[Rail IC] Academy City III: Abusive Physics Never End!

[Anyr]

"'Tokiwadai-dono', hmm? I for one find such a shallow assessment offensive. The school I attend has nothing to do with who I am."

Shiho wasn't the only one who'd taken exception to Shougo's phrasing. At the same time that she'd been approaching him head on, Kin had silently circled around to come in from behind. As a result, the boy was now sandwiched between two emotional Tokiwadai students. Kin's voice in particular had quite an edge to it. Recent events had made it even harder than usual for her to hide her feelings.

"Is that really all you see when you look at us? The uniform? We're people too, you know. Feel this hand: It is flesh and bone."

The hand in question pressed its palm against Shougo's own, inviting him to test its reality; And of course, making sure that he couldn't get away until he'd conceded the point.

[Lord-Cao-Cao]

Shougo gave a little start when Shiho demanded that he call her 'Shiho-chan', whilst referring to him as 'Shougo-sama', before blushing a furious, bright red. Even though he didn't know very much about modern social norms, Shougo knew enough to realise that this was not appropriate in the slightest. The only situation, he thought to himself, where this would even be remotely so would be between a boyfriend and a girlfriend. And he just met the girl.

No, he could not do this. He could call her Shiho-san-But no more. Even if she was remarkably pretty. Silently, he wondered if she was entirely well in the head, or if she were just joking around with him. A brief moment of inspection disguised as contemplation seemed to indicate that she was not; that she was dead serious about this.

Shougo was not quite sure of how to act. Even calling her by her first name seemed awfully forward.

"I...I am afraid I cannot call you that, Shiho-san. It would not be proper. Please, do not refer to me as -sama, either...A simple 'Shougo' or 'Nimori' shall suffice."

And then Kin spoke. Her tone-Of affrontedness-Confused Shougo a little. Why was she upset? All he was doing was paying them respect; To be a member of Tokiwadai did, after, signify a level of intellectual aptitude that generally put them higher than that of their peers. It was not merely a matter of wealth.

He was also uncomfortably aware of the fact that he was not positioned in between both Kin and Shiho, and he was about to take a step away when Kin placed her hand in his, forcing a hasty answer out of him.

"No...Of course not, Tokiwadai-...Ah, my apologies, I do not know your name. And I meant no harm by it; it is merely that Tokiwadai is selective about who can enter-not everyone can qualify. And ... Of course you are. Flesh and bone, as we all are, psychic or no-Huh"

A confused expression emerged on Shougos' face as he tried to pull his hand away-To find that he couldn't.

__________________________________________________ _______________

Sojiro laughed again.

"No problem, bro. And ya needn't have to worry 'bout bein' weak or nothing-I know you could kick my ass in a fight-Hell, ya could probably give even Ren a run for his money! Speakin' of which, where is the guy..."

__________________________________________________ _______________

Ina waved Kasai off.

"No, no, you're way too out of it to cook. Let me do it, yeah-I'd like to try my hand at breakfast for once."

Eggs were in that cupboard, and bread was over there. Right. Ina fancied that she remembered how to make French Toast. It couldn't be too hard...Right?

She then giggled, unable to completely recall what exactly had happened last night, but knowing she had a good time. Still, she figured, it might not be a bad idea to inquire about it. Something important might have happened.

"Hey, Kasai-chan? ...What exactly happened last night?"

[Lady Serpentine]

"If you insist...", Kasai mumbled, sleep slurring her words a touch as she sat down at the kitchen table, stifling a yawn in the process. "As for what happened last night, we went out to to a couple of the better-known clubs, partied for a bit, then headed to some of the ones I prefer. Which I suppose I should show you again tonight, actually, so you can get there on your own... There were some people there I introduced you to," she went on, pulling a folder out of a small slot in the wall next to her, and flipping through it, occasionally putting a picture on the table in front of her. "This one" - a girl with a sharp, feral, face, grey eyes, and poison-green hair - "is Dokuzetsu; she's one of the better bodyguards in the circles I run in. She liked you, and she owes me, so if you end up in trouble and I'm not around to help you out, go to her. Then we ran into Wolf," - this time, the person in question was a pretty woman of nineteen or so, with short blue hair, and intense violet eyes - "which, of course, isn't actually her name, but it'll get you who you're looking for, and her brother," - a boy around their age with brown hair, and the same eyes as his sister - "who goes by Thorn. She's the one who got you into Tokiwadai, and he does truth-sensing, plus a few other related things. She didn't really warm up to you, but that's nothing new; she doesn't warm up to anyone besides Thorn. He, on the other hand, from what I can tell, quite enjoyed talking to you, and thought you were rather pretty. Then we headed to another club when they had to go, where we met Mausu" - a tall boy, thin, and furtive-looking, with metallic black hair, and gold eyes - "who's a 'procurement specialist'. If you need something that's hard to get, banned, or already owned, he's your guy.

Other than that, we mostly just had a good time."

[Felyndiira]

"I guess '-san' would work as well." Shiho had not really considered using that herself; it always seemed to contradict her usual language choice, and it was a frightening aspect to attempt to switch to something more familiar. She did not, for example, want to accidentally descend into some habitual crudeness on a first meeting. The hesitation is a bit intriguing, though - Kihara had no objections to calling her 'Shi-chan' or even 'AIM Resonance' when he addressed her. The college students and professors, too, was typically okay with 'Shiho-chan' as an address to a middle school girl. Is there something that's fundamentally appropriate with the honorific? "I...I guess I'm used to people calling me Shi-chan on a regular basis. I had no idea it was so forbidden."

"But anyways!" The girl had reminded herself that she must act cheerful during a first meeting, and casually pointed to the other two with a flushed-red face, somewhat straining to maintain a social demeanor. "It is...it is as good of a replacement name as any other if you do not know our names. The madame that you were just speaking to is Kin-sam...Kin-san, and..." Shiho moved towards Krystal and pointed towards her and the pyro esper, casually turning to the ninja boy with a grin that did not match her embarrassment at playing the part of the hyperactive, outgoing girl. "Kristelle-sama, er, san, Crocell-san. I believe Crocell-sa...san is asking about your power. You know, that heavier-than-usual punch thingy that you did in the arcade."

[KerfuffleMach2]

Krystal smiles at Crocell's news. Wow. That sounds great! Congratulations! And you, too, Shougo.

At Shiho's and Kin's actions, Krystal just gives a heavy sigh and shakes her head a little. Sure, she agreed that they shouldn't have to be referred to in that way, but what was the harm? Plus, couldn't they see that they were making him uncomfortable?

Well, luckily, Shiho backed away. Guess she saw it. When Shiho introduced her, Krystal gives a smile and a wave. She'd have to work with Shiho on pronouncing her name right. At least a little bit.

Um, Kin? I think he gets it. He didn't mean anything by it.

[Anyr]

Shougo's seemingly sincere apology went a long way towards placating Kin. Her friend's prompting did the rest. Perhaps she'd been too hard on the lad. She proceeded to gracefully circle around him, in order to give him a 'let's start over' look and shake him by the hand (which she still held prisoner).

"Apology accepted. For the record, I'm fine with pretty much any level of formality, so long as you steer clear of nicknames. You can call me anything from Miura-sama to Kin-chan; Just be sure that it's me you're addressing, and not my labels.

As for the 'coveted honour' of attending Tokiwadai, I'll save that rant for another day. Suffice it to say that being at the top has its disadvantages."

[Lord-Cao-Cao]

Shougo covered his mouth and then promptly apologised to Crocell, bowing slightly as he did so. He knew he had forgotten to do something. He also realised that he had been compared to 'a defender of justice'. While he knew that he didn't really deserve that title, it nonetheless gave him a warm feeling at the base of his stomach. He may not have been as smart or as talented as his peers, but he had the memory of his fathers' teachings to spur him onward when his body and will would otherwise have faltered.

"Oh! About that, Shiota-san-I am ...How do I explain it? My psychic power gives me control over momentum. 'Charge Action'. It allows me to store and release momentum, by changing the Mass and Velocity aspects of the Kinetic Energy equation. It is ..."

He frowned, attempting to put his fingers on his forehead to think as he normally did, before remembering that he was still attached (literally) to Kin. To be more precise, she was still holding his hand, and showed no intention of letting go. This realisation sent a shock up his spine and a faint flush to his face. Were normal people really like this?

"Ah...Miura-san, could you please release my hand? Oh, and it is an honour to meet you also, Kurisuteru-san."

He just managed to mangle her name worse than Shiho ever did.

__________________________________________________ _______________

Inas' mouth opened in surprise and stayed that way, even as her hands moved to prepare breakfast.

"Wow! Did we really do all that? I barely remember any of it! You sure have some cool friends, Kasai-chan. I...Feel kind of out of place, yeah. I can't do any of that cool stuff, just slam stuff with Gravity Slam."

She then said nothing for awhile, too busy making breakfast. While her hands hesitated at points, Ina was glad that she at least remembered how to make this one particular dish. She glanced out of the window, remembering that it was Saturday.

"So, what do we have planned for today, Kasai-chan?"

[Anyr]

Kin separated herself from Shougo without complaint or (to her relief) difficulty. Getting stuck to someone like that would have been seriously embarrassing. But it was like her friends said: Being afraid of such things would make them more likely to happen. In order to truly master her ability, she needed to keep using it. To that end, she quickly walked over to Krystal and procured a replacement hand to hold. At times like this, a little simple human contact was just what Kin needed to get through the day.

[Mina Kobold]

The boy did not attempt to bar Yua's passage. Thanks to her power, he wasn't even surprised by the sudden appearance of a screaming person right in front of him. By the time he realised what had just happened, she would already have made it past him. Even then, he would not follow. Only death waited beyond that door.

With just a single step, Nakamura Yua crossed into hell. Every one of her senses was instantly assaulted by the new world in which she now stood. Her ears pounded with horrendous sounds which had first prompted her to take this rash course, no longer muffled or distant; Every breath of air was filled to bursting with the smell of fresh blood; Her feet brushed against soft, bulky and unmistakable shapes which littered the floor, unmoving; And before her eyes, people died. Whether by means of bullet, blade or bare hands, every person in this room was utterly devoted to the destruction of all others. No matter where she looked, Yua's gaze would find only the dead and the dying. And with each passing second, she grew ever more likely to become a target herself.

Death. Seeing the mayhem and terror all around, Yua stops. Staring it complete shock at the unreal scene. Mouth opening and closing, but little sound escaping.

As a wayward projectile blinks by, narrowly missing Yua, the unseen Esper steps forward. Protected from the minds of those around by Awareness Control, Yua weakly raises a hand toward the nearest combatant.

"Stop..."

But even if the sound of battle had not droned out the whisper, the combatants are no more likely to notice Yua than they would a fly.

[171873124Giarc]

A grim faced, tired looking young man slogs his way off the train, having just passed through the extensive security system. He trailed forwards, staring at the clouds, then slowly lowered his gaze watching the cleaners, the men, the woman, and the nigh endless uniformed students. Most walked along as young ones normally would, but here and there a boy would be juggling fire for the amusement of his friends, a girl passing a juice-box to her companions with out touching it.

The boy watched for a while longer, before speaking out, whether to himself, to some being only he can see, or merely to sate his boredom, it would be hard to say.

"So this is Academy City," said the watcher "just as boring as I expected."
A few people jumped as a distant explosion sounded, a sirens roared.
"That's better." he remarked, walking forwards.
As he walked through what would be his home for the next few years, passing through crowds of students fleeing the commotion and others rushing to see it Destan paused......and smiled.

[AnimeKid]

Crocell chuckles at Shougo as he says, "Sorry about that. Kin can be a little intense when it comes to what she believes in. However It's one of her best qualities and makes her unique. Well once you get used to it that is, otherwise it's actually kinda scary. Still your power deals with Kinetic energy huh? Can't say I've heard of a power like that before, but it must let you do some pretty awesome stuff."
__________________________________________________ _______________

Tobio put a finger to his chin in thought as he says, "I think he went off to join a new group that Academy City is starting up. Some kind of Paramilitary group. He got a letter about it asking him to join. My friend Shougo got one too. I wonder what it will be like."

[Anyr]

Death. Seeing the mayhem and terror all around, Yua stops. Staring it complete shock at the unreal scene. Mouth opening and closing, but little sound escaping.

As a wayward projectile blinks by, narrowly missing Yua, the unseen Esper steps forward. Protected from the minds of those around by Awareness Control, Yua weakly raises a hand toward the nearest combatant.

"Stop..."

But even if the sound of battle had not droned out the whisper, the combatants are no more likely to notice Yua than they would a fly.

The question of hearing was sadly irrelevant. These people were far beyond the reach of any plea that Yua could make. Even the nearest combatant (towards whom her arm now stretched) might as well have been a mile away. He crouched behind an upturned table, reloading a gun which had already taken several lives. Beside him were the corpses of his two best friends, who just minutes ago had been alive and well. Every living fighter in this room could tell a similar story. The original cause of this battle no longer mattered. Now, all that each side cared about was avenging the deaths of their comrades.

And so they fought on, to the bitter end. There would be no surrender here; No retreat. Yua was forced to bear witness as, one by one, each voice in the fugue fell silent; Until eventually only one remained. In the room's centre stood a wounded, but breathing, young boy, about the same age as Yua. He surveyed the carnage in a daze, unable to comprehend the fact that he was the sole survivor. When the sight became too much for him, he slowly sank to his knees and began to cry. This was no longer a rage-filled gang member, riding an adrenaline high. Now he was just a scared, lonely human being, who needed someone to reach out and-

*Blam*

"No survivors? How tragic."

The angelic figure lowered his gun, turned, and walked away. Behind him, a new corpse fell to the floor.

{OOC: Deepest apologies for the long delay.}

[KerfuffleMach2]

Kin separated herself from Shougo without complaint or (to her relief) difficulty. Getting stuck to someone like that would have been seriously embarrassing. But it was like her friends said: Being afraid of such things would make them more likely to happen. In order to truly master her ability, she needed to keep using it. To that end, she quickly walked over to Krystal and procured a replacement hand to hold. At times like this, a little simple human contact was just what Kin needed to get through the day.

Krystal lets her hand be grabbed without any complaint. She knew Kin was a little bit more clingy than the average person, and she knew her friend needed to have contact. Especially in tense situations.

As she listened to Crocell and Shougo, she made a mental note to ask Kin what happened between her and Crocell later.

[Lord-Cao-Cao]

"Well, Shiota-san, it allows me to ..."

Shougo opened and closed his fist, thinking of what he could do to show them what Charge Action was capable of. He could have tried explaining it, but honestly, Charge Action was complicated even to him. Storing kinetic energy as imaginary mass, then reconverting it back to - ack, it would just be better to show them. After scanning the area around him for a piece of concrete, Shougo eventually found one and picked it up, his arm tensing and storing kinetic energy into imaginary mass for his future actions.

"....Do things like this."

He then threw the rock to the other end of the courtyard, converting the imaginary mass back into kinetic energy and decreasing his own, existing mass in order to increase his proportionate velocity. He got there a full two seconds before the rock did, immediately catching it in his hand and throwing it into the sky, where it promptly shot up some four hundred feet before beginning to slow down. A few seconds later, the rock came tumbling down in front of Shougo, striking and rebounding off the concrete with a loud 'crack'.

"Does that answer you question, Shiota-san, Shiho-san? It is ...Complicated. I apologise for my ineptitude...This power has come to me only recently. No doubt it pales in comparison to your psychic powers."

Shougo said that sincerely; having simply associated their status with their powers, he assumed that they were all Espers who were considerably more powerful than he. Realising this, he shifted onto his other foot and tugged at his scarf nervously. Would he really be working alongside a Judgement member? That was in itself a little terrifying;Shougo did not want to disappoint.

__________________________________________________ _______________

Sojiros' face darkened when he heard that.

"Man, so it's true, huh? Ren's run off to play lab rat again. Well...Probably. I don't wanna say too much, but Ren's been caught in some pretty bad stuff before. I'd be careful with that sort of thing. It might be legit. It might not be."

He stopped, not knowing what to say. He didn't have any definitive proof that Academy City was up to no good, or that Ren had been hurt in their projects before, but Mei sometimes said it, and he trusted Mei. After letting Tobio speak, he opened his mouth again.

"Hey, you should probably ask your friend to be careful. And could you tell him to look out for Ren, as well? I mean, it's probably sorta pointless, given Ren and all, but still-It might put Meis' mind at ease, somewhat."

[Lady Serpentine]

Inas' mouth opened in surprise and stayed that way, even as her hands moved to prepare breakfast.

"Wow! Did we really do all that? I barely remember any of it! You sure have some cool friends, Kasai-chan. I...Feel kind of out of place, yeah. I can't do any of that cool stuff, just slam stuff with Gravity Slam."

She then said nothing for awhile, too busy making breakfast. While her hands hesitated at points, Ina was glad that she at least remembered how to make this one particular dish. She glanced out of the window, remembering that it was Saturday.

"So, what do we have planned for today, Kasai-chan?"

"We did. And I do have some cool friends, yeah. Especially you, Ina-chan.

I can't do any of that stuff either. Except bodyguard, sort of, and you can do that just as well as I can, I think. They're all specialists. Hell, in Thorn's case, that's his power, so just about no-one else can do what he can, and he doesn't have all that much choice in the matter."

With that, Kasai quieted for a while, content to let Ina finish breakfast without distractions, though when her friend was done, she hopped up to help with getting it to the table, smiling.

"I don't know. Depends on how you're feeling, really. If you're in the mood for a day lazing around here watching movies, that's fine. If you want to go out again, that's also fine. Whatever you're in the mood for works perfectly well."

[Felyndiira]

"The equation for kinetic energy, E = 0.5mv^2." Shiho was not looking at Shougo's actual demonstration as much as she is observing his AIM field, and mentally noting the phenomenon that they represent from her knowledge of kinetic espers. Her observations began as a muted whisper, but gradually (and subconsciously) grew louder as her caution was suppressed by scientific curiosity. "By increasing mass at zero velocity and then decreasing it at release point while keeping momentum constant, the initial velocity of the arm increases proportionately. Furthermore, by decreasing mass mid-run and keeping momentum constant..."

"Ah!" The girl caught herself, now very much aware that she is now analyzing the boy's abilities beyond what a normal individual should be able to observe, and that the latter parts of her analysis was audible to everyone currently present. "I'm really sorry, I guess I went into geek mode for a moment. But ineptitude would not be the word I would use for that. Your ability is fantastic! I mean, with it, you could single-handedly win any martial arts tournaments that has ever been devised!"

Perhaps the boy just needed a bit of a confidence booster? Shiho was always cautious about using her ability in the open; even with the backing of a Kihara and with the dark side of Academy City supporting her actions, AIM manipulators are rare enough that there was always a threat that she would become a target for one of the rival factions. Still, part of the reason that the received permission to attend Tokiwadai was in hopes that it would help her develop into a level 5, and it wouldn't really help that goal if she never used her powers...

"Can I see it again? That thing you did with throwing the rock into the sky, that is," she requested. Subtly, she tuned her own AIM field to match that of the boy; if Shougo did throw the rock like Shiho requested, she would increase the rate of mass accumulation to the point where the rock would become a upwards-shooting meteor, burning itself up via air friction long before it could hit the ground. Given that the initial throw didn't immediately dislocate his arm, the required secondary powers should be able to protect the boy from this unexpected power-up as well. Even if the boy chose to run or display his ability in a different way, she could enhance that as well; none of these would strong enough to require a perfect resonance, so the entire activation of her powers would be entirely invisible.

Perhaps - just perhaps, that temporary boost would make Shougo a bit more hopeful of his abilities instead of viewing it with disdain.

[Anyr]

"Yes, do it again! Encore, encore!"

Kin didn't really understand what Shougo was doing, but she liked it. This whole encounter was doing wonders for her mood. Combined with the warmth of Krystal's hand in her own, Kin almost felt like her old self again. She'd completely forgotten about the way that she'd hurt...hurt...Crocell...

...aaaannndd now she was sad again. Damn.

[Mina Kobold]

The question of hearing was sadly irrelevant. These people were far beyond the reach of any plea that Yua could make. Even the nearest combatant (towards whom her arm now stretched) might as well have been a mile away. He crouched behind an upturned table, reloading a gun which had already taken several lives. Beside him were the corpses of his two best friends, who just minutes ago had been alive and well. Every living fighter in this room could tell a similar story. The original cause of this battle no longer mattered. Now, all that each side cared about was avenging the deaths of their comrades.

And so they fought on, to the bitter end. There would be no surrender here; No retreat. Yua was forced to bear witness as, one by one, each voice in the fugue fell silent; Until eventually only one remained. In the room's centre stood a wounded, but breathing, young boy, about the same age as Yua. He surveyed the carnage in a daze, unable to comprehend the fact that he was the sole survivor. When the sight became too much for him, he slowly sank to his knees and began to cry. This was no longer a rage-filled gang member, riding an adrenaline high. Now he was just a scared, lonely human being, who needed someone to reach out and-

*Blam*

"No survivors? How tragic."

The angelic figure lowered his gun, turned, and walked away. Behind him, a new corpse fell to the floor.

{OOC: Deepest apologies for the long delay.}

Yua was spared most of the bloodbath itself, having reacted much like most civilians thrown into a warzone. Nearly collapsing against the wall, Yua only looked up again, returning to reality, at the sudden silence.

"Oh no, oh-"

Paling and nearly throwing up at the sight of countless mutilated corpses, faces that would never again smile, eyes that would never again see family and of blood colouring the ground a sickening red, Yua looks up at the sole survivor. For once showing clear emotion, Yua looks at the youngster in a mix of empathy and fear, eyes going wide at the sudden sound.

"...!"

As the unknown murderer turns to walk, Yua's unseen eyes fade back to their old monotonous look, something clicking in Yua's mind. As the killer walks, the Ghost follows, stepping carefully to leave no dead disturbed.

(No problem, I am terribly slow as well. ^_^')

((Sorry if snapping from panic to calm seems odd, I have a plan for it, but it may seem nonsensical at first. Yua had enough trouble just stepping in between a bully and a victim earlier, so I had to go to a few lengths to avoid having the teenage civilian act like a teenage civilian. ))

[AnimeKid]

Tobio nodded to Sojiro as he said, "Yeah, I could do that. Still Ren-taichou seems so invincible sometimes. I'm not sure that there's much he couldn't handle. All the same I'll ask Shougo to look out for him. Plus anything to help Mei feel better is okay in my books." It was then that a little light bulb went off in Tobio's head as he remembered something very important.

"Ahh! Of course I can't believe I forgot. I needed Mei to get me a Judgement telepath. Actually you might be able to help too Sojiro, but first we have to go find Mei." With that Tobio rushed off out of the training center to go find Mei. Leaving it up to Sojiro is he wanted to follow the suddenly frantic Tobio.
__________________________________________________ _______________

Crocell looked At Shougo with wide eyes as he says, "You call that ineptitude, That was one of the most amazing things I've ever seen. Shougo you have an amazing power. I mean I still like mine better because fire is in my nature, but if I had to trade powers with someone you are definitely the person I would choose. Man the parkour moves I could pull off with that kind of psychic ability."

Crocell allows himself to daydream for a bit before he snaps out of it. He walks over to Shougo's position and sends him back over to the others as he says, "Well you had the courtesy to show me your powers I guess I can do the same. Just make sure you guys stay back, don't want to accidentally hurt you. Actually we were going to practice our powers today and I can use this as a demonstration for Kin. You have to control the power and not the other way around. Knowing your power is a lot like knowing yourself. There are things that may surprise you, but above all else you are the master of yourself."

With that the look in Crocell's eyes changed from amusement to sheer focus. He lets out a deep breath as the area around him starts heating up. Then flames rise from the ground around him. The are a reddish-orange in color as they start running along the ground around him as he crosses his arms in front of himself. His pupils seem to become slits as the flames become more energetic and come up to about his waist creating a miniature wall of flames around himself. He then uncrosses his arms violently as he bellows out a loud roar as the flames around him explode upward!

They reach a deep blue in color and shoot up 130 feet into the air creating a roaring fiery pillar around Crocell. The flames then expand outward until they take a distinct shape. The shape of a dragon that mimics a roar, the cackling of the flames supplying it's voice. The dragon then curls itself inwards and shrinks down until the flames take the shape of a 20 foot tall egg the condense flames glowing brightly until they are suddenly extinguished. The ground around Crocell might as well be slag as the short boy locks eyes with Kin taking in deep relaxing breaths. His eyes were speaking to her, even though he had pushed his powers to their absolute limits he had stayed in control.

[Lord-Cao-Cao]

Shougo stared in abject awe as he watched Crocells' display of raw, fiery might, and immediately felt more than a little inadequate. Who was he in the face of such incredible power? A nobody, that was who. Sure, he could move quickly and leap far, now, but what was that in the grand scheme of things? He wasn't anywhere near able to dodge bullets or lift cars. He was ....

Just Shougo, again.

But he heard Shihos' voice, his eyes narrowing slightly in response to her being able to list out how, in greater clarity than his own mind could conjure, his power worked. He fancied that there were at least a dozen ways in which the effects of his power could be achieved, but she had hit upon it with an uncanny accuracy. Inwardly, he wondered if this was her power-The ability to detect psychic power, and identify it? And her request was odd, too. Nevertheless, he nodded his head towards her in acquiescence, bending over to pick up the rock.

Tensing his shoulders and gathering kinetic energy in the form of imaginary mass, he immediately realised what was happening. This was a lot easier than it should have been-He was capable of gathering so much more energy than he would otherwise have been able to. So that was one of her psychic powers, he reasoned to himself; to detect and augment that of others. Perhaps ten seconds later, Shougo finally released the rock, throwing it skywards and reconverting the energy stored within at about twenty feet-Normally the operational distance through which he could maintain his psychic power.

The rock immediately proceeded to burst through the sound barrier with an immense 'voomph', breaking all nearby windows and quite possibly knocking everyone (and certainly Shougo, who did not expect it) off their feet. In the sky above them, the rock could be seen, trailing streams of fire as it quickly burned up to nothing via atmospheric friction. A few seconds of silence later, Shougo finally spoke, picking himself off the ground in the process.

"So...Is that your power, Akiyama Shiho-san?"

__________________________________________________ _______________

"Judgement telepath? Man, wait up! What's going on!?"

Sojiro hurriedly dashed after Tobio, a little confused by why Tobio would have need of a telepath in the first place.

__________________________________________________ _______________

"Hmmmmm...I don't really know, yeah. How about we go check out this Millenium Institute place, then we'll go catch some lunch, maybe play some games at the arcade? Orrrr, maybe we could try looking for Astraphobia, yeah."

Ina giggled at the thought of encountering Souji again. He really was such a charming boy, and the fear of their last encounter had all but faded in her mind. She wondered where he was and what he was doing; the search for him, she knew, had been called off. Maybe he had been caught? But if they had, Ina knew they would probably have reported it on the news to avoid panic. Maybe he had outrun the law.

[Felyndiira]

"Ah!". The girl wasn't, well, quite expecting Shougo to figure it all out with such ease; looking back on it, she really was just a bit too obvious with the whole setup, especially after giving that analysis of the boy's ability. She tried to cover it all up with an awkward giggle, looking away from the audience with an embarrassed look on her face. "Hee Hee, I guess the cat is out of the bag. That's pretty much it, although um, well, I would appreciate it if you kept this a bit of a secret. It's...well, it's a bit of an embarrassing ability, in a way."

"It's temporary, though. Um, still, um, I think that's about what System Scan would classify as, um, a level 3-4. I think your power is definitely, well, ah, not something to be disappointed about. I mean, just think what you can do if you be...er, in a few months when you're level 4."

She tried to hide her visage; it was a bit embarrassing to speak like this, using keigo and to a complete stranger, no less.

[Anyr]

Kin didn't bother with all this talk of ability enhancement. She was too busy admiring the magnificent displays of pyrotechnics and high velocity stone throwing. When Crocell met her eyes, she instinctively stood a little straighter. Now there was a role model she could respect. He was leagues ahead of those so-called 'teachers' employed at Tokiwadai. Why couldn't any of them be so inspiring, heroic and snugglable? Right now Crocell was even more impressive than usual, standing as he was atop the ruined ground, amidst fragments of broken glass and damaged property. It was amazing to think that this was all legal. Before today, Kin would have sworn that committing such an act in the School Garden was a serious offence...

[AnimeKid]

Tobio looks around the Judgement base trying to find Mei with Sojiro in tow. Having endeared himself to Tobio with his confidence in him and encouraging words Tobio informs him of the situation he found himself in at the docks a few nights ago. He also explains how Mei found him that night and when he tried to show her the body it was gone. Mei said she would take him to a Judgement telepath in the morning to confirm his story. Then however the whole fiasco at the hospital happened.
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Seeing the looks that are no doubt being thrown his way Crocell laughs a little as he says, "Don't worry. This a special abandonment lot for Espers. Academy City is pretty efficient so you would think abandoned lots would not be around right? Lots like this allow more destructive Espers to practice their powers freely with a chance of harming civilians or any of the Academy City architecture."

It was then that Shiho demonstrated her ability after breaking down Shougo's and assisting him by boosting his powers. Crocell's eyes widen as he says, "Amazing! However, that's a little odd for a power. You said that Shougo is about a level 3 right? So you just boosted his power to a level 4? Well then, what would happen if you tried to boost a level 5? Not that I am one! I'm just a level 4 at the moment."

[Felyndiira]

A level 3 esper? Did she really say something like that? Shiho's lips moved to correct the misconception, but quickly stopped herself before she could utter a single word. It would be disrespectful for her to suddenly go and blurt out 'no, he's only around level 2!' in front of the audience, especially when the boy is already so uncomfortable with the limits of his ability. Besides, she had never hoped for the conversation to actually turn towards her own abilities, and decided to lie a little to stop this line of discussion as quickly as she can.

"I don't think it would have much of an effect. Even bridging the gap between a level 4 and level 5 would be next to impossible for me. Either way, I'm really sorry for bringing up the topic of esper levels: I'm not really comfortable with discussing other people's powers or really my own ability. It was really rude for me to interfere like this."

She gave a quick, courteous bow to Shougo, as if in great apology. In reality, she was hoping that the boy would quickly forget about the matter and that the conversation would revert to what it had been just a moment ago, before she foolishly interfered.

[KerfuffleMach2]

Krystal just stood with her mouth hanging open during Crocell's display. It...was...awesome!

She actually went to applaud after it. Which was kind of awkward, given that she was still holding Kin's hand.

Then Shougo's second display came. Which she was amazed by again.

She listened to Shiho talk about her powers with interest. Aw, you don't have to be embarrassed. Your powers sound pretty awesome. And useful.

[Lord-Cao-Cao]

(OOC: RRRRRRR, I WROTE A HUGE POST, AND THEN 'SERVER IS TOO BUSY' AND I LOST THE WHOLE THING. And it was so much better than what I am currently writing.)

Shougo closed his eyes, sighing slightly. He should have known better than to think that he really had improved that much-That he could even remotely compare to those such as Crocell-And he did. He glanced at Shiho briefly, murmuring a word of apology. He should have felt bad for her-He knew that he would have hated to be in her shoes. But somehow, he did not. Or...To be more precise, he did, but the voice at the back of his head did not. It was a strange feeling. If he had known any better, he'd have said it was ...Jealous. But over what?

Regardless, the voice at the back of his head also informed him that whatever ability this Akiyama Shiho had was both incredibly rare and incredibly powerful, expressing its' ...Surprise? to Shougo in an almost audible tone. While Shougo had no definitive proof that Shihos' power was indeed such, as he would be the first to admit that he had almost no knowledge of just what psychic powers could include and were limited to, he nevertheless stored this interesting piece of information at the back of his head for further use.

He trusted that voice, for reasons he could not comprehend.

"Very well. I shall not discuss such a matter further, Akiyama Shiho-san. I apologise once more for my impertinence."

Turning his mind to other matters, Shougo also heaved a great mental sigh of relief at Crocells' declaration. Whilst he doubted that cost of replacing the windows would be out of his grasp (as of next Monday), the thought of having to confront the owners of said windows with his guilt sent shivers down his spine. After thinking about what he was going to say for a few seconds, Shougo finally decided on something, picking up on what Shiho had said earlier and almost immediately regretting it.

"About me winning any martial arts tournament, Shiho-san...While it may be true for the vast majority of my supposed competition, it would not be true martial arts. It would be akin to cheating. Everyone else would be using naught but their body and their skill-Why then should I be allowed to use my psychic power?"

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"Whoah, whoah, whoah, hold on a sec there, man. You're saying that you...Were attacked a few nights ago, by a guy who just wouldn't quit, and you had to kill him? And then the body just ...Vanished?"

Sojiro paused, mouth working and clearly very worried.

"And you haven't told anybody else!? Are you crazy!? Dude, we've got to get your memories checked out, pronto...We can't have this guy strike again - And I'm thinking it'll be the same guy, because who keeps on attacking someone till he 'dies' without a backup plan?"

He stopped, patting down the sides of his trackpants and chewing his lip.

"You could have died, man. I mean it wasn't likely, given who you are, but still...And if it wasn't you...Someone really could end up dead."

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[Atrum-Persavor]

Jin hears the word "telepath" and freezes halfway through entering the passcode for the exit door. In spite of everything, he turns around, his curiosity piqued.

"Wait. Telepath? Hold on there- anything involving a telepath's serious business."

He thumbs the "cancel" button at the bottom of the keypad, before turning around.

"What're you doing? Hold up, I'm coming with you. Geh. I'll deal with Ren later."

[Felyndiira]

"You are right," the girl replied sheepishly. For the next moment, she remained silent with her face still flushed bright-red; she was not paying much attention to her surroundings - rather, her eyes were focused solely on the ground beneath them, as if to avoid catching the gaze of anyone else present at the scene. Should the conversation about Shougo's powers continue she may speak further once she had some time to think about the subject, although for now, she was quiet and introspective, determined not to make the same silly mistake a second time.

[171873124Giarc]

Destan rambled through the city, counting his steps as he walked onwards, only pausing now and then to watch those passing by, stopping in front of a shop to swallow some medicine to deal with his perpetual headache, but still continuing. He eventually stopped once more to show his identification, as he arrived at (hopefully) one of the most interesting places in Academy city, the school garden.

Trudging under the bright (afternoon?) sun, still pausing every no and then he looked upwards just in time to see a small object whiz above the building to his right "Strange," he thought, "that appears to be a rock of some kind" "Why would people be doing that" the answer seemed obvious, at least to him; a fight. Something that would (hopefully) allow him to think properly, to be clear of hazy thoughts, and almost memories. An escape from drudgery, into life.

He rushed to were he believe the stone came from, in time to witness the last few seconds an incredibly skillful manipulation of fire over a field of broken glass, coming from a young man next to a rather, traditional Japanese appearing boy, and two girls, one with white hair.
[OOC" I can't find a description of Kin or Crocell on the wiki]
They're standing around casually, no opponents in sight, meaning they're most likely used to combat, but appear to be a little awed. He walks closer trying to keep a ready stance as he searches for any hostilities.

[AnimeKid]

(OOC: The picture on the profile for Crocell is his descpriction if you add pink hair. Though yeah, Kin doesn't have a description.)

Tobio ducks his head in an embarrassed manner as he says, "Mei-chan didn't believe me because I had a stressful day. Plus I didn't think anyone would believe me without evidence. Plus when we were supposed to see the telepath that was the day that the fiasco at the hospital happened. It slipped our minds after that."

Tobio turns and seeing a superior ducks his head in an abashed manner again. "Ano, I needed to see a telepath for evidence of a very strange person, possibly an esper. I um...I had no choice but to kill him. He had been attacking people purely to find someone who could kill him. He wouldn't stop sir."
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Crocell nods in agreement with Shougo as he says, "Shougo's right Shiho. I mean I can literally throw a Firepunch, but if I used it in a boxing match it just wouldn't be fair. It would be as if I never won at all. Why should I be allowed to use my powers when they are using nothing but good old bone and sinew?"

Crocell suddenly turns his head to the new presence in their little group. "Something we can help you with new guy?"