“This is DJ Demophon Kerner here on K-RAD LA, the only radio station that brings you the I’m fucking stoked to have y’all with us this fine Monday morning! Looks like a beau-ti-ful day here in Lost Angels!

  “Now, I promised to follow up on this story for y’all, and you know Demophon always delivers! The family of Senator Marcus Marcus Marcus has announced that he suddenly passed away of an ‘undisclosed illness’. I don’t know about you, but I think this story No one that rich just dies like that, not with ‘em being able to afford the best Healers in the city! Something smells here, my friends, it smells like a gov-ern-ment cons-pir-acy!

  “Shit, have you noticed that you can’t spell cons-piracy without piracy? Hah! That puts me in mind of the Buccaneers, so lemme throw on one of their classics,

  - DJ Demophon Kerner, on K-RAD LA, April 14th, System Year 453

  The next morning was crisp and clear as we joined the older Delvers in the dining hall for breakfast. We were the only group of students, but there were some older people there that I assumed were going to be our instructors or maybe people who just worked at the school. I didn’t pay close attention to them, though, because I was trying to puzzle out Block’s odd disappearing powers.

  I’d promised myself that I’d figure it out, and I was , I just couldn’t put it together!

  less

  My brain chewed on the thought as I ate my oatmeal. It was better than Created Bread, at least, and had some dried fruit in it that added a little sweetness.

  “Hah!” I shouted suddenly, and everyone turned to look at me. I flushed, but pointed a finger at Block and grinned.

  “I figured it out!” I said triumphantly.

  “Oh, what’s that?” he asked innocently.

  “You. I you were always when we’re in a town, but that’s not what it is. I think you’ve got a Skill that makes it so that people can’t pay attention to you sometimes, but then other times you can force everyone to focus on you! It’s like you’re saving up all that missing attention and then you use it when you want to Taunt a monster!”

  I savored the look of surprise on Block’s face and I knew that my guess was close. It all added up. He avoided attention from people, then drew it from monsters. I wondered what the Skill was called and how exactly it worked, though I didn’t expect him to tell me.

  The green-haired man sighed, then nodded.

  “That’s basically how it works,” he admitted, “but in the future, if you figure something out about someone’s Skill, don’t go blurting it out in public like that.”

  I winced and immediately apologized, but he waved me off.

  “It’s fine, you didn’t know. Just be more careful next time, you could really piss someone off.”

  Embarrassed but also happy I’d figured it out, I nodded and went back to my food. Still hungry, I grabbed some dried fruit and jerky and munched on that while the others finished eating. Afterwards, we all walked to the gate. There were handshakes all around, and a few hugs between the orc twins and their parents. Halieah walked over to me after releasing her daughter from a crushing embrace.

  “Azure, see to it that my children bring honor to the Clan. I expect them to train like true Ironhides and show the soft city-bred children what it takes to survive out in the real world, and I expect to be right there with them. The Black Razor thinks you have what it takes to lead a Squad with two Ironhides, so prove him right and disappoint me.”

  I gulped. The orc Arbalist, towering over me, radiated an aura of menace that I wasn’t sure even her husband could match. I nodded hurriedly.

  “Yes ma’am! We’ll be the best Squad in the Academy, I’m sure of it!”

  “Good. See that you are,” Halieah responded.

  She marched off to join the Chieftain, and Korgath shot me an amused look. I was sure he’d heard everything, but he just smiled, clasped my arm, and then strode out the gate with his Clan members trailing behind him.

  Mason, Hassan, Block, and Vale followed a few minutes later, and just like that we were on our own. Well, on our own at a school for Delvers, so not at all on our own. Whatever.

  The two pairs of twins wandered off to look for something to do while Raylan, Zaire, and I went to find Wilson. It took us at least an hour to write down our reports with all the details he demanded, and my hand was cramping by the end of it.

  We found the orcs sparring with each other in a training yard while Alex and Alyssa watched, wide eyed at the ferocity of the match. Astonishingly, there was no one keeping an eye on them to make sure things didn’t get out of hand. I called a halt to the match when I saw H’ruk’s barrier shatter from a lightning-quick thrust of his sister’s spear. The orcs separated, but looked at me in surprise.

  “Why did you stop the match? I was not defeated!” H’ruk sounded upset.

  I glared back at him. “Do you see any Healers around?” I asked bitingly. The big orc looked like he was about to speak when his sister put a hand on his shoulder.

  “Peace, brother, Azure is right. We are too used to training with the Shaman nearby, we must be more careful until we know this place better.”

  H’ruk finally nodded and relaxed. I gathered everyone around and shared what I’d learned from Wilson when he’d finally relented and let us go.

  “Wilson told us that the rest of the new students would be arriving from LA today, probably in the next hour or so. Apparently they come as a big group with some of the instructors. We should wait somewhere we can see the gates because we’re supposed to join with the group for the official tour and introduction.”

  The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

  The orcs were disappointed to stop training, but they agreed and we walked back over to sit at one of the few tables outside the dining hall. Knowing everyone – myself included, was about to get bored very quickly, I racked my brain trying to come up with something useful to do, and eventually remembered something.

  “We should come up with a Squad name,” I announced to the group. Alyssa pouted and pointed out that she and Alex wouldn’t be staying with our Squad. They were outnumbered though, and soon we were throwing out ideas that we each liked.

  H’ruk wanted a ‘strong’ name for our Squad, suggesting things like Champion Squad, Mightiest Squad, and even Strongest Squad. We shot him down, agreeing that we could come up with something more interesting. When Zaire suggested Azure Squad or Blue Squad, I rejected the idea immediately.

  “No, I don’t want to name the Squad after me. The whole point of the Squad is to be a team, not just be about one person!”

  “If the Squad is not defined by you, then what is it you see uniting us, Azure?” asked G’hala. I was surprised by the insightful question and immediately scolded myself. The orcs I’d met outside the dungeon were just so different from the ideas I’d had about them after fighting the berserkers… I tried to find the right words to describe my feelings.

  “I guess it’s hard work, or maybe the determination to work harder than anyone else to be the best. I’m not sure how to make a good name out of that though. But I bet, from what Mason and the others said, we’re probably the ones who’ve seen the most real fights.” I gestured to Raylan, Zaire, and myself.

  “The dungeon was nothing but a series of fights to the death. And I think you’ve seen some shit too, living with your Clan,” I nodded at the orcs. “Between the Advanced Tutorial, the dungeon, and just hanging around Mason… Well, I’ve realized that if I’m going to survive as a Delver, to be one of the best someday, it’s going to take training to the limit while I’m here.”

  “To the limit,” echoed Raylan. “Az, remember what Hassan and Mason said about limits?”

  “Something about soft limits being pushed, and hard limits something something?” I shrugged.

  “Yeah, that’s right. I liked that. ‘Soft Limit’ would be a terrible Squad name, but what about ‘Hard Limit’?” Raylan asked with a grin.

  “Uh… I don’t know. Squad Hard Limit?” I sounded it out. The others looked skeptical as well.

  “Yes! Just think about it. When someone messes with us, we’ll kick their asses, and then be like ‘you’ve just reached the hard limit!’” Raylan started laughing and I slugged him in the shoulder.

  Unfortunately, no one had come up with any obviously better ideas when we heard a commotion outside the gates. A minute later, people started walking through.

  The first person through the gate had to be an instructor from her age. She was wearing mail that shimmered like scales and moved with a fluid grace, and behind her was a group of about twenty kids my age that were dressed in armor that screamed wealth.

  They were obviously a variety of Classes and had different armor weights and styles, but each of them had on a full set of perfectly matched armor. Nearly all of them had decorative stylings with engravings and perfectly shiny paint. They had a variety of skin tones and hair colors, but I noticed that aside from two dwarves and one slender boy – girl? – I wasn’t sure – with pointed ears, they all looked very human.

  Only a few of them spared a glance our way as the instructor led them towards the administration building and then, to my surprise, right past it. Part of my brain was telling me that we should get up and follow them, but the rest was too stunned by the two figures trailing their group.

  A pair of riders sat astride a matching pair of monstrous cat-like creatures each as tall as me. The beasts had tan coats, muscular builds, and paws the size of dinner plates. A pair of huge fangs extended from their upper lips, curving down past their lower jaws, and their amber eyes shone with intelligence. Their riders were as dark-skinned as Mason, and were wearing dark brown leather armor that matched their skin tone.

  Name: ?

  Class: Vigilant ProtectorStolen from RoyalRoad. Support AzureInk by reading the original.

  Tier: 3

  The man’s cool gaze slid over towards me and I shivered as it passed. I looked at his mount next. .

  Monster: Desert Sabertooth

  Level: ?Stolen from RoyalRoad. Support AzureInk by reading the original.

  [Congratulations, Gunner! Your Identify Skill has advanced to Level 2!]

  I jumped slightly but did my best to ignore PAST.

  About thirty feet behind the riders came another pair of instructors. One of them was a tall elegant brunette woman wearing a rich blue robe with metal inlaid embossed leather armor. Her right arm looked normal, but her left arm was, well, it wasn’t an arm anymore. Instead, it looked like she had a trio of tentacles emerging from her sleeve, each just a couple of inches thick and ending in sharp-looking claws.

  Name: Zenia Osco

  Class: Lightning MageStolen from RoyalRoad. Support AzureInk by reading the original.

  Tier: 3

  The man next to her was much less remarkable, despite a heavily scarred face and arms. He was tanned, wearing a simple white t-shirt straining over his considerable muscles. Jeans and a pair of tan boots similar in style to my own combat boots completed his outfit.

  Name: Leon

  Class: Brawler

  Tier: 3Stolen from RoyalRoad. Support AzureInk by reading the original.

  The rest of the students, presumably the ones who were actual recruits like us, followed along after Zenia and Leon. They were a mixed bunch, double the number of the trainees, and wearing an interesting assortment of gear. Like me, many of them wore armor components in different materials and even different colors. They were also a mix of different races, though the majority appeared to be human.

  I didn’t see any orcs among the group, but I saw one with rock-like skin similar to Zaire’s, only brown instead of grey. There were several dwarves, another slim person with pointed ears, and even what I thought must be a cyborg – their face was half-metal and the eye on that side was a glowing purple. Another was completely concealed in a full cloak with a hood pulled low.

  I managed to gather up my wits and stood, gesturing for the rest of the team to follow me as we joined the back of the group, getting curious stares from many of the recruits.