RWBY: Welcome to Lodestar (A Fate Core System RP) - Game Thread

[EmperorZuma]

"So, we're gonna be working together then, you want to wait until the weekend to really get going on the project, or get an early start on it? I'm gonna have to read through this 'Insert Title Here' before I can really start, anyway, so if you've got an idea I'm all ears."

Schwarz didn't even look at it while it spoke, nor when he gave his reply. "5 o'clock sharp on Friday." He then departed, making sure to keep his new White crystal for later use.

On his way out, he couldn't help but let a contorted frown cross his face for the briefest of moments. "'Insert Title Here'? That mongrel is praised when it treats the sciences so poorly?! I'm half tempted to just let the reaction get rid of it and save me the headache!"

Soon, the flash of anger subsided, and Schwarz's regular demeanor returned, though he apparently did not join his teammates after class...

 

[Drummodino]

Elva was dragging her feet leaving class for two reasons. The first was to keep an eye on Umbra who was also showing signs of lingering. The second was to put off the homework that she had been assigned. When the classroom was mostly empty she finally stood up and started packing her bag, so slowly that Jade had time to run in, grab her crystal and run out again. Following after her, Elva paused when she also noticed Umbra and Septia talking softly near the doorway. Flashbacks of exploding hotdogs coming to mind she crept closer to the pair and the snooping Jade, praying they didn't notice when she stumbled over book someone had dropped.

...that Steele kid started it when he locked up my foot."

Every time that stupid tramp opened her mouth Elva wanted to ram her foot into it. First things first though, she needed to warn her brother of Umbra's intentions. Seeing that the RFUS pair had noticed Jade, Elva took cover behind a nearby pillar and waited until they left. Once they were out of earshot she hurried over to Jade.

"Hey, I heard all of that too. I think we should go and warn my brother don't you?" she said, sisterly concern gnawing at her insides.

 

[hiei82]

"Hey, I heard all of that too. I think we should go and warn my brother don't you?"

Jade nodded at Elva. She too had a growing worry for Matt and the rest of Team MJSC. For that matter, after being caught by Umbra, she had a gnawing worry about Team JADE as well. "Yeah; let's go." Jade said, hoping it would come in time to help.as the two moved across the campus to find their brother/friend, Jade's worried feeling grew and she became more and more concerned. She quickened her pace; just in case.

They found Matt - and Amber for that matter - in the dinning hall. Jade walked over to them and took a seat next to Amber. "I don't know what you did to Umbra, but she's out for blood." Jade said, getting straight to the point. "I heard he talking to her teammate... the green one. Seems like all of Team RFUS is up to something so I thought I'd let you know."

She answered any questions they might have had, grabbed some food, and went back to the dorms. She had no intention of being anywhere where Umbra or her partners might be able to do something to them. Several hours passed and, as expected, nothing happened.

Spoiler: OOC and checks

Everyone needs to make me at least 1 check; Claire (and others) MAY need to make me 2. The checks are as follows:

1) Notice DC 4: Schwarz - Check to Notice Umbra stealing your White Crystal and leaving some of Claire's hair behind.

2) Athletics DC 3: Jet, Diamond, Amber, & Matt - Check vs. Sprinklers going off, destroying all paperwork completed. (Flammmel set off using Semblance)

3) Notice DC 3: Claire - Check to Notice Umbra planting crystal in your stuff (only if Schwarz fails his notice)

4) Athletics DC 3: Claire, Jade, & Elva - Check vs. Dorm rooms collapsing. (Rufus used Semblance to collapse that section of dorms)

Events occur in same order as listed checks (Crystal stolen, Sprinklers set off, Crystal planted, then Dorms collapse). It's possible additional characters may need to make checks if they somehow get involved in a future check (i.e. if Jet leaves the library after the sprinklers, he might make it back to the dorms in time for the collapse)

I know this is complicated; let me know if you have any questions

 

[Arcanist]

"Right... Your Semblance lets you control and sort of extend yourself into stone and earth, doesn't it? The way you made that pillar out of the stone floor yesterday, and what I think you might've done with the floor here would make that the most likely explanation for it. Makes sense that you used an Earth Crystal for that sorta thing too. That's actually part of the reason why I was hoping you'd tutor me: I've got a physical Semblance of my own, but nothing quite that spectacular. All it really does it help me smash crap."

"I guess that's one way to put it. I'm still fuzzy on the details." He shoves a biscuit into his mouth before continuing, chewing loudly. "It seems like every other time I use it, something weird happens. Like that crystal - I was expecting it to enhance it, sure, but that was... not what I expected."

He swallows his mouthful with a boorish gulp. "But if you want my help just because I have a similar Semblance, I'm not sure I can do that. They're based on, y'know, us.." He waves his hands around a bit to punctuate his point, gesturing towards himself and Amber in turn. "I can't teach you how to use it any more than I could tell you about yourself. Which isn't to say that's impossible, just probably not as productive as you'd think." He starts to clear up his dinnerware, having finally finished his impressive meal. He had homework to complete, after all. 'Although...' he pauses for a moment, thinking. Even if Umbra were interfering with Amber's attempt to summon her Aura, there was only so much she could do without making her presence known, even with a Semblance like the one he suspected she had.

If Amber felt like she needed the help, and thought he was the best option... who was he to turn her down? Isn't that why he came to Lodestar in the first place? Sure, he probably wasn't Hunter material himself, but if he could help anybody else...

"But, uh, if you want to study Aura together, I guess we can meet up later." The words come out with surprising ease, all things considered. Maybe because this was absolutely academic in intent. Yea, that was it! It was just helping a friend, is all.

He grimaces internally. Even he didn't buy that. 'Well, one thing at a time.'

He's pulled from his thoughts by Jade, with Elva in tow, suddenly taking up a seat next to Amber. He smiles and waves hello, but the smile falls almost instantly with Jade's words: "I don't know what you did to Umbra, but she's out for blood."

"Oh." He says rather lamely, releasing a held sigh. "I, uh, guess I shouldn't be surprised."

"I heard he talking to her teammate... the green one. Seems like all of Team RFUS is up to something so I thought I'd let you know."

He grimaces, this time visibly. Umbra on her own would be a nightmare to deal with, but her entire team? This was going to be very unpleasant.

He rubs the back of his neck to try and calm his nerves. "I, um, guess I owe all of you an explanation..." He stops and looks around. No sight of team RFUS... and Umbra would likely have made a move by now if she were there. "I... might have welded Umbra's feet to the floor during class. B...but I had a good reason! She was going to do something weird to team MECH, and... it was the only thing I could think to do." He feels the heat rising in his cheeks, along with his embarrassment. Dust, he had all class to think of how to break the news to the others, and that was the best he could come up with?

He sighs and continues his story. This was going to be a very long day...

 

[Pappytech]

"5 o'clock sharp on Friday."

"...So is that at our dorm room or the library?" Claire called out to Schwarz's retreating back. "Mr. Zaan? No? Okay, we'll figure the location out later then. Sounds good."

Well, the young woman mused as she made a new entry on her Scroll's calender, she probably wouldn't be getting much help from her 'partner' on this particular project. Briefly, she wondered if Schwarz intended to comply with Prof. Francis' instructions at all.

Eh, it'd be alright. This wasn't anything she couldn't get through with a bit of elbow grease and some late nights.

Putting the thoughts about Schwarz and their project out of her head, Claire snapped her attention back to the rest of the table just in time to catch Jade's entrance and warning to Matt. "I don't know what you did to Umbra, but she's out for blood."

Umbra? It took the Faunus a second to put a face to the name... Right, the black haired girl. Yeah, she had a vicious look about her alright; what had Matt done to piss her off? "I... might have welded Umbra's feet to the floor during class."

"Huh. That's not a sentence you hear everyday."

Claire listened to the rest of Matt's explanation as she finished her food, nodding along as her leader went through his motivation and thought process. Well, there were certainly worse ways he could've handled the situation, and though Claire didn't look forward to having to deal with RFUS's retaliation, at least she knew it was coming. "So, we just need to keep an eye out for any shenanigans from RFUS? Alright, seems straightforward enough. Thanks for the heads up, Mr. Leader; I'll let Mr. Zaan or Jet know if I run into them."

Clearing her dishes, the Faunus nodded to the rest of the group and headed off. Whether or not she was being targeted, she had work to do.

[hr]

The library was just as cavernous as it had been last night, but luckily Claire's search was far narrower this time around. She just had to find a copy of that one paper Schwarz had mentioned on the databases, if she could just remember what it was called... Ah, The Properties of Violet and its Effects on Other Dust Reactions, here it was! She'd have to make sure not to forget the title this time around. Quickly hitting the 'print' button, the girl made her way to a printer to collect her prize, leaving her bag next to the computer for now.

Sure, she could've just pulled a copy down from the Net onto her Scroll, but there was just something reassuring about flicking through a thick sheaf of paper. It was almost as if you could feel the weight of the knowledge in your hand. And besides, Claire reflected as she made her way back to the computer station, there was nothing better than the smell of freshly printed-

She suddenly drew up short, a couple meters away from her computer. This was... odd. Confused, the Faunus extended her tongue a few times, tasting the air around her. Yeah, there was definitely something standing right next to her stuff. Something that was apparently entirely invisible. Huh.

"Uh... Hi?" Claire began, trying to wave at the anomaly. Shit, am I hallucinating?

Surprisingly, the strange presence started to move away, carefully skirting around Claire and dashing off into the depths of the library. In a matter of seconds, it was beyond the range of her senses, and the Faunus just stared bemusedly after it.

Setting the paper aside, she took a few seconds to examine the area around her workstation. At first nothing suspicious turned up, but when she looked inside of her bag: "The hell did this come from?" Claire muttered, hefting a White Dust crystal. She certainly hadn't put it in there, and White Dust wasn't something you came across everyday. The only time she'd seen it today, in fact, had been when Schwarz had...

"Ah." And suddenly things made much more sense. It wasn't exactly hard to see that Schwarz had a thing against Faunuses. Anyone, especially team RFUS, could have picked up on that easily enough. And what better way to rip a team apart then appealing to some racist stereotypes.

Groaning in exasperation, Claire tucked the crystal back into her bag. Assuming the invisible presence was either from RFUS or even one of its members, it must've stolen the White Dust off of Schwarz recently. If he noticed that it was gone, he was probably going to be pissed. She just hoped he'd listen to her explanation.

...Yeah, right, like that was gonna happen.

[hr]

A couple hours later, and Claire was still the only one in the MJSC dorm room. Damn, she'd hoped someone would've come back so she could share her strange experience with them, but apparently luck wasn't on her side in this. Still, she had some reading to do, so it wasn't like she was bored or anything.

RUMBLE

And she certainly wasn't bored when the building started to shake around her.

 

[Texas Joker 52]

(( Amber ))​

She took the time to take a bite of her own lunch as Matt digested her summary of his semblance, before he went on to explain that he probably couldn't help too much, what with a person's Semblance being very much a personal thing. The Faunus girl nodded with a small grimace. There was a small pause while Amber took a long swallow of the sugary energy drink she had snatched up when she piled food onto her tray before Matt spoke up again.

"But, uh, if you want to study Aura together, I guess we can meet up later."

After wiping her mouth with the back of her hand, she looked over and gave him a smile.

"I'd like that. And maybe, y'know, we could talk about... Stuff and things, over lunch or something." she said with a slight stammer, before quickly adding, "Not that we aren't already doing that now."

She was infinitely thankful when they were joined by Jade and Elva, saving her from making an even bigger idiot of herself.

"I don't know what you did to Umbra, but she's out for blood. I heard he talking to her teammate... the green one. Seems like all of Team RFUS is up to something so I thought I'd let you know."

"Ugh, them again? Too bad we can't do something to stop them here and now. Like, I don't know, break Ochre's legs or something? I'd be into that." Amber pointed out, waving around the half-empty can of her energy drink for emphasis.

But she stopped and turned to Matt when he said that he owed them an explanation: That when his turn came to make some sort of demonstration of Dust Application, he had noticed that Umbra was about to cause trouble for a member of Team MECH, and used her Earth Crystal to amplify his Semblance, welding her feet to the floor.

When he was done, Amber nodded slowly.

"Makes sense. I for one think you did the right thing, since RFUS is full of all kinds of bad news. We might wanna warn Team MECH too, since they seem to have a grudge against them too." she said before pushing herself up and rolling her shoulders, "I'm off to the library. I need to look up Dust Synthesis."

[hr]

Amber had to give Lodestar credit, the library in Arachnae Hall had more textbooks on Dust, Aura, and every other aspect of being a Huntsman than she knew what to do with, though that wasn't saying much. And while she wasn't exactly one for book-smarts, she managed to follow some of what the texts said regarding synthesizing different forms of Dust, though the rest escaped her entirely.

Still, she had managed a nice stack of notes, all written in surprisingly legible, though blocky, handwriting. She began to leaf through them after closing the book she had been reading through for references when she heard a click above her.

"Hrngh?" she grunted in confusion, glancing around until she could feel the sprinklers begin to drench her, and everything else in the library with freezing cold water.

Pushing out of her chair, she sputtered and scrambled to find something to cover her head with before realizing just what that water would do to her notes. She rushed to grab them, only for the soaked paper to fall apart in her hands. Kicking the chair in front of her with a growl, she snatched up her bag and promptly stuffed the books she was referencing into it, looking around with a murderous glare behind her hair.

"RFUS... Oh, you're all dead, you just don't know it yet!" she hissed, stomping to the exit with a snarl.

What sounded like an earthquake made her pause in confusion before she started to pick up the pace. If that sound was RFUS too, then what more did they have planned, besides giving everyone in the library an unscheduled cold shower? She actually dreaded finding out.

When she got outside, she could see what looked like smoke and dust pouring out of Beowolf Hall, and she shook her soaking wet head as she broke into a sprint.

"No... No, you gotta be kidding me!" she cried out as she burst inside.

 

[Drummodino]

Matt's recap of the classroom events and how he'd managed to piss Umbra off even more made Elva even more mad. He really had an unfortunate habit of attracting the ire of bullies and jerks, which had caused a few issues back at Sanctuary. She'd gotten in trouble more than a few times for trying to defend him violently, which did not always end well for the pair of them. She wouldn't hesitate to do so again though, Team RFUS wouldn't be getting to her brother without going through her first.

After they finished eating Elva tagged along with Amber to the library and picked up the books Professor Francis had suggested. While Amber stayed there and got stuck into it Elva retreated to their dorm. She wasn't a big fan of libraries, the towering bookcases filled with dusty tomes combined with the unnatural hush found in such places made her feel claustrophobic and awkward. Besides, if Matt showed up there she suspected Amber would not want his sister hanging around.

[hr]

"I'm boooooooooooored!"

Elva complained as she threw the textbook to the foot of her bed. She'd been struggling through the hefty volume for over an hour now and was thoroughly sick of "safety precautions" and "proper techniques". While she had learnt some useful things and jotted down some notes, she wanted to know more about what Dust could do, not just the basics of synthesizing it. Jumping off the bed she stretched her arms before wandering to the door. She'd done enough to deserve a break, maybe someone from MJSC or MECH was around to chat with. She entered MJSC's room and saw Claire just as the ceiling started groaning. Looking up in surprise, she saw a beam trembling and then give way right above Claire's head!

"Look out!" she yelled rushing forward, taking a running leap and tackling the faunus girl out of the way of the falling timber. Grabbing Claire's hand as she scrambled to her feet, she pulled the other girl towards the door. They just barely got out as the whole ceiling collapsed and buried everything inside.

"Are... are you okay?" she asked, breathing heavily from the sudden exertion and adrenaline rush. It took her a couple of seconds to realize she was still gripping Claire's hand tightly, when she finally did she released it with a jerk.

"Oh sorry, I hope I didn't hurt you." she said, cringing slightly internally.

 

[EmperorZuma]

Schwarz had decided to spent the rest of the day in a private lab, getting to the components for his project together. Frankly, he was trying to do all the work, save for the actual fusion, before he even brought the Faunus in on the procedure. His idea was simple: have her deal with the volatile reaction and nothing else, since it was all she was really good for.

However, after spending what seemed like just a few minutes cutting away at a Blue crystal, Schwarz looked back to see that the container for the White crystal he made during class had been opened, and was now empty. "That thieving mongrel!" Schwarz needed little proof to know who had committed the crime: obviously Schwarz's Faunus "partner" wanted to undercut him, and rob him of his effort!

After making sure to lock up what he had already done, Schwarz stormed off to the dorms. If he was in a calmer mood, he might have felt a slight tremble as a column of dust rose from the freshmen dorms...

 

[Arcanist]

"I'd like that. And maybe, y'know, we could talk about... Stuff and things, over lunch or something. Not that we aren't already doing that now.

He chuckles to himself - it was good to know he wasn't the only one completely lost about how these things were supposed to go. "Yea, I'd like that too. Just not now. I think we have work to do."

After cleaning up his dishes, Matt made his way to Lodestar's library. Arachnae Hall was the ideal place to study, as far as he was concerned - not only were all of the various books and computer terminals already in place, but it was quiet, and above all else it wasn't freezing cold and prone to sudden drafts like his dorm room. In fact, he mused, it would be pretty hard to make his dorm any less hospitible to long-term habitation - something he suspected was likely the point. Lodestar put a pretty large premium on hands-on education, and, well, Hunters had to get used to the idea that their lives weren't terribly comfortable.

He shrugged off those thoughts and took a seat at the nearest table, cracking open a book and his notes. He'd managed to copy down some essentials from the class blackboard before class let out, in addition to some miscellanious observations from others' presentations. It wouldn't be all that hard to develop a new procedure to showcase at next week's class, with all of that information so readily at his fingertips. All he had to do was knuckle down... and...

Wait. Was that... smoke? Matt's nose perked at the sour smell. His hackles raised - the library was decidedly a no-smoking zone, and on top of that smoking was terrible for you! He looked around, trying to find the source of the smell, but to no avail.

He was pulled from his task, however, at the sound of a sudden, sharp click above him - followed immediately afterwards by a sudden torrent of freezing cold water. He sputtered in shock, trying to regain his composure, until realizing he'd foolishly left the entirety of his notes completely exposed to the elements! He dove to close his notebook, but if the small trail of black leaking out of its edges was any indication, he was far too late to save its contents.

He groans. It was rather convenient timing that this would go off just as he was getting ready to do his homework, wasn't it? He had little doubt team RFUS was involved, even if he had no real proof. 'One thing at a time. Get out of this library before I ruin my uniform, too...'

Quickly gathering his soaked things, he bolts from the library, soaked to the bone and absolutely freezing.

[hr]

After taking a few minutes to swing by the lockers near the combat arena and swap out his soaked clothes, Matt began the trek back to the dorms. His hair was still soaking wet, as were most of the things he was carrying back, but at least now he was in warm, dry clothing again - his usual combat attire, sans the armor. He needed to warn the rest of his team right away, and team MECH, and...

'Dust, what have I gotten myself into this time?' He sighs to himself - getting into a spat with someone as vicious as Umbra was not how he expected his first week at Lodestar to go.

As he finishes the final leg towards the dorm, however, a loud rumble followed by a pillar of dust rising in the direction of the dorms catches his attention. Without wasting a second, he breaks out into a full sprint, bolting into the decrepit building and towards his room - or, rather, where his room used to be.

The entire room had fallen out from under itself, by the looks of it. The remnants of their beds and decorum laid one floor below, buried under a pile of miscellanious rubble. Luckily, nobody else was directly underneath them, so there wasn't any risk of injury from that, but that didn't stop fear from rising up in the pit of his stomach. "Oh... oh no! Is everyone okay?!" He called down, scanning the pile of rubble.

 

[Texas Joker 52]

(( Amber ))​

Once Amber was in the dorm building, she rushed up to the second floor where Team JADE and MJSC's dorms were. It didn't take long for her to realize that she wasn't the first to check there after hearing the rumbling. She spotted Elva, Matt and Claire just outside of the door to MJSC's dorm. As the two girls huddled together away from the smoke, Amber skidded to Matt's side as he stared into the doorway. When she did the same, she gaped. The dorm was gone, with everything that wasn't bolted to the walls buried under rubble the floor below.

"Oh... oh no! Is everyone okay?!"

After a moment's hesitation, she dropped down the hole where the floor used to be and onto the rubble before she started to dig through the rubble. She didn't stop until she was certain that there was no one buried underneath the remains of flooring and furniture, and by that point she sat back and sighed heavily.

She was soaking wet, covered in a thick layer of dust and grime, and her hands had a plethora of cuts and scrapes that needed to get cleaned. As she contemplated just how she was going to take it out on Ochre and the rest of his team, a small glint caught her eye and she glanced across from her at a familiar, broken picture frame.

Her eyes widened as she quickly scrambled over and grabbed it, her voice caught in her throat as she tried to make sure her family photo wasn't torn or stained beyond recognition. She only relaxed when she saw that it was just the glass that was broken, and the picture inside only had some dirt on it. Taking the remains of the frame apart, she pulled the picture out and got to her feet.

When she looked up at Matt, she was baring her teeth in a feral snarl.

"RFUS is gonna pay for this." she growled, before turning away and adding as she strode off, "I'm going to take a shower and get my hands seen to, then we can come up with a plan for payback."

 

[Pappytech]

An overpowering groaning filled the air as the room seemed to warp around Claire, its walls shifting like they were suddenly made of gelatin. The floor, previously so solid, shook and bucked like an irate Grimm, nearly sending the Faunus tumbling head over heels. As it was, she just barely managed to stagger to her feet, tightly clutching her bag and swords to her chest. Her instincts guiding her, the girl struggled over towards the doorway, using her free hand to help hobble along as quickly as she could. She had to get out, had to get outside before-

A particularly vicious tremor tossed her into the far wall. Grimacing from the pain, Claire stayed there for just a second too long. As an earsplitting crack slashed through her ears, the girl's eyes were jerked upwards, towards the ceiling beam that, finally breaking free of its moorings, had apparently decided that the fastest way to the ground involved going straight through her face.

Claire froze, staring in numb shock as the heavy block of wood flashed towards her. At the last instant, she reflexively closed her eyes, her body unwilling to watch what was about to happen...

"Look out!"

Then, the impact. But not the massive one she had expected; this one was significantly softer, though no less urgent. It was still enough to send Claire hurtling back a couple meters and to her back. Gritting her teeth, the Faunus opened in her eyes in a welcome mixture of shock and surprise, staring at her unexpected savior. "El-Elva?"

"Come on!" the smaller girl shouted, latching onto Claire's hand and dragging her back to her feet. With a surprising amount of ferocity, Elva guided the both of them through the collapsing building, her footing sure despite the destruction raining down around them. It was all Claire could do to keep up; the only reason she didn't fall again was the other girl's almost frighteningly tight grip on her hand.

After what seemed like a short eternity, the students finally escaped the disaster, emerging out onto solid ground. Breathing heavily, Claire turned around as soon as they were a safe distance away, staring in hopeless shock as the rest of the building fell to the ground in a cloud of dust. Dust, even a fully trained Hunter would've had some trouble surviving that...

"How the..." she breathed, trying to think about what might've caused the dorm to collapse. Earthquake? Years of abuse and neglect? A previously undiscovered species of termite-like Grimm? Buildings didn't just go falling down for no reason, after all. But the Faunus was quickly broken from her thoughts when Elva spoke up.

"Are... are you okay?" the smaller girl gasped out. Claire glanced at her classmate, trying to formulate a response. Elva had saved her? Even though she'd been effectively reduced to dead weight?

"I..." Claire paused, just as much to gather her own thoughts as to give her body a quick once-over. "...Yes. Yes, it looks like I'm fine."

Suddenly, there was an absence of pressure on her hand. Glancing down, Claire saw that Elva had only just now let go. For an instant, the young woman actually missed the almost-painful, but reassuring grip. "Oh sorry, I hope I didn't hurt you," Elva said, apologetically.

That was enough to click Claire's thoughts back into action. "Hurt me!?" she gasped. "You just pulled me out of a collapsing building! I think hurting me is probably the absolute last thing you need to worry about right now. Oh Dust... Thank you, by the way," she finished lamely, looking to the side. Dammit, she wasn't exactly good at this.

Luckily she was spared from further awkwardness by the timely arrival by Matt and Amber. "Oh... oh no! Is everyone okay?!"

"I, I think so," Claire managed. Had there been anyone else in the building? She thought she'd seen Jade hanging around earlier...

"RFUS is gonna pay for this."

"Wait... You think they did this? They destroyed an entire building for the sake of a prank!?" The Faunus was flabbergasted. A "prank" like this could've easily killed someone, even ignoring the tens of thousands of Lien it dealt in damage! "...Oh no," Claire squeaked out, turning back to face the wreckage, "my models..."

 

[Drummodino]

"You just pulled me out of a collapsing building! I think hurting me is probably the absolute last thing you need to worry about right now. Oh Dust... Thank you, by the way,"

"Ehehe, don't mention it. I'm sure anyone would have done the same." Elva said. Now that the adrenaline was fading she was feeling awkward for some reason. Luckily the arrival of their teammates distracted her.

"Oh... oh no! Is everyone okay?!"

"We're fine Matt!" she called up, waving to her brother above them. "I don't think our stuff is though..."

 

[Terratina.]

Jet was in a world of his own. The research was going well, turned out there was a multitude of uses for Dust. Ever since the peoples of Remnant had gotten their hands on the stuff, they'd found new ways to use it. Jet carried on reading the book in his hands but there was something gnawing at the edge of his world: a sour smell invading his nostrils. Jet wrinkled his nose and tried to get on with the assignment but a small click set his thoughts racing.

'Sour smell, now this... Wait...' Fortunately, that train of thought was quick enough to reach a conclusion. In a flash, Jet grabbed the pile of scribbles that were his notes. One hand had the notes, the other the textbook. Jet hurried out of the library as a soft hiss accompanied the activation of the sprinker and the descent of a million water droplets. By the door, Jet shook himself. The notes were still legible but spots of wetness encroached on the scribbles of ink. Not totally ruined but they could do with a few minutes until the hairdrier. The same could be same for the textbook. Jet shuddered, both from the creeping coldness from the damp and at the very act itself. Just how many textbooks had been ruined? If it was Team RFUS, well, they were pushing it...

Jet wandered off to the men's toliets and spent a few minutes dangling the semi-damp items until they became reasonably dry and tried not to let the sprinkler stunt bother him. Faunus prejudice was, unfortunately, everywhere and it wouldn't be the first time idiots acted like idiots... He expected better from Lodestar students but stupidly was commonplace. Then, just as the Owl Faunus exited the bathroom, a disquietingly loud rumble shook him from his thoughts.

'Dust, what now?' The thought was accompanied with a sigh as Jet investigated the sound's source. He ran outside and stopped at the sight of a pillar of dust where Beowolf Dorm was supposed to be it. He continued onward. There, Jet saw what happened to the poor building and bumped into his teammates as well as members of Team JADE. The Owl Faunus tried to keep his temper in check, but it was in vain. This was the sort of thing which drove the White Fang to kill and terrorise and continue the cycle of violence. Didn't they know? Didn't they realise? Of course not. Imbeciles. Jet threw down his soaked hat in frustation, "Those idiots!"

 

[Redryhno]

Di took to the library and set herself firmly in the midst of multiple books recommended by Elva's list. Basic Dust Mechanics, a History of the Theoretical Uses of Dust, Tried and Tested Dust Uses, and Creation of Basic Dust Geometry being just a few of the titles. Hands numb from copious notetaking and eyes converging on one another's sight a while later caused her to put her books down and take a break for a few moments. Leaning back in her chair, and looking directly above at the sprinkler placed, she noticed a certain scent with her Faunus nose, coupled with the three clicks from above, triggered her to throw her papers together with her Scroll and dive under the table she currently was working at, a heartbeat after the water rained down around her, clutching the notes to her chest before making a dash for the nearest exit.

Breathing a sigh of relief that the pages had only gotten the edges wet, she exited the building and decided that her studying in the library for the rest of the day would not be something that would be happening. Straightening everything out, she took a direct route to the dorm, slightly annoyed she was unable to study to her maximum potential in the library, but she could still review notes and quiz herself at least.

Rounding the corner, she was greeted by her side of the Hall collapsed and her team and Matt's gathered outside of it. That must've been the sound she'd heard earlier but had paid no notice to, she'd been busy with her notes at that moment.

"No," She whispered as realization hit her,"No-no-no-no-no-no-no-no-no-no-no,"She continued to say increasing in volume, dropping her notes and rushing towards where her dorm would be, knocking over somebody in the process.

Jumping into the still not settled rubble, she began digging through it. It had to be here somewhere, surely. Ripping through the cement and wood, she finally caught a glimpse of it, her handmade pillow she herself had made. Paying no mind to the precarious positioning of the broken building pieces over her, she crawled into the space and frantically stretched out for it, barely out of her reach, her breathing ragged and on the verge of tears.

"WILL ANYONE PLEASE HELP ME!?"

She futilely continued reaching for it, her nails scraping the corner of it. She'd lost everything else related to home, she couldn't lose this too.

 

[hiei82]

"WILL ANYONE PLEASE HELP ME!?" Di called out.

From beneath the rubble, a hand pushed itself free and knocked the pillow close enough for Di to grab. Jade's muffled voice said something from beneath a support beam and mattress.

A few minutes prior, she'd been resting on her bed in the room. Well; resting wasn't exactly the right word. True she was in her pajamas but she was busy reading up on Aura Manipulation for Prof. duPrince's class. The material wasn't exactly hard in theory; only in practice.

However, when the day seemed to be drawing toward it's close, she felt something. The room shook a little. At first she thought it was just some idiot misusing their aura or something. As the rumbling grew however, she became slightly worried. Her worry reached it's peak when the floor beneath her bed gave way causing her and the bed to crash down into the living area on the first floor.

She didn't have time to think as the rest of the room swiftly followed. She dodged out of the way of debris as it fell; some of it narrowly missing her by little more than luck alone. Rolling off the bed, Jade tried to escape outside but was quickly cut off by more falling material. Cut off from escape, Jade did the best thing she could do and jumped under the most intact of the furniture - Diamond's bed - in hopes of weathering the storm instead.

While this succeeded, one of the support beams crashed down atop the bed, breaking it's legs and pinning her beneath it. Her only saving grace was that the flimsy mattress served to spread the weight of it all out while being porous enough that she could breath through it. Unable to move or make much noise, she waited; hoping one of the others would help her out.

At some point there after, she heard someone digging through the wreckage, but couldn't make enough noise to draw said person's attention. After everything settled down, she heard Diamond scream about help. Jade pushed the wreckage around her arm - including the pillow - as best she could, hoping to draw the attention of whoever helped Di (who had somehow gotten caught up in this as well).

Meanwhile, outside the wreckage, a handful of other teams made there way over to see what all the ruckus was about. Among them were Team MECH - who quickly jumped into action clearing debris - and Team RFUS (minus the S) who started things off by laughing at the team's expense. Umbra in particular was on the ground, laughing. Flammel seemed more than content to poke at the rubble to see what happened.

Rufus however was perhaps the most annoying, having quickly taken to poking fun at the disenfranchised teams. "I have to say, I'm impressed you managed to break the dorm in less than a week. This has GOT to be a new record."

 

[Texas Joker 52]

(( Amber ))​

As Amber was about to round the corner, she was bumped into by a familiar figure with round ears and pushed back against the wall as they rushed towards the devastation. She was about to growl at them when she recognized who it was: Di. And she was panicking. It was enough to make her pause and start to stride up behind her as the girl started to dig through the rubble.

When she reached the scene, the Badger Faunus had already crawled into a small space in the debris.

"WILL ANYONE PLEASE HELP ME!?"

As Amber ripped away some of the drywall and wood that was covering Di, she saw a hand push a handmade pillow into the girl's arms. Jade's hand.

"What the... Jade?! Hold on, Boss Girl, we'll get you out!" she called, mentally kicking herself for not being more thorough.

As Team MECH came up behind them to help, she tore at the rubble with new vigor until finally she pulled away the mattress on top of her while the largest member of Team MECH pulled away the support beam. While he pulled Jade onto her feet, Amber stepped back and sighed. She was about to ask if Jade was alright when she heard laughter from just outside in the hall.

Team RFUS, or most of them anyway, were laughing as they cleared away the debris and tried to save what little they had that was precious from the wreckage. While Umbra was content to laugh as she rolled on the floor, Ochre was more direct.

"I have to say, I'm impressed you managed to break the dorm in less than a week. This has GOT to be a new record."

"You." she murmured, her tone practically dripping with venom as she started to advance toward him, "You know, I would've been content with just beating you to a pulp in the arena, but I've changed my mind. I'm gonna convert you into a red smear on the floor instead!" she finished with a roar.

 

[Arcanist]

"We're fine Matt! I don't think our stuff is though..." Matt released a held breath, relief evident. Things could be replaced; people couldn't. "Okay, good." He leaped down to the ground floor, landing with a dull thud near a small pile of debris. "We should get started. The sooner we clear this up, the better." He started to scoop up large piles of shattered wood, starting the work of clearing out a the space their rooms had once occupied.

"Steele, right?" Michelle Vert, leader of team MECH, strode over, her face fixed in a deadpan expression. "I don't think we've been properly introduced. Lodestar's guidelines recommends the team leaders get to know each other better."

"No, we haven't." He looks back at the shattered remains of his dorm room with a grimace. "I'm, uh, sorry we had to meet like this. Not exactly my best moment..."

Michelle snorts in response. "Yea, you can stop dancing around the issue. I'm not blind, you know."

"Uh, come again?"

"Like I said, Steele, I'm not blind. The dorm room of two teams just so happen to collapse, at exactly the same time and in the same way, for no apparent reason?" Matt sighs, burying his face in his hands. "I guess it does sound pretty suspicious, when you put it like that..."

"I've had a... chat... with Ochre. He's quite the character." Her face slowly sets into a frown. "I'd bet good Lien he's behind this, for no other reason than to spite the Faunus members of your team."

"Yea, I know. Trust me, I know." He groans as he recalls that he'd chickened out of telling her team about his antics in class earlier that day - something he had to rectify as soon as possible. Now, however, seeing to his dorm's devastation had to take top priority. "Look, we should talk later - with Jade, too, if possible. A conference of team leaders, I guess."

"That's a good idea." Michelle's eyes seem to flash for a moment as she registers something happening behind Matt. "Speak of the devil, and she shall appear." She jerks her head to gesture behind Matt, and he turns to see a very dazed-looking Jade being pulled from the rubble by Erik and Amber. "She looks no worse for wear - she must be a lucky one."

"Yea, that's Jade for you. Her luck always seems to kick in at the weirdest times."

"Heh, I sense a few stories there. You'll have to tell me more about..." She trails off, her expression becoming unfocused for a moment, before her head snaps to the side. "Ochre at three-o-clock."

Again, Matt groans. He shouldn't be surprised to see him here, really, but did he have to come down just to laugh at them?

'That's a stupid question, of course he would.' He turns to ignore his taunts, motioning to clear out more rubble. He had a few ideas as to how to solve this problem, but all of them would require clear spaces to work, and there was no point in dallying to satisfy Rufus's ego.

"You."

Matt freezes. That was a tone he'd heard before - from his sister, after one particular incident at Sanctuary had gotten out of hand. They'd nearly thrown her out, after the parents of the student she'd summarily brutalized complained to the administration.

'Rufus... isn't worth this. He isn't worth our anger, and he certainly isn't worth our place at Lodestar.' He whips around and sprints to Amber, who was rearing back, preparing to charge. Before she can get her footing and start, Matt ropes an arm around her torso, quickly threading the other between her arms to pin them to her back. With a short heft, he lifts her off her feet. "A-amber, wait!"

"Aww, what's wrong, Steele? Having trouble controlling your pets?" The smug chuckle he issues makes Matt's hair bristle, though he doesn't falter in his grapple. "I mean, first they wreck your house, and now they're lashing out every which way. You should really keep a leash on hand."

 

[Texas Joker 52]

(( Amber ))​

If there was anything that could have held Amber back as she stomped her way towards the object of her ire, it was Matt, though it was clear that the Goat Faunus wasn't particularly happy about being stopped. As he wrapped an arm around her chest, he used his other hand to pin both of her arms to her back and lifted her off of her feet.

"Aww, what's wrong, Steele? Having trouble controlling your pets? I mean, first they wreck your house, and now they're lashing out every which way. You should really keep a leash on hand."

She had a moment of confusion as her feet left the ground, but her recovery was quick when she heard Ochre's quip, and she redirected her snarl back at Matt.

"Hey! Put me down! All I want to do is beat that smug little prick into a pulpy mass! He has it coming!" she growled, even as she struggled in his grip.

Said struggles consisted mainly of kicking feet and wriggling in his arms, but she did take some care not to hit him accidentally. After all, she didn't want to hit Matt, just Ochre. What she forgot was the fact that she was still soaking wet thanks to the sprinklers set off in the library. Before too long she stopped struggling entirely with a rising flush to her cheeks.

"Alright, fine." she ground out through clenched teeth, "I won't beat him up. Yet. So you can put me down now, Matt."

 

[Pappytech]

Tuning out Amber's shouts and the scuffling in the background, Claire stared morosely at the collapsed building for a moment. Dammit, almost all of her stuff had been in there. She'd liked her stuff. Although in hindsight, getting attached to belongings that could survive a collapsing building, as opposed to toys that might break if you looked at them the wrong way, might have been a good idea.

Still. You lived and learned. And just standing around and pouting wasn't going to fix anything.

Her heart rate and adrenaline levels finally lowered to their normal levels, the Faunus cast one last glance at the wreckage of her dorm room before spinning on her heel and marching back towards the rest of campus. Though she spared time for a quick wave goodbye to Jade and Elva, she didn't bother sparing any attention for Rufus and his cohorts. "Hey, Mr. Boss-Man," Claire said, addressing Matt as he gingerly released Amber, "I'm going to go let the faculty know what happened. See if they've got any other housing open. Or maybe at least some sleeping bags. ...Actually, yeah, a camp-out might be fun. Build a fire, roast marshmallows, tell ghost stories..."

 

[Redryhno]

Seeing the pillow thrown towards her by an unknown hand, Di snatched it and left the crawlspace. Signaling and helping Jade out of the wreckage of the dorm, she left and sat by a collapsed wall, clutching the pillow.

"You."

Seeing the situation play out, she sniffed and wiped her face, the pillow crisis averted. Taking it with her, she walked towards Rufus. Standing in front of him, she looked him in the eyes.

"I came here to learn and become a Grimm Hunter,"She started,"Not to screw around with more of your kind, if I find you responsible for this or anything else, I'll make sure your team won't have a reason to be called RFUS anymore."