Your Abilities

"I swear crocks, nothing but fucking crocks, the dude was effin naked just having a full conversation with the other roommate. Imagine that! I wake up, go for water and there they are....they were bright green, oh fuck me, is there any way to change roommates?"

Violet listened to the distraught young man from behind a window lingering in amusement. She finished her breakfast, a blend of fruits and nuts and walked away. Today was the first day of instruction and it was bound be be fruitful, breaking them quickly had to be the main goal. Violet headed for her designated building, a classroom of sorts, it would be her only classroom for the year, and she would share it with the twenty-four other members of her group. There are seven buildings in total, four classrooms named after well known poisonous plans; Henbane, Nightshade, Foxglove, and Caladium. The auditorium- used for training and all inclusive events- the dorms and the food hall.

A cheery good morning met her as she walked through the door of Foxglove. Of course Kieren and his band would be assigned to the same group as her. Violet sighed inwardly and cursed at her horrendous luck. "Morning," she issued calmly.

Ted and Tom dragged her forward, "You were almost late! We were considering sending Alex to go find you!"

Violet tilted her head to the left, " I was engrossed in quite an interesting conversation, something about green crocks and buttcheeks." Five pairs of blank eyes stared at her, "What?"Zen began, "Wait you know what... never mind."

"Hey!" Alex interrupted, "we were talking about our final interviews for getting in! How did you convince them you were worthy of this place? Kieren told them his last name and they accepted him! What did you do?

Violet laughed, met Kieren's eyes, looked pensive for a moment...

**2 weeks prior**

"We do not care that you are a healer, most healers are good for nothing"

"Can you even really heal?"

"Show us what you're made of"

"She looks fragile"

"Just send in the next one!"

Violet looked up at her board of surveyors, she heard their words without really listening. It's always the same with people of power she thought. There was a table in front of her, weapons of different shapes and sizes lay before a large room set up as an obstacle course of sorts.

The ten board members continued their tirade clearly unimpressed with her blasé attitude. Only one, an older woman with dangerous eyes followed her movements carefully.

Violet walked forward, picked up and ornate sword, "unimpressive" she murmured.

"What did you say?" A large man commanded. Violet turned the sword and pierced it straight through her left rib cage, all the way through, and out the back. A shriek, several gasps, and a loud "what the fuck do you think you're doing!? Get an ambulance, quick!"

"No need," Violet said all while pulling the sword out as easily as she had put it in. If they had been shocked before it was nothing compared to their expressions now. Even the woman, Commander Zet leaned forward. The wound was gone, but gone wasn't the appropriate word, there was no sign it had ever been there, not a drop of blood on the sword, on the floor, or on the young ladies clothes. As if it has never happened.

With a calculated smile Violet took a small curtsy and walked out the door.

**

A shrug of slim shoulders "Ohh, I healed a dying rabbit."

Alex blanched, Kieren's lips tugged upwards, it was a blatant lie. Violet was however saved from any more questions by the arrival of their instructor.

Gasps follows the steps of a tall muscular blond man as he walked soundlessly through the room. "It's Captain Kuznet!" someone whispered, "From the Serpent Kings!"

"Let's play a game" Kuznet drawled out calmly, his voice carrying in the quiet room.

"As I call you over one by one you shall take a number and introduce yourself, not with your name -nobody here cares for your name- but with your ability. After all twenty-five of you have introduced yourself you will have five seconds to pair up, proceed and defeat your opponent. I do not care which means you use, the last person to pair up will fight me. Win your battle and you will be punished, lose and you are excused to do as you please for the rest of the day."

Violet was a hot pick: healers are of a typical temperament, soft, meek, and slow in battle. A heavy set girl, Mera, brown hair, freckles claimed Violet with a sneer. "Enjoy your day off" A whip covered in sharp icicles lashed out intent on sending Violet to the infirmary-or afterlife. Violet stumbled, the next four minutes provided a stalemate of sorts with Mera throwing lash after lash and Violet dodging precariously. The room around them burst into a tirade of screams, explosions, and grunts, dodging Mera's whip was but one of the obstacles in room full of exploding debris. Kieren's opponent lasted a whole of two seconds before being thrown unceremoniously through a wall and buried under the rubble. Violet was sporting a cut on her shoulder and with a scream Mera rushed in for the final hit, her scream died in the air as Violet jumped, spun effortlessly and slammed her foot directly into mera's face. She hit the floor in a dead faint.

Violet walked towards the wall looking around, eight others had finished as well, Tom and Ted's opponents were screaming through mouthfuls of dirt as they were dragged into the ground bloody and bruised. Zen had finished some time ago, and Alex was laughing boldly into the face of a boy covered in different colored poisonous blisters. "Does the blue one hurt more or the red one? Green? Equally?" Talk about deadly.

In all of fifteen minutes twelve remained, Captain Kuznet threw an unconscious boy to the side and signaled for those remaining to follow him up the stairs and to another room. The rest of the day was spent in brutal training and as Kuznet released them, all they were promised was much worse for the next day. Dinner was a quiet affair, injuries in varios degrees of concern glistened in the spotless food hall. It appeared three had already dropped out, Violet finished her meal and exited. She walked down the hallway, headed to her dorm, immersed in her thoughts when a gleam of blue from a nearby pillar demanded her attention.

"I hope you aren't always planning to hold back like that, I'd be a real waste of your many talents" Kieren turned to leave when Violet responded "I'd be no fun to scare them all now."

A gleam of curiosity, he moved so quickly, wintery mint, a whiff of evergreen trees, a soft hair raising whisper from amused lips. "Maybe you can show me."

Kieren disappeared into the night.

Violet entered her room shaking her head, he was going to be a problem.

A deep breath, a change of clothes, a small dagger from her drawer. Violet dug a cut into her palm, used blood to inscribe in the air, walked into the silvery afterimage and disappeared.

There was work to do.