Tsuki couldn't keep herself from dozing off, the Eevee's head drooping down until her head nearly touched her desk. She had barely gotten any sleep the previous night, her racing mind unable to be merely shut away. Of course, now that she was sitting in class, her mind had no better idea than to finally get some sleep.

It had been that Lucario, Rika. Even as Tsuki's ears drooped down and her mind fought her consciousness in a battle of sleeping versus wakefulness, she could hear the whispers of her fellow students talking about her. Ever since she barged into the academy the previous day only to have her butt kicked by President Kurai, everyone had been talking about her. Constantly. Some thought she was an idiot, a talentless hack, or worse. Still, to others… Tsuki couldn't help but smile as she forced her head back up, only for her eyes to shoot wide open as she found her new role model standing at the front of the classroom.

Rika stood next to Tsuki's teacher, a Lopunny named Mrs. Rosa. Whispers began to rise through the class only to quiet down as Rosa cleared her throat and began speaking. "I am sure that our new student needs no introduction, but in case you somehow missed her… Display, everyone please say hello to Ms. Rika."

A chorus of voices rose up in the classroom, Tsuki taking the time to glance around for empty desks. To her surprise there was only one, and not right next to her as it clearly belonged. Determined to rectify this mistake, Tsuki shot out of her chair and ran back to the corner, grabbing the empty desk. She gave a grunt and seemingly effortlessly lifted it above her head despite being much smaller than it. "Scuse me, pardon me!" she apologized as she carried the desk back to her own, kicking her neighbor's desk out of the way and plopping down the empty one haphazardly in the now rather cramped space. Tsuki grinned as she leaped atop the desk, looking at her surprised teacher and pointing her paw down. "Got an empty desk for her right her!"

"Y-you can't…" Rosa began, but before she could say anything Rika was already sitting in the empty desk, her feet casually put up and on top of it. Tsuki squealed in silent joy as she leaned close to Rika, looking her up and down. There! Around her waist was the same belt she wore yesterday, the Aura Blade hilt emerging from a sheath at the back!

"C-can I touch it?" Tsuki asked, not even realizing that Rosa had begun talking again. The Lucario glanced over at her, looking down at the odd Eevee. Yes! Looking right at her!

"Eh?" Was all Rika said, but that was good enough as a confirmation! Instantly the Aura Blade was out and in Tsuki's paws, her eyes wide and filled with stars as she looked over the weapon! "H-hey, you can't just take that!" Rika yelled and swiped the hilt back out of Tsuki's paws.

"Come on, it's just too awesome!" Tsuki whined, flailing her paws at the hilt as Rika held it away from her. Finally a cough drew Rika and Tsuki's attention, them turning to find Rosa along with the rest of the class looking directly at them.

"Tsuki, if you want to pester Rika, can you please wait to do it until after class?" The Lopunny sighed and crossed her arms, not so much asking as commanding. Tsuki gave one last glance at the Aura Blade as Rika pushed it back into its sheath, before turning to face forward and silently nodding.

"Good." Rosa made her way back to the front of the classroom and picked up a piece of chalk, starting to draw on the chalkboard. "Now then, in part for the benefit of our new student and also because our Teaching Officer told me to, we will be doing review on some basic concepts today."

When Rosa turned away from the board, Tsuki could see that she had sketched out pictures of Gems on it. At the left was a Gem Fragment, the smallest and jaggedly cut, looking just like the one Rosa wore on a necklace. Next to it was a Gem Shard, a larger Gem with a much smoother surface. Last a Pure Gem like the one Rika had in her Aura Blade; a perfect sphere.

Rosa began lecturing on the rather boring aspects of gems; how they were mined, how they were cut and polished, how they went through a final purification process… Tsuki couldn't help it as she found herself dozing off again, until Rosa calling her name caused her ears to perk and head to shoot up. "Ms. Tsuki, if you wouldn't mind explaining to the class what's so special about these Gems?" The Lopunny smiled snidely as she asked the question in her sweet voice. Tsuki flashed a grin before enthusiastically leaping onto her desk.

"Of course! Gems are our school's pride and allow Pokemon to fight like they never have before! Gems are imbued with power that whoever uses them can draw on to help them fight!" A blink later and the Eevee stood on Rosa's desk, the Lopunny turning to face her in surprise as Tsuki snatched the necklace from around the teacher's neck and held it up, pointing a paw at it. "This is a Gem Fragment and the weakest Gem you can have. You can't draw much power from one, but it's enough to bolster your attacks and durability. You'll hit harder and can take more hits, but for the most part fighting with a Gem Fragment is the same as any other battle."

Next Tsuki was standing on her toes on the chalk tray beneath the board, holding both paws up to point at the drawing of the Gem Shard. "At the next level you got these Gem Shards! This is where the fun really starts! In addition to bolstering attack and durability even further, enough power can be drawn from Gem Shards to use special Gem Powers! The power depends on the Gem, but can range from mega powerful attacks to crazy new abilities! Even if you think you're a good fighter outside of Jaeger, once you get a Gem Shard you've gotta learn how to fight using its special powers or else get lost."

Finally Tsuki was back at her desk, standing on it once more and raising Rika's Aura Blade up in the air. The Lucario looked around as if she was crazy, trying to figure out how the Eevee could move so fast and take the hilt once again without her noticing. "And set in this wonderful piece of technology (that unfortunately I can't even use…) is a Pure Gem! The power Pure Gems provide… It's said that each Pure Gem is able to transform its user into a new form and unlock the height of their abilities…" Tsuki rubbed her paw over the gem set in the Aura Blade's hilt, her fur sticking up on end. She didn't even realize she had been trying to activate the Gem until Rika snatched the Aura Blade out of her paws, not saying a word as she tucked it away again.

"...Despite your penchant for drama, yes, that is correct. Each rank of Gem provides more power than the last." Rosa reluctantly nodded as she adjusted her necklace before labeling each Gem on the chalkboard. "As Tsuki mentioned, Gem Shards and Pure Gems grant the user special powers beyond merely increasing strength. While you can passively draw on a Gem's power for its basic benefits, to use any Gem Powers that Shards or Pure Gems provide you must activate the Gem. Activating a Gem requires that you focus your power into the gem, channeling your energy into it; in return the Gem will share its energy with you. The exact science of Gems isn't completely understood, but…"

Tsuki quickly found herself paying less and less attention to Rosa, staring blankly ahead and nodding as if to indicate she was paying attention while sneaking discrete looks over at Rika whenever she got the chance. There was just something so COOL about the Lucario, sitting there and paying about as much attention to the lecture as Tsuki was. Class seemed to pass in the blink of an eye and before she knew it Tsuki found herself following Rika out of the classroom, sticking a bit too closely behind the Lucario.

Rika soon realized she was being followed, stopping in her tracks and turning around, looking blankly down at the Eevee. "...You're that Eevee from class, aren't you?"

Tsuki nodded excitedly, standing up on her rear legs so her eyes were at least level with the Lucario's chest. "Yep! I'm Tsuki! Where're we going?"

"We?" Rika raised a brow at that. "Since when are we… Well, we?"

"We're in the same class together! It must be fate for us to be best friends!" Tsuki almost swooned as she spoke it, not noticing Rika giving an impatient sigh.

"We don't even know each other, how can we be friends?" Rika asked, turning back around and beginning to walk again. Tsuki dropped down to all four legs and chased after, keeping pace alongside the Lucario.

"I know all about you! I was watching yesterday you know, when you fought President Kurai! And you… You… You were so COOL!" Tsuki exclaimed with a squeal, nearly tripping over her paws and collapsing. Catching herself she leapt in front of Rika, forcing her to stop as Tsuki blocked the way. "I'm like your biggest fan you know!"

"...That's not knowing everything about me. And besides, I don't know anything about you." Rika stepped around Tsuki and continued on, the Eevee hurying to get in front of Rika again and walking backwards.

"Let's see… Well I love watching fights! I'm not much of a fighter myself, but I just ADORE all the action that goes on here!" In a split second Tsuki had clambered up onto Rika's shoulder, the Lucario glancing over with a surprised look as she found the Eevee barely managing to hold on. Tsuki leaned in against Rika's ear, whispering into it, "Don't tell anyone but I actually joined here just to watch fights, not to fight myself."

"Get off me," Rika growled, swiping a fist at Tsuki only to miss as the Eevee leapt backwards, flipping through the air before landing. "Why should I be friends with you anyway?"

Tsuki tilted her head, as if she genuinely didn't understand the question. "Because… We all need friends, don't we? And you don't have any yet."

Rika actually paused at that, looking slightly hesitant. Finally she seemed to relax and gave a shrug. "Fine. I wouldn't be able to shake you off me so easily anyway, would I?"

"Nope!" Tsuki exclaimed, this time Rika finding the Eevee dangling from her back, paws wrapped around her neck. Rika flailed her arms to keep her balance, before Tsuki let go and dropped down. "When Tsuki wants something she doesn't take no for an answer!"

Rika couldn't understand what was up with this girl, but… A thought suddenly came to her. "Hey, wait. You said you like watching fights, right?"

"Yep!" Tsuki exclaimed, her tail wagging behind her. "Wanna go watch some?"

Rika gave a grin and pulled her Aura Blade out, tapping it against her other paw. "Nah, but it sounds like you know just where to go to find someone to fight."

---

"Fight Lounge, eh?" Rika muttered to herself as she looked up to the sign above the door, paws on her hips. She reached out and pushed open the doors, marching in as Tsuki followed her. The normally excitable Eevee seemed to have grown nervous suddenly, sticking close to Rika as her eyes darted around the room.

The Fight Lounge was a broad, circular room at the base of the Academy's tallest tower. Couches were spread throughout the room grouped into clusters, Pokemon sitting in groups and talking to each other quietly, yet with a low noise that filled the room with life. A circular bar was at the middle of the room, Spinda and Shuckle serving out drinks and food orders from the small kitchen the bar surrounded. Spread out all along the walls were screens, most showing various camera angles of the courtyard Rika had fought Kurai in, while others showed recorded footage of past fights.

Rika sighed as she felt Tsuki clinging to one of her legs, raising it up and shaking the Eevee loose. "Oy, what're you scared about now?" Rika asked as she looked down, Tsuki rubbing her head as she rolled to her feet.

"W-well, as I said, I'm not much of a fighter, yet…" Tsuki nervously pressed up against Rika's other leg, as if trying to hide her presence. "The Fight Lounge, it has a rule that…"

"Anyone who's challenged to ah fight cannot decline," a voice said in typical Southern drawl, Rika tilting her head and looking over to find a Sceptile standing there. He held himself with an air of authority, and the twin revolvers he wore against his hips showed he meant business. Casually he plucked a leaf out of his mouth and stuck it in the wide brim of the hat he wore.

"Who're you?" Rika asked, tilting her chin upwards. "Here to fight? Cause I am."

"H-h-he…" Tsuki stuttered, her teeth chattering and her fur standing on end. The Sceptile looked down and gave Tsuki a smile, before looking back up to Rika as the smile melted.

"Name's Maverick, and I run this joint." He crossed his arms over his pocket-lined vest, Rika noting that most of the pockets appeared to hold extra ammunition for his revolvers. "Thought ah'd see you ‘ave a proper introduction."

Rika didn't respond for a moment, continuing to glance over the Sceptile, looking for something. There! Embedded in the grip of the revolver that set against his left hip Rika found what she was looking for. A brilliant gem was set into the bottom of the grip, smaller than the one set in her own Aura Blade but unmistakably what Junichi and Rosa had called a Pure Gem. Almost as if following her gaze Maverick shifted, turning slightly and revealing the grip of his other revolver. Rika's eyes went wide as she saw it contained a second Gem, identical to the first. "Two?" she couldn't help but remark as Tsuki tried her best to say something, her teeth chattering against each other unintelligibly.

Maverick gave a sly grin and shrugged. "It's a bit too early ta care about that, missy. You may ‘ave been allowed to keep that Pure Gem o' yours, but you're still a zero until ya prove you can use it."

"St-stu…" Tsuki managed to get out, before squeaking and falling silent again as Rika took a step forward.

"Well then. How about this." Rika reached behind her back and pulled out the Aura Blade, twirling it around before pointing the emitter end at the Sceptile's chest. A low murmur filled the lounge and everyone turned to face them, tension rising in the air. "I challenge you to a fight."

It was like a candle had been extinguished. The room fell deathly silent, the only sound being Tsuki's chattering teeth as she again tried to force out something. Maverick crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes, a frown twisting across his face.

"You can't decline a fight, can you?" Rika grinned, raising a brow before pointing her Aura Blade off to the side and igniting it in a surge of blue Aura energy. She raised the solid blade that formed from the energy and pressed the flat edge against Maverick's chin mockingly.

"You've got no idea what you've gotten into here, do you," Maverick slowly said, losing his accent for the first time.

"St-stu-student… C-council…" Tsuki suddenly said in a gasp. "He's… Student Council…"

"Battle Officer Maverick of Jaeger Battle Academy's Student Council." The words seem to hang in the air as Maverick said them, drawing a revolver from its holster and pushing away Rika's sword with it. "You're out of your league, kid."

Rika almost seemed to falter, but stood firm, lowering the Aura Blade to her side. "You can't decline a fight," she repeated.

"No, even I can't." Maverick reached up and adjusted his hat, plucking out the leaf he had stored in it and sticking the end back in his mouth. "Time ta teach the newbie why I'm king of the hill, ain't it boys!" he burst into a yell as his accent returned, the lounge raising with shouts and cheers. Behind her Rika heard a thump, turning and looking down to see Tsuki lying fainted on the floor.

---

"From the challenger's entrance is Jaeger's new hotness, barging in on the scene with her fight against none other than President Kurai herself! A Rank 0 student with a blade of hardened Aura and a Pure Gem of her own: Rika enters the battlefield!"

The doors split open before Rika, the Lucario walking out into the sand-covered courtyard. Noise washed over her instantly; unlike her first time in the courtyard, the stands were full. Rika looked around at the bleachers atop the walls as she stepped out from the challenger's entrance, the mixed voices of people both cheering for and jeering at her mixing together into a roar of pure sound. Finally she spotted Tsuki, freshly awakened yet still drowsy-looking, in a front row near her entrance. The Eevee was biting her lower lip as she watched Rika enter, the Lucario giving her a smile and slight nod.

"And from the defender's entrance is a decorated veteran of the fight! You all know him, you all look up to him, and now you all will see for yourself why he's earned his Rank 3 position as Student Council Battle Officer! Maverick, step on out!"

The amplified announcer's voice was nearly drowned out from the surge of the crowd's cheers as the door opposite Rika split opened. Maverick stepped out with his arms raised in the air above his head, fists pumping as he spun around and took in the energy of the crowed as if he was born for this moment. Rika crossed her arms and shrugged, glancing up at the tall tower at the rear of the Academy. She couldn't see her, but she had a feeling Kurai was watching from one of those windows and balconies up high.

"Prepare for the battle of a lifetime! Rank 0 Student Rika versus Rank 3 Student Council Battle Officer Maverick! Fight!"

Rika pulled her Aura Blade out from its holster, spinning the hilt around her paw before igniting the blade as she held it towards Maverick. The Sceptile nodded his head, noticing that she wasn't rushing in this time as she had against Kurai. As reckless as Rika was, she was playing this cautiously and waiting to see how Maverick would kick things off.

"Well well well, restrained this time ain't ya?" He said as he crossed his arms across his chest, placing his hands on his revolvers.

"You're the veteran here, I figured you could show me how things work before I take your rank," Rika sneered.

"One of your worst mistakes yet!" Maverick whooped, suddenly drawing his revolvers from their holsters. He spun them around by the trigger guards until the barrels clashed against each other and he held them crossed in front of his chest. The twin gems set into the bottom of the grips gleamed and sparkled in the light, Maverick letting out a snicker before shouting, "Pure Gems, Resonate!"

It took only seconds, but as soon as he spoke the words time seemed to slow to a crawl. Light burst out from the gems and bathed the courtyard in a light green hue, rings of rainbow-colored energy radiating out from the twin gems and positioning themselves around the Sceptile. He uncrossed his arms and held them out to his sides as the rings rotated and slid over him, coating his body in the Gems' energy. The Sceptile grunted and flexed his arms and legs as the energy over them coalesced into dark-green armor that encased his body completely. A helmet formed and slid into place over his head before a long coat flowed down from his neck and gathered at his feet. Maverick crouched down before leaping into the air, armor finishing coating his tail as he spun before landing in the middle of the courtyard as the light that had filled it washed away. "Battle Regalia: Scatter Mode!" his voice yelled out from beneath the armor, slightly distorted now.

The cheering of the crowd grew even louder than Rika had thought possible, the Lucario wavering for the first time as she looked at what Maverick had turned into. Entirely encased in armor, he barely resembled a Sceptile anymore if it wasn't for his slightly crouched stance and the armored tail that stuck out behind him. His familiar hat and new coat gave him the look of an archetypical gunslinger, with the twin revolvers he held only affirming that the look wasn't just show.

"You see now?" Maverick asked from within his armor. Without his face visible Rika had no way of knowing what was going on in his head, but she could hear the confidence in his voice. "This is the power of Pure Gems!"

"Tch… You're not the only one with those fancy gems you know!" Rika shouted, crossing her Aura Blade over her chest to expose the Pure Gem set into the hilt. She remembered what Rosa had said in class earlier, to channel her energy into the Gem. Already used to channeling Aura it sounded like it should be a piece of cake, the Lucario focusing as she felt her energy flowing into the hilt and the Gem. "Think I'll steal your trick…" she muttered before raising the sword over her head. "Pure Gem, Activate!"

A silence set over the battlefield as nothing happened, Rika gritting her teeth and dropping the sword back down to glance at the Gem, growling as she hit it with her paw. "Aw come on if he can have armor why can't I?!"

She was interrupted by the ear-splitting sound of Maverick's revolvers going off, the Lucario quickly dancing out of the way as shots impacted the wall behind where she had been standing. Maverick had evidently grown impatient of toying around and was gunning straight for her now, forcing Rika to put her failure at activating her Gem behind her. She lowered her free paw to her side and charged up an Aura Sphere before throwing it at the ground in front of Maverick to stir up a dust cloud, leaping at it and using the dust as cover to get close enough to slash him.

Yet before she even had the chance to take a swipe of her blade, she felt two different blades smack into her chest. She coughed as her breath was forced out of her, Rika crumbling to the ground and shakily looking up as the dust cleared. The blades emerged from a port in the armor on one of Maverick's arms: Leaf Blades. "Aw come on come on, that all ya got? Thought ah could expect more of ya!"

Rika sneered and gripped the Aura Blade tight, trying again to focus her Energy into it only for nothing to happen. She looked up as he pointed his revolvers down at her, knowing if she couldn't do something soon the fight would be over just as it began. So she gave a growl and did the exact opposite of what Rosa had said to do: she began to forcefully draw energy into her from within the Gem.

Immediately Rika shot to her feet as two bullets punched into the ground where she had been, planting the tip of the Aura Blade into the dirt and using it to spin around and deliver an empowered kick to Maverick. The armor-covered Sceptile skid back as the metal parts of his armor clanked against each other, looking up just in time to see Rika yank the blade out of the ground and launch at him in a surprisingly fast charge. "So ya seem to ‘ave found something in that Gem eh?" Maverick remarked as he spun his revolvers and held them up, firing shots at the approaching Lucario.

Rika seemed too fast to hit even head on now, the Lucario dodging and weaving to the sides as she ran, shifting her Aura Blade and using it to deflect those bullets she couldn't dodge. Empty clicks as the revolver hammers failed to strike anything informed both of the fighters that Maverick's revolvers were out of ammo and with Rika's charge he had no time to reload. She took the chance to leap up into the air in a forward spin, swinging out her blade at the armor that covered Maverick's neck.

Now, with as much armor as Maverick was covered in Rika had figured he would be slow to move. Yet as the blade crossed the empty air where Maverick had just been Rika found her assumption to be dead wrong. She landed on the ground and looked around, the Sceptile seeming to have simply vanished. There one moment, gone the next.

"Behind you!" Rika heard a voice shout, slowly recognizing it as Tsuki yelling from the stands. Rika dropped her head down just in time as Maverick's arms swung over her head, the twin Leaf Blades on each arm glowing with enough power that her throat would likely have been crushed if she hadn't ducked. Diving forward to put some room between them, Rika spun around and held her sword out as she stared down Maverick.

"Seems this fight is finally gettin' fun!" Maverick whooped, staring down the panting Rika as she tried to look more composed and confident than she felt. Forcefully taking power from her Gem appeared to be wearing her out faster than she would be tiring otherwise, Rika reluctantly letting go of the Gem's energy for now.

Maverick gave a nod before holstering his revolvers, not saying a word as he launched into a charge straight at Rika. Not wanting to draw on her Gem's energy again for fear of passing out from the exertion, Rika knew she had no chance of dodging so instead held her ground and shifted into a defensive stance. A clang rang out through the battlefield as Maverick's Leaf Blades clashed against Rika's Aura Blade, the former swiping and slashing as he tried to overcome Rika's blocks. She held fast in her defense, shifting the blade to block each blow as she waited for an opening to present itself.

One wouldn't come. Instead, slots opened along the armor on Maverick's tail to allow a whirlwind of leaves to shoot out, the leaves whipping around Rika and slashing at her from all angles now. She yelped as red lines appeared across her body from the leaves, trails of blood leaking out. Desperate to escape the onslaught she knew she had only one choice; focusing as well as she could Rika attempted to steal power from her Gem once more only to scream as her focus immediately dropped and she felt energy rushing from her back into the Gem instead. Rika dropped to her knees with a gasp and an oddly hollow feeling inside her, glancing up as she realized the Leaf Storm had stopped and her head hadn't been bashed in by a Leaf Blade.

Maverick had leapt backwards, the faceplate of his helmet open as he grinned down at Rika. "Seem ta be havin' a bit o' trouble with that Gem eh? Ah think it's about time ta finish this!"

The faceplate slammed closed and Maverick reached to his holsters, drawing his revolvers out and spinning them across his chest as before. The gems set into the bottom of the grips sparkled in the air as they spun before the Sceptile held his arms out before him as he had before. "Resonance Shift!" his distorted voice yelled.

The transformation wasn't as dramatic this time. His revolvers and the armor along his arms glowed and sparkled as they began to deform and shift. The revolvers seemed to merge into his arm's armor, the barrels enlarging to several times their original size. Light gleamed around Maverick's feet, knees, waist, and shoulders as extra armor and finned jets appeared over those spots, the jets firing off shots of flame. His stance was forced to drop to a low crouch as the weight of the new cannons built into his arms was too much for him to hold up, the new jets built into his armor helping to support him. "Battle Regalia: Burst Mode!"

Rika grimaced as she stared down the barrels of Maverick's new arm cannons, but he didn't stop there. Plates opened along the sides of the cannons that faced each other, Maverick pressing the cannons together as more plates extended forward to merge the twin barrels into a single massive cannon that a normal person would be straining to hold up. Energy began to gather in the cannon's barrel, particles streaming into vents that lined its surface. "Say hello to the Resonance Cannon, will ya?" Maverick taunted as clamps flipped down around his feet and dug into the ground, presumably so he wouldn't fall over when firing. "Always like ta finish a fight this way!"

Rika groaned and planted the Aura Blade in the ground, using it to force herself to her feet. All of her limbs were shaky, her feet completely unable to support her weight as she leaned on the Aura Blade. She couldn't help but wonder what had just happened, when the Gem seemed to have turned on her. It had taken enough energy there was nothing Rika could do, only able to face down the barrel of Maverick's charging Resonance Cannon with as much dignity as she could muster.

Then a flash filled her vision, and everything went dark.

---

Gavin bobbed his head as music pumped into his ears from the headphones he wore, the Glaceon sitting on his sculpted chair in the Student Council chambers with his hind legs propped up on his terminal and a bag of chips in paw, lazily watching Maverick's battle on his screen. This Rika, she had put up a decent fight despite the mind-numbingly stupid decision for her, a rank 0, to fight not just any rank 3 but the second strongest Pokemon in the school. Behind President Kurai, of course.

He grabbed a chip from the bag and stuck it in his mouth as he watched Maverick's leaves whipping around Rika's body only for the Lucario to suddenly collapse to her knees. His teeth crunched down on the chip and he tilted his head, leaning in close. Something about that collapse wasn't right… He reached up to his headphones and muted them, turning to look over to the Leavanny that sat at a similar terminal across from his. "Hey, Cordelia, you watching the fight?"

"Lady Kurai told me to analyze yesterday's fight." The Leavanny smiled and shrugged, tapping a foot against the ground and adjusting her silk dress. "One at a time, please!"

Gavin rolled his eyes, reaching over to his keyboard and tapping out a series of commands on it as he commandeered Cordelia's terminal and switched it over to the recording of the last half minute of Maverick's fight. "Too bad, tell me what just happened there."

Cordelia grunted, a rather unladylike gesture for her. As if to humor the Glaceon she watched the recording at double speed, only to quickly restore it to normal speed as her eyes widened. "What in the… What was she doing to that poor Gem?!" The Leavanny quickly pulled up the rest of the footage, flying through it to find the point where Maverick had nearly taken out Rika at the start only for the Lucario to get a mid-fight powerup. The grass-type's leaves bristled as she read through the sensor data readouts, comparing the recording when Rika suddenly grew empowered and when she collapsed. "We should never have let her keep the poor girl," she muttered.

Gavin tilted his head as he stared blankly at his counterpart. Cordelia always had been the weirdest of the council to him; she always acted as if the Gems were alive and could be hurt. To her, Gem Cutting was less about shattering rocks and more about grooming a living creature. "It's just a rock," he said flatly, unable to keep his mind to himself.

Cordelia snapped her head towards him, glaring at the young Glaceon. "Gems are NOT just rocks! I'll have you know--"

She was interrupted as static squealed out of every speaker in the room and filled the screens displaying the fight. Gavin's ears rose up as he pulled his headphones down so they rested around his neck, turning to his terminal and switching between every camera the Academy had. Most were working as normal, yet the ones that looked over the courtyard were nothing but static. Gavin cringed as he looked back to Kurai's empty chair, knowing she would be watching the battle from her suite.

"...So who gets to report to her highness?" the Glaceon meekly asked, getting no response from Cordelia who was already back to analyzing the recorded footage as if the security cameras going offline wasn't a massive deal that could cost him his head. "...Right, thought so."

Gavin grumbled and adjusted his glasses and the headphones that now hung around his neck. He slid off his chair and onto his hind legs, walking across to the elevator that was set into one wall. It opened at his approach, the Glaceon stepping inside and leaning against the back wall with arms crossed across his chest as it ascended up to the highest level of the tower. The doors didn't open immediately once it stopped and when they did, Gavin found Edgar standing there. The old Delphox bowed slightly but didn't speak, only gesturing Gavin in to Kurai's private suite; from his silence Gavin knew something serious must have happened.

Gavin rushed through the suite, barely taking in the sights as he rushed out to the balcony. There Kurai stood with her claws gripped over the rail, Gavin giving a cough to let her know she was there. "Lady, just a few minutes ago the security cameras watching the courtyard went offline, and right as Maverick was about to finish Rika off no less. Thought you might want to know"

"Of course… I expected as much," the Zoroark responded, gesturing Gavin over to look. He wasn't sure if he was relieved or terrified that she wasn't slicing his head off. Slowly he walked over to the railing, grabbing it and leaning down to look at the courtyard below.

Where he knew Rika had been just a moment ago, there was now a massive crater that covered half the courtyard with no sign of the Lucario anywhere inside it. At its rim, very nearly having been flattened by whatever had happened, Maverick stood with his Resonance Cannon drooping down as if he too was trying to take in what the hell had just happened.

"...Did he MELT her?!" was Gavin's first thought. "That cannon is powerful, but THAT powerful?"

"No, he never fired off a shot from it," Kurai frowned as she watched Maverick deactivate his armor, the cannons reverting to his usual revolvers as the armor sizzled away from around his body. Without waiting the now bare Sceptile rushed down and slid into the crater, digging at the dirt as if expecting to find Rika buried there.

Kurai stood straight and crossed her arms behind her back, letting out a weary sigh and turning to walk back into her suite. "I never thought they would appear now, of all times…"

"They, lady?" Gavin asked, hesitating and giving one last look down below as he followed Kurai.

"Our official cover story will be that Maverick's Resonance Cannon overloaded and killed Rika," Kurai said, ignoring Gavin's question. Considering he was supposed to be her Intelligence Officer and know about anything that could be a threat to the school, he had to admit that concerned him. "To prevent further incidents, he will be banned from using Burst Mode until Cordelia and the Gem Cutters can examine his Gems."

"...Did Rika actually die?" Gavin hesitantly asked as he followed Kurai to the elevator, the two of them along with Edgar stepping into it.

"If she's lucky."