[b][i]The North Side of the Continent of Ollimand, The Ollimand Mountains[/i][/b] "Alright kids, gather 'round!" A small huddle of around twenty children, all around the ages of ten through twelve, gathered around a tall schoolteacher. "This field trip is a basic overview of this week's topic. Who can tell me what it is?" A young boy jumps up and down eagerly, hand waving above him in the small breeze flowing off of the mountains. "Yes, Edmund." "Explosions!!!" The whole class breaks into laughter while the teacher giving the young miscreant a small bemused smile. "Close, but not quite. Anyone else wish to help him?" "Atoms, Ms. Daniels?" The small voice punctures the last of the giggles of a young girl in the middle of the group on the teacher's left. Turning to face the girl, Ms. Daniels gives the small bookworm a wide smile. "Correct, Miss Frost." Turning back to the middle of the pack, she continues. "Atoms. The building blocks of the universe. What makes up all of us and the planet we are standing on today. And who can tell me why we are here today?" "What Eddy said!! Explosions!!" Another young boy, standing right next to said miscreant, shares similar grins with his partner-in-crime. This time, the teacher allows them their glee. "True, Franklin, but what makes these explosions different from last month's?" "The splitting of an atom, Ms. Daniels?" Another girl, standing across the small crowd from Miss Frost, speaks up. Nodding proudly at the girl, the teacher continues. "Correct, Miss Billings. The release of energy from splitting an atom is much more violent than a chemical reaction. And that, boys and girls, is what brings us here to the planet of Tatakai, home of the famous, Dojo!!" Turning away from the group, the school teacher points towards a small gathering of tents at the base of the mountain. While ten miles away, the air is clear and dry enough for the kids to see small figures move about. "That, kids, is where some of the Empress's College's best students are setting up today's experiment. They have spent the last month on a similar subject that we have studied this week, but on a much deeper level. While we studied only a small portion on the destructive capabilities of the atom, these young men and women have been studying the atom on a much deeper level. Today is their field test. They have spent the last week finalizing their studies and have worked together as a class to build their own nuclear fission bomb." Turning to face the children again, she points over their heads towards a tent similar to the ones miles away. "In that tent there is a chest full of special eye goggles for us all. This will make sure we all don't go blind when they detonate their bomb." At her shooing, the small crowd moves in a herd towards the tent. Five, harrowing minutes later, Ms. Daniels gathers her small army of rapscallions. With a grin, she places her own hipster-reminiscent goggles on her face, motioning for the group to do the same. "Alright, my mighty forces, today is a great day. We get to see explosions." A cry of "hear-hear" rang out of from behind the group. Turning together, the children were treated with the presence of their Empress. Bowing as one, the children were extremely startled when their ruler grinned. Shadow looked over the class and their teacher, nodding in approval at their choice in fashionable eye-wear. "As young Amelia stated, this is indeed a great day. Explosions do not happen often where one can observe them with the safety that we of Genellian can provide. Thus so, you are getting only the best that we can provide for our young minds." Pointing out to where the College encampment had been placed, Shadow continued to speak. "As I speak, the College students are now moving to a save distance away. In less than five minutes the device will be detonated, and we shall see the result of their work. Any questions?" "Your Highness?" A meek call came from the recluse of the group, the ten-year-old Denise Andromeda. "Yes, young one?" The soft tone brought preciously unknown confidence to the young girl. "Why are you here? Aren't you busy with...?" "Empress-y duties, you mean?" The class was once again graced with their sovereign's grin as she smiled at Denise. "I do have them, yes, but as I happened to be in the Dojo when I was notified of an imminent nuclear blast, I decided to investigate. And have no fear, kids, your fun is not to be spoiled." She grinned again as she spotted several of the boys of the group perk back up as her words registered. "After all, it's Explosions!!! Who doesn't love explosions?!?" With a small, low cackle, [i](Don't want to scare the precious things do we?)[/i] Shadow turned back to the mountains. "Alright kids, you ready? The countdown is waiting on you." Holding up her hands, she began. "Ten!!" As Shadow held down a pinkie, Amelia Daniels joined in on the next digit. "Nine!!" Young Edmund, quivering with excitement, joined in along with Franklin. "Eight!!" The next number had Miss Frost and Miss Billings included as well as several others. "Seven!!" The final stragglers joined in at last. "Six!!" "Five!!" "Four!!!" "THREE!!" The children's chant had began to grow in volume as the final digits fell. "TWO!!!!" "OONE!!!!" As the final digit fell, the signal was sent. At the base of the mountain, a 4-ft tall, 5-ft long, and 3-ft wide device began the opposite of the beginning of the universe. Atoms were cut, divided by the power of a small, contained blast. The ensuing eruption of energy chained throughout the device in less than a thousandth of a second. The initial flash reached the small group upon the hilltop almost as soon as Shadow's hand had closed fully. The children saw in their peripherals the skeletons of their fellows and their Empress, but this was a small, trivial matter to them as they witnessed with the same awe of the first humans who discovered this power. "I am become Death, Destroyer of Worlds." The words were spoken solemnly by their ruler as the mushroom cloud grew in their view. The shockwave, though diminished as it was by the distance, was blocked with a thought by Shadow. The earthquake too, was stilled by her, though a faint rumble was felt through the children's beings as the forces of nature were violated. Shadow turned to the class and inclined her head slightly. "And now, I believe it is time for you to go home. Ah, Miss Andromeda, do tell your grandmother hello for me when you get home. It seems like only yesterday when I first met her on a similar field trip..." As the final parting words of their Empress drifted off, the children gathered around their teacher. "Grab ahold kids, let's go home." In a swirl of color and a small 'pop' of displaced air, the class vanished. [spoiler]Comments? No reactions, please. No interactions either.[/spoiler]