8:30 am . Day 1
After laying defeated in front of the bathroom Leon and Vox each grabbed an arm and hoisted him up like dead weight. With some effort and a lot of grumbling, they dragged him down to the gym on the first floor. they sat at the gym benches Leon leaned back, glancing at the clock. Its hands ticked slowly, steadily.
"It's been two hours since we got here," he murmured, brow furrowed. "And the sun hasn't moved at all."
The light outside the tall, glass-paneled walls was still fixed in that same eerie mid-morning brightness, like time itself had been pressed into pause.
Connor adjusted his slouched posture, tipping his head back over the edge of the bench so he was looking at the ceiling upside down.
"Well, it's nothing new," he muttered. "Might be like one of those sci-fi movies. Y'know, time loops or broken day cycles."
Vox smile and point a finger at him
" Or a simulation like the Truman .
Vox tapped his chin. "On the subject of supernatural … we haven't tested those skills we got, have we?"
Leon blinked. Connor sat up a bit straighter.
"…Damn," Leon said. "we totally forget about that."
"A few minutes later, the three stood in a wide, grassy field behind the gym, facing one another in a loose triangle."
Connor clenched his fist and raised it.
' It's Time... To Test Our Skills
Leon gave him a side glance
But why does it's have to be out side
Connor looked at him with a confident smile he adjusted his stance wave his finger
"Tsk tsk tsk don't be too Hasty my brother It's best not to question things that don't need answers."
Vox nodded beside him, arms crossed
" We have to figure out how to use our skills quickly to get back at those demons in human skin called girls they hijacked The bathroom for us
Connor sniffled, a hand to his heart. "They locked the door… mocked us through it… I'll never forget."
He clinch his fist to his chest
"We have to take back what's rightfully ours."
Leon looked at them both, visibly unamused. "You two are way too emotionally invested in bathroom politics."
Connor composed himself quickly. "Anyway! Back to business. to test our power we would need a test target and you need experience with an ability user you know the drill- this is reincarnation story 101 "
Leon sighed and rested his hand on his chin
"Alright then. But before we go smacking each other around, maybe we should actually say what our powers are?"
Connor grinned, clearly excited. "Glad you asked."
He pointed to himself. "My skill's called Devil Tongue. I can command anyone to do anything I say "
Leon raise an eyebrow "and"
"That's it that's all it had in the description"
Vox stepped forward next. " out of my way my turn . Mine's Bone Manipulation. I can generate and control bone from my arms"
Leon crossed his arms
" Does it hurt we the bone get generated though "
He laughed nervous I guess we will see
The two looked at Leon, expectantly.
"Well?" Vox asked.
Connor leaned forward with a mischievous smile. "Yeah, your turn. What's your skill?"
Leon shrugged, looking out at the field as if something in the frozen sky suddenly became very interesting.
" The sky sure is beautiful"
Connor squinted.
"Don't you dare change the subject you made us more curious now.
Leon hesitated but gave in
" It's called soul devour it's the ability toabsorb a downgraded version of their skill—and some of their stats. But I can only use it three times
Connor placed a hand on his waist. "Huh… So it's like gambling with corpses. You either get something amazing or trash depending on who croaks."
Leon nodded "exactly"
Vox whistled. "Three uses though… That's harsh. It's not like you can choose who dies in front of you .
Leon gave a small smirk. "I'm already surrounded by potential."
Connor raised an eyebrow. "See? That sounded exactly like a future villain line
Leon smirk faded slightly
" Relax I don't know if I will even get the chance to use it before I get killed .
The three of them stood in a quiet standoff, sunlight frozen above, the field around them eerily still.
Leon glanced between Vox and Connor, arms loosely crossed. "So… who's going to be the practice target?"
His words hung in the air like a challenge.
A long, uncomfortable silence followed. A faint breeze rustled the grass, but none of them moved. Then,
"So who's going to be the practice target?" Connor repeated, louder this time, as if saying it again would summon a volunteer.
Vox and Leon immediately turned to look at him. Hard. Their faces were unreadable, but their eyes screamed the same message: Not me.
Connor blinked, looking between their equally judgmental stares.
He held up his hands. "Okay, okay. Obviously we're all too brave to admit it, so there's only one way to settle this…"
He straightened his back like a game show host, raising one hand with flair. "Let us resolve this the way all men destined for greatness do…"
Leon narrowed his eyes. Vox tensed, as if preparing for something grand, maybe even magical.
Connor's voice dropped to a theatrical whisper.
"Rock…"
He raised his fist.
"Paper…"
Leon sighed. Vox smirked.
"Scissors!"
Three fists shot out.
Connor threw rock
Vox threw scissors.
Leon threw paper
The three of them stared at their hands.
A moment passed.
Connor's triumphant grin dropped. "Wait… I lost to both of you?"
Leon patted him on the shoulder. "Sucks to suck."
Vox cracked his knuckles, bone shifting beneath his skin. "Guess we found our practice target."
Connor looked to the sky in betrayal. "This is not what greatness looks like…"
Vox turned his attention to his hands, brows furrowed.
"So… how do I actually activate this?"
He threw a random punch at the air. "Bone Strike!"
Nothing.
He followed up with a dramatic Spider-Man pose. "Bone Shooter!"
Still nothing.
Then, with exaggerated flair, he waved his hand like a wizard. "Abracadabra."
Silence.
Connor let out a snort. "Well, that was embarrassing."
Vox's cheeks flushed. "Shut up Connor or..."
Vox jabbed an elbow outward as a sharp blade of bone snapped through his skin like a switchblade. He winced but tried to pass it off with a grin.
Leon eyes widen
" Well... that's work out "
Vox wave the blade around it like a sword
Leon stared at it
" Doesn't hurt you when you move"
Vox looked at Leon
"Strangely enough I don't feel pain it's like I'm under an anaesthetia
Connor tilted his head
" Does it consume anything to do this"
Vox looked at his system window
" Yeah it consume Essentia a lot to be honest"