Part One: Concepts of A New Dawn
Great Tree Moon
Chapter Two: New Days
While Maira and Wynne returned to the monastery, Byleth left to return each heir to their region. He and the heirs were able to convince the leaders that the Officer's Academy should return once again. As the month changed each region had sent nine eager students to the monastery where they would be guided by their professor and engage in combat by missions chosen unanimously by the leaders of each region.
All the counselors were together on the third floor waiting for Byleth to come and bring them down to meet the students.
"Are you excited or nervous?" Wynne asked the other professors.
"Excited." Keera, Wynne's wife, said. "I don't really care which house I get because I know I could beat you any day."
"Sure you could." Wynne smiled.
"I'm just happy your dad let an Almyran like me be a professor. My dad would be happy that you included me." Rym, the son of Nader, spoke up.
"Well the students are definitely going to be nervous. We need to be ready to help them through this process, the tension will be insane." Winona said.
Mae looked up. "I was here last time the Officer's Academy was around. It will be an adjustment but it will be good for everyone."
Just then Byleth walked in.
"Hey there Headmaster." Wynne smiled.
Byleth, like Maira, wasn't big on words. He motioned for the six of them to walk out with him. As they walked onto the training ground they could see all fifty-four students standing on the grounds. At the head of each group were the house leaders, the heirs that Maira and Wynne had rescued earlier. As Headmaster, Byleth had to give a speech, something Maira and Wynne were looking forward to as their father rarely ever talked.
"I know that a generation ago the Officer's Academy sparked war throughout Fodlan, I know the part I played in that. But now, when Fodlan is as divided as ever, I feel that a place where you can speak to people you would ordinarily hate is necessary. This will break down the walls separating Fodlan from greatness." Byleth stepped down.
Wynne stepped up, "Now mingle with new people, the professors will be around shortly to talk with each house and choose one to teach."
"That was a good speech." Keera said to Wynne.
"It was nice to see him speak like that." he smiled.
Maira nodded.
"Hey Maira, Dad told me that you and I will have to decide who gets the first pick of houses. Seeing as how you saved me that other day I would love it if you took the first pick." Wynne said to Maira. "Now go talk to the house leaders, they should introduce you to the other students."
As soon as Maira walked away the six house leaders walked up to talk to her.
"So you are going to be one of our teachers?" Leon smirked.
Maira nodded.
"Any one of us would be honored to have a skilled veteran like you mentor us." Johann said.
"Yeah but only one of us gets her. I personally want it to be me, so step aside, pretty boy." Akemi stepped in front of Johann.
"Don't be rude Akemi." Eliana sighed. "Though I expect to see you a little later, I want to introduce you to my house."
"Don't even think about it! She will come see my house first, Eliana." Demeter growled.
"Fine by me, as far as I am concerned she can visit all of your houses and then be blown away by mine. Isn't the expression 'save the best for last.'" Finn winked.
"Good line." Leon nodded approvingly.
"The five of you never cease your bickering. We will leave you alone now. But do make sure to stop by." Johann pulled the others away from Maira.
"Looks like someone is popular." Rym said joyfully.
Maira sighed. She didn't really want to be popular.
"Hey, don't look so glum. Why don't you go talk to one of the house leaders. Just take it one group at a time. I am going to talk to the Golden Deer, why don't you start with the Scarlet Crows from the Empire." Rym pointed towards a group of kids talking to Eliana.
Maira walked towards the group hesitantly. She really wasn't great with words. When she approached Eliana she stopped talking to a girl with a hat and curly orange hair. The girl was classically beautiful and held herself like a noble. To her left was another girl with straight bright blue hair and darker skin. She had purple tattoos under her left eye and was laughing with two other boys. One of the boys was uncomfortably standing around, he was yawning too. His shaggy purple hair was tied back in a ponytail by a ribbon. Next to him was a larger boy with pale skin. His hair was a darker orange and he had a very charming smile. In a circle there were four more kids, two guys and two girls. One of the guys was a bit shorter but very handsome. The other was taller than the rest of the kids and had jet black hair slicked back. One of the girls was of medium height and had frizzy blond hair. She was laughing very hard while the other girl rolled her eyes. That girl had green eyes and long red hair.
"Ah, Professor, I doubted you would visit us first. The Empire has been very controversial since the war. Let me introduce you to the other members of my house. Right here is my right hand woman, Reeva. She is the daughter of two of my mother's most trusted advisors, Ferdinand and Dorothea." Eliana gestured towards the girl she was just speaking with.
"Well hello Professor, how lovely to meet you." Reeva winked. "My father raised me with manners so I couldn't go another second without thanking you for saving Ellie."
"I promise she isn't flirting with you. She just always seems to be flirting with everyone. This is Gerhard, son of the always sleepy Lindhardt and anxious Bernadetta. He inherited both of those traits."
"I really wish I was in my room already, maybe I should just nap here." Gerhard, the kid with the ponytail, said.
"I am the daughter of Caspar and the Queen of Brigid, Petra. My name is Luisa. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance." Luisa spoke eloquently as she pushed back a strand of blue hair.
"This is Nicole, one of the most magically gifted people in all of Fodlan. She was raised by House Hrym." Eliana said.
"I hope to learn a lot here." the red haired girl said.
"This muscular student is Otto Ochs. He comes from House Ochs." Eliana gestured to the big orange haired kid.
"Eliana exaggerates. My house has been in some tough times for a while. I just always thought that by getting bigger I could help more." Otto explained.
"These two are Eva and Ernst. Ernst may look intimidating but he really is just a softie, Eva is who you really have to look out for. They come from House Essar." Eliana pointed out the girl with frizzy blonde hair and the boy with his black hair slicked back.
"Eliana gives away all of my tricks." Eva smiled.
"She just knows us too well." Ernst smiled too.
"That leaves Gray, unlike Reeva he knows that he flirts. He comes from a relatively new house created for diplomacy. He is the son of Baron Schiven. Meaning he comes from House Schiven. He is quite skilled with a bow." Eliana finished her introductions.
"I don't know what you mean Eliana. I assure you professor I am no flirt. Well, maybe sometimes." Gray gave a cute smile.
"The Scarlet Crows are a very eccentric bunch. But we are a good group of students and would be honored to have you as our teacher. As my mother has reiterated countless times over the years, your father once led the Black Eagles, and we would be happy if you followed in his footsteps."
Maira looked over the group. It was quite diverse, it seemed to have a good mix but she knew that she had to visit some other houses first. After exchanging pleasantries with the students Maira left to meet with the Golden Deer since Rym just finished talking to Leon and the rest.
"Hey Teach! Do you want to see my house next?" Leon beckoned.
It looked like Maira didn't have much of a choice.
"I am Leon, as you already know. I am in line to be the next Sovereign Duke of the Leicester Alliance. This is Angelo, his father made sure he came to keep an eye on me." Leon called forward a taller boy with spiky purple hair.
"Little does my father know that Leon and I have been friends since childhood. One of the many tricks that Claude implemented." Angelo smiled.
"Please, you have been infatuated with Leon since you were four. It didn't have much to do with Claude at all. But Professor, do you know where the nearest buffet is, my dad sure did teach me to eat." a girl with short pink hair spoke.
"This is Lucca, she is the daughter of Hilda and Raphael. She and I go way back." Leon introduced her.
"But we go back farther. I am Bianca, daughter of the painter Ignatz and the late magical genius Lysithea." Bianca, a girl with long white hair, stepped forward.
"Unfortunately Lysithea is no longer around, she burned bright when she was alive though. Bianca has always put stress on herself to be as powerful as Lysithea was." Angelo said.
"It was a huge loss for the Alliance." Leon admitted. "But someday I hope we fill the shoes of our ancestors. Chiara certainly hopes to fill the shoes of her aunt Judith. She comes from House Daphnel."
Chiara was a flamboyant girl with light blue hair and piercing blue eyes. "I just want to prove myself worthy of the Daphnel name. You feel similarly Leon. All you want to do is prove yourself to your father."
Leon transitioned very quickly. "Anyways, Dante here is from House Albrecht, he strives to be as strong as his Uncle Balthus."
"It really seems to be a theme with this house doesn't it." Dante joked. Dante had messy black hair and a very muscular build.
"You are quite right Dante. Unfortunately I don't have a noble heritage to live up to. But I still strive to be the best I can." A shorter girl with dark orange hair spoke up.
"This is Francesca. She keeps us on the straight and narrow. One of the reasons we listen to her is the fact that she is the one who heals us on the battlefield. But she will just as easily cut us down with her lance as she will heal us." Leon winked. "Alessia is also quite skilled with a lance. But we all know that she prefers the sword, she was born into the middle class and one of the few expensive things she has is a simple silver sword her father gave her."
"I also don't mind flying in the sky on a pegasus. I find it exhilarating." Alessia had deep red hair that while short, still managed to cover half her face.
"And that leaves me, I am Rocco, I am actually originally from Almyra, but Claude let me join the Officer's Academy in an attempt to strengthen relationships." Rocco did have darker skin then the rest, excluding Leon. His brown hair was cut short and kept uniform.
"While it is true he is here for political reasons, he is just as valuable as the rest of us. And that's the Golden Deer, we are a tight knit group but still manage to annoy each other. We are practically each other's family. " Leon smiled.
Maira was certainly impressed by the group, they looked like they were happy to be together, a change from the Scarlet Crows. If she was going to work with them she would definitely have to work with a lot of strong personalities. After saying goodbye Maira left to speak with the Blue Lions.
"Ah, Professor, I am happy to see you. Allow me to introduce you to my fellow Blue Lions." Johann pulled Maira aside to introduce her to each student one by one. First Johann introduced Maira to a girl with dark purple hair and a boy with dark blue hair and kind eyes. "This is Violet and Emile. Violet is the daughter of Sylvain and Ingrid, two of my father's closest friends. Emile is the son of the skilled swordsman Felix and the kind soul Mercedes."
"Johann is like a little brother to me. I would never leave his side, my mother would kill me if I did, my dad would too, but that is only because he wants to make sure that Johann has some fun." Violet winked at Johann making him blush.
"The three of us were always close. Though out of all of us I was always the only one good at magic. The amount of scrapes I always have to heal on the two of you." Emile sighed.
"Time for the next two." Johann motioned for Violet and Emile to leave. "Elysse and Sven, can you come over here?"
A girl with gray hair and blue eyes and a large boy with teal hair walked over.
"I am Elysse, daughter of Annette and Ashe, the two of them used to come here, it is actually where they met. I hope I find my future spouse here." Elysse said dreamily.
"My parents didn't come here. Though I come from House Charon. I used to train with Johann when we were younger." Sven glanced at Johann.
"I seem to remember that it was always difficult to decide who won our sparring matches. But seeing as how you are much larger now I think you would win." Johann smiled then called in the next three.
As soon as a girl with jet black hair walked in she started talking. "Hello Professor, I am Erika of House Gaspard. I really hope that you will teach us, not that I have anything against the other teachers but I just really feel a connection to you. As a teacher of course, not romantically."
Erika talked so much that Maira didn't even notice the other two students walk in. They both had brown eyes, but one had bright yellow hair while the other had velvety long hair.
"Erika settle down and let the other two introduce themselves." Johann said.
"I am Chloe of House Rowe, I agree with Erika that you do seem to be interesting." the girl with velvety hair said.
"And I am Maxwell. I come from Duscur." Maxwell said. He had darker skin and didn't seem very talkative.
"Maxwell isn't always like this, he is just having a hard time adjusting to Fodlan." Johann explained.
Then Johann brought in the last student. "This is Thorpe." Johann said. "Thorpe comes from House Kleiman but it is a miracle he is here at the monastery. House Kleiman is having some trouble with the people of Duscur and it is all hands on deck back there."
Thorpe was a smaller boy. He carried a book and pushed up his glasses. "It is an honor to meet you Professor." he said meekly. "Can I go now, Johann?"
"Yes Thorpe, you can go." Johann let Thorpe leave. "The Blue Lions are a very noble group. We would be honored if you would teach us. Now I am sure you have many more houses to visit so I will let you go."
Maira appreciated being able to go. That group was very intriguing, but there were a lot of issues that might present themselves if she did choose that house. Next Maira decided to visit Demeter and the Silver Snakes. Demeter seemed to be deep in conversation with a tan boy with dark hair with the tips dyed pink. Another very attractive boy with gray hair noticed Maira and pointed Demeter towards her.
"Hello Professor." Demeter smiled. "I know I was a bit scary after being near Eliana. But I am normally a bit less…angry. Anyways, let me introduce you to my house. This charming young man is Dylan, he is the son of two former teachers here, Manuela and Hanneman."
"Charmed to meet you Professor." the guy with the gray hair said.
"He is a little bit of a flirt. And this is my vassal, Noah. He was adopted and trained by two of the church's most elite fighters, Catherine and Shamir."
The black and pink hair kid introduced himself. "I am honored to be here with Demeter. If you do end up choosing this house I will protect you just as much as I protect Demeter."
"Now this next person is the son of Alois. His name might be a tad familiar." Demeter said.
Another boy with neat brown hair stepped forward. "I was named after your grandfather, Jeralt. I know that might make you a tad uncomfortable."
Maira shook her head. She was okay with it. In fact she was happy that someone took his name.
"The rest of the members of our house come from the poor souls that the church has taken in. This is one of them, Navaeh." Demeter gestured towards a strong looking girl with green hair.
"I don't know about 'poor souls' but I, and the rest of us, do owe a lot to the Church." Navaeh said.
"I second that." another girl with a pale complexion and kind eyes said.
"I never meant to upset either of you. This is Claire, Professor. She keeps us safe."
"Keeping people safe comes naturally to me. It is what the goddess granted me."
"The goddess grants nothing. We make our own rules and shape society, not some divine being." A pretty girl with lighter purple hair said.
"Forgive Gabriel, she isn't exactly a devout believer." Demeter sighed.
"I just think that the goddess has bigger things. I know that she is out there but I think that Gabriel isn't exactly wrong." another boy with short reddish brown hair spoke up.
"At least Rex has a more realistic point of view. As you can see not everyone from the Holy Church State is a devout believer. But others like Vanessa are." Demeter said.
"I truly believe in the goddess, I really think that she wants to help us all have some fun." Vanessa winked at Maira.
"Vanessa, contain yourself! As you can see the Silver Snakes are not lacking in personality. We would be honored to have someone of your caliber to teach us. Just please keep us in consideration." Demeter smiled.
Maira was certainly going to. The Silver Snakes seemed to have some interesting viewpoints. Maira certainly would have a fun time looking over that group. But there were still more groups to see, and they certainly weren't waiting.
"Since you are done with those lame guys, why don't you look at our house." Maira jumped. "Sorry, I didn't mean to spook you." Akemi apologized.
"Have you no tact Akemi!" a girl with short blonde hair yelled at Akemi.
"We are so sorry. We wish to grovel to make it alright with you." a boy with long curly black hair said.
"Meet Holst and Elizabeth. They are the two children of Balthus and Constance, two of my father's old classmates." Akemi introduced them. "And this is Mel, the daughter of Hapi. She does not hesitate to give her opinion."
"Hi, I noticed you don't talk a whole bunch." the darker skinned girl with hot pink hair said.
"Moving on." Akemi sighed. "This is Linda, a daughter of one of our elected officials, Monsieur Charmell."
"I plan on being an official like my father. Are you by any chance registered to vote in the Abyssal Congregation?" the girl with the long light pink hair said.
"And Lizzie said I don't have tact. Well since I don't want to dominate your time I will get to the rest of them before Linda tries to pull you into planning her election. This is Ailen and Fulop." Akemi had two more kids step forward.
The girl had white hair and blue eyes. The boy had a muscular build and had no hair.
"It is nice to meet you. I am Fulop." The girl said.
"And I am Ailen. We come from Brigid, we are not so good with English." Ailen admitted.
"You are not good with English. I am perfect at it" Fulop bragged.
"And these two are Karsa and Gael."
A bald girl with two large golden hoop earrings stepped forward. "I am Karsa, originally from Duscur."
"And I am Gael, a son of the lead presidential guard. I am Akemi's right hand man." Gael was a tall boy with long golden hair.
"Gael takes good care of me, though he can be a tad overprotective." Akemi smirked.
"It isn't my fault that you keep putting yourself in dangerous situations." Gael rolled his eyes.
"Danger is an important aspect of life." Akemi winked. "And that is exactly what you would get with the Indigo Bison, which is what we are called now I guess."
Maira was certainly impressed by the group, it was by far the most diverse. But Maira could sense the tension lurking beneath, especially with Akemi, she seemed to be stressed but did not want to tell anyone. Maira excused herself and then went to see the last house, the Emerald Sharks.
"You really were saving the best for last weren't you." Finn smiled. "Well let me introduce you to my house. Due to the region we come from I can assure you that we are the top nine possible students. I am ranked one, I am in line to be Supreme Leader of the Naval Meritocracy. Rank Two is Atamai, the son of our founder, Oceania."
A boy with crutches came forward. "I would be first if not for my unfortunate birth defect."
"Atamai has always been bitter about that. But Fiafia here is always happy, it is kind of her thing. She is ranked three."
A beautiful girl with tan skin and hazel eyes announced herself. "Why shouldn't I be? The sun is shining, the birds are chirping and the Naval Meritocracy is finally getting some recognition in Fodlan."
"It is time that Fodlan accepts us, we have worked hard to be what we are." another muscular girl with short black hair said.
"That would be Olaga. She is ranked four and is one of the strongest people in all of Fodlan." Finn bragged. "And this girl is one of the most strategic, meet Penina."
"Thank you for that Finn, you are too sweet. But there is still no way that I am going to let you beat me at chess." a girl with a flower in her hair said.
"It was worth a try. Now for our boys, Fetu is kind of a drama queen."
"I just want to be a star. I want to be an actor one day." a boy with windswept silver hair announced.
"Well Keola has more political aspirations. He is taking on the noble goal of trying to truly equalize education in the Meritocracy, something I hope to support one day." Finn said.
Keola was a shorter boy with spiky green hair. "Finn was able to rise from being a peasant to being at the top of the top. But I want there to be no advantages for anyone to start out with."
"I also want it to be like that. But Malosi wants to keep the status quo, he believes that those who have set themselves up should keep their kids at a better place."
Malosi was a boy with half pink and half blonde hair. "I just think that if I make something of myself my children should be able to reap the benefits of that."
"But if your children are set up better than peasant children then they have a better chance of doing better and then continuing the cycle." Keola argued.
"It gives an incentive to rise, it pushes people, which is more important than having them start out with an advantage." Malosi argued back.
"I am going to stop them there because otherwise they would argue all day. The next in line would actually be Kai's older brother, Kevu. But Kai had to take his place when Kevu fell ill." Finn said.
"I hope that I am good enough to take my brother's place." Kai said meekly.
"I know you are concerned about your brother, you don't need to put on a brave face." Finn said with concern. "Well Polopeka, this is us, the Emerald Sharks. Even if we aren't the house you end up choosing, it is an honor just to have this house be here."
Maira took one more look at Finn's house. It had potential, but the politics involved might be a bit much for her. She didn't want to be some pawn in a political game like her dad had been for the Empire so many years ago.
"Alright students, it is time for your first meal together in the dining hall. Your professors will be joining their houses after we choose our houses." Wynne announced.
As the students shuffled off to the dining hall Byleth walked back out.
"I heard that you will be picking your house first." Byleth said to Maira.
Maira nodded.
"What will it be?" Keera asked. "All of them seem to be so interesting, but you can only choose one. So will it be the Blue Lions, Golden Deer, Scarlet Crows, Indigo Bison, Silver Snakes, or Emerald Sharks?"
It was a hard choice. Each house had its pros and cons, each was filled with diverse personalities and points of view. But Maira knew that one of the houses had won her over, so she responded without any hesitation.
"I choose the Emerald Sharks." Maira said decidedly.
"The Emerald Sharks led by Finn de Costor, that is the house that you have chosen?" Byleth asked for confirmation.
"Yes." Maira responded.
After Maira made her decision Wynne chose the Scarlet Crows, Keera chose the Blue Lions, Rym chose the Golden Deer, Winona chose the Indigo Bison, and Mae was left with the Silver Snakes, which she took happily.
"Well, let's go talk to our houses." Rym smiled. All six teachers walked towards their houses happily. Little did they know the impact they were about to have on all of Fodlan.
"Attention students!" Byleth called out to the cheerful students. "Over the years Fodlan has been a divided place, but now we all feast together. Each professor will now announce the house they have chosen."
Maira started to walk towards the students. Each house was looking to see which she would join. Then Maira sat at the head of the Emerald Shark table. Finn smiled but wasn't surprised. The rest of the houses then looked to the other teachers. When each professor sat themselves with their house, everyone began talking and eating.
Kai leaned over and said, "Thank you for choosing us."
Maira smiled and nodded. Later that evening before Maira went to her room to start working on basic lessons Finn and the rest of the house stopped by to talk to her.
"So you decided to join the Sharks." Finn smiled.
"I hope we have a good year together." Kai said.
"I hope that you can prove me right when I argue with Malosi." Keola laughed.
"Oh come on, everyone knows I am right." Malosi argued.
"Maybe the two of you should just wrestle to decide who is right." Olaga suggested.
"Ooh, that would be fun. Can we watch? Can we make some food and make a day of it?" Fiafia suggested.
"I hope you can help me reach rank one. I want to take my mother's place one day." Atamai said.
"Atamai you have to have more tact than that. Maybe you are second because you have a complete and utter lack of strategy." Penina groaned.
"My question is how any of this is going to help me become a star?" Fetu sighed.
"I think the famed singer Dorothea used to come here. Maybe you could become like her." Kai suggested.
"That is a splendid idea Kai!" Fetu gasped.
"As you can see we are such an exciting house." Finn smiled. "We hope to work well with you."
"I am really happy you are going to teach us, Professor. I am really looking forward to this year. Do you know what our first assignment is going to be?" Fiafia said energetically.
"C'mon guys let's not overwhelm her or ourselves on our first day. I am sure we will find out about all of that later. Good night Polopeka, we will see you tomorrow for our first lessons." Finn excused the class.
The next day everybody was up early, everyone was eager to see what this Academy was going to be like. After breakfast in the dining hall each house left to go to their classrooms to see their teachers. Maira was standing at the head of the classroom when the Emerald Sharks walked in.
"Hello Professor." The class said unanimously.
"Hello Polopeka. What are we doing today?" Finn asked.
Maira explained that in order to base classes and lessons she first needed to know what everyone's strengths were. So she was going to have everyone come talk to her one on one to see what their strengths and weaknesses were to see how they should progress. First Maira interviewed Finn. Maira asked him what he considered to be his strengths and what he considered to be his weakness.
"Well, I have always been skilled with staffs, they are what I primarily use to attack. I have also always had a knack for magic, Reason, not Faith. I always get stuck on Faith, but once I get over something I might be able to excel at that. I also am excellent with Authority and have a knack for Aquatics, riding Apukohai. Those are like aquatic sea monsters, a bit ugly but docile once you get to know them. I am not good at Heavy Armor though. Everything else I am just average at." Finn told Maira all of this.
Maira thought for a little bit, she decided to start Finn off by taking lessons in staffs and authority while Maira would give him private lessons on Faith until he got the hang of it.
"Awesome, I look forward to those lessons."
Next Maira called in Atamai, she asked the same questions that she just asked Finn.
"First Professor I would like you to thank you for not assuming I am just bad at physical weapons due to my…disability. Secondly, I actually am pretty bad at those physical weapons, Swords, Axes, Lances, and Gauntlets. I also fail when it comes to Heavy Armor. I excel in Bows, Reason, Authority, and Riding. Everything else I am pretty neutral in. So what do you think?" Atamai asked.
Maira considered it, she wasn't going to make him a purely physical attacker anytime soon, though she might be able to do something with those Riding ranks. From there she could either turn him into either a Valkyrie, Dark Knight, or Bow Knight, either way she was going to need to work on that lance rank. So she decided to have Atamai focus on Lance and Riding by himself while she gave him individualized lessons on Reason and Authority. After she was done with that she had Fiafia come in.
"Hello Professor, are you well today?" Fiafia asked cheerfully. Maira nodded and then asked Fiafia about her strengths and weaknesses.
"Well, I am not fond of heavy weaponry like Axes, and Heavy Armor makes me sweaty. Also I'm not a friend of weapons that require a lot of accuracy so I don't do well with Bows. I do, however, love to work with magic, Faith or Reason. I also have strengths in Swords and have always enjoyed Flying. Other than that I do okay in everything else. I also am able to cheer on the people near me, because I am so enthusiastic they are usually able to avoid attacks more often like me." she said cheerfully.
Maira could sense that she was a fighter, and her higher evasion made it so that Falcon Knight was a perfect fit for her. But the magic possibilities made Dark Flier a good choice as well. But if there was an option to make her a Dancer somewhere down the line then that plus Alert Stance+ could be a very powerful combination. So Maira decided to have Fiafia focus on Lance and Sword for a little while then was going to personally teach her Reason and Flying. After sending Fiafia on her way she had Olaga come in for her meeting. Maira asked Olaga what she considered her strength.
"My strength is my strength. I excel at heavy lifting, Heavy Armor, Axe, and Gauntlets are all what I am good at. Though I am not great with magic, Reason or Faith, they just don't suit me. And horses freak me out so Riding is not my thing. Though I am regularly okay with Staffs, I think with a little work I could do really well with them. I also handle heavy weapons like they are half the weight." Olaga explained.
Maira was happy to have a good physical unit. She thought that War Master made a lot of sense for Olaga. Though a Heavy Armor class that capitalized on the huge defense stat while taking advantage of the loss of weight. The next person to come was Penina. Penina was super prepared and got right into it.
"With my strengths I could make a very good Trickster, it capitalizes on my skills with Sword and Faith, once I pick up Reason and do better with that it will help out, and I also do well with Axe for slightly more powerful attacks and have a proficiency in Authority. I do horribly in Riding, Flying, Heavy Armor, and Aquatics though. That matters a little less though because I innately have the ability that mounted units have, Canto. I picked it up because I could see the value in it." Penina said decisively. "So do you agree?"
Maira did agree. Penina's personal ability was quite impressive, Canto was truly a very important ability. Trickster also seemed like a very good class to go into for Penina, it would mean that Penina would have to become a thief but if she had Penina go through Brigand then she could pick up Death Blow and become a very good physical unit with magic abilities. Thinking about it, Olaga would also have to go through Brigand to pick up Death Blow. Maira relayed this to Penina.
"I never even thought about using my Axe ranks to get that ability. You are so right, maybe I could even go into Mage if I have the time to get the Fiendish Blow ability." Penina laughed. "Thank you for already teaching me something."
Maira decided that she was going to have Penina focus on Sword and Faith. In the meantime Maira would be training her in Axe. After Penina left it was time to move onto the rest of the boys, starting with Fetu. Going into it Maira didn't know what to expect from Fetu, she had ideas about everyone else but didn't know what Fetu would want to go into.
"What a wonderful morning Professor, I suppose you want to know what my strengths and weaknesses are. Well, I am excellent in Faith, Bow, Riding, and Aquatics." Fetu said with a smile. "Though my luck with Heavy Armor, Reason, and Axe is significantly worse."
Maira could work with that, she had been lacking a healer in the house and she certainly didn't want to take over that role herself. She decided to move him in the direction of Holy Oceanmaster. She had Fetu work on Faith and Bows while she would privately teach him Aquatics and have him double down on that by having him and Finn team up to take care of Pond Cleaning so they both get extra experience in Aquatics. After taking care of Fetu, Maira had Keola come in. She asked Keola all of the same questions that she had asked the rest of the house.
"I do well with Axe, Lance, and Flying. They just come the easiest to me, besides that I have a weird affinity to Sword, I just haven't had the time to excel in it. I am not so awesome with Reason, Gauntlets, or Staffs. Magic and fisticuffs aren't my thing I guess. Though I make up for it in determination, whenever I am feeling real hurt, I have a surge of strength and am stronger, faster, and bulkier than before." Keola explained.
This was an easy one to decide. While that Sword rank was interesting, the Axe and Lance mixed with Flying meant that Keola was destined to go the Wyvern Master route. So Maira set Keola to focus on Axe and Flying while she would give him personal lessons on Lance. Then it came time for Malosi to come in.
"I am the complete opposite of Keola, not only in ideologies but in strengths. I actually prefer magic, my strength is in Reason and, with a little help, in Faith. I also do well with Staffs and Gauntlets. My ability is when I am feeling healthy I usually have more magical power, speed, and resistance. I also do not do well in Flying, Lance, and Axe. Everything that Keola is, I am the opposite. Of course I am still better than him." Malosi smiled.
Maira didn't know if Malosi was better, but he certainly was interesting. Maira was going to teach Faith to Malosi personally in order to get the most out of it. She was also going to have Malosi focus on Staffs and Reason. All of this was to get Malosi to eventually end up in Gremory. This house needed a purely magic unit and Malosi was a good option here. Finally, Maira called in Kai.
"Hello Professor." Kai said nervously. "As far as strengths go I do decently with Bow and Riding, I love horses. My brother taught me how to use Heavy Armor and Axe so I do well with those too. I don't do well with Authority or Staffs, they just always seem to not work for me. Also, I am usually better at attacking and hitting things that are further away, mostly because it is easier for my nerves to deal with. So what do you think?"
This actually helped Maira a lot. It made it so that she knew to focus on Dark Knight or Valkyrie for Atamai. Kai was going to make a great Bow Knight eventually. Maira was going to teach Kai Lance through personal lessons and have Kai work on his Bow and Riding skills on his own. That wrapped up all of the students in the Emerald Sharks, she ended class early that day and then went back into her room to work on all of her individual lessons. Her father had also sent her a note that said each house was going to be fighting another in a sort of mock battle against some guards in the monastery. Maira wanted to be prepared for this and spent time getting everyone weapons and teaching them well. Though no one ranked up, they all seemed better prepared then they had been by the end of a week.
"Where are we going, Polopeka?" Finn asked while the class was walking towards an abandoned training ground.
"Well, since it is near the end of the month I would assume that we have a sort of mock battle now." Penina said.
Just then the guards from the monastery stepped out and surrounded the class.
"So we are really doing this now." Keola sighed.
"A heads up would have been nice." Malosi added.
"Professor, do you really think we are ready?" Kai asked.
Maira nodded, she trusted her house. She knew that under her guidance they could pull out a win. There were some problems though, they were outnumbered, about 20-9, and they were completely surrounded. But the students and Maira both had some combat arts that they could use.
"Alright guys, this is our first fight as the Emerald Sharks, everyone listen to our Polopeka and keep close. No stragglers, these guys won't kill you, but we can't be the only house that loses this." Finn commanded the other students well.
"He is quite charismatic." Sothis said. "It is hard to tell whether you are leading them or he is. My might is yours, make sure to break through the circle surrounding you. I think there might be a ballista nearby for one of your students to use."
Maira agreed with Sothis' strategy, it just had to be implemented. The ballista was to the west of the group, it was also the most heavily guarded side. Maira had Finn, Olaga, Penina, and Fiafia go north and break through where it was less fortified. In the meantime Maira led Malosi, Fetu, and Atamai forward to attack the west side. While they were busy it was up to Kai and Keola to defend the main group's rear. Now it was time to implement this. As Finn and his team left, Maira rushed to the north side with her team. Right now it was important to distract the north side and pull them towards them. But everything was up to Finn.
"Alright guys, we have to break through here." Finn tried to rally his friends.
"There should be three guys up here. I can't believe the professor came up with a plan that fast. It really is genius." Penina was amazed.
"I see them. Finn, you got the guy on the left right?" Olaga asked.
"You bet! Fiafia, be ready to support."
"I'll take care of you all." she smiled.
Olaga rushed the man in the center. He was slower than Olaga and that gave her an opening. Using her training gauntlets she got one punch in the face and another in the stomach. The man groaned and then jabbed at her with a training lance. The lance hit her in the chest but she followed up with two more punches. The first punch was directly in the shoulder and the second was another clean punch to the head. That knocked him out and Olaga was ready to keep moving. Penina used the combat art Wrath Strike in order to hurt the guy she was facing more than usual. She readied her blade and turned, swinging with all of her might. It connected and her opponent stumbled back, he was clearly injured. He was able to get in a hit with his training lance though. Finn also used a combat art with his training staff, he used Riptide. He focused energy into his staff and sent it soaring at the guard he was facing. The blast of energy knocked the guard back at least ten feet and knocked him out. Fiafia came in and used Nosferatu to finish off the opponent Penina was facing. She summoned a flash of light that stole some of the guard's health. After that the guards to the north were all incapacitated and the four of them started to move to the north.
Maira needed Finn's group now. Both her and Atamai had sustained some injuries. They had been able to take down two guards but they weren't feeling too good about taking on five more. Fetu was trying to keep everyone healed up but it was overwhelming. As Maira swung at a guard with her sword and missed, she thought that the guard would take her out there with his lance. But just then the guard was hit with Wai and fell to the floor.
"Sorry we took so long." Finn called.
"Where were you ten minutes ago?" Atamai called while blasting a guard with Miasma Δ, knocking him out.
"Running over here to save your skin." Penina retorted while making short work of one of the other guards.
While Fiafia healed up Maira, Olaga was attacking one of the guards, she got him pretty good with a training axe. Before the guard could retaliate he was hit by a blast of Wind cast by Malosi which took him down. The last guard there went after Malosi and hit him pretty hard with his training lance while Malosi countered with Wind. While Fetu healed up Malosi Fiafia took down the last guard with a hit of her sword.
"We should be able to get to the ballista now. Atamai, can you man it while the rest of us go to help Kai and Keola?" Finn asked.
"Go take care of them. I can do it." Atamai started to work his way to the ballista.
Kai and Malosi were just drawing the guards to the other group. But it was pretty intimidating, Kai would use Curved Shot to hit enemies from a range where they couldn't attack and Malosi was there to make sure nobody touched Kai. But the guards were closing in. One of them got very close to Kai but Keola used Smash with his training axe and managed to take him out. But Keola had overextended. He was in range of a lot of people. Just when Keola realized that, a shot from the ballista took out another soldier nearby.
"Don't worry guys, we got your back." Fiafia called.
The cavalry had come. All of the Emerald Sharks were working together now. As the guards moved in, the students and Maira readied themselves. Maira moved first and took out a guard with two quick hits of her sword. Another shot from the ballista didn't quite take out a different guard but Kai got him with a shot from his bow. Olaga overpowered another guard with her strength, and Keola took out a guard right next to her with Smash. Finn used Wai to incapacitate a fifth guard and Fiafia, Penina, and Fetu focused on healing up any wounds that the party had. The last three guards weren't about to give up though. One of them charged Finn and got him pretty good but they were hit even harder by Wai, which knocked her out. The other two both targeted Fiafia, they both hit pretty hard and Fiafia wasn't looking so great. But Fetu and Penina healed her right up. Another shot from Atamai's ballista left one of the soldiers in a dangerous position and Maira swooped in to take him out. Malosi used Wind to attack the last guard and that guard got pretty low. Then Finn stepped in and hit him once with his training staff to take him out. It was official, the Emerald Sharks had won their first battle.