Welcome to Gaia! ::

Spring was approaching, and clean, cool air was sweeping through the academy plaza. Fragrant, blooming trees surrounding the large open area like sentinels. The ground was completely polished white stone, with accents of blue marble that occasionally attracted your eyes as you looked around. various groups of students could be seen all over the place, gathering around notice boards made of magical glass. It was one of the great inventions of Entei, capable of displaying information weaved by magic. It was the very same invention that many people in the city had on their personal devices. They were very much like smart devices of Non-magic Earth, but only functioned near Arcane Crystals, huge, glowing blue shards that hovered across the city.

"Ah, the bulletin boards" chimed in Kotaro, blue eyes like sapphire peering over the various students ahead of him. He could see the academy farther away in the distance, rising high above the horizon. "A pity they're all fool's work" remarked Kaito, flashing his pink-red eye with a side-eye glare at his twin brother. The two would be almost impossible to tell apart if not for their contrasting eye colours and different shoulders. Kotaro, with near-white silver hair, blue eyes, and golden admiral shoulders was slightly more upbeat than his brother, Kaito, who had eyes of the colour of the moon in eclipse, and a warrior's silver pauldrons. "That's all very true, brother. JayBird!" Kotaro called for their trainee star, looking at him with a smile. "Do help these misguided students direct themselves to our bulletin" At that moment, Kaito brushed passed them as mumurs began to spread around the nearby students as he pulled out his device and tapped it against a vacant noticeboard. The glass lit up blue, then a spread of information appeared.

Kotaro and Kaito hadn't JayBird failing in his mission, thanks to the little amount of effort that it took to get the attention of the students here whenever it concerned the Onsen Twins.

Kaito looked physically struck, repeating Rayra's insult under his breath. It was then Rysette's, comparing them to light fixtures that caused Kotaro to scowl and clench his fists in shock. Then, the girls latched a hold of JayBird whilst he tried to retreat, whispering nonsense to him before they kissed him goodbye and went off into the Plaza. That wasn't without sticking their tongues out at the Onsen Twins, causing them to cross their arms in unison and act unbothered and disgusted at the same time. "Oh look, they scared JB into actually doing his assigned job" Kaito remarked. Kotaro then turned to watch JayBird as he said "JB? When did you nickname JayBird?"
"When I couldn't waste stage time saying his full name."

Meanwhile, at the entrance to the academy plaza, Adelia stepped into the threshold of the wide open space. Students whispered nearby as she marched through, blue scarf made from light silk wrapped around her neck and falling over her shoulders. She wore militaristic Merlin Academy uniform, and she was flanked by a small team of much taller students in similar dress code. She was at most half the height of her team, and visibly much younger too. However her eyes looked sharp, resilient, and ever observant of her surroundings. The students behind her, a mix of 4 boys and 1 girl, chatted among themselves whilst she seemingly appeared to be fine with remaining quiet. As they made their way through the Plaza some students moved out of the way, others whispered and made up rumours, but she rolled her eyes, knowing their were much worse things to worry about in the world. As she reached the bulletin boards she could hear the commotion of two boys wasting oxygen. She grimaced, hearing the sing-song theatrics of the Onsen Twins. They appeared before Adelia with the synchronized confidence of seasoned performers, Kotaro twirling a pen like a baton while Kaito unfurled a glossy flyer between his fingers. "We're organising a mission" Kotaro beamed. "Twin Supreme: Lesson One. We thought you'd bring a unique... edge.” His wink was bright. Kaito, cool and calculating, added, “Your uniformed look is quite striking. It sends a message—discipline, mystique. Students would eat it up.”

Adelia didn’t even blink. Her pale blue eyes locked onto the flyer for a moment, not out of interest but calculation. The Twins’ presence was like a performance staged for her alone, but to her, it was all static—bright lights with no heat. “My orders do not include advertisement campaigns,” she said flatly. “You mistake my appearance for availability. I do not entertain distraction.” Her hands remained behind her back, posture rigid. She glanced between them, as if assessing which was the more dangerous manipulator. “Unless you are issuing a direct command from the headmistress herself, this exchange is concluded.”

Kotaro hesitated, the smile faltering just slightly, while Kaito’s eyes narrowed. For a moment, their charm wavered under Adelia’s frosted authority. She turned on her heel without waiting for a reply, coat fluttering like a snapped banner behind her. They had come expecting a student—perhaps even a child. Instead, they had encountered a soldier still haunted by a war no one remembered but her. As she continued on down the plaza, she couldn't help but take sight of yet another set of twins she hated just as much. She planned on ignoring them. "Valeye" (i might change her name) she said kindly over her shoulder, calling the other female student in her team who had doughy and a kind demeanour. She hoped by engaging in conversation, her pretence of being distracted would work.

"Woh" came another, soft, shy voice from beside JayBird as they watched Adelia march onwards followed by her team. Aoi had appeared beside him, her team somewhere else looking at mission boards. She gave him a small smile, "hey JayBird!" She was known to be a timid girl, but she had quickly come to like JayBird after they met in class a short while ago. Whilst she thought the twins were obnoxious, she never insulted him for being a fan or teammate with them. "I haven't seen the 13th Arcane Battalion for weeks" she said, describing Adelia's elite team. They were a squad specifically put together by her, with special missions given to them by Alexis Truesvale herself. The other 12 magic battalions were adults and part of the official armed forces for the Arcas Soveignty. The 13th, which Adelia led, was the only student group and has special authority in some cases. Although half of the army of this nation was comprised of the students of the academy itself. "They say she's a monster on the battlefield... Once, before you joined, she threw another student into the lake and held him under until he nearly passed out as punishment for suggesting she couldn't lead a team at her age... At least Kotaro and Kaito just push you out of your comfort zone!"

Aoi looked up at JayBird as he decided to take his leave, returning to the twins, as he wished her luck. Aoi let out a sigh, understanding that being the henchman of the Onsen Twins was a heavy chore. The twins paid him no mind, however, continuing their theatrics as they served JayBird up on a silver platter to any ogling girls. Their performance was cut short however, as an alarm rang out through the city. Nearby arcane crystals, hovering above the city, thrummed with energy as they emitted a pulse, conjuring a forcefield around the city's inner perimeter. Then - an announcement for citizens to seek shelter emitted throughout Entei. Each of the bulletin boards and all student devices then broadcast an official summons.

"ATTENTION: ALL ABLE-BODIED STUDENTS TO ASSUME DEFENCE POSITIONS AT EASTERN COAST. THREAT: SCARRED AIR FORCE AND LAND UNITS."

Adelia stopped in her tracks, staring down the plaza towards the main entrance to the academy ahead. The siren rang out like a symphony that coddled her ears. Her team pulled out their devices to read the notice, and Adelia's lips parted slight to bear her grinning teeth as her smile grew, until she grinned like a Cheshire cat. "13th Battalion, there is no rest on the front-lines! Prepare for maximum ascension and fly-over for optimum speed." They all accepted the order, preparing their magic calculations whilst Adelia felt a presence appear from the academy. Stepping out from the darkness of the giant archway came forth Alexis Truesvale. She appeared like a queen looking down on her young army from the top of the silver steps. She looked tired... tired and angry. Adelia locked eyes with her, her smile fading away as she waited for a command. But she didn't get one... nothing yet - only the subtle nod to begin assault. Adelia turned, facing her team as she too conjured up a column of magic around her. "Launching in 3... 2... 1!"

Aoi watched as the 13th Arcane Battalion shot up into the sky, launched from arcane canons like great cannonballs that pierced the sky. Once they were as small as ants, they soared away like jets with blue glows at their feet. "AOI!" called Carmelia, "time to go."

The Onsen Twins cursed under their breath, not only were they rudely interrupted by an invasion, but they also had to travel like the other common students. "Time to let off some steam, JB" Kaito said. Kotaro then pulled out his device, it read "Team Teleportation Request". He hit the "ACCEPT" button, which flashed bright blue as it pulsed a kind of magical energy. For a small moment, the magical dust pointed at the nearest arcane crystal flying above them before it dissipated. A few moments later, arcane magic gathered around them in a circle, pre-set calculations applying themselves before locking into place, forming orbs that captured them and turned each of them into balls of blue light that shot up towards the crystal. Other students that couldn't fly at such speeds were also sucked up, all of Aoi's team included, towards their nearest arcane crystal that received them and in-turn shot them towards the farthest nearby crystal. The mega-structures at the edge of the city then launched them high into the sky as they soared towards their designated positions on the front line.

((Now going to post elsewhere!))