Arthur Chamberlain
The arena was place for the students of Swarovski Academy to hone their craft in magic, not only in that, but to also strengthen their bodies for what the real world threw at them. Out there, there was not examples, no tests, no do overs... You get it wrong once and you are dead, both Arthur and Layth knew this well, all too well. Arthur stood at the side of the arena, styled much like a modern Colosseum, taking obvious design schemes from the olden structure in Rome, Italy. His one azure eye stared intently at the seen unfolding in front of him... What had begun as a simple training exercise was about to transform into a all out brawl, Layth seemed to have a habit of riling others up in more ways then one... In spite of not doing much. A smile pulled at the military man's lips. "Take out the best, and secure your spot on the top... A obvious conclusion, but is it the wisest?" His British accent laced in the words he spoke. Of course Arthur spoke of the current situation at hand, seemed some of the more zealous students aimed to slay the beast... The Lion of Swarovski, Layth. That eye of his shifted from the students that challenged the SS rank towards the beast himself. Slipping gloved hands inside of his black slacks he watched eagerly.
"...There is a reason they call him beast, though I am sure they will learn soon enough."
Layth
The student has always been popular among the school's populace... Though it wasn't for his impeccable social skills, nor was it for his kindness... The other students knew Layth because of his skill on the battlefield. Among the SS Ranks Layth had always consistently ranked at the top of his class, and reaching rank of SS at the age of twelve was a daunting feat in itself. In test score he scored consistently high marks, but his true strength lay in his on field experience. At a young age he was already well accustom to the harsh world outside of the academy... Being a child soldier and forced into war. The young man stood in the middle of the arena hand holding his weapon of choice, a Japanese blade still sheathed. Surrounded by his opposers, fellow students who seemingly had enough with his overwhelming popularity and prestige, they all had their weapons drawn; daggers, swords, guns even... There must have been ten of them, power in numbers right? Typically that mind set would work. "Lion of Swarovski!... Load of shit if you ask me!" One of the students called out grin pulling at his lips. "We haven't actually seen you do jack shit... Nothing but tall tales, honestly I would not be surprised if you spread em' yourself!" Another called out to Layth's side prompting the lion to gaze lightly at his direction. He couldn't blame them, he was often away on missions and the seldom times he was seen at school he would often be off doing his own thing, studying, training... With so much commotion and word of mouth already the stands of the arena began to slowly fill, other students began to surround the soon to be battle.
"They're taken on the Lion of Swarovski!"
"...There are ten of em' how is Layth gonna beat that?"
"He does not seem fazed at all."
Idle chatter among the masses, and honestly Layth was not one for so much attention. His golden hues moved to stare forward, not at anything in particular, his goal was to focus on his surroundings and not focus on a individual assailant. His free hand moved to rest on the hilt of his blade, he did not have to wait long... The student that held the gun raised his fire arm and fired off a few shots at Layth, honestly... With so many innocent bystanders around? Reckless... As those bullets flew through the air time itself seemed to slow down, at least to Layth. Those amber hues looked towards the bullets that slowly traveled through the air towards him, if he were to move the student on the other side would have been struck by the shots... Dodging was not an option. Time kicked in at normal speed once more and quickly Layth unsheathed his blade, in a few quick slashes those bullets were deflected towards the ground and the sky, ensuring no one will be struck by them. The gun user was dangerous... He would need to be dispatched of first. Taking a step to his side, within a brief moment he was already in front of the student holding the gun. That blade of his was sheathed once more, and the sheath cracked against the student's gun hand. The sound of bone cracking under pressure was heard, followed by a yelp of pain before it was quickly silenced with another strike against the student's jaw strong enough to force the kid into the air in a spiral before landing a few yards away. During this time the other students rushed in, seeing a opening to strike the preoccupied Layth. A student with a blade came down on Layth's right shoulder, and it was quickly met with a block of Layth's sheath he had merely lifted the sheath up behind his head to block the blow. With a quick spin Layth thrust his fist into the student's gut, the power and speed of the strike would have sent the boy flying in the air... But Layth had other plans for him; grasping him by the shoulder with his free hand the lion lifted him briefly and tossed him into another charging combatant. Suddenly he felt it, someone's aura... Their magical essence began to surge, someone was about to cast a spell... Quickly gold eyes shifted towards the spell caster who uttered their incantation, Layth would counter with one of his own. Forcing a gloved hand outward he struck the mage with something... What it was, not many people knew, but it was enough to send the spell caster reeling backwards from the force. Turning that palm upward Layth's own aura began to show, it started off cool like a low flame, but it steadily grew into a raging flame, a glow of red and white. The moment he sent his palm upward the student was launched into the air, the force rendered the young man unconscious, as he tumbled back to the earth Arthur was ready, using his own magic to steadily ease the kid back onto the ground.
The remaining students were clearly shaken by Layth's speed, power and magical ability... The kid he had knocked out was a rank S, the strongest in their group... And Layth tossed him aside like nothing, how big was the gap between them and him? Amber eyes turned to look towards them, ferocity entangled in that glare, he was like a beast stalking his prey. Most of the students laid down their weapons surrendering, all but one who held firmly onto her book of spells. Her eyes swelled with tears, which took Layth back for a moment. That fierce glare he held softened, and that intense aura he admitted dimmed. "It's not fair..." The female whimpered grasping onto her book tightly, tears began to mark it's binding.
"...I thought, that if I trained... That if I put up with your presence here... That I would be able to beat you..." She began her voice trembled, lips doing the same. Arthur stared onward arms moving to fold over his chest as he watched, Layth remained silent, eyes trained on her. "But even with all of us... You still came out on top, how can anyone win against you!?" He sadness slowly began to turn into anger, those digits of her's tightened around the book in her hands.
"...My dad, he's gone because of you. Killed by you! And they still let a monster like you stay here!" Her voice echoed across the arena, silence fell over the arena. Layth stood, still silent, eyes never leaving the small girl's frame... She must have been no older then twelve. Off to the side, it was clear Arthur fought himself to not say anything, but he left his words to himself... He knew Layth would have not wanted him to step in, and so he granted the young man this. Slowly the wind around the girl began to swirl, her own aura becoming visible, a pale blue in shade... Yet filled with such hate. The winds around the arena in general began to strengthen causing Layth's hair and jacket to sway in it's strength. Her eyes began to glow brightly, a shade vibrant shade of blue... She was tapping into too much power. "...If they won't kill you, if they can't kill a mindless beast like you!... THEN I WILL!" The book opened, pages flipping out of control slowly it rose in front of her, and the girl herself began to slowly raise as well... Far too much power. Layth stood unflinching, waiting for the girl's rage fueled blast that was sure to come. The students around them stared dumbfounded, at a loss for words and actions, all they could do was watch as the little girl expressed her sadness, her rage. Large icicles formed in the air surrounding the girl's small frame, they began to spin quickly... From where Layth stood he could feel the frigid cold... But she was beginning to lose control. Small shards of ice began to launch prematurely striking the ground, some were sent towards the other students watching, and were quickly countered by protective spells... One even flew and stuck Layth's right shoulder forcing the young man to take a step back in recoil. His face for a moment scrunched in pain, wincing as the icicle still impaled his body. He clearly saw it coming, yet made no effort in trying to dodge the stray shard. The icicles began to flurry out of control and before the girl was ready to launch them at Layth, they took flight on their own. Moving at near blinding speed Layth remained still watching, was he going to bother moving?
Either way it did not seem to matter, he a blur of black Arthur moved to stand in between the shards of ice and Layth. Lifting a hand in front of him he snared the icicles in his own spell, by the use of the gravity he forced the ice to simply collide into the ground instead in front of them. A bit shocked Layth looked towards Arthur, who peered backwards with a look of disapproval. No words were stated, but there was no need, they both knew what the other had to say. The girl who had attacked Layth had clearly used far too much power in one single attack for someone of her skill level, and as a result began to fall backward unconscious. In a blur Layth was right there to catch her before she hit the ground, he held the girl in his arms. Blood began to slowly seep from her nose, a clear sign that someone had used far too much magical power for their body to handle. For a moment Layth watched the sleeping girl, her rage subsided into a quiet slumber. Kneeling on the ground with the girl in his arms he parted his lips to speak.
"...I don't blame you." He began briefly looking towards Arthur who approached. Layth's voice slightly deep tone held nothing but regret in it's words. "I would of done the same thing." Moving to stand with the girl in his arms Arthur gave a light shake of his head. "There is no age limit it seems, when it comes to your enemies... Either way, Layth, Mrs. Black called for you; most likely a mission. You should get going." Layth gave a light nod, eyes moving towards the girl's face. "I will once I drop her off with the nurse."