["Locus Mode, Set up."] Ceres chimed as the girls were launched apart by the entanglement of their spells. Her weapon slid back into its sleek long-ranged configuration, and the sound of several rotating internal pieces could be heard beneath the casing.

"Get ready, Akari. We've regained the advantage. Timing is critical!"

"Right!" She replied to her mental mentor audibly, having already formed her casting mandala and taken a more refined shooting stance than she had a few days previous. Energy pooled between Ceres' firing rails as she gazed past her weapon, watching Mitsuko mirror her with a similar maneuver. Both lights flickered ominously agaisnt the sunny, clear sky beyond like a pair of intruder suns.

["Trajectory Set. Firing Lock is Released."]

"Shooot!" Akari vaugely heard Mitsuko yell as the reddish mandala exploded outward, obscuring her view with lensflare. Knowing she had only a few more seconds to charge before the projectile hit her, she accellerates her spell.

*Kshee...* The containment bands of her spell spun into being with the sound of glass-upon-glass, framing her target as they reconnected with their generating points.

"Fire!" Akari shouted, releasing the string of her bow, which snapped inward as the collecting sphere of light collapsed to a pinpoint.

["Lunar Flare."]

Everything was silent for an instant, before Akari's trademark lance of azure violently erupted forth with a tumultous din. Streaking forth inexorably to cover the intervening space, it washed over Mitsuko's projectile like a river washes past a broken dam. Impeded for an instant, it broke through the dissipating projectile and continued onward to its target.

Saturday night was wasted. Daichi spent all the time till morning reading the book, getting little to none of what was the content supposed to say.
Well, he got all of it actually, but the amount of things that made no sense was enough to convince him otherwise.

Sunday breakfast he ate without even noticing Yoshiro trying to hit him with peas he had as a part of breakfast. Luckily the swaying caused by tiredness gave Daichi a really decent evasion boost, and he got hit only once before his brother gave up seeing no reaction. Junko didn't participate in this everyday practice cause she was already missing her sister, who was actually still there and seamed to be pleased by something. "Staying up all night like I'm worried bout something wasn't a good idea... Even if I am..." he thought, as he chewed food slowly.

About an hour later Kotone was leaving home. Some Junko weeping and a surprisingly warm hug from someone Daichi treated like a sister later, Daichi decided to take a longer nap.

Another hour later with his mind and body in condition good enough to comprehend reality, Daichi started reading the book again. This time it took him a bit longer to read through the introduction, but he finally did it right. With little doubt left, there was a force that could be called "magic", and it was possible to control, and as far as things went, only someone capable of it could read the book. Some secrecy stuff that was in the introduction made Daichi a little worried if it's safe to read more, but he didn't have anything else planned for today.

Or that was what he thought until his cellphone rung...

[OOC: Some more slow stuff. Then some suspense. Generally I got lazy and need more time. :P]

Synopsis: Panko agrees to spar, Picky shows up to make a Phantom Zone and be an ass to everybody, Menarker punches Panko with Real Lightning, Panko punches a car at him. All real Menarker-approved, of course.

"It can talk!" Obviously, Panko didn't really hear what Mero said at first. Her excited expression faded when it occured to her what Mero has asked. "Oh, um, fight? I don't really, I mean..." Panko continued her fidgeting.

"I think it'd do you good, Pa-a-anko." Once again, Picky mysteriously fluttered into the scene. "You're never gonna be able to fight people if you never fight people."

"Plus, it's important for us to know exactly what we're all capable of before entering combat with the Autekka, right, Mena-kun?" Mero added.

"So you've given up on the silent act, huh? I wondered how long that was gonna last," Picky snarked.

Ignoring this, Menarker said, "So, what do you say? I'm not very experienced with my magic either, and my cat seems to think I'm cheating when I fight her, for some reason. It would benefit us both to know what we're capable of."

"Well... ok, I guess. Where are we going to do this?" Panko asked.

"Right here's good. Hold on." Picky closed his eyes and concentrated. Both mages could feel magic power flowing from him as a circle of off-sync space spread from him to the surrounding streets. Things seemed to lose a bit of their color, sounds muffled then fell silent, and shortly the four were within their own little world. "There, a Phantom Zone. Feel free to wreck things up; it won't carry over." Picky sounded a little tired. "Well, Mero, ready to watch your boy fight a little girl?"

"I don't know what you mean by that. They're both powerful mages, so it's unimportant what gender they are. Plus, he's been fighting with me all yesterday. Haven't you and your partner been sparring, too?"

"Nah, I prefer things that work," Picky replied.

"Hmmph. Mena, let's show this pig some manners."

"What, by beating up someone else?"

Picky was ignored again as Menarker transformed his barrier jacket into its active mode and Mero rushed over to share her Familiar Boost with him using Psych Up. Panko jumped with surprise at their sudden start, then yelled to Picky, "What should I do?!"

"Bear costume! Punch his face in!"

"Er, kay, Transform!" Panko's body glowed, and her clothes were replaced with a silly bear costume.

However, Menarker was already bearing down on her, his fist raised. Before she could react, Menarker slammed his fist into Panko, a wave of lightning smashing into her and the street around her. Panko screamed as she flew backward through the air.

"Aw, that was a perfect chance for a cross-counter. You fight like a girl, Panko!" Pickiy yelled helpfully. Mero wondered if she had been right about defending him earlier to Menarker.

Panko climbed back to her feet. She'd been taken by surprise, and this suit wasn't as fast as the cat suit, but it definitely had a stronger barrier. Still, that had hurt. Yet, he wasn't a mud man; how was she expected to hurt him? Then she heard Picky's taunting. "Oh yeah?! Well, how about this?!"

Of course, by now Menarker had started his assault again. He waved his arms as he charged, producing several blades of air. Panko jumped out of the street behind a parked car as his Surge Vacuum tore into the asphalt. "Mega Paw!" The car crumpled and flew at Menarker like a giant cannonball. Behind were it had been parked stood Panko with a giant, glowing, orange paw.

Rei had moved to leave as everyone else had, but a voice echoed in his head, shortly after he left the room.

'No. This is suitable.'

'Suitable?' Rei silently asked Tenken, his confusion apparent to the voice within his head.

'We need to train...'

As the words were spoke the world about Rei changed, like entering a phantom zone, but instead of shadow there was light. The brightness intensified about him, shadows disappearing, the walls and floor beginning to glow, but none of it hurt his eyes in the least.

"We must fight with blade and fist, we must train with blade and fist" a gruff voice came from behind Rei, causing him to jump and spin around, to face a tall man--roughly six and a half feet tall--wearing a tattered kimono with a pair of katanas on his hip. His face was aged, with a scar over one eye, and slight stubble was flecked across his skin. His body flickered slightly, now and then, as though it was a hologram from some sci-fi series.

"...Tenken?" Rei asked, though he gave the man no time to answer, "What is this place?"

"This... is like a phantom zone, but where phantom zones are moved one step down from reality, this place is moved one step up. It affords greater security than a phantom zone as other mages must enter it willfully, and I, and other purely spiritual beings, am able to manifest myself within it, but it requires more energy to maintain--each extra personage adding greater strain. In other words, if mages attempt to enter, without also lending their energy to empower it..."

"The zone will collapse?" Rei finished Tenken's explanation for him.

"Correct. It makes it worthless as a battleground, but perfect for our training... now..." the samurai lifted a hand pointing at Rei, the boy's barrier jacket dissolving and being replaced once more by his normal clothing, "We will train without that. You will learn to be strong on your own. If you rely only on your magic you will never reach your potential... now take your sword..."

A beam of light materialized near Rei as Tenken spoke and Rei reached out, grasping it as a sword, and the beam flashed brightly, before becoming the silver rapier which he so often used in his kamen form.

"And Enguarde!" Tenken shouted charging toward the boy, one of his katanas--a sword of pure light--streaking from its sheath with a flash of light in an upward string. Rei stumbled backward barely avoiding the strike, and fell on his back, but Tenken reversed the direction of the strike at its apex, bringing it back down like lightning toward the boy who barely placed the rapier between himself in the blow, his body shaking.

"...Y... you could have killed me!"

"If I had slain you with an attack like that, you would be unworthy of wielding me," the sword responded, giving Rei time to regain his feet, legs still shaking.

"I... I don't think I like this training..." Rei's voice quivered as he held his sword in front of him.

"You promised to protect them... will you go back on your word?"

"I..."

"Do you wish to be Rei Shoda, pathetic and weak, forever?"

"But..." Rei looked down at the ground, his body still shivering and his sword arm dropping.

"Or do you wish to be something greater?"

"I... want to be better than this..." Rei responded still not looking up at Tenken.

"Then you would keep your word?"

"Yes."

"Then we will fight."

It was not a question, but Rei still responded, lifting his eyes and his blade, "Yes."

The sword came at Rei again, and this time the boy did not stumble.

--------------------

The two fought for long hours, Tenken correcting Rei's flaws in form with calm directions, and Rei learned that Tenken could not have actually killed him with his blow. The sword, when it struck through him hurt, it hurt bad, burned, and felt like fire moving through him--but it left no wounds and the pain faded as soon as it was there. Tenken explained that the pain would help he and his body learn how to defend, and it did. The blows coming less often even as Rei became more exhausted.

When he was covered in sweat and panting, Tenken dropped the field about them and Rei walked home, eating a meal and regaining his energy, but as soon as he entered his room to relax after lunch the field was opened again, and the training began anew, and again, the two trained for hours, until it was time for Rei to shower and sleep, though even then Tenken refused to leave him be.

"Where am I?" Rei asked once more, as a field of pure white spread out before him, and then he heard the voice of Tenken once more behind him. This time it did not make him jump, however, and he turned to face the sword's avatar more calmly.

"We must train your ability to use your magic. We use magic and our own physical abilities in conjunction, and therefore we must train them both in conjunction."

Rei let out a sigh. "Alright..."

The area about them altered, a river appearing before Rei, poi fish swimming through it peacefully, while cherry blossoms lightly floated about a pair of trees on the far bank, each standing on the side of a target.

"We will begin with the Angel's Feathers..."

The night passed slowly, Rei training in each of his abilities before he was allowed to finally sleep, and Sunday afforded him no real rest either, the two training as they had the day previous once more.

["Lunar Flare."]

The collapsing sphere of the spell's charge sequence exploded, a powerful beam of blue light thundering forwards. It flooded over Mitsuko's hurtling Celestial Sphere, the barrier shielded orb bursting into a blossom of yellow light. The azure torrent washed it away, continuing unhindered toward Mitsuko.

Mitsuko lifted Bright Day just before it hit, the energy beam held back by her defences. The roiling blast of energy boiled and swirled as Akari maintained the beam. There was a red flash and then a explosion, the beam cutting out.

["Shield collapse detected."] Ceres reported.

The light faded, revealing the aftermath.

A crimson shield made of concentric circles and patterns and symbols slowly revolved, a smaller contra-rotating one behind it. The breeze tugging at her ribbon bound hair and bright red dress, Mitsuko was still standing. Panting slightly, she leveled her spear at her sister, the two surviving shields of her Triple Guard blinking out of existence.

"B-but that's my strongest attack!" Akari wibbled.

"I wouldn't say that." Ceres replied in her head.

"Yaaaaah!" Mitsuko shouted, launching herself forward with a flare of power from her Impulse Wings. An inclined Aerial Step appeared as she thrust a foot back, kicking off it and then another one to charge through the air in a few leaping bounds. Wing-thrusters burning all the time, she held Bright Day pointed squarely at Akari, the spear head glowing with magic.

OOC: Mitsuko's a tough nut to crack. After all, she's the immovable object out of the Shimizu Sisters. Checked Akari's response with Phoenix.

Synopsis: Three girls talking over milkshakes. Nothing to see here.

Shimizu later ran into Kiyuri and soon after Chihase while just wondering around town. Shimizu and Chihase treated each other like sisters, seeing as neither had any real sisters of their own. Shimizu enjoyed having an adorable younger sister like Chihase, and Chihase thought it was so cool to have a beautiful, dependable older sister like Shimizu.

Seeing as how it was the last day before school began again, the three girls went out for milkshakes.
"You never told me you had an adorable younger sister," Kiyuri protested. "I'm jealous."
Shimizu drained a fourth of her shake. She loved vanilla. "It's not like she has to be just my younger sister. She can be your younger sister, too."
Chihase nodded vigorously. "The more sisters, the better! So you skateboard, big sister Kiyuri? I think that's so cool."
Kiyuri played with her shake. "My older sisters Kazuna and Kasumi got into snowboarding and surfboarding, respectively. I guess I felt a little pressured to do some kind of 'boarding', myself. But it is really fun."
Then Chihase became serious. "Big sister Shimizu, report."

Shimizu frowned. "About a week ago, I caught him snooping in my underwear drawer. This makes the fourth time."
Kiyuri cocked an eyebrow. "Who, your new father?"
Shimizu gagged and needed several seconds to compose herself. "Eww, gross. No, I'm talking about Takuya. Chihase loves him and I'm sure he loves her back but lately he's been hung on me. He hasn't told me anything yet, but it doesn't take a scientist to tell he's interested when he's examining your panties and trying to peek on you in the shower."
Kiyuri sucked on her strawberry shake. "Is that so? Man, he's crushing bad. The next thing you know, he'll be making your school lunch with all your favorites every single morning."
"I wouldn't actually mind that part. He's a pretty good cook. Better than me, I'm embarrassed to say."
Chihase looked downcast. "It's getting worse. I've got to do something!"
Shimizu chuckled. "Chihase, relax. I'm sure it's just a phase. A guy like Takuya would have to be a complete idiot not to fall for you. I know I would if I were a guy."

Chihase blushed all the way to her ears. "Thank you. That makes me happy, but-"
Kiyuri nodded. "If you're still worried, then you're going to have to take initiative."
"Huh? How so?"
"Well," Kiyuri paused, grinning like a predator. "You might have to show him that you have panties he might be interested in as well."
Chihase's face was redder. Kiyuri continued. "You're going to have to be bold about this. You don't want to lose Takuya, right?"
Shimizu nodded. "I know Takuya and Chihase make a cute couple, so I agree. I think you're going to need to do more than walking with him to and from school and studying for tests together in the library. Can you do that, Chihase?"
Chihase nodded, dipping into her strange quirk for speaking in the third person when nervous. "Yes, Chihase will try."

In brief: Mern barely dodges car as he observes Panko's power, while making mental notes. Enters in a midclose ranged battle, hitting with Surge Vaccum, getting knocked down and hit in retailiation by Panko damaging his back, only to react nigh-instantly in a brief combo including a throwdown Storm Crest. Mero and Picky bicker and brag and tease about the combatants.

Was approved by Phil (Panko). ^^
-------------------------

Menarker almost cowered as he bolted to one side, the speeding bullet car crumpled from Panko's thunderous blow speeding into the pavement bouncing erractically. The lad hesitated briefly as he viewed the menacing appearance of the mass-power wielding teddy bear girl and the force of destruction and fortitude that was able to withstand a direct assault of Storm Crest. However, confidence lightly welled up as he was able to take the first strike... and the blow left him feeling stronger with an energy that was foreign in nature, which seemed similar to that orange aura she brandished openly in front of her.

"Ok... note to myself, Storm Crest should maybe be used more as a finisher, so I don't push them away too soon. But somehow, I feel stronger when I connected with her... so I believe it was effective. Somehow, I don't think she'll let me do it again though... But I bet I can dodge her if I stay mid-close range while using ranged attacks."

He dashed toward Panko gliding in mid-air close to the pavement, eager to keep the battle in mid-range as he whipped a few of his blades at her, which she narrowly evaded to no effect, but each progressively harder to react as the distance closed in and their homing ability becoming more effective. She dodged toward another car which he reacted to by viciously slashing his entire right arm toward, where Panko stopped short of the parked vehicle, just before it would impact her behind the car.

"Missed.. !!!"

Her eyes could barely register the sheering force which upon impacting the car, the blade spun as if on a new axis, impacting ONCE for practically mind-numbing pain that left evident slice marks and secondly as she mitatigated part of the pain from her barrier while jumping away at the same time before she could be hit again.

"Ok, not missed. Harder to dodge then I hoped. Shit..."

...As he dashed toward to capitalize on her desperate dodge, she fired a Cutie Beam, forcing him to jump to the side, and as he landed on the pavement she spiked the ground beside her, creating an earthquake which shook all around her, sending Menarker clamboring to the ground as she dashed to pin him under her crushing limb. Her fist impacted the ground where he was momentaily lying prone, as his prone body glided along the pavement, trying to right himself up. She rushed earnestly and sent her aura filled punch devastingly toward him, feeling a large barrier against his front, but sending the unprepared youth against a car with a violent crush.

"Way to actually fight, Panko..." Picky's compliment died in his mouth as Mern's eyes glowered with impatience and indigination right in her face, having dashed in ultra close range as if pain meant nothing to him, as he spun his body quickly like a top, his left hand slicing across the shoulder meanly as his right clenched her shoulder in a fist and fluidly pulled it down into the earth with a shudder that rammed Panko's body against the earth, voltage filling the space and upward like a pillar as she soared upward, free from his grasp. Panko shook the earth when she landed, though her jacket again absorbed some of the blow. With a pained expression, she got back up and stared at Mern in disbelief, her paw raised in defense.


"Hey... Mero, is it?" Mero absentmindly continued watching much to Picky's rapidly depleting patience, abandoning the civil approach. "HEY, fleabag that shits in a box!" She turned to face him, with a glowering expression that spoke how pissed she was.
"Oh, what do you want NOW? The fight was just getting good!"
"What the frikkin' hell was that? She smashed him into a car! How the hell can he still whip around like a frikkin' jujitsu master on speed? He should be drooling in an ER right now!"

"Oh? Hey Mena-kun! I think that jacket of yours is a hint regarding the type of magic that you use! It seems to lend some additional benefits to head on tactics! Worth experimenting in more detail later!" She turned to Picky with a sarcastic expression on her face. "I imagine facing my partner... is some sort of an uphill battle. Not only is he gaining experience, like I imagine your protege is, but he is rather self-driven to correct and improve himself."

Picky retorted defiantly, his unusual shape fluttering barely a foot from her, as intimidatingly as his form could possibly manage. "So, beating up a little girl is improving himself? I hate to think what kind of gutter you must've pulled this kid out of then. I guess some of us need to get stuck with violent psychos, though, huh?"

She gasped in cleverly mocked astonishment. "You call it the act of a violent psycho. I call it releasing the limiters of a repressed spirit." The feline then lifted her eyes up to the air as if trying to remember something that conviently slipped her mind before smirking, with Picky arching his eyebrows in distrust and suspicion.
"Oh, right and I nearly forgot that he seems to get stronger upon physical contact with the opponent, not just with me. So her close combat range might figuratively make him a snowball rolling downhill, if you get my drift."

"WHAT!? Panko!" He started spouting whatever advice he would while Mero silently rested her head amidst her arms in a sleep mode, hiding the smirking lips which marveled at just HOW MUCH FUN it was to string the headstrong abberation along. Oh, and how decently well her companion was doing, although she imagined that if Panko changed tactics, he would have to grow and adapt. A good thing in a battle where the only victim is pride.

"Pride matters not in this circumstance, so grasp the experience and learn from it, while you still can."

"Damn it... My back feels rather crappy, even though my shield acted to push me back instead of trying to resist that obscene blow. I hope I don't get hit there again like that. Although I would have expected it to hurt a lot more..."

Synopsis: Panko freaks out about getting knifed, punches Menarker twice in her cat suit, and runs away. Picky does his best to get in the last word and it's up to you to decide if he succeeded. Reposted to add something for Menarker, so now it is Menarker approved.

Panko hunched where she had landed, one arm raised to defend herself. She took a deep breath and felt a sharp pain. Glancing down, she touched her lowered hand to her chest. She winced, withdrew her hand, and found her fuzzy mitt matted with dark blood. The blade thrown by Menarker had left a deep gash along her chest. The girl looked back at the boy who had done this and found him still glaring at her like a gladiator preparing to execute a heretic. She started shaking and couldn't stop herself.

"What?! Panko! Cat suit! Beams! Now!"

Picky's yelling snapped Panko back to reality long enough for her to stutter, "T-t-transform," and replace her torn bear suit with the cat suit in a flash of light. The gash remained.

Menarker dashed toward her with a menacing speed that caused her to panic. Instinctively she pushed her arm out in self-defense, which oddly enough connected to his face. He bolted back again, a slight look of confusion and disarray as he darted again with similar speed, but was met by a similar retribution as her arms reacted to shield out of fear.

Panko raised her hands to fire another Cutie Beam, but her mind was racing too much to execute the spell. Why was he trying so hard to hurt her? Was he really trying to kill her? Why wasn't Picky saving her? Why did this boy seem more monstrous than the monsters from that night?

Panko dropped her hands. Tears in her eyes, she yelled, "Sorry," turned around, and ran as fast as she could away from the fight.

Picky watched her run. Turning to to his remaining audience, he said, "Well, that was fun," with an annoyingly smug calmness, like he'd counted on this outcome. "I think Panko learned a lot today, even if it was completely different from whatever you were blabbing about, cat." The inoshikacho floated into the air. "We'll be counting on your help on the battlefield, Psycho Cat and Kid Psycho. Chao." With that, he fluttered away vaguely in the direction that Panko had run, the Phantom Zone fading away as he left.

"Evolution complete."

Iriumi staggered, before falling flat on her face with a small squawk of surprise. For the past half hour or so after her warm-up and safely encased in her own phantom zone, Ivy had warned her briefly about 'upgrading her genetic data'. She didn't remember anything else until Ivy announced it was over.

"Uuu-uuurrr... Wh-what happened?" Iriumi blinked a little groggily.
"I have been analyzing our previous battle while you've slept, Iriumi. There are some things that are lacking in our combat methods, and so I strive to improve where we are flawed."

"So... What am I wearing now?" Iriumi looked at her new suit. It was emblazoned in gold and red, and felt oddly light and warm.
"A prototype suit. I have yet to figure out the components regarding weaponry and other such items, but this should do for now. Let's try some harder training. Call my weapon."

Iriumi focused, and this time it came a little easier to her. She stretched out both her hands, cupping them in a beckoning motion. But what popped into her mind and what command issued from her mouth was completely different. A flash of furious red, a splash of golden fire.
"Eternal Flame..." The thing blossomed from her hands like a cherry flower unfurling its fiery petals. It extended a bulging appendage before flopping limply to the ground, still connected to Iriumi's hands. A red-gold vine, thin and long, coiled like a snake on the ground before her. It seemed to shimmer from heat.

"...wha?!"
"Interesting. You've manifested something completely different in this new suit."

"B-but, how? I was trying to summon the Ancient's Wrath and... this came out! I'm sorry, I should've tried harder," she stammered, holding the thing daintily, as if it would leap up and bite her if she made any sudden moves.

"That is forgivable. Even I did not foresee this outcome," Ivy placated calmly, before continuing, "my evolutionary steps are... unique. I am an adaptive familiar, capable of advancing myself in ways that will allow my user to more efficiently utilize her strengths and make up for their weaknesses. I chose you because you too are unique in your magic. You augment your familiar's powers rather than have any proper magic of your own. In this, I as a symbiote and you as my host are well suited, as we benefit from our partnership.
"What you demonstrated here is the simple fact that in augmenting my shape to suit your design of combat, you chose your ideal melee weaponry in comparison to the simple basic one I originally possessed. You may not have consciously thought of it, but that is the outcome. That, my companion, is a whip, and I will train you to use it," Ivy's statement ended firmly.

Iriumi didn't have much time to think before the first phantom assailant came at her. She saw it approaching rapidly, a vine whipping up from the ground in the phantom zone, lashing at her with deadly accuracy. Her mind suddenly flipped into instinctive overdrive and time seemed to slow. Something was happening to her. She could hear her own heartbeat, every fibre in her body primed and already bunched into flinging herself to the left, aimed to sidestep the green appendage.

The air around her blurred, shimmering with a bizarre display of heat that suddenly erupted in bursts of small flames from the thin vine-like motives decorating her suit. She felt only the warmth and not the burning of the golden fire. Her sidestep left an imprint of her silhouette in flames behind her, before the vine cleaved it in half and scattered the dying fire.

The 'Eternal Flame', as it was called, came to life in her hands. She'd gripped the thin rope-like vine and was bringing it up like a sword. It felt a little odd, and she knew she wasn't doing it right long before the tail end of the whip came around and lashed her right cheek in stinging retribution, a harsh remark of her unskilled use. It drew a sharp gasp of pain from her as she clutched her lashed cheek.

"The Eternal Flame is not a sword. It is the lashing tail of a mighty dragon. Swing it without rigidity in your arms, curl your attacks. It is not the strength of your swing you must rely on anymore, but the flexibility and speed." The vine came at her again, coiling and writhing, lashing out in fury. Iriumi ducked under the sweep with inhuman speed, again small puffs of fire left in her wake. Her arm bent and rose. This time the whip obeyed her, arching elegantly and sparking its own flame.

Her aim was poor, the vine long-gone by the time Iriumi managed to muster the counterattack. The crack and flare of golden-red fire echoed across the zone as the tip of the whip licked the air loudly. She was rewarded in her efforts by a solid thump in the back as the vine that swept past did a full rotation and came from behind. Iriumi staggered forward, off balance, arms flailing.

"Don't let your guard down!" Iriumi leapt off her foot, barely dodging the vicious sweep from the vine again, sending herself into an awkward airborne position. Her mind was suddenly - and scarily - clear. She knew what to do, and where to set her magic into motion.

Red-gold ivy leaves bloomed from her back, giant ones that more or less shot out rather than unfurled. They shifted and moved, and Iriumi felt herself stabilizing. The rush of hot air around her sustained her semi-hover, and she found it easy to lift herself up and out of the attacking vine's reach.

But it wasn't finished with her yet. With unnatural speed, it whipped out and caught onto one armoured ankle. Jerked to a halt in her ascension, Iriumi felt vulnerable. Her arm came up again, and lashed out quickly, clearly trying to copy the whip-like motion the vine performed before. Fire erupted around the Eternal Flame, catching Iriumi slightly off-guard by its brilliance. It wrapped itself around the vine's base, the scorching heat emanating from it wreaking its damage on the vine.

Convulsing violently, the attacking appendage let go and writhed. Unfortunately, Iriumi, just learning how to use the whip, didn't know how to unwrap the Eternal Flame, and was jerked along with the flailing vine. It upended her and slammed her into the ground, knocking the wind out of her, before withdrawing back into the earth of the phantom zone.

"That was foolish. The Eternal Flame is a whip, and those that use the whip should know better than to try to entrap an attacking opponent coming right at them. You snare yourself in your own doom by tying yourself close to your opponent unarmed," Ivy commented calmly as Iriumi lay there gasping for air. The girl couldn't manage anything more than a nod, "Let's try again after you've caught your breath."

Daichi grabbed his cell from the desk and accepted the call.
"What's it Hidesuke?"
"Hello Dai-chan. Kyokei got a peak at the how the classes will be set this year." Hidesuke sounded like he had bad news to tell.
"We're in different classes this year."
"That was to be expected." Daichi answered with a slight note of disappointment. "We pretty much knew it from the time they made a career survey."
"I blame the new transfers. A whole school was closed in the neighborhood."
"Haven't heard of it..."
"You live close to that school, you'd probably go there if it wasn't overloaded. Now half of them will study at our school."
"Right..." Daichi sounded like he wasn't impressed.
"I wonder how you can live not knowing what's going around you..."
"Not like you'd know anything if it wasn't for your sister."
"Right... Anyway, she has something she wanted to ask you. Can you go to town with us?"
"Can't do. I'm rather busy... and out of cash."
"Sorry to hear that. What are ya doing?"
"Umh... I'm studying. Not for school though."
"I bet it's a new game. I never thought you'd find a game you'd have a problem with." Hidesuke laughed loudly for a while. "Okay then. Make sure to come to the year opening tomorrow, maybe we can fool around after that."
"Mhm... See you then."
"See ya then. Over and out."
The phone biped for a while after the connection was over.
"Back to reading then." Daichi thought to himself and proceeded to lock the door and window in his room. He pulled the courtains to cover it and that generally was all he needed to make sure his brother won't enter the room or spy on him.
Other than that there wasn't much stuff he needed to do to keep whatever secrets he'd have soon.

"Chapter Three: Part One: Simple combat applications." Was the title on the first page after the secrecy warning.
"Sounds interesting enough."

And so he began to read what was he hoped would change his life, ignoring all the worries he had earlier, and those that came whil talking with his friend.