Ask to Join International hero school (MHA)

[Nebula-Newt]

BZZRT BZZRT BZZRT

It was with the anger of somebody who got far too little sleep last night that Lucas found himself slamming his hand down on his alarm clock, hoping fervently to beat the infernal machine into submission. Three clumsy slaps later the neon of the clock dimmed, the device now silent. It was the same wake up call Lucas had received every day for the last three years but this was anything but just another day. Today was the IHA entrance exam, the first true hurdle on his path to becoming a professional hero. A serious expression wiped the last vestiges of sleep from his face. He would not fail.

Swinging his legs out of the bed he glanced out of the window, early morning sun rays creeping through the glass and into the room. It was another beautiful day in Grafton, the city already alive and buzzing with other early risers on their way to work, probably as thankful as he was for the lovely weather. Moments later Lucas found himself in the bathroom, staring into the mirror above the sink, his own hazel eyes staring back at him. There were faint dark circles under each of them, evidence of the late night he'd had, unable to fall asleep due to a unique combination of fear and excitement. After stifling a yawn he swiftly ran through his morning routine, shower, getting dressed (His usual combination of jeans, t shirt and hoodie today), breakfast and finally a through brushing of his teeth. By the time he was finished it was still pretty early, about 7 am, and the rest of his family were still asleep. He crept by his mother and sister's rooms quietly, not wanting to wake them up sooner than they needed to but faltered when he reached his elder brothers door, lingering for a moment there. Samuel, the real reason he was even on this path. It wasn't that there weren't other aspects of being a professional hero that appealed to him, but Lucas doubted that he would have had the resolve to take on such a difficult occupation without his brother backing him up every step of the way. Well he wouldn't get accepted into IHA just standing around, he had a bus to catch.

It was a short walk through the local park to the nearest bus stop and the short walk served to settle the young man's nerves. He sat on the bus in silence, not attempting to engage in conversation with any other passengers and instead opting to put in a pair of earbuds. He casually selected one of the songs he'd been enjoying recently (The Bravery- Belive) and enjoyed the rest of the bus ride, knowing that he'd arrive at his destination with a comfortable amount of time to spare. It wasn't long before the imposing wall that surrounded IHA came into view, a seemingly never ending expanse of metal that sealed off the prestigious academy from the rest of the world. Occasionally he'd spy a grass coated roof peaking out just above the barrier but for the most part the school was as shrouded as usual. Of course it made sense that they didn't let just anybody into this place, it would be a disaster to see the next generation of heroes wiped out by a particularly ambitious villain who just waltzed in. Not to mention the effect it would have on the reputation of the place.

The bus suddenly came to a halt, brakes squealing a little as they worked hard to cease the spinning of the vehicles wheels. He was here. Lucas tentatively rose from his seat, reaching into his pocket to ensure he still had the ID card he'd been issued after completing the preliminary exams for the academy. Without it there was no chance he would get in, apparently the defences around the main gate would put many military bases to shame. That being said the gates didn't seem imposing as Lucas stepped from the bus, no, instead they seemed more than welcoming. His future was calling! Confidently striding up to the guard posted beside the massive metal door he flashed his ID, giving the burly man plenty of time to ensure it was legit. Surprisingly the man didn't even look at the plastic card, instead he looked at a small panel built into the gate itself. As soon as the ID was exposed to the gate a green light flashed on the panel, signalling for the great doors to slide open. Of course it was all automated, IHA was top of the line after all.

Now IHA was exposed in its entirety to the boy for the first time he was impressed, it was exactly as he'd imagined it. Sleek structures of glass and metal stood within the spacious courtyard Lucas found himself in, at odds with the luscious gardens that lined their roofs. Technology mixing with nature, the antithesis of Grafton city. Kind of at odds with rest of the scene was a lone man standing beside a small sign that read "Welcome applicants!", hands on hips and an almost alarmingly wide smile on his face. Lucas glanced around, suddenly a little annoyed that he was the first person to arrive, nobody else to provide a buffer for him. Taking one earplug from his ear Lucas took a seat on the bench closest to the meeting point and waited for the other applicants to show up.
​

@MegaAbsol @kyuukestu @Top_Smug_ @_obsequious @Godjacob

 

[Fire Mana]

Grafton City, the largest in the world. It perfectly merged technology and nature to create an amazing home for anyone fortunate enough to live there. It just so happened that one of those fortunate people was extremely annoyed this particular morning.

Parker Bell was not an early morning person. He always had trouble getting out of bed for school, and usually ended up being late as s a result. However, it was the morning of the IHA Entrance Exams, and he absolutely could not arrive late today for any reason.

So of course, when he was startled awake by his alarm clock and fell out of bed with a loud crash, he wasn't exactly excited to be awake at this time in the morning. He slowly picked himself up from the floor and made his way to the bathroom. He followed his usual morning routine and showered, shaved his face, brushed his teeth, and finally made his way downstairs. From the looks of things, his parents had already left for work. The black haired boy sighed and grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge before stepping out the door, locking it behind him.

The morning in Grafton did have one thing going for them though, not many people were awake and it was rather peaceful. It wasn' too cold or too warm this morning, and there was a gentle breeze that combed through Parker's hair as he walked. He put his earbuds in his ears, drowning out the sounds of the few cars on the street as he continued on his path to IHA. The school was close enough to his house to walk to, so he didn't need to catch a bus or anything. Although he did see a bus approach the school and seemingly drop a student off in front of the gates.

When he finally arrived at the fortified metal walls of IHA, his annoyance of the morning turned to very slight anxiety and fear. He quickly shook the feeling off, knowing he would need to calm his nerves if he wanted to become a great hero. He held his ID to the gate, a flash of green light signaling that the large metal door was opening.

As he stepped inside, Parker got a good look of the interior of the school for the first time. In a similar vain to the city it was located in, IHA seemed to effortlessly blend technology and nature for an exciting yet comforting environment. As he looked around the schoolgrounds, his eyes quickly caught the student from before sitting on a bench near a man holding a sign. Not one for small talk or really any form of communication with other people, Parker shuffled over to a tree on the other side of the man and took a seat against the trunk.

 

[Godjacob]

"Phew...okay, Asami. You can do this. You. Can. Do. This."

Over by the harbor of Grafton City, Asami had stood at the edge of a large boat as she gazed into the sunrise above. Enjoying the feel of the early morning breeze against her skin as she stretched a bit in place prior to her daily routine. Given she was a good hour or two ahead of most people the harbor itself was free of active activity. As others sailors already either ventured out to sea already or had yet to awaken. Asami took advantage of this in her one piece swimsuit as she jumped into the open ocean. Asami did this every morning. It just felt right to the girl with the Shark-quirk to relax; the various undersea life she swam with, the gentle current she flowed with and just the feeling of the clear ocean water through her body. It was relaxing, comforting and helped put her mind at ease...something she needed today of all days that much had been certain.

For today was one of...no, today was the most important day in Asami's life. A chance for her to be accepted into the IHA, to be an official hero in training in the world's most revered hero school and take the first step towards her dream of becoming a great pro hero. One like her mother, the pro hero Octivilia who she admired and who inspired her along this path. One she was ever so eager to get started as she got up even earlier than per usual as even during her morning swim she could not help but wonder what the initiation exam would be like and what the other side of those great walls contained.

Though that excitement and anticipation had been complimented by a sense of nervousness and worry. This exam was everything to her and if she flunked it then her chances of getting in the IHA were gone and her dreams would be crushed. What if she failed? What would her mother and father think? What if he took the exam and caught wind of her failure, would he ever let her live it down? Was she good enough to be a student at the IHA? There were so many amazing Quirks out there and hers seemed rather plain by comparison. Asami began to breath a bit fast, the nerves of all these thoughts in her head began to cause a minor panic attack. What if she came in with the wrong strategy? What if the challenge was unwinnable with her Quirk? What if...

Tap. Tap.

Asami's heaving breathing took a pause when she felt something tap against her shoulder, as Asami turned her eyes widened as she saw her mother Octivilia, decked out in her purple & silver spandex hero costume as she gave her daughter a friendly smile as she managed to get Asami's attention with one her her tentacles as she pulled in Asami close to her and brushed the side of her cheek.

"Seem a bit nervous? Big day I know. Maybe some advice will help calm you a bit."

----------
"Got everything sorted pumpkin?"

"Yes dad."

"Got your ID card?"

"Right here."

"Packed plenty of water?"

"I think 30 bottles are gonna be enough."

"Is there anything else you think you might need? I mean I think the mini bag might not be enough food. Perhaps I could..."

"Dad. Really, it's okay. I'm all good."

It was now around 7:15, as Asami was packing her things in a backpack along with her father Kojiro. A large, muscular sailor with a sizable brown beard who stood at least a head or two above Asami had been overly worried that his daughter didn't have what she needed. After Asami's pep talk with her mother, she left to go on hero duty which left getting Asami ready to Kojiro who had not minded it in the least. Even if at times he was a bit...paranoid about making sure Asami was safe and ready for such a big day ahead of her.Though Asami assured her everything was fine which seemed enough to reassure Kojiro...who in turn picked up his daughter and gave her a big loving bear-hug.

"Your mother and I are so proud of you, we both know you will make it into the IHA. Just do your best and know we are behind you every step of the way." Kojiro said with a big smile as Asami struggled to get her breath but offered a smile back to her father as she hugged him back.

"I will dad. I promise." Asami said as her father eventually released her before Asami said her goodbyes before she walked out the door. Asami, rather than take the bus to the heart of the city, oped to walk there as she enjoyed seeing the city in its full beauty. Asami made sure to pace herself, as she had to get there in time but not tire herself out to waste too much of the water.

Asami tightened her hoodie, very much self conscious of her appearance even in spite of her parent's insistence to embrace it, as she walked along the main street and traveled through the city. Eventually, she arrived at the great wall before her which signed she found the right spot. A quick display of her ID was enough to allow her access inside as she walked in unsure of what to expect. Though she felt she was ready for anything and kept her mother's advice engraved into the back of her mind.

Remember, this is your coming out party. It's time to show everyone what you are made up. So give it your all and don't look back!​

 

[_obsequious]

Okay. Okay, just, deep breaths. It’s nothing to worry about.
Aspen Colette had admittedly stayed up all night fretting about her entrance exam at IHA, also known as what her entire life had been leading up to.

The girl was a resident in a little apartment complex with her father in the outskirts of Grafton City, the largest in the world. Had she been anywhere else in the world she wouldn’t know anything outside of bustling city life, but thanks to Grafton’s remarkable connection with nature, she was at least vaguely educated on the natural community (although whether or not she’d ever seen the ocean in person was a gamble).

Aspen’s room was very unlike the rest of the apartment. While she did her absolute best to maintain cleanliness around the place, her Dad’s reoccurring laziness had it back to thrashed in mere hours. Her room, however, was incredibly neat.
Er- usually.
“Crap, crap crap crap! Where’s my- oh my God there is no way I lost it,” she whispered hurriedly, under her breath, careful as to not wake her father. Papers and notebooks and such were scattered all over her rug, the girl frantically patting around the room in search for her ID Card, which was nowhere to be found. Her face flushed in panic as she anxiously gave up, rushing to the living room, her steps still light and quiet. The lithe girl slowly stepped around bottles littering the floor, grimacing faintly. She looked over at the couch at her father, who’s hand was lolling limply out to the side. And in his scuffed up hand;
Name: Aspen L. Colette

She perked up in relief, seeing her name on the card in his hand, slowly hovering over to his side, placing a careful hand on her ID. She attempted to wiggle it from his grasp, and he stirred faintly. She managed to free it, with a groan of half-conscious grogginess.

“Bye, Dad.”

— — —

The walls of IHA were, to say the least, intimidating. Aspen stood at the entrance, her heart skipping quickly, her breath hitching in her throat. There was a man at the gate, seemingly checking ID’s. This wave of anxiety was foreign to the rather steely girl, and she took a breath to calm herself, offering the man a fleeting glimpse of her identification. He nodded and gestures for her to go in, the door opening automatically for her.
To say that she was awed was an understatement. The clean structure of the building stood before, almost in a vast expanse of building that seemed to never end. A man stood with a sign that read “Welcome, Applicants!”

Quickly deciding that applied to her, she shuffled over quietly near to the man, settling herself on a bench before where he stood, making sure to choose an empty bench where nobody sat (obviously).

 

[kyuukestu]

Gwenrhian/Gwenerys/Gweneira

Gwenrhain took a deep breath, her lungs filling with the refreshing, humid air of the early morning. She sat up from her sleeping bag, and through her eyes were still bleary from slumber, they adjusted rapidly. Her vision was astounding, a side-effect of always being enhanced by her quirk, and she was able to see the leaves and wild grass matted in her hair in vivid detail, down to the very veins of the foliage. Even the small centipede, surepititiously making its way across the expanse of her sleeping bag, could not escape her senses, its plethora of legs wriggling it ever closer to her skin -disgusting...

""This sucks after all...""

A duo of identical voices resonated in synchrony, and if a bystander were present, they'd be hardpressed to determine how many people had been speaking. The voices were thick with disgruntlement, and a tinge of accusation. Right on cue, a third, equally identical but apologetic voice responded, whimpering like a wronged puppy. "...it wasn't supposed to explode..."

Silence descended as the three triplets: Gwenrhian, Gwenerys, and Gweneira exchanged glances- no, more aptly, Gwenrhian, and Gwenerys exchanged glares with a cowering Gweneira, who seemed to be on the verge of tears. The accused Gwenier, the second if the triplets, shrunk back into her sleeping bag, the bulky fabric the only thing sparing her from facing the duo of death glares from her sisters.

"I didn't expect the first-day IHA to start like this..." A bitterly disappointed complaint came from the ever prissy youngest sibling Gwenerys. Certainly, their current situation was far from the life of luxury and prestige that she'd expected. One simply did not become a student to the most renown and celebrated Hero Academy in the world and then spend your first day homeless. They say a man's, or in this case woman's effort is always rewarded, but for all the work they'd had to put in to get here the rewards were... let's than enticing.

The siblings had spent the night camping out in sleeping bags in front of their temporary school-assigned flat. The reason? A failed experiment from their resident alchemist had resulted in a superbly foul odor, so putrid that a mix of rotten eggs and meat, soaked in a latrine and then left in the sun for a week, would've been pleasant in comparison. But that wasn't too bad- after all, Gweneria's failed experiments had resulted in worst before, and the triplets were used to looking like they just walked out of a vat of radioactive waste material, fully equipped with neon hair colors and polka-dotted skin (That particular incident had taken almost a month to resolve).

What truly had the sisters peeved was the fact that the smell was so pervasive it'd infected the entire flat and almost all of their belonging, the sole survivors being the pajamas they'd been wearing. Although the smell was expected to dissipate by later this evening, the damage had already been done, and the trio had already embarrassed themselves half to death strolling around in the middle of the night trying to buy sleeping bags in their pajamas. When one of the store owners had thrown them out because of 'inappropriate attire', Gwenrhian had almost thrown a fit. When they'd finally managed to a buy a set of sleeping bags, the queer stares of the sales rep had left them so frustrated they'd simply headed home instead of buying an extra set of clothes.

Back to the present and the siblings were still bereft of their possessions, and even more down-heartening was the fact that they'd now needed to take the IHA entrance exams. A swift exchange of awkward glances went buy before all eyes fell on Gwenrhian, the eldest sister being left with the final decision.

Gritting her teeth as if she'd just made the hardest decision in the world and sacrificed much of her dignity in the process, Gwenrhain assented. "We've already come this far... and I'm not going back to the airport in my PJ's." The eldest of the bunch almost immediately regretted those words, but there wasn't really an alternative. Falling back onto her 'bed', her white locks splaying about the first floor, Gwenrhian started into the sky, an early morning blue dotted by wispy clouds and the occasional avian. From the sun's position she estimated it was around 5:45. Just enough time to hunt down breakfast and enjoy a light meal; maybe they'd find a Rabbit or Quail, something small and easy to catch.

While the hunt itself went well, lady luck insisted on scorning the trio of siblings. Even with Gwenrhian taking to the trees with a mobility that would put to shame monkeys and acrobats alike -an endeavor supported by her quirk impulse drive- they'd spent an entire hour roaming around before finding any cute and innocent creatures to subject to their hunger. Once their prey was located, the sisters made quick work of it. A sharpened some swerved around the tree trunks, accurately pinning a small rabbit hidden beneath a bushel, courtesy of Gwenerys' quirk Grand Puppeteer. The rabbit fled immediately, but toppled over after a short sprint, it's increased heart rate a blood flow allowing the toxins lacing the rock to work through its body shop the more rapidly, that particular toxin was something whipped up with Gweniera's quirk, Mirage Alchemist. The toxin was, however, only lethal to creatures the size of a house cat. Anything bigger would have too much blood and the toxin would be distributed through its body too thinly, causing only a sensation of numbness.

Needless to say, after a swift breakfast and what grooming they could accomplish, the triplets set out. Several minutes later they swaggered through the gates of IHA, their attempt at acting casual completely betrayed by the fierce blushes that covered their faces. They immediately huddled off to a corner, and awaited the beginning of the exam, sending death glares towards any student whose eyes lingered a little too long for comfort on their... less than modest attire.

 

[MegaAbsol]

Too much ambition was a dangerous thing, Pari decided, staring at the dark circles under her eyes. "Look at you," she chided, part deprecatingly, part humorously, eyes flitting from her reflection in the mirror to the rectangular piece of laminated paper hovering beside her head. Ever the persistent companion, the playing card had watched as the teenager gamed for the better part of the night, hearing her insistent growls of how one more game would ensure the win of her campaign - up until her mom busted in at 2 AM, forcing the disgruntled gamer to sleep. Even now, wide awake and entirely aware of the weight of this momentous day, she continued to sulk, glaring daggers at the clock, who glared back with the disapproving numbers of 7:07 AM, watching the girl groom her hair.

Nimble fingers wove in and out of her hair, forming a braid before she was even aware of it; letting autopilot take over, Pari's eyes glazed as her hands reached for the toothpaste. Why was she even giving this exam? She had no glowing ambition to be a hero, save some people, be looked up to. All she wanted to do was play some games, listen to some tunes. Life wasn't fair, she pouted, rinsing her mouth. Not like she even had a quirk suited to hero work, she mused, turning to glance at the card spiraling gently in the air, which seemed to sense her gaze and turned to 'face' her. One Joker to another. Grinning widely, she reached to pull on her socks, wiggling her fingers slightly in an all-too-secretive gesture. Immediately, the so far dark and motionless room sprang to life - cards flew off the shelves, one of them zooming to hit the light switch squarely. As the girl blinked in the sudden flood of illumination, the cards paused before continuing to move out of memory. 51. 51 cards neatly slotted themselves together, moving as one to hover over a bag lying limply in the corner.

"Go join them," she scolded lightly, poking the Joker, which let out a small whiny sound before wandering over to the pack. Giving herself a quick glance over in the mirror, Pari paused to inspect herself as she noted the thick but neat hair, faded but well-ironed clothes and scuffed but painted shoes. As though on cue, a second pack of cards flew across, the cards arcing beautifully in a line as they made a beeline for the bag. "Alrighty," coughing lightly, she turned to get ready to leave. "Battle pack," she mumbled, staring at the first pack, which glowed blue for a second. That Joker, I swear. "Spare pack," she gently touched the newly arrived pack of cards, significantly smaller (they were poker cards, after all) "Clothes, food, yeah," Patting herself up and down, she fished out one piece of hard candy. Hello, breakfast. "Water, ID, eh, money. What else?" Slowly rotating herself on her heel, she took in the room, pausing as she noticed her phone before moving to scoop that up. "Woop, can't forget you." Dropping it into the bag, she gnawed on the candy with her front teeth as she did another sweeping glance of the room. Shoving the two packs in as she bent to pick up the bag, she cast a last look at the clock, smiling as she noted the time. 7:11. Wasn't today going to be a great day?

Biting into the apple she swiped off the kitchen table, Pari stared out of the window - even though the bus was empty, she chose to stand, idly moving the candy about against her teeth, around the apple she chewed. Scratching an ear against her shoulder, her thoughts returned to the day at hand. Of so much significance to many, and yet here she was, treating it like nothing. Perhaps she really should be grateful for this opportunity. IHA was the best school for quirked people - in the world! And she knew she was intelligent enough to clear the test, and most likely whatever the school could throw at her. And yet that reputation was gained for a reason. Was she ready to go through that strenuous grind, for years, all on a stray whim? Then again, she sighed, not like her mother would let her rest if she didn't. Clenching the now-bare core in her hand, she moved to make way for the other passengers.

"Well, well." Rolling the solitary seed she had retained from the apple she discarded in her hand, Pari gazed appreciatively at the towering gate before her. Swapping the black seed for her ID, she apprehensively stepped closer, watching with wonder anew as the attending guard essentially got it verified by what appeared to be sensors built into the gate. Impressive. She could appreciate both the multiple utility as well as the veiled function. Choosing to sling the card around her neck this time, instead of dropping it back in her bag, she meandered uncertainly into the centre area, eyes darting this way and that. Certainly an interesting crowd here. This looked like, she realised with a hastily stifled giggle, the hub area of some high-fantasy MMORPG. The central gathering place. Allowing herself some quiet cackles, she continued scanning the area, amusing herself by giving each 'player' a level and pay-whale scale. "A game, it's a game," She smiled, murmuring to herself. Now that quirks had arisen, there was nothing beyond the reach of man. What had been imagination alone - flight, exotic mounts, summoned familiars, ethereal weapons, flashy attacks - now turned to commonplace reality. She was literally living in a fantasy world.

"Heh," She snickered again, reaching for another candy - a chewy one this time. "Well, would be a shame if I sat out this round. Let's participate in this...game, shall we? Not much for being a side NPC." Muttering to herself, she continued strolling through the entry pathway, pausing momentarily to stare with some surprise at a trio of identical girls, dressed in what appeared to be pajamas. "Well, someone spent money on the right stuff at the cash shop." Grinning good-naturedly at them, she turned, eyes widening as her attention fell on a girl with a hoodie. Similar dressing sense aside, what caught Pari's attention was the tail the girl possessed. Some sort of a fish tail, a shark or dolphin if she had to guess. But it was the memory it invoked of a certain Internet-popular shark-puppy character that caused Pari to smile wide. Not to mention mutant quirks always looked so cool - like straight out of a fantasy skin for a character. A character, she mused, like herself. Default skin. Well! Could sharks eat sweets? Let's find out. Armed with a lollipop ready in hand, she drew closer, popping a second gummy worm into her mouth. "Hello!" She called, as she approached the girl. Just like a game. Approach her, state your business. Press X to initiate dialogue- eh, wait. Maybe she didn't think this one through.

 

[Nebula-Newt]

It wasn’t long before other hopeful applicants began to join Lucas in the IHA courtyard, at first they trickled in giving him time to examine each individual but soon that trickle became a raging river and anywhere between 60-70 people were gathered around the meeting point, all anxiously awaiting the upcoming challenge. Lucas scanned the sea of faces, noting the wide range of emotions on display. Some certainly seemed more confident than others. Emotions weren’t the only things on display however, there were plenty of interesting mutations that were worth noting, some guy with bladed legs, a girl with what appeared to be shark traits, another who was sporting a huge scorpion tail. And they were only the ones he could see from his seat on the bench. It was certainly going to be an interesting challenge to say the least. A booming voice suddenly caught Lucas’ attention, loud and clear even other the quiet murmur of the crowd. The very nature of the voice made it easy to locate its owner, the man standing beside the welcome sign. Lucas’ guessed he must be a teacher here, but if he was being honest this guy wasn’t exactly what he’d been expecting. A pastel pink v neck sweater and a huge bushy beard didn’t scream “hero”. But in this quirk fuelled world he knew better than to judge somebodies capabilities on appearance alone. And so it was with rapt attention that Lucas listened to what the man had to say.


“Hello hopeful participants! Looks like we have a large turnout this year so I’d like to start by congratulating you all on making it past the preliminary exams, that’s no easy feat. But this is where we divide the best from the good. Very few of you will have what it takes to get into our prestigious academy this year. Anyway enough stalling, let’s get to the entrance exam shall we?”



Without warning the ground behind the man suddenly began to open up, revealing a massive stairway leading deep into the earth whilst at the same time a large screen rose up from the floor beside him, standing tall enough that every person in the courtyard could see it quite clearly. On its display were a few icons and a short list of rules.

“Alright let’s quickly run down exactly what you’re going to be doing here today. Behind me is the entrance to our sub terrain maze, which you will be attempting to complete. The first 16 of you to reach the finish will be enrolled in our hero course!” The man continued, completely unfazed by the concrete maw that had just opened up in the earth a meter behind him. His eyes did however suddenly take on a mischievous twinkle as he spoke. “Of course anybody who is familiar with the way we do things around here should know that this is no straightforward maze. The entire thing is filled with faux villains, traps, treacherous terrains, etc. We will also be judging you on your tactics, technique, attitude and quirk potential. So have a little fun with it, show off if you get the chance okay? Great. With that I think we’re pretty much ready to go. I’ll give you 5 minutes to prepare and then we shall start. Best of luck to you all.”



And with that he turned on his heel and descended the staircase, swiftly disappearing from sight. Where the crowd had been silent during the teacher’s explanation a nervous muttering quickly began now that he was gone. Blocking out the words of those around him Lucas stood, trying his hardest to ignore the butterflies in the pit of his stomach. A maze. A maze packed to the brim with obstacles that could quite easily end his dream of becoming a hero. Sure his quirk was well suited to combat but that ironically would only be half the challenge here. He had no superhuman ability to navigate so he’d practically be relying on luck to find his way. The very thought caused him to clench his teeth, he liked being in control of a situation, being able to rely on his own abilities to crack a challenge, not relying on luck.


Realising he was working himself up Lucas took a breath, closing his eyes for a moment so he could centre himself. When he opened them again it would be basically impossible for an onlooker to be able to detect even a hint of nervousness in the young man, his face may as well have been made of stone for all the emotion it betrayed. His gaze found the display of the screen that had risen from the ground and the list of rules upon it.

1. No harming or sabotaging other applicants.

2. Please keep damage to infrastructure to a minimum.

3. Teaming up is allowed but remember that you will be placed individually.

4. Have fun!

It was a short list, this was certainly a no holds barred kind of affair. Thankfully the rules were simple at least, he wouldn’t have broken any of them intentionally anyway. Well perhaps the last one, this was too important to consider having fun but funnily enough he doubted they would be enforcing that particular rule. But then Luca’s mind flashed back to the teacher’s unnervingly wide smile and even that didn’t seem quite impossible. One thing was for sure, if he did manage to pass he hoped he didn’t get that guy as his homeroom teacher. He didn’t think he could look at that smile for 3 years.


The rules on the screen faded out to be replaced by a minute long countdown, signalling that the exam was almost upon them. 60 seconds. Not a lot of time to come up with a plan really but that’s he had so he’d have to make do. Lucas almost smiled when he realised that even this part of the exam mimicked what it was like to be a pro hero, you wouldn’t always have time to make a plan, part of a being a hero was acting on instinct and dealing with the consequences. Clever. His hazel eyes scanned the crowd once more as he brainstormed, looking for something, anything that he might be able to use to his advantage. A guy with flaming hair, a trio of identical girls in Pjs (He had to take a second glance at that one to make sure that hadn’t simply been his imagination) and then there, a few feet away from him, a lifeline. Somebody who was blissfully unaware that they had just become a part of his plan to defeat this notorious entrance exam. With the countdown now in single digits Lucas turned his steely gaze to the ominously dark stairway just in time to see it light up with the glow of hundreds of wall mounted torches. Thanks to how early he had been he was right near the front of the pack, meaning that although he would have a slight head start he’d have to move fast to avoid being trampled.

3

An eerie silence fell over the group, all eyes on the countdown now. This was it.

2

A familiar cold sensation began to spread across Lucas’ skin as he activated his quirk, spectral green energy surrounding his body before taking the shape of a medieval set of armour, obscuring his features completely. Behind him he heard other quirks being readied, the sounds providing plenty of fuel for his imagination.

1

And they were off! The group surged forwards into the tunnel, a bullet fired from a gun. Echoes of hundreds of feet filled the air, the hectic scene only illuminated by flickering torchlight. Those with mobility enhancing quirks began to pull ahead whilst the main bulk of the applicants were stuck just trying to keep pace amongst the crowd, Lucas included. In what seemed like mere seconds he reached a large circular cavern with 4 separate routes branching out from it. Their first choice. But Lucas wouldn’t be making his own. No that choice was up to his lifeline. He’d managed to keep track of them during the initial rush and now that paid off, allowing him to simply follow them down the route of their choice (The tunnel on the far right).


This tunnel was already proving itself to be unique from the one that had come before it, stone steps gave way to tiles, and patches of…sand? On top of that a familiar scent had reached his nose, but given the situation he had no time to try and focus on it. Instead he was zeroed in on the person ahead of him, desperate not to lose sight of them. It was easy now but they hadn’t ran into any opposition yet. He had no doubt that would not last.

 

[Fire Mana]

Parker listened intently as a man with a pink sweater and a large beard explained the exam that the applicants were going to be taking. Even though he had been one of the first students there, he had been somehow pushed near the back of the crowd of 65 or so people. At first he didn't think it would matter, but when he learned that only the first 16 across the finish line would become students he was immediately regretful he didn't push to stay towards the front. He sighed as his eyes began to give off a pitch black smoke.

"All of the Devil's powers except for luck..." He mumbled under his breath.

A screen above the applicants head's began to display the rules of the exam. They weren't going to be too hard to follow, but Parker had to admit that he originally planned on sabotaging everyone he could. Guess that was out of the question now though. The screen then shifted from the rules to a 60 second countdown. He could hear murmurs from the others around him who were clearly nervous. The boy wouldn't have said he was nervous, but he was definitely feeling something.

Planning was something Parker was usually good at, but for some reason he didn't feel like he needed one. He just wanted to rush in and deal with whatever came his way, not to mention planning doesn't do much when literally anything could happen when you step inside the maze.

3

Silence engulfed the crowd that was restless just a second ago.

2

Still though, what was this feeling in Parker stomach? It wasn't nervousness, so what was it?

1

He wasn't anxious, he wasn't sick, and he hadn't eaten anything bad recently...

But as Parker heard the thunderous sound of hundreds of feet storming forwards in front of him, he realized what it was. He was excited. Excited beyond belief. The applicants marching forwards, the knowledge that anything could happen, the thrill of competition. He could feel his inner flame igniting, the smoke emitting from his eyes becoming thicker and more prominent, the horns and claws and scales growing from his head and arms. He felt the familiar rush that came with his quirk, the boost in strength and speed allowing him to fairly easily shove his way towards the front of the crowd.

As Parker arrived near the leaders of the pack, he saw the upcoming obstacle. The path split off into four, and many of the applicants stood still here. They seemed indecisive, not knowing if a route could make or break your exam was indeed something to worry about. However, the flame inside of Parker ignored his worries and broke through the frozen applicants. Without thinking, the horned boy found his way in the first route. His confidence in the choice brought with it a large group of boys with seemingly combat oriented quirks following behind him.

"The more competition the better." Parker mumbled to himself once again as he continued down the path, which had remained plain and boring up to this point.

 

[kyuukestu]

Gwenrhian

'How...odd'

Thoughts flashed through Gwenrhian's mind and she picked out sections of the teachers words and analyzed them. Maybe she'd been reading too much into a mere introduction, but overpreparedness was always better than being caught off guard.

The first point of contention she'd picked up on came from the last few words of the man. They'd been given 5 minutes to...prepare? That immediately struck Gwenrhian as odd. They weren't allowed to sabotage other students, and they hadn't been notified before hand to carry any equipment so...what exactly were they preparing for? The rules provided, in combination with the time limit, severely limited thier options. 5 minutes was in no way alot of time, and the situation in the maze was completely unknown; they'd be hard pressed to make any useful preparation in merely 5 minutes. With sabotage off limits then that small segment of time could only serve one other purpose...

Mulling over her thoughts Gwenrhian thought back to the third rule, and the single conclusion she came to was, "They...want us to form teams..." Since the rules disallowed any preparation with regards to other students or the maze itself, the only remaining option was socialization. It was possible that some of the maze's obstructions couldn't be passed alone, or would simply be easier with assistance. That, however, wasn't all that caught the young girl's attention. According to the words of the teacher, the first 16 to reach the finish would be enrolled, but at the same time they were being judged by potential and thier ability to handle situations. If this were a straightforward race then judging the participants would be pointless. Perhaps the 'first 16' didn't necessarily refer to the first 16 students to cross the finish line. Eyes shimmering with enlightenment, the eldest of the bunch whispered to both her younger siblings, "Stay back, this race won't be won by the swiftest."

She was taking a risk by acting on her assumptions, but her instincts hadn't let her down before...well, not when it mattered anyways. Confident with her deductions, and her ability to lead her sisters forward even if she was proved to be wrong, Gwenrhian watched carefully as the timer counted down to 0.

 

[_obsequious]

“Hello, hopeful participants!”

Due to the fact that, as previously mentioned, Aspen hadn’t slept at all the previous night, the girl had dozed off on the bench, being startled awake by the man’s booming volume. She awoke to find a plethora of new applicants around her. Some of the most noteworthy was a girl clad in a hoodie with a few.. fishy traits, to say the least, no pun intended. What caught her gaze next was a set of three seamlessly identical triplets, the only difference she had noticed being the emotions they reflected.

The man in the pink sweater had started speaking, and while she did listen intently, her eyes continued to wander. She felt her stomach drop when he explained that only sixteen of them would continue, and from the corner of her eye, catching her interest was a boy sitting on the edge of a tree stump, dark tendrils of smoke steadily rising and curling into the air, straight from his eyes. While this did pique her interest, she decided now was a good time to cease to examine her potential classmates, instead focusing on what the advising man had to say. Her attention diverted to the board the man had left, which displayed all the rules of the maze they were now presented with. All seemed to make sense, although the last one seemed more like a cruel joke- just about everyone here was so desperate for a spot at IHA, most of them probably would’ve been willing to violate the first rule without hesitation had it not been brought up.

She watched as the screen faded to present a minute long timer, the anxious knot in her stomach growing larger. A shaky breath shuddered it’s way past her lips as the timer got to 47.

She should be making a strategy, coming up with a plan. 39.

Maybe finding someone to team up with, to help her. Surely she was going to get into some sort of dangerous situation, what if she’d need the help? 26.

Oh, God. What was she even doing?Her mind went blank, her legs went stiff. What was she thinking, she couldn’t do this! She could hardly get out of bed! She was just going to make a fool of herself.. 14.

Her gaze shifted to her fellow applicants, who all seemed much more prepared than her. They probably had a solid plan, right? Maybe she should just stick to one and pray they had good instincts, or maybe-

Oh.
She’d started running with the rest of the group before her mind had time to even consider what was happening. She came to the fork and didn’t hesitate for a second, immediately darting into the first one that she saw possible (which was the first one on the far right). It seemed that, with this adrenaline-based “confidence”, some people took it to follow her, but in all reality she was just charging blindly. But it seemed to be working, so she continued, her heart still racing and her thoughts still dazed at what had come over her.

 

[Godjacob]

Five minutes was not much time.

That was the thought that ran through Asami's head, who had already began to have a miniature panic attack when she overheard what the exam would consist of. Unless one of those paths happened to be an underwater tunnel or something a maze run was not the kind of challenge she needed to have. Asami needed to maintain her hydration, something she ensured as she sprinkled some of her bottled water under her jacket into her gills, and a maze run threatened to exhaust her resources. She only had a limited amount of bottled water in her backpack, and she figured the examiners would not have been so generous as to install water fountains along the way. If she lingered on too long, she could run out and risk drying out which was the nightmare scenario...and she had no way to guarantee she'd be able to finish a maze she knew nothing about before she ran out of water.

Asami quickly settled her nerves as she tried to work out a strategy. Okay, five minutes was not enough time to really plan and it was not much help anyway given she had no idea what awaited her on the other side of the door. Which made her question the point of pairing up, given they could not even try to impede the progress of other aspiring students. All she could think to do was try to partner up with someone...but who'd want to team with her? Asami didn't know anyone present and she had never been the best at social interactions to have put that kindly so the idea of possibly needing to do just that terrified her.

Still, she had to learn to suck it up. Before the clock hit zero she'd need to try and talk to someone. Anyone. Who might be of some help to her, and after she took a moment to swallow her nerves she walked around as she tried to scout for someone who was alone as opposed to already grouping up with others. Asami had not had the best luck, which caused some more panic to set in as time seemed to be running out before the clock hit zero and she still lacked the right person to ask. This whole situation had gone south rather quickly and she...

"Hey fish face! I had no idea you decided to try out."

 

[MegaAbsol]

Hardly had Pari taken a step than- "Hello participants!" Pausing, taking a deep breath to keep her face from folding inwards into her chest from awkwardness, she slowly swiveled to face the speaker, hoping fervently the girl hadn't actually heard her before the interruption. What a timely interruption. Grumbling to herself, she heard the man through without further ado until he mentioned the time factor. First 16? Bloody speedrunners. Through a dungeon, no less. Blighttown, is that you? The introduction by the teacher filled her with only trepidation; not the exhilaration she saw in every face around her. Fight your way through a dungeon and vie for limited spots? It was a familiar concept, to be sure, but in real life...? Pari pursed her lips, casting a glance around again. Mutation quirks, enhancement quirks, emitter quirks. Breathe. A game. It's a game. Her quirk wasn't suited for anything in particular - she had never found any requirement to use it in a battle situation, only the occasional carting of drinks up to her as she played through the night. And she was competing against students who had trained their whole life for this. Students with far greater aptitude. Students who could-

"Gah!" As the countdown ended without the girl noticing, and the crowd surged forward, pulling her along with it, panic flooded the girl's mind. Even as she fought against the tide, a small whine emerged from her bag, a central point of it suddenly poking straight out, as though something was trying to escape. That Joker... Pari grinned. She might not win, but hey, you didn't have to ace the arena to get participation rewards. Worth a shot, I guess? Better to try? Amusing herself with cliche, old-school quotes, the shoving and jostling around her finally lessened as she began to lag behind the crowd. Sixteen out of hundreds. And she wasn't even particularly athletic. The only thing she could think of as a buffer were her gaming instincts. Most dungeons followed predictable patterns, and while she had no reason to believe there was the hand of an AI in the whole set-up, she still wouldn't be caught completely off-guard, even with the hand of a human behind the obstacles. After all, people designed games. If she couldn't out-run her competition....well, she'd just have to catch up on the obstacles themselves. Besides, didn't she want to join IHA? "Of...of course..." She mumbled half-heartedly to herself, pouting slightly. She wasn't the only straggler, it seemed, as she caught another glimpse of the pajama'd trio as she jogged past, toward the mouth of the descending stairway. Zipping her bag open to pick out her cards, she slipped them into her pocket before pausing at the branching pathways.

Ah. Choice. To thin out the crowd, I'd imagine. Perhaps the least crowded tunnel would be the best choice? Teaming up wasn't really in her agenda, she preferred solo play, and since the announcer had made it clear that applicants would be placed individually, Pari aimed to minimize the amount of random variables in her run through. Speedrunners normally relied on their familiarity with the landscape, but since that benefit was denied to her, she'd just have to keep sharp eye out for the second best reliance - exploitable glitches and cheats. Nothing would be perfect, surely, not even something made by the top heroes of the country. Fishing in her bag, she pulled out the first card she felt. Four of Hearts. "Tunnel number four it is!" Popping the lollipop she held into her mouth, she began a painstaking jog down her chosen tunnel, wondering what the faculty might gain from splitting up the crowd into distributed groups.

 

[Nebula-Newt]

It quickly became clear what the familiar scent that had been evading Lucas was, a few meters of twisting lefts and rights later and it was everywhere. Water. Dripping down the walls, making the air heavy with moisture and completely filling the path ahead. It was a sub terrain river littered with stepping stones that formed a treacherous way forward. Lucas stopped at the very edge of the man-made river and took a moment to watch how those around him were faring getting across. Moments later he was glad he’d hesitated when a menacing grey fin breached the surface of the water before sinking back below the surface. Even standing there coated head to toe in spectral green armour Lucas’ took a subconscious step backwards. Sharks? IHA had put bloody sharks in their obstacle course? This was a factor he certainly hadn’t been anticipating. And from the terrified faces of those around him they hadn’t been expecting it either.


With the danger of the situation now revealed people had seemed to have chosen one of two options. Some were taking each stepping stone at a painfully slow rate, desperate not to fall into the water below. The others hopping across as swiftly as humanly possible, throwing caution to the wind in an attempt to simply clear the obstacle. The boy Lucas had been following this entire time had taken the latter option and was using his canine mutation to bound across the stones with impressive speed. Lucas’ brow furrowed, the only indication of his annoyance. Without that guys sense of smell leading him to the exit he would be as lost as the next person. He’d been forced into making a risky play and although it wasn’t ideal it was all he had. Taking a short run up Lucas cleared the first gap with relative ease, landing with a firm thud on the first stepping stone. It was slick with water already, far from an ideal surface to be jumping around on. Gathering his wits about him he made a second jump. Then a third. He was beginning to find his rhythm. But it wasn’t enough, even though he was making solid progress he was still moving slowly in the grand scheme of things. Who knew what obstacles those who had taken a different route would be running into? There was a solid chance that many of the other applicants were progressing a lot faster than himself. There had to be a better way of doing this but what it was he wasn’t sure. The only things he was sure of right now was that he had to cross that finish line as quickly as possible and that he really didn’t want to slip.


A robotic sounding growl from behind sent Lucas whirling round, guard up. He was greeted by a refreshing spray of water and a gnashing set of jaws just inches from his face. Without even thinking Lucas created a sword, plunging it straight into the razor lined maw of the shark, twisting it once he felt it dig deep into the creature. He heard a satisfying snapping noise and all of a sudden the thrashing beast was quiet. It slumped there, body half submerged in water and half beached on Lucas’ perch. The boy stood stock still, breathing heavily, still shocked by the suddenness of the attack. But he was nothing if not hardy and seconds later he was sliding his blade out of the shark’s mouth and taking the chance to examine his foe more thoroughly. It wasn’t real. It seemed obvious now but in the heat of the moment this sophisticated robot had been quite convincing. Of course IHA wouldn’t use actual sharks in an entrance exam, the public outcry would be huge. But they could certainly get away with using a substitute. It seemed to have a primarily metal exoskeleton coated in sub kind of hide-like rubber substance, which also covered the rows of teeth in its mouth. So not deadly then, just strong enough to give you a good beating. Straitening back up Lucas gave the lifeless shell a solid kick, hard enough to cause it so fall back into the water with a loud splash. Now on his guard he turned and made his way over to a particularly large stone a few meters away, eyes darting around to prevent a would be assailant catching him by surprise again.


It was here that he spotted the next accomplice he would need to get out of here successfully. Her quirk was an interesting one for sure, some kind of telekinesis by the looks of things. The specifics didn’t matter, what did was that he could convince her to help him. That would be the difficult part, anybody who knew Lucas would tell you that he would be the last person you’d choose to broker an allegiance. But if there was ever a time to work on one of his weaknesses this was it. He straightened up, dusted himself off and stood dead in the middle of the girl’s path, awaiting her arrival patiently. As she drew closer Lucas could get a better look at her, short and sporting a complex auburn braid. Physically she didn’t seem very impressive but Lucas got the sense she had a lot of potential with a quirk like that under her belt.

“You there, I’d like to propose a deal. I realise the circumstances are less than ideal to be forging friendships but both the odds and time are stacked against us so I’ll keep this short. If you create a path for us moving forward I’ll defend you from whatever this maze throws at us best I can.”

 

[_obsequious]

After a brief jog through what seemed like nothing, Aspen was met with what reminded her of the circus. There were moving tunnels that resembled massive PVC pipes with magenta swirls that instantly sent a nauseating feeling through the girl. The inside of the tunnels was rigid and bumpy, with what was almost like little shelves spaced out periodically throughout it, which would make it rather difficult to walk through.
She stepped in, taken aback at the moving motion, wobbling through it, her arms out to maintain her balance. It seemed that not many people had followed her, and only a surprisingly small amount of people were behind her, struggling by the same tunnels she did. She managed through it eventually, groaning at the sight of more- many more, in fact, in the path before her.
But what caught her attention was that no noise passed through the air.
“What-“ she tried, and was just met with more silence. She knew she was speaking, but it was just.. quiet. Painfully so. It was rather creepy, actually.
Nevertheless, she continued, although rather miffed by the newfound eeriness of the route. She looked ahead, through the swirling mirage of the tunnels, and her sharp eyes caught on a pair of tall, robotic figures. Her breath hitched, although not audibly of course.
She’d been sticking to the walls, and it appeared that the robots hadn’t seen her and instead were heading for the applicants a ways behind her. Not feeling particularly chivalrous but instead rather bold, she jumped forward into the nearest tunnel, putting pressure on the ridges on her hands and feet, thus holding herself up even as the tunnel slowly moved her upside down as the robots passed through. Although she was straining, she was able to release herself and scramble up to her feet with the resistance of the spinning, hopping out and not looking back to check on the others.

Past the tunnels was something horrifically unfortunate- for anyone but Aspen.
A mirror maze lay before her, a seemingly never-ending one at that. A tiny grin rugged at her lips, a gleeful giddiness rising in her chest.
Perfect.

(Not a long post at all, sorry about that~!)

 

[Fire Mana]

As Parker made his way out of the short, normal section of the path he took, he found what could only be described as a mindfuck. The tunnels were shifting, the walls were covered in mirrors, the bright colors were disorientating, and robotic figures roamed around the place. He stopped to catch his breath for a second and maybe scope out some obstacles or other applicants. He realized he wouldn't be able to think with nauseating movements of the tunnels, and began to take steps forward when he realized something. He couldn't hear his footsteps. In fact, he couldn't hear anything. The tunnels seemed to have cut out all noise, there was nothing but deafening silence which further worsened the nauseating feeling.

Parker dizzily made his way into one of the shifting tunnels, followed by very few other people. Some of the applicants had actually passed out behind him due to the nature of the path they had taken. Most of them that had actually made it into one of the tunnels had been walking through slowly and wobbly with shaking legs. A girl caught his eye though, she had been pressing herself to the walls to help support her as she made her way through the tunnels. When a pair of the robotic sentinels had began to approach her, she lodged herself above them as the tunnel turned. She kept herself out of their view and dropped down behind them safely, being the first of the group to make it past them.

Smart girl, but not quite my style.

"Ferrum Flamma Ex Malum!"

A large two handed blade made of pure Shadow Fire appeared in the horned boy's hands. He charged at the robots, leaping from walls as they turned to keep himself on the floor. As he caught the pair of robots' attention, he held up his sword parallel to his arm. The boy ran through the mechanical enemies with a clean diagonal slash, cutting through them like butter. He kept running past the rubble that the robots had become, sheathing his blade by collapsing it with his palms. He sprinted out of the tunnel, wanting to leave it as soon as possible. However, he stopped when he saw what the next obstacle was. A maze of mirrors sprawled out in front of him, and the girl from before had seemingly stopped here as well. Although it didn't appear she stopped out of confusion or because she was stuck, in fact, she wore a smile on her face.

Well this outta be fun.

 

[Godjacob]

Asami flinched as she turned around, the voice that had called out to her was one that was oh so familiar. The last one she wanted to hear.

She turned and saw the familiar, cruel smirk on Daisuke’s face. Her seemingly personal tormentor throughout grade school who was the cause of her self-confidence issues was here; which in itself should have been far from a surprise. After all, Daisuke had made it clear on more than one occasion he desired to be the top hero so coming here was the logical next step to following through on his bold promise.

Still didn’t change the fact Asami wished that he had chosen another year to enter.

Daisuke casually strolled over towards Asami, who herself had opted to avoid eye contact even as Daisuke moved in front of her. For whatever reason Asami’s feet seemed rooted into the ground even if she would have liked nothing better than to get out of this awkward situation.

“Surprised they let you out of the fish tank to try to get in.” Daisuke said in a “joking” manner, though Asami naturally was far from a fan of Daisuke’s style of “humor” and made no comment. Daisuke seemed undeterred, as his sly smirk never wavered though he did take note of Asami’s uncomfortable body language as he felt it would be best to get to the point.

“In any event, I am glad you are here. Cause I was hoping we could team up for this run. I know I’ve said some things you likely resent me for, but I am a changed man since graduation. I think the only way I could make it up to you is to help you get into the IHA. And hey, it helps me so really it’s a win-win on both sides. What do you say?” Daisuke said as he made his rather surprising offer to Asami. On one hand, she detested Daisuke and had an inability to trust him over…anything, considering they had a long history at school to have been rather kind.

On the other hand, Asami felt she needed a partner and with time ticking down before the start of the exam and the fact is he was the first one to make the offer to her. So while it was a bit of a gamble, she considered the mutual benefit might have played a role in his decision and decided to roll the dice as she finally, but nervously, looked Daisuke in the eye and gave a weak nod.

“Alright!” Daisuke said with a grin as he and Asami then heard the countdown which signaled the start of the entrance exam, and both opted to travel through tunnel number two unaware of what awaited them on the other side.

 

[kyuukestu]

Gwenrhian

A shimmering oceanic blue glow tinted the skin around Gwenrhian's eyes and her already acute senses went into hyper drive. Vivid pupils swam back and forth, scanning the crowd of students for anything of note. The only notable thing was the lack thereof of notable things.

The triplets moved along at the crowd's rear, leaving the students ahead of them to sacrifice themselves by scouting out the dangers of the maze. Surprisingly, the first section of the maze was perfectly empty, to the point where Gwenrhian begun nervously observing the walls in anticipation of traps. Any moment now, she expected the maze's door to abruptly snap shut, and the ceiling to lower, releasing a classic boulder trap. Or maybe tiny panels would flip open on the adjacent walls and pepper the group with arrows or darts.

The anxious teen was however destined to be disappointed. The group very casually made they way to an 5-way intersection. The trio of troublesome triplets tackled the third trail thinking to themselves that 'triplets were tied to the number three', truly the type of trifling, tentative reasoning taken straight from a tall tale. The third path consisted of a sprawling jungle, thick with undergrowth. It was hot, humid and certainly the type of environment that would ruin pajamas. Gwenrhian hesitated, wondering whether another path would've been more traversable. She hesitated just long enough to notice an enthusiastic student barreling through the vegetation only to rather abruptly stagger to the side and collide magnificently with a tree bringing new meaning to the words tree hugger.

The triplets all gasped in shock, though each for completely different reasons. Gwenrhian's spectacular vision allowed her to take notice of a small insect that flew off the student's body after he'd collapsed, and she was gasping over the sheet potency of the insect's venom. Her eyes narrowed in thought and she leaped into action, stripping two thin branches from a nearby tree and flipping them about her fingers. Wielding the branches like chopsticks, she snapped at the insect, intent on capturing it. Gweniera...hadn't been paying attention to the student at all, instead her eyes were fixed on the vegetation around her, gasping in sheer amazement of the variety of materials available with which to experiment with. Caught up in the moment, she scurried off and begun uprooting what plants she could, and picking the buds of those she couldn't. The youngest of the trio, Gwenery, was, in fact, gasping at that student's horrible fashion sense, the clash of colors that decorated their clothing was practically a fallacy in her eyes. She marched over to the comatose student and shook them awake, and when the confused and disoriented student came to, she begun lecturing him on why his pants didn't go together with that color jacket.

 

[MegaAbsol]

The sky was hollow and the wind was sweet. The air inside her studio was dead.

A big fat drop of water fell squarely on Pari's nose, causing her to flinch and shake her head, blinking in surprise. "Ehh, water. Nice, nice." She commented dryly as the cavern soon gave way to what was basically an underground river. There was a thin, sparse trail of rocks, presumably requiring the aspirants to jump from one to the other to cross the daunting obstacles, but no way failing in a step had no penalization. Failure came with repercussions, she decided, letting the crowd mill and then again as she watched from the sidelines. And so it was no surprise when a boy lunged sideways, just narrowly avoiding a shark with a, and get this, sword to the throat. Straight out of DnD, she cackled. The display of strength as well as reveal of what lurked beneath the surface was enough to daunt people aside sufficiently to allow Pari an unfettered try at it.

"Gah! Arceus above-" She bit her tongue as her shoe slipped almost immediately on the first stone, and impact with the water and the subsequent demons lurking beneath seemed imminent, but again, her bag jolted upwards, the poker cards inside holding up Pari through sheer force of will, and while she yelped and dangled in mid-air, flailing wildly, the cards neatly escaped her hand, quickly slotting together to form a sizeable 7x7 platform, while the spare 3 cards hovered around, whizzing around frantically to mirror Pari's panic. The girl finally gathered her wits about enough to drop onto the platform, and stood there poised on her knees, trembling all over from the rush of adrenaline. Breathing heavily, she began shakily to lower the platform so she could return to the safety of dry land but a shark chose at that moment to antagonise her, the AI deciding she was evidently close enough to warrant an attack. "What the fffuuuu-- uuureesshh avocado!" Pari decided to be meta and censor her words for the sake of the audience and imminent author as well as any readers hovering about watchfully. She let out some sort of snarl, a guttural choke as with a sweep of her hands, the three cards pummeled into the mechanical bot's side, two of them bouncing off the metal hide (and so pushing it off the platform it had decided to beach itself on) but one decided to shoot hard enough to pass clear through the body and emerge the other side, sparking slightly, but victorious. Of course it was the Joker. It had to be. Who else would it be. Despite the fresh wave of fright, she found it in herself to roll her eyes dramatically.

"Nope. Nope. Nope. Yo, J. Get back here." She mumbled, hopping off indignantly onto dry ground again, feeling her knees knock against each other as her legs continued to shake from panic. Surges of adrenaline were common, mostly during PvP games; but this...this was new. Where in a protected environment she could focus the wave into reflexes, noticing details, quicker finger movement and thus cinching a game at many a crucial moment, this was different. This impeded, this frightened, this filled her with no excitement and a sense of challenge, this- this-- ...this thrilled her. This was real. Drawing a deep shuddering breath, before releasing it to calm herself, she carefully stepped to the side to reevaluate her life choices and what poor turn of events led to her being here in this time and place.

"Think, Marshall." Muttering to herself, she brought a thumb up to her mouth, nibbling on it lightly. She wasn't endowed with agility, which seemed to be what most aspirants were banking to get through. Some were taking it slow with measured, slow steps, displaying supreme balance. Land was out of the way for her. No way she could do it. It only took her forever to learn the jumping parts in Disc Hop. Water was...yeah, no. No way she was going for a date with the sharks. Even if mechanical, Pari doubted if the robots would have second thoughts about grinding her up into dinner - as far as the regulations of IHA allowed them. The only route left...the gamer's eyes swung upwards, staring rather reverently at nothing in particular. The sky was hollow and the wind wa-

"You there-" Well. Rude. Interrupting her poetic internal monologue like that. Fuming like a bubbling kettle, she turned, mouth formed into a pout as she faced her engager. A male, an aspirant no doubt, brown hair, hoodie (ooh!), and interestingly enough, what seemed to be a wavering, ethereal suit of armour on him. Syzygy. Yes, that's what it reminded her of. Ah, this was the boy who had struck the shark with a sword. Her pout dropped quickly, turning into admiration for the fascinating quirk. Some physical based hybrid of quirks. Balanced bruiser. Decent enough against mech bots, who were typically well-endowed with rounded out stats and were usually end-game bosses. Tanks get all the fun, she inwardly sighed. Wait. Had he said something about a deal?

"A deal, huh. Well, I'd appreciate that!" The wording had been suspicious, especially the part where he mentioned 'whatever the maze throws at us' but Pari quickly learnt to take it literally as she looked aside in time to see someone get knocked into the water with a round rubber projectile - a ball? Ah. So...not figurative then. Well, to be fair, that's how it worked. Support and tanks draw aggro and buff to let the DPS do their job. Turning her attention back to the male, she let her attention hover on him for a second, tilting her head quizzically. His greater knowledge of the maze was likely due to him pulling ahead or atleast being part of the major crowd that led the venture. He also seemed to have purpose and the incentive to complete his goals, knowing when to accept help from others and when to ask. Good team player, innovative, fair bargainer (that was a fair deal) and seemingly no malice or intention to sabotage her attempts. Did he know that he'd be handicapped by her slow movements? That she was, in theory, benefiting more than him? And worse still, what if he did? Pity?

Pulling her face into a determined frown, she nodded decisively at him, turning to focus on the work. As cards began to stack with impressive speed, a single slip (the eight of clubs) entered the treacherous waters, and the momentary froth on the surface showed the efforts of the aqua dwellers. But the boost of confidence she received soon after was one that could have only been given by the sight of an unscathed card. The sharks were tough...but her cards were tougher. The ramp she formed of her battle deck expanded slightly, allowing for a somewhat tight squeeze for the male, courtesy of his armour, but she didn't want any others freeloading off of her cards - the Diamonds particularly were touchy about other people coming in physical contact. As the slope upwards formed, a few of the clubs hovered up next to the horizontal floor, expanding to cover the seven feet or so between the card surface and the ceiling of the tunnel, essentially creating an enclosed space that prevented further intervention from the projectiles wandering around. "Shall we?" Staring at the card bridge, with palpable concentration, she asked with the detachment total focus brought. As the last few cards moved to hover at the end of where the bridge ended, jutting out into thin, empty air, Pari moved to take a step onwards.

 

[Nebula-Newt]

Lucas was surprised, pleasantly so, by how quickly he’d convinced the card slinging female to partner up with him. He doubted it had been his less than charismatic way of introduction so either she was desperate, taken by surprise or figured that he would be just as useful to her as she was to him. Regardless he felt a great weight lift from his shoulders as he watched her get to work, multiple cards working together flawlessly to create a makeshift bridge courtesy of their diminutive commander. Talk about a nightmare at poker night. But also a hell of a utility quirk, the possibilities of what you could do with something like that were practically endless. As an onlooker he was impressed at how many individual pieces she was controlling at once, he could barely control one set of armour if he wasn’t wearing it. Perhaps his choice of teammate had been even more optimal than he’d originally thought.


Hearing the girl’s invitation to begin crossing the bridge Lucas gave a firm nod, letting her know that his resolve hadn’t taken a hit. He did notice the distance in her voice however, like she was thinking about something else. It didn’t take a genius to figure out what. Her bridge, getting into IHA, mechanical sharks, take your pick. Stepping onto the first card it became apparent that getting through was going to be a bit of a squeeze, the extra girth provided by his armour causing his shoulders to scrape against the surface of the cards. Small showers of sparks rained down from the points where his armour made contact with the bridge as he made his way forward, not enough to concern Lucas however, no, the main issue here was that his manoeuvrability had been reduced to practically nothing. He wasn’t even confident in his ability to turn around, let alone put up a fight should one of the mechanical sharks decide they fancied a meal with a little extra crunch.


With a shake of his head he pushed that fought to the back of his mind, gritting his teeth as he focused on the back of his auburn haired partner’s head. It was all he could do at the moment to follow her and listen to the sounds beyond the walls of their little bridge. The solid thuds of rubber balls. Surprised yelps from those who lost their footing. And worst of all the frenzied splashing of those bloody sharks. That one he tried to ignore. Over the bobbing head of his companion he could now see a fairly large platform coming into view, an almost literal light at the end of the tunnel. Subconsciously he began to move slightly faster, fuel being poured upon the slowly dwindling fire that was his resolve. He had no doubt that between the two of them they could take on pretty much anything this maze could have to throw at them. It wouldn’t be easy but they could do it.


It was at this moment that Lucas realised there was something strange about the scene ahead. The boy with the wolf quirk had reached the large platform but now stood stock still all by his lonesome as if some unknown force was holding him there. Why wasn’t he taking advantage of his lead? Something was all wrong about this and Lucas felt a led ball drop into his stomach when he realised exactly what it was. Beneath the boy’s feet was a pressure plate, a small red light winking away merrily at its centre now that it had been triggered. So he’d sprung a trap but what was it? Nothing inherently bad seemed to have happened to him, no flurry of arrows, no swarm of mechanical bees (To be fair that might be a little to nuts even for the bastards who stuck robot sharks in their maze). Perhaps a dud? Then he felt it. A rumbling far behind them that resonated through the ground, enough so that a few other applicants were toppled from their perches. Unable to fully turn around in the confined space Lucas’ could barely turn his head to look back at what was coming. A wave. It surged round the last bend behind them with incredible speed, a wall of white froth and unrelenting power. For perhaps half a second Lucas was frozen, transfixed by the approaching danger. The mesmerising beauty of the water hiding the threat that it held. Snapping out of it he did the only thing he could, he ran. With no time to wait for the girl in front he simply scooped her up into his armour clad arms and kept running relived to find that she was as light as her height would suggest. An apology would have to come later, for now he hoped that the poor lass would be too concerned about the wave to care about being manhandled. Lucas hurtled down the last stretch of the bridge faster than he’d ever ran in his life only for his hopes to be dashed as he spotted a metal grate lowering into place just ahead of them.

“Oh come on!” He growled through gritted teeth, the sound of rushing water now deafening in his ears as it continued to catch up to him with ease. He slid to a halt upon the platform that had triggered the trap, almost slipping upon the wet stone thanks to the speed he’d been running. Unwilling to turn around he instead focused his attention on the grate before him. Constructed entirely of metal it seemed solid in all aspects. None the less he had nothing to lose so rammed it with his shoulder. The results were poor, a slight shudder and little else. Lucas’ mind ran a mile a minute, adrenaline pushing him to do something, anything. But his rational mind stopped him from acting desperately. There was only one move left to make that would do him any good. Placing Pari gently down on the ground he turned and faced the wave. So close now. Other students were already caught up in it, blurs of colour in the swirling blue.

“Brace yourself, this is going to hurt.” He warned Pari, pulling from his energy reserves to increase the size of his armour till it stood at least 7ft tall, a dully glowing hulk in the dimly lit tunnel. Morphing his sword into a colossal shield Lucas planted it firmly against the ground and knelt behind it, body braced and eyes closed as he waited for the inevitable wall of water. And then just like that everything was turned on its head and the world became a swirling mess of confusion.

 

[_obsequious]

Ah. Shadow boy returns.
She could tell that she’d definitely caught his eye, more so the vaguely elated smirk planted on her lips. He seemed somewhat wary of her, although intrigued. She cast a side-look at him before turning towards him, opening her mouth to speak only to shut it before she tried saying anything.
Right, the weird sound barrier.
Dedicated to the cause, though, she took a rather huffy breath (which was silent), and looked at him.
“You,” she mouthed, pointing towards him. “And I.” She pointed at herself. “Can work together.”
She touched her pinky to her thumb, emphasizing the together. She then mouthed “follow me?”, and stuck out her hand, although she didn’t wait for him to take it and instead turned her back to him, facing the maze.
Alright. Just some basic light manipulation. Calm down, Asp, geez. You’ve done this, like, a kajillion times.
With that in mind and a deep breath, the girl focused her energy on the palm of her hand, willing the light to form, and, as all was planned, a rather blinding orb of light formed in her hand. The warmth flooded her palm in a calming way, and for a moment she moved it between her hands, urging it to grow until she was confident with its size. Casting a final look at the horned boy beside her, she threw her hand forward into the maze, shooting the ball of light into the myriad of mirrors before her, where it bounced and reflected off the mirrors, leaving a rather clear path before her. She turned to flash the boy a vaguely smug, somewhat charming grin before stepping into the maze.
Getting through was rather easy, with the help from the beam of light guiding her through, and after a little over ten minutes she’d finished. She stepped out of the maze with a certain air of confidence, a proud look on her freckled face. But now.. in front of her stood- or sat, rather, a huge robotic Sphinx. She stood and stared for a moment, puzzled, until she heard it speak. As in, actually speak, which was honestly very exciting which was honestly very pathetic.

“What walks on four legs in the morning, two in the afternoon, and three in the evening?”

Aspen sighed bitterly.
Riddles. Of course.

 

[kyuukestu]

Gwenrhian

Having temporarily split to complete tasks that tickled their fancy, the three siblings reunited; Gwenrhian and Gweneira having made physical gains in the small insect and a plethora of plants, and Gwenerys having gained spiritually after enlightening a lost soul with the aesthetic gospel. However, while her two younger sister's actions had no immediate benefit, Gwenrhian had gone bug catching precisely because of the immediate benefits. The minute buzzing, evidence of the robotic insect's struggle, was transmitted as small vibrations through the branches to Gwenrhian's sensitive fingers and skin, and with a deft flick of those same fingers, she passed the insect over to Gweneira. "This...thing... It's got some sort of sedative in it, I saw it fly off that collapsed student, think you can whip up an antidote or some sort of countermeasure?"

While she didn't have much hope for an antidote, the eldest Gwen, figured that IHA would've put something in the forest that would've helped hem deal with the bugs. That or they were practically condemning everyone without an armor-type quirk or innate resistance to sedatives to failure. Falling asleep would lose a candidate far too much time, and even getting hit once might eliminate you from the race with no hopes of catching up. An antidote to the sedative would work best, but that would take time, and until then the triplets would need to stick to each other. Those bugs couldn't possibly knock out all three of them simultaneously, so they would be forced to take the most direct counter and simply wake up whoever fell asleep. An annoying, yet effective strategy.

The triplets proceeded through the forest, their pajama's now hopelessly ruined by abrupt dizzy spells which sent the affected sister plummeting to the forest floor smearing it with dirt or causing the sleepwear to snag on any nearby branches. Although they made steady progress, Gwenerys' eyes flickered maliciously at every passing tree, and her desire to set the entire forest ablaze raged like the sea of flames it would surely create. The rules of the examination, however, ensured that her two siblings would allow no such thing. While the forest was infuriating and had frustrated some more than others, it posed no real threat to the three-woman cell. That all changed when an almost inaudible whoosh entered Gwenrhian's ears. She may not have known exactly what it was, but she did know that whatever it was, it was heading straight towards them. Grabbing onto her younger siblings, she dived right into the nearest patch of shrubbery, two identical cries of surprise blending into one as Gweneira and Gwenerys fell head over heels at their sister's behest. At that moment, a thin object zipped through the air and pinned itself to a tree, passing right through the spot when Gweneira had been standing. A quick glance from Gwenrhian identified the object as a blow dart, a weapon she was very familiar with as it was apart of the hero costume designs she'd drafted up. Judging from the way it'd landed, it'd been shot from the right, and as Gwenrhain turned her head to see their assailant, she was greeted with, what she was sure was, the oddest sight the school had to offer. There, hidden by a bush almost taller than they were, were four tiny...things, wearing Tiki masks the size of a small shield. As the tribal hunters emerged from their point of ambush, their figure was revealed. Barely 4 ft tall, and butt naked save for what appeared to be a grass skirt and the aforementioned tiki mask. They had odd decorative patterns painted on their skin, and in their hands, they carried dart pipes several inches long.

All things considered, Gwenrhain was the team's only form of combat prowess, and while she was confident of facing the tiny hunters, she wasn't sure how many more of them they were and getting blindsided by another dart would surely be disastrous. Well, when all else fails, retreat. She looked at her two sisters and slowly mouthed the word, R-U-N!

Two figures sprinted from the bushels, fleeing into the forest with all due haste. The Tiki's hopped around excitedly, the thrill of the hunt invigorating them as they raced after their prey. As they blitzed past the triplet's previous hiding spot, another hunter, one with ocean blue eyes, watched carefully. Once she was sure the tiki's had gone past her, Gwenrhian arose, scrambling to her feet and then clambering her way up a nearby tree. Taking to the treetops she leaped across branches and swung across vines in a way that even Tarzan would've been proud of. She swiftly closed the distance between herself and the tiki's below her and as neared them, her feet clamped down around a sturdy branch beneath her, the branch acting as an anchor and pivot point. Her forward momentum was hindered, and with the aid of gravity, she arced downwards in circular motion. Her timing was precise, and her downwards swing perfectly overlapped with the path traveled by the last tiki in the group as he ran. The startled hunter had little time to react as Gwenrhian plucked him from the ground and completed her arc, carrying both her body and her catch back into the trees. The tiki's unaware companions continued rushing onwards, none the wiser to their abrupt drop in numbers.

The same scene played out thrice more, the two younger siblings willing bait to allow their eldest sister to deal with their pursuers. A fine example of The mantis stalking the Cicada, unaware of the Oriole behind, or in simpler terms, the hunter becoming the hunted. With all their pursuers taken care of, the two fleeing triplets came to a stop, and soon after, Gwenrhian dropped down to join them. The three exchanged subtle glances and then nodded simultaneously.

A short while later three female figures emerged from a particularly dense patch of shrubbery. They were cloaked in grass woven skirts and tops that covered what was important but left their midriff exposed. However, most attention-grabbing of all were the large tiki masks that adorned their faces, and the exotic markings which lined their skin (courtesy of simple dye pounded from nearby plants.) In combination with their wild, white hair the triplets were a sight to behold, but, on the bright side, their pajamas were no longer a point of concern.

 

[Godjacob]

"Man, it's so cold in here."

"I-I never would have guessed they'd use something like this for an entrance exam."

Asami as well as Daisuke had moved through the entrance of their path and found what appeared to be a winter wonder land waiting for them. The path, and most of everything around them, had been covered in ice. Though the areas that were not seemed to extend to just some sections of the wall as the ice path seemed to give way to a deep abyss on both sides. Asami really wondered about the safety regulations of this, as one wrong slip off the edge would certainly mean a painful and perhaps fatal fall to the bottom.

As if this was not a tricky enough course already, there appeared to be a series of faint red lasers along it. Almost like in any classic spy movie typically seen in museum security, and while neither Asami or Daisuke had a guess for what those lasers led to they had to assume that it could only lead to trouble. Perhaps some traps or some other obstacles that would be produced if they crossed it; Daisuke even guessed they might be heat lasers to burn the aspiring students which would cause them to perhaps panic and slip off the edge.

Though Asami herself would not guess personally they'd go that far if she were asked about it. In any event she scanned ahead as she wondered the best way to maneuver around the ice as the slippery path offered them no easy way to navigate it and the lasers. Daisuke seemed to already have an idea himself as he quickly produced some chains from his palms and shot them a little ahead of himself as they stuck themselves deep into the icy path. Daisuke then simply pulled against his own chains as they slid himself forward as he began to make progress.

Asami swore Daiuske shot him a smug smirk as he advanced, but she shook her head and convinced herself she simply was seeing things as she focused on the ice before her. Asami felt her powers offered her little aid here...before she glanced back at her tail and the ice before her as she also became inspired.

Placing herself on the ground, belly first, she pushed herself forward as she began to slide on the ice. Much like a penguin which would be in heaven in a place like this, Asami used her tail as a steering mechanism to keep herself on course and avoid drifting too far to one edge or the other as she began to follow Daisuke.

Neither had any clue what awaited them as they approached the lasers, but they felt they were prepared for anything. In spite of their differences, they knew what this meant to them and as such had to give it their all & avoid costly mistakes. Which may be the only thing to give this partnership a chance to succeed.

 

[Fire Mana]

Parker put his hands in his pockets as the girl took a step towards him. She looked as if she was about to say something when they both remembered she couldn't talk in here. He grasped the gist of what she was trying to say with her hand motions and mouthing of words. The horned boy almost reached his hand out to take hers before she retracted her arm and turned back to the mirrors.

Tsk

The boy annoyedly put his hand back in his pocket and followed the girl as she seemed to use some sort of light reflection to guide herself through the maze. The two of them ended up in a large room with a robotic Sphinx in the center of it. There was a door behind the Sphinx was tightly shut.

"What walks on four legs in the morning, two in the afternoon, and three in the evening?"

The Sphinx's robotic mouth moved as it spoke, and the girl next to Parker seemed utterly lost as it did so. He sighed a silent sigh and pushed past her as he made his way to a large chalkboard in front of the Sphinx. He had to admit, it would be rather misleading for most people to see the chalkboard be this large. It made it seem as though the answer had to be longer than they thought, while in truth the actual answer was a single three letter word. He knealt down on one knee and picked up a piece of chalk, dragging it across the board.

MAN

He put down the piece of chalk and walked to the back of the Sphinx, where the large door was beginning to slide open. He turned and smiled a smug, slightly detestable smile at the girl before walking out the door.

 

[_obsequious]

Aspen managed an inaudible scoff as the boy practically shoved past her, her hand immediately going to the shoulder he’d bumped and shooting him a sharp glare. Daggers in both a brown and blue eye, wholeheartedly directed at him, paired with a rather pout-y scowl. She had nothing to do but idle as he scrawled his answer across the chalkboard present, and (although she hated to admit it), it appeared that he was correct, as the heavy door behind the Sphinx slowly opened.

Annoyed, she puffed out her cheek and started walking, turning back to the chalkboard to study the answer that had flown over her head.

“Man”.

She blinked at the word for a moment, puzzled, before it finally came to her much too late and she swore silently at missing it, stomping her foot on the ground in defeat. Noticing the oh-too-smug grin he shot her, Aspen tensed up, her brow furrowing, her fingernails lightly digging into her palm as she clenched her fist in annoyance. This boy really, really knew how to get on her nerves, didn’t he? Seriously, who did he think he was?
She turned to the chalkboard and quickly began scribbling a reply, and turned around when she was finished. He’d already made it to the doorway, so naturally (as anyone would), she shot a tiny beam of light at him to get his attention. Not enough to hurt him, certainly. Not enough to hurt anything, really. Just enough to turn his attention to her message, displayed on the chalkboard in somewhat messy handwriting.

i got us out of the maze, so now we’re even. dont get too cocky, shadow boy!! >:[[

Honestly, the angry face at the end wasn’t nearly as intimidating as she’d wanted it to be, but that didn’t matter. Once she was sure he’d seen it, she stalked towards him, back towards the door, stepping into the next part of the maze. And, although she’d never admit it, she did look back to check if he was still following her.

 

[MegaAbsol]

Things has escalated very quickly. From controlling the cards to constantly be on the move, the ones they had crossed moving ahead to continue building the bridge even as they moved, and inwardly complaining at how sparks cascaded down at the unwelcome contact on the boy's armour on her cards, to her suddenly noting that now they were sprinting, and she was being literally carried by the boy. With a surprised yelp, her first instinct was to freeze up, tensing at the sudden proximity and being carried bridal style, no less - atleast her cards continued to move on their own, much like a game when a string of commands had been issued and they meticulously carry out the orders unsupervised. Up close, she could feel the chill of the armour seeping past her jacketed arm, and the steady thud of the boy's rhythmic footsteps as he dashed from some unseen assailant. That's when she heard it - for the second time in like, five minutes, the surge of adrenaline allowed her to snap to focus, hearing the distant roar of water. Large body, approaching quickly. A wave? Not that she could exactly look - even as she hesitantly craned her neck to look around the boy's shoulder, anxiously chewing her lip, he came to a stop and just as abruptly as he had initiated the carrying, he ended it. Suddenly finding solid ground beneath her feet again, Pari paused as the boy gently set her to her feet. Unsteadily finding her balance, she turned, face contorting in horror as she took in the full view of the approaching leviathan.

So this is how I die, she chuckled in cynical humour, taking a step back as the boy - come to think of, he hadn't introduced himself - rammed his shoulder against the grate she hadn't really noticed. Swallowing, she turned to the wave at the same time the male did, taking in the grimness of the situation. Time to get inventive. Maybe I could i-frame through it. She chuckled again, wait what the heck this was at her expense, think, Marshall! With a sweep of her hand, the bridge of cards appeared at her side, arcing neatly in their characteristic flowing manner, cards shrinking to the right side as they came to a standstill. The visualization of a wall only took a fraction of a second - it was the building that took time. Regardless, she'd give it her best shot, even as the wave was terrifyingly close-

She paused again as the boy's armour suddenly flared into existence, and his weapon seemingly morphed into a battering ram of a shield. But what caught her attention wasn't the versatility, but- is that candy? The dull green mountain of metal was translucent in colour and otherwise nondescript in features, leading it to look like a melted pile of rock candy. Pursing her lips to staunch the urge to lick the mound before her, even as cards around her sprang to life, she settled with reaching out to wonderingly touch it. On to more important matters than some girl drooling over candy-lookalikes, the cards were building what essentially looked like a giant pencil. Four cards swirled to join their breadth sides to form a point, while others simply built around from that point, making a kind of pointy wall, giving the wave a sturdy point to break, rather than taking the force full-bodied in an attempt to resist it. Hopefully, allowing the crest to breach would allow the boy to tank the rest of the force - once he was free from the whole curious poking of his armour.

 

[Nebula-Newt]

A gentle touch was the last thing Lucas was expecting to feel as he braced himself for the impact of the wave, much less one coming from behind him. Briefly distracted he turned to face the source of this unwanted contact only to find it was his companion who seemed worryingly unconcerned about the elephant in the tunnel. It was only as he gazed down at her, unimpressed by whatever it was she was attempting to do that he registered the graceful movements of her deck of cards. They were creating a makeshift wall complete with a point to serve as a breaker, seemingly without the direct attention of their owner. How impressi- the wave suddenly broke against the barrier, releasing the huge well of power it contained and forcing the entire wall backwards and into Lucas’ shield. The force was immense. Lucas’ armoured feet slid backwards as he was pushed by an invisible giant, water pouring over the top of the cards and drenching him head to toe. He could hear the screams of other applicants already consumed by their pursuer. Gritting his teeth he put his all into trying to at least halt the wave’s progress but it was in vain, he was forced into the metal grate with such power that he felt it almost give way. With no room left to push the water spilled over the wall of cards entirely, dousing the two sheltering behind it and passing through the holes in the grate. For a few brief moments the world was little more than a blur of abstract blues and greys. And then as quickly as it had begun it was over, the final vestiges of the trap dripping from the stone platform and into the river.

Suddenly feeling drained Lucas allowed his armour to dissipate, leaving him kneeling on the wet ground and the only person not absolutely drenched from head to toe. He glanced to the side and noted the card wielder was relatively okay, not pressed into the grate the same way he had been thanks to the size of his armour providing a buffer for her. Most of the other students hadn’t fared so well. They lay scattered around the place in various positions, all of them absolutely soaked to the bone, but at the very least they all seemed alive. Spotting one guy lying face down on the edge of the platform Lucas gathered what little energy he had and sluggishly made his way over to him. Upon closer inspection he was clearly breathing so Lucas used his limited medical knowledge to flip him over and get him into the recovery position. Knowing full well that the clock was still ticking and that the race was still on Lucas somewhat begrudgingly left the guy, reasoning that there would be IHA staff on standby to help him if his condition got any worse. Besides, he had a plan.


“I feel I owe you an introduction before we continue any further down this path together.” Lucas explained in his usual calm and measured voice as he made his way back over to the closest person he could call an ally in this every man for themselves ordeal. “Lucas Ward, thanks for the assist back there. I doubt I would have fared particularly well by myself. That being said I need to ask another favour of you.”

And with that Lucas went on to outline the details of his new plan best he could, hoping that he sounded more sure of its success than he actually was. It was hardly a masterpiece at the end of the day and plenty could go wrong but it was all he had. And with a little luck it would be all either of them needed. Luckily for the hopeful hero to be it would seem Pari was just as determined to score a place her as him (Either that or she was just one hell of a thrill seeker) as she actually agreed to participate in his scheme.

“You won’t regret this choice Pari.” He assured her, even attempting a reassuring smile before striding away with purpose, all business once more. It didn’t take too long for him to find what he was looking for, about 10 meters away was another grate, not lowered yet but poised in the ceiling waiting for its chance to trap some poor applicants. He made his way over to it as swiftly as he could whilst still being wary of falling into the water until he stood directly beneath the metal teeth, eyes now scanning the tunnel for something a little bit more difficult to see. But there! About 5 feet away from where he stood, another pressure pad, its outline barely distinguishable from this distance. But it would do for what he had in mind. Shaking off the fatigue that threatened to defeat him Lucas summoned his set of armour once more, the cold cutting deeper now that he was damp. The spectral knight quickly grew in size until it was as big as before, easily 7 feet tall, head almost bumping against the ceiling. Checking to see that Pari was in position he was glad to note that she seemed ready, her part of the plan complete. She was turning out to be quite the useful companion. He would have to show his gratitude to her when this was all over.


Well here goes nothing. Lucas sighed internally, hurling his sword towards the pressure plate, watching with baited breath as it flew through the air before smashing down on the plate and bouncing off into the water. It was enough. Now the metal teeth of the grate were grinding down on his armoured shoulders, fighting against him in an effort to reach the ground. And then in the far distance, the terribly familiar sound of rumbling water.

 

[MegaAbsol]

Hardly was Pari done drooling over the armour than the dreaded barrier arrived - the wave breached through, but even as the cards hastily flew around and apart in an effort to complete the formation she had in mind, the broken crest simply cleared the top of her 'shield', splattering her with water before the actual impact against the boy. The shock of water brought her to her senses, and instinctively her cards bunched closer together, trying to form a protective shell. Just as well - without them as a buffer, the fragile gamer likely wouldn't have survived getting crushed against the grate as she did. The armoured male had skidded closer, colliding into her and pushing her backwards into the metal mesh, and that had given her just barely enough time to roll out of the way before their defenses gave and the boy was forced into where she had been standing moments ago. The broken patchwork of cards she had before her offered little defense against the water itself (though it seemed to block a few other things like rubble, debris and people) and terror took over as the wave descended, compressing her with its sheer force. Fighting for breath, she opened her mouth to draw in breath and got only water. She was drowning.

And just as suddenly as it had started, the agony ended, and the water quickly subsided, leaving her to limply fall to the ground with the receding wave. Coughing up what she had inhaled, and fighting the urge to throw up altogether, she lay there on her hands and knees, soaking wet and shuddering. With a groan, she pushed herself into a sitting position, taking the support of a card against her back, wiping the trickles of water off her face to survey the damage. Most other applicants were in the same position as her, some worse. Her half-lidded eyes flitted over to the boy she had partnered with - he seemed to be better off, being able to stand and walk, and her eyes opened wider as he moved to a nearby unconscious applicant, moving him into the foetal recovery position. And despite the obvious signs of fatigue, he came back towards her, talking as though they hadn't just survived a literal tsunami.

“I feel I owe you an introduction before we continue any further down this path together.” Yeah, same. “Lucas Ward, thanks for the assist back there. I doubt I would have fared particularly well by myself. That being said I need to ask another favour of you.” Lucas, are you out of your mind? Feeling the second wave of nausea, she paused him by holding up a hand, shutting her eyes to concentrate on not vomiting for the second time in as many minutes. Her muscles were still shuddering from the sudden impact, and unlike the boy before her, she wasn't used to rough treatment or strenuous activity. Heck, if she hadn't just survived a freaking wave, she'd joke that a gust of wind could snap her in half. This whole gauntlet sure did wonders for one's self-confidence, huh? If she could survive a natural disaster, she better be able to cinch a win in the next MOBA she picked up. Growling away the dizziness, and rubbed her eyes before focusing on the boy again. "Likewise. I'm Pari." It surprised her as to how evenly her words came out, instead of an incoherent sentence. Despite trembling from a mix of the cold water and the adrenaline (she felt like she'd just fought Nami) she managed a steady gaze as the boy introduced himself.

As the boy went on to explain his plan, Pari's hope and gaze gradually dropped. This man was a lunatic, clearly. It was like walking into a raid unarmed and improvising. She loved it. But she also feared for her life. "Hey, instead of that how about we just walk through the g-" Aaaaand he was gone. Her suggestion faded to appalled silence, staring after him in incomprehension. Her admiration towards him at looking after other less fortunate candidates despite being tired himself faded away to a sort of awe at what he was about to do. It really wasn't her style to go for all-or-nothing plans but the boy seemed set on it. Her lips pursed as she momentarily paused to contemplate when this partnership might be turning toxic, but that was quickly replaced with haste to carry out what he had proposed.

Once again, her cards whizzed into place, sharing none of her physical fatigue. The one redeeming factor of her quirk - the mind and body were separate. Pari made sure to scramble onto the first sizeable platform it formed and then sat there, watching her cards closely as they got to work. Paying actual attention led to better architecture, and the half-ovoid body she was forming was being double-checked to be sturdy and water-proof. Watching with trepidation and a sinking feeling in her stomach as she recalled the terror of being nearly drowned, she cast glances at frequent intervals towards Lucas as he positioned himself as he had planned. Moving the still-forming vessel closer to him, even as cards whirled around, forming the last of the edges, she heard, once more, the distant sound of water - further than she had heard last time due to the lack of attention, but it also gave her more time to tense up for it. Come on, one last time. Her hands clenched around the hoodie sleeves. "Get on when you can." She warned him, bracing herself on her knees now as her finished 'boat' hovered next to him.

 

[kyuukestu]

Gwen-all

It'd been a few hours since the triplets had changed attire, and at Gwenerys' behest, they'd taken their new clothing for a test drive. Long story short, they'd spent far too much time goofing off and scaring their fellow candidates half to death and were now rushing through the forest to ensure their spots in the top 16. They, surprisingly, hadn't been targeted by any more of the small Tiki hunters, instead, whenever they passed by any of the petite natives, they would cast queer looks while the trio hurried along.

The true, most troubling aspect of this jungle path was the robotic beasts who the triplets were less than capable of dealing with. While, fortunately, the trio had gathered weapons from their latest hunt, unfortunately, darts did jack squat to the steel exterior of the mechanical monstrosities. Most encounters consisted of Gweneira and Gwenerys fleeing in every which direction, while Gwenrhian, daughter of Tarzan, brawled with the beasts to limited effect. They weren't completely incapable of dealing with the beasts, but they didn't have any real solutions to the robots other than 'drop them from really high with Gwenerys' quirk', which honestly took far too much time and wasn't very rewarding. The maneuver was a swift one, where Gwenerys would graze he beast with any part of her body, and wait for her eldest sister to knock it skyward (Usually with by sliding under the creature and then kicking it upwards with both her legs), once the creature had left the ground, Gwenerys took full control of its flight path, and the creature was forced to ascend steadily until Gwenerys released her almost telekinetic grip.

The middling sibling, Gweneira, was left out of these maneuvers, her quirks and concoctions completely ineffective against non-living opponents. She'd attempted to concoct organic acids with her small repertoire of plants, however, Organic acids were characteristically weak, and the best she'd come up with so far only managed to give Gwenrhain a slight rash when the girl had accidentally spilled the green liquid on herself. That minor incident had led to the triplets trooping off to a river to wash off the irritating liquid. They hadn't gotten far though, as Gwenrhian, who was taking point, lost her footing in a match of loose sand and fell, tiki-mask first, into a puddle of quicksand. She wouldn't have lost her balance had her quirk been active but she'd chosen to deactivate her quirk for a while as her constantly amped senses were now becoming oversensitive.

5 minutes and 2 rope vines later, and the eldest triplet was free but understandably irate.

 

[Godjacob]

"GAH!"

"You just had to trip that laser didn't you?"

"I-I am sorry, it was an accident! You bumped into me and I-I slipped..."

"Really!? You are gonna Blame this on me fist lips?"
​

Asami and Daisuke had been making decent progress along the ice path, as Daisuke continued to set chains and slowly pull himself while Asami continued her much "dignified" belly sliding. The two had even been decent at navigating the trigger lasers, careful with each step to avoid setting off something that could prove costly to them. However, a sudden shift along the ice path caused Daisuke to bump into Asami and more importantly caused Asami to trip over one of the lasers that caused mechanical traps, ones shaped into these demonic looking chatter heads with sharp teeth, to spring as they began to bite at them or rather specifically bite the ice path they stood on.

Naturally, the trap aimed to break away their path forward so the two had to move quickly. Daisuke called out some chains as he fired them to the ceiling as he swung to try and get over the traps. Asami lacked such a luxury as she had to rely on her nimble & light cartilage structure to try and wave her way through the traps. Daisuke watched as Asami moved and just barley avoided getting sections of ice she was on bit off under her and shook his head as he swung.

Huh, maybe tagging with her was a mistake. Why would I need her help for? This is eas....

Daisuke's internal boast was cut short when some rotating ceiling fans were lowered and began to spin, which inevitably cut the chain that caused Daisuke to free fall as he landed in front of Asami. Though the fans proved to be more than just a convenient method to counter Daisuke's ceiling swings as the wind produced by them proved to be enough to add some pressure against the them as the wind pushed them down on the ice, which made it harder to move around as the two got back up and most importantly slowed their progress as the mouth traps continued to chew at the ice around them as Asami knew that so long as the fans were up they'd have no way to make it acorss before they chewed through the path. Chewing...Asami glanced at the metal mouth traps and glanced up at the fan before she was struck with inspiration as she glanced over to Daisuke.

"I have an i-idea, but I need your help and I need you to trust me." Asami said to Daisuke which caused him to scowl at her even with the wind against him.

"You have a plan? That's nice and all but I think you misunderstood me when we made this arrangement. I'd be the one taking the lead and helping us get to the IHA." Daisuke said as Asami let out a sigh before she decided to act. As she crawled over to one of the mechanical mouth traps and opened her mouth.

Chomp!
​

Asami used her sharp teeth to bite and destroy the bot, which left her with a heavy chunk of broken bot on the ground as she rolled it over to Daisuke and pointed up at the fans.

"Toss it!" Asami said as Daisuke say this and realized what she wanted him to do and, begrudgingly, admitted it was a sound idea as he used his chains to wrap around it as he began to swing.

"For the record, I was gonna do something like this before you got hasty." Daisuke "clarified" as Asami rolled her eyes as Daisuke sent the hardened metal flying as it crashed into one of the fans and destroyed it. With a pleased smile, Asami and Daisuke went to work to eliminate the bitter bots and fans one after the other as they continued to advance down their path.

 

[Nebula-Newt]

The wave reached Lucas last, bowling aside any applicant in its path as it followed the contours of the tunnel. With almost any applicant. The girl, who had introduced herself as Pari, had used her card manipulating quirk just as he’d asked and was now sitting in a boat of her own making atop the raging water. It was no ark but it was clear that some thought had gone into the crafts design, its half-ovoid shape would allow them to sit quite comfortably inside the vessel whilst keeping a majority of the water out. And watching her sail towards him at such an incredible rate he couldn’t deny its effectiveness. He wondered if she co- the grate slipped another inch as Lucas lost his focus for a moment. The metal ground away at his armour, eating away at the spectral green armour as he fought to regain the inch or two he’d lost due to his lapse in concentration. Shit. Gritting his teeth Lucas pushed upwards with all his might. After a few seconds he sighed, it was no use, he wasn’t gaining any ground back and the wave would be on him any second. Best just to save his energy for what was about to happen.


Quelling the sudden flood of doubts that fought for the spotlight in his head Lucas focused entirely on the makeshift raft and its “captain”. He would likely only have a window of about a second to leave his armour and fall into the boat as it passed him, but falling directly inside would be tricky considering that the wave would be making its movements erratic. There was no amount of planning that would make this any easier so Lucas decided that it would be easier just to trust his instincts. Not that he had much of a choice now, he’d started down this particular path and he’d come too far to change his mind.


And just like that the wave was upon him, the force of it threatening to wash him away immediately, only his iron grip on the grate preventing this from happening. The impact had winded him, driving the air straight from his lungs but none the less Lucas tried to time his maneuverer, waiting until maybe a half second after he watched Pari flash by before falling straight backwards through his armour, twisting in the blue confusion to blindly fall into the boat. He missed. Instead he only managed to snag a single hand on the side of the raft thanks to blind luck and he hung on for dear life desperate not to be dragged under by the force of the wave. Unable to concentrate on the empty shell of his armour any longer it vanished, allowing the grate to finally fulfil its purpose and block the route behind them. Even over the roar of the water all around him Lucas could hear the cries of others as they impacted with the grate. He needed to get aboard the raft or he’d end up like them, victims of the powerful trap set up by IHA. Lucas did not intend to be like them. He intended to pass this bloody test if it was the last thing he did. So with the last vestiges of his strength he scrabbled up the surface of the card with cold and slippery hands, pulling himself up on to the lip of the boat and then suddenly flopping over and into its belly where he lay gasping for air but with the ghost of a smirk on his soaking wet face.


The wave pushed the ragtag crew and their vessel onwards for at least another 100m at speeds that would put most speedboats to shame. It was a terrifying but short ride which ended rather anticlimactically, the wave died out as they reached the finish line, causing the duo to skid across dry ground for a few extra meters afterwards until finally they came to a halt. Lucas stirred in the bottom of the boat where he had been laying practically the entire ride, his head spinning in the aftermath of the trip. Had they made it? He propped himself up on one elbow, wiping water from his face before taking a peek at their surroundings. This part of the maze seemed barren compared to what they’d already experienced, simple concrete on all sides and those now familiar lit torches lining the walls. But there was one incredible feature that stood out from the otherwise unremarkable tunnel. The finish line! They’d actually made it! A sense of triumph pushed Lucas’ fatigue aside and with new found energy he turned to Pari, a smirk on his face.

“This is it Pari! Let’s move, if we’re lucky we’ll still be in the first 16 to cross the finish line.”

Vaulting out of their craft Lucas began striding towards the end of the maze, so tantalisingly close now only to find that his legs were stiff and difficult to use after the stunt they’d just pulled. So instead of the triumphant stride he’d envisioned it was with more of a weary stumble that Lucas made the final leg of the journey towards the black and white line etched into the ground. But there was one more obstacle in their path, 3 decidedly feminine figures wearing…tiki masks?

Lucas stood stock still, a look that clearly said “What is this bullshit?” etched on his face. He glanced back at Pari, partly to ensure that he had back up partly to confirm that she was also looking at the same unlikely scene that he was.

“Pari…are you seeing this?”

 

[kyuukestu]

Gwenrhian

Even for the ever calm, ever confident, ever collected leader of the triplets, Gwenrhian, the escapades of the jungle's intricacies and it's menagerie of mechanical monstrosities were getting on her nerves. Don't get her wrong, she didn't dislike the frequent assaults or the challenge that each an every mechanical animal brought, each a thrilling experience in its own right, but what she did dislike was the feeling of punching a wall with each and every attack she threw. Her quirk, Impulse drive, while allowing her to excel in close combat, didn't lend much to her sheer destructive capabilities, and anyway she took it punching a block of metal was still just punching a block of metal. It was a pointless action that seemed to do her more harm than good. Fights were fun, but fighting a wall was not.

That's why as their dynamic trio approached what appeared to be the end of the path, an expression of ecstatic joy crossed even her face, a rare break from her usual mature deportment. In front of the girl stood a large temple, ancient enough to have predated the history of entire countries. It appeared to be of Aztec or Mayan design, rectangular in shape and constructed in such a way that each of its four sides appeared to be a set of oversized staircases, all leading to its almost pyramidic peak, which plateaued into a platform ontop which stood a...a flat screen Tv!?

The sheer dissonance of such a modern device gracing the temple- like a cherry on top- snapped Gwenrhian right out of her absentminded admiration. She stared quizzically at the device as it flashed to life with the LCD lights of the 21st century. White words popped into existence welcoming them to the last event of the Jungle path, and right below those words were three square boxes, which from left to right red, green and blue. Mimicking the red, green and blue of the squares on the screen, the ground below the triplets lit up with a soft green light, and to their left and right respectively were square tiles beneath the ground that also glowed with red and blue lights.

From what Gwenrhian managed to gather the three squares on the screen represented the three tiles embedded in the ground. They seemed to have accidentally activated the mechanism for this temple by stepping on the central green tile. Still somewhat confused by the ongoings, Gwenrhian paid rapt attention to the screen. The screen dimmed, and the 3 squares enlargened until they were the only things encompassing the entire screen. Slowly, the screen dimmed completely until not even the squares could be seen, and for a moment, the triplets all stood there in confusion. The screen whirred back to life, flashing one color after the other; Red, Blue, Green, Blue, Red. A short paused followed, then the tiles in the ground lit up in the same sequence; Red, Blue, Green, Blue, Red.

As the sequence on the screen was copied, an odd ringing sound echoed with a series of 'Ding Ding's, like some sort of affirmative sound effect from a daytime game show. Accompanying this sound, a large green circle with a checkmark running through it flashed across the screen. As the temple's mechanisms dulled down, the same exact sequence flashed across the screen; Red, Blue, Green, Blue, Red. In like manner, the tiles on the ground lit up, flashing with the previously shown sequence, however, this time it made a mistake, the 5th iteration in the pattern flashing green instead of red. A harsh sound screeched through the air, the screen flashing angrily as a red 'X' appeared atop it.

With the apparent 'wrong answer' given, the temple trembled, and revealed another secret as a door slid open on its forefront, and from it a group of almost 10 Tikis holding weapons that ranged from blow darts to stone spears, and wooden bows. Instead of the surprise her sister's responded with, Gwenrhian broke out into a smile of absolute glee. 'Finally! Something I can hit!' Without a moment's hesitation, she rushed forwards eager to immerse herself in a meaningful battle with opponents who weren't walls of metal.

Gwenerys

Old, crusty, and decrepit. If you asked Gwenerys to describe the ancient temple, those were likely the adjectives you'd receive. Covered in lichen, moss, and mold the temple was anything but the picture of majesty and regality Gwenerys would've expected from a proper structure that represented the splendor of the divines, and the illustriousness of royals. Simply put, she thought it was a pretty shitty structure. But, seeing as it declared itself the final trial that barred her glorious, and triumphant swagger across the race's finish line, Gwenerys stifled the utter disdain welling in her eyes, and focused on seeing what exactly the temple had to offer.

Her gaze dull, the youngest and most flamboyant of the triplets watched listlessly as the temple performed its little light show. Her gaze grew odder with each passing moment, up until the temple revealed itself to be not a temple, but some sort of housing for those Tiki-things. The little critters were battle-ready, releasing incomprehensible warcries and charging the triplets without a moment's hesitation. It would seem that with each wrong input of the screen's pattern, the temple would release Tiki-warriors to assault the candidates. The suddenness of the situation had left Gwenerys rather shocked, a combination of her gaze having been directed upwards at the display screen, and her having never expected the temple to suddenly reveal a sliding door.

By the time Gwenerys had regained her bearing and brought one of her commandeered blowdarts to her mouth, she realized Gwenrhian had already dived into the throng of Tiki's, a maniacal grin plastered across her face as she vented her apparent frustration through battle. Gwenerys watched as Gwenrhian intercepted a Tiki's spear thrust by removing her Tiki mask and using it as a shield. The spear embedded itself deeply into the wooden mask, but that seemed to have been the girl's intentions all along. Using the tiki-mask as a 'handle', she yanked the spear upwards, throwing its wielder off balance as she took the chance to slip inside the spear's reach and deliver a palm thrust to the Tiki's naked chest with her free arm. The tiki staggered backward, his grip on the spear loosening just enough for the girl to drag the spear from his grasp, and with deft movements, her fingers found their way to the spear's shaft. With a whirl, the spear twirled in her grasp, its tip and the mask having been redirected towards its former wielder. With the whooshing of displaced air, Gwenrhian swung the spear wildly, using the wooden tiki mask as a blunt tool to beat her opponent over the head. The Mask, of course, shattered in a burst of wooden fragments and splinters, but the Tiki-warrior had been once again stunned by the girl's assault, and that stun was enough for the girl to twirl the spear in her hands, orienting the spear's butt towards her opponent and sweeping away the Tiki warrior with a sweep of the spear's shaft.

While the process itself may have seemed complicated, the exchange took place in almost an instant and the head triplet immediately rushed off to engage another enemy. While she may have seemed somewhat reckless, the girl did indeed keep her awareness about her, however, she was fully confident that any enemy trying to take her rear would fall to one of her siblings who were providing cover fire with their darts. That feminine figure weaved through the swarm of warriors taking a tiki-archer by surprise. She stopped abruptly before him for a fraction of a second as her momentum carried her body forward, and she oriented herself, her foremost foot raising her on top her toes and her rear foot raising into high-kick that impacted the Tiki's head, send it spiraling to the ground. The fight itself appeared to be sheer simplicity to the eldest triplet, but in truth, that was because the tiki's weapons and numbers worked against them. Their close-knit formation hindered their ability to effectively swing their spears, and with Gwenrhian already within their midst, their arrows ran too great a risk of friendly fire. They were tigers stripped of their fangs and claws, and Gwenrhian took advantage of that, she tore through their ranks like a lion among sheep.

By the time she'd cleared out the center of the formation, her two younger siblings had cleared out the tiki's outlaying the formation's edge, a single dart neatly pinned into some of the Tikis, courtesy of Gwenerys, and yet others writhed on the forest floor their skin red and inflamed, the side effect of a splash from Gweneira's latest concoction. While in no way lethal, the weak acid was irritating to no end, which is why they'd immediately detoured for a river when Gwenrhian had spilled the liquid on herself. Those who writhed pitifully on the ground were soon knocked out by a blow from Gwenrhian of a dart from Gwenerys.

The entire battle had lasted mere minutes but had yielded many spoils, particularly the spears in Gwenrhian's case, a chance to test her concoction for Gwneira, and the bow & arrows for Gwenerys. The triplets, after stripping their opponents clean, had taken the moment to move the tiki's to one area and truss them up with green ropes of vegetation. Dusting their hands off after a job well done, the trio returned to the temple and its tile puzzle.

Gweneira

Gweneira released a low whistle of appreciation as another sliding door opened on the temple surface, this one was different from the trap door that released Tiki's and instead seemed to lead out of the jungle path. The tile puzzle, while becoming increasingly complex after each successful answer, proved no match for the triplets, or rather Gwenrhian's quirk enhanced memory and visual prowess. No matter how complex the pattern or how quickly the lights flashed, their eldest sister would be able to capture it all and relay it to them perfectly. With Gwenrhian on the red tile, herself on the green tile, and Gwenerys on the blue tile, the three sisters complete the pattern challenge without a single error and were soon on their way en route to the maze's exit.

The three, expecting to have barely had enough time to make the top 16, rushed out expecting to grit their teeth and settle for an old fashion foot race with other participants who would likely be exiting their respective paths at the same time as them. So when they rushed into the final stretch of the race, only to find the path ahead of them completely empty, they were outright stunned. While somewhat surprised, the eldest and youngest of the bunch weren't going to complain about being the first few to cross and had prepared to simply stroll out of the maze and end this race. However, at that very moment, Gweneira chose to speak.

"If...we're already ahead, wouldn't it be better to stay back and gather a bit more information on our potential classmates..?" The alchemist's desires were just as she stated them, she wanted to gather information on the other students. As the top institution across the world for those with quirks, the school, and by extension the island, should've gathered an unspeakably diverse and numerous batch of quirks and Gweneira wanted to not only experience those quirks, but maybe collect a DNA sample or two. The DNA of certain quirk users could act as substitutes or even catalysts for her crafting. She'd, of course, attempted to do this before with limited success. Using a strand of Gwenrhian's hair, she'd managed to make a pill that temporarily amplified ones 5 senses. It was neither as comprehensive or as powerful as the boost provided by her sister's impulse drive, it didn't even enhance one's senses to a super-human level, but those were issues she was still working out and what better way to improve than practice? (To give a more precise example with eyesight, the pill only managed to temporarily boost one's eyesight to about 20/20 if it was previously under that standard, or provide a slight increase to a person who already had 20/20 vision.)

Knowing that her wishes alone would not be able to sway her siblings, she continued to speak, whispering temptations like a devil, "It'd be a good chance to test the waters with a fight don't you think? and, of course, it'd be that much better to have an audience as we crossed the finish line, no?"

The two siblings, who'd been about to cross the finish line, froze abruptly, and Gweneira smirked. By appealing to Gwenrhian's love of thrill and battle, and Gwenerys' vanity, she'd hooked them both. As they turned around walked away from the finish line, the triplets gathered in the center of the track, awaiting their first visitors. Gwenrhian stood calmly, her breathing level as she slid her fingers across the wooden spear, familiarizing herself with the weapon, one of 2, the other having been strapped to her back. The Tiki's smaller size meant that their spears were more akin to short spears in Gwenrhian's hand, and as such, she was able to wield one in each hand. Gwenerys on the other hand, glared feistily at her elder, but not eldest, sister, "I know you're playing me...but you're right." While she was a somewhat vain and pompous person, she wasn't wildly arrogant and didn't have her head so far up her keister she couldn't see when her faults were being used against her. That wasn't to say she wouldn't willingly play along, it really depended on how appealing the bait set out was, and this bait happened to be the most appealing thing she'd seen all day.

Of course, her little quip had caused a slight blush to cross Gweneira's face as her ploy was exposed. The mad scientist playfully stuck her tongue out in response, but otherwise remained silent.

In truth, it didn't take long for the next set of participants to emerge from one of the paths, a male and female duo wearily emerged from the exit the equated to the fourth path. Beneath their Tiki masks, the three triplets smirked, and Gwenrhian stepped forward, her voice booming.

"You've done well to make it this far young students! If you wish to advance then come! Show us your mettle!"

 

[Fire Mana]

Parker chuckled silently to himself as he read the girl's message written on the chalkboard. She was clearly annoyed with him, which meant his petty revenge had been successful. That'll teach her to ignore his handshake, it's not like he was willing to work with any plain Jane with an attractive face.

He followed her through the corridor, which appeared to stretch on for miles due to the fact that it was completely empty. Eventually though, they reached one last door that opened up to reveal another large room. Inside the room appeared to be the finish a decent distance away, but before that five students looked to be fighting. Three identical looking... tiki girls? A girl that had a deck of cards floating around her, and a boy who seemed to be with her.

"The hell is going on in here?"

 

[_obsequious]

They’d been walking for a bit in awkward silence, or perhaps that was just forced silence due to the odd quiet of the room. Or maybe that effect had worn off as they traveled, but Aspen didn’t want to pipe up to say something now. The hall that she guessed led to the finish was a small distance away, but it seemed that between them and the hall.. was an interesting cluster of quarreling students.
Three of which were otherwise identical, a female group, the other two being a male and female duo, just like herself and Shadow Boy.
Speaking of him, he’d spoken up, asking them what was going on. In all honesty, it was weird to hear his voice. She couldn’t quite tell if she hated it or not, but it was definitely strange to hear him actually speak. For a moment there she’d been convinced he spoke entirely in cocky, over confident smirks..
“Hate to agree with Edgelord, but seriously, what is happening?” She started, subconsciously wondering if he’d have the same reaction to her voice, but more focused on getting to the end than anything. “Actually- no, wait, spare me the explanation.. if you don’t mind me I’m just gonna.. go around, you lot have fun with.. whatever it is you’re doing,” she wheedled, awkwardly attempting to just step around them and avoid conflict.

 

[kyuukestu]

Gwenrhian

Snorting arrogantly in response to the inquiries of the arrivals, the girl rushed in head first, one of her spears twirling about her hands with such speed that it left the spear's body itself a mere blur of motion. Jumping into the air she brought down her spear, the whistle of wind accompanying the wooden shaft as it smashed down onto its first victim, which just so happened to be Lucas.

While Gwenrhian leapt into the fray, her sisters did the exact opposite, retreating backward while shooting darts from their blowpipes. Two darts were fired, one from each of the younger two sisters, to be truthful, Gweneira wasn't exactly the best shot, however, Gwenerys had already graced their arsenal of ranged weaponry with her quirk and Gweneira's only true job was to send more darts flying regardless of where they actually went. The two darts shifted in mid-air, correcting their flight paths as they homed in on the two newest arrivals, Parker and Aspen.

 

[Fire Mana]

Parker swiped his left hand across the the air in front of him. His reaction times and speed were boosted due to his transformation and he was able to swiftly read the directions of the incoming darts, even after they changed directions mid-air.

"Murus Ignis Corruptum!"

A wall of black flames emerged from both sides of Parker's arm, shooting to the maximum range of two feet from his body. The darts immediately turned to ash as they made contact with the wall. He charged forward, the wall of flames shifting into a small kite shield and a sword of black fire appearing in his right hand.

"Ferum Flamma Ex Malum!"

The smoke billowing from Parker's eyes became darker, completely opaque black now, and small lines of smoke began to to emit from the jagged horns on his head. Soon he would reach the climax of his power, which would last no longer than a minute or two, before he quickly began to weaken. If he wanted to do something, he would have to do it now while his strength was still rising. He charged the two tiki girls that had retreated backwards, his shield of flames raised so that the darts could not find their target.

 

[Godjacob]

“This way! We are almost there!”

“I don’t need you to tell me that fish lips!”​

Asami and Daisuke, after a long struggle through the ice maze which included not only their finished destruction of the fans and bear-mouth traps but also a lovely section where the floor itself would shift in irregular patterns before them.

One wrong step, one missed jump and it would be a fall to the bottom. Which really made Asami question the safety regulations of this school.

Regardless, the two managed to once more found surprising synergy as they worked through the new obstacle. Asami got on her belly and slide along the ground for greater mobility along the slippery slope while Daisuke got on her back and would use his chains to pull them to the sliding sections of the ice to help combat that issue.

Soon enough, the pair managed to find they way out of the ice section of the maze, and now stood at the brink of victory. The bring of getting to the IHS, one stop closer to their dreams, but before they could reach the finish there appeared to be one final obstacle…as a trio of masked individuals seemed to be fighting off who they presumed were other applicants.

Asami didn’t want to jump into things, as she felt some context for what was going on before they’d jump in blindly, but it appeared Daisuke saw a chance for a flashy entrance into the fray and was unable to resist the temptation as he shot several chains into the ceiling above the area they fought at and, with a grin, pulled down which caused that section to cave in and several large chunks of debris would fall as his intend was to try to crush the masked trio, though inevitable some of the other students were bound to get caught in the crossfire which horrified Asami.

You morn! Think before you act!

 

[MegaAbsol]

Coughing and wheezing, Pari lurched around in the centre of her makeshift bowl, trying desperately to keep in what little breakfast she had consumed. Just like Temple Run. Steer to the lef- She, of course, unceremoniously slammed into the side of her vessel as the slight movement caused her to lose her balance, veering the floating boat desperately to the left - before she took manual control again with her mind and guided the boat and its two occupants to a safe standstill. Hanging over the side, gathering her bearings and feeling more than a bit dissociated, she brought her hands out of the receding water to cover her face, feeling the world swirl around her. The boy will be the death of her. The grinding of rock beneath her cards gave her the signal to roll over into the belly of the boat, lying there gasping for air in the small puddle Lucas had brought with him.

She was going to throw up. Finish line be damned, she was going to be sick.

And the entire school was going to see. With a groan, she let the cards pull apart, draining the structure of the water and her dreams. If this was but a taste of what it took to be a hero, she wasn't quite sure she was cut out for it. At this point, not even the sudden appearance of some strange entity elicited more than a sick blubber out of her, as she patted her pockets for the sticky mess of her sweets. With a sneeze, she resumed gasping anew around her waterclogged sinuses, finally fishing out a gummy worm to chew on. Glaring daggers at the boy as the sugar brought some life to her, she wished looks could kill. Well, they probably could - just not hers. She couldn't even find the words to rebuke him, and he seemed least concerned about their little joyride down a literal waterfall as he stood with some trepidation against the new arrival. Hmm.

It was like finding a mob where you shouldn't. Zone error? Three identical figures stood, dressed in leaves - barefoot and all. Pari stifled a giggle - it really was like a game, where developers made every mob look the same. Copy pasta. But as one of the trio approached and called out a challenge, she straightened up from her shivering, crouched posture. A boss battle? With, she assumed, different mechanics for each member. "Hax! I call hax. Go for the healer." She weakly mewled, finding her voice again, only to be interrupted with a flying leap from the one who had issued the trial. Eyes widening, she scrambled unsteadily to her feet as the figure - female, no older than herself, white hair...human? Or were they combat bots? She had heard of one year having a slugfest where they had to destroy robots for points.

She scrambled backwards, trying to get some distance between the close combat and herself before narrowly avoiding an obstacle that had seemingly abruptly appeared. What the hell? What had just popped up? Hell was right, apparently, as she whirled round to face what could easily pass for a demon. Squeaking in surprise, she hastily backed away yet again from Parker, bringing her cards closer to her, post haste. Was this a battle bot too?! They were cornered! Lucas, help! It killed her to have to rely on someone who had nearly drowned them, but given the situation, she didn't really have too many options. She caught the flash of something small and wooden, just a glimpse, before the armoured demon burst into flames, charring them to ashes. She'd be next if she didn't do somet-

Apparently not. The ifrit summoned a flaming sword with a few chanted words - Latin? Something about the iron of evil? - before charging towards their initial antagonists, blitzing past her without so much as a glance. Hopping further, feeling the cold press of earthen tunnels on her back, she stabilized her breathing. Lucas appeared to have a powerful quirk, and so did this boy - they might actually win; survive?; this. But then a brand new variable showed up - a contestant? - and began pulling the ceiling down. Why did she even try?

 

[kyuukestu]

Gweniera

Her expression flickering with a subtle mix of panic and intrigue, staring down the flame demon in front of her, Gweniera did what any respectable scientist would do when assaulted- she threw her equipment. An illusory image flickered into being above her head as a stone cauldron, the size of a bowl, manifested itself. The cauldron's appearance only enhanced the synergy of her disguise as the rough some object smoothly fit in with her ancient tribal theme.

As the cauldron materialized it fell into Gweniera's hand, and with all the strength of a panicking teenage girl, she chucked the stone tool right at Parker's face. Soon after, an even smaller bowl, reminiscent of a pestil, materialized itself into the Alchemists hands, containing within itself a light green powder. The bowl was a part of a mortar and pestil set that Gweniera had used to pound poison Ivy leaves into a fine dust. She'd wanted to use the irritating plant to create a fast-acting rash-inducing powder, but she hadn't actually gotten much done in the way of concocting with all the trails of the jungle path. Her reserve of usable produce was...pitifully low and most of what she had made was consumed in thier earlier battle with the Tikis. In fact, the poison Ivy powder was the last thing she had in her repertoire. Unceremoniously, she chucked the whole container of powder at Parker, scattering the itchy powder through the air.

 

[Nebula-Newt]

Things were getting complicated. First the mysterious masked trio blocking their path and now a plethora of colourful characters had crawled from the woodwork to join them. Thankfully only the tiki girls seemed to be directly opposing them but Lucas saw the others for exactly what they were, a risk to his enrolment. Any one of them could take up a precious spot in top 16 to cross the finish line. He didn't have time to mess around. That was why it was incredibly irritating when one of the grass skirt wearing bastards targeted him first, swinging her wooden spear at him so fast he could barely react. His armour formed as more of a knee jerk reaction than any conscious decision, taking the powerful impact with ease. He stood there for a second, actually surprised that he hadn't felt the full brunt of the vicious attack on his flesh. Upon realising what had happened he smirked behind his visor. Perhaps this wouldn't be so difficult after all.

Now confident that he had the upper hand Lucas launched his counter attack, raising both arm high behind the back of his head he brought them down at full force, spectral sword coming to life in his hands as he did so. The move was relatively slow and easy to dodge but it had fulfilled its purpose. Lucas now had some breathing room and a fleeting moment to assess the battlefield. Glancing around he took in the demon like boy attacking the remaining tikis, the twat who was causing a cave in with some kind of chain based quirk (Just as well considering he was forced to sidestep several large chunks of rock that could have crushed him) and Pari, scrabbling backwards in an attempt to escape the melee. A lot of mayhem considering the tunnel had been practically empty only moments earlier. Enough sight seeing thought Lucas as his eyes snapped back to the girl that had decided to attack him. She was in a poor position really, outnumbered, with her only two allies in a tight spot themselves. All the same getting past her wouldn't be easy, she was clearly a skilled fighter and could but the others enough time to cross the finish before he did. With an internal sigh he realised that the easiest route would also be one of the most painful.

"Back off lady." Lucas grunted though gritted teeth as he used the remainder of his energy pool to push his armour to the maximum size possible within the confines of the tunnel. Now easily pushing 10 meters tall the monolithic spectral knight's helm scrapped against the compromised roof causing micro landslides of rubble to cascade down to the ground below. Safe within his green bunker Lucas was dealing with the consequences of such a bold move, a cold sweat rolling down his face as he struggled to maintain his quirk. Luckily it would be a short walk to the finish. The giant began to stagger towards the finish line amidst the falling rubble, stopping only to swat at his original attacker half heartedly. Short as the walk to the end was it seemed to stretch out for Lucas, his head pounding with a headache the like of which he'd never felt before. It was only when he a single step away from the end that he froze realising what he'd done. Pari.

He'd left her behind! He could see her now, sheltering behind her oversized cards as the fighting raged on. Conflicted Lucas glanced back at the finish, so close now that he could literally reach out and touch it. Would he have it in him to go get her? Even just standing still he could feel his composure slipping away, his armour flickering out of existence for a brief second before reappearing slightly smaller. Time wasn't on his side, he had to make a choice. And just like that his mind was made, he only hoped he'd made the right choice. Retracing his steps he walked back to his makeshift partner, no energy left to run now. A falling bit of ceiling struck him about half way there, forcing him to knees for a moment whilst he tried to desperately hold on to the last of his energy. Could he reach her from here? Just. He plucked her from her makeshift stronghold with care, like somebody handling a new-born kitten. Holding her up to his face it was hard to tell how she felt about the development considering his vision was beginning to go dark, shadows eating into what he could see through his visor. Well no time to see if he'd bruised her ego, he was running (More stumbling really) on borrowed time. For perhaps half a second Lucas was actually hopeful that he was going to reach the line again but then he felt the last of energy drain away and he fell to his knees before keeling over face visor first into the ground. The top half of his armour had crossed the line so Pari was in the green but unfortunately for the want to be hero he was situated in the chest of his spectral knight and was left completely unconscious about half a meter away from his goal as his the last of his quirk vanished into thin air.

 

[Fire Mana]

As Parker rushed the small female figure, he noticed a small stone cauldron appear in the tiki's hand. He was confused for only a second, but it was enough time for the cauldron to fly through the air and make contact with his face. He felt the stone impact his nose, easily breaking it. He held his empty hand up to his face as blood began to trickle down his chin. He could feel his inner flame flare up and his body began to get extremely hot.

"You BITCH!"

An eruption of Shadow Fire spilled forth from Parker's body, sending flames two feet around him in every direction. Parker hadn't noticed the powder that had been thrown at him, but the immense power from the burst of Shadow Fire incinerated all the powder near him. The force of the eruption caused the wind around him to whip up, sending the rest of the powder through the room.

"YOU'LL PAY FOR THIS!"

He once again began to charge the girl in the tiki mask, his sword and shield raised and ready. Both weapons had received a small buff from the surge of power. It seemed as though he forced his maximum power out 30-45 seconds earlier than it should have. He would only have max power for another 30 seconds before he began to quickly power down. As much as he regretted it, he would have to ignore the girl and get to the finish line while he was still at his strongest. Just when it seemed like he was going to attack the girl opposing him, he dashed past her, arriving at the finish line and leaving the others to deal with the tikis and the newly problematic poison ivy powder.