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"Oh, no, doctor." Dahlia shook her head. "I'm sorry, maybe we can help you look for her or maybe find something out for you by asking around." The blonde bubbled. "Beats sticking around here. ****, where are my manners? Name's Christopher. I work for-er... rather, worked for the gambling boat here in town on the river. It's by this point sunken on its side in her dock. This lovely here Is Dahlia. I'm judging from her name tag she's a high school nurse." Looking down, she blushed once she'd seen she'd grabbed one of the coats she'd left her name tag on. Probably the one she'd worn at the school. Her expression changed in an instant. "Oh no, I just remembered! My students! They're out there in this!" Looking to the doors of the emergency room her eyes filled with tears at the thought of her students dying like the student in the office, or worse yet, becoming one of the Infected. Chris patted her on the back. "You're not the only one with something precious out there that's more than likely lost. My father... and younger brothers and sisters." Chris snorted derisively. "We haven't been touched by the Infected. So, maybe we aren't immune. I hear its possible to be asymptomatic. to it..." Dahlia chimed. "I did hear a thing or two about it, but never even thought this would happen so deep in the country." "Well, the lovely proves she has a brain, too. Come on, let's get this search party underway."

So are we all meeting up at the hospital, then?

Dahlia drove down the street in her neighborhood, completely soaked to the bone, despite being in her car. The gigantic hole in her roof didn't help. Her white blouse was completely see through, showing off her white bra. She looked through her windshield, and saw that her street was already flooding. It wasn't high water, maybe a few inches deep. However, her little Rabbit wasn't exactly a larger vehicle, and she wasn't about to let her car stall out with the Green Flu epidemic all around her. She turned her wheel, and over the curb her little car went, and into some stranger's nicely managed petunias. "Oopsie..." Driving across lawns and flower beds, she made her way to her own house in order to change clothes. Pulling up into her driveway, she smiled. Home was the safest place to be right now. She hurried up to her front door, and slid her key into the lock. Across the street, she heard the sounds of screams, and looking behind her she saw the neighbor being mauled to death by the mailman. She gasped and quickly went inside before she was noticed. Once inside, she hurried back into her bedroom and started throwing off her wet clothing. She turned on her shower, and stepped into the hot water. It was a blessing in and of itself, and her bathroom shower radio clicked on, its motion detector activating it. The familiar radio DJ was replaced by the emergency broadcast system. "Attention, to all that are still alive and uninfected: The following locations are evacuation points..." Listening intently, she sighed. OSF St. Francis was mentioned. Thankfully, OSF St. Francis was just a few miles away, and practically a straight shot if she took the nearby War Memorial Drive. If she could get there, she'd have a chance. Finishing her shower, she glanced out of her bathroom window. The lower portions of the glass were frosted to allow for some measure of privacy, but the top was not. Looking out into her backyard, she could see people wandering through it, stumbling and occasionally vomiting. Her neighbors... they had already succumbed to the infection and were already at her doorstep. Ducking down, she hyperventilated for a few seconds, entering into panic mode. No sounds of pounding on her walls or the breaking off glass could be heard. Once she realized they hadn't seen her and therefore weren't coming for her, she crouched down and snuck into her darkened bedroom due to the storm outside. Afraid to turn on her bedroom light for it would have shown into the backyard from her sliding glass doors leading to it, she crept over to her closet and started looking through her clothing. She had a lot of skirts, but no pants. Skirts weren't exactly made for running, and she had a feeling she'd be doing a lot of that very soon. She kept a close eye on the backyard, though the figures moving just on the other side of the doors were blocked by the curtains. They couldn't see her, and she was more than content to not see them. Pulling on a black knee length skirt, she sighed and then put on her black lacy bra and then another blouse with a heavy floral pattern. She grabbed her nurse's overcoat and then crept out of her bedroom and into her kitchen. She kept an eye out on all her windows, watching for the Infected possibly spotting her. They weren't, so she went about her business and collected several butcher knives and a cleaver to put in her laptop computer bag. She unplugged her computer and placed it in the bag as well. If she needed it later, it would come in handy. Wi-Fi would help her gain access to various maps and other things. Standing now with her bag over her shoulder, Dahlia walked out into the living room and looked through her large bay window into the front yard. Seeing the coast was clear, she grabbed her car keys and back out into the rain she went. She opened her car door and sat on the wet seat. The rain just wasn't letting up, and the water running down her street looked even deeper as it was now halfway up her yard. She turned the engine over, and backed her car up as she spotted the mailman come running at her car. She turned the wheel and sped away, the ride rather bumpy as she drove across people's yards again. She exited her flooding street and onto War Memorial, her little car jetting down the street. Infected came pouring into the street, rushing at the car as it rocketed down the street. The sound of her engine attracted them. Dahlia crouched down in her seat, her eyes on the road. "These things aren't people anymore... they aren't human anymore... Not people... not people!" she told herself as she pressed her foot down harder on the gas pedal. Dahlia began plowing through the Infected. Dahlia's car hit person after person, they flying up over car and into her windshield before flopping onto the pavement behind her car. Her windshield cracked from the force of the bodies hitting it, and blood spattered everywhere, even into the car through the hole in the roof. Dahlia sped through the neighborhood, heading past countless Infected. Her car rattled and jumped every time she hit something, and her car bounced up every time she ran over someone. Through her broken windshield she could see the blood smears and dents to her car. Light grey smoke or steam was coming out from under her hood. Her car would be finished if she didn't get to the hospital. Down the road she went, heading ever closer to the Hospital. She passed countless motorists lying dead in their seats, or instead their abandoned cars. About halfway to the hospital, she had to swerve around an eighteen wheeler and trailer that had crashed and lied burning across the road. She slammed into more Infected, and now her poor car started sputtering and now the light grey smoke was a darker color, and much thicker. "Come on, dammit!" She could feel her poor little car sputtering, but the hospital was just down the way. Ahead of her, she could see the red and blue rotating lights of the squad cars outside of the hospital. "Oh thank god..." Her car sputtered once more, and came to a dead stop. The engine died, leaving her in silence. Grabbing her bag, Dahlia opened her door, butcher knife in hand. She hurried down the street, to the sanctuary of the hospital. She heard another car heading her way, and turned around to wave at the coming Cadillac. They didn't stop, but instead swerved to come and mow her down. Leaping out of the way, she dropped her bag, leaving it for the car to run over as it sped down to OSF St. Francis. "Asshole! I'm not a monster!" Dahlia called out after the car. She started running down the street, pulling up her long skirt as so to have a better stride. Her high heels were easy enough to run in, but it wasn't her fear of tripping that made her rush. The Infected were all around her, and she only had a knife. A big knife, but only a knife nonetheless. On reaching the hospital, she could see it was being guarded by the Peoria Police department, the squad cars blocking all entrances, and the officers themselves with their guns out. "All patients displaying symptoms will be turned away! I repeat, all patients displaying symptoms will be turned away! Lethal force will be used!" someone's voice boomed over a megaphone. Dahlia ran into the parking lot of the Hospital and came face to face with the barrrels of guns being drawn on her. "Halt!" "I'm not infected!" Dahlia yelled, dropping her knife and holding up her hands. The cops did not lower their weapons, but one motioned for her to enter the hospital. Breathing a sigh of relief, she did so. She was safe, at least for now.

Dahlia looked out from her office windows at Central High into the furious storm outside. It was really coming down out there. A knock on her office brought her attention back indoors. "Come in." She called, and stood from her desk. A student walked in, looking visibly pale. He was a freshman, and rather scrawny looking. He'd come in a few times before. "I don't feel so good, Miss Severest." "You don't look good either. Why did you come to school? You should be home resting." She ushered the teenager to sit down. He took a deep breath. "I'm gonna puke..." Quickly, Dahlia placed a trash can in front of him, and he hurled up the remains of his breakfast. "Poor dear..." She started rubbing his back, taking pity on the child. He felt quite warm, indicating he was feverish. "Let me call your parents to come get you." "I was feeling fine until I got to school." the student responded, sounding like he was slightly out of it. He then slumped over and promptly passed out. "Oh. no!" Dahlia rushed over to the student to check him over. Checking his pulse, she stopped. He was dead. She screamed out hysterically for someone to call the paramedics, and the staff from the adjacent dean's office rushed into the nurse's office. "What's going on? Why are you screaming?" "The student! He's dead!" she sobbed and fell to her knees. "He just came in feeling sick and died!" The staff looked over to the dead body, and a grim silence fell over the room. By now, people were starting to filter into the hallway to see what had happened. The principal took Dahlia and helped her up. "See who his parents are. Dahlia needs to get out of here. I'm going to help her get some air. When helped to the doorway, the principal spoke lopudly so that all of the staff and students could hear. "School is out for the day. An illness has claimed the life of one of the students. In order to prevent further infections, everyone is dismissed." The principal then shook his head. "We need the CEDA called in. Someone do that for me. And bring me Miss Dahlia's purse and car keys." Dahlia was half walked and half carried outside to a covered section of the main entrance to the school. Students were starting to filter out now, ready to go home and talking about the death in the school. Several students approached the nurse to ask if she was alright. One of them had her purse. She smiled, and told them she was just shaken up. The school buses began to pull up to the curb, and students piled on to go home. The police hadn't arrived yet to take the body. "Dahlia, you should go home. It wasn't your fault you know." The principal handed her her purse and keys, a kind look on his face. "Go on, go home. I'll give the police your number to get ahold of you. You can talk to them later." "Yes, of course. I'll go home. Please, give me a call later to tell me what's going on." She stood up, and started walking to the teacher parking lot located behind the school. Her little Volkswagon Rabbit convertible started up and she backed out of the spot feeling numb inside. She drove through the wind and rain headed home. A few blocks from the school, she turned into a liquor store, and sat in her car just to let all that had happened sink in. A loud thump jerked her out of her daydream. A man had stumbled into her car, and was now furiously beating on it. Opening her car door, she started screaming at the man. "What the hell is your problem? Get away from my car, you asshole!" In response, the man screamed in rage back at her and leaped onto the top of her car, but fell through the soft leather top. He screamed and clawed at Dahlia, unable to reach her. Backing away, she ran into the store and the store clerk was already calling the police having seen the exchange with her own eyes.The man managed to climb out of the convertible and then lunged at the door into the store. It slammed open, but he reeled from the blow. Dahlia rushed at the door to grasp the lock and turn it before the man could get inside. Trails of blood seeped from his nose, and he lunged at the door again, and again, and again. The door trembled violently with every attack, the glass becoming smeared with blood. Finally, with one last desperate lunge, the man hit the glass once more with a headbutt. A loud, sickening crack sounded out, and the man fell to the ground and didn't move. The force of the blow to the door had forced the metal frame to give, and the store alarm began to ring. The clerk suddenly looked down at the phone in her hand. "The line just went down..." Looking outside through the blinding rain, a car suddenly swerved to avoid a woman in the street. It crashed into a pole and all electricity went out in the store, shutting off the alarm. Looking outside through the window, she could see the woman pounding on the car to get at the person inside. She could see the person inside was slumped over their steering wheel and unconscious or dead. The horn was blaring across the empty early morning street, and she stared in disbelief as the woman broke the window and started tearing at the person inside. There were no sounds other than the screams of the madwoman and the car horn. Down the street shadowy figures were racing to the store. The clerk ducked out of the back of the store, running for her life and into the woods behind the liquor store. Dahlia went the opposite way, and got back into her car. The seats were wet from the rain coming in through the hole in her roof, but it started up without a problem. She backed up from the store and spun her car around to jet away from the store as the people came into closer view. Like the man that had attacked her, they too had blood seeping from their noses, and some of them had it coming from their eyes and ears as well. The madwoman looked from her lifeless victim and lunged at the Rabbit. Stomping the gas pedal Dahlia sped away and down the street. "What the hell is going on here?" Dahlia flicked on the radio in her car, and the announcer was jabbering away, cracking jokes and playing music. "Hey, a heartfelt good-bye to all the souls in Peoria, folks. It seems the Green Flu pandemic has appeared there. Better get out while you can." "Oh. My. God." Dahlia shouted. "Why didn't anyone warn us it was coming?"

Are you wanting us all to post a normal day in our character's lives until the end and have our entire world come crashing down?

Name: Dahlia Severest Age: 29 Occupation: High School Nurse Personality: Sweet, bubbly, and very much so the stereotypical walking blonde joke. However, she's far more intelligent than people take her for because of her usual demeanor. She likes taking care of people, which is why she went into the nursing field. Appearance: Blonde, 130lbs, 5'6" and endowed with enough cleavage to put the milk industry out of business. She's attractive, but dresses plainly in expensive clothes and always with her white nursing overcoat while at the school.

Alyssa woke up with a start when she rolled out of bed and landed face first on the carpeted floor. "Ow!" she yelped, and sat up in a tangled mass of person, blanket, and pajamas. Her hair looked to her like she'd been gifted with a shock therapy session while she'd been asleep, judging from her reflection in her curio cabinet's glass sliding doors. Many geisha dolls of varied ages looked back at her, and she smiled. They were pretty, and several of them were worth more than what her parents paid in a year for their apartment. It would have been nice if they could purchase a house, but foreigners weren't allowed to purchase property in Japan. Shaking herself free from her blanket, she stood up and walked into the bathroom she shared with her parents. She paused for a moment to reflect on the persistant thoughts about a dream she'd had that night. It had been so strange. She turned on the shower and grasped her toothbrush and toothpaste. Stripping down, she got in and started brushing her teeth while she washed the filth of the world from her body. Granted, she'd also taken one last night after a jog around the block, so there wasn't much. After wrapping a towel around her midsection, she opened the bathroom mirror above the sink and grabbed a detangling spray and a hair brush. She grunted and cried out as she went through her hair, it being tangled up from her tossing and turning during the night. Her mother popped her head into the bathroom and chided her with a smile. "Honey, why don't you just cut your hair? You wouldn't have to deal with all that pain of brushing it." "I love my hair, I really do." Alyssa retorted, and abruptly yelped in pain, followed by her swearing in Japanese. "Watch your mouth, young lady." her mother scolded. "Ladies don't use that kind of language." "Really? Ever heard of Paris Hilton?" Her mother shook her head. "I hate having to give you credit for that comment." Her mother left the bathroom, to leave the poor girl in peace with her hair. After nearly fifteen minutes of trying to manage her steel wool hair, she finally had it brushed enough that the brush went through all of her hair without snagging. Smiling, she went back to her room and opened the dresser to find her school uniform. "First day of class..." she giggled in excitement.

Okay, sorry about that. I did want to keep her pale and thin because of the Death Arcana so I only added 16lbs to her. Maybe that's a bit more reasonable ^^

Name: Alyssa Perne Age: 17 Sex: Female Arcana: Death Appearance: Alyssa stands in at 6'4" and weighs 156.7lbs. Her hair is a wild mane of wavy flaming red hair that cascades down to her waistline. She's got a voluptuous figure, even despite being so tall. Her eyes are a murky greyish blue. Her appearance belies her Irish heritage with her paper fine pale skin. Always over her eyes during the day are a pair of shades as her eyes are extremely sensitive to bright lights. Personality: Alyssa has a duality to her personality that most find disturbing. While she is more relentless and more vicious in battle than even the most cutthroat villians, she's also one of the sweetest girls you'll ever meet on the street. She's taken back by little, and very outspoken. Bio: Alyssa was born and raised in the United States until she was about eleven years old, when her father moved the entire family to Japan because of his work in the science industry. Since, she has happily become bi-lingual and can read, write, and speak fluent Japanese.

Let's shake our tail feathers! Name: Sandra Jones Age: 26 Mech: Silver T-Rex Mech name: Zeras Mech personality: Defensive yet intelligent and brilliant strategist

I'm going to go punt wasp nests at people today. If I manage to land one in someone's car and they swerve off the road, I WIN!

How I missed my OB. Thanks petie ^^ Id give you a lapdance as compensation for a job well done, but I can't seem to fit myself through the phone lines.

Name: Dr. Serenity Phunton Apparent age: 31 Actual age: 85 Country of Origin: England Appearance: Often, she is seen wearing a high collared red trenchcoat, matching miniskirt, and a white dress shirt. She wears black pantyhose along with this outfit. On her feet she wears red pumps. She also wears a rather large quantity of makeup, with bright cherry red lipstick, blush, and a dark smokey eye look. Her hair is like the color of a raven's feathers, long and luxurious. She also has pierced ears and fashionable round shades. Skills: Medical treatment is something she's good at giving. She's also developed a rather descent ability to pick locks. Gear: In her arsenal are many, many scalpels, tucked way into various parts of her trenchcoat. Also, her lock picking set and a gold wedding ring inlaid with a single sapphire. Supernatural Abilities: Healing Touch: With this power, her hands are a viable healing tool, able to repair broken bones and mangled flesh with but a simple touch. Razor's Edge: In her hands, any sharp objects are able to cut through even the hardest steel and the foulest evils. Biography: In what seems to be an entire lifetime ago, Serenity was indeed a doctor, and a good one at that. However, her private life was something of another story. In public, her home was the happy family behind the white picket fence. Behind closed doors, however, that illusion couldn't be further from the truth. Married to an abusive, drunkard husband who beat her, burned her, and tortured her in private, she did all she could to give her only daughter a happy life, and to keep the daughter from being harmed in any way by her father's seemingly unending rage. It didn't even matter if he was sober, he still hit her. When he was drunk, he was worse. Eventually, by using his money and power, Serenity's husband forced her to resign from her job, and become a permanent house wife figure, and to keep her completely under his thumb. His need to control every aspect of her life overwhelmed her, though she stayed with it, if only for the sake of her daughter. And then, one night, after the husband came home to his expected dinner and began drinking, he flew into a rage when his soup wasn't seasoned exactly to how he wished. He flipped over the table, and charged at Serenity, smacking her to the floor. He dragged her up the stairs, and into their bedroom, where Serenity was beaten. But, he left the door open, and Serenity's daughter looked in. Becoming even more enraged, he chased the daughter from the room and slammed the door shut, to resume his savage beating of Serenity, for 'raising a nosy daughter who needed to be punished as well.' That night, Serenity awoke, to find her husband gone from their bed. She ventured out into the hallway, unsure of where her husband had gone to. She herd her daughter cry out, and with instant clarity, realized her husband was raping their daughter. She pounded on the locked door, but to know avail, and continued to do so until her husband was done, when he promptly left the room, and backhanded Serenity. "Lesson learned... for the both of you." he said, with a smile. It was some time before Serenity was able to come up with her revenge, partially to think of what to do to her husband, and partially to work up the courage to do it. It was one week later, while her husband was in his study that she brought him tea, served with an extra special ingredient. And while the poison was enough to kill him, it wasn't able to save her daughter. Serenity lost any and all chances to ever see her daughter grow up that night. She was convicted of premeditated murder, even though she spoke the truth. Many of her husband's former business partners wished to see her pay for her crime. Serenity lived for only a few more months, her sorrow causing her health to fail and then to eventually die of a broken heart. Character Snippet: With no effort on her part, Serenity sailed through the air, landing as she had expected on the elevated train cars. It wasn't that long of a ride this way, and she didn't have to deal with people up here, either. Her trenchcoat billowed in the wind as she stared off into the distance. Her daughter would have already lived out her life to be an old woman at this point, and even perhaps even passed on to the next world. And it wasn't as if she could ever return to her precious Elizabeta in the first place. No matter her reasons for her crimes... she had still left her daughter all alone. But on to the matter at hand. Her stop was fast approaching, as was the end of her target's life. Closing her eyes, she felt the shadows swallow her and place her back upon a rooftop above the train rails. Below her, she knew her target must have been feeling rather ecstatic after his latest kill. He thought hiimself to be something of a second Jack the Ripper, but without the letters to the police. She was not out to simply murder someone who repeatedly got away with it, she would murder his soul. She was his judge, his jury, and his executioner. She was his judgement day. Serenity removed a scalpel from her coat sleeve, gazing at the blade. It glinted in the dim reflections of the various lights from the neighboring buildings, though instead of her reflection, she could see her mark. With a twitch of her eyebrow, she placed the blade on the doorknob leading down into the various apartments below her. She could almost taste the heartbeat of her prey... and feel the power held in stopping it. There was no stopping her. With a quick, precise movement, the doorknob clattered the the concrete at her feet and the door swung open to let her inside. Down the stairs she crept, moving closer and closer... justice was to be served... a treaty of peace to be writ with blood. One flight. Two flights. The heartbeat grew louder... And she was at the door. The older man on the other side was completely oblivious to her presence. A shame, it was suiting. Her hand rose to knock on the door; and so she rapped upon his chamber door. Footsteps... and angry words that meant nothing to her. There was the sound of the door being unlocked, and it creaked open, to reveal the hideous man... the murderer of innocents. In the blink of an eye, four stainless steel blades jetted into his chest, poking from between her fingers. "Say hello to the devil for me." Serenity spoke, looking into the man's wide eyes as he choked on his own blood. "Tell him I sent you, with my fondest regards." With a flick of her wrist, the man's heart exploded, spurting blood in all directions as the man tried to take in his last breath. "May the souls you tainted have their vengeance on you in your demise." And with that, she was gone as the man let out a death rattle.

Anna peered cautiously into the gas station. The door on the other side of the station lied in ruins, but other than the crying, there was no sign of activity. "Kris? Is it weird that with all this carnage, there's still someone here?" "You're right." Kris's brow furrowed, as if unsure of what to do. "I can't just leave if someone is still here and alive." Readying his shotgun, Kris lead the way into the gas station, treading lightly over the bodies of the deceased and through their blood. Anna followed him closely, her own AK pointed forward and ready to point and spray. Looking around, Anna listened closely to the sounds of the crying. It was a young woman, judging from her voice. Looking around, Anna could only guess the sounds were coming from the women's restroom. "Hello? We're here to help... It's okay, you can come out of there." Pushing the door open, it came to her as strange that the lights were off. The sounds of the girl crying were louder; Anna had guessed right. "Hello? Miss? Are you okay?" As Anna opened the door, she could see that the bathroom was rather sizeable, with several stalls and a few sinks. Along the back wall, she could see a figure crouched down, sobbing into its hands. "Miss?" Finally aware of Anna, the girl stopped sobbing and slowly began to stand, her sobs now growls. Kris suddenly grabbed Anna and pulled her out of the bathroom, as the girl screamed out, her voice shrill and angry. Slamming the door shut, the girl continued to scream and threw herself against the door. The metal door shook with the force of her blows. and she was relentless. "What the hell is that?" Anna cried, slipping on the slick floor. "A witch! Shoot through the door or she'll kill us!" Kris cried, and began to blast at the door. Picking up her own gun from the floor next to her, she did the same. The door was soon riddled with holes, and the witch was attempting to claw her way through. Eventually, she let out a blood curdling death screech, and fell to the ground. "Anna! Quickly! We have to get out of here. Sounds attract those things!" Grabbing her arm and hoisting her up, he began to drag her away, and they ran as fast as they could. Down the street they ran, looking for anywhere to hide out until the commotion died down. All around them, they could hear the Infected, screaming in agitation from the sounds of gunfire and other Infected. "They're easily provoked..." Kris panted. "There! That bakery! The window's broken!" Kris pointed ahead of them, and they ran as fast as they could, hopping through the broken plate glass window. They dodged between the tables of the dining area, heading for the back. The frenzied sprinting footsteps of the Infected were at their heels, screaming for their deaths. "Move it Anna!" Anna sprinted at the doors leading into the kitchen, and she kicked them open, sending the doors banging into the walls. Quickly, she moved to the back door, and flipped the handle down to open it into the alleyway and woods behind it. "Where to?!" She cried. "Left! There's a hotel just a block away! There's a safehouse upstairs!" The two high tailed it, shooting at the Infected that came at them from the front. The bullets sprayed out, and the Infected just kept coming. The hotel came into sight, and sure enough, there was one of the reinforced doors instead of a normal door on the entrance into the hotel.

"Hordes?" "Massive mobs of the Infected. Unfortunately, while we do have superior firepower, they can still overwhelm us. These pipe bombs can help us out by distracting them and taking a few of them out." Anna smiled, tucking a pipe bomb into her purse. "Well, I think we'll be alright as long as we're faster than they are." Looking down at the glinting metal object, Anna shook her head. "I almost feel sorry for these poor bastards." "You should. I'm sure they didn't plan on their lives ending like this. I'm not going to pretend to have seen everything these suckers have to offer. But I'm not giving up. I'm going to survive." Kris looked down to the reporter, and held out his hand to help her up. "I just can't do it alone. Will you come with me?" "Definitely. So, off we go?" She took his hand, and he pulled her up to her feet. "Let's get moving." OOC: Sorry it's so short and been so long, Inu. I don't have a clue about where you want this headed.

Rhea smiled, enjoying herself. Her school uniform was easy enough to move in, and she indeed packed more of a punch than she was letting on. Granted, probably nothing like Jensen could full force, but she wasn't going to be admitting that any time soon. Nor was she going to be admitting just how much she could take. Jensen spun himself around to try to land a kick in Rhea's side, bust she moved her arm to block any real damage. Using her other hand, she brought it under his calf and thrust upward, knocking him off balance as he had his center of balance knocked for a loop. He stumbled backwards, surprised Rhea had easily done such a maneuver. "I think that its safe to assume I'm plenty creative myself." Rhea said, thrusting her fist forward again into Jensen's chest. Down he went, onto his back, with Rhea smiling at him. "You're too slow. Let's change that up a bit." With a drop kick from the deepest pits of hell itself, she brought her legs down onto Jensen, and even he had to grunt to take such a blow.Holding her torso up by her hands, her chins were perched precariously on top of Jensen's crossed arms. "Playing for keeps, are we?" "Of course." Rhea smirked, her grin wide and excited. "Now let's get you up." Rhea heaved her body up and spun it to bring her heel down on Jensen, but he managed to catch her leg and deflect the blow while rolling aside and away from the other leg coming to bear upon him. At once Rhea rolled away and onto her feet and was sprinting across the ring. Jensen had managed to get to his knees, when he looked up to see Rhea aiming a death blow for his head. Throwing up his arms, he was hit full force, sending him rolling across the mat. However, he heard Rhea coming at him again, and dodged to the left if only to block another of her hits, this time sending him into a corner post. He threw up his arms again, taking Rhea's very fast and very powerful hits. "Jeeze! Are you trying to kill me?" Jensen asked, completely caught off guard by her power. "Okay! I admit I underestimated you! Happy?!" "Not quite!" Rhea threw another punch, this time she sticking it. "I told you I'd give it my all. Do you think our enemies will give quarter or show mercy? And if this little dance is going to have any meaning, we need to prepare. And that means fighting until we can't anymore." Her eyes narrowed, her grin becoming far more sinister in the overhead lights. "You still up for this fight?" "Always." Jensen shoved Rhea off of him, she laughing as she rolled away and then flipped to her feet. "Excellent... Now let's really dance." Rhea giggled psychotically, crouching down. Jensen could only blink at her. What was up with this chick? Rhea launched herself at Jensen, leaping across the ring at him, a crazy grin on her face from ear to ear. Jensen swung at her, and she whirled out of his way, raising her elbow to slam it into his side. "Still having fun?" "Never more." Jensen said, and he took Rhea for a spin. He brought his knee up into Rhea, catching her by surprise. Using the knee as momentum, Rhea thrust downward and brought her legs up, curling under her. Using Jensen's leg again, she stomped downward, to go sailing away to catch her breath. "Not bad, little girl." Jensen and Rhea circled each other, Rhea visibly enjoying herself. "You're pretty good yourself." she retorted. Again she went at him, her legs aiming blows almost every time, but Jensen was able to take them all, moving just enough each time to not receive the full brunt of her blows. She was definitely fast, but strong as well. Jensen brought his foot up while Rhea was off balance, aiming for his spleen. He smiled as he kicked out, landing a heavy blow to Rhea's abdomen, knocking her down and her breath out of her. She landed on her back, unable to draw in a breath. Jensen smirked, it was his turn to have her on the defensive. He winded up a kick, and directed it at Rhea. She rolled, and he hit her in the back, sending her twirling through the air. She reached out and grasped the ring's elastic line, and brought her feet onto it, perching like a canary. She was able to draw in a breath again, and her psychotic grin returned as she bounced back at him within a matter of seconds. Suddenly, and without warning, the doors leading outside flew open, revealing little Alice. She was looking pretty rough, soaked from the rain and with muddy splotches. "Alice?" Rhea immediately forgot all about the match, landing in a heap. Scrambling to get up, she went running for Alice while tossing her gloves aside. "Oh my god... Are you okay?" Alice only smiled wearily. "I am fine. I just slipped in the mud." "And you're soaked! Jesus Christ, Alice! I know I told you to flaunt what you got, but this isn't what I meant!" Whirling, Rhea pointed at Jensen, and spoke menacingly. "You say one word and I swear I'll shove my fist so far up your ass you'll be doing sign language out of your mouth." Throwing his hands up in surrender, Jensen only smiled and sighed. "Alright, I won't violate her delicate sensibilities." Jensen turned around, away from Alice's see-through clothing. Rhea only took off her own shirt and covered Alice with it. "But... what about you?" Alice asked, looking on at Rhea in nothing but a skirt and a leaf green bra. "Don't worry about it." Rhea leaned over, grasping a shirt that had been thrown over a weight bench. "Thanks, Jensen." she called after putting it on and walking over to the exit into the school." "What? Hey!" He called out, but Rhea only smiled back at him. "I can't be showing off my girls more than once a day to the school. Come by my room later to get it." And off Rhea went with Alice, smiling. Jensen could only stare after Rhea in disbelief, and shaking his head. "Hm. Rhea's room... now that's a scary thought..."

The nun didn't know she was being quite insulting, pointing out Rhea's only half human heritage. "No, Sister. I don't think so at the moment." Rhea smiled wide, her smile friendly though warning, carefully conceiling her long canines. "Might I tell you something, Sister?" "Yes... what is it?" The nun smiled, genuinely wanting to know. "I may be half human, but trust me when I say I'm all woman. I would caution against such remarks in the future, especially around Alice. She's a nice girl, but I wouldn't want to make her angry. And, the others might not look too kindly on it either. I'm forgiving, once, or if lucky, twice." Rhea moved closer, her body freely expressing a kind of tough love. "But, I'm not so sure about the others. I recommend you keep that in mind. While I'm sure you truly meant no harm, some of the others might not think so." Rhea smiled again, this time her canines quite visible, and while her smile was jovial, her canines were to say the least unnerving. "Just a thought for you." Rhea sauntered off, happily heading back her room before the nun could say anything in kind to her. As Rhea walked, she thought of Jensen, her own words echoing in her head. He had been mouthy, and he had deserved what he got for that, but wasn't really deserving of the angry outburst she had delivered upon him for his deliberately taking the blow to himself. Perhaps if she were to go apologize she might feel better about the situation. As she walked the halls of the school, she listened to the sounds of the students. I seemed that like in any school, various cliques were forming. The jocks, the geeks, the emos, the preppy chicks... all of it. But,that didn't much to her. Eventually, she found herself back at the gym. Jensen was there, lifting weights. "So, I see you made your way back." Jensen grunted. "Yeah, I did. I came for a rematch. A serious match." Rhea looked down on him, wary. "Really..." Jensen looked up at her, placing the weights on the stand beside him. "And what if I say 'no' to that, Miss Tallows?" "Then I walk away." Rhea shrugged, looking down at him and simply waiting. "I will apologize for earlier when I became so angry. I had expected a fight, and that tactic felt like a back stab." "I must apologize then as well. Perhaps a friendly request that spelled out my actions would have been better?" Jensen's shoulder lifted in a shrug. "Well, if you want a real fight, then I guess I can do that. You ready to take some hits, too?" He asked her a question in kind, his request of her, and she smiled. "Of course. I think you'll find a fight with me can be quite a bit of fun." "Fine. Might I suggest you get dressed for the ring?" Jensen had a faint smile playing about his lips. "Or are you just going to keep your school outfit?" "I think a school girl costume might be best for me. I used to fight in rings in one." Rhea smiled, and walked back over to the ring, picking up a pair of light weight boxing gloves. "Just promise me you'll give me your all this time. No being gentle just because I'm a girl." "I promise. Now, let's get to it." Jensen climbed into the ring, and Rhea moved to the opposite corner. With a quick nod, the two began their match.

With dinner over, Rhea had long since departed and gone on her way, leaving Takeo and Alice to converse and go about their business. They were getting along fine, though she wasn't the type to admit she was a bit jealous. They'd probably become much closer in the near future, and she hoped for the best for them. She just wasn't cut out for that kind of thing, and so there was no point in even trying for it. Rhea walked back to the entrance to the school's courtyard, thinking of what she should do now. The wind whipped around the school, blowing the leaves off of the trees. The rain poured down, and she could see it slicing down upon the flowers. Taking a breath, she opened the doors to the courtyard, and immediately became soaked to the bone. She wandered through the rosebushes, until she came to a secluded spot far from any prying eyes that might see her. Sitting down on a cold wet stone bench, she sniffled. Her eyes filled with tears as she thought of who she was. Tough, stubborn, kind, generous... all of these adjectives applied to her. But, what did they boil down to? What did they really mean in the long run? Did they matter? Rhea balled herself up on the bench, feeling the rain fall upon her body. She made no attempt to shield herself, she knew the rain could mask her tears. Alone was something she knew she would always be. Able to talk her path through life but never with someone at her side, for better or worse. She could have friends, allies, and maybe even the occasional sexual release, but there was nothing beyond that for her. She wasn't wired for it. Sobbing quietly in the rain, Rhea slowly stopped and sat up again. Drenched and looking like a drowned rat, she stood up, letting her face rise to the sky. The rain drops washed away her tears, bring a sense of a sad, deep kind of peace. Despite everything, she knew she had a good heart and the resolve to keep going, no matter how lonely the long road ahead of her could be. Smiiling and feeling much better after her bit of alone time, she returned to the halls of the school. She couldn't afford to worry about those kind of things, but to weep on occasion and let some kind of emotion out from deep within herself, the emotions she couldn't show anyone else. She couldn't afford to look weak. She had to be the pillar of strength for everyone. Rhea strutted through the halls, quickly resuming her normal demeanor. She passed the nun who seemed lost in her thoughts and somewhat troubled. "Excuse me, Sister? Are you alright?" Rhea asked, and seemed to catch the nun by surprise. "Oh! Yes, I'm alright. I'm just a little preoccupied. Is there something I can help you with?" She seemed tentative, although friendly enough. "No, Sister. I was just concerned for your well being." Rhea smiled, giving the nun a dazzling view of her pearly whites. "Tell me, what brought you here to Cross Academy? It can't just be a thirst to spread knowledge." Rhea crossed her arms, and her smile turned into a knowing smirk. "You're much too young for that."

Rhea smiled as Takeo looked down at his dinner, and then down at her own tray. She'd gotten a cesar salad and a chef salad, a bottle of soda, and a piece of cheese pizza. She guzzled half of her soda in one go, before biting into the salad. She loaded it with ranch dressing, and savored every bite. It was heaven to her, especially for school food. "So, Mary, is it? Are you liking the school so far? I have to say, it's a shame you missed the first lesson." Rhea laughed and took another drink of her soda. "Just because you enjoy violence and beating things up doesn't mean everyone does." Takeo chimed in. "Then again, it was a lot of fun." "Exactly." Rhea remarked. "Much better than the little pool incident. But hey, at least we know now Alice can't drown." Smiling, Rhea winked at Alice. "Oh..." she remarked, looking at Alice's neckline. "I see we kept the necklace." Alice's hand went to the pretty charm around her neck, and she blushed a little. "It is too pretty too simply be in a lost and found box. If it is the belonging of another student's, then I will gladly return it to them. But, I do not think so. I believe it was meant for me to have." Alice ran her finger along the heart and then the pearl. "I think it was placed there for me, and I cannot shake that feeling." "It wouldn't surprise me..." Rhea commented, taking a bite of her pizza. "I got a lovely visit earlier from my own mother, and from the pearl in that little charm, I'd say it's logical to assume that necklace is your mother's way of saying hello. And at least your mom gave you a present." Rhea snorted derisively. As if on cue, there was a resounding boom that rumbled the school. The storm Alice had seen had apparently arrived, and with thunderous applause. Everyone at the table jumped, and then seeing everyone else jump, began to laugh. "Regardless, Alice," Takeo spoke, smiling a little nervously, "it suits you." Alice blushed, and Rhea laughed again. Mary had a smile pulling at her mouth. "Now isn't that sweet." Rhea said, and raised her soda bottle. She jumped onto the table, raising her voice for all to hear. "Here we are, at a school for half demons. Here we are, unable to make heads or tails of our situation. A toast!" Rhea stood, and smiled. "A toast to new lives, new friends, and new memories. May the best of our past be the worst of our future." One by one the others raised their drinks, and smack them together. All around, other students raised their drinks. Rhea smiled brightly, knowing this was just the beginning of all of their ordeals. And may God in heaven have mercy upon their enemies.

When Alice fell into the pool face down, Rhea screamed out. She and Takeo dived into the pool after slipping and sliding on the wet tiles. The entire room was soaked and slippery, making movement difficult. Alice was still floating, unmoving. Rhea swum as fast as she could, Takeo right beside her. They got to Alice in record time, and turned over to breathe air. She was a ghastly shade of white, and Takeo took her on one arm while Rhea took her legs in her arm. They painstakingly made their way over to the side of the pool, Rhea climbing up and taking Alice's limp body from Takeo. "Alice, honey, come on... Come back to us." Rhea leaned down and pressed her ear to Alice's nose, listening to see if she was breathing. She wasn't. "Someone help us!" Rhea cried out. She pressed Alice's nostrils together, and breathed into her mouth. She began giving Alice CPR, trying her hardest to get Alice to take a breath of her own. "Alice come on... we can't lose you! Breathe! Please, for the love of god, breathe!" Rhea could hear the pounding of feet in the locker rooms, people were yelling and trying to get to them. Pressing her lips onto Alice's once more, There was a gurgled cough from the unconcious girl. Sputtering, Alice convulsed, hacking up water and mucus. "Oh thank god...." Takeo slumped down, collapsing from relief. "She's okay." "Yeah, she is." Alice was rasping in air, and Rhea took her into her arms. "Never scare me like that again, or I'll beat you with something..." "I am sorry... but the necklace... it was stuck... I thought... it was yours." Alice help up a necklace, and as beautiful as it was, Rhea found herself laughing hysterically. "You risked yourself for a piece of jewelry that's not even mine? Silly, silly girl..." Jensen and some girl Rhea didn't recognize came running into the pool hall, slipping on the wet floor. "What's wrong? We heard a scream..." Jensen asked, seeing Alice sitting up. More footsteps were now heading in their direction, and Christopher burst into the room with Kaiel and Crowley. Alice was looking into the waters of the pool, at how serene they were. The water was visibly lower by at least two or three feet. "I did all this?" she asked, and Takeo nodded. "Yeah, you did. What happened? You... looked different." "I discovered something before I blacked out. So much power..." Alice covered herself with her arms, tears welling in her eyes and the necklace clenched in her hand. "My powers... they came rushing back to me... all at once. They overwhelmed me. It felt like... It felt like it could tear me apart." Rhea put her arms around Alice, and helped her up. "That's a part of who we are, Alice. Nothing to be scared of. Let's get you back your room, I think we've had enough of the pool for today." "But... I learned something about myself. I... I can breathe water." Everyone looked at her, and their jaws dropped. Christopher finally broke the tension and took a breath, and smiled. "I'm glad you're alright. Now, Rhea, before you go, I am to understand you were looking for me earlier. What for?" "I had a visit from my mother. She basically told me she was protecting the school in her own way. Why, she didn't say. Gave me some line about me being her 'innocent child and needed to protect me' crap. I'll talk to you about it later. For now, I'm going to take care of Alice." "That's fine, though I'll need you both in the classroom. We're starting on lesson two. I'll be waiting for you two there. After I give the assignment, then you can take care of Alice. But, I'll be dropping by not only to check up on her but also to talk more about your visit from your mother." Rhea nodded. "Fine. At least bring her some flowers when you do." With that, Rhea helped Alice to get to the classroom.