Chapter 5: Combative Remembrance
The Nurses Office 4:02:17 PM
"The principal's son?!" Celena's eyes widened with mock surprise, then her eyebrows lowered with curiosity. "Who is that?" Lephantis glanced up at her and could see the question mark over her head. "Oh, that's right, I keep forgetting you're new Celena." He shook his head in minor amusement, then brought his right leg up onto the bed as he turned to face her. "I'm talking about Oskar Wright. The strongest kid in the school, remember?" Resting his hands on his folded leg, he spots the spark of recognition on Celena's face.
"Ring any bells?" The question mark over her head immediately changed to an exclamation point. "It does now! So Oskar is Principal Wright's son? Who would've thought? What possessed you to target him of all people anyway? Actually, scratch that…" She crawled towards him until they were face-to-face, causing Lephantis to lean back against the headboard. "I'm more interested in how you destroyed him~." Placing a hand on her shoulder, he gently pushes her onto her side. "I'm getting to that, so hold your horses. I need you to make a promise to me first. Outside of Kioko, you will tell no one else or even bring it up around other students."
Propping her head up with her left hand as she got comfortable, Celena glanced up at him with her signature grin. "Will you destroy me if I break it?" She brought a finger up to the seam of her shirt to expose some cleavage while wiggling her eyebrows in invitation. Lephantis, blushing from the view, raised a hand, ready to chop her on the forehead. "Oooh, Scary~, are you going to straighten me out?" Curling his hand into a shaky fist, he reluctantly lowers it back to his side and gives Celena a pointed look while she laughs at him.
"I'm serious, Celena! If the wrong people hear you even mention a word of this, you'll have a target placed on your back, and I don't want that for you or Kioko. Please, just promise me, okay?" Lephantis' expression turned somber as his mind was assaulted by past experiences during his first year. Sensing his distress rising, Celena reached up and cupped his cheek with her free hand. "Okay~. I promise I won't let anyone hear me or Kioko talk about it. Happy?" Placing a hand on the back of hers, he nods. "Thank you." His expression changed to a beam as he crossed his legs and fixed his posture. "Now then, where should I start?"
Iguru Chugakko, 2 years ago, Tuesday 7:30 AM
The day after the opening ceremony, Lephantis was happily strolling towards his new place of learning. The sky was interestingly pink, given how early it was, and the moon and sun seemed to be sharing the sky. Wanting to leave his woes back in primary, he seeks to get a fresh start at this school. "A bigger school means more space and more people. Hopefully, I could have an actual chance of making some more friends." Cars drove past, causing the wind to tussle his lengthening locks and new clothes that were picked out by his mother. It wasn't long before the school's walls came into view.
Retrieving his phone from his pocket, he confirms that he indeed found the right place. "Iguru Chugakko. This is the place where I'll be spending the next three years of my life. Here's to a new beginning!" Increasing his pace, Lephantis jogs toward the gate, the excitement plain on his face. He swings around the corner, and the excitement quickly morphs into horror. "Oh no." Standing in front of the fountain, talking with some other students, was none other than Oskar Wright. Before he could draw any attention, he quickly hid behind the wall, taking some deep breaths. "Why did I think I wasn't going to see him? It was an eventuality, but first thing in the morning? C'mon!" After taking his last calming breath, Lephantis tries to psych himself up. "Look, you just got off of winter break. Oskar may not even remember me or has a new favorite punching bag. For all I know, he could've had an eye-opening experience during Christmas and changed his ways! Just walk on out there and act like everything is square. You. Can. Do. This!"
Walking back through the gates, the number of students fraternizing in the spacious yard seemed to have doubled. "Wow! I knew there was going to be a lot of people, but I didn't think it would be this many! Our old school only had about 200 kids, and mom said there might be about five times that at this school. So this is the phenomenon of a public city school!" Marveling at the influx of students, Lephantis could hear flapping coming from behind him. He glanced to his right, catching a glimpse of a girl gliding past him. She had bright yellow and pink wings where her arms were supposed to be, as well as three very sharp talons on each foot. "A harpy?! That's a harpy, right?! She almost has the same color scheme as the ones from FinalTrail!" After landing, as if she could feel his stare, said harpy looked directly at him and gave him a wink before walking off with her friends.
He shyly waved at her back, wondering if that was intended for him. Hearing some exclamations from his left, Lephantis directed his attention towards a group of boys. From what he could tell, they were cheering on one of their friends as he danced while utilizing his forte to maintain balance on what seemed to be marbles. The very sight activated the neurons in his brain and insisted that he walk over there and cheer with them, but he resisted the urge in the end. "I'll have plenty of time to get to know other students later. Right now, I need to get inside before I'm spotted." No sooner as the thought passed through his mind, something grabbed him by the shoulder, paired with a voice that made Lephantis' stomach drop.
"You were just going to pass by without saying hello? I'm hurt that you could ignore your buddy like that, Lephantis." The tutting of a tongue could be heard at a distance, and when he turned his head, he saw a very familiar cerulean hand gripping him. "Didn't even make it past the fountain, huh? Curse my need to take in new surroundings." Feeling the hand on his shoulder drag him back, Lephantis ends up face-to-face with his primary school bully. Oskar is currently wearing an Azure blue shirt, navy and white athletic pants, and white tennis shoes. He has brown eyes, a curly crew cut, and golden blonde hair. Currently, his "arms" were hanging menacingly above Lephantis as he smiled maliciously at him. Oskar Wright's forte, Double Body, allows him to create phantasmal versions of his arms and legs. They have quite a bit of reach and can even interact with physical objects. He awakened his Forte at the ripe age of two years old and had been trained to use it properly by the time he was old enough to attend primary school.
"You look like you were busy catching up with your friends, so I didn't want to interrupt you. Now if you'll excuse me…" Lephantis bowed quickly, then tried to walk away from him, only to be lifted off the ground and tossed a couple of feet in front of Oskar. Some of the students near the inner courtyard had their attention drawn by the action. "Woah, slow down there! You know I can't understand you when you talk that fast, right?" Lephantis was in a heap on the ground, his clothes scuffed and dirty.
"This loser actually followed us here?" "You should've stayed in Ishimori." "Yo Oskar want me to handle him?" Recognizing the various voices above him, Lephantis knew that he had to get out of the public eye as soon as possible. Sitting up and shaking the dirt out of his hair, he runs a hand through it to straighten it out. "I see that some of our friends from Nousagi Shogakko came here too." He tried his best to keep his voice even but was finding the endeavor quite difficult with all the eyes piercing through him.
"Well, of course they're here!" The teens surrounding Lephantis gave him space so Oskar could sneer at him. "This school basically guarantees their admission to Ryu High, and unlike you, they have a Forte that could benefit society! Which begs the question, why are you here?" Lephantis stood up, ignoring the whispers buzzing nearby, and dusted himself off. "They don't have a rule specifically restricting Forteless from attending. Plus, you don't need a Forte to be beneficial to society." Oskar and his friends all looked at each other, then back to Lephantis. After a beat passed, they all laughed at him while Oskar spoke up. "You're kidding, right?" Lephantis shook his head in embarrassment before excusing himself. "You don't owe him an answer. He just wants to get a rise out of you." Pushing past the group of boys, Lephantis picks up his pace, wanting to escape the pitiful stares of the onlookers.
"Who said you could leave? Have you forgotten your place during the break?" BOOM. Finding his path blocked by a much larger cerulean hand with very sharp claws, Lephantis' eyes widened. "Don't back down... If he knows you're scared, he won't stop." The red head turns around, furrowing his brow as he straightens his back. "You don't scare me, Oskar! Now move out of my wa-" The hand enclosed around his body, squeezing him tightly as Oskar whistled. "Tough talk coming from a worthless nobody. Tell you what, since you think you're brave enough to give me orders... How about you make me move!" Pivoting 180 degrees, Oskar swings the arm towards the fountain and slams his quarry into the water. Retracting the arm back to himself, the students that caught on to the ruckus began to crowd around in excitement. "Is there a fight going on?" "Getting a head start already?" "Somebody get the teacher!"
Oskar walked up to the fountain, placed a foot on the rim, and leaned on it. "You know, if you get on your knees and apologize, I'll consider letting you off the hook." Within the ripples of the fountain, a small gleam made itself known to Oskar's eye. "What the hell is this…?" Using his manifested hand to retrieve it, he brought it up to his face to inspect it and then howled with laughter. "No way!" Lephantis resurfaced, feeling his hair stick to his neck and hearing sinister laughter coming from behind him. Frantically, he reaches a hand to his nape, trying to feel for his keepsake.
"Looking for something?" Turning around to face his bully, he spots the hair tie in the palm of his hand. "Give it back!" Lunging out of the fountain's perimeter in desperation, Lephantis reaches out to snatch the curio from his grasp. Expecting this reaction, Oskar quickly closes his hand and pulls it out of Lephantis' reach while extending his manifested arm to punch, then slap the redhead onto the ground. Pressing the conjured hand onto the back of Lephantis' head, Oskar takes a couple steps back while jingling the item. "Did mommy give this to you? What kinda man are you if you want to wear crap like this?" Lephantis starts exerting what strength he can muster, trying his hardest to slip from under the hand. "I can wear what I like! It has no meaning to you, so give it back!"
SLAM. Spiderweb cracks appeared when Lephantis' face was reintroduced to the floor. "Can't you see your position? I'm the one calling the shots here. You know what you must do if you want it back." He emphasized his point by massaging the floor with his face. "It's no use... He's just too strong! GOD DAMN IT!" With his back to the wall, Lephantis had no other options. "I'm Sorry…" Oskar smiled at his compliance, then kneeled down. "Speak up! Everyone can't hear how sorry you really are! Better make it quick before I lose my patience." Gritting his teeth at the humiliation, tears started to well up in his eyes. "I'M SORRY FOR BEING A WORTHLESS EXCUSE OF A NOBODY!" Standing back up as the sounds of weeping reached his ears, Oskar regarded the crowd with open arms. "My name is Oskar Wright, and one day I shall be the monarch of this school! Let this be my warning to all of you that if you want to get in the way of my goal, then you'll end up the same as this worm beneath my feet."
Silence only filled the courtyard as the students glanced from the bully to the downed redhead. A lot of the kids present hoped that someone from the crowd would step in and help him, but not a single soul moved. Some found it not their problem and enjoyed the show, while others were too scared to intervene due to the entourage orbiting Oskar. No one wanted to be made an example of, especially for trying to help someone who's powerless. In this school, it was eat or be eaten, so carrying on with your best interests in mind was your best option. The crowd dispersed and went on about their business as if nothing happened, whether that was going to class or being anywhere but here.
With his message delivered, Oskar regarded Lephantis again, dropping the keepsake just out of his reach and lifting the hand off his head. With the pressure lifted, Lephantis feebly reached for the item, feeling relief that his public humiliation was finally over. CRASH. His eyes widened as a giant cerulean fist came crashing down on the hair band, utterly destroying the adornments and the chain holding them together. As the fist raised, Oskar kicked dirt onto the broken accessory. "Next time, don't try to order me around without the power to back it up." Dismissing his extra extremities, Oskar gestures to his friends to follow him. "Let's go; we're done here."
Lephantis hurriedly collected the pieces and tried to put them back together as best he could, but it just fell apart no matter how much he tried. When he looked up to see Oskar's retreating form, then back down at the pieces, his vision began to transition into various shades of red. Lephantis' anger was way past its breaking point as his body and hands began to shake beyond his control. Something seemed to snap within him, as his mind was a jumbled mess of images of what he wanted to do to Oskar. Standing up and pocketing the remnants, Lephantis full on sprints towards him as he shouts at the top of his lungs. "OSKAARRR!"
Hearing his name get called, Oskar stopped but motioned for his boys to keep going. "I'll be right with y'all, it seems he still doesn't understand his place yet." Breaking away from his group, he is faced with a rapidly oncoming redhead. "Didn't you learn your lesson already? You can't win against me, no matter how hard you try. Did you hit your head over the break or something?" Not perturbed by his questions or jeers, Lephantis rears back his right fist and throws it with all his might. Oskar only smirked at his futile effort and summoned one arm, his right, then raised it between himself and Lephantis. The fist strikes the conjured appendage, and pain shoots up lephantis' arm. "Not sure if you knew, but my double body is pretty tough. You'll need more than flimsy striking power to break through." Oskar swings a back fist, knocking Lephantis back 10 feet and on his back. Sitting up and shaking the stars out of his vision, the redhead charges back at his bully, swinging wildly against his guard. Oskar shook his head in mirth, listening to the thumps discordantly ring out.
"Look, I don't have all day to deal with you, so let's just wrap this up." Dismissing the arm, Oskar ducks one of Lephantis' punches, elbows him in the stomach, then knees him in the face, making him stumble backwards. Then he leaps into the air with a spin while summoning a giant leg and kicks Lephantis in the cheek, sending him spiraling across the courtyard into the wall adjacent to the school. "I know that's not enough to keep you down. That's the odd thing about you… For someone who's powerless, you sure do have a lot of resilience." Dismissing the leg and summoning a giant fist with spikes for knuckles, Oskar approaches slowly towards the stunned redhead. "I should be thanking you, actually. If it wasn't for trying to figure out ways to hurt you, I wouldn't have gotten as strong as I have in the past. So thank you and say hello to the doctor for me."
The anger within Lephantis was starting to taper out due to exhaustion and how insurmountable Oskar was. "Was he right…? Should I just... give up?" He watches as Oskar winds back the fist, then launches it with as much force as he can put behind it. Incensed at his weakness, Lephantis grits his teeth and closes his eyes, waiting for his execution to be over. "I'm sorry, Soph... I couldn't make that bastard pay." Within his mind's eye, he was shown a memory that he held fondly back before he moved to Ishimori. The memory entailed a little girl with dark hair and very bright eyes talking to him with a sullen expression just outside her home. He remembers that this was the day he told her that he would have to move away due to his father's job.
It brought both of them anguish because they had really hit it off after their initial encounter together, and for it to be cut short suddenly stung. However, that's when the little girl's facial expression changed as she grabbed his hand and shoved something into it before closing it. "Hold onto this for me. Maybe sometime in the future, we might see each other again. By that time, I'll be a whole different person, someone who can keep their head up high and be by your side when you need it most. Until then, promise me that you'll keep this on you so that I can find you again." She smiled at him as she raised her head. Lephantis, touched by the gesture, put the closed hand over his heart. "I promise to wear this whenever I can until you find me again." The two hugged each other for a good while but eventually broke away when the car horn started honking. Lephantis casted a glance towards the street, seeing his father gesturing for him to hurry up. "Welp, that's my dad. Goodbye Soph!" He ran back to the car, waving to her, and she reciprocated the gesture. "Goodbye Leph!"
As the memory faded back to the dark, Lephantis felt a foreign sensation spread throughout his body. The feeling was warm and welcoming. His eyes snap open to the fist mere feet away from him. "I don't want to get crushed; I need to get out of the way!" Through his frantic thoughts, a command was dispatched to every fiber of his being, causing his body to glow brightly right as the spiked fist crashed through the wall. After the dust settles and the arm is dismissed, Oskar dusts off his hands. "Now with that out of the way, I can go make my mar-" Feeling a gust of wind pass over him, Oskar turns back to the school but bumps into a confused Lephantis."Wait, did I just..."
Double-taking the rubble behind him, Oskar shakes off the initial surprise and raises a savage uppercut. "Die!" His fist, however, seemed to pass through the redhead as if he had become intangible, but the mirrored image soon disappeared. "Phantom Step?![1] Then that means..." Displaced six inches to the right of Oskar's strike, Lephantis stared at his opponent with wide eyes! "Whiff Punish!" Pivoting on his left foot to show his back, Lephantis unleashes a devastating kick to the stomach, pushing Oskar back nine feet. Lephantis lowers his foot and inspects himself. "This aura… Does this mean I finally awakened?"
Dropping to his knees and clutching his abdomen, Oskar props himself up with his left hand and glares at the redhead. "Where did this power come from?! You're supposed to be a bug beneath my feet!" Summoning two arms double the size of what he's used before, he spreads them out as wide as he can. "I'll flatten you to paste!" Standing up and mimicking the motion, the conjured arms hastily approach to squash their target. Hearing the whooshing of air, Lephantis is jarred out of his thoughts and spots the two oncoming Cerulean hands. "Time to find out!" Closing his eyes, lifting his left leg to his torso, and bringing in his right arm to his chest, the aura around his body starts to coalesce around his foot and fist.
"IT'S OVER! YOU WON'T SURVIVE THIS WITH CHEAP TRICKS!" Oskar roared at the top of his lungs. Just before the two hands could connect, Lephantis opened his eyes, jutting out his fist and leg in opposite directions. "Rage of the Dragon![2]" A massive CLWOOM rang out in the area as a cloud of dust kicked up. Oskar was huffing before he fell back onto his knees. "I still need to work on that. Controlling limbs of that size takes too much out of me." He retracts them out of the smoke, but when they return, his eyes widen. "Wh-What?!" Both of the hands had gigantic fractures in their palms and cracks spreading just below the wrists. Grunting in effort, Oskar's stamina was at its limit as the summoned arms disappeared from sight. "I-Impossible! They were tougher than rock! There's no way he was able to break through!" Directing his gaze back to where his target was, the dust finally settled, revealing a vibrant crimson glow in its place.
Lephantis was looking up, the moon has long since disappeared over the horizon, and the sun has reclaimed its sole place in the sky. "These abilities… They're just like Jein from FinalTrail. My memories of this character are being used to replicate these moves! Does this mean that my Forte has something to do with the games I play? Or does my Forte augment my body to be similar to a game? This is too much to process right now." Instinctively closing his eyes, Lephantis is greeted with an inventory screen alongside another screen depicting his stats. "Inventory? And is that a stat screen? OMG It's like an RPG! Why is my defense so high and my attack so low? Nevermind that I'm getting off track." Opening his eyes and pinning a glare at Oskar, he cracks his knuckles as he slowly approaches him. "You'll pay for destroying what I care about."
Oskar forces himself to his feet as Lephantis advances upon him. "You think I'm scared of you? You think I'm going to lose to you of all people? Burnout or not, it's going to be me walking away from this, not you!" Charging for one last attack, Oskar managed to manifest a slightly larger version of his actual arm, but smaller than what he can normally handle. Lephantis wasn't phased by his declaration, if anything, it would make what comes next easier. Extending both of his arms out in front of him, he takes a deep breath and then exhales slowly. With his focus raised, Lephantis then places his left foot forward. Oskar drew closer and closer as his shouts grew in volume. In one fluid motion, Lephantis guides both of his arms in an arc to create a perfect circle, and when they return to their starting position, he curls his fingers on both hands as Oskar was ready to deck him.
CLUNG. Oskar fell back on his ass while the arm he created disappeared. Getting back up and readying for another strike, he noticed that his hand was throbbing. "Let me out and fight me, you pussy!" He kept pounding the obstruction, and Lephantis could only shake his head as he balled both his hands into fists. The spherical barrier started to shine as explosions started ringing out inside of it. Screaming could be heard as all the violence that was inflicted prior to Lephantis was now reflecting back upon Oskar. "This is for Soph! Fist of Eternal Punishment!" The redhead punches the chi sphere with both fists, sending it on a crash course to the fountain. As soon as contact was made, the sphere popped and then exploded in a brilliant crimson flare.
The Nurses Office 4:30:43 PM
"And that's how I des-, I mean, beat Oskar!" He raised a pointer finger in triumph but then started to rub the back of his neck and smiled sheepishly. "Though when you retell this to Kioko, could you please keep my patheticness to a minimum? It's really embarrassing!" Not hearing a response, Lephantis peeks an eye at his classmate. Celena's mouth hung open in astonishment; she was at a loss for words. Chuckling at her reaction, Lephantis reaches out and closes her mouth for her. "I don't think it's that impressive, is it?" Celena just blinked at him, then got up into a seated position, crossing her legs and grinning. "Uh Yeah! Dude, you totally stood up to him even while being powerless! Not a lot of people have the stones to fight for themselves, ya know?" She smiled at him, and Lephantis could only bashfully nod. "Yeah… I guess you're right! Plus, it did feel good to dish to Oskar what he's done to me the past few years." They both laughed, then Celena crawled over and sat next to him.
Celena was overjoyed, not just with him beating his former tormentor but also with the fact that he remembered the promise the two of them made when they were was taking all her strength to not squeeze him with as much affection as possible. "Not only were you fighting for yourself, but you were also fighting for me. That's so sweet!" To her, he basically confessed that she was the reason he was able to defeat Oskar. "So what happened after that?" Lephantis reached both his hands up to the back of his head to remove the hair band. "Well, after I blew up Oskar, I realized that I got into a fight on my first day, and I didn't want to go to class with messed up clothes. So I went home, and let me tell you, my mom was furious." His hair fell onto his upper back and produced the trinket for Celena. Reluctantly, she looked to him for permission, he nodded, and then she carefully retrieved it from his hand.
"It took me a while to calm her down, but when I told her how the fight went and how I awakened my forte... She was so proud of me, even to the point where she started crying." Celena's eyes shook when she got a closer inspection of the trinket. It looked just as she remembered it, but it also held some new additions. For every pink star within the link, held an L, and for every blue star, held an S. Previously, the stars themselves had been outlined with nickel, but the material was replaced with sterling silver. The chain that binds them has been replaced with a belcher, and the clasps have been reinforced. "Wow…" Celena could feel her eyes trying to water, but she snapped them closed and averted her gaze. "After she had cleaned her tears, I showed her what happened to my accessory, and she..." He glanced back up at her, observing the very miniscule trembling. "Celena? Are you alright?" Raising her free hand to rub her eyes and wipe the tears away, she scrambles to come up with an excuse. "Yup, Peachy! I was about to sneeze, and I didn't want your keepsake to be in the blast zone. Though it doesn't want to come out now!"
Lephantis tilted his head at her but nodded nonetheless. "Yeah, I hate it when that happens. It gets all weird in your respiratory highway or whatever they're called, and the feeling of wanting to sneeze seems to never go away." He giggled at the notion. "Oh! Back on topic, My mom knew someone who was really good at making accessories, so she took me to this really expensive looking place on the outskirts of Luna City." He grabbed onto her shoulder as he leaned over to point out the changes. Celena nearly succumbed to her desire to embrace him, but she tried her best to focus on the object before her. "The one who fixed it better than new was a jeweler by the name of Mr. Fujimoto, he's the owner of the establishment. He asked me if I wanted to add anything to it, and the best I could think of back then was the first initial of my name." He points to the pink star. "And the first initial of my friend's name, Soph." He then points to the blue star. "That way, whenever I wear it on my wrist or put it in my hair, it'll always remind me that she is searching for me." He smiled down at the curio, then released Celena and sat back against the headboard.
Celena's heart melted at his sentiment, and she jingled the keepsake in her hand. "Hey Leph… What would you do if she found you today?" She could feel her face warm up as her bangs covered her eyes. She felt him hum in thought, but it wasn't long before an answer came flying at her. "Well, that's easy! I would give her a big hug and ask her how she's been!" As if an arrow had struck her heart, Celena almost fainted after feeling the excitement in his voice. Lightly slapping her cheeks while he wasn't paying attention, she cleared her throat. ahem. "I-I see! I'm sure that she'll be very happy to see you and even more thrilled to know that you've kept your promise." She peeked at him, and he was playing with his hair, his face a slightly darker shade than normal. She smiled. "So how did the rest of that story go? That's only the first half, right?" Catching his attention, Lephantis clapped his hands in realization. "Oh, you're right! I hope you're ready cuz Principal Wright is, by no stretch of the imagination, a kind person." He crossed his arms and sighed; his beam dimmed a little. "He's kind of the reason why the school is the way it is now." Sensing his dejection, Celena was already in motion with a solution. "Mind if I do your hair while you tell me? I want to see what I've been missing." He perked up and smiled. "Sure!"
Iguru Chugakko, 2 years ago, Wednesday 8:15:17 AM
Coming to school a little bit late, Lephantis' anxiousness was at an all-time high. "Nggh. Maybe I should've stayed home today?" He had trouble sleeping last night due to all the scary thoughts of what Oskar would do to him should he run into him again. "Well, it doesn't seem like anybody is outside…" Currently, he was peeking around the gate and didn't see any other stragglers. "Homeroom did start, like, 15 minutes ago... I need to hurry up, I'm already late." Steeling his resolve, Lephantis throws himself from his cover and advances through the courtyard. "Yeesh, I'm definitely getting in trouble for that." The first thing that caught his eye was the fountain, or lack thereof. In the center of the courtyard was instead a giant crater with block stones erected around it. "Though I didn't think it'd cause that much damage, I'll need to exercise restraint whenever I use big moves like that. I don't want to hurt any innocent people." He brings up a hand and closes it to a fist. "I won't let this power get to my head. I'll only use it to defend myself and others that are in need." Nodding to himself with a smile, Lephantis speeds up his pace to make it to class.
It didn't take long for him to find his classroom since he had located it after the opening ceremony. He stops before the door, catching his breath. "Okay, so technically, this'll be my first day of class. Just be yourself and try to stay calm. They're just as scared of you as you are of them." Sucking in one last breath, then exhaling, he opens the door and steps inside. Immediately, about 24 sets of eyes, including the teacher's, land on him. "Oh! You must be Lephantis! We missed you yesterday! I'm your homeroom teacher, Machida Hiroko!" Damn near leaping out of her desk, Machida-sensei approaches the frozen teen and guides him further inside. "Come in Come in! No need to be shy! You didn't miss much yesterday; it was all introductions. Speaking of which, want to tell the class who you are?" Not expecting such excitement from a teacher, Lephantis could only nod shyly at her question as he turned to face the class.
"M-My name is Lephantis Carlein. I'm from Ishimori, and I like video games, reading fiction, and cloudy days. I look forward to y'all as classmates!" He hastily bowed, wondering if his introduction was good enough, but the sound of applause dismissed the worry. "Very good! If you have any questions for him, please save them until class is dismissed." Hearing the echoing confirmations of her students, Machida pointed Lephantis to his seat. "You'll have the seat by the window, and be sure to get to know your neighbors." Patting his back, Machida returned to her position by the board, and Lephantis quickly found his seat. "Time for a quick refresher!" His teacher began to write sentences in English on the board.
Class 1-B, 12:00:05 PM
The school bell chimed, signaling the end of morning classes. "Welp, that's all for now, everyone! Enjoy your lunch, and be sure to not get lost on your way back here!" Lephantis stretched in his seat, feeling the bones straighten out as they popped. "Well, that wasn't so bad. The lessons were fairly easy to follow, and Machida-sensei makes them fun to listen to." Lephantis lowers his arms and props his head up with his left hand, watching the students leave the classroom. "Not to mention Oskar isn't in my class, so that's a definite plus. I don't think my heart is quite ready to face him yet." Grawrbrar. Lephantis placed a hand on his stomach and stood up. "I should probably go eat. Can't focus on an empty stomach." Grabbing his bag and on his way out, the intercom chime goes off. "Could Lephantis Carlein please make his way down to the principal's office." The feminine voice repeated the instruction one more time before the intercom disconnected with a click. Lephantis knew he was going to have to face the principal sooner or later, but he was hoping for after school later instead of now. "Welp, I'm doomed. If I'm lucky, I'll be suspended and not killed upon my return home."
Stepping out of the classroom and weaving through the students in the hallway, Lephantis found himself down stairs at the front desk. The receptionist pointed him in the direction of the office, which was hard to miss with the big, menacing door at the end of the corridor. Summoning his courage, he walks up to the entrance and knocks. A stilted "come in" was heard through the door, signaling for him to enter. There were two men in the room, one sitting behind the desk and the other inspecting a clipboard. The one behind the desk was an alabaster, chubby fellow, wearing a brown vest and blue-striped collared shirt, dark dress pants, and similar-colored Dean oxford shoes. His hair, though fading in color, was brown, and his eyes were the same. The gentleman beside him was of pearl complexion and far skinnier. Showing off the forehead with slicked-back jet black hair, pointed yet small dark brown eyes, and a pointy mustache. He's wearing a cream button down shirt, a spotted tie, khaki pants, and brown loafers. The office itself wasn't anything grand, it held a desk that was paired with a tall, padded chair. The walls were white and lined with various picture frames.
Once the door shut behind him, Lephantis felt enervated as if he was being siphoned by a vacuum. Spotting the alarm on his face, the skinnier of the two looked up from his clipboard and pointed to the ceiling. "That sensation you're feeling is normal here. Right above you is a device that dampens your forte, so there won't be any major mishaps." The device itself was encased in glass and possessed a crystal in its center. Handing the clipboard to the principal, he takes a step back and closely watches Lephantis. The principal stood up, then walked in front of his desk, then sat on it while eyeing the student up and down. "In case you have forgotten, my name is Edward Wright, but you will address me as Principal Wright or Mr. Wright. Understood?" Lephantis nodded, suddenly feeling extremely small. "Yes sir." Principal Wright nodded in approval and then began to read off the clipboard. "Lephantis Carlein, Forteless, Graduated from Nousagi, Rank of Serf, grades are exceptional and 0 incidents reported. Does that sound right?"
Lephantis started to grip the hem of his shirt and nodded. "Yes sir." Then Principal Wright read further down. "Yesterday morning, there was a fight that broke out in the courtyard that later concluded with the destruction of the fountain and a student being sent to the hospital. Are you familiar with these circumstances?" He peered over the clipboard with an unreadable emotion crossing through his eyes. Lephantis recognized the glare, it seemed eerily familiar, like he had seen it thousands of times. He glanced over to the placard, reading the name again, "Edward Wright." Then his eyes widened as a realization hit him. "His father?!" Seeing that he caught on, Principal Wright sets the clipboard down and gestures to his colleague. "Reginald if you please." Taking a step forward, the vice principal's eyes start to glow a sinister orange as a faint aura starts to form on the door and encompass the walls in the room.
Reginald nodded to his superior, then Principal Wright got off the desk. "I'll cut to the chase, boy, I know what you did." The principal began to approach Lephantis, while the latter began to back away with each step. "There's been a video floating around since yesterday afternoon of you assaulting Oskar. Why?!" Lephantis' back hit the door. "B-but he started it! I just wanted to go to class, and he wouldn't let me!" Principal Wright got into his face. "I don't care about who started it! All I care about is Oskar's position, and you ruined it! You planned this, didn't you? Getting revenge for letting yourself get bullied in primary school!" The redhead vehemently shook his head. "I Didn't! I swear it just happened!" Lephantis felt himself lifted up by his shirt. "Silence! I don't want to hear your excuses!" Tossing him to the center of the room with a thump, Principal Wright walks past and grabs the clipboard from his desk.
"As punishment for your actions, not only are you forbidden from participating in after school activities, you'll also be prohibited from entering or taking part in any sporting event period. Furthermore, due to the damages you've caused, you'll also be restricted from using your forte on school grounds and won't receive any changes in rank until your third year. Any violations, and you'll be expelled." Scribbling down the punishment on his file, Lephantis scrambles to his feet. "What?! That's not fair!" Circling around his desk and sitting down, the principal laughed. "Should've thought about that before destroying my son's reputation. Reginald, get this pest out of my sight." Dismissing his already fraying aura, the vice principal guides Lephantis out of the office and shuts it with a slam. "I need to tell my parents what happened. This has to be against the rules!" Lephantis could feel his forte circulate properly through his body again as he walked further from the room. On his way out of the front office, Lephantis spots the receptionist typing away at her computer. "Did she not hear any of what was going on in his office?" Grawrbrar. Lephantis pats his stomach and figures that he'll worry about the implications later.
After filling his belly, Lephantis decided to spend the rest of the lunch period outside under the gazebo. "Principal Wright mentioned something about a video going around, but if I remember correctly, everyone vacated the courtyard after Oskar's declaration." He leans back against the railing, watching other students horse around in the grass with their fortes. "Whoever spread it around REALLY doesn't want him to become king, but who would go so far?" He sighed, letting his head lull back as he stared at the cloudy sky. "What I need to worry about is trying to get this punishment overturned. Otherwise, I won't be able to enjoy my second chance at a school life." While Lephantis was admiring the heavens, the ground suddenly trembled violently. "What the heck?!" Near the parking lot by the gym, there was a small crowd beginning to form as flashes of light and fire were erupting from its center. Various shouts and cheers could be heard even from a long distance. "A fight broke out? It's only the second day! Who would have beef this early in the school year?" Picking himself off the ground, his curiosity demanded that he go over and check out what's happening. "Well… A peek wouldn't hurt."
It didn't take long for Lephantis to join the crowd and squeeze his way to the front, but once he got there, he couldn't believe his eyes. Bounded on the ground was a red-scaled lizard struggling against the restraints. "Let me go right now, and I swear I won't burn you to a crisp!" The bindings tighten against him as a foot is placed on the back of his neck. "Not a chance! We're tired of being abused and used as target practice!" Standing on said student was another who was much smaller than him. He stood at about 5' 5, he wore a yellow and black collared shirt, slacks, dress shoes, and dark brown hair and eyes. He held in his hands what seemed to be a lasso made of light! "I'll only let you go if you leave me and my friends alone! Now Yield!" The salamander tried to thrash his way out but found that no matter how much he struggled, the rope seemed to only strengthen. Running low on steam, the salamander slowed to stop. "I yield! I won't bother you or your buddies again." However, his opponent wasn't convinced, and he applied more pressure to the back of his neck. "Swear on your rank!" The lizard grits his teeth and groans. "I swear on my rank of knight that I will leave you and your friends alone."
The crowd cheered as the light bender removed his foot and dismissed the bindings. "Alright. Sensei, did you hear that?" The crowd of students went pale as the teacher made their way to the front and looked down at the salamander. "You know what happens if you violate your oath, right?" The insinuation was left heavy in the air, but the knight nodded his head after he stood up. "Yes, sir." The teacher directed his gaze to the light weaver. "As for you, keep this up, and you'll be a knight in no time. However, if you find yourself in conflict again, please take it to the arena. That's why we have it, so you kids can settle your differences." He smiled, then returned to his duties inside the building. Clapping and celebratory cheers erupted from the surrounding teens as the lightweaver's friends came to congratulate him on his win. " "You did it, Clyde!"" They all exclaimed and gave each other high fives.
Lephantis checks the time on his phone as the crowd begins to thin out. "I should probably get going since the lunch period is ending. Though I'm glad things turned out well for him and his friends." Pocketing the device, Lephantis nearly jumped out of his skin when he looked back up to see Clyde directly in front of him. "Gyahh!" The brunette stifled a chuckle. "Sorry for scaring you! I just wanted to thank you." He bowed, then raised his head, and Lephantis was left confused. "Thank me? I don't think I've done anything for you, it's only the second day of school." He tilted his head, then Clyde quickly fished out his phone. "Well, maybe not directly, but..." Showing the screen to Lephantis, a video played of him fighting Oskar just after he awakened his Forte. "You were definitely an inspiration to those of us who felt powerless toward our antagonizers. Especially for what you went through on your first day."
Lephantis' eyes widened as he held the phone, reliving his moment of awakening. "W-Who gave you this video? Who took it?" Clyde only shrugged as Lephantis returned the device to him. "Not sure. It was randomly sent to my phone via bluetooth. Apparently there was a QR code posted near the lockers after lunch but has since been taken down by the principal after school yesterday." Lephantis was a little shaken, he wasn't sure if someone was trying to look out for him or plotting something devious behind the scenes. "Well, I guess I know what he meant by a video going around…" Clyde leaned in, not hearing what he said, but Lephantis dismissed the worry. "Thank you for enlightening me... M-My name is Lephantis, by the way. I'm from 1-B." Hesitantly, he extended a hand out, and Clyde immediately grabbed it. "Clyde. I'm from 1-A, and it's a pleasure to meet you!" They shook hands as the chime rang out. "Looks like we're late." Clyde ran up to the door, gesturing for Lephantis to follow. "Not if we run!"
The Carlein Residence 8:30:15 PM
The school day went by mostly without issue. Lephantis had made a new friend and even got to exchange numbers with him. The rest of the lessons came very easily to him, and he even amassed compliments about his hair tie from fellow classmates. However, one thing was for certain, he was receiving more attention than normal. Whether in class or going to use the bathroom, he could feel people steal glimpses of him. Even more so when braver students began to randomly apologize to him in passing for yesterday. Thankfully, it didn't feel like the whole school knew, but getting approached by people he didn't know was making him jumpy. Though no feeling could compare to what he is currently going through now… Disappointment.
Towards the end of the school day, another fight broke out, but this time it took place in the courtyard. From what he could gather, the premise of the fight was nearly the same as Clyde's. However, this time around, it didn't go too well. The kid was fighting a good fight, but it was very clear that he hadn't utilized his forte in combat before. Which gave his bully the upper hand and stomped him in the end. When Lephantis and other students passed by to get to the gate, the victim caught his eye and reached out to him for help. The bully rubbed his foot into his back and told him that no one was coming to rescue him. Lephantis could see the hope in his eyes and was about to intervene, but the words of the principal came gliding through his head.
"Any violations, and you'll be expelled." Which caused him to hesitate as he had to make a very tough decision. Either he gets expelled for helping someone in need or acts like he didn't see anything. His vow from this morning was clashing with the principal's words, but one other thought forced its way to the forefront of his mind. It was the notion of letting his parents down by getting expelled from school. It took a lot for him to get admitted, and he promised them that he'd do his best to succeed and stay out of trouble. That's when the decision became painfully clear. Lephantis closed his eyes and ran through the gates all the way down to the bus stop, his pleas for help echoing in his head. "I'm sorry…"
And so here we are now, inside the walls of the Carlein household. Currently, Lephantis is in his room, doing as instructed by his mother. He was writing down the details of what had happened in the principal's office so she could submit a formal complaint to the school. Apparently she has some type of connection with the school board, and it makes him wonder what his mom actually does for work. Anyway, he sets the pencil down, then leaps out of his chair to flop on his bed. He closes his eyes, trying to unwind from the day, but the memory of the fight after school is still fresh in his head. Snapping his eyes open and sighing, he sits up on the bed. "Ugh, I hate this! I should've just helped him! It's not like Principal Wright can be everywhere at once!"
Ever since he ran away from the boy in need, the situation kept eating away at him as time passed. "I could've at least taken his place or done something, anything! But no, I decided to run away like a coward." He stood up now, ranting to himself as his frustration grew. "But what can I do without my Forte? I'd just be a punching bag again, and I DON'T want to live through that again." As he walked in circles, fuming, the mirror by his window glistened from the moonlight. Lephantis walks up to it, staring directly into his reflection with tears welling up in his eyes. "At the end of the day, I'm just me." He said in a broken whisper. "What good can I do being me?" He laid his head on his folded arms as his knees hit the ground. "Did I really think I could be someone's savior?"
As he silently wept on the vanity, there was a picture frame held up by a small stand. It had gotten jostled when Lephantis had basically slammed himself onto the dresser. With all the movement of him trying to wipe his tears on his arms, the picture fell forward and softly tapped him on the head. He reflexively grabbed it and lifted his head to inspect what had fallen upon him. His eyes widened in realization. "This is from when we first moved here!" The picture frame held a signed picture of Lephantis posing with someone in bright clothing. The background it held was of the city, specifically Luna's spire, the tallest building in the area. "I remember this, I wanted to explore the city a little, and I almost got hit by a car if it wasn't for him." Posing next to him, holding a peace sign, was a 5'6 man with peach skin, dark brown curly hair, pink eyes with tiny star pupils, wearing a pink bomber jacket and a cyan undershirt, blue jeans, and flip flops. Lephantis started to giggle at his outfit. "It was the strangest debut for a hero I've ever seen. Not even bothering to hide his face or obscure his voice." Lephantis removed the picture from the frame and turned it to the back, where a message was surrounded by stars. "Even Diamonds are formed under pressure! signed The Pink Defender.
Lephantis returned the picture to its frame, looked at the mirror, and dried his tears. "But I think that was the point for him; he very much liked being himself and wanted the entire city to see that." He removes the hair band and sets it on the dresser, making eye contact with himself. "I want to be myself and rescue people just like he did. I don't want to turn my back on someone who's in need of my help. I want to be a hero that can make it in the nick of time and tell everybody that everything is okay!" He turned away from his mirror and towards his closet. "But if I'm to do so, I'm going to need a disguise. Just in case someone records me again." Shuffling through various outfits and shoes, he manages to find his worn-out black jacket and mask he wore from Halloween last year. "Now I just need some pants to wear, but nothing too restrictive." He searched high and low, but he couldn't really find exactly what he was looking for, causing him to groan.
"I wish I didn't lose my favorite set of windbreakers during the move. They would be perfect for this!" At the mention of said garment, Lephantis' lower half flashed with a quick gleam. Now the shorts he had been wearing previously were replaced with black and red windbreakers. "What?! I've been looking everywhere for these! Where were they?!" He gasped as he suddenly remembered the other place they could be. Running back to his bed and sitting down, he closes his eyes and tries to visualize what he saw yesterday. Nearly instantly, the screen popped up with the words "Inventory" at the top and a whole list of items that were kept in there. "Wait, so this is where ALL my missing stuff was?! I thought I had lost all this! My yo-yo is here, my missing socks, and even a flashlight! Have I been unconsciously storing items when I was younger?" Shaking his head, he opens his eyes. "This works out, actually! This means I won't have to carry the outfit around in my backpack!" Returning to his inventory screen, Lephantis puts away the ensemble he's created and swaps his windbreakers back for his shorts. "It seems I can merge these into an outfit if I'm reading the options correctly. I just need to link them as one set. God, this is so cool! I need to find out what else I can do with my Forte." He was jolted out of his musings when a knock sounded at his door. "Lephy! Dinners ready!" Lephantis got up and retrieved his keepsake. "Coming!" On his way out, he also grabbed the statement he wrote and shut the door. "Tomorrow's going to be a new me!"
Nurses Office 5:15:11 PM
Lephantis heard a snort from behind and unconsciously grinned. "What~? Did I say something funny?" Trying to stifle her chuckles, Celena ties the treasured item back into his hair. "Sorry sorry! I know this is supposed to be serious and all, but I think it's adorable how you wanted to become a hero for your fellow classmates. It's admirable considering the circumstances. Did you see any action the next day?" Lephantis glanced back at her, his countenance turning thoughtful. "Surprisingly, the rest of that week went by relatively well. Though things kind of got out of hand the following week." Celena moves the now-laced braid ponytail onto his left shoulder and hands him a mirror. "How so?" Thanking her for the mirror, he inspects the details of her work. "Remember the part where I was writing what happened that day with the principal?" He tilts the mirror away from himself to fit her in the reflection, and she nods. "Well, when my mother submitted the report and testimony to the board, the principal and vice principal were sent out on administrative leave for one week." In the reflection, Celena's eyes widened in realization, and Lephantis only nodded. "There was no one to enforce punishment if things went way too far. So when it was found out that we had neither principal…"
"The high and low ranks went into a frenzy." Celena finished, and Lephantis nodded. "Eerily similar to your situation in Urigawa, except it wasn't the law of the land. It was more so the low ranks wanting to be treated like equals to the high ranks. It started small on that Monday, but up until Friday, when the principals returned, it was pandemonium. The school was in shambles, and the repairs couldn't keep up with the destruction." Lephantis sets the mirror off to the side as he throws his legs off the edge of the bed. "Class still went on for those that attended, but the teachers who had free periods tried their best to keep the damage and conflict to a minimum. However, you could only send so many students to detention before that itself became a war zone." Celena stretched her legs out behind him, then moved to sit on the edge with him. "I'm assuming that's where you came in, right?" She gave him an expectant smile, and he only giggled but nodded his head. "Yeah, and it was perfect, even though it's kinda bad to say. With the principals gone and the students running amok, the chances of me being expelled were basically zero. Which gave me all the confidence in the world to act!" Celena chuckled, then leaned in with interest. "How many were you able to save?"
Lephantis hummed for a little while but shrugged. "It never occurred to me to count. I just wanted to help as many as I could, with or without the faculty's help." Celena smiled and leaned back on her hands. "And the teachers didn't try to get you either? You would think they'd be suspicious of a masked hero[2] running around the school." Lephantis let his legs sway as he chuckled. "You'd think so, but I have a feeling that they knew who I was. There were not a lot of kids running around with red hair, plus I was shorter back then. Not many people would fit a description like that, but nonetheless, they turned a blind eye whenever I acted in tandem with them due to the troubling time." Celena started to kick her legs too. "So what happened when the principals got back?" Lephantis let his back hit the bed, making Celena bounce in her seat. "A ton of things happened, but to keep it short, it went like this. Upon their return, Principal Wright immediately called the authorities, which, by proxy, had the school shut down. The injured were wheeled to the hospital, and the offenders from both high and low ranks were either suspended, sent to a reformatory school, or expelled. The second is pretty bad; I myself would take suspension or expulsion over that. The people that return from R.S. don't seem like theirselves."
Celena's eyes widened, but Lephantis continued. "Anyway, the news reported the situation that very day, and parents were not enthused. Most of them were calling for his resignation as head principal for letting it get to that point, but no matter how loud the voices were, he still maintained his position. So a couple months passed, and before you knew it, the school was fully restored to its former glory. However, upon its reopening to the public, Principal Wright made an announcement on live TV." Celena felt the distaste in his statement as she lay next to him. "He claimed responsibility for what was dubbed Iguru's havoc. Which is fine, but what came after that is what's BS." He crossed his arms, and Celena could feel his anger rise. "What did he say?" She reached out a hand and touched his arm to comfort him. Lephantis turns his head over to her and softens his features. "He declared that for the first time in history, Iguru Chuggako will be the first school in Dreamy Town to abolish their ranking system."
Celena arches a brow at that, and Lephantis nods. "He stated that with this change, any student, Forteless or not, could easily enroll and succeed within the school walls. The community ate it up, and by extension, the school received more funding, seemingly forgetting the disaster that took place those months ago. Unfortunately, the students that enrolled thereafter were treated to a very rude awakening." Lephantis took a deep breath, then exhaled. "While it was true the ranking system was abolished in all facets of the school, Principal Wright still upheld it behind the scenes. You could tell with all the teacher new hires that they still desired the tiered system over a nontiered. Which was hell for the new students when they thought they signed up for a better school life but only to be treated poorly if they weren't up to the Principal's or the teacher's liking." Sitting up, Celena nearly shouted in disbelief at the revelation. "Thats fucked up! They didn't tell their parents once they got in?" Lephantis only shook his head. "They could, but they had no proof of them being mistreated. The teachers and Principal Wright would just claim it was a misunderstanding and state that they're only being hard on them to prepare them for Ryu High. And what parent wouldn't want to have their child attend the best high school in the city?"
Lephantis sighed, then sat up, glancing over at Celena. "After the announcement, classes resumed, and there hasn't been a major problem in the past two years. So yeah that's the reason why I don't attend after school activities or sports games. Sorry that it went on longer than intended, I had to slip in a little bit of history too." He apologetically smiled for rambling on with his explanations, but Celena shook her head. "No need to apologize, Leph! I enjoyed the story about you kicking Oskar's ass and while the other one was a little hard to listen to. It did answer a lot of questions about how this school functions. So thanks a ton for the lesson!" She stood up and stretched, and Lephantis did the same. "I'm glad it was helpful at the very least and sorry about not showing you the arena or the principal's office. I'll have to take you there tomorrow because it is getting late." Celena waved off the concern. "No worries Leph. After hearing the latter half of that story I kinda don't want to go to the principal's office in fear of slapping the hell out of him. Though I am interested in the Arena so we definitely got to check that out first thing after school." Her eyes twinkled at him, which elicited a laugh out of Lephantis. "Sure thing! If what I saw today was any indication, I get the feeling that you enjoy testing your mettle." He patted her arm and led her out of the nurses office.
"What can I say, Leph? I can't turn down a good fight if it's looking me in the eye!" She punches a fist into her open palm, her signature grin appearing on her face. Lephantis grinned, her chaotic energy making him giddy. "Well you won't be down and out very long. By the time you get home you can remove those bandages and give your wounds some air. They should close up by morning anyway." She claps her hands together and smiles wide. "Thanks Doc! I knew I could count on you!" The two shared a laugh then they fell into a comfortable silence. Lephantis peeked at Celena, who was humming an upbeat tune, wondering how he would broach his last topic. He was about to speak up but thought against it because he wants to enjoy this mood just a little bit longer.
[1]Phantom Step → Jin's first job in Grandchase is called fighter and one of his inputs is called shadow dodge. A risky move that has invincibility frames to evade an opponent's attack at close range. Mistiming it could be your death or lead to a very low health bar
[2] Rage of the Dragon → I don't remember a move like that in Grandchase but it has been quite some time. However at the time of writing that I had the thought of the Mii brawler's down smash from smash4/ultimate.
[3] Masked Hero → Look up the yugioh card "Masked Hero Dark Law" That was the mask he used when he was going through Iguru's Havoc.
Author's Note: Hey Hey my fellow readers! I'm back again to fulfill my inconsistent update schedule. This one took a little longer because one, FFXIV Dawntrail Early access, was fire af and thats been yeeting up my time. Secondly I feel like the first half of this chapter was really strong but the second half was what was keeping me because I wanted to include so much into the backstory but realized if I put everything in it then it would just drag on and I didn't want that! So there'll be references to it in the future and I hope that you'll look forward to it. Till next time o7!
P.S If you have any inquiries at all Leave a comment or PM me!