Iris' peach-colored locks were as vibrant as the flowers dotted across her headband, holding them in place and preventing its impressive braided length from unraveling.
With eyes set in a calmed expression shone with a gentle jade of color, giving her an air of a lovely life.
While fairly tall in stature, she stood eye to eye with Tersia, though possessed of a more shapely figure when compared to that of her opponent who revealed a toned and athletic build in their gym uniforms.
Despite them both receiving ample time and opportunity to get their combat uniform, they still appeared on the field in the gym clothes.
After tightening the straps, her leather braces, the kind Tersia wore, were accompanied with a set of greaves, mostly made of leather and reinforced with a silver-gray colored steel.
Strengthening the knuckles, forearms, knees and shins, the contrast of her brawler grit against that of her dark-haired beauty continued to raise the excitement in the stands.
Staring each other down, it wasn't long before a spark of light gleamed from Iris' eyes accompanied her into action. Facing her hand towards the ground, crevasses were opened around her revealing a chromatic light shining through.
The light grew in intensity as the earth below began to writhe, shifting Tersia's footing back and forth, forcing her to put some distance, but moved towards Iris as she did.
The crowd waited in awe for the two to clash, while Iris stood, unmoved and focused.
Tersia moved to pin her down, but Iris managed to dash out of harm's way, evading each step she took towards her while she maintained her focus on the rainbow light bleeding out from the cracking earth until the writhing soil tore open between them, shooting out roots that guarded her against a blow from Tersia and knocking her back...
In a single moment, Iris' confidence flickered with the sight of what was coming, pushing her to duck just as the roots were severed, ripping them apart as they separated.
Tersia stepped back, in the grasp of something strange. Her leap was caught by an armor-clad warrior, handling her with the most gentleness before standing at the ready after it placed her behind her.
The figure appeared like a bronze statue with eyes of blue burning flames. Wearing a white toga wrapped up until his waist, with leather sandals and belt bound around him atop a cerulean sash. The same fabric of his blue sash was wrapped around his gold-tipped spear.
"Good work, Talos." Tersia thanked the warrior before returning her sights on the recovering Iris who was embraced by the wriggling roots.
As the frantic movements began to calm quite a bit with the roots and the earth around her began to blossom, a bloom of chromatic flowers was spawned.
"It would seem we both have forces we beckon to our wills, for me it is the very earth, for you, it would be your puppet." Iris raised the point, as the mass of chromatic petals began to gather and swirl about her.
"You will forgive me if I'm not frightened by your talents for botany. Talos, Let's go!" Ordering the figure to attack, Iris got up and prepared herself for the rushing soldier.
"He is fast, but trying to attack me head-on is pointless." Gesturing towards the coming force, the flower petals swirled around her, changing from the chromatic tone to an emerald hue, before rushing round her in a blinding swirl.
"Tempestas Chartreusia." Iris commanded the petals, spending the growing floral mass forwards and barreling against Talos, as they spread across and past him, a trail of wind knocked into him with a constant stream driving him back.
The wind blew hard enough to stop the soldier in its tracks as it did its best to brace against the violent gusts.
The blast of wind was quickly eroding Talos's footing, forcing him back. Taking advantage of the chance, Tersia rushed in towards the occupied Iris who began to summon more of the petals, as the jet-stream grew into a violent storm against the spearman.
"Sword Queen of Ivory: Galatea" Tersia spoke these words that were muffled by the wind as she approached Iris, aiming to disarm her, she leapt past the garden surrounding her, with a dash of speed putting her behind the battle between her and Talos.
"Three against one is hardly fair!" Iris' words shocked Tersia as she caught her in the corner of her eye…and another.
Matching Tersia's every step, an ivory skinned figure appeared. With a golden sword and shield in hand, the figure possessed the same fiery blue eyes, though the flames also took the form of her flaming mane.
Dressed in a similar garb as Talos, her dress had blue colored frills rimmed along the edges of her skirt.
Unlike Talos, Galatea, also wore a golden helm and even stranger, seemed like an armored pair of wings, with pale feathers engulfed in similarly blue flames.
Iris noted how the new puppet was dressed quite intriguing, standing much shorter than Talos and only slightly taller than her master.
A steely expression about her, as they approached Iris, the alabaster warrior's shields vanished in golden light before bracing herself with both hands on her blade.
Iris turned the wind storm away from Talos, the funnel of storming winds following her gaze as she brought it down on them in a move that caused returning winds to spread outwards. The force of the shockwave was powerful enough to knock all three of them into the Arena's walls.
With the green petals swirling around her now, she stood as the winds flowed faster and faster around, blinding her to the gaze of her opponents. waiting for them deep within the eye of the emerald storm.
"Vaceris...they let you go first?" Erai arrived on the stands alongside Sergei and Torren, watching a bandaged Vaceris walk up the stairs.
Seeing her struggle, faster than they could tell, Erai was already beside her, offering her a hand as he helped up towards where Ketsu and Stephen sat.
"How can he move so fast but still be late for class?" Sergei wondered, unsure of why his question caused Torren to chuckle. They moved to join their classmates.
"Ketsu, you mind telling me what is going on down there?" Vaceris asked with a look of annoyance, as Erai sat her down..
"I guess I'm the one being taken care of this time. I should be fine by the end of the day, as long as I don't push myself, doctor's orders." She added as she soothed the bandaged areas.
"You took a serious hit in that fight of yours, Torren and I only managed to catch the tail-end of the battle but you went down pretty hard…"
"That's true, and I appreciate your concern, but right now Tersia's the one down there. She's the one that needs our support." Erai nodded as she spoke.
"You may be right about that, she's not facing an enemy to be taken lightly." Ketsu remained stoic as he rallied his class's attention back to the battle.
On the other side of the stands.
"How are you feeling Khrysos Notch..." Dusk asked the returning fighter, who seated his bruised and battered self away from her, as he kept quiet.
"Well, now he's pouting. I hate to say you were right, since, you know, we didn't exactly win that round now, did we?"
"If you–If you knew their Captain was going to send out someone that could blow Khrysos out of the sky like a balloon then what was your genius plan to stop them?" Seleste asked her to clarify whom she had to blame.
"You misunderstand, I stated the outcome with the variables I was aware of. It mattered not what position Khrysos Notch took, victory against our adversaries in the first battle was unlikely." Dusk tried to calm their Class Captain, though her porcelain expression gave no hint of concern or guilt over her classmate's failure.
"Well then, if I had no chance, why did you let our Captain put me in the team?" Khrysos felt annoyed enough to respond to her seemingly unmoved tone. He took a firm grasp of Dusk's collar, with a tightening grip, while the rest of the class merely watched.
"Because with you fighting, we could prevent a victory on their side and remove a powerful obstacle in a single move."
"No doubt they expected this on their part, but it's also obvious they had no other option, I can be certain of that considering Ketsu had no qualms informing us of the opponents we'll be facing the moment he declared the challenge against our class."
"Easy there. That's enough. Put her down." A firm grip tightening around his wrist, as cold gray eyes stared intensely at him.
"This doesn't concern you, Roc."
"If you hurt her, it will!"
"Then I'll just–"
"Take it easy. That's what you'll do Khrysos, we can't have the other classes watching us tear ourselves apart." Seleste finally stepped in, holding her gaze on him, until he finally placed her down, and sat quickly, with only a minor huff.
"Are you okay?" Roc's hard expression easily after checking on Dusk.
"I am. Thank you, Roc Bluebat." Giving a slight bow at him.
"Yeah…just be careful all right. And Roc is enough, we're classmates after all." Walking away without raising much of a fuss, he sat above the rest of his classmates, choosing to keep his rage at their inaction at bay.
"I can assure you that the victory you seek will be secured."
"Of course you'd be singing a different tune when your own friend is dancing in the ring." Khrysos fired back.
"If you have any doubts, just keep your eyes open. Iris is already doing far better than you managed, your Corinthian's Vase is no-doubt unstoppable in the right scenario, but your abilities simply pale in comparison to her own."
"The Prismatic Bouquet. Its strength cannot be underestimated, we'd have been at a grave disadvantage without her in the Configuration, however our opponents have continued to prove persistent at each turn. I do not have the same certainty you do, and I wonder if it may cloud your judgment." Seleste sat up to focus on the battle, ignoring Dusk and Khrysos' argument.
"Then allow her to show you." Dusk ended her statement, with her now exchanging glances with Ketsu across the Arena.
"So...does anyone know what Tersia was just hit by?" Torren asked around the group with a look of shock.
"I'm seeing this for the first time. Those dolls beside her, it's her–" Erai added.
"That would be Ms. Lumeria's Soul Arm, the Prismatic Bouquet and as for our dear Tersia, that is indeed her Soul Arm, the Ivory Heart." Ketsu brought his crossed fingers up to his chin and rested himself against them.
"Though the actual power of Tersia's Soul Arm isn't the dolls, rather the magical engine driving them. As for her opponent, the name should be an obvious hint."
"..." Torren tried to rack his brain around the thought.
"Sigh. Those flowers. Seems like each time they change color, she can use a different kind of power. Chartreuse was probably that green wind storm we saw earlier." Stephen answered.
"How did you...what makes you think that is even true? We only saw her summon that windstorm."
"Sometimes it 'pays' to pay attention, Suijng. Before she controlled them, those petals came from a garden that was created by a sudden blur of rainbow light she summoned. After it disappeared, all that was left was the petals. A rainbow has seven colors in it, including green, who's to say that she has something else if my reasoning is sound."
"Seriously, are you just allergic to using my name or something, you know its Torren." Stephen and Torren kept up their arguing as Erai turned to Ketsu and Vaceris.
Wondering what Tersia's power could actually do, but they assured him that she was just getting started. Unsure of what they meant he pressed them for a clearer answer with Vaceris interrupting to add something:
"Hang on, none of what she can do will help if she can't figure out how Iris is reading her movements." Vaceris voiced, watching the battle with an uneasiness biting at her.
"You saw it too?"
"Ketsu? That last attack, she couldn't have seen it coming, especially with her squarely focused on keeping Talos back...yet she was able to react to the two incoming attacks from behind." Vaceris was stricken with a concerned look while she continued to observe the battle.
"Fret not. I can't be sure of how she is doing it but it's obvious Ms. Lumeria's awareness seems to be quite frightening. Still, I believe that Tersia will be able to handle herself."
After hearing his words, they could only hope as the crowd-filled stands roared with cheers and support. Dispelling the storm around her, the flower petals returned around her, moving swiftly in a windswept dance while losing the green hue, as Iris slowly approached the stationary dolls.
"If you are still conscious, I would suggest you surrender, I'm not one for needlessly drawing out a battle."
"...You're asking me with an unconvincing tone. You and I both know that this isn't over." Using the wall beside her to get back up, the dolls quickly moved to aid her on her feet.
Taking a moment to catch her breath, Tersia watched Iris approach, surrounded by the blossoming earth around her every step, the fluttering petals grew more scarlet the closer she got. She watched her pacing, her steps and her breath looking down at her sights, her movements were poised.
As if she already knew what Tersia had planned, Iris' next step sent the flurry towards her, the rush of crimson petals burst into a shower that chased and cut into the earth as they passed over her in a swarm, rending and scarring anything they touched.
With the petals bearing down on her, Tersia surprised everyone as she pushed on even faster...joined by a blur from behind, her continued advance brought the stationary Talos to life, with it charging after its master.
With the crimson cloud having surrounded her, Iris clenched her first, collapsing the barrage atop her. "Sanguiex Lapidae."
The crimson petals surrounding Tersia were blown apart when a sudden gap opened up for a mere moment, letting past a flying projectile screaming through the air.
Talos let loose his spear amidst the chaos of the crimson petals, the attempt to free its master passed through the petals...though standing in the path of the clouds, the spear headed straight for Iris instead.
She was granted only a moment to react to the act, shifting her focus to avoid it, the bolt shot past, embedding itself into the wall of the Arena with a thunderous crash.
"What!" Looking back at the source of the attack, she found something more worrying, despite having collapsed the spell atop her opponent, the petals seemed to be resisted...unable to draw close enough to Tersia with the number of scattered petals around them steadily growing.
When enough of them were littering the grounds, she was finally able to see inside the crimson mass.
Deep within, Tersia could be seen kneeling beneath the cloud of petals...but before they could reach her, a sword would swing at blinding speeds to repel them...so fast were they that the wind from each blow kept the rest of the petals at bay.
"No! How did that puppet get in there?" Without giving it much time to understand the sight before her, Iris tried to focus the flurry of petals on the doll defending Tersia. The swirling mass changed targets, flowing towards the doll from every side.
"You've done well, Galatea. Now, stand strong for me." Tersia whispered to the doll, encouraging it as the cloud lessened enough that she was able to leap out of the mass towards Iris.
Joining her from above, Talos came barreling down atop her, prompting her to shift most of the crimson petals to defend against them...freeing Galatea to join against Tersia, the makings of a pincer attack was formed in that moment.
Knocking Talos into the ground with the flurry, the barrage was cut short with Galatea's interruption.
Freeing her fellow doll, Tersia moved against Iris directly, avoiding a blow from her, she took the chance to grapple before slamming her into the ground. Her opponent only managed to save herself from the full force of the impact by cushioning her crash with the mass of the crimson petals.
The act of Tersia breaking through Iris' defense brought back Ketsu's fiendish grin, as his expression caught the eye of Dusk and Seleste, Ketsu reassured his class with a similar air of confidence.
"When it comes to close-quarters fighting, you will be hard-pressed to find an incapable fighter amongst the Therianthropes, our Tersia is no doubt a powerhouse."
Recovering from the attack, the crimson cloud shifted hues taking on the green tone once more.
Talos once again rushed to stand in front of Tersia with Galatea burying her sword into the ground when another swirling vortex surrounded Iris, the column of wind rising into the air before stretching outwards, pushing them away.
The ground was giving way, as the winds grew fiercer and harsher, taking a visible toll on Iris, doing her best to hold on.
With them being pushed back, Talos gripped the earth before calling to Galatea. An exchange that was had with the flickering fires of their eyes. She responded without a second to lose, using her buried blade to launch against the storm, aided by her wings in flight, she shot past Talos.
The bronze soldier prepared himself, for in the next moment, Tersia had reached him, grabbing hold of him, before she sent her flying into the storm, with all his strength, catching up to Galatea's flight.
With her flying behind Galatea, as the strength of the winds heightened and they began falling back, Galatea grabbed Tersia and threw her at the eye of the storm.
Screaming through the air in a blinding stream, once Tersia pierced the eye, she hurtled into Iris, knocking them both into the Arena walls and leaving cratered remains around where they crashed.
However despite the intense crash, both were able to get to their feet, slinging blow after blow against each other as they locked themselves in a close quarters exchange of fists.
Terisa's attacks were fearsome with Iris managing to only avoid a few without her petals, but with the exchange continuing, the petals would slowly return to her side....appearing with the crimson hue shielding her from each and every attack.
This time, Tersia wasn't alone, as Galatea charged in, no longer resisted by the storm winds, she flew past her master, severing the mass of the petals to give Tersia enough of an opening to strike against her.
While Talos managed to reel itself from the dirt and retrieve the buried spear to join the attack.
Standing in the way of coming petals and keeping them anchored when Iris tried to blow them away, Talos stood firm allowing Galatea the chance to carve open a path for Tersia to strike.
This went on until Iris was backed against the walls....doing her best to shift between the petals hue's but the dolls intervention wasn't helping.
With the last of the petals swirling around, Tersia was ready to move into the gap...but to her surprise, as the final gust of wind pushed back the dolls Tersia was holding on against the windstorm only for the storm to fail in taking its shape before it disappeared.
As the remaining petals fluttered about before being pulled into her palms. Tersia rushed in, with the dolls not far behind.
Atop the battle watching in anticipation for the coming clash, Dusk and Ketsu stood in the face of what's to come with one of them uttering something faint under their breath: "Don't...turn back."
And from these stands, Ms. Yuria leapt forward into the battle–
With Tersia about to end the fight against Iris, the dolls that managed to catch up and spread out to block her escape as she stood waiting with open palms.
The petals within them were glowing, a bright light that eclipsed each of them forming two ever-brilliant glows as her opponents drew closer, the orbs of light grew to such a shine that mimicked the very stars, now in her hands...
Facing those against her she turned her palms to face each other, speaking the final words of the spell, she clasped them together, killing the white light before a shockwave shot out of them, ripping past Tersia, Ms. Yuria and even those in the stands.
"Orsus Album"
Ms. Yuria managed to get to Tersia just as the white light sprang forth, striking both of them and forcing them back with such strength that the earth would rip away alongside chunks of the area behind Iris with the blast expanding past the Medical Ward near the Arena.
The result of the blast tearing an opening through one of the sides, splitting the pillars, beams and supports from their holdings as a part of the Arena was reduced to rubble.
Those on the collapsing structure were saved as they found themselves shaking from the experience and shocked at how they arrived at safety. On the dust swept Arena floor, what was covered in rubble had fallen into the trench carved out when the blast hit Ms. Yuria:
"The Second Battle is over! The winner is Iris Fleurette Lumeria." She signaled the end through the cloudy battleground as she retrieved an unconscious Tersia from the trench.
Dusting herself off, she snapped her fingers, clearing the Arena of the dust cloud in a single motion, and calling to the Medical staff to aid the injured.
Those that were behind the line of safety tried to process the events as the Arena was in silence, watching a panting Iris who was barely holding herself up, suspended a mass of emerald petals above the crater below.
"Due to the damage sustained to the Arena, we will have a recess. The third battle will continue in twenty minutes."
"What was that? It ripped straight through the Protective Ward."
The shocked onlookers questioned the sight as both Class 1F and 1C were sitting in total silence. With the still standing figures looking at each other from across the derelict stage, the expression on both their faces told of the same thought.
'What's next?'