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"I was passing by when attendance was taken for your class fifteen months, nineteen days, two hours and seven minutes ago." Auroch said with a shrug. "I know the name and face of nearly every student and staff member here from one encounter or another. Rosalina Faraday should be gone by now." He sat up and peeked out the door and then exited the closet. "So, where are you headed?"

"Sir, why are we camping out on school grounds?" asked Scarecrow's subordinate, "so we could respond quickly to anything of importance in the academy, our 3DMG are useless in tight spaces" replied Scarecrow as he was setting up a tent, his subordinate, Wilbert D. Collins, was perplexed with his behaviour, the man saved his and his partner Lilia Kjellberg's lives and for that, they now worked for him, but despite the life debt, they find the man eccentric, borderline crazy even, but they can't deny his skills, he could still remember that day, they were surrounded by a horde of goblin's, they had run out of black keys, the sorcerer that summoned them was their target, however, the hunter ended up being the hunted, "kill the boy, leave the girl unharmed, I'd like to have a little fun with her before I feed her to all of you" said the rogue sorcerer, Lilia held on to Wilbert and he remembered how she was scared, but then, as if by some miracle, a large portion of the horde was dispatched, they looked to see a man, about only a few years older than them, with a smile on his face, he skillfully dispatched many of the Goblins with just one black key, the rogue Sorcerer screamed at the Goblins to attack him, he killed them all as if they posed no threat, however, Wilbert felt uneasy as the other Inquisitor still maintained that smile on his face, he found it disturbing, moments later, the rogue sorcerer was pleading for mercy as the smiling Inquisitor dispatched his last Goblin, the smiling Inquisitor simply stabbed him in the right arm and asked him, "why so serious? Loosen up, come on, smile" he said as he grabbed the rogue sorcerers face, he proceeded to carve it with a black key, Lilia passed out as Wilbert saw the horrifying act that the smiling Inquisitor was doing to the rogue sorcerer, when he was done, the rogue Sorcerer was no longer screaming, he then proceeded towards Wilbert and Lilia, he offered his hand and asked if they were alright, Wilbert nodded, since that day, they requested to be assigned under him, he agreed, "Lilia, please hand me that pole" said Scarecrow as Lilia handed it to him, "Wilbert, don't just stand there, go get us some food from the cafeteria" said Scarecrow as Wilbert nodded his head, "even if the man is bonkers, he still saved our lives" he thought as he went to get food.

Professor Ibrahim was thinking back to when he was still a Storm Vanguard during his days as a field operative, "Scarecrow...." he muttered, he looked at a picture on his desk the picture was of him and a blond man with a woman and a little girl, "Oh Catherine, if only you could see your daughter now" he said, he was reminiscing of that day on the field when he was partners with Sir Wilhelm Feulner, Ilfriede's father, and their encounter with a young Inquisitor whom they called Scarecrow.....

"Wilhelm, are you sure it was a good idea to spare that man, even though he was a monster?" asked Soran as he and Wilhelm von Feulner continued walking through a forest, of course Soran, It's not like there was an Inquisitor watchi-" suddenly, they heard a sound, they barely had time to react as they dodged a projectile, it was a black key, they looked at the direction it came from and couldn't believe what they saw, a young boy, who appeared no older than 15 with a smile on his face, "I've heard rumors about a young Inquisitor, just didn't think he'd be this young" said Soran as he and Wilhelm readied their offerings, Soran sacrificed a piece of ice to create a sword while Wilhelm sacrificed a lump of iron to make a sword as well, the two charged at the young boy but as they did, the boy fired a grappling hook and ascended, dodging their attacks, he then let go and used the momentum to attempt a stab landing on Soran, "Soran watch out!" yelled Wilhelm, Soran reacted too slowly and got stabbed on his sword arm, "GAUGH!" cried out Soran as his Ice sword disapeared, his magic was negated, the young Inquisitor drew another Black key and proceeded to attack Wilhelm, Soran however grabbed the boy by the leg and tripped him, Wilhelm rushed at proceeded to hit the boy with the hilt of his blade, rendering him unconscious, "you alright old friend?" asked Wilhelm as he saw the black key on Soran's arm, "I'll be fine, what about the boy?" "I knocked him out, we should leave before he comes to", with that, the two left the unconscious Inquisitor in the woods, moments later, as he woke up, he could hear a voice, "Scarecrow, respond", it was coming from a small device on his belt, it was a radio, "I'm fine" "what about the targets?" "they got away,but let them be" "huh? Why?" "I haven't felt pain in a long time, they managed to actually hit me, besides, I'm sure we'll meet again" The boy then chuckled.

"Ilfriede, what will you get for dinner?" asked Luna, "maybe some mushroom soup" replied Ilfriede, "watching our weight are we? Who's the lucky guy?" asked Helga, Ilfriede blushed, "Don't tell me it's Professor Ibrahim? He's 5 years older than you!" "It's not him! He's like a brother to me!", "huh? Who's that guy ordering all that bread?" wondered Luna as the other two saw, "he looks suspicious, maybe we should tell a Professor" "No! We should tail him!" with that Ilfriede dragged Luna and Helga along.

Tatsumi: you remembered all that? Even down to the exact minute? Oh I was actually on my way to see what the commotion was all about while I was on my way to go grab some food then I ran into you and well you know the rest of course what about you?

Auroch shrugged, "I've got some homework I could do, but food sounds good." He adjusted his baldric and made sure his books were still attached on the way to the cafeteria. "You said you thought you recognized me. Why's that?"

Tatsumi: oh right it was the entrance ceremony my first day here I remember them talking about some sort of wiz kid sorcerer I didn't think much of it at first but when I ss you in the crowd I kind of put two and two together truth be told I didn't think I'd ever actually run not you being chased by a girl thoug...( he laughs playfully) unfortunately the real reason isn't as coincidental ( as they arrive in the cafeteria Tatsumi notices the strange man even with the glasses he still notices things here and there) that's weird...well whatever lets go grab food before all the good stuffs taken

The commotion was getting louder. Odds are a class was approaching... but that along with something else. It was all so annoying. The green-haired man looked back into the blade of his sword again and felt himself drift off into a dream world...

~~~

"Why are you giving this to me?" the elf asked the elder Elf as the two arrived where they were heading.

"Your parents gave it to me to hold onto until you were sent here... I've been waiting for you for years... it seems you gave the holding people quite a headache."

Zorlo sighed as he took the sword in his hands and attempted to weigh it. "Its pretty heavy."

The elder shrugged. "You'll get used to it. Spend some time with it."

The Elf swordsman drew his blade and looked at it. "The metal is a green-gray color... what is this sword made of?"

"Septanite," the Elf stated as he looked at the blade. "Its designed to resist the most intense of heat," the elder stated as he smiled at Zorlo. "Take good care of it."

Zorlo sheathed the sword and watched the elder Elf walk away before sighing. "At least I've got something to protect myself with now... now to train so I can freaking use it... fuggin' sodder..." Zorlo stated with a sigh.

~~~

"Good times... good times," Zorlo told himself as he thought back on the fact he had trained every day since and could effectively wield his sword with full mastery. The loud noises grew as Zorlo rose and looked around. "A class is nearby... and something else... not many... but a few others... I think..." Zorlo said as he started to move almost quietly from tree to tree, "I'm going to go investigate the smaller group."

Auroch looked up at his companion, "Tatsumi Izanagi, it's not a joke. Some students like her really have tried to kill me." Auroch followed Tatsumi's gaze. "What's-" He spotted the inquisitor, "So cool!" And then Auroch was gone, he reappeared a few seconds later next to Wilbert. "Hey, I was in hospital last time you guys were here. You mind if I ask a question?" Without waiting for a response, "How do those work?" The boy stared up at Wilbert expectantly whilst pointing at the quiver of Black Keys.

Tatsumi: just Tatsumi and he's gone?!( he looks to notice him over by wilbert) how did?....( he walks over following auroch as he over hears his question) oh an inquisitor? So this is where you went? ( he notices the black keys)

Wilbert, knowing full well he can't answer the boy's question, sighed, "I'm sorry, but I have no business with you and same goes for you, just please leave me alone" he said, even though he meant no ill will, he was trained to treat Sorcerers like children to keep in line, not as human beings, his experiences with them were all bad ones when it came to dealing with them, with that, he left carrying a paper bag full of walnut bread.

"Ilfriede, this is a bad idea" said Luna, Ilfriede Summoned a fern to cover them, it wasn't doing it's purpose and attracted more attention, nonetheless, they managed to follow Wilbert to the campsite, "there's two of them, the one with the smile is kinda cute" said Ilfriede, however,as the gawked at them, a voice from behind suddenly said, "two minutes, explain yourselves", the trio turned around to see a woman with Long Blonde hair tied with twin hairbuns and Green eyes, the trio were surprised and raised their hands up, "We were just looking for horseflies when we- ow!" said Ilfriede as Helga smacked her lightly on the head, "my friend was curious about why your companion was getting so much Walnut bread so she decided to tail him, me and my green haired friend were forced to come along, take Ilfriede!" said Helga as Ilfriede had a horrified expression on her face, "what's going on here?" said a Familiar voice, it was Professor Ibrahim.

Auroch was unfazed by Wilbert rebuffing him. "Probably doesn't actually know anyways." He stated to himself as he crouched and rubbed a couple of fingers across a smudge on the floor. After a moment's examination he rubbed it off on the hem of his cloak. "Come on let's grab a quick bite. Ten minutes should be enough." And Auroch disappeared again, although this time Tatsumi caught a glimpse of the boy as he was moving, it wasn't that he was turning invisible or teleporting he was just small and adept at slipping through crowds. When he had a platter of food and a couple of chocolate milks he sat down at a table and placed one of his books on it.

He flipped through it quickly and found a summoning circle on one of the pages. He placed his hand on it, recited an incantation, made a fist and then opened it releasing a handful of butterflies indigenous to the area and were likely to be around given the season. "There's a guy with a bag full of walnut bread who looks like ______ and is most likely outside but within a few hundred yards of the school most likely near _____ find where he went." He blew on the butterflies to release the spell and send them off on their mission just as Tatsumi arrived with his food. "We should know where their camp is in a few minutes, that or the search area will be greatly diminished." Auroch closed the book and placed it back in it's holster.

Auroch noticed his favorite two toned elf nearby and waved her over. "Kanna! Hey Kanna over here." Auroch scooted over to make room for the girl.

"These humans were playing at following these animals," Zorlo said as he pointed at the girls, denoting them as humans, and then at the inquisitors; denoting them as less than that. "Why such foul creatures are allowed presence here is beyond me. They meant no ill will, I assume," he said, maybe meaning it. Inflection for Zorlo was always difficult to tell. He mostly just sounded angry. The cracking of joints was significant as well, as Zorlo was ever ready to fight. IT'd gotten him in trouble with two or three others before; this was different however. THis wasn't about his hair or eyes... this was about freedom... the thing he felt the Inquisitors kept from them.

IT was rare to see Zorlo step in for anyone... but this matter was oddly more personal. He wouldn't forgive Inquisitors... and their business here wasn't any of his. The air temperature around him began to increase slightly. Those who knew him as the Green Flame Wraith knew what followed this generally... but out in the open... it was madness. "Well, Inquisitor, are you done picking on these defenseless humans and ready to anger someone who can actually fight back?" he asked her daringly as he stretched his fingers out. This Elf clearly had no fear.

(Disclaimer: I know Z stands no chance against an Inquisitor and their Conceptual weapon... but its in character for him to challenge one anyway. )

The group looked at the elf dumbfounded, the female Inquisitor just had a puzzled look on her face, as much as she would like to snap back, but she actually found it amusing, she let out a slight chuckle, and said, "Forgive me sir elf, but you look ridiculous" she said trying to contain her laughter, behind the elf was professor Ibrahim, who proceeded to smack him on the head, "no trouble" he said.

Scarecrow was munching on a piece of walnut bread as he looked t what was going on, his old 'friend' Soran Ibrahim was berating an elf while three girls were raising their hands up with Lilia pointing a black key at them, this was certainly gonna be an interesting turn of events he thought as Wilbert rushed towards them, intent with finding out what was going on.

Man, he sure does like to talk, Zorlo thought as he ignored the teacher and looked at the woman pointing the black key. Almost instinctually, he reached his left hand towards the sword along his back. "Miss, is it really necessary to threaten those ladies... they're really not that threatening. If they were... I imagine you'd be dead right now," he said as he continued to ignore his teacher. This was an everyday event for him... people telling HIM how to behave. Man, humans were real jerks.

"And humies, what were you doing tracking these Inquisitors. I thought these creatures didn't bother human mages. Just my kind... mostly out of fear or something inane, I don't really listen when people try to tell me stuff I don't care about," Zorlo said as he continued to ignore the lecturing. "If you're gonna kill them, its easiest to just stab them in the back or poison them. Their little toys are valueless when they can't protect themselves. THey hide behind their little toys, so don't let them use it. Makes sense, right?" he asked the women, showing an odd amount of... er... something like gratitude.

Kanna paused as she looked to see Auroch wave to her and make room for her at the table. He was definitely one of the few here that didn't care what was happening to her with her Curse. Whether it was because he knew it couldn't transfer from her like some other Curses could, or because he just didn't care if it could or not, she stopped caring long ago and simply accepted it as a bit of a blessing. And so, she turned to walk over to his table with her tray of food. "Auroch, hello," she said to him in her normal, quiet voice as she sat down. Her tray was nearly empty, but then, she really never ate that much to begin with. "How are you today...?"

Tatsumi: are we really going after that guy?....he didn't even seem to care about our existence he totally just brushed us off ( he notices Janna sit down) oh hey I'm Tatsumi your friends with Auroch ( he takes a bite out of his sandwich) so how come your so interested in those keys?

"I'm puzzling over black keys." Auroch answered Kanna happily. He seemed to start choking as he took too big of a bite and then just drank one of his containers of chocolate milk to get it down. "Ah... Hm? Well, I am. You don't have to though. It is possible that they'll just get annoyed and kill us after all and then just claim that we tried to attack them. No witnesses, no muss, no fuss." Auroch answered with a shrug. As an afterthought he turned to Kanna to explain, "Tatsumi and I met while I was running from Rosalina Faraday after class. During that class Professor Ibrahim mentioned Black Keys today and the Inquisition is here since exam day is soon. So I decided to ask the one we saw in here how their keys work. He was less than forthcoming." The boy said with an offhanded wave, dropping some food on the table. "Thus I sent some butterflies to go figure out exactly where they're camped out so that I can go ask about them again later. Have you had any interesting encounters today?" Auroch asked and dove back into his plate.

Tatsumi: kill us? Oh good good well I'm not just gonna let you go by yourself what kind of person would that make me? Of course I'll come along I'm just saying maybe we should be abit smarter about this whole thing ( he finishes his sandwich) oh wow that was really good I must of been starving if it comes down to it I honestly would rather like to avoid a fight with an inquisitor but what do you think about all of this? ( he looks at kanna) you going to come along too?

The Elven girl nodded demurely to Tatsumi. "Good to meet you, Tatsumi," she replied to him before turning her attention back to Auroch. "I came across Rosalina earlier. She seemed angry. Now I understand why..." Kanna replied to Auroch before continuing her own meal. Black Keys, the anti-Sorcerer weaponry carried by Inquisitors. It wasn't a bad thing to be interested in, per se, but it was unlikely that he, or any other magic-user would get that information out of an Inquisitor short of torture & mental probing. In short, the kind of things that would give Inquisitors the excuse they wanted to go after any & every Sorcerer that looked at them 'wrong'. The two-toned Elf remained quiet for a moment before saying, "I think... I'd like to follow you when you go to ask, Auroch. I could use the time...outside the library."

"Cool." Auroch said jovially at Kanna's positive response. "I was also thinking that I might ask and see what I'd have to do to join them if they won't tell me how they work because I'm not one of them. Still I would probably have to be selected to join them or something, all of the books here are pretty much just cautionary tales of do your duty or die. Dun dun dun. But if you can join up there are probably some requirements, but if it's something simple like having to of killed a sorcerer then I could totally join since I've done that already, but if you also have to be good with a sword or something I'd be kind of doomed to failure. But if I do get in I'm sure I'll get to deal with a lot of interesting and unique spells and curses. I bet they have a whole library dedicated to breaking and countering them or at the very least blueprints of them so that I could design a counter-sorcery. Oh wait, there's Zorlo Amaranthine. That green haired fire sorcerer who's always carrying around a sword. He's probably pretty good. Maybe I could get lessons from him." Auroch's ramblings about his latest passion continued for a few minutes, periodically he stopped to breathe. Eventually he was stopped by a butterfly landing on his ear. "Found them. Three inquisitors, Professor Ibrahim, Zorlo Amaranthine, Ilfriede von Feulner, Lunateresia von Witzleben, and Helgarose von Falkenmayer are there now. Looks like they're getting an earful. Professor Ibrahim would probably insist on stopping us. Maybe we should wait a few minutes more before we go ask. What do you two think?"

Tatsumi: ( at the mention of killing a sorcerer he flashes back to a time when he was 13 and he's standing over the body of a sorcerer the sorcerers right arm is broken and the body is covered in wounds he the snaps back to reality) on Uhh well that's really your call Afterall this was your idea but maybe we should go check it out now...( he tries to get his mind off of his flashback earlier)