Cyriel

Name: Eve Parry Age: 24 Appearance: 5'10", short black hair, gray eyes, slender figure. She usually wears expensive brand names when going out, but she dresses casually in loose gray pants and a T-shirt (I luv NY). She always wears black, checkered sneakers. Personality: She's very moody, and tends to swing very easily, which makes some people think she's bi-polar. The truth is that she doesn't have patience for people whom she thinks are below her level of intelligence, or people that bore her. If they get on her nerves even a little, usually she'll ignore them or tell them bluntly to go away. However, when she finds something interesting, she'll put her heart and soul into working with it. She loves solving problems and puzzles, and also has a small competitive edge. If she wins, she's very proud but pretends to be modest, and if she loses, she brushes it off like she didn't put in effort. She hates being embarrassed, and goes to great lengths to plan everything to perfection. When she puts her mind to something, she will work herself to death to get it done perfectly. She never quits on anything that she decides to do. Your Past: Her parents were very, very rich. Rolling in the dough. She had an extremely pampered childhood, and when she was two a sibling was born. She was very resentful of her younger sister, and therefore always tended to be aloof and distant towards her. At the age of 14 her parents divorced, very clean and leaving no threads hanging. She lived with her mother, while her sister Eden went and lived with her father. She has engaged in only minor contact with her sister Eden, only enough to get her mother off her back. Her intelligence and knack at solving problems propelled her through the expensive private schools she attended, and she received her high school diploma when she was 16, after which she graduated from Oxford four years later. She had a talent for writing, and when she was 20 she went to work as a writer for The Rolling Stones. Her determination and no-nonsense manner propelled her up the ranks until she was promoted as an editor. Love Life: For Eve, she believes that romantic feelings are idiotic and get in the way. She has promised herself that she will never live in one of the soap opera/ dramas that her friends were always involved in because of their boyfriends. She detests males that try to hit on her, always giving them the cold shoulder. As a result, she has never attended a high school dance, prom, date, dinner, or anything. Her love life is nonexistent, replaced by a fierce determination not to get involved with anyone. She doesn't want to be ruled by her feelings, valuing her intellect much more. She has nothing against men, if they don't try to be more than "friends." Occupation: An editor for the Rolling Stones magazine. Information: At 24, she's so far managed a successful business career, and is trying to rise in the ranks. Trying another side of her writing, she's attempting to write a novel with a storyline based on the offices of NY. Her mother, who is Chinese, is pressuring her to marry, saying that if she gets any older she will be a "rotten fruit," and no man will want her. Eve refuses adamantly, and turns away anyone that her mother tries to set her up with. She hasn't worried about the mark under her eye because the managers of the magazine thought that it was interesting and kind of exotic. She has attended numerous self-defense classes to protect herself from unwanted advances, and has gained her black belt in tae kwon do after training vigorously. She now attends classes on Wushu, a chinese martial art form, and another in flower arrangement, at her mother's persuasion.

"Hey, can we go yet?" Ceris asked, yelling across the pool to Mr. Smith. He glared, "If you go, you have to do 10 laps more than everyone else at first practice!" Ceris thought, and then shrugged, "Heck, why not? You guys up for it?" She walked out, waving to Mr. Smith, "See you at practice coach!" He glared. Then she turned back to Kari, Matt, and James, "Hey, you guys coming or what?"

Jim looked around at the rest of the group, "Hey, guys, what...?" Suddenly he stepped back, his eyes widening. The rest of the group was frozen. They didn't move, breathe. They were like statues. "Jim?" a small voice spoke around him. He looked around, and then saw a small child standing beside a tree. She looked like a ghost, and was almost other-worldly. "Jim?" she said again. "Are you going to hurt me? Please don't hurt me." "What? Why would I hurt you?" he asked, puzzled. Who was this kid? She looked up, her eyes black and cold, and she suddenly became all to real, and all too beautiful, "Are you going to hurt me? If you hurt me, I'll have to hurt them!" Her voice was harsh, and she pointed at his friends. Jim held up his hands, surprised, "Wait! What do you mean? I don't want to hurt you! Just calm down. Who are you? Maybe I can help you." The girl suddenly wavered, and then changed. Cicero appeared, swirling in black. He smiled, "Help me? Are you going to help me?" Jim's eyes narrowed, and he tried to position himself between the frozen group and the black figure, "Tricks, eh? Can't you fight without them? What have to done to my friends?" Cicero shrugged, "I haven't done anything. Yet. But no, I'm not going to do anything. It's you that will have to make the choice. One of the hardest choices there is. And this is only the beginning. Of course, if you fail this, then it's over for you and them. And if you succeed, then it's only you that will survive. Are you ready to begin?" Jim shook his head, "No, wait. What do you mean? What choice? What do you mean it's over for them? Will they die? I won't let you kill them!" Cicero smiled, "I told you. It's your choice if they die or not. Or if you die. Life is full of choices, painful choices. Now, time to play. Time to choose. Good luck." He laughed, and then disappeared. Jim looked around, and then saw his friends start to move again. "Are you guys all right?" He ran over, but stopped. What was..wrong? Suddenly, they all turned, looking at him. Their eyes were black. James suddenly moved, walking slowly towards him, and then raised his weapon. "James, what...?" Jim looked in horror at him, and then realized that James was going to kill him. He dodged just as James's weapon came slicing down. "James! Stop! It's me, Jim! Please stop! Cicero..he's done something to you! Please...please don't make me fight you." James just turned again, and this time the rest of the group started to slowly advance. Jim started sweating, his hands slippery as they gripped his weapon, "Cicero? Cicero! Stop this! Stop doing this to them! CICERO!" No answer. Suddenly, Jem attacked, throwing a spell with her staff. Jim started yelling in pain as the spell started to contort his body. Suddenly Cicero appeared, "Ah, Jem, gently now. We don't want to kill him off to quickly, do we?" Jem slowly retracted the spell, and Jim was left on the ground, panting hard. Cicero smiled, beautiful and cruel, "Jim, do you understand the game now? Oh, the choices... Are you going to let your friends kill you, or are you going to live - at the expense of their lives? Because let me tell you something: you won't live if you are merciful to them. They won't let you escape. Are you going to let beautiful, sweet Jem kill you?" Jim panted, and then stood up, pain dizzying him. "I'm not going to die," he muttered, picking up his weapon. "I'm not going to die." He crouched in a protective stance, ready to face his friends, his mind desperately trying to think of something to do. Cicero disappeared. "Jim!" Jem stared at him, tears running down her face. "Oh, Jim, I'm so sorry! I'm sorry, I didn't mean to hurt you! Please, don't hurt me...I didn't want to do it, I'm sorry...." She started sobbing, covering her face with her hands. Jim ran over at once, putting his arms around Jem, "Hey, it's ok. It's ok, don't worry, you didn't hurt me. Are you ok?" Suddenly, he felt her tense, and his brain screamed a warning. Jem smiled, her face clear of tears, her eyes black, "I'll have to make sure I hurt you this time, won't I?" She slashed with her staff, and he barely dodged in time. He heard Cicero's laugh again, but he couldn't see him. Again, he found himself caught in the middle of the group, their eyes all dark as they prepared to attack him. "...ah, the choices... Which path will you choose?" Cicero's voice lingered in Jim's mind. What was he going to do?

"Hey, Kari, what's wrong?" Sare asked, noticing her sister constantly looking at her. "Do I have something on my face?" She scrubbed vigorously with her napkin. Kari laughed at the comical sight, "No, you don't have anything on your face. Nothing's wrong; I was just thinking that I love having a cute little sister." "Cute?" Kari laughed again at Sare's wry expression. Suddenly, Sare pulled out a white feather, "Hey, Kari, do you know what kind of feather this is?" She handed it to Kari, who looked at it closely. It was like smooth silk, so soft you almost couldn't feel it. Kari shook her head, "I have no idea. Where did you get it?" Sare shrugged, but Kari could tell there was something more, "I dunno. Just found it. Hey, lets go! We're wasting time here, and there's so much stuff!"

The same time that Haze walked into the office, the administrator joined her, dragging Kitsune behind him. "Are you Porter?" one of the guards asked. "The one and the only," she replied nonchalantly. "Why do you want to know? It better be important, since you're wasting my precious class time." The guard turned to a slender, pale girl with headphone, "Veil, is this the girl?" Veil turned, her short black hair swinging, and removed her headphones, "That's her." Her voice was toneless, apathetic. The administrator now turned on Haze, "This is the final warning Porter. Again, and you'll be going in solitary confinement." Haze stood up, "What proof? You can't just pin something on me with no evidence!" Veil interrupted again, "I believe that they have proof." She held up Haze's bag. "This is yours, is it not?" She looked coolly at Haze through her black eyes, the blue flecks glinting. Then she turned to the administrator, "I believe that was all you needed?" "Oh, yes Veil, you may return to class," the administrator said, and Veil walked out, headphones on. Haze was also allowed to return to class after being given a hefty punishment, lecture, and the warning about solitary. Kitsune also returned, trying to find Zieg as soon as he could, "Hey, Zieg. Are you sure that one kid is ok? She ratted out on Haze." "Kid?" Zieg asked. "Oh, wait, you mean Veil? She's ok. Don't worry about it. I'll talk to her."

Sare left Kitsune at the bar, and returned to her hotel room. She opened the door and sighed, thinking about all the chaos that night. There had been so many people, and so many secrets... She had a headache. Time for some aspirin. Then she went to the computer, putting on some Mozart on at the same time. There was an encrypted email from her mother, which she opened immediately. Dear Sare... The email just held the familiar greetings, her mother telling her that she was safe...for the moment. She continued, reading to the bottom of the short message, and stopped. ...come and get you soon, don't worry. I won't leave you. Be safe, and don't stay out late. Keep with the administrator. Most important: DO NOT TURN AWAY THOSE WHO KNOCK AT YOUR DOOR. Sare stared at the all-caps sentence. Don't turn anyone away? Her mother must be sending someone, or...maybe someone important was coming... Well, she'd have to wait and see. Meanwhile, she went to Hunter-Net. Log in: Shrapnel616 Password: ******** *Welcome back, Shrapnel616.* The site was in chaos, everyone talking about Chicago and the hunters. What was happening? Everyone was so worried. But then, she noticed something odd. There were new smilies. Actually, little bats by some of the member names. Then she realized that her mother had done something to her account. She had attached the bats to all the members that were vampires. Sare drew in a pained breath, shock going through her body. Almost 1/3 of the members were actually vampires. And they were tracking the hunters.

The other Pyrl seemed to glow and brighten, almost blinding the group. Suddenly it was moving, throwing its beams and bolts in a blinding tornado of electricity. Ariyel's eyes were golden, and she smiled contemptuously at Blake, "What, can you not handle a prototype?" Blake was about to snarl in return, but she took off, her shadows dancing around her. "God she's fast," Logan said, running to catch up. Blake silently agreed, wondering how a half-breed could act like a demon lord. Ryan followed, muttering something about using the Lord's name in vain. Ariyel attacked with a roar, drawing Serce across her body in one swift motion. The Pyrl turned to meet her, throwing bolts as it readied itself for her attack. She dodged, and then twisted, shoving her sword beneath the Pyrl's defenses. It shrieked and flew out of range, throwing evil glares at Ariyel, "You little half-breed. Your death will be slow for this!" It attacked, flying through the air and releasing its deadly bolts. Ariyel pushed off the wall, jumping to meet it with her sword raised. In return, the Pyrl summoned its own sword of twisted lightning. The two clashed, and the force made a little shockwave. Logan steadied himself, grabbing onto a tree for balance. He watched as the two fought, amazed at Ariyel's skill. She was so young - where did she get her power? He motioned to Ryan, readying his sword, "Come on priest! What's taking you so long? The strength of God hasn't left you, has it?" He took off again, about to jump into the fray.

"Well, shit," Logan said, summing up about basically everything. "What are we going to do then?" Ariyel looked blankly at him, "Do? What do you mean?" Ryan interrupted, "What are we going to do to stop this invasion?" "You mean other than pray and throw holy water?" Ariyel retorted. "Well, what is there to do? What are you getting at?" "Don't you want to protect Earth? What about all the people that will be murdered and butchered?" Ryan asked, his compassion showing through. Ariyel surveyed him coldly, "If you're going to be my ally, you have to be strong enough to accept the truth. There is nothing that we can do. Protecting humans and this world is not on my agenda."

"Makiyu!" Makiyu turned at the sound of his name being called. He saw Sare running towards him. "Is something wrong?" he asked. "Oh, no, I just saw you and wanted to say... Hey, wait a minute, isn't this a pub?" She narrowed her eyes at him. "You know, you shouldn't drink. It's not healthy for you. And Kari doesn't like men who drink." Makiyu almost choked, "What? Kari wha...? I think you've got the wrong idea about me and..." Sare laughed, hitting him on the back, "I'm just kidding. I don't know what kind of guys Kari likes, and I don't even know if she likes you. So don't worry, I was just teasing. By the way, where is she? I was going to go with her when we split up, but then I lost her. Have you seen her?"

"Mom?" Sare called. "What's a dhampire?" Her mother poked her head into the room, "A dhampire? Where did you hear that?" Walking over to the computer, she saw the post on the screen. "Oh. Well, a dhampire is a half vampire. Here, let me read." Sare moved so that her mother could sit down at the computer. "Damn it!" Sare jumped at her mother's outburst, staring. Her mother got up quickly, turning off the computer, "Sare, come on. We have to leave." "What?" "We're going to Chicago. Damn that Kitsune," her mother said, and started to haul out some light suitcases. An hour later, they were on their private jet, on their way to Chicago. "Sare, I'm going to have to drop you off in Chicago," her mother said. "Drop me off? You mean, by myself?" Sare asked incredulously. Her mother nodded, tired and distressed, "Yes, by yourself. I'm very very sorry, but it's the only thing I can do. I have to go and...take care of some business. You know the Vampire Houses...I have to just go and take care of some things there. It'll probably only be for about three weeks at the most. I'll make sure you're safe, and you'll be in one of the best hotels. Don't worry." "Why didn't I just stay at home?" Sare asked, still shocked at the revelation of her mother's plans. Her mother rubbed her temples, trying to soothe her growing headache, "Well, I'm just not sure that it's safe. At least in Chicago we know that the administrator of Hunter-Net is there. I'll contact him before we leave, and tell him to watch out for you." "No, Mom, I'll do it. You're...probably not someone that he wants to hear from..." Sare said quietly, reminded of...the time...the Imbuing... Suddenly, in no time at all, Sare was checked in for three weeks in the penthouse of the Four Seasons Hotel. Her mother gave her a kiss and hug, three credit cards, and an emergency phone number. Then she was gone, and Sare was alone. Outside it was getting dark, and the lights of Chicago were getting brighter. Alone, in Chicago.

Name: Cicero Age: 16 Appearance: [url]http://digilander.libero.it/yukinon/immagini/soichiro.html[/url] Bio: He's actually quite sane, and very serious. He's only playing the game because the rest of his siblings convinced him that it would be fun, and since he hadn't had fun in a long while, he agreed to play. He represents pain because he's afraid that he's losing his ability to feel emotions. When he was young, there was an event that caused him to lock off his emotions, until his heart became like a stone. He inflicts pain on himself to try to make his humanity come back, and to make sure that he can still feel. Job(s): Whip Master, Knife-thrower, Psychic Dimension: Land of Emotions Side: Emotion Sibling

Fera put up her scimitar, "I don't need interruptions. And you don't need to introduce yourself. I'm not here to aid your cause. I'm here to protect my people." Flaid mumbled snidely, "How heroic and noble." She glared at him, "I was wondering, Lidora, if you would just tell me what happened. And why. Why is this happening?"

Sare walked into her home, locking the door behind her, "Mom? Are you home?" "I'm in here," came her mother's voice from the kitchen. Sare went in to give her mom a hug, and then climbed the stairs to her room. Carefully, she deposited her backpack on her bed, and then went to the center table. Various household items, lengths of pipe and plastic, wires, strings, and other various objects littered the surface. Sare stared at the mess, wondering why she didn't want to work on any bombs this afternoon. Usually she went right to work, experimenting on her designs, but today... She checked her arms and neck, seeing that all the bruises were gone from last night. Last night...was the reason she had lost interest. She had to find out more. Time to return to Hunter-net. She flipped on her computer and selected the site from the 'Favorites' list, tapping her fingers on the keys in nervous anticipation. Log in: Shrapnel616 Password: ******** *Welcome back, Shrapnel 616* Sare checked to see who else was logged on.

Ariyel smiled at the priest's words, and replied, "We have a choice? You're not really in a position to state an ultimatum." Ryan kept his calm, ignoring the slight malice in her words, "If you wish to challenge the power of God, then do so now." Ariyel looked at him, and he held her gaze, until her eyes flashed gold. Ryan gasped as the demon power almost overwhelmed him; why was it so strong? What was this? Shadows impeded his view, but he could still see her eyes glowing a liquid gold. It was so strong...was she a demon lord? No, she couldn't be...but then what was she? Then Ariyel stopped, and her eyes returned to a dark black, the flecks of gold growing small. She walked to the panting priest, "I am not remorseful of any past sins, nor do I repent. But I will accept you as an ally. Are you strong enough to hold pact with me?"

Cyriel heard the screams, and turned to see Blake finish off the two humans. What a dilemma...kill the assasin while he's feeding, or run into the priest with the blessed weapons? She turned and watched, waiting to see what would happen. Then, another demon force, this time strong and very evident... Why didn't Blake sense it? She saw the name even before she saw him...Iscariot... A familiar name; he had been one of her most fierce rivals in the Chaotic Realm, always trying to trap her in one of his sly tricks. Her lip curled as she remembered the fights against him. Ariyel's eyes finally picked Iscariot out of the shadows, and watched as he sucked the blood out of the other human. Blake had been totally surprised...so Iscariot must have been shielding himself. What a fool, she thought. Why would he shield himself to only one demon? Only an inexperienced demon would forget that she was on Earth. Logan watched as Ariyel's breath caught, and then too also smelled the strong tang of holy wards. The priest had arrived. Both Logan and Ariyel watched as silent bystanders as Blake and Ryan drew their weapons and attacked.

Ariyel watched the place that Blake had vanished into, feeling with her shadows for any leftover trace...and she felt it. The slightest hint of a name, but then it disappeared. She let the shadow dissapate into her body, and then turned back to Logan. "You're a traitor?" He looked at her, "Well, I'm not really...sure...I guess you could say that. What about you?" She didn't answer, and started to walk back up the alley towards the street. Life had seemed to return to the area, and people could be heard laughing and drinking too much. A couple would probably be dead or seriously injured by the time morning came. Suddenly Ariyel felt the dark soul of another demon pass back into the Chaotic Realm. It was close...too close. And who had defeated it? It hadn't been all that powerful, but the name had imparted that it wasn't the typical minion either. She stopped and looked around, reading the emotions of the few people that were around her, trying to get a sense for this new arrival. What was this strange scent on the air? "Do you smell something?" she asked Logan, who had stopped beside her. He sniffed the air, and then cocked his head, "Yes, something...kind of wild, tangy. It stings a little." She was just about to agree when she spotted the person through her shadows, "Shit, blessed weapons. What the hell is something like him doing here?" She turned and walked the opposite way, keeping her shadows silent and invisible. A monk probably wouldn't understand what a demon daughter was doing on Earth.

"I could say the same for you," Ceris replied, nodding in Mr. Smith's direction. James looked over and saw that the coach was still glaring at them, not even paying attention to the race at hand. James grinned, "Well, what can I say. I'm just not too fond of overly pompous-" "Careful," Ceris interrupted, "water carries sound, and it doesn't take much to echo in here." She looked at Mr. Smith again, but he had turned away. She breathed a sigh of relief, and looked back at James. "You know, I don't think hanging around you is going to help my image much..." James looked at her, surprised at this sudden brush-off. She smiled wryly, "I'm just kidding. I don't have an image to keep, as you already know, but a sense of humor is always a good thing to keep around."

Fera urged her horse even faster, drawing her scimitar as she heard the renewed fighting. The earthquake jarred her on her horse, and the rest of the band fell behind as she sped on. She could hear their shouts, but ignored them. Suddenly, she saw something flash through the trees at an unearthly speed...she identified the figure and challenged it. "Demon!" she cried, gaining its full attention. Flaid immediately looked over at the desert princess, noting her drawn scimitar and other weapons. He ignored her and sped on, increasing his speed. He would be there any minute now... Fera saw that Flaid was ignoring her, and she jumped off of her horse to catch up to him. She whipped her scimitar and it glanced off a branch right above his head. He turned around quickly, a surprised expression on his face. When he saw her, his eyes narrowed. "Get away! I don't have time for you!" he snarled, raising Uriai in return. Fera closed in for another attack, "Die demon!"

Sare laughed at the two, especially now that Makiyu was chasing Gerret everywhere, trying to punch him back. Now that the sun was shining, her bad dreams were forgotten, and only the new day lay ahead. Kari came over quietly, "Are you okay? I heard you last night?" Sare nodded solemnly, answering quietly, "Yes, I'm fine. Sorry I woke you up." Kari smiled in answer, letting Sare know that everything was fine. They both turned back to the group, and saw that now all three warriors were embroiled in the chase. Kari laughed, and then ran off in the right direction to Guardania, "Catch me if you can! Last one to the fayth is...something!" Everyone watched her go, and then tore off after her, laughter everywhere. Sare watched, and shook her head, "Aren't they all supposed to be more mature than me? But they're all still kids...kinda weird. Am I going to be like that too?" She laughed, and then started to run too, but her mood wasn't the same. Memories of the night invaded her happiness in the day, and she kept in mind that single white feather at her door. And wondered, when would the next dark thing come?

Ceris stretched, wondering who her opponent would be. Mr. Smith (the swim coach) was so odd this year. Why was he doing try-outs like this? Probably to make sure that she wasn't on the team this year, she thought grimly. He had probably had enough of her 'attitude' last year. Well, nothing to do but to try. Mr. Smith glared at her, "Next up, Ceris Opel and James Leonheart!" Ceris quickly tried to hide her surprise. When had James decided to try out? From what she remembered, that kid had never done anything except skip class. She looked over at him, and saw him wink at her. She looked back down at her feet, fighting her blush. They both took positions, and at the whistle, both were rocketing through the water. The students who were watching were betting on who was going to win. The girls were asking each other how much they knew about James; they avoided the subject of Ceris, since she scorned their ditzy type. Ceris cut smoothly through the water, calm now in its familiar embrace. She had practiced through the summer, swimming laps everyday at the neighborhood pool. She used her slight embarrassment at being nervous into energy, kicking harder and making her strokes smoother and faster. James kept up right along with her, although she didn't know it. She fought the temptation to 'see' into him and cause some acid build-up in his muscles... She was determined to win this fair and square. James was barely keeping up with Ceris. Jeez she's fast, he thought, keeping in pace with her. She must have trained. Suddenly there were at the wall, and both flip-turned in unison, starting back. For some reason he really wanted to win. He didn't touch his powers; they would be near next to useless in the water. The end kept getting nearer, and then it was over. Both stood up in the water, looking at Mr. Smith. He coughed, "Neither of you made it." "What??" Ceris asked in disbelief. He shrugged, "Well, you tied. So neither of you won." Matt and Kari now spoke up, "But neither of them lost. So they both won. You have to let them on the team." Most of the students were nodding their heads, and glaring at Mr. Smith. Ceris held her tongue, fighting back the torrent of words that she could feel building up...and the majority of them would probably not aid her cause... James looked at her and almost laughed. Finally, Mr. Smith sighed, "Fine. You're both on." Ceris smiled, getting out of the pool and getting her towel.

Ariyel swung her sword, Serce, watching the blade arc through the foggy night. She smiled as she felt Serce bite into the demon's flesh...if that's what you could call it. The demon roared, raising its own sword too late, "How dare you?? You are nothing but a little whelp! You challenge me?" Ariyel smiled again, Serce stilled in her hand, and shadows swirled, "If I am but a whelp...then why is it that you cannot defend yourself against me?" She deflected his attack as he came, surrounding herself with the familiar shadows. He was a weak demon...a little minion, nothing to waste time with... But she drew it out, enjoying its pathetic weakness, it's futile struggle to stay alive. But no more; she was bored of it. Her eyes turned bright, and then were a solid gold, "Give me your name." She saw the instant fear in the demon's eyes. He doubled his efforts, but it was useless, and he saw it, "I do not obey half-breed bastards! You have no power over me!" The shadows swirled visibly around her now, "Give me your NAME!!" And then she saw it, burning bright in her shadow, "PARDE! Go back, and tell them that Ariyel sent you." She lifted Serce in the final blow, and the demon was gone, screaming back to the Chaotic Realm. She smiled again, but then turned. There was a figure in a dark red trench coat. And he was not entirely human. Ariyel narrowed her eyes, sheathed Serce, and waited.

Ceris, Matt, and Kari were still speaking in orchestra class fifteen minutes after the bell rang. "Students! Please take your seats. The bell rang fifteen minutes ago," the teacher said, holding her baton. Ceris drew in a breath, "Fifteen minutes???" She swore, and then ran out of the classroom, yelling back that she would meet Kari and Matt after school by the pool. The teacher called her back, shouting about how not to use foul language, but Ceris didn't listen at all. Jeez, Ceris had never been this late to class before. She hoped that the teacher would be lenient on the first day...she prayed harder as she ran through the halls, sprinting as fast as she could to the computer lab. Another five minutes later, and she ran through the door, breathless, panting, and smiling saucily, "I'm sorry! I didn't notice the time." The teacher sighed in annoyance, and then pointed, "Just go and sit over there! And don't bother me, or interrupt!" She went immediately back to explaining the thousands of rules for the computer lab. Ceris shrugged, and then took a seat in the front, as close to the door as she could get. She waited a couple minutes, slowing her breathing and her hammering heart. The run had been exhilerating, and she almost laughed thinking about how she had sworn in front of the orchestra class. Suddenly, everyone was staring at her again, and she realized that she must have laughed out loud.... The teacher's eyes were blazing, "Is there something that you find funny?" Ceris smiled. She felt that she had had enough of snotty teachers today, "No, not at all. Please continue; I find your lesson very...umm...dull. So please, continue. I'll be sure not to pay attention." "That's it! I don't have to deal with this! Go to the office this instant!" the teacher shouted, her face becoming red as she lost control of her temper. James laughed quietly as the teacher's face became a bright shade of beetroot, and then found himself kicked out of the class as well. The door slammed, and both he and Ceris were in the empty hall. Ceris smiled, shook her head, and then started walking. James watched in humor, and then found himself reminded that he now had nothing to do...again... Nonchalantly, he caught up to her, feeling that as he had nothing better to do, he might as well hang out with this odd girl. Ceris kept her face blank as she heard the boy follow her, and then watched as he came up beside her. Suddenly, her attention was held by a security guard coming up the hall. Obviously the snotty computer teacher had called him to 'escort' the two delinquents to the office.

But someone had noticed. Ceris had watched as convulsions swept Jedgar's body. She had followed his liquid form through the water, and she was shivering with excitement. She wasn't alone anymore. She wasn't alone. But there was no time to speak to Jedgar. The bell rang, and they were off to their next class, this time Kari pulling Ceris along. Ceris looked back, trying to catch another glimpse of the strange boy...

Name: Veil 00 Age: 16 Appearance: Short, straight black hair to just below her ears. Black eyes that are flecked with blue, pale skin. She's still slender and undeveloped because of rigorous physical training. Loose pants, checkered sneakers, and dark long-sleeved shirt. She also has headphones all the time, listening to music. Bio: Another lone wolf, the only person that she feels akin to is Zieg Valentine, who is like an older brother figure to her. She doesn't have parents; she was born in a lab under the authority of Project Faylen. She has never seen the outside world, and her only information comes from computers and other electronical sources. She obeyed the authorities without question until she met Zieg, and saw that he constantly defied them. Silently, she began to stay around him, trying to learn why he was so puzzling. After a while, they just mutually were comfortable with each other, a silent bond. An outstanding pilot as she's been trained her entire life, she's one of the most talented and dependable MPSB pilots at the academy. She's also another hacker, starting when she was very young because deciphering the computer codes was another interesting puzzle for her to solve, just like Zieg. Her skill at this is very high, and she has improved her talent at this by learning and watching Zieg. They are quite adept at working in a team, silently knowing what the other will do. Mech Name: Shrapnel Appearance: [url]www.gamespot.com/ps2/rpg/xenosaga2/screens.html?page=2[/url] Weapons: laser-beam sword with two ends, which is also a lance with an inpenetrable tip, laser-whips, shield

Sare woke, sweating and in a panic. A cold sweat covered her body, and the sheets were twisted around her. She looked at her familiar surroundings, and then breathed slowly, trying to calm herself. A bad dream...a nightmare that she couldn't remember. They usually came after she had been a berserker, an effect of the guilt that overwhelmed her afterwards. She wanted to cry, but no tears came. Instead, her heart twisted in agony as she thought of what had happened. Luckily, though, it hadn't been a very strong berserker this time, since it was caused by her own feelings. If one of her family had been threatened, the whole village would have been dead. Sare closed her eyes at the thought, trying to push it away to the back of her mind. She got up and looked out the open window, breathing in the cool night air. No more sleep for her tonight - how could she go back to sleep? But she knew that slowly the nightmares would fade, and in a week or two she would be sleeping soundly again. Until she went berserk again. She paced quietly in her room, unaware that Kari heard her steps in the next room. Her stepsister knew better than to interrupt Sare; everyone needed some moments alone, and this was one of them. The sweat dried on Sare's body, and she brushed her hair out of her eyes. It was so beautiful outside tonight...the moon was almost full, and the sky was clear and full of stars. The rainstorm had passed quickly, leaving everything clean and sparkling. Time for a run, Sare thought. She opened her door, and then crouched down to inspect the thing lying on the floor. It was a pure white feather. Sare wept silently, the feather in her hand.