The Coming Darkness

The first sentence out of his lips was enough to capture the small blondes attention. She still couldn't believe Maya was gone, and it felt as though there was still a lack of closure in the air regarding her death. Eos still couldn't help but feel the need to say goodbye, somehow...

And as Enzo went on, and others began to gather, with every word her heart began to beat faster and faster. She held a hand over her chest, her wide eyes looking up at the boy transforming into a leader right before her eyes. In the passion of it all, Eos couldn't help but call out, "I may not be strong, but I will do my very best to not let you down!" Her eyes quivered in the moment, "For Maya's sake!"

"I am the only one that thinks I'm going crazy... and I don't know what to do..." She sang out the the empty music room, playing harder with every passing moment. But as time passed, curious heads began to poke their way into the room, a few students unsure of who this foreign face or what she was saying. (Considering her lyrics were in English.) But unfortunately, with curious students, came curious teachers. One, particularly stuffy old goat bursting in and unplugging the amp. Harley was about to sing out the second verse when she felt the loss of power and growled, "How rude." Hopping off the amp she gave the woman a cold stare, and as the woman was about to scold her - a few students ran to the window, saying something that she couldn't understand aside from the word Enzo. "Enzo..." She walked toward the window as well and peered down to see him speaking out amongst a crowd of other students. "Wonder what he's talkin' about that's got everyone so riled up..."

As Enzo spoke, Sasha's emotions were clearly visible on her face. First came the surprise at seeing the male speak out so clearly, then a streak of sadness when Maya was mentioned, and last of all, a grin formed on her lips, as the Russian was obviously satisfied with Enzo's speech.

She kept on smiling as she saw the others start to support Enzo. Sasha then realized that she should be supporting him too. The hell're you spacing out for, Sasha?! she thought to herself as she walked over towards Enzo, giving him a pat on the back, "Idiot, you know that I'll always be on your side," mumbled Sasha as she passed him.

"There's a music room somewhere, I think. I dunno." Before David could get into the possibilities of where this music room might be, Kira left. Wait here, she said. "Why do I have to wait here?" he mumbled, stuffing his hands in his pockets as he overheard someone speaking of a gathering at the front of the school. He couldn't make out exactly what they were saying, but he heard the name Enzo and decided he ought to check it out. He casually slid out of the room, nodding to the people standing by the door, and bolted towards the front of the school. Ohh I hope I haven't missed anything good.
When he arrived, he saw Enzo, Silver, everyone surrounded by a bunch of kids. Lucky for David, he was tall enough to see over the crowd. He slipped his way through the crowd to end up next to Silver, who was a bit surprised by his presence but nodded at him anyways. He nodded back at her, leaned against the wall, and looked at Enzo, wondering what was going to happen next.

This is going better then I thought... Enzo thought as all the positive feedback flew in. Then, Sasha reassured him that she'd stick by him no matter what, and again, he couldn't help but smile, and top it off with a nervous laugh. Any more praise and i'll start floating...

He felt a presence beside him, and turned to see Azure. He stood as if he were clearly impressed, and ready to leave. "Ah.. Um.." "Are you ready to leave?" The captain asked. Enzo nodded, and at that exact moment, Kenji had went from Sasha's head to Enzo's. "Leaving already?" "Our jet won't be able to hold all of those students in one flight. Luckily, the base is just off the coast, so it'll be a 10 minute flight. However, I'd like to get you and your group in first."

As the captain beckoned the guardians to follow him around the back of the school, toward the small airstrip, Enzo stopped in his tracks. There's a high chance we won't be back here in a long time.. I need to find Marcus, and thank those Americans for taking care of him... It bugged him like OCD to not give his thanks. "Why did you stop?" Kenji asked, looking down at him. "The teacher..." He muttered before turning around and heading back towards the school entrance. "I'll be right there!" He shouted back at the captain, who was face palming at this point.

JD glanced at Eos, and then pressed his teeth against the brunt of his lip. This was not their battle, and he had never intended for them to fight the wars of others. Instead they were just supposed to be here for a cure before they vanished of to St. Albans again.
Still the murmurs begin to ripple through the tide of students that gathered, and JD found himself at a loss as to what to say. Those eyes of his flicked down to his ring, and he had a moment of reverie as he realized that he no longer really had an option. Why were the VanCise twins chosen to help lead this fight-? Honestly he didn’t know.
What he did know was that he now had people to protect, and that- the sheer thought of losing them made him pause. It was no longer a war he could just choose be absent from. “Well I can’t let E go in there alone, and I can’t be shown up by my own girlfriend- so of course I am here to help Enzo. Lets’ go kick ass, and take name- or just the first one really. No one really cares what they are called- just that they need to be stomped into the ground.” JD just hoped that it wouldn’t be too late for them to live up to that promise.

About that time Enzo whizzed off, and JD found himself standing in the midst of a crowd that was particularly bubbling with energy. Those silver eyes blinked and glanced around, and his environment seemed to blur for a moment before it cleaned itself back up again. He just rubbed his rough palms across his face and then glanced to Silver. He had sort of shrugged her off earlier, but he didn’t know how to place it- her attentions and thoughts seemed to divided elsewhere. He just assumed she had a lot going on, and the last thing she needed was some needy boyfriend. JD sighed.

"And done." Marcus smiles pouring back the last of his whisky, proudly reading over his lesson plan. It didn't just involve the 'mental arts', it also included physical training, battle tactics, social integration, and practically everything that was needed for a successful magician to defeat his or her adversaries. It was about then he had heard some commotion echoing through the halls as some of the students made their way to their dorms. Though the conversations were hard to hear, he was able to pick up on words like 'Enzo' and 'Team Valor'. Was there a speech going on somewhere? Did he miss something? He reclined in his office chair, throwing his feet up on the desk and watching the door. Someone was going to burst through it any minute now, he was sure of it.

When she'd come back, David had gone. Well then. She shrugged it off and headed outsde, toward the main building. Music rooms usually were a bit more secluded due to the noise of the instruments. She'd go with that. Kira noticed some students crowded around the entrace of the school, and a whole lot of muttering and peaking. 'What' she was curious, but couldn't understnd anything. 'Just my luck.' It bothered her a little. Maybe that's what they'd invest in. Lessons on the language.

Giving a slight sigh, she shook her head and returned to her quest. Find Harley. Was she even still playing? Maybe a teacher stopped her. Or, she was also listening in on the speech. Perhaps even eating now. She had no clue. She'll just have to go by room.

Silver smiled at JD as he spoke up and watched as Enzo slid away. She decided she ought to go speak to him since she had been looking for him before all that happened. Slowly, she made her way through the crowd to where she though JD had been, and lucky enough for her he was still there. She wrapped her arms around him and held him tight. "Hi JD. I was looking for you." She was glad to be with him again. She had wanted to talk about why she'd been acting strange before, but she wanted it to be a bit more private than this too. Instead, she looked up at him, still holding onto him, to see what he might say.

David, on the other hand, had nothing to do, so he figured he would stick around and see what would happen. He didn't feel quite as bitter as he had before about Silver and JD, and that made him happy. Maybe I'm not as much of a douchebag as I thought I was!

Kira had gone inside the building, wondering which way to go before recalling something. Of Course. Taking her phone out, she looked online for what she needed. Inputting a phrase into a translator, she hit enter before getting the needed translation. Her Japanese sucked, but thanks to this, she could easily get someone to point out the way. Getting a student's attention she offered a smile before asking. "Uh, where is the music room? --point the way?" Her accent way, needless to say, heavy. It was enough to get the student to point her in the right direction though. Thanking them, she headed off with a slight grin. 'Google, thank you.'

Reaching the room, she peaked inside and was relieved to find that it was the right one. Harley was there, not alone, looking out the windows to listen to the speech. Seemed that some of the students were listening in, or had been. Now they were chattering on about things she didn't understand. "Found you."

It was then David remembered he had left Kira all alone to fend for herself, and he slapped his hand against his forehead. Nevermind... I am a douchebag. He went back to the school in search of the poor girl, and wondered if she found the music room yet. He stumbled upon a room that looked like it might be a music room, so he went in, hoping to find the Americans in there together.

Enzo checked the dorms, he had known that several teachers resided at the dorm so they could be closer to work. Whether Marcus was in there or not, remained to be seen. He searched the boys dorm thoroughly, until he saw a small name tag that was just under the dorm room number.

Marcus Tormod.

He knocked several times, hopping in place due to his anticipation. I hope he's in here..

The commotion had continued outside, but a midst it all, he could here a faint and perhaps nervous rap-tap-tap on the door. "Come in!" He said, still reclined at his desk. Prior to, whom he assumed to be Enzo knocking at his door, he was making a few revisions to his lesson plan. Of course, it wasn't your typical one that you would see in most schools, no this one was special, this one played off the strengths and weaknesses of those of Team Valor. Earlier on in the day, he took a little stroll down to the administration office to review each of their files after Enzo had released the names. It was all valuable information, he learned what made them tick and the extent of their abilities.

A wave of relief washed over Enzo when he heard the teacher's voice. He didn't have to search the entire school after all. Enzo made his way in quietly, closing the door and killing off any kind of excitement he had earlier. "Mr.Turmod?" He spoke clearly. "We-.. Team Valor, is about to leave for the Council base. I thought I should let you know that."

“Oh you have?” JD questioned with a bit of surprise in his voice. “Did you get everything sorted?” It wasn’t honestly the best way of asking if David was still hounding her like a lost little puppy, but it seemed like the politest. Still he didn’t know how to take her distraction as of late, but he did enjoy the way that she clung to him in that tight manner. “I was with E,” he stated as he made a motion to his sister. “She was healing me, and then we were talking before we were compelled here by Enzo’s magical mind-PA system. Seems like we won’t be getting the break we need before we head out.” He sighed. Though he was a bit upset at Silver’s current behavior he did also regret not having some ‘alone’ time with his own girlfriend- his lips ached a bit for the taste of hers.
Still he just wrapped his arms around her and smiled. “So honey-bunny when are we going to discuss the events on the roof? Since I’m not so grouchy from my wounds I want to hear what I missed- and- ah what happened.”

Silver looked at him and nodded at his questions, happy to hear that he got all healed up. Though, the thought of the events on the roof made her a bit uneasy. "Well.." She sighed. "I'm not really sure, to be honest..." Silver paused, looking away to her side as if to search for what exactly to say. "..Do you ever feel like there's two sides of you? Like they are almost always fighting for control?.. And sometimes, you can't really control which side wins, which might lead to bad things depending on which side is the winner?" She frowned and looked back to him, hoping he didn't think she was insane. "Jeez.. That probably sounds a lot worse than it actually is.."

JD attempted to squelch his thoughts about two diverse personalities in one body. He nodded to Silver’s words and ran a hand through her locks in a sympathetic manner. “I have my darling,” he stated with a straight face. “I think that is a common plague with anyone who knows magic.” With that he leeched into her form and pressed his lips against hers. “You and I are one of a kind you know that.” Those lips purred against hers. “I love you. And with that love comes any need for you to fear- because you have no fear of it. I’ll be with you forever. Until we commit ourselves eternally, buy a house together, and possibly have children.” JD smirked. “From there until eternity.”

He just hoped his girlfriend would overcome what has to happen in the future.

Silver blushed lightly, smiling and looking down. Her grip around him tightened again and she leaned her head on his shoulder. "At least I'm not alone." Oh, was now the right time to say it? She felt like it was. Silver leaned against him a bit and nuzzled his neck, trying to prevent him from seeing the blush on her face as she spoke. "I love you, JD." She giggled a bit. Saying that almost tickled. What a funny feeling.

Marcus smiled at him and nodded. "Alright, fair enough." He stood up and approached the spiky haired boy, only now realizing how tall he was in comparison to Enzo. He looked at the lesson plan that was still in his hand, and looked back up the student. "Not to sound dense or anything, but...is this an invitation to join you, or are you just informing me?" The student's decision to leave was probably associated with the commotion Marcus had overheard earlier. It was a bit of a 'duh!' moment for him though, as he should have pieced two and two together much sooner. In all honesty, he had hoped to accompany Team Valor to their destination. The thrill of New York had given him a thirst for excitement, which seemed to follow the team wherever they went.

There was an ample amount of excitement in the air, a feeling that seemed to follow the group of young students around almost constantly. It seemed JD and Silver had begun talking about all those lovey dovey bits as any healthy young couple did - Eos felt the need to disappear quickly. Especially when the two started to kiss, causing her eyes to go wide and her feet to slowly side step away from them. "They deserve a moment or two~." The blonde giggled to herself before looking out across the way into the forest of trees, realizing that in all the excitement she forgot to ask Enzo where Volitaire had gone. "Voli..."

Turning to look over her shoulder, she heard a familiar voice in a familiar language. "Hey." She spoke casually, smiling at her. But before Harley could turn her head back to the crowd down below, the woman who was chastising her earlier grabbed Harley by the coat and yanked her away from the window. Honestly, she had no clue what the woman was saying, but recognized the lecturing tone.

After a minute it seemed the woman finally understood why nothing she said was sinking in. In that moment she spoke a cryptic term and with a flick of her wrist cast a spell in both Harley and Kira's direction, and the conversation of the students around them, along with the teachers words finally became clear and understandable - like they had just finished an advanced course in Japanese.

"This is a school, not your playground! You Americans have no respect for others! If I catch you causing trouble again I won't hesitate to report you, and your little friend here!" And with that she turned on her heel and left the two amongst the crowd in the music room. "Sorry, Kira." Harley scratched the side of her head and smiled innocently. "But hey, we can understand what everyone is saying now. So something good came out of it..."

"Well, that's another thing," After seeing as how he held is own against Endine, Enzo knew Marcus just wasn't all talk. There was alot more power within him. Enzo had a knack for sensing that in people. "I want you to come with us. You can help organize us, and teach us things that might help us in this fight."

Marcus had done a good job seeing the urgency in New York, and had a good idea, giving everyone cell phones so that they might contact each other. And speaking of organization, I still have that phone... The payment wasn't due for a while, and he had everyone's number on it, minus the Americans.

Kira stared a the woman in slight confusion. Scolding someone really didn't work when the content was gibberish to them. So there Had been a teacher to stop Harley from playing. Made some sense. She caught a glimpse of orange glasses at the door. David, maybe.

To her surprise, the chatter of the students became clear. Team Valor. Enzo. What the hell was the gaze? Confusing, for sure. Shaking her head once the teacher left, she gave a sly smirk to Harley. "For what? We got something out of it. Not like we're attending classes yet anyway. Worst she could do is give us another hissy fit. Too bad though. They're a bit too serious in this school. Might make it hard to get away with things."

"Where's that kid who got us dragged into this mess in the first place?" She peered outside noticing he was now gone from where he was giving his speech. "He thinks he can drag us here and then leave us in some dingy institution? And he's going off somewhere else?" She knew it was a magic school, but listening to authority was never her 'thing'. "That little runt is taking us with him if he likes it or not."

David had entered the room and found both of the two Americans on their way out. "Hey there friends, sorry we got separated... Had some business to attend to," he explained, letting his Italian accent slip through a bit. He glanced at the ladies apologetically, and then to the teacher who was lecturing them.

"Where you ladies headed?"

A broad smile crossed Marcus' lips as Enzo extended the invitation to escort Team Valor, "That's exactly what I wanted to hear!" He said joyously. With that, he haphazardly chucked some clothing and necessities into a travel case. The 'necessities' included some extra booze, and the gun case from his trip to New York. It's not as if it'd be used everyday, but in an emergency, it may prove to come in handy. He lugged his way to the door and locked it behind him. "Alright!" Marcus said excitedly, "lead the way!"

Enzo laughed, but was rather confused by how excited Marcus had gotten. He probably had a death wish. That was Enzo's conclusion. Nevertheless, he led Marcus out of the dorm building, and started heading to the airstrip.

The Council's plane was just landing, after flying a group of volunteering students to the base, and the same group of students from the speech huddled around the designated area which the plane was to be boarding people. We'll need everyone we can get. He thought, and took one last glance at his ring, it shining orange when he examined it.

It had reminded him that their lives were in his hand now. That they were his responsibility, and part of him regretted doing that speech. I wonder if they even know what they're up against.

Soon, Enki joined up with the two, greeting them with "Hey.". "Ahh, Enki. Ready to leave?" "Of course. I didn't even need to pack anything. Come to think of it, Enzo looked down at Enki's clothing. He hasn't been wearing a lot of different clothes...

By now, they reached the airstrip, and the other students.

"TMI, bro." She regarded, holding the flat of her palm out to him, assuming that he was referring to using the bathroom. (Yeah, she's a pretty elegant lady.) But in the same swift motion, she pointed at him. "Take us to your little friend with the spiky hair, I've got a bone to pick with 'em." Her tone was pretty flat, but that didn't take away from the urgency in her voice.

JD pulled back and smiled. He offered her a chaste kiss on the top of her head and then glanced around. “I suppose we should probably knock it off before we force everyone into sentimental barfing matches.” He remarked as he glanced around- noticing that Eos had slunk off. He felt a bit sorry due to the fact that she was apparently the first victim in their ‘too mushy for public’ plague. So he straightened up, and teetered along- he didn’t want to be late for their next mission.

With that he made his way over to where the small crowd of students was along with Enzo and the rest. His hand was still interlaced with Silver’s and he made no effort to attempt to sever that bond. “And I know I know you were all holding your breaths- unsure if I would grace you with my powerful presence- but here I am ready to kick some asses.”

Kira shrugged, having no idea where the Enzo kid went. "Maybe to pack some stuff." Why they didn't just take their luggage, she didn't understand. Or, maybe he went to Get it from the dorm. "So, we're gonna join 'em. Hopefully they'll take us too." Giving David a smirk, she shook her head to show she understood. She didn't expect him to stick around all the time.

"You do know where they're going, right?" She assumed so. "That's what he was talking to you about earlier?" Glancing outside, she noticed that Enzo had appeared. "He's back outside. Perfect timing."