The Man replied, which made devil to curse quietly, pout and sit down on the ground.

 

[Gamingfan]

Tento did a double take upon hearing Hartias. "Excuse me survive wha-WHOA HELLO!"
Upon an icicle stabbing an uncomfortable distance away, Tento realized he was not kidding, and got ready for combat. Ignoring the terror combat always gave him, Tento brought up his gauntlets, each sparking with lightning.
For the first round, Tento made quick work of any icicles that came close, shattering them off with a few well timed punches. With each punch and shattered icicle, his electricity sparked and he flashed. Luckily, he seemed to avoid any damage, and noticed the lack of assault.
...Are we done?
Lei snorted. "Lame. That was barely anything-oh nevermind. Heads Up."
"Wha-"
It didn't take long for the next round to follow, with the floor freezing giving a good indication this wasn't over. Tento became more defense, crossing his arms and blocking the blows. A few icicles caught him off guard, adding a few nicks and cuts before Tento decided he needed to switch tactics. With the added pressure of being watched, however, he found it hard to focus. He began breathing unevenly. Out of instinct, Tento brought up his right fist and punched the floor, bursting in a large spark of lightning, eliminating most icicles in close proximity. Interestingly, there was a sound much like thunder, despite the clear skies.
Tento looked up the whirlpool Felix created, and brought his fist close to his face. Luckily, he felt no impact, and lowered them to the sight of a pouting demon. Slowly, his breathing calmed down, though the realization that he hadn't bothered to aid anyone made him lower his head in shame. He hadn't changed much, had he?
"Well, aside from the obvious freakout, I'd say that was decent. Though we still have to work on that offense. And defense. And magic-ya know what? You survived, and I'll leave it at that." Lei added unhelpfully.

 

[=Nightshade=]

Miriam’s breath caught in her throat as she braces herself, Growl’s presence rumbling quietly in the back of her mind. As the icicle shards began raining down—no, shooting down would be more accurate—a few of them landing mere inches away, the girl jerked away on reflex, feeling her aura beginning to spike again. Have to… have to control— no, I have to guide it… defense, protect— Miriam’s eyes glowed white, her aura growing, not uncontrolled this time. The plants on her body fed on her Anima, growing rapidly and wrapping her thin limbs in layer upon layer of branches and vines. Her face began to push out into a— No! Not now! I can’t go into that form here—

The transformation paused, then the plants began to unravel from her body. There were still a couple layers of thorny armor protecting her skin from damage, but the others had reared up like cobras to deflect any icicles coming her way. The chill she felt from the outside was nothing like the uncanny coldness that she herself exuded, but her armor of vines kept her insulated and—not warm—but not freezing. An icicle shattered against one of Miri’s antlers, and she staggered with the force of the blow.

You’re getting better, Growl rumbled in approval at her manipulation of the vines. Despite her fatigue, Miriam managed a small grin at her bond’s praise. When the deluge of ice was over, she collapsed on her back, breathing heavily, but a wide smile on her face at her very few injuries and her ability to deflect the projectiles on her own, without having to swap out with Growl.

 

[Spoiled Bread]

Poka

"Ehh... I don't know if its more than simple aura manifestation or not. It's just the most basic thing I can do." Poka replied at Liam, though her answer was rather unclear since she wasn't sure about it herself.

Hartias then announced the next test, which was surviving barrages of attacks for half a minute. Should be easy... right? Poka looks confident as she puts her hand on the hilt of her cutlass but when she witness the countless ice forming around the demon. She immediately dashed away from her position.

"Good luck everyone!" She yelled before the icicles started to be launched at them. Poka jumped over one, block another with her aura and then smash one with her sword. She might be able to hold the attacks now but she wouldn't risk herself by staying in the hit range for extended period so she had been rushing towards a particular direction. The direction? Hartias. Right before the second wave of the attacks came Poka was able to jump behind the trainer and made herself smaller by hugging her knees. She's practically using Hartias as meatshield, she's sure either the demon wouldn't attack at Hartias' direction or the trainer would soak up the attacks just fine.

"Thank you Sir Hartias!" Poka gave him a salute as she waited the attacks to finish. Fortunately it didn't take long before he decided to end the session.

@Clite of Dragonbow

 

[Crystal1302]

"Wait what do you mean survive!?" said Levy caught off guard from her bickering with Xav. "Look sharp Levy. Looks like the real training's about to begin." Said, Xavier before quickly throwing on his knuckle gauntlets. Levy drew Eitri and readied herself for whatever was about to be thrown at them. The icicles appeared and they both dealt with their situation in different ways. Xavier used his superior fighting expertise among the two to bob and weave around the icicles and give the icicles sometimes a well-placed punch or kick. Levy on the other hand sent out a barrage of Anima bullets that melted and shattered any icicles that came anywhere close to her. One icicle they missed however as Cala appeared and blocked an icicle coming directly for Xav's arm using a baton-like weapon she wielded like a bat. "I told you two you should've gotten more sleep. If I wasn't here you both would be dealing with icicles stabbed in your arms." she said as the three blocked more. "Which if I recall you both need to use your weapons of choice, or should I say, dis-armed?" Both Xav and Cala sighed as they said. "Sorry Cala." in unison. The three got through the first round of the icicle volley more or less unscathed. "Wait a minute, was that 30 seconds? I only counted fiftee-" "Second Wave." said Xavier. "Ah," said Levy before readying Eitri again, this time in knife form, glowing bright orange and emanating heat. She used the knife to start parrying the icicles coming at them, but the icicles seemingly were coming at them faster. So much so that they even started getting a few knicks and cuts which made it a tad harder to try keeping up their anima manifestations as shields. "This is getting hard. Do you wanna Steam Bomb Xav?" "Do you even have to ask?" said Xav before Levi fired off a semi-large fireball from her gun as Xav formed water rushing around his fist and uppercut the ball. The water immediately clashed with the ball causing a rush of steam around them melting a large number of icicles. Xav landed on the ground as the 30 seconds were up. "Well, we didn't die." "Don't speak too soon," said Cala as she pointed up to the large whirlpool above them. Levy internally cursed as Xav cracked a smirk about to do something to the whirlpool, but it was destroyed by a few arrows. Xav was a tad disappointed as Levy sighed in relief.

 

[Killerbunny the god]

When asked to demonstrate his Anima, Isak figured he should show what little he knew. He couldn't give an as impressive display as everyone else but he could show his element. By focusing hard, he enveloped himself and his Cerberus in an orb of copper-colored light. He held it for a few seconds and then released. It wasn't much but it was all he could do at this point. Tsuki just muttered "weakling" under her breath but Isak decided to ignore that.

-Second part of training-

The knight holding the training declared it was time for the next test. Basically a dodge or deflect from what Isak could understand. This finally made Luna and Eclipse interested in something else than the chicken. They liked what they heard. Isak himself was worried for how he would be able to deal with this. When the devil started shooting his ice, Isak jumped off of the Cerberus and just dodged it to the best of his abilities. He managed to dodge quite a few but just as many managed to hit him. He thought he was doing pretty well until one big hit him in the stomach and knocked him back and down onto the ground. That was when the knight declared the test was over. Isak slowly got up from the ground and clutched his stomach in pain. Feeling embarrassed about that pathetic display of his capabilities, he just climbed back on top of the Cerberus.
"Like I said, weakling" Tsuki said louder this time.
"Shut up" Isak muttered back and the other two heads laughed.

 

[RexOli]

Somnus should have been born a real city draft, Branko though. His glamour was up, but Branko could only tell by the pale silver glow coursing through the spirals of his horn. His disguise wasn't flawless- First and foremost, he never bothered to move like an actual horse. Branko didn't get a chance to ever see it, but they were told that it was as if a mule was attempting to mimic the movement of a stag and somehow managed to make the deer's own gait merely a dancing mockery of Somnuse's own.

There were other flaws with it too. You only need to see a unicorn once for your soul to recognize it through any mask after, and they aren't able to lie to those of pure heart- And the pool of those is so small that Somnus should honestly ditch that pure heart stitch all together and simply say young children.

And that's how they got where they are. Ever since Branko pulled up the hood of their goatskin, the crowd evaded them by wide circles and tried harder not to gawk that obviously. Other than murmuring Somnus strutting by their side, twisting his head left and right to inspect everything from food stalls to a new type of marble and probably giving his goat-like beard a migraine with the constant sway, Branko finally thought they finally had some semblance of relative peace.

Figures that would be the moment everything fell apart. The only warning they got was a series of panicked screeches before a small boy crashed into Somnuse's leg, an incredible number of yellow chicks in his pockets, and a small army of their parents swarming all around him. Branko didn't even get to process that before they heard the loud bark of a dog and crash of the casks it just barreled into on its warpath towards them. A small one by wolf standards, but the bloodlust in its eyes made it look almost possessed. Almost. It was still just a dog.

Branko only had to hunch over and make it look like they were planning to meet the dog in the middle. The horns on their head swayed, there was a low guttural growl on the tip of their tongue, and the dog promptly hightailed it into wherever it came from. After that, Branko gathered the chickens who would rather abandon their spawns than stick around while the boy was busy being mesmerized by Somnus to watch them. Somnus himself seemed equally fascinated, lowering his head so the boy could curl his grubby fingers around his shiny behemoth of a horn.

Branko stilled, eyeing the child for any brisk movements, a concealed blade or-

The chicken they were crouched in front of got a sudden bout of confidence and it gave a half-decent flight, managing to rake its stubby talons across Branko’s cheek.

The boy ended up gifting them a linen tissue before reluctantly scurrying away, the chickens following right after. There was a small yellow feather stuck to it, Branko knew they were going to reach the meeting place late and the only emotion they got from Somnus before he damped their connection was a weathered disappointment. Branko spent the rest of the trek studying the feather, refusing to meet Somnuses gaze.

They reached the courtyard's gates only to see the whirlpool dissipate. Not only were they late, they apparently missed quite a brawl. Branko set their hood back down, waiting for Somnus to begin the introductions as both of them preferred. He did not however drop the disguise. That somehow calmed Branko's racing nerves, despite knowing too well that is it not Somnus thinking of potential risks to himself like Branko, and instead, he is just waiting for the perfect moment. Branko was about to raise the questionability of trying to confound your future superior with a masquerade of a talking mule, but by then Somnus already started milling.

"We hope we do not insult you by our late appearance, esteemed paragons of human morality and those to be. We had been awaiting this day with great anticipation, but on the way we came to bear the - minor, don't you fret- consequences of unforeseen blank in the domestication of your canine companions-"¨

It sometimes felt like his voice didn't consist of words like it should, and instead came across as a sway of windchimes- one that everyone could somehow understand. And insistent windchimes they were. One can't blame him much through. Unicorns don't tend to emote much at all unless murder is about, so speeches are the only way he can convey emotions, and he is the crowned champion of milking it for all he can.

As Somnus blabbered, he let the control slip and the connection between them renewed for a fraction, but enough for Branko to get the general premise. Something is about. Demon, soulless, undead, Branko wasn't sure how to categorize this one. Oh, there was a demon, and Branko could pinpoint that one easily by the acidic feeling in the back of their throat when they laid their eyes on the sitting boy. But there was something else, something they didn't recognize, and Somnus was trying very, very hard not to think of its face.

Branko heard enough. They laid a hand on Somnuse's side to make him stop and inclined their head in what could pass for a greeting, even when their eyes never left the individuals in front of them. "We hail."

If Somnuse's voice was windchimes, Branko's was a sledgehammer without much enthusiasm to its name, all their words tugged like knots from an old carpet. "Branko and Somnus of the Order Of Silv-" They abruptly cut themselves off with another growl, this one small, involuntary. Branko dropped all hopes of this going the decorous way and dragged their nails across their face, accidentally re-opening the cuts on their cheek. Somnus leaned a little more into their touch. "...Just of preventing massacres of poultry now, apparently."

 

[| Korutesu |]

Venti

When Venti had woken up, the sun was already shining brightly, he knew he was late for their first briefing, which Hartias had told them would happen at dawn.

"Oh no.. I'm late- Jeez, why'd i have to oversleep.. Maybe i can still salvage this.."

Venti took about 10 minutes to get ready, and he was probably really late at this point. Running down the stairs, Venti bust through the door to the courtyard, already seeing all the other knights there. Clearly tired like something had just happened..

"I- uh.. Sorry i'm late, Sir Hartias. My name is Venti, Venti Corminius. My Anima Element is Air, and this is Dvalin, my contract. Wh- what happened..?"

 

[Clite of Dragonbow]

"Poka, I doubt that I will allow you to hide behind me next time, but bonus points for the idea" Hartias said glancing over to Young girl that got idea to avoid behind him from the attacks and then he looked at the two latecomers "Alright.. You guys Just missed the training. Get sure to ask the rest what happend So far. (in other words there is one my post with explanation of how Powers work a bit if you didnt see yet)" He said and continued "Now.. I think you got some basic abilities So now go and get some breakfast that Aalis and Aylssa made for you guys and I will join you soon!"
Then He headed to his own room, he had to prepare all paper work connected to their departure for the first mission. Real test for everyone.
The Forest of Silversong was always known of being a place where some spirits reside and recently there were many mysterious dissapirences of young people in the nearby areas.. As if something or someone was kidnapping them. Hartias thought it may be too much for the beggining, but he couldnt say no as for fresh round table like them, getting one mission may be really hard and so there was no telling when they could go for the next if they were to refuse this one.

In a meantime, extremely tired Liam tried to get up... He knew that if they were graded for their training.. Then he got worst possible score or one of the worst. He then slowly tried to get to the dinning room and didnt seem like open to talk to people. He took a sit by the table and looked around.. He felt weird.. Beside him there was one person without a Spirit, but that guy was So much better than him and everyone else seemed to be pretty good too. He just felt like it may not be his place.

Well, time for a Dinner.

 

[=Nightshade=]

Miriam stumbled to her feet… and immediately pitched over with the weight of her antlers. The front most protrusions stabbed into the dirt, propping her up, and she struggled for a moment like a turtle on its back, arms too short to push her back up. Eventually she managed to stand again, and shook her head to get the dirt off the antlers’ prongs. She dusted the rest of herself off before slowly making her way to the dining hall with the rest of the trainees.

The girl sat down at the table quietly, a little unsure. She felt kind of awkward, trying to keep her head perfectly still so her antlers didn’t hit the heads of the people sitting to her left and right. Miriam slowly reached for a bowl of potatoes, trying not to accidentally hit anyone. Still, she clipped the shoulder of the boy to her left and muttered a quiet apology, not completely sure whether he heard or not.

Looking around, Miriam didn’t see many people fused with spirits. Many of the others had small creatures following them around like pets in a video game, or had larger ones just behind them, knocking them around as a tease. Some looked like they didn’t have a spirit bond, but there were only a few that had inhuman attributes from their spirit bond. There was a girl with what looked like octopus tentacles, and a boy with a third eye in the middle of his forehead, and more eyes on his hands. Miriam again felt acutely disoriented with the new surroundings and… other humans. At least I have Growl to keep me company…

I will always keep you company, the Wendigo rumbled in her mind, a faint air of amusement palpable from his disembodied voice.

Thanks, buddy, Miriam thought wryly. Any advice on how to initiate a conversation with a member of my species?