Welp, guess who is back.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The first of the two came in, according to the papers, his name was Vritra, and his last name looked unpronounceable. He was tall, much taller than what Gregory was expecting. One thing was seeing 7'0 on a sheet of paper, seeing it was a whole other. Nadia looked nervous, clenching her clipboard while sitting down on the chair provided by the chairman of Wellston. The atmosphere that they had left with wasn't the greatest, and this didn't help either.
Gregory was the first to get up. Vritra stayed standing. It was menacing, and a clear challenge of his authority… that or he simply didn't care for his presence. He didn't say anything, simply stood there with his eyes fixated on the chairman, who smiled back at him.
"Well then, you must be curious as to why you've been called here." Vaughn's smile didn't appease him, there was no change in attitude. He tapped his foot lightly on the ground, impatiently waiting for the principal to elaborate. It was clear he didn't want to be there.
"We've been called here to assess your level because we think you might be lying." Gregory took over, Vaughn was taking too long to answer, and the boy in front of him gave him a bad vibe. Vaughn scowled at the interruption, but let him continue nonetheless. "We've also heard you've been fighting the royals."
"Huh?" Vritra's eyebrows knit together, his nose scrunched and his mouth moved down on one side only. A look of total disgust and disdain. "Isn't that the whole point of the royal system? To challenge it?" he spat.
"No, the point is to compel students to respect the authority hierarchy formed. Challenges to the royals should only happen by those who are close to the top." Vritra clicked his tongue and looked down at Gregory.
"I fought that clown of a king, so what? I did some damage and got close to beating his ass," Vritra leaned forward to get closer to Gregory. Now that he noticed, he wasn't a lanky build of person either, he was muscular, and looked more like a wild bear from that angle than he did human. "What do levels have to do with anything? It's all about ability match ups."
Wasn't he closer than that? Gregory thought to himself, then he noticed he'd taken two steps back without thinking. He looked toward Nadia. She was sweating.
"I-If I were you I'd keep my distance, disrespecting the authorities is not a smart move." Gregory cursed himself for stuttering. The pressure he felt while Vritra was there was suffocating. He was no low tier.
"Another person telling me how to live my life. I might fucking lose it."
A wave of reen light almost blinded Gregoryuu as Vaughn used his ability to push a chair on Vritra's back, making him sit down. "Now, let's not delay this any further. There's another student waiting outside after all." He was using his status as a high-tier to pressure them into acting again. That old man would get what was coming for him one day. One day someone would get tired of him and he would be removed from his position.
"Activate your ability." Gregory sat back on his chair. Vritra sneered and leaned back on his chair, putting a foot on his knee.
"No."
One second. Silence. Two Seconds. Silence. Three Seconds. Silence.
"Excuse me?" Nadia had been the one who broke the silence, because Gregory was still baffled that someone this stupid could exist.
"The rules of the school say I can't use my ability in enclosed environments." There was no chance the boy sitting in front of Gregory respected the rules of the school. He knew from first hand experience that school was a battleground. All he could do was glare at Vritra. "Weren't you criticising me for not following the system or whatever? Now you pluck me out of class and ask me to break the rules?"
Gregory might have almost broken his teeth from how much force he used to press them against each other. He could barely get a sentence out from his clenched jaw. "Don't get smart with us kid–"
"Don't get smart? Am I not in school to learn? First you tell me to break rules, now you're telling me to ignore my teachers? The authorities must have things backwards. Do you know multiplication, did you learn to add and subtract?"
Gregory slammed his hand through a table while glaring at Vritra, who leaned forward, his sneer transformed into a serious expression. "Go on, Salmonela, make my day." Gregory rolled up his sleeve and glared at him.
Pressure pushed both Gregory and Vritra down to their seats, as a blinding flash-bang of the color green swallowed them both for instance. Vritra did not seem happy with the arrangement, glaring at the principal, and yet he didn't activate his ability – was he being serious, or just petty?
"Vritra, the longer you take to use your ability, the longer they will be here, and the more likely you are to get in trouble for defying the authorities." His smile was nauseatingly sweet, almost certainly fake.
Vritra's nose scrunched up, and the glare switched to Gregory. Almost as if he was spitting the words out, he spoke. "Wich. One."
Gregory froze, what did he say? Which one? He must mean which application of his ability. "The simplest one." said Gregory, with a sigh adjusting himself on the seat to be more comfortable. What an odd wording.
Vritra's eyes began to glow, and with a swipe of his hand the table was sent flying. Wind ruffled Gregory's hair and clothes.
A dense black aura with a red outline covered his vision. It was not blinding – well, it couldn't be considering the fact it was dark. It was odd, it flickered in different shades of red like a kaleidoscope. A multifaceted ability for sure. More than that, a chilling aura made Gregory's hands shake.
"This has to be a joke," Gregory's eyes widened. This aura was not close to a low-tier. "Vaughn, did you lie to us about his level?!" It was denser than expected, and it felt… angry.
"I did no such thing," Vaughn assured, letting the desk fall next to his own with a splittering thud. "You've read their records yourself. What motive would I have to hide his level to begin with?"
"This man's level is Elite! Around the middle of the ranks!Between 3.8 and 4!" Gregory broke out in cold sweat. The only way this was possible was if the boy in front of him was utilizing some kind of booster to their ability. It should be impossible to increase your level this much in such a short period of time. As if to rub salt in his pride, Vritra's level was higher than Gregory's.
"Did you have fun? Can I go now?" Vritra looked at Vaughn instead of the two members of the authorities again. Vaughn nodded, Vritra stood up and began walking to the exit.
"Wait! What is your thought on Vigilantism?" Nadia found enough courage to scream out, she stood up to do it. Vritra stopped one step before the entrance, turned around and looked down at her.
"Don't waste more of my time with stupid questions, I don't care for idiots." Vritra opened the door, and began walking out. Gregory looked at Nadia, she nodded and Gregory sighed. At the very least he was speaking the truth. He slammed the door behind him with little regard for its frame. He was undeniably an issue that the school would have to steer into another path.
"That was odd, I was under the impression that Vritra's ability was draconic in nature." Vaughn's one sentence made Gregory's blood run cold. Was this one facet of his ability, or was Vaughn just exaggerating. "Or was that the other one? I always seem to get them confused." Gregory hoped that was the case. The implications of having more than one ability… then again, it could always be a more complex composite ability.
"Nadia, go tell the next student to come in," Gregory grabbed the file he'd been given. Azazel Wodime was next, he put his hand over his face – wasn't that illegal? A level 1.4 when he entered Wellston. A disgrace, for such a prestigious school to admit someone as subpar as a level 1.3 and 1.4 made Gregory's blood boil. When he was enrolling he remembered there were level requirements for schools of this kind. If you weren't at least a mid-tier you couldn't even get in, and even then the chances.
Nadia opened the door and after a pause told the next student to come over.
The door opened and Vritra came back in. Gregory thought he might be shorter, but it must have been the wind, or the distance, or something else.
"Huh? Get out, we already talked to you." He waved dismissively.
"Wai –" Nadia was interrupted by Gregory who raised his hand. As her subordinate she had to listen to what he said, and he didn't want to waste any more time on an interrogation if it meant getting thrown through the window by the headmaster of the school.
"Ok," His voice was different. Before it was deep and gravely, like a monster's almost. Now it was higher pitched, more normal for a high-school student.
"What a waste of time. Nadia, tell the next student to come over." As Gregory spoke, the door was shut closed by Vaughn.
"Now, now Azazel, you shouldn't mess with the authorities." He sounded almost happy.
"What now?" Gregory asked.
"That's what I was about to tell you, he was the only other student outside." Nadia looked at her clipboard, "He must be Azazel Wodime."
"..." Vritra… or Azazel rather, turned around and tiredly walked to the chair in the middle of the room, then kicked it to the side while staring at Vaughn, ignoring both Nadia and Gregory.
"Are you sure this isn't the same person?" Gregory asked, Vaughn nodded. They had the same hair, the same eye color, face shape, hair length and even a similar rebellious look… Though, now that he looked closer, the differences were plenty, they included height, posture.
The person in front of Gregory looked more battered and tired… but aside from that they were the exact same person… basically. "Twins?" Vaughn shook his head, "Brothers?" Vaughn shook his head again.
"..." He continued staring at the headmaster without saying anything. The malicious gleam in his eye made Gregory think he was thinking of ways of beating all three people in the room… but he couldn't prove it. He would glance at them, then stop, close his eyes, then glance back again as if he was simulating everything in his brain… It was unsettling.
"Would you sit please?" Nadia asked, feeling equally uncomfortable by his posture. It was on guard, and yet tired… like he'd just gotten out of a fight and was looking for another one… If Vritra looked perpetually angry and pestered, then Azazel looked like a tired military soldier.
"No."
"... Could I ask you why?" Nadia asked politely, but Gregory could see a bead of sweat fall from her forehead. She was speechless when Vritra was here, and yet she had enough confidence to speak back here. The difference in presence was clear.
"Only those on my level get to look down on me." Azazel's arrogance was that of an undisciplined, spoiled brat. Gregory could tell this would be a difficult one to interrogate.
"Where do you find these miscreants? The gutter?" The instant Gregory said that, he felt a chill go down his spine. When he turned his head he saw a chair, floating in front of his face with a flash of green. When had he thrown it? How had he thrown it without making a decibel of sound? Those were questions running through Gregory's mind.
"Azazel! That was a part of the authorities! If it had hit him he could have put you in corrective facilities!" Vaughn, despite sounding mad, let his face rest into a smile, Gregory couldn't tell if he was upset or not. Still, even with that warning, Azazel's stare remained one of rebellion, his eyes sharpened and his nose ever-so-slightly scrunched.
"Little mutts meddling about things they have no right sinking their teeth in are bound to break their canines." Gregory hated his kind the most. A late bloomer who read Shakespeare and would speak in elaborate sentences for no reason other than to say "I'm better than you".
"That's because I am." Azazel answered.
"Did I say that out loud?" Gregory looked to Nadia, who shrugged quizzically.
"No, but it was obvious what you were thinking from the expression on your dull-witted face." Azazel still refused to look at Gregory, he kept his eyes focused on Vaughn.
"How about we calm down," Vaughn used his ability to put the chair back in its place. "Azazel, if you wish to leave, then all you have to do is show them your ability. They will leave you alone after." Azazel's eyes trailed off to Nadia, then to Gregory, he looked at him up and down, then back to Vaughn.
"Did Vritra do it?" Vaughn nodded. "What did you see?"
"He blew back the desk with his wind ability." Vaughn answered, Azazel put a hand over his mouth as if to think things through – though, because Gregory had leaned back on his chair he could see through the gaps of his fingers that he was sneering.
"Very well," he took the hand off his face, showing a composed expression before extending his hand. There were a few seconds of nothing happening – that was what most would see. Instead, Gregory saw a burst of Crimson smoke with black edges. His ability was some form of enhancement? What did it do? What was he showing him? It was like a thick malice stuck to his skin.
"What does your ability do?" Gregory asked, he wasn't going to make the same mistake as before. With Vritra he was too shocked to ask much of anything.
"That is none of your concern. You asked me to use it, not to explain it to you. Don't push my boundaries. You must be the catastrophic result of the love life between a half-melted troll doll and a bottle of Pepto-Bismol."
"Half-melted – what?" Gregory didn't know what it meant, and maybe that made it feel worse. He felt like he had insulted more than just his appearance with that statement, but he couldn't prove it.
"I thought I was here to show you my ability, not to make a power-point presentation on your several inadequacies. But if we're going there, your professionality leaves much to be desired, and for someone whose ability is reading power, you aren't quite aware of your surroundings." Azazel Wodime had an interesting secondary ability, and it had to be to provoke ire. Vritra's imposing presence made him shake in insecurity – whether he could beat him or not – Azazel's made him shake in aggravation.
"... Oh yea…mind elaborating for me?" Getting those words through his teeth was difficult. Gregory held on to a pen in his pocket, and could hear the plastic crack as he exerted more and more force on it the longer he looked at Azazel's arrogant crimson eyes.
"Wretches such as yourself should know to hold your tongue in the presence of their betters. Typically I'd say you're not worth the dirt I walk on, but I am unsure if I can even say that to someone of your stature. Perhaps maggots below that dirt should be treated better, after all they aren't curs wasting my time with little tests. Even those ill begotten insects only rise when a carcass hits the earth. That is why you should remain quiet, lower your tone, and keep your head down, for people like you will never even look at the summit."
The pen in Gregory's pants snapped in half. He could feel his eyebrow twitching, and yet he didn't dare to fight him – Gregory could tell, he was of a higher level. 'Does this brat think he's better than me?'
"I know I am better than you, Gregory." Once again, he'd predicted what he was thinking, "Useless things like yourself should know that. It's engraved in your bones, that is why you do not fight back." Azazel leaned forward, keeping himself above Gregory while both his hands slammed on the armrests of the chair he was on. "Are you done, or will you keep wasting my time? My precious time."
"Before you leave…" Nadia voiced, she was met with a death-glare immediately, and her breath was caught. There was something odd about this kid. His arrogance was real most definitely, but it felt as though he was instigating them, waiting for them to swing first.
"What do you think of vigilantes?" Gregory continued Nadia's question, since she was clearly intimidated into silence.
"Tch," he clicked his tongue. This brat was blinded by anger the instant he entered the room. He almost hurt the authorities, and when he noticed it'd get him nowhere to swing first, he instigated them instead… that way he could claim he only fought back. What a rotten kid. "Wasting my time with trivial questions. Why should I care for Vigilantism? What do I gain from it? When has helping others ever helped one-self?" Azazel got up, then turned around, walking away with both hands in his pockets.
"..." Nadia wanted to ask something, it was clear from her body language, but she stayed quiet, too scared to get a chair to the head most likely.
"No. After all, helping others only brings misery." He shut the door behind him, and immediately, they heard screams come from the corridor. Gregory opened the door and saw students crushed against the walls, knocked out and bleeding, with Azazel nowhere to be seen.
"... Seriously, where do you find these rapscalians?" He turned around and looked at Vaughn, who shrugged his shoulders.
"Well, if that is all I hope you leave. I am expecting a good friend of mine so we can play chess, you see? He's hoping today'll be the day he beats me… I think I'll let him capture a few pawns before my checkmate."
'This whole school is bonkers.' Gregory couldn't help but think.
"Oh most definitely." Vaughn answered, making Gregory close his mouth to stare him in the face.
"You should steer away from Poker if I were you Gregory, your face is so very easy to read."