Fire and Ice
August 28, 2010 - 9:46pm
August 28, 2010 - 10:53pm
#2
Life and Death: Chilling Temper
Jiāo spent the morning car ride finishing up his calculus homework. Much to the dismay of his mother, he seemed to lack the motivation to accomplish anything. Hurriedly, he scribbled the answers to the problem set onto a sheet of loose leaf paper as he ignored the instructions to write out each step. As they drove to the Aquinas Academy, he occasionally glanced out the darkly tinted windows towards the clear sky. It almost felt like midnight.
He was sitting at his desk the back of the classroom, trying to write down a few more answers when his best friend Andrew elbowed him. “She’s here”, he whispered
Jiāo looked up to see Caitlin wave. He offered up a quick smile and mouthed, “Happy Birthday”. The late bell rang loudly behind him. Ms. Carter was hovering. She seemed to make it a priority to collect his homework first.
“Unacceptable, Mr. Cuì. This should have been completed before you...” Ms. Carter’s voice faded into the background as Jiāo turned towards the windows. Radiant beams of green light poured through glass and the desk he was sitting in started to shake.
It was only seconds but time slowed to make it feel like hours. The roar of engines overhead drowned out the loudspeaker and a sudden impact threw several of the students to the floor. The silence was deafening and the rising temperature gave Jiāo’s body and mind valuable time to react. His mutation activated reflexively and his body drew in the thermal energy and encased him in ice as the ceiling collapsed.
Once the shaking stopped, Jiāo pushed the rubble aside as he stood among the wreckage of his classroom. The ice that had encased him fell to the ground, melting beneath the Spring sun. The smell of ash and sound of explosions surrounded him. The windowed wall was laying toppled into the quad. His school was in ruins as if it were built from toothpicks. Jiāo felt his body shake. No not his body, just his shoulder. A firm gloved hand turned him about.
“Honey, can you hear me? Are you okay?” a sweet soprano that pierced through the echoing sounds of battle. Jiāo nodded slowly.
“Can you help your friends?”
His friends. They were here too. Jiāo instinctively looked to his right where Andrew had been elbowing him a minute ago. He kicked a few small stones away and the blonde woman tossed larger pieces aside with ease. Once Andrew was visible Jiāo yelled at his friend. But no response came. He dropped down and grasped his friend’s shoulders and shook him. But the body was limp. He let go and turned to the front of the class where Caitlin had been sitting. A masked man was lifting her up. She was responsive and moving.
Jiāo stood and sprinted towards the sounds of metal clanging against metal in the distance. He arrived at the nearby park where he saw armored beings shooting and slashing at the San Diegans. He bull rushed one of the armored suits and drew upon his energy reserve to burn the creature inside. Confident the alien was dead, he turned towards another. He drew the thermal energy surrounding a pair of armored boots to himself and snared his foe in place. As the armored creature struggled and reared back, Jiāo propelled several icicles into the space beneath the helmet at the neckline. He turned to face another and then another. Armor after armor fell to his anger.
A hour had passed, the overuse of his abilities and the fiery rage had consumed his energy stores rapidly. Jiāo fell to a knee next to the broken hydrant that had become a fountain. He ached all over. The blonde woman that was at the academy earlier was flying towards him shouting something. A sharp pain formed at the back of his head and an impact sent him quickly to the ground. The green lights faded to black and the warmth of the fires were replaced with a bitter cold.
Jiāo spent the morning car ride finishing up his calculus homework. Much to the dismay of his mother, he seemed to lack the motivation to accomplish anything. Hurriedly, he scribbled the answers to the problem set onto a sheet of loose leaf paper as he ignored the instructions to write out each step. As they drove to the Aquinas Academy, he occasionally glanced out the darkly tinted windows towards the clear sky. It almost felt like midnight.
He was sitting at his desk the back of the classroom, trying to write down a few more answers when his best friend Andrew elbowed him. “She’s here”, he whispered
Jiāo looked up to see Caitlin wave. He offered up a quick smile and mouthed, “Happy Birthday”. The late bell rang loudly behind him. Ms. Carter was hovering. She seemed to make it a priority to collect his homework first.
“Unacceptable, Mr. Cuì. This should have been completed before you...” Ms. Carter’s voice faded into the background as Jiāo turned towards the windows. Radiant beams of green light poured through glass and the desk he was sitting in started to shake.
It was only seconds but time slowed to make it feel like hours. The roar of engines overhead drowned out the loudspeaker and a sudden impact threw several of the students to the floor. The silence was deafening and the rising temperature gave Jiāo’s body and mind valuable time to react. His mutation activated reflexively and his body drew in the thermal energy and encased him in ice as the ceiling collapsed.
Once the shaking stopped, Jiāo pushed the rubble aside as he stood among the wreckage of his classroom. The ice that had encased him fell to the ground, melting beneath the Spring sun. The smell of ash and sound of explosions surrounded him. The windowed wall was laying toppled into the quad. His school was in ruins as if it were built from toothpicks. Jiāo felt his body shake. No not his body, just his shoulder. A firm gloved hand turned him about.
“Honey, can you hear me? Are you okay?” a sweet soprano that pierced through the echoing sounds of battle. Jiāo nodded slowly.
“Can you help your friends?”
His friends. They were here too. Jiāo instinctively looked to his right where Andrew had been elbowing him a minute ago. He kicked a few small stones away and the blonde woman tossed larger pieces aside with ease. Once Andrew was visible Jiāo yelled at his friend. But no response came. He dropped down and grasped his friend’s shoulders and shook him. But the body was limp. He let go and turned to the front of the class where Caitlin had been sitting. A masked man was lifting her up. She was responsive and moving.
Jiāo stood and sprinted towards the sounds of metal clanging against metal in the distance. He arrived at the nearby park where he saw armored beings shooting and slashing at the San Diegans. He bull rushed one of the armored suits and drew upon his energy reserve to burn the creature inside. Confident the alien was dead, he turned towards another. He drew the thermal energy surrounding a pair of armored boots to himself and snared his foe in place. As the armored creature struggled and reared back, Jiāo propelled several icicles into the space beneath the helmet at the neckline. He turned to face another and then another. Armor after armor fell to his anger.
A hour had passed, the overuse of his abilities and the fiery rage had consumed his energy stores rapidly. Jiāo fell to a knee next to the broken hydrant that had become a fountain. He ached all over. The blonde woman that was at the academy earlier was flying towards him shouting something. A sharp pain formed at the back of his head and an impact sent him quickly to the ground. The green lights faded to black and the warmth of the fires were replaced with a bitter cold.
August 29, 2010 - 1:54am
#3
Oooo....I like it so far. Can't wait for the next installment!
Can't wait for the next installment!
August 29, 2010 - 9:17am
#4
Oooo....I like it so far. Can't wait for the next installment!
Can't wait for the next installment!
August 29, 2010 - 1:32pm
#5
Oooo....I like it so far. Can't wait for the next installment!
:goodjob: Can't wait for the next installment!What they said!
August 29, 2010 - 11:21pm
#6
Oooo....I like it so far. Can't wait for the next installment!
:goodjob: Can't wait for the next installment!What they said!
Indeed, nicely done...=)
__________________
Commentary Catalyst (Goader)
August 30, 2010 - 8:52am
#7
This seems like a pretty interesting story the way it's shaping up so far. I would be interested to read more about it. Perhaps a few more overlapping events, if plot permits. I'm really becoming a fan of Rose's more introspective narrative at this point, and it's pretty close to what I've felt most comfortable writing. So far, I am impressed.
If you guys are interested in a few more pragmatic observations that may not always be positive, read on. Otherwise, stop here. You have been warned.
One thing that struck me is the implication in both stories that there is much more going on than the narrative implies, especially with Rose's character, as CT's has a lot more out-and-out given about. You may, however, want to throw a little more weight and surprise at those revelations, especially the manifestation of super powers. I may be out of the loop here, as I don't really know most of your characters, but it kind of feels like I'm picking up a story from the middle and there are things I'm expected to know that I don't. Jiāo's lack of motivation is a good example - I assume that's out of character for him from the way it's handled, but I can't really be sure.
I like how concepts that should be familiar to a Paragon City resident (and a City of Heroes player, by extension) are treated as strange and unfamiliar, given with descriptions, rather than being named. At the same time, the narrative seems to suggest the Statesman and Miss Liberty (or maybe I'm reading too much into that), which makes me wonder why they both opted to dig through a school, rather than help fight the invaders. I suppose that could be explained later on, so I'm not really counting it, but as I understand it from the comic books, they don't really get along very well (both being stuck up pricks, as they're shown by Top Cow), so it'd be interesting to see how they ended up cooperating so willingly.
I'll probably have to wait a while before the two protagonists' personalities come to play a little more, as the given events in this chapter don't really lend themselves to personalisation very well, outside of "rising to the challenge" type of character, which doesn't seem to be the theme with either character. In this respect, Caitlin seems to be much more along for the ride and not really demonstrating any super powers (that I could detect), but I assume that will change in time. Jiāo, on the other hand, seems to have been given a lot of characterisation between the lines, as it were. We don't know why he's unmotivated, but we know he has cheeky friends and the teacher is stern to him, implying past misgivings. I'm interested to see how that interacts with his lack of motivation.
There's something I just don't like about third party narration of settings and events as a general thing, but that's my own personal bias so it's really not something to comment on beyond mentioning it to explain context. Jiāo's battle against the Rikti, therefore, kind of dragged for me, but it's still very well written for what it amounts to. I've actually struggled with exactly this, myself - having to describe a fight between the titular Samuel Tow and a bunch of Rikti, and I realised I just wasn't interested in knowing about it, let alone telling about it. Again, though, the dynamics of events are interesting. I just feel they're a little heavy.
One final point I want to make is about the reactions both characters have to the events that have transpired. Caitlin has what I'd describe as a very natural reaction - shock and confusion at the unexpected disaster. Inability to act and think introspectively following a building caving in on her is natural, and her being slow to react emotionally to the tragedy is actually brilliant writing right there. It's pretty much how I'd expect a little girl to react without actually knowing I expected it.
Jiāo's reaction, on the other hand, took me for a loop a few times until I managed to follow the cause to effect chain. As I read it, he is thrown into a berserker's rage over the apparent death of his friend (we don't know yet), which causes him to go out and murder Rikti. Upon reflection, it's more or less obvious, but as I was reading it, I had to wonder. I think it would have taken just a tad more emphasis on these guys' friendship above and beyond it being mentioned, as well as a bit emphasis put on Jiāo's pain and loss before it transforms into a raging rampage of revenge, the connection would have been more obvious. As it stands, they ARE mentioned, but they're very matter-of-fact and easy to miss if you're a distracted reader - and I am. That's not to say it's BAD, because I did follow the intention as I think it was originally planned, but it took me out of the experience ever so slightly having to think about it as I was reading a fight scene at the same time.
So far, I like your stories and they look like they will develop into quite an interesting plot. I'm slightly worried about the pace, however, and not because I don't want to read it, but because I know that this pace WILL tax both of you severely if this goes on for more than just one scene. If you decide to soldier through it and get out a strong, detailed story, then I would be very glad to read it, but just keep in mind that a story with this much description and fine detail will run really long really fast and for very little advance in the action. That format is just INCREDIBLY labour-intensive, and it has defeated me, personally, more times than I can count.
That's all I have to say. If you did read this far despite the warning and don't like what I've said, just let me know and I'll refrain from messing with your stories in the future. If it further bothers you enough, I can take it down with no hard feelings.
If you guys are interested in a few more pragmatic observations that may not always be positive, read on. Otherwise, stop here. You have been warned.
One thing that struck me is the implication in both stories that there is much more going on than the narrative implies, especially with Rose's character, as CT's has a lot more out-and-out given about. You may, however, want to throw a little more weight and surprise at those revelations, especially the manifestation of super powers. I may be out of the loop here, as I don't really know most of your characters, but it kind of feels like I'm picking up a story from the middle and there are things I'm expected to know that I don't. Jiāo's lack of motivation is a good example - I assume that's out of character for him from the way it's handled, but I can't really be sure.
I like how concepts that should be familiar to a Paragon City resident (and a City of Heroes player, by extension) are treated as strange and unfamiliar, given with descriptions, rather than being named. At the same time, the narrative seems to suggest the Statesman and Miss Liberty (or maybe I'm reading too much into that), which makes me wonder why they both opted to dig through a school, rather than help fight the invaders. I suppose that could be explained later on, so I'm not really counting it, but as I understand it from the comic books, they don't really get along very well (both being stuck up pricks, as they're shown by Top Cow), so it'd be interesting to see how they ended up cooperating so willingly.
I'll probably have to wait a while before the two protagonists' personalities come to play a little more, as the given events in this chapter don't really lend themselves to personalisation very well, outside of "rising to the challenge" type of character, which doesn't seem to be the theme with either character. In this respect, Caitlin seems to be much more along for the ride and not really demonstrating any super powers (that I could detect), but I assume that will change in time. Jiāo, on the other hand, seems to have been given a lot of characterisation between the lines, as it were. We don't know why he's unmotivated, but we know he has cheeky friends and the teacher is stern to him, implying past misgivings. I'm interested to see how that interacts with his lack of motivation.
There's something I just don't like about third party narration of settings and events as a general thing, but that's my own personal bias so it's really not something to comment on beyond mentioning it to explain context. Jiāo's battle against the Rikti, therefore, kind of dragged for me, but it's still very well written for what it amounts to. I've actually struggled with exactly this, myself - having to describe a fight between the titular Samuel Tow and a bunch of Rikti, and I realised I just wasn't interested in knowing about it, let alone telling about it. Again, though, the dynamics of events are interesting. I just feel they're a little heavy.
One final point I want to make is about the reactions both characters have to the events that have transpired. Caitlin has what I'd describe as a very natural reaction - shock and confusion at the unexpected disaster. Inability to act and think introspectively following a building caving in on her is natural, and her being slow to react emotionally to the tragedy is actually brilliant writing right there. It's pretty much how I'd expect a little girl to react without actually knowing I expected it.
Jiāo's reaction, on the other hand, took me for a loop a few times until I managed to follow the cause to effect chain. As I read it, he is thrown into a berserker's rage over the apparent death of his friend (we don't know yet), which causes him to go out and murder Rikti. Upon reflection, it's more or less obvious, but as I was reading it, I had to wonder. I think it would have taken just a tad more emphasis on these guys' friendship above and beyond it being mentioned, as well as a bit emphasis put on Jiāo's pain and loss before it transforms into a raging rampage of revenge, the connection would have been more obvious. As it stands, they ARE mentioned, but they're very matter-of-fact and easy to miss if you're a distracted reader - and I am. That's not to say it's BAD, because I did follow the intention as I think it was originally planned, but it took me out of the experience ever so slightly having to think about it as I was reading a fight scene at the same time.
So far, I like your stories and they look like they will develop into quite an interesting plot. I'm slightly worried about the pace, however, and not because I don't want to read it, but because I know that this pace WILL tax both of you severely if this goes on for more than just one scene. If you decide to soldier through it and get out a strong, detailed story, then I would be very glad to read it, but just keep in mind that a story with this much description and fine detail will run really long really fast and for very little advance in the action. That format is just INCREDIBLY labour-intensive, and it has defeated me, personally, more times than I can count.
That's all I have to say. If you did read this far despite the warning and don't like what I've said, just let me know and I'll refrain from messing with your stories in the future. If it further bothers you enough, I can take it down with no hard feelings.
August 30, 2010 - 2:13pm
#8
Thanks for the support guys and gals, we appreciate it!
The next bit is mostly a response to Sam but may be informative to others but I promise it doesn't have any spoilers.
I've worked on the character of Chilling Temper for over five years now. He was my first character (though named slightly different) and is an alteration/extension of myself. So some things that are very obvious to me (or those that personally know me) are not as obvious to outside readers. This is compounded by the fact that Emmy and I started the story in media res. Most stories about the friendship and lives of two friends start with how the characters meet or how their lives were before meeting each other. Caitlin and Jiāo are already friends at this point and an omniscient third party is detailing the events. Instead, we've started with the Rikti attack., a defining moment for the characters. When you can see the story as a whole (like Emmy and I can), it is a fairly logical starting point but since it's still unfolding parts of it are not nearly as clear.
With your observation of Jiāo and Andrew, I tried to give enough information so that a reader could relate to Jiāo's reaction. In retrospect (and it may get revised), I should have added a bit more but the piece is fairly long (three scenes already) and I wanted to keep the length close to Emmy's story. Also, since this story is mostly about Caitlin and Jiāo, I didn't want the friendship with Andrew to take away from the protagonists' friendship. In fact, I feel the bit where Jiāo checks up on Caitlin to feel a bit contrived. If I make any revisions to this chapter, I'll probably expand upon Andrew and Jiāo's friendship and smooth out the bit about Jiāo checking on Caitlin. But Andrew will be important in future stories that discuss events prior to this one.
Next on the tidbit of the rescuing heroes, it was not our intention for these to be Statesman and Ms. Liberty. For my part, I didn't realize I had somewhat described Ms. Liberty until you pointed it out (and there are definite similarities). While I could see them working together (they're family after all), I agree with you in that it doesn't make sense for them to be in San Diego helping at a school and not fighting off invaders in Paragon City.
Combat scenes are difficult to write for a text only medium. We're a visual species and it's much easier to watch a video clip or look at comic book panels. I tried to describe enough of it to give a glimpse of Jiāo's powers without droning on and on and your comment seems to suggest that I was able to do so. There will be fight scenes in the future but I wouldn't expect too many and they certainly won't be lengthy.
Now for everyone that didn't want to read the response to Sam, you can start reading here again.
The events we write about aren't going to be in any particular chronological order but they do have specific dates (or time frames) associated with them. So you can expect to see chapters that occur before and after this attack. As far as pace who knows? We're doing this mostly for fun and thought it'd be nice to share and maybe encourage others to write about their heroes and villains from Paragon, Praetoria and Grandville. As always, thoughts and such are appreciated and we hope you enjoy this journey!
Pax, we need a Wall of Text badge that gets awarded on a weekly basis.
The next bit is mostly a response to Sam but may be informative to others but I promise it doesn't have any spoilers.
I've worked on the character of Chilling Temper for over five years now. He was my first character (though named slightly different) and is an alteration/extension of myself. So some things that are very obvious to me (or those that personally know me) are not as obvious to outside readers. This is compounded by the fact that Emmy and I started the story in media res. Most stories about the friendship and lives of two friends start with how the characters meet or how their lives were before meeting each other. Caitlin and Jiāo are already friends at this point and an omniscient third party is detailing the events. Instead, we've started with the Rikti attack., a defining moment for the characters. When you can see the story as a whole (like Emmy and I can), it is a fairly logical starting point but since it's still unfolding parts of it are not nearly as clear.
With your observation of Jiāo and Andrew, I tried to give enough information so that a reader could relate to Jiāo's reaction. In retrospect (and it may get revised), I should have added a bit more but the piece is fairly long (three scenes already) and I wanted to keep the length close to Emmy's story. Also, since this story is mostly about Caitlin and Jiāo, I didn't want the friendship with Andrew to take away from the protagonists' friendship. In fact, I feel the bit where Jiāo checks up on Caitlin to feel a bit contrived. If I make any revisions to this chapter, I'll probably expand upon Andrew and Jiāo's friendship and smooth out the bit about Jiāo checking on Caitlin. But Andrew will be important in future stories that discuss events prior to this one.
Next on the tidbit of the rescuing heroes, it was not our intention for these to be Statesman and Ms. Liberty. For my part, I didn't realize I had somewhat described Ms. Liberty until you pointed it out (and there are definite similarities). While I could see them working together (they're family after all), I agree with you in that it doesn't make sense for them to be in San Diego helping at a school and not fighting off invaders in Paragon City.
Combat scenes are difficult to write for a text only medium. We're a visual species and it's much easier to watch a video clip or look at comic book panels. I tried to describe enough of it to give a glimpse of Jiāo's powers without droning on and on and your comment seems to suggest that I was able to do so. There will be fight scenes in the future but I wouldn't expect too many and they certainly won't be lengthy.
Now for everyone that didn't want to read the response to Sam, you can start reading here again.
The events we write about aren't going to be in any particular chronological order but they do have specific dates (or time frames) associated with them. So you can expect to see chapters that occur before and after this attack. As far as pace who knows? We're doing this mostly for fun and thought it'd be nice to share and maybe encourage others to write about their heroes and villains from Paragon, Praetoria and Grandville. As always, thoughts and such are appreciated and we hope you enjoy this journey!
Pax, we need a Wall of Text badge that gets awarded on a weekly basis.
August 30, 2010 - 3:15pm
#9
Thanks, CT I'll try to keep this as brief as I can to try and avoid derailing.
If you do anything with the friendship with Andrew, just point it out so it's obvious even to a blockhead like me If you did not intend to describe the Statesman and Miss Liberty, then my apologies for assuming. Goes to show I'm biassed. I have nothing against the pace of the story. If you guys can manage to work with that on a consistent basis, great! If you deliver these out of order, you may want to date them, possibly in the form of chapter titles. Would save you A LOT of explaining in the actual body of the story.
Talking hurts.
Done now.
I'll try to keep this as brief as I can to try and avoid derailing.If you do anything with the friendship with Andrew, just point it out so it's obvious even to a blockhead like me
If you did not intend to describe the Statesman and Miss Liberty, then my apologies for assuming. Goes to show I'm biassed. I have nothing against the pace of the story. If you guys can manage to work with that on a consistent basis, great! If you deliver these out of order, you may want to date them, possibly in the form of chapter titles. Would save you A LOT of explaining in the actual body of the story.Talking hurts.
Done now.
August 30, 2010 - 4:15pm
#10
That's all I have to say. If you did read this far despite the warning and don't like what I've said, just let me know and I'll refrain from messing with your stories in the future. If it further bothers you enough, I can take it down with no hard feelings.
I definitely appreciate the feedback, Sam
It is difficult to write this way, especially making sure details match up with each other and that both of us get to tell our characters stories the way we want. Chilling Temper and Ember Rose have a long history together so it will probably be a decent length story. I started writing Ember's backstory and realized this was not just a regular story- she is my first, and favorite, character and I've been wanting to write about her for a long time. Hopefully we will both be able to complete it Edit: Just realized I didn't post this at lunch like I wanted to and CT responded in a more detailed format. Oh well
Thanks for supporting us, guys!
August 30, 2010 - 7:36pm
#11
So that was all that talk on vent the other day 
Sry if i messed up too much while testing Vent on my new computer.
Now seriously Very cool, keep it up we want more
Sry if i messed up too much while testing Vent on my new computer.
Now seriously Very cool, keep it up we want more
It was a beautiful day, brilliantly blue and cloudless and the sun baked the San Diego streets as Caitlin Rose Baker walked to school, surrounded by her friends who were busy catching up on the latest television episodes. It really was the perfect day for an 18th birthday and Caitlin was enjoying every minute of it. She bounded into class, waving hello to her friend Jiāo as she sat down. He had been one of the people she became fast friends with at Aquinas Academy and she loved hanging out with him outside of school. Caitlin’s phone buzzed with a text message and she silenced it quickly without much thought. It looked like another birthday text message from her East Coast friends. What was a Rikti anyway? She snapped her phone shut as the late bell rang and the teacher started collecting last night’s Calculus homework. As Caitlin passed her papers forward, the classroom darkened with a greenish cast. The students turned to the windows and saw waves of flames erupting below dark clouds and flat circles gathering slowly in the sky; her teacher was shouting something but her words were lost in the din outside the windows. Finally, Caitlin was able to make out a few words- "Rikti attack" and "Get outside" were among them. The classroom shook with the force of the attacks outside. The tinny voice over the intercom repeated the warning, "This is not a drill. Please evacuate the building in an orderly fashion." and alarms clanged shrilly across the school. Debris rained down from the ceiling and Caitlin managed to look around the classroom once at the scared faces of her classmates before the roof caved in on top of them, shrouding them in darkness.
She had no idea what time it was when she opened her eyes but Caitlin heard people shouting above her. Above her? Where was she? What had happened? Light shone through the rubble as someone lifted a huge boulder off of her. A gloved hand reached down and scooped her out of the concrete; she looked up to see a masked face- the Heroes had come to rescue them. Miraculously, Caitlin had escaped major harm since the rubble had created a pocket when it had fallen but some of her classmates hadn't been so lucky. Her eyes darted around the classroom, trying to absorb the chaos- bodies of students, her friends, were being pulled from the wreckage, capes were flying around the classroom, shell shocked students stared vacantly at each other. She saw Jiāo running outside towards the wreckage and her friend Andrew being pulled from the rubble. His face was the color of paste except for the ragged, crimson gash stretching from brow to cheek and he hung limply from the cloaked arms of another Hero.
"Caitlin?"
She ripped her eyes from her friend and saw her parents climbing over the rubble towards her. The Hero who had pulled her out set her down- had he really been holding her this whole time?- and went over to her parents. Bits of conversation drifted towards her but it sounded muffled and broken. Again, she heard the words "Rikti" and "Attack". She had just heard about these attacks from her friends but they had seemed so far away on the East Coast and of little importance then. Could that have only been minutes ago? Maybe she should have paid more attention. Her parents walked over to her, helped her get to her feet and silently left what remained of the classroom, of the school, in the hands of the Heroes.
Want to know the best time to cause destruction? Right after that first sip of coffee. You know what I mean. You take that first sip and you can feel the caffeine making it's way into your blood, coursing through your veins and making you wide, wide awake. That tingle you get when the coffee hits your stomach and you think to yourself, "That is a good cup of coffee. I'm going to drink the rest of that. But first- that police officer is looking at me funny (maybe it's the tights?). I'm going to have to fix that. Hey! Bystander! Hold my drink, I have to kick some ass. But don't drink it. I'll kill you. No, seriously, I'll kill you. Don't drink my coffee. You know what, nevermind. That coffee is too good. Walk on, police officer. Today is your lucky day."
Silly serfs. Books are for nobles.- CT, on schools in the Castle