"Always showing off!"
The voice belonged to Yaris, a magi-engineer from Mallory High who was practically vibrating with excitement.
She had white hair pulled back in a high ponytail and wore the uniform.
But what really set her apart were the two massive mechanical constructs she held by a handle; they were enormous black gauntlets with segmented plating, and glowing yellow sensors.
Yaris grinned at Sallie with genuine admiration. "That was incredible!"
Sallie scratched the back of her head, looking deeply uncomfortable with the attention. "It's, uh… it's nothing special."
"Nothing special?" Yaris threw her hands up. "You vaporized that thing in one shot! Do you know how much mana that takes? I might need to charge my gear for a month to output that kind of damage!"
While Yaris continued her enthusiastic rambling, Bettie had already tuned everyone out. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a small brass monocle.
