utopiamods: (The right way to fight Exaclan)
Rakuen Moderators ([personal profile] utopiamods) wrote in [community profile] rakuen2011-04-04 01:34 am

ROUND 4 - NEW PLAYERS & ROUND CHANGE

You're falling, and you can't remember why. It's a sickening feeling that makes your insides lurch; the darkness and the vertigo combine, and all you can think of is a story you heard once, somewhere.

- I remember now. It's a simple story that everyone knows. A legend of a Princess, the Demon Lord who kidnapped her, and the Knight who fought to save her.

The Demon Lord had kidnapped the Princess countless times, but every time the Knight bested his challenges and rescued the Princess.

No matter what tricks and ploys the Demon Lord used, the Knight would always triumph in the end. This was because--


The world tilts on its axis one last time, and the dream slips from your mind as easily as it arrived. A new voice intrudes on your sleep.

"Next stop: Academy Main Entrance. This tramline terminates here; all change. Next stop: Academy Main Entrance. All change."

Sunlight streams through the windows of the long carriage, making the seats almost uncomfortably warm beneath its waking passengers. The air is muggy and thick, the atmosphere deeply tired. Your nausea settles, slowly. The last of the dream fades.

"We have arrived at Utopia. Repeat, we have arrived at Utopia Academy. Could all passengers please leave the tram, as it is terminating here."

The tram pulls to a stop outside the academy station, and anyone onboard is ushered off and directed to the front lobby of the school. You can't miss it; there are signs up pointing toward the main entrance, reading "New student orientation" in big, bright letters. If anyone should care to move off the path, try exploring somewhere else, a teacher will conveniently appear to shoo them back toward the lobby, assuring them that "all your questions will be answered inside".

The lobby is big and spacious, looking more like a university or perhaps a fancy international hotel than a high school. Stood around are any number of students in the uniform of the school. Some of them even look awake. There are several receptionists at the desk towards the back of the lobby, but for now they seem busy with paperwork.

Anyway, the many screens are far more interesting. Once a good number of students are gathered inside the building, they all activate at once to show a cheerful, almost cavity-inducing woman in the school uniform. She smiles, waves, and launches into her speech without further ado.

"Good afternoon to our new students here at Utopia Academy! Thank you for choosing to enroll with us for this, our first semester of the new year. Our battle system is the best in the world, set up for you, our students! I hope that you all had a fun journey here, and that you've all made some new friends! You're going to need them soon, so keep them close, okay?

"Now, I'm going to explain the rules for you. Make sure to listen carefully, and remember, you can find all of this and more in the Exaclan manual!"

She outlines the battle system for the newbies as she has every round previous, then claps her hands. The screen goes blank, and the following appears:

PLAYERS FOR ROUND 4:
Dahlia Hawthorne
Edward Elric
Gino Weinberg
Kanaya Maryam
Lelouch vi Britannia
Rudy Roughnight
Sherlock Holmes
Shiro Tougyu
Suzaku Kururugi
Takuto Tsunashi
Tomoko Oashi
Zoro Roronoa
thiefoflight: > valerie (Vriska: Speak softly.)

[personal profile] thiefoflight 2011-04-07 05:11 am (UTC)(link)
It's an unfortunate matter on Vriska's part, having shown her ignorance of the institution. But then again, when in doubt, lofty claims and bravado always put her at ease. It was simply the way she coped with such uncertainty.

As such, she would carry on as she was until she actually found privacy to catch up on all this nonsense on hand. But then again, there were always others to poke and fuss and meddle, weren't there? She turns upon hearing the voice, giving the girl before her an indifferent look.\

"Yeah?"
brokencrane: (☂ quiet; once or twice)

[personal profile] brokencrane 2011-04-07 06:01 am (UTC)(link)
"Ah, I'm sorry, I heard you talking," she explained. "Are you a Player this time? The manual says you can't have more than five Weapons at a time..."
thiefoflight: > valerie (Vriska: Carry a big stick.)

[personal profile] thiefoflight 2011-04-07 06:51 am (UTC)(link)
Vriska frowns in the slightest at the ultimatum, but otherwise remains placid as ever. Remembering Sherlock's words, Vriska simply shrugs, a bit perturbed by not being chosen to lead upon arrival. It was so unfortunate; she would have owned the role!

"Looks like I don't have the luck this time around," She claims with a bit of a shrug. "But when the time comes, I know I'm going to win all I can, rules be damned!"
brokencrane: (☂ surprise; welcome to my silly life)

[personal profile] brokencrane 2011-04-07 07:43 am (UTC)(link)
Yuka blinked; she wanted to fight? Why? "You want to be a Player...?"
thiefoflight: > valerie (Vriska: Preen.)

[personal profile] thiefoflight 2011-04-07 07:54 am (UTC)(link)
Well, if anything, this girl's surprise was a surprise to her! Players got to fight, right? Players got to control others and take prizes! They defeated everyone else, and they reaped the spoils! What was so bad about that?

"Of course I do! I don't want to end up being used by someone else, someone who might be weak and pawn me off to someone else! I want to fight! And win!" She grins, the thought of triumph absolutely thrilling her. "Is there anything wrong with that?"
brokencrane: (☂ glare; you were wrong)

[personal profile] brokencrane 2011-04-07 07:20 pm (UTC)(link)
This is roughly the part where alarm bells started going off in Yuka's head. "People still get hurt when they fight. You could really hurt someone."