A few days later, after the details of the incident were made official, Kurt and his army of thugs were all expelled from Areon Academy in disgrace. Losing 101 of their fellow students left the remaining 1,899 students out of sorts for a while, but not quite as much as Shiro did; in defeating Kurt before his expulsion, Shiro had now taken his rank as 6th strongest fighter in the academy. Now, Shiro sits in the stands in the Battle Class with his new friends, except for Gright, who was in a fighting ring. "I still can't believe you're rank 6 now," said Dinah. Shiro chuckles. "Believe me, I'm surprised, too" he said. "You realise the last top 5 students will probably start setting their sights on you now" said Adora. "Yeah, I had thought about that. Probably those Mark and Leo guys first, since they saw my fight at the entrance ceremony" said Shiro. "Still casual as ever, huh?" said Max. "I may not look it, but I am taking this seriously" Shiro said "I was planning on asking my dad for advice later." "Oh, you're asking your father?" asked Silvy. "Yeah, the old man's a great example of how with age comes wisdom" said Shiro. Everyone chuckles. Everyone then hears Gright yelling from the arena. "Hey, Shiro!" he said "Mr. Arnald said it's time to switch out." "Oh, ok, I'm coming" said Shiro. Shiro jumps down from his seat and makes his way down from the stands. Adora hums and thinks "He talks a lot about his dad, but we've never actually met him." Later, after another impressive display of magic combat from Shiro, at the end of the day, everyone walks out the academy's exit, and everyone sees large magic seals on the ground. "These magic circles are really cool" said Shiro. "Yeah, there's one here and one in our territories of Tamriel, and lets us do instant teleportation back to our homelands," said Max. "How come you don't use one?" asked Silvy. "Because I actually live in Cindrill" said Shiro. "That's surprising, given your view on it," said Dinah. "Yeah, it's complicated" said Shiro. "So, does your dad live with you?" asked Adora. "Yeah, it's just me and him" said Shiro. "You said your dad told you to keep your magic hidden. How did he react to everything with Kurt?" pondered Adora. Shiro groans and goes "Uh, well. Really well" while making an uncomfortable face. Everyone starts chuckling at Shiro's face. "Well, I need to get going. Early dinner today. Bye, guys" Shiro said. Shiro and Silvy then leave on foot in opposite directions while the others are teleported away. While they leave, Adora's eyes curiously follow Shiro and she hums.
The next day, after another casual school day, Shiro exits the academy building and sees that his friends aren't here this time. He hums curiously. Actually, Shiro's humanitarian friends were hiding behind the edge of the building, looking at Shiro. "So, why are we spying on our friend again?" asked Dinah. "Well, he talks a lot about his dad and we know he must have had a weird childhood, but aside from just Cindrill, we don't really know where he lives" said Adora. "Plus, has anyone noticed that we've never heard his last name?" said Max. "So, your solution to all this is to spy on the guy?" said Gright. "Don't cheapen it. Where's your sense of adventure?" said Adora with a mischievous grin. Silvy looks at Adora and thinks "Ever since Shiro got here, Adora's been acting kind of different." Shiro then starts leaving which prompts the others to follow. They whisper at each other during their pursuit. Later, Shiro stop at the entrance of an enormous forest, and next to a large lake. "That's Univon Forest" said Dinah "It's the biggest forest in Cindrill, it stretches for hundreds of miles." "He couldn't live here, could he?" said Adora. Shiro sighs and says out "For the record, guys, you suck at tailing." Everyone exclaims in surprise and then awkwardly show themselves to Shiro. "You mind telling me why you're spying on me?" said Shiro. "You make it sound so bad" said Silvy. "We were just curious about you and your dad. He sounds like a nice guy and we wanted to see him," said Max. "Why didn't you just ask me?" asked Shiro. "Well, you are kind of a secretive guy" said Gright "Would you have told us?" Shiro hums and says "Fair point." Shiro turns around and says "Ok, tell you what: if you can keep up with me till I get home, I'll introduce you all to my dad. Deal?" Everyone briefly exchanges looks and then says "You're on!" Shiro's hand becomes cloaked in fire. "Ready? One, two, three!" he yells out. A beam of fire shoots from his hand at the lake, making steam blanket the area. Streams of fire then shoot from Shiro's feet, boosting him forward, so now he's up in a tree. "Catch me if you can!" he said through the mist. He then chuckles and begins jumping from tree-to-tree. "Is he part monkey?" Silvy said. "After him!" Adora said. Everyone gives chase after Shiro through the trees. While chasing after Shiro through the trees, Adora thinks "He does that so naturally. How long has he been doing that?" Eventual, Shiro stops jumping atop another large tree. Shiro chuckles and says "There's no way they followed me through all that." Shiro jumps to one more treetop and grabs an apple. He then lands back on the ground and enjoys his apple, while, unknown to him, his Humanitarian friends observe him a few trees behind him. "Confident, isn't he?" said Gright, with a smug face. Soon, Shiro comes to the entrance of a very large cave. He casually enters and incinerates the apple core left in his hand. The others quietly enter the cave behind him. "This can't be where he lives, is it?" said Max. Shiro calls out in the cave. "Hello! Anyone here?" Suddenly, there were huge torrents of wind coming from above. The hidden Humanitarians grab a firmer hold on of the rock they were hiding behind. Shiro shields his eyes slightly from the wind and everyone looks up. Now in the air of the cave was a gigantic Dragon whose bodily majority is covered with dark, red scales, with noticeable scars on its stomach and neck, with the largest one, which is X-shaped, located around the centre of its body. The Dragon beats its large bat-large wings down to the ground, slightly intensifying the winds. "There you are. Hi, dad" Shiro said. The Dragon chuckles.
"Welcome home, son" said the Dragon in a deep, powerful voice. The Dragon lands its four legs on the floor, making a boom in the cave. The Humanitarians all stair at the massive Dragon in front of them. "How was school today?" he said. Shiro sits down and crosses his legs. "Well, I already told that I took that jerk Kurt's rank, but now my Humanitarian friends and I all agree that the last five are going to be gunning for me now" he said. "Ahh. Quite the conundrum," said the Dragon. "So, what should I do?" asked Shiro. The Dragon chuckles. "I remember a young worrier, taken with excitement at his goal, proclaiming that whatever challenges come his way, he would face them full speed ahead" the Dragon said. Shiro blushes and says "Really, you're bringing that up now?" "My point is, you've never let anything stand in the way of your ideal" the Dragon said "These new opponents may turn out to be some of your biggest challenges yet, but my advice is to follow your heart and keep up the same fiery spirit that got you through your years of training that's propelling you to your dream." "Thanks, dad" Shiro said. "Also, you won't be facing this new challenge alone," said the Dragon. "I know, the Humanitarians are on my side now" said Shiro. "Yes, them as well, but I think you'll also find some familiar faces on this path" the Dragon said with a learned face. "What do you mean?" asked Shiro. The Dragon looks down to Shiro and says "You'll see." "Are you being all cryptic again? I hate when you get like" Shiro said in an exasperated voice. Shiro's Dragon father laughs. "Don't worry, you'll understand this faster than you did some of my other lesions" he said. Shiro chuckles. "Now then, I want to see how your matches at the academy have affected your strength" Shiro's father said, rising to his four scaly feet. Shiro chuckles and stands up as well. "You're on, old man" he said. Shiro takes his battle stance and wraps his fist in fire. He jumps into the air and the red Dragon blocks his punch with a wing. The Dragon spins around and goes to hit Shiro with his tail but Shiro shoots out fire from his feet and dodges. "You've gotten faster" the Dragon said happily. The Humanitarians all kneel down to hide behind their rock. "His father is a Dragon?! I did not see that coming" Dinah said in hushed shock. "We need to get to the bottom of this" said Adora. Everyone quietly nods in agreement. But then Shiro crashes through the rock the Humanitarians were hiding behind. He chuckles. "Haven't lost it in your old age, have you?" he said. Shiro then sees the Humanitarians behind the now smashed rock. Shiro and the Humanitarians exchange blank surprised looks. Then after a few seconds of stunned silence, everyone starts screaming in surprise. "What are you guys doing here?!" Shiro shouted. "You said we could follow you!" the Humanitarians all shouted. Shiro stares at them…. "Oh, yeah."
The Humanitarians awkwardly come out from behind the rock and face the Dragon. "Ok, dad, I know what you're going to say, but I didn't think that they could have followed me through the jungle" said Shiro. "I didn't say anything," said the Dragon. Shiro scoffs. "Yeah, right" he said. He then turns to the Humanitarians and sees all of their impatient faces. "Oh, I guess, I should introduce you" said Shiro. "Dad, these are my friends that I told you about: Adora Greentree, Max Somni, Gright Earthbeard, Dinah Metron and Silvy Sono, the Humanitarians. Humanitarians, this is Igneel, my father." "Nice to meet you all" said Shiro's father. Everyone stares dumbstruck at the sight of the Dragon. "Wait, did you say Igneel? As in, the last Dragon King of Skyrim?" Silvy said. "Yep, the one and only" said Shiro. "But he disappeared 15 years ago" said Max. "Wait, Shiro's 15 years old" said Dinah. Shiro chuckles. "Yep, he 'disappeared' when he started raising me" he said. Shiro then casually crosses his arms and leans back on Igneel. "Oh, my god, it's such an honour to meet you, uh, Lord Igneel" said Gright. Igneel chuckles. "Just Igneel is fine" he said. "Wait. If that's Igneel, the last King of the Dragon, then does that mean… Shiro is the Dragon Prince?!" Adora said. Shiro laughs awkwardly. "Well, I didn't choose that name but when word got out here and there that Igneel had a kid, the term 'Dragon Prince' just sort of court on" he said. Silvy and Gright then walk up to Shiro and start poking him. "Uh, what are doing?" Shiro said. "Just checking if you're actually a human. I'm even less sure now than I was before" Gright said. "Oh, guys, that kind of hurts. Stop it!" said Shiro, swotting the others two away "Igneel isn't my biological father; I'm adopted." "Okay, that makes more sense" said Silvy. "As far back as I can remember, it's been me and him" said Shiro. "So, where are your birth parents, then? And how did you get adopted by a Dragon?" asked Silvy. Shiro's expression then turns to a stressful look. "Story for another day" he said "Come on, you should get out of the forest before dark." Shiro then starts walking out of the cave. "I think you hit a sore spot" said Max. "Yeah, I feel kind of bad" Silvy said. Adora watches Shiro curiously as he heads out of the cave. Shiro escorted the Humanitarians back to the entrance of the forest. "Alright, you guys will be fine from here" Shiro said in a better mood than earlier. "By the way, one more thing" said Gright. "What's up?" said Shiro. "On the way there and one the way back, why was there a small area that looked pretty burned and scorched" Gright said "What happened?" Shiro begins making an uncomfortable "Uhh" noise while looking away from the others. "It was you, wasn't it?" said Dinah. "Uhh…. a little" he said "I was a lot younger and my dad had really annoyed me earlier! It wasn't my fault!" Shiro said childishly. The Humanitarians all start laughing uncontrollably. "Ok, well, I'll see you guys at school tomorrow" said Shiro. Everyone then says their goodbyes and waves their goodbyes to Shiro. Shiro goes back to his and Igneel's cave and meets his Dragon father inside. "There all seem nice" said Igneel "Have you told them your story yet?" "No, not yet. I don't think any of us are ready for that yet" said Shiro. Igneel hums. "I have a feeling you won't be able to hide it much longer, Shiro" he said. Igneel then turns and goes further into the cave. Shiro gives a deep look and sighs sadly. "Yeah. Probably not" he said.
The next day, Adora walks through the hallways and sees an unfamiliar girl with shoulder-length, cobalt-blue hair with a nervous expression, quickly checking her map and the student-filled hallways. Adora walks over to her thinking "I don't recognise her." "Hi. Sorry to bother you but you look a little lost. Can I help?" she said to the girl. "Oh, yes, please. I'm looking to find the Battle Class room, but I can't find it" the girl said shyly. "Oh, that's my next class, too" said Adora "Come on, we can go there together." "Wow, thank you so much" the girl said happily. The two girls then make their way to the Battle Class. "So, what's your name?" Adora asked. "Oh, uh, my name is Koharu Kona," said the girl. "Wow, that's a nice name" Adora said "I'm Adora Greentree. It's nice to meet you." The two then awkwardly continue walking in silence for a minute. "So, you're new here, aren't you?" Adora then asked. "Oh, yeah, my friends and I all joined here today, but I was looking for another friend of mine that started coming here recently" said Koharu. "Oh, who are you looking for?" said Adora. "His name is Shiro" Koharu said blushing a little. Adora stops walking in surprise. "Wait, you know Shiro?" she said. "Wait, so do you know Shiro, too?" said Koharu. The pair of them then both go "Well, yeah" The two stand in silence and then laugh on their way to Battle Class. The girls then arrive at the door and see two boys standing there; one with short black hair and the other with short silver hair, both unfamiliar to Adora. "Hey, Koharu. Did you get lost again?" the black-haired boy said. "Yeah" Koharu said, slightly embarrassed. The silver-haired boy chuckles. "You've never had a great sense of direction" he said. Adora stands silent and awkwardly. "Oh, Adora, this is Marx Yuki and Lind Docks, friends of mine" said Koharu "Marx, Lind, this is Adora. She helped me find my way here." "Nice to meet you. Thanks for helping Koharu," said Marx. "Ditto. Thanks a lot," said Lind. "Oh, no worries" Adora said. "Do you know where he is?" asked Koharu. "Well, we haven't checked, but we can sense his magic on the other side of the door," said Marx. "Let's go," said Lind. They open the door and see Shiro sparing with Dinah and Max. Pillars of stone shoot up from the ground but Shiro smashes them with his flaming fists. Max goes to hit Shiro with his spear but Shiro makes a wall of flames, forcing Max to stop. Shiro lets out a breath of fire that forces the pair back. "He's the same as ever, isn't he?" said Marx. Koharu, Marx and Lind all smile seeing Shiro. Soon, Shiro, Dinah and Max were finished. "Pretty good, you two. But you should try to coordinate your attacks more when you're trying to double-team someone" said Shiro. The new students now all walk over to Shiro. "Your fighting style's the same, I see. But then, you never were one to change, were you?" said Lind. "I know that voice" Shiro said. He turns and sees the three of them and stands slightly shocked. "Guys?!" he said. Koharu, Lind and Marx all run at Shiro and happily pull him into a group hug. Shiro laughs and says "It's so good to see you guys" The group then disperses. "What are you guys doing here?" Shiro said "Wait, if you guys are here, then does that mean…" The slight thud of footsteps is heard from behind. Shiro slowly turns around and sees another familiar face with scruffy, ebony-black hair. "Ryu" Shiro said with a serious look. "Hey, Shiro" the other boy said just as coldly. The two of them look seriously at each other. "What's wrong? They both look so serious" said Adora. "You should stand back" said Koharu. She, Lind and Marx then all take a few steps back. Then after a few tense seconds, Shiro happily cries out "Ryu!" And Ryu merrily calls out "Shiro!". The two energetically fist bump and Ryu then happily punches into a wall, cracking it. "My turn! Come on, me next!" Ryu said, jumping with joy. Shiro charges at Ryu and slams him into the other wall. They both laugh while catching their breath. "So great. I was worried you went and got soft on me" chuckled Ryu. "Never going to happen" Shiro said just as happy. The two then lie on their stomachs and put their hands together for an arm-wrestle. "Marx?" said Shiro. Marx steps forward and says "Alright, three, two, one, go!" The two then begin forcing their arms down, cracking the ground around them. "720 times" Ryu said "If I recall correctly, and I do, I've beaten you 361 of them." "You must have lost your mind. I've won 361 times" Shiro replied. The yell and continue the destructive arm-wrestle. Later, when the had both calmed down, introductions were then in order. Adora, Gright, Dinah, Max and Silvy were all now facing the academies new arrivals. "Humanitarians, I'd like you to meet Ryu, Koharu, Marx and Lind" Shiro said "Old friends of mine from when I was growing up." Shiro's olds friends all greet his new friends. "Nice to meet you guys" said Silvy. "Wait, Shiro, did you say you knew them from when you were growing up?" asked Max. "Yeah. Why?" said Shiro. "I thought you've been in the forest you whole life" said Max. Shiro chuckles. "They all grew up in the forest with me" said Shiro "We had a lot in common because of our parents" said Shiro. "Wait, are you trying to say…?" Gright said, and Shiro then proudly proclaims "Yep, they're all Dragonborn, too."
The Humanitarians all stand shocked at the sight of four more of the rarest kind of being in Tamriel. "You're all Dragonborn?" Silvy said. "Yep. Five of a kind," said Ryu. "So do you all have Dragon parents?" asked Dinah. "Yes, that's right" said Koharu. "I'm an Iron Dragonborn, meaning my magic is the same sort of thing as Shiro's, but with iron instead of fire," said Ryu. "I'm an Air Dragonborn, meaning my magic uses winds," said Lind. "As for me, mine is Earth, making me an Earth Dragonborn," said Marx. "And I'm a Water Dragonborn. My powers work with water, but also can be used as healing magic" said Koharu. "Wow, that's rare" said Adora. "So, sorry for asking but how exactly did being raised by Dragons really work?" asked Gright. The Dragonborn chuckle. "Well, we were all raised in Univon Forest. The Dragon's raised us like they were our birth parents," said Marx. "They would often put us all together so that we could play and train together" said Koharu. "Wow, it was hard when they broke the news that we were all adopted," said Ryu. "It was really that much of a surprise?" said Silvy. "Hey, it was all we had known our entire lives. For us, it was the norm," said Lind. "When we all turned ten, the Dragons told us the truth about how we were all adopted, who our birth parents were and the varying circumstances that led to us all getting raised by Dragons in the first place" said Shiro. "So, how did that start in the first place?" asked Max. The Dragonborn slowly turn their eyes to Shiro, who's now wearing a more serious expression. The Humanitarians all look to Shiro as well. "Story for another time as well, guys" he said. Not knowing what to say, Ryu then breaks the silence by saying "Enough stuff about us, I want to see what my pal's new friends can do in the arena," and playfully drapes his arm over Shiro's back. Everyone looks surprised and then chuckles. "Alright, is that a challenge?" said Gright. "You bet is was. Now get in the ring" Ryu said in a playfully antagonizing voice.
He and Gright then make their way into an arena, while everyone else sits in the stands. Gright pulls out his hammer and immediately charges at Ryu. "Wow, that was fast" Silvy said. Gright swings at his hammer at Ryu from the right. Ryu quickly moves his left hand and the hammer suddenly stops with a huge "CLANG!". Gright look shocked and sees Ryu hand holding back the hammer, only now it somehow seemed to be made of iron. The Humanitarians gasp in surprise in their chairs. "That's part of Ryu's magic" Shiro said "He can turn part of his flesh into iron. He calls that technique his Dragon Scales." "Also, his iron his ten times harder than the normal version," said Lind. "How much can he turn to metal at once?" asked Dinah. "The most he's ever been able to do is all four of his limbs at once" said Koharu. Ryu uses his other hand to bash the hammer, knocking Gright off balance, and sends another jab at him, but Gright shields himself with his weapon, while still getting pushed back. "Wow" he said. "Is that the best you can do?" Ryu said. Gright growls slightly. He charges at Ryu again, this time, charging up his Sand Magic in his other hand. He thrusts his hand at Ryu and a seemingly endless stream of sand that begins swirling around half the arena, surrounding Ryu. "A sand trap, huh?" said Ryu. "I call this move Sand Wall" Gright said. Ryu hums. "You always put the same level of magic into this technique?" he asked. "Yes, why?" Gright said a little nervously. "Bad idea. You should adjust the level of magical reinforcement you use for a binding spell like this for the opponent you're facing after sizing them up" said Ryu "That way it's more of a shore thing of trapping then, and you can keep in check the tax it takes on your body." Gright looks slightly confused as a silver glow appears
around Ryu's hand. Then, a large beam of pure iron forms in front of it. Ryu forcefully swings his hand and the iron weapon swings with it. It crashes through the sand and all that was left lies on the ground. Everyone except the other Dragonborn all look shocked at Ryu's move. Ryu then begins taking a large breath in and then cries out "Iron Dragon Roar!" A small silver tornado shoots from Ryu's mouth, hitting Gright in the stomach and sending him flying back. Gright then lies on the ground, defeated. Ryu then walks over to Gright and lets out his hand. "Good match" he said "You're pretty good." Gright chuckles. "Sounds a little patronizing from down here" he said, taking Ryu's hand. Ryu helps Gright back up to his feet. "Are all you Dragonborn so freakishly strong?" Gright said. "Yeah, pretty much. But the Dwarf's skill with a hammer is nothing to scoff at. I think you've got a lot of potential" Ryu said. "What was that?" Adora said. "Some more of Ryu's moves. He can generate iron constructs out of thin air and manipulate them at will" said Shiro. "And what about that breath attack? It looked similar to the fire attack you used on Kurt," said Max. "All Dragonborn have a roar attack that reflects their individual element" said Shiro "I have my fire breath, Ryu has that metallic one, while the others all have their own versions as well." Max rises back to his feet, clenches his fist and says "Dinah and I will go next. Seeing a cool fight like that really gets you pumped up." Dinah looks a little surprised but then stands up as well and says "Marx, Lind, how about a 2-on-2?" Marx and Lind exchange smiles and together say "Ok, you're on." The four of them make their way down the stairs, passing Ryu and Gright on their way back up. Ryu, Marx and Lind exchange winks and keep going. "What was the winking about?" Adora said Ryu. "Oh, nothing much" Ryu said, sitting on the chair up behind Shiro "That worked out well, huh?" "Yep" Shiro said. "What are talking about?" asked Gright. "Teamwork is Marx and Lind's specialty" said Koharu.
The pairs of Max and Dinah and Marx and Lind were now in the arena. "Let's go!" everyone said. Marx and Lind charge at the others. A mound of rock lifts up from the ground in front of Marx and is launched towards Max. Max quickly slices it in half with his spear, but then Lind appears from behind it. "Surprise!" he said. A massive gust of wind spurs out Lind's hands, knocking Max way back. Dinah yells and rushes at the Dragonborn pair firing a rock larger than the previous one at the two. Lind releases slash of air that slice the boulder into pieces. Marx then magically throws the shards of stone back at Dinah, knocking her over. "Their teamwork is incredible" said Silvy. "Those two were arguably the closest out of all of us" Shiro said "If you didn't know better, you'd think they really were brothers." "You two aren't bad, but you need to work on coordinating your attacks, and coming up with combo moves ahead of time to use in a fight," said Lind. Dinah and Max exchange looks and then charge at the Dragonborn together. The Dragonborn look at each other and exchange a series of hand signals. Then, right before the two were about to get hit, Marx makes a pillar of stone appear under his feat, throwing him in the air to the left, and Lind makes a current of air that shoot in up in the air to the right. "What?!" the Humanitarians said. The two Dragonborn in the air then begin taking deep breaths in at the same time. "Are they-?!" Dinah said. "Don't tell me" Max said. Marx and Lind then each cry out "Air Dragon Roar!" and "Earth Dragon Roar!" Small storms of rock and wind erupt from Dragonborn's maws, meeting right where Dinah and Max were. When the breath attacks each hit a side of the Humanitarians, a swirling sphere a winds and flying rocks was generated. When this combination attack died down, Max and Dinah are revealed lying on the ground – defeated. After a minute, Marx and Lind walk over to the Humanitarians and each let out a friendly hand. "I could tell you two were really synchronised at the end there," said Lind. Dinah takes Lind's hand and he pulls her up. "Wow, thanks" she said. Marx helps Max up and says "You guys should try coming up with some hand signals to coordinate your attacks." "Thanks, that's a good idea" said Max "You Dragonborn are really something else." "Nah, we're nothing special," said Marx. "The three strongest Dragonborn are all up there" Lind said, turning to the stands. Max and Dinah each look at Shiro, Ryu and then Koharu as well. "You mean Koharu as well?" asked Max. "Yeah, she may not look like much, but she's got the skill to match any of us," said Lind. Dinah and Max each exchange surprised looks. The four of them make their way back up to the stands. "You guys were amazing" Adora said to the Dragonborn pair "Wind and Earth are contradicting elements, so to use them together like that is really cool." "Like I said, teamwork is their specialty" said Shiro. Silvy then stands to her feet. "Well, I guess it's our turn, right, Koharu?" she said. "What?" Koharu said. The other Dragonborn all turn and give concerned looks. "Uh, she doesn't have to," said Ryu. "Yeah, she's not feeling great" Lind said. "Yeah, trust me, she doesn't have to do it like the rest of us" said Shiro. Koharu grumbles in her seat and shoots upwards. "I'll be just fine" she said "Come on, Silvy." "Oh, er, ok" Silvy said in a surprised voice. Koharu and Silvy begin making their way to the arena. "She looked a little upset there" Dinah said. "But why?" said Adora. She and Dinah then turn and look at Shiro. "Hey, don't look at me. Sometimes she just gets mad for no reason" Shiro said awkwardly and slightly defensively. Max slides next to Ryu and quietly asks "Is it for no reason, or is he just an idiot?" "Guess" Ryu responded. "Why's everyone giving me the third degree?" Shiro said. "Hey, they're starting" Dinah then said, pointing at Koharu and Silvy. "Thank you" Shiro whispered to Dinah.
The next Dragonborn and Humanitarian pair now stand on either side of the arena. "How is Koharu in a fight?" asked Dinah. "Well, she can do great, but because she's really timid, it kind of holds her back" said Shiro. "But she's got just as much potential as any of us." In the arena, Silvy throws four throwing stars at Koharu. They fly towards her but before she gets hit, a gimbal of water appears around her, and the stars get stuck inside. The other four Humanitarians stare dumbstruck, turn to the other four Dragonborn and together they say "But when she gets worked up, she totally awesome." Silvy then points her hand at the throwing stars in Koharu's water. Shiro leans forward curiously. The stars then fly out of the water and back to Silvy's hand. "What?" Koharu said. "That's Silvy's Telekinesis" said Adora. "She didn't use that when I fought you guys" said Shiro. "You guess weren't the only ones with a surprise, were you?" Gright said, slightly smug. "Don't count Koharu out just yet," said Lind. Silvy flings her throwing stars around the room and they come at her from behind. "Look out!" Marx shouted. The water gimbal begins rotating and blocks the stars. Brief beams of water begin bursting out from the gimble. Silvy quickly jumps over and around them – none of the waster shots hit her. "Whoa, she wasn't this fast when I fought her" said Shiro. "I guess you wouldn't know but Silvy happens to be a trained ninja worrier," said Dinah. Shiro give a serious expression and thinks "Come on, Koharu. You've got this." Silvy aims her hand at the water formations but the stars don't come to her. "What?" she said. She looks at her stars flowing around the current of water and thinks "They're moving too fast; I can't get a good enough lock." Silvy then stops moving and positions herself like she's about to scream. She does and a massive sonic scream. Once it hits, Koharu's water barrier disperses and she gets knocked back. "That was like a 'Sound Roar'" said Marx. Koharu growls slightly. "Come on. I can't be the only Dragonborn that lost their fight" she thought, as she starts breathing in like her friends. Shiro smiles. Koharu takes another deep breath a call out "Water Dragon Roar!" and a torrent of water rushes from Koharu roar attack. Silvy also lets out her similar sonic scream attack and they meet in the middle of the arena. The sound coming from Silvy causes the stream of water coming from Koharu to ripple, causing a standstill. Back in the stands, Shiro suddenly jumps from his seat and begins yelling "Come on, Koharu! You've got this!" Everyone looks surprised at Shiro's sudden display. Adora smiles and stands up too. "Come on, Silvy! If none of us win, we're going to look stupid!" she shouted happily. The other Dragonborn and Humanitarians chuckle and all start shouting in support for their teammates. The power of both attacks in the arena intensifies. Then, the force from Silvy sound attack manages to tear through Koharu's and the remains Koharu's attacks shoot towards Silvy. Both slightly gasp in surprise and both get hit by the other's attack and flung to opposite side of the ring. Everyone else jumps down from their chairs. They run to the arena and the Dragonborn go to Koharu while the Humanitarians go to Silvy. "You ok?" Lind asked. Koharu sits back up straight. "Yeah, I'm fine" she said dismally. Tears slowly build up in Koharu's eyes and she starts to cry. "I was the only one who couldn't win their fight" she said, sobbing "All this time later and I'm still the most useless one in the group." The other Dragonborn look sadly at Koharu. But then Shiro says out "Oh, shut up." Everyone turns to Shiro with surprised looks, making Koharu stop crying. "That sonic attack should have rippled away all water. The fact that you were able to hold it back, let alone being to shoot the rest of your roar at Silvy, was awesome" Shiro said "You were great out there, and I'm not going to let you say otherwise." Koharu looks surprised at Shiro's words. They all then heard Silvy's voice saying "It's true, you know." The Dragonborn turn and see the Humanitarians coming towards them. "My sound attack usually disperses any Water Magic and my opponent tries something else. Plus, you stopped my ninja stars by carrying them in the water. That couldn't have been easy" said Silvy. "You strike me as someone who needs more confidence in themselves. Hang out with us for a while and we'll make sure you walk on air," said Dinah. "Hey, are you trying to say something about the fact that she's being hanging out with us all this time?" said Ryu. "Hey, I didn't say anything but you just made the connection," said Dinah. The Humanitarian and Dragonborn groups then exchange strained smiles and dry chuckles. Koharu sputters and bursts out with laughter, and everyone else starts chuckling as a result. Shiro lets out his hand to Koharu. Koharu blushes and slowly takes Shiro's hand, who helps her up. "You did great. Good job" he said to Koharu, wiping her tears. Koharu's face turns beet red. Adora grumbles quietly and then says "Wow, I didn't know you were so smooth." Silvy chuckles discreetly. Shiro now also blushes and he and Koharu quickly turn away from each other. "Oh, please. She's more like my little sister than anything" said Shiro. Koharu turns back around again a says "Hey, I am not." Everyone then laughs happily. But unbeknownst to everyone, Mark Bernard, the academy's 5th ranked student, was watching them from the hallway. He hums and walks away.
Later, Mark arrived at "The Power House;" a dimly-lit, exclusive lounge for the top students of the school. He walks in and passes Leo Anthony, rank 4, lying on a couch with a glass of wine in his hand. "Back from snooping?" Leo said. "Sharr-ro told me to," said Mark. He then hears a female voice in the room. She says "That's what you get for being the weakest strongest student." Mark and Leo look and see Areon Academy's 3rd ranked student: known as Medusa. Her long, blood-red hair drapes over the back of another couch, matching the red wine in her hand. "Hello, Medusa. I thought you were out" Mark said. "I heard things were about to get interesting, so I stopped by," said Medusa. Mark turns in the dim room and says "What about you, Rade? Anything to say?" He looks at Rade, rank 2nd, on a round chair, looking like he was meditating. He stays silent and Mark grows. The four of them then hear a deep voice that says "Oh, shut up. You find anything, or what?" Everyone turns and sees Sharr-ro Volt, Areon Academy's rank No. 1 sitting on a chair in the dark. He takes a cigarette out of his mouth and scratches his spikey golden hair. "Yes, sir" Mark said "The new kid's friends are defiantly in his league. With the Humanitarians behind him, too, fighting them all head on might go so well." Sharr-ro scoff. He takes a folder out from his long, dark coat and throws it onto the table in the middle of the room. "I found some new ammo. We'll use it at some point soon" he said. The others in the room all gather around while Mark opens the folder. Everyone gasps in surprise.