[battle] Round 2 Preliminaries, part 2

[utopiamods]

Round 2 Tournament Preliminaries

SHORYU vs KALLEN KOZUKI
ROAD KAMELOT vs. GRENN ATAIR
MOLLY HAYES vs. MIWAKO IHARA

Location: Main Courtyard, Tournament Stadium
Time of day: Afternoon.
Special Rules: One Weapon or set of Weapons per battle; Players may not leave the stadium.

[the announcement rings through the campus all morning, on the half-hour: Can all participating Players report to the Tournament Stadium for midday with their chosen Weapons. The event will begin at twelve twenty-five for all other students.

Yes, that's right, the Tournament Stadium. During the early morning of Day 1, the staff were hard at work constructing a stadium in the main courtyard. There's raised seating for all students, and a large open-air ring for the participants. There's more than enough space even for fliers, and a number of raised areas, stairs and chest-high walls to make battles more interesting. At the end of the stadium is a large screen showing the ring from above.]

Comments

[summerstars]

Grenn shook her head, resting her elbows on the armrests of her chair and her chin on her interlaced fingers.

"No... All I remmeber was promising something, but if you can't even remember what you promised, or to who..." She frowned. Would that be how they'd find a way/be allowed to return home? Finding out whatever they'd (been made to) promised?

[myblueskies]

Romeo sighed, "Well when I went to Milan... I..." His memories were really fuzzy but he knew that chimney sweeps, or their parents at least signed a contract, he couldn't remember anything about his though. He could remember the fire and Luini hanging around the village, with rumours that he wanted to buy Romeo. Then he could remember leaving on Luini's cart, nothing in between that.

"I can't remember really, but I know that the God of Death paid money to our parents and a contract was signed that said we belonged to him and then whoever he sold us on to until a certain season. The more money he paid the longer we belonged to him, then he sold us in Milano," this part wasn't fuzzy at all, well not completely, Romeo couldn't remember how much he had been sold for, though he knew miss Edda had been so mad about it. "The bosses who bought us had to promise that they'd let us go home when the time had passed, though no one ever survived their whole contract."

"Until the Black Brothers! We made sure everyone survived!" He sounded triumphant, "Except Alfredo... But maybe this is like that, maybe we promised to stay here and fight and learn," which didn't seem to bad a deal really, they were being fed, had proper beds and got to learn lots of interesting things. "Then when we finish the time we promised we go home!"

[summerstars]

What do you say to that, really? Grenn shivered, because while the boy was being matter of fact and calm about it, he was describing slavery, and that 'promise to let the children go home'? Yeah, as if that ever happened.

"... When you go back, would you still belong to someone?"

She couldn't see any point in speculating about what they'd promised, because she could remember nothing about that. Only a sort of "I promised something" which was highly stupid. Why would she do that?

[myblueskies]

Romeo shook his head, "No I finished my contract and went home, I was the first boy in my village ever to come back from the city," he sounded proud but sad at that. Proud because he knew he had survived because of the Black Brothers and he was very proud of being a member of them, and leading them though he would have much rather had Alfredo still be alive and being the leader. Sadness because if only there were more Alfredo's in the world, more boys might have survived.

"Thing's were alright at home, we wern't starving, not like before I went to the city. So I'm not sure why I would have been sent away again and why I would be here and not back in the city. At first I thought this was a regular school," he smiled a small smile, "I've never been to school before and doctor Casella said he was going to try and help me go to school..." But other people already had schools, or some said they were too old for school and they were still here.

"I'm Romeo by the way miss!" He felt a little bad about thinking she was a witch now.

[summerstars]

Grenn smiled back at the boy and nodded. Well, that was a relief, that he'd actually gotten to go home.

"I'm Grenn. And you don't need to call me 'miss'." That just felt a bit silly around here.

[myblueskies]

"Hello m...Grenn, it's nice to meet you." He smiled politely at her, it was strange not to call adults miss, because it was polite and he felt rude when he didn't.

"Mi... Grenn? What happened to your legs?" He hoped the question didn't make Grenn sad, because he had been wondering, and if she wasn't a witch who could fix them by magic, how was she alive. Romeo didn't know much, or anything about medicine but from what he had seen and what doctor Casella had said if you lost a limb you lost lots of blood, you needed blood to survive and so how had Grenn been able to survive loosing both legs and all that blood lost if not by magic. She must be very very strong.

[summerstars]

Of course he'd ask. But he hadn't been as rude as other people could be, so, well, she could answer that question as it was asked. Grenn shrugged and absentmindely rubbed the metal ports attached to the ends right now hidden by the pants she had on.

"Where I'm from, there's this disease that rots the bone and flesh... It attacked my legs. I was lucky, really," she shrugged and patted out a light rythm on one of her thighs. "Other people have had it attack their heads, and there's not much you can do for them..." Oh wait. With a grimace, she realized she should probably not have said that last part. He was just a kid, even if his life hadn't been all sparkly clean and nice.

[myblueskies]

Romeo had been expecting Grenn to tell him she had been in an accident, trampled by horses or even ran over by a train, but a disease! He had never heard of a disease like that! Doctor Casella had never mentioned it, it didn't sound like a disease at all because what kind of disease ate peoples limbs!

And their heads, Romeo shuddered as his incredibly active imagination took in that particular image. "Can the doctors not do anything to stop it?" He couldn't imagine they could, and anyways it was really expensive to get doctors, Angeletta had only survived her heart condition because Lady Isabella had took her to Paris to see a good doctor there, and most doctors wern't like doctor Casella who treated even chimney sweeps who had no money to pay him.

"I guess a doctor to stop that would be really expensive huh?" He thought about the poor people who had had their heads eaten by the disease, it must hurt a lot! He looked back at Grenn, "Does it hurt? Now I mean?" Because obviously when something was eating your legs off it was going to hurt, but if Grenn was still hurting now.

Well that was sad, Romeo didn't like to think of people in pain. He was feeling even worse for believing Grenn to be a witch now!

[summerstars]

Aw, frag. Yeah, she should learn to be more careful around kids. Well, Mei seemed easier to talk to, despite not knowing some things (like space, but Grenn was rather sure that was one of the girl's taken memories)... But she'd gotten this far, so...

"The problem is that if you attempt to cure the disease attacking the bone, it just jumps to the flesh, and contrarywise... There's been no way of getting rid of the disease in both places. And no, it doesn't hurt now," Grenn shook her head and tried a smile, hoping to ease Romeo.

It didn't hurt now no, since she didn't have the prostethics on. No need to say that though.

[myblueskies]

Well it was good that it didn't hurt now! He listened as Grenn explained the problem and he sort of understood, he nodded. "Some things just can't be cured, Doctor Casella says that it's just God's way of making sure theres still people to go to heaven. I think it's because if everything could be cured nobody would die and then God would get lonely, Alfredo's illness couldn't be cured either. But your still alive so there must be some way to stop it eating all of you."

Apart from when it ate your head, he shuddered again at the thought.

[summerstars]

Grenn couldn't help the quiet laugh, though it wasn't mean or condescending in any way, just gently amused. It wasn't often she met someone so casually and sincerely talking about God (any god) in that way. She may have her belief, but she wasn't particularly practising it, really.

"Maybe that's so." She wasn't going to tell him that anyone who wasn't irrevocably injured by the Rot got prostethics of some sort. A few committed suicide, but she wasn't going to say that either. Then she noticed the two girls down there talking.

"Hmm, seems they might be starting soon..."

[myblueskies]

Romeo smiled and looked down at the two girls, he nodded and fell quiet as he watched them begin the fight.